Dumbstruck – A story of hope and dreams

The movie “Dumbstruck” is being released on April 22 in NYC and April 29 in Los Angeles. I had a chance to see a pre-release screening of this at the Venthaven Ventriloquist ConVention last summer and recently had a chance to see it again.

I was apprehensive to watch this movie the first time. If you’ve ever seen how ventriloquists are represented in movies, you’ll understand why.

Let’s cut to the chase. The movie is great. Not for the image it paints of ventriloquists, but for the story it tells.

It is less a movie about ventriloquists than it is about 5 individuals who have big dreams.  If you have dreams of a non-traditional job, this movie will speak to you – musician, magician, artist, public speaker – you will be touched.  If someone you love has this dream, you will be touched.

At its most basic, Dumbstruck is a movie about 5 individuals pursuing careers as professional ventriloquists, all at different levels in that pursuit. They could be pursuing any dream. They happen to be ventriloquists.

It’s also a story of the families of the individuals. I am truly blessed to have always had the support of my family in the pursuit of my crazy passion. The movie shows how unique that support is. So, here’s a big shout-out to my family – THANK YOU!

Watch for the movie in theaters near you. See it. Be ready to laugh – and cry.

Click here for the official web site of Dumbstruck the movie.

Have you seen the movie?  Post your comments here. I’d love to hear what you think.

Personal post – My brother Alan

On December 13, 2009, my younger brother Alan died from cancer. To mark the 1 year anniversary of that day, I am posting the text of the eulogy that I gave at his memorial service. I realize the vast majority of you, the readers of this blog, did not know him. Forgive the personal use of this space for my own continued healing.

Oh, and a note for those who read this and didn’t know Alan. He was a funeral director by trade.

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Eulogy for Alan Crone.

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My brother.

If you gave me a single word to describe my brother that word would be “compassionate”.

The dictionary defines compassion as, “sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it”.  I can’t think of a better way to describe my brother.

Of course, if you gave me two words, it would be “compassionate jokester”. He was always quick to add humor to a difficult situation. His mischievous side would come out when you least expected it. I’m still waiting for the punchline to this latest elaborate hoax.

As a part of his compassionate nature, Alan could talk to any one about any thing. And he could do it for hours.  Alan didn’t just nod his head and say “yeah”, “mm hmm”, while you were talking. Nor did he dominate the conversation, just to hear himself talk. Talking with Alan was truly a two-way dialog, the epitome of the word conversation. When you talked with Alan, you knew he was wholly present, engaged and interested.

We first realized his gift for gab when he delivered newspapers as a kid.  Alan loved delivering the newspaper. Actually, it wasn’t the delivery that he enjoyed.  It was doing the collection route. Most people I know who delivered papers hated collecting.  Not Alan.  On collection days, Alan would be gone for hours. Sometimes Mom was tempted to send out a search party.  He would knock on a door, be invited inside, handed a plate of cookies, maybe a cup of hot chocolate, and he would listen patiently for as long as the person wanted to talk.  He was rewarded with huge tips. But, for Alan, those tips were a side benefit. He truly enjoyed the connection with the people.

Alan inspired me. He had an incredible drive and would plow ahead until he got things done. He never let fear get in his way. Buying the business, pouring a concrete driveway, it didn’t matter. He’d just do it. He often asked me for advice. He’d take that advice, then extend it and do things in his own way.  Better. I loved that. Of course, sometimes these pursuits didn’t end the way he intended. Like the time he was chasing me around the house. We were running full tilt. He failed to make the final turn and ran right into the wall.

For a long time, I had a hard time understanding Alan’s choice of profession. I couldn’t fathom having an interest in dealing with dead people. In time, I came to understand that, once again, I had it all wrong. Alan’s job was really about working with the living. He eased the burden of those who had lost a loved one. He treated everyone with dignity.  He was exceptionally good at his job. I wish he were here now to help us all through this one.

Alan was full of joy. He was a truly happy person. On the rare occasions when he did feel sad, it was sadness on behalf of someone else. Throughout his illness, Alan had no sadness for himself.  He never said “why me”.  In fact, what he said was, “why not me?”

He had a quiet confidence that God was with him and that he would be fine, whether here or in the next part of his journey. He had a complete acceptance for whatever God had in store for him. But, it filled him with anguish to see how his illness affected everyone around him.

Alan had an incredible faith. He simply believed.

A few weeks ago I heard a sermon that really struck me.  I thought, “Wow, that’s Alan.”  The minister read the following quote from a book by Francis Chan.   “I don’t want my life to be explainable without the Holy Spirit. I want people to look at my life and know I couldn’t be doing this by my own power.”

I don’t know if Alan felt that way, but I do know that there is no way to explain Alan without the Holy Spirit. I hope to someday believe the way that Alan believed.

Alan and I loved to share with each other whatever was new in our lives.  From the latest gadget to plans for remodeling, to bragging about our girls.  When I would visit, there was always something that caused him to say, “Come here, let me show you something.”

I know that right now, Alan is in heaven. I don’t know what heaven is or what it looks like, but I know he’s there with a big grin on his face. He’s sharing a joke. He is making everyone around him laugh. He is excited about all of the cool new things he is experiencing, eager to share it. And he’s concerned for those he has left behind. He is asking us to continue on. He’s telling us that he’s doing fine.

When it’s my turn to go, I don’t expect to meet St. Peter at the pearly gates.  It’s going to be Alan, waiting for me with that big grin on his face, saying, “Come here, you gotta’ see this!”

Alan, I have always been proud to be your brother.

 

 

 

If you’re going to dream, DREAM BIG!

On Monday, September 13, 2010, I received an email inviting me to an invitation-only audition for the next season of America’s Got Talent.  It was signed by some guy claiming to be a casting agent for the show. Yeah, right. My first thought was, “OK, who’s playing with me.”

Being the paranoid type, I did some checking. I Google’d the sender by name, email and phone number. It all looked legit. So I picked up the phone and called. Direct dial. He answered quickly.

After a fairly long conversation about how they found me, the format of the audition and a few other details, I’m finally buying this. Pinch me now! Then, here’s what came next:

Me: “When is it?”

Agent: “The 18th.”

Me: “What month?”

Agent: “September.”

Me: “You mean this coming Saturday?”

Agent: “Yes. Can you be there?”

Me: “Uh, Yeah!”

Holy crap! I hung up with so many things running through my head. What am I going to do? Which character am I going to use? What am I going to wear?

Here’s a picture of me at the audition.

AGT Audition

 

Filling out the audition questionnaire was interesting. Kind of like a job application, but for a reality TV show. One of the questions was, “If you won, what would you do with the million dollar prize?”  My answer was that I would buy an RV/tour bus, and travel the country performing at community theaters.

The audition was in Indianapolis.  I live in Columbus. Between the two cities is Tom Raper RVs, one of the largest RV dealerships in the country. Being a visual kind of guy, I decided to stop on my way to check out what kind of tour bus I’d like to get.

This was a blast. I stopped in, explained to the sales lady what I was doing, and asked if she could help me. She was great. Here’s the model I picked out.

 

Come on aboard!

Make yourself comfortable!

Hey, if you’re going to dream, DREAM BIG!

 

For those who are wondering, the audition went well. It’s hard to know with a reality show. Whether I am what they are looking for on the show, I don’t know. The way it works is that I won’t hear anything at all until March or April. And I’ll only hear something then if they want me to go to the next level. Keep your fingers crossed for me!  And get ready to call in your votes if I make it. I’ll be counting on you.

DREAM BIG!

 

Start with Thank You

Have you ever received feedback that caused you to turn defensive?  Have you ever felt criticized?  Has anyone ever said something to you that stung?  Of course you have.

I was coaching one of my day-job employees the other day and realized that what I was saying to her applied to performers as well. This employee was receiving a lot of messages (email, phone calls, hallway conversations…) concerning the progress of a particular project that she is leading. This is a multi-phase project.  All of the comments were directed toward what had already been done.  And she was having difficulty hearing these comments as most of them were along the order of “you should have…” and “why didn’t you…”

My words to her were this:  Start with “Thank you.”

Receiving feedback is a gift.

Several years ago, I received an extremely valuable gift from one of the attendees at a particular corporate event.  I was standing by the exit, talking with people as they were leaving. Most comments were the innocuous, “That was nice”, “We enjoyed that”, etc.  Then this gentleman said, “It started slow, but the ending was great.”

Ouch!

It would have been easy to turn defensive or simply let that comment slide past, choosing to hear only the second part. Instead, I mulled it over and considered it. I watched the video of the show (remember that tip from way back?)  Guess what?  He was right.  The show started out very slow. It built slowly in a steady ramp to the finale.  Since that night I have worked hard to strengthen the opening. And from there, create more of a series of ups and downs as the show builds to the climax.  I work on this constantly.  Thank you for that feedback!

Feedback is essential to improvement. For me, the best way to hear feedback is to start with, “Thank You.”  That simple phrase said out loud or just in my head reminds me of the gift I was just given.

I challenge you to try it.

Radio interview

My cast of characters and I had a very interesting radio interview experience today.  This is the second time I’ve done a live, on-air interview.  The first time, it was just me – no puppets.  I figured, heck, it’s radio, we can all pretend.  Turns out the DJ’s aren’t very good at that.  So, this time I hauled a case full of puppets along with me.  If you’re a ventriloquist and you get invited to do a radio interview, take the puppets. It makes a huge difference.

When the DJ contacted me about this interview a couple weeks ago, I got pretty excited. This is cool. A radio station calling me out of the blue to do an on-air spot. Progress!  I had never heard of the station before, but that’s not really surprising since Columbus is a pretty big city and I pretty much listen to 3 or 4 stations.

I looked up the station – WCRX 102.1 in Bexley, OH.  Found information about it on Wikipedia. They don’t even have their own web site.  Turns out it’s a low power station sharing the frequency space and only broadcasts from 11:00am to 1:00pm Monday through Friday.  Woo hoo! We’ve hit the big time now!

What the heck, it’s still a radio interview and they promised me a copy of the broadcast. We set a date and planned to do the spot starting at 11am, go at least an hour, see how it goes.

The big day is here.

10:45am – I pull up in front of the address they gave me.  It’s clearly a residential neighborhood. Not a bad neighborhood, but definitely one where you think the residents’ previous homes had wheels, if you know what I’m saying.  It’s a neighborhood where Gus (my contractor character) would feel right at home.

The DJ arrived about the same time I did and showed me the way to the studio. Most people would confuse the studio with a garage. Including me. And I’ve seen the inside. It was a 3-room studio. The entryway, a music room, and the control room. We did the interview in the control room. As far as home studios go, it’s actually pretty nice. Although, it did remind me a lot of the third floor of my old fraternity house in college. The only things missing were the glow-in-the-dark stars stuck to the ceiling and that distinctive aroma of a college frat house.

11:00am – We go “live”. There are 3 people in the control room. I’m not one of them. I am waiting in the entryway, because that’s all that can fit in the control room. They start to introduce me when the engineer indicates that it’s not broadcasting. He was listening on a radio to confirm. No sound. We’re sending dead space on the airwaves.

They spent the next 20 minutes or so fiddling with things, rebooting the PC that provides their uplink connection, etc.  No luck.  Eugene is getting antsy because clearly, he knows more about their PC equipment than they do.

11:25am – I offer to try a few things on their PC.  OK, actually it was Eugene that offered. He dictated, I typed.

11:27am – System is up and we’re broadcasting.  Interview is underway. Eugene is feeling smug.

From there, it was all fun. Eugene started things off. He had them laughing in the studio. He actually used the term “titty bar” in response to one of the questions. We all had to pause when that one came out. I wasn’t sure if that was acceptable to the FCC.

Wilmer put in an appearance. Edna was not.  Wilmer left her to fend for herself at home.

Curtis was there. He gave them a big “Hoo-ahh”.

Finally, Jose’ made his appearance. We had to keep him back from the microphone a bit since he tends to be a bit loud.  I hope he didn’t do any damage to their system.

Overall, it was a great experience. Lots of fun for all. Now, where’s that CD?

Audience participation

There is nothing like bringing people from the audience onto the stage to engage the audience.  When you pull “one of them” into the act, you’ve just customized the show to that group. You have made the performance unique. The challenge, especially in a corporate environment, is that this same action can just as quickly alienate your audience if you do it wrong.

So, how do you do it right?  I can only tell you how I do it.

First and foremost is to treat your audience volunteers with respect. This is one of my cardinal rules and is especially important for a corporate event.  If you’re working a bar or some other kind of venue where most of the people do not know the person you’re bringing up, maybe you can get away with making a fool out of your volunteer. I wouldn’t know. I don’t work those kinds of events. Even the non-corporate events I work are by and large community events where most of the people know each other.  If you make a fool of the one, you make a fool of the whole group.

My second rule is to make the volunteer the star of the show. I do this throughout as I bring people up on stage. Each person from the audience at that moment is the most important person on the stage. Not me. Them. My goal is to make them look good, not stupid. So many times I have seen magicians go to great lengths to make their volunteers look like a fool. No wonder people don’t want to come up on stage.

I actually have the whole process flow of using audience volunteers scripted throughout my standard one-hour show. The first two people I bring up are very low-key. It’s always two gentlemen.  It is gentle.  It is safe. There is not much required of them.  What this does is establish that it’s OK to be on stage with me. The trick itself is really pretty stupid.    The whole reason I do it is to get those first audience volunteers on stage and establish the comfort level for those who will follow.

The next volunteer is a woman, and it gets a lot more involved.  Still, the goal is to make her look good. I go to great lengths to compliment her throughout her time on stage, tell her how great she’s doing. Sure, there are bits of banter and we have some fun with it. But I know that the trick is nothing without this person on stage to take part, so it is all done with respect.

My show closes with two volunteers who become ventriloquist characters. This is the highlight of my shows and these two people truly are the stars of the show. This is the part that people talk about long after it is over. It would not be as successful if I treated them badly. In a corporate event, this is usually the boss and his/her second in command. They usually have no idea it’s coming.

A friend of mine, who also does a lot of corporate events, suggested that you should always talk with your intended volunteers ahead of time. I don’t do that. But, I do ask the event organizer for suggestions as to who to use. And more important, who NOT to use.

When I say “volunteer”, I really mean “chosen by me”. Before the show starts, I study the crowd. I pre-select who I’m going to use for the various audience participation portions.  I’m looking for some specific characteristics. For example, the lady I bring up has to wear a hard hat as part of the effect. So, I study the crowd to find a woman who is 1) pretty 2) dressed well and 3) has relatively flat hair.  The key is #3. If I were to bring someone up who just spent $200 on a perm (or whatever the current term is), there is no way they would be willing to put on the hat.  And without the hat, there is no trick.  #1 is for the benefit of the rest of the audience. A good looking woman is more interesting. #2 is back to the respect issue. I want to make sure that she will feel confident on stage, not self conscious.

One last point. Throughout my show, I work to have the ventriloquist characters directly engage individuals in the audience. These “volunteers” are not up on the stage, but they might as well be. As much as I (via the character) pick on these individuals, there is always a sense of fairness because whatever I’m picking on them about is something I’ve already had the character pick on ME about first. The first insults are slung in my direction.  For example, cracks about bald heads are made about me first, and only then turned toward someone in the audience. We (the target and I) are now on common ground.

Do you do anything differently?  Or have other tips?  I’d love to hear from you.

Why are you here?

That’s the question I’ve heard several times since returning to a day job this past October. It’s a question I mull over in my head as well.

In a recent meet & greet with a group at work, one guy (we’ll call him “Fred”) told me he knew someone who had worked with me at my previous day job a few years back. That friend told him he was surprised to hear that I had returned to a regular job.  This came up again a few days later.  Last Wednesday, I got to share my performing side with the day job staff.  It was a meeting of all IT staff and the theme for the day was “fun”.  So, I got to do a 30 minute performance.  Afterward, Fred approached me and said, “Now I know what my friend was talking about.  I don’t know why you came back either.”

Thank you for the compliment.

There are many reasons I am back to the old world. There are the obvious answers: A steady paycheck. Health benefits. Blah.  There are the less obvious answers: I actually missed having daily contact with a consistent group people.  A friend asked me to come be his boss (again). My oldest daughter heads to college next year.

All of those are fine in their own regard.  But, the key reason that I am back and specifically at this particular organization is that I have something to give.  Most of those other reasons are about taking. What drives me is the giving.

A fellow speaker asked me how I combat stage fright. My answer was (and is) that when I take the stage I believe with every fiber of my being that I am there to give a gift to the audience. The gift of laughter.  My job on stage is to allow people to put aside their troubles, their stress and for this one hour, have some fun.

My approach to the day job is along the same vein.  I am not there for me. I am there for them – the team of people that I manage.  Without going into too much detail, I lead a team of people who need guidance. They have come this far, but are in need of new direction. I am uniquely qualified to provide what is needed.

It’s not about me. It’s not about what I get. It’s what I have to give.

Egotistical? Perhaps.

But, ask yourself, what do you have to offer the world? Are you giving it? Who needs what you are uniquely qualified to give?

Beef queen

Eugene was pretty excited this past Thursday.  He got to meet an honest to goodness Beef Queen!  Here’s the photo:

Eugene and the 2010 Mercer County Beef Queen

We performed for the Mercer County Cattlemen’s Association.  Olivia was awarded her crown during the event.

It turns out that the Beef Queen’s mom is an author.  Her first book, “The Beef Princess of Practical County“, is out now.  She wrote it long before her daughter won the crown.  Makes you wonder…

Also in attendance were Ohio State Senator Keith Faber and Ohio State Representative Jim Zehringer.  Having two politicians in the audience was just too much to resist. So, naturally, Jim and Keith closed out the show as People Puppets (TM).

The show was well received. A flurry of people approached me after the show to thank me and tell me how much they enjoyed it.  I gave out a higher than usual number of business cards.

I don’t say that to brag.  No, I point it out because during the performance, I had that sense of, “Oh, crap, tough crowd.” You know those times when you’re firing all the usual material, but the audible response just doesn’t seem as strong as you’re used to hearing? It was one of those shows.

It might have had something to do with the pyramids of empty beer cans on the tables. It might have been the full hour of random  awards presentations and politician speeches between dinner and my performance. Or, it might just have been one of those kinds of groups who don’t readily laugh out loud.  The laughter was there in their eyes, so I knew it was going OK.  But, when you’re used to seeing people doubling over, wiping tears from their eyes, a more stoic crowd is disconcerting.

The event served as another reminder that you can’t always judge your performance on the volume of laughter during the event. Other factors are just as important.  Referrals for future performances, personal comments made after the show, number of business cards taken, etc.

Get out there, do the show with confidence. Spread the laughter.

Back to the dark side

Wow! Has it really been since August since I last posted on this blog?  That’s pathetic!  Sorry, everyone.  Where to start… Or, rather, restart…

The big news is that I have returned to the dark side. Yes, it’s true, I’m back to a day job.  Those of you following me on Twitter or Facebook already know this.  I started in mid-October.  For those who care, I am Director of Networking and Telecom at Ohio Health.  Back to my old world.

Why?  Because a friend asked me to.  Seriously.  And because this job needed me. I don’t mean that to sound egotistical. Think about your job.  Does your job really need you, specifically?  Are you the best person, uniquely qualified to do the job you are doing?  Yes?  Great!  No?  Then why are you still doing it?

That’s my philosophy. Don’t work a job because they want you, or worse, because they’ll let you work there.  Work a job because they need YOU.

Interviewing is a 2-way street. Sure, the economy sucks and jobs are hard to come by. But, I maintain that working a job you hate, or where you are simply a cog in the wheel, is worse than taking the extra time to find the RIGHT job.

I have always been fond of a steady paycheck. And over the years I came to view myself as a free agent at work. (At least on my good days.) I had a major attitude shift many years ago that was validated by the book, “Die Broke”, by Stephen Pollan.  The rest of the title is, “Quit today, pay cash, don’t retire and most important, Die Broke”. It’s a very interesting approach.  A good read.

December was incredibly busy and quite a challenge to mix the new day job (where I had not yet earned paid vacation days…) and a full performing calendar.  In the middle of it all, my younger brother died (cancer).  I was fortunate to be able to offer two of my clients fantastic substitutes in my absence while dealing with my brother’s passing.  Thank you Jon Petz for doing a great job while leaving the door open for me to go back to these clients next year!

I promise I’ll get back here and write more frequently now that the dust has settled a bit on all of the turmoil my family has experienced over the past 4 months or so.  I plan to share more thoughts on the return to the day job and balancing that with my performing life.

Stay tuned. And as always, questions? Comments?  I’d love to hear them.

Truck signs

It’s hard to miss my truck driving down the road now.  Years ago I got the vanity license plates “NO DUMMY”.  And I got custom license plate frames that provided a little bit of explanation for that.  Most people didn’t notice the frames.  I think the new signage makes it pretty obvious.  But, then, maybe not.  We’ll see.

The "No Dummy" mobile is ready for action.

Let me know what you think.