Coolest Gigs Ever
During the show, I mentioned a video I shot in Mexico. In case you want to see it – here it is!
Audio Transcript:
Tom: Welcome to Maher Ventriloquist Radio. It’s time to have fun, laugh, and learn with Tom, Ken, and Mark. Welcome back to Episode Three of Maher Ventriloquist Radio. Today, Mark and I are going to be talking about one of the perks of our business, and I’m really excited about this because this is actually kind of cool. Hopefully it will inspire you. And with that said, let’s get this party started.
Mark: Hey everybody, welcome to Maher Ventriloquist Radio. We’re glad you’re joining us today.
Tom: Mark Wade’s here.
Mark: Hey, Tom Crowl’s here.
Tom: I am here.
Ken: Me too. Groves is here.
Tom: And we’re glad you’re here too.
Mark: (laughing) I’m just happy to be anywhere today.
Tom: Today we’re going to talk about our coolest gigs ever. And we’ll let Mark start this off, because Mark has been doing shows since the dinosaurs died off.
Ken: The Ice Age!
Tom: Yeah, it was cool during the Ice Age.
Mark: One of the coolest gigs I ever worked was for a group of funeral directors. That sounds awful, but they’re nice people. They’re around sad situations all the time, so when they get together for a show or a party, they really know how to cut loose.
I got to the bank building where they were holding the party on the top floor. The guys met me, carried my stuff in, and were just ready to have a good time. There was even an ice sculpture—one guy took it apart just for a prank. They were doing all kinds of silly stuff.
During the show, everything I said got a laugh. I could’ve just cleared my throat and they would’ve laughed. When it was over, a group of them helped me pack my equipment, carried it out to my car, and one guy shook my hand and gave me a $100 bill on top of the big fee they’d already paid. That was in Tennessee somewhere, and I just remember how much fun it was. I’d work for them again anytime.
Tom: That’s great. And you know, every now and then you’ll come across a gig like that. When you get them, savor the moment because it might be a while before you have another.
Ken: One of my coolest gigs was in Medora, North Dakota. During the day no one was around, but in the evening buses would roll in and suddenly there’d be 5,000 people sitting in this big amphitheater.
The escalator from the parking lot down to the seating area was about eleven stories high, so when you looked out it was just a wall of people in front of you. When they laughed, you could feel it hit you. That was incredible.
We did that show for six or eight weeks straight. Every night, 5,000 people, huge stage, big production, everything first class. It was one of my most memorable gigs.
Tom: Ken, tell them the umbrella story.
Ken: Oh yeah. One night a thunderstorm rolled in. I was onstage performing and the MC came out with a giant golf umbrella and held it over my head. The audience looked at him, looked at me, looked back at him like, “Uh, dude, thanks for the gesture… but now you’ve just turned him into a lightning rod!” The place went crazy.
That whole production was fun. One night they wanted a new opener, so the director—who was a real cowboy—decided to stage a mock battle. He had a bunch of guys dress up as Indians with war paint, knives in their mouths, tomahawks in their hands, crawling over the rocks into the audience. Then the cavalry came riding in shooting blanks.
It was completely politically incorrect. Nobody knew whether to laugh, cry, or run. The director got fired. But man, what a memory.
I loved doing production shows like that—in Vegas, Atlantic City, all over. Another great one was when I appeared on the Statler Brothers show on TNN. I did it four times, got to work with all kinds of country music stars. That was a huge highlight.
Tom: I remember watching those. In fact, one of the first videos I ever saw of you had those episodes on it. One of my favorite gigs of Ken’s wasn’t the coolest, but it was the funniest. The “Big Butt Fair.”
Ken: (laughs) Oh yeah. We were at the Butler County Fair in Pennsylvania. During my intro I said, “It’s great to be here at the Big Butt Fair…” instead of Butler County Fair. People outside the tent heard it and came in laughing. The whole crowd was howling.
Mark: Didn’t that fair have a wall in the green room where all the acts signed their names?
Ken: That was actually another venue in Farrell, Pennsylvania. I worked with the Oak Ridge Boys, Alabama, and others there. The green room wall was covered with signatures—Mark Wade’s, Mark Merchant’s, mine, and all kinds of stars.
Tom: Okay, my turn. Honestly, one of my coolest gigs wasn’t the highest paying. For about a month I performed in Cancun. They flew me down and I stayed in Playa del Carmen in a beautiful condo a block from the beach.
Every night they’d pick me up and drive me back these private roads to five-star resorts where people paid $5,000–$6,000 a week to stay. I’d get a full gourmet dinner at the restaurants, then do a 50-minute show. The staff carried my equipment. It was like living a dream.
One night I joked with a guest whose wife was on the computer. The next week, the guy was still there and caught my show again. We ended up becoming friends.
The shows could be tough because vacation crowds don’t always sit up front. I used to have to coax them: “You paid all this money to be here, come up front. You can leave from the front just as easily as from the back.” But overall, the gigs were amazing.
I also had time to explore. I visited the Mayan ruins at Coba by bus—which was an adventure since I don’t speak Spanish. I ended up lost, wandering through the jungle, shooting funny puppet videos about being stranded in the Yucatán. It was hilarious in hindsight, but not something I recommend without speaking the language!
That whole month was one of my favorite runs.
Mark: Another memorable one—I was in Angelica, New York, opening for Mel Tillis at a fair. His bus pulled up behind the stage, which had no backdrop, so you could see me from behind while the crowd was out front.
It was a hot July day. Mel was a gracious guy—he’d sign autographs until everyone was happy. He had a stutter when he talked, but when he sang, it disappeared. Watching him perform and then having him compliment me afterward was a real highlight.
Tom: And that wraps up another episode.
I hope you’re having as much fun listening as we are recording. Every time Mark, Ken, and I get together, it’s just fun.
If you’d like us to cover something specific, email me at tom@maherstudios.com. Between us, we have 95+ years of professional performing experience, and we’d be glad to share our insights.
We’ve recorded a bunch of these in advance so a new episode will drop every Monday. Mark also posts a new blog every Wednesday at maherstudios.com, plus we’ve got the Maher Users Forum. It’s a great community—different from Facebook, and worth checking out.
By the way, we just submitted to iTunes. They usually take a week, but our show was accepted within 24 hours. So check iTunes for Maher Ventriloquist Radio, subscribe, and if you can, leave us a rating and review. It really helps us grow the audience and the community.
Thanks for listening. We’ll see you next week.
You’ve been listening to Maher Ventriloquist Radio, sponsored and produced by Maher Studios.
I love this broadcasts. I could listen to these stories for hours. Swapping stories is always one of my favourite parts of the convention.
Great job, guys! I loved it. Also loved your video, Tom.
I’m a collector too of lots of puppets
Keep smiling