Eight Delta Marketing Group - #EDMG
Author: George Ohan
Next stop: Venice, ITALY!!!!
Locked, Cocked, and
Ready to Rock! (…..or something like that!?)
Departing: Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania 6:45 PM – November 12, 2014
The test of becoming a Tour
Manager has begun! I must “LEAD”
a group of seasoned comic veterans (Not
that they needed much leadership..) and keep the harmony on an overseas
tour. As much as I had
accomplished in my career and life up until now, this adventure had a unique
way of making me feel intimidated.
awwww…. :,-( >>>>These guys were pros! What the hell do I know about being a
tour manger?!?! Then I took a moment to give myself a mental BITCH SLAP, and snap out of it immediately!
SUCCESS NOTE: I
though about Napoleon Hill and his teachings of “accurate thinking” What
were the important facts? I have a
mission. >>>What were the un-important facts? My
feelings. >>>I assessed my situation, came up with a plan of
action, and executed.
Let’s meet the guys……
P.J. Walsh – He
is known as one of the hardest working comedians behind the microphone, and for
good reason. His boundless energy
and strength of his physical comedy have carried him around the globe touring
with the stars of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour and found him performing on
celebrated stages including Radio City Music Hall, Universal Amphitheater and
the Ryman Auditorium with legends such as Bill Engval, Larry the Cable Guy, Ron
White, and Jeff Foxworthy. A successful
show on Sirius Satellite radio & a role in a Lionsgate feature film “Delta
Farce” followed.
Jody Fuller – He
is a comic, speaker, writer, and Soldier with three tours of duty in Iraq. He currently holds the rank of Major in
the US Army Reserves. Jody is also
a lifetime stutterer. After a 4
year stint as an Army medic, he returned home to attend college at Auburn
University at Montgomery where he received a Bachelo’s Degree in Business
Administration. After the tragic
events of 9/11, Jody made a decision to return to the Army by way of Officer
Candidate School (OCS) at Ft. Benning, GA. In November 2003, he deployed to Iraq for one year as a
platoon leader with the 296th Brigade Support Battalion of the
Army’s First Stryker Brigade. In
2006, Jody left active duty Army to join the Alabama National Guard and has
since deployed to Iraq two additional times. As of 2014, MAJ Fuller continues to serve.
Benari Poulten – He
is a comedian and writer, as well as an adjunct professor of screenwriting at Cal
State Fullerton. A stand-up,
sketch, and improv performer, Benari is a writer/performer with the sketch
comedy duo The Sophisticates, and he was a writer/performer for Shoot the Messenger
Productions. He received his MFA
in screenwriting from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and is a Master Sergeant
in the U.S. Army Reserve. He is a
veteran of both Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom and is
affectionately known as “G.I. Jew.”
Key Lewis – This
Sacramento California born Navy Veteran is a high energy, improvisational,
story-telling, multiple-personality nutcase. His love for the people and the hunger for the stage is his
underlying motivation. His comedic
stories about his interracial childhood, family, and unusual views on
relationships, make Lewis simply a joy to watch. His ability to improvise and interact with all types of
crowds makes this comic and actor one to look out for. Lewis has appeared on Marlon Wayans
TBS’s Funniest Wins, Starz Networks StaannDup, Kevin Hart’s One Mic Stand as
well as Bill Bellamy’s Who’s Got Jokes!
George Ohan –
Screw you all! (Ya, I said it!!!! You see what I’m up against?!?)
Five guys getting on a plane, we haven’t really had a formal
introduction, and we have a very busy next two weeks. It usually takes time to establish trust, credibility, and
rapport, but in show business you shake hands and IT’s ON! This is where being a military veteran came
in so handy. A simple handshake is
all it took to initiate the “social contract” of You keep it cool, and I’ll keep it cool. Nobody brought their egos on this trip, which obviously
made life a lot better for all of us.
I quickly explained to the guys that I am new at this “Tour Manager” thing, however I was a
Staff Sergeant in the US Army and I could probably handle just about anything
that came at us. I asked them for
their advice, knowledge, and experience to help me along for the next two weeks
and they were all very gracious with the mentorship that they offered. I’ve never been able to be successful
alone. Having a solid team is
a blessing and must be nourished properly.
Mr. Joe!!!
Armed Forces Entertainment representative picking us up in Venice was
awesome. He’s a 60 year old
version of me… Handsome, funny, well-traveled, and everybody in town knows
him! It was awesome to see P.J.
and Benari remember Joe from their last tour and they were able to share some
hilarious stories with all of us!
First stop, the boat taxi around Venice. There was a light drizzle of rain that
was on and off, but it wasn’t enough to stop us from exploring the city for a
few hours. (Sorry Joe, I lost your umbrella) Boat police, boat ambulance, boat
car, boat everything!!!! It was awesome!!!! Ok, back to thinking about work…. We had a radio interview
scheduled for Armed Forces Network radio, a comedy show at Aviano Air Base,
Meeting the base commander, and another show in Vicenza lined up for the next
two days. This is where the
management piece gets important. I
had to carefully gage the guys excitement toward certain activities. (Are they into this tourist
stuff or do they want to go and chill in the hotel room?) I had to ensure that they would
have time to get proper rest, contact loved ones via face-time, and adjust to
the jet-lag before being at 100% energy for the show.
SUCCESS NOTE:
Think, plan, and anticipate what your crew will be asking next and into the
near future. After all, Tour Manager is responsible for
everything that happens, or fails to happen. How do I make
international phone calls? What’s
the distance and time between venues and lodging locations? Who will take us back to the airport? Show Business = 10% Show / 90%
Business
The Italians are great hosts. Joe knew the right places to take us for shopping, delicious
food, and any other items that we needed.
As we walked into any establishment we were met with warm greetings and friendship. This is where I noticed my new buddy Mr. Key Lewis REALLY feeling the vibe of Venice. He was interacting with the people, walking around with his
Go-Pro, and generally had a positive feel about his aura that morning.
I love to ask people, “What is your favorite city that you’ve
ever been to? Not to live in, just
to visit and have a great time, then come home.?” The response is GOLD! I can actually see people going through
their mental rolodex of their favorite places and soon, BAM, the smile!! Every time! In this moment, I was thinking that Mr. Key Lewis just might be walking around his new favorite city! As we explored the statues and buildings,
Key kept talking about his wife and kids.
He was definitely going to bring them to Italy when he could. This was very cool to see a guy get so
inspired by a PLACE, that he
immediately thought of who he loves the most and wanted to share this with them. Instead, he got to be with myself and
four other men…. J Beyond the microphone these
entertainers have families, stories, interesting backgrounds, and real life
things to talk about.
These guys still really didn’t know who I was. To them, I was a dude that was annoying
them with a camera in their faces for the last two days. They finally saw me WORK the night of the first show and I
feel like we had a mini break through. All of the guys personally thanked me
for what I was doing. Key Lewis
came up to me and said, ”Man you’re a fu*kin hustler bro. I get it now.” That meant a lot to me
because, that’s it. There is no
hidden secret to me or my intentions.
I’m an unapologetic go-getter and I will continue to work hard until I
build a team of people that know what that means.
We went around the bases and promoted the show, the guys
killed it with their comedy, I did my homework in the hotel room, uploaded the
photos and video so Thom Tran could download the assets in Los Angeles, and we
were off to the next country! Our servicemen and women had great things to say about the show. They were extremely appreciative of the efforts that were put in to bring them entertainment. Ciao
Italia!
Arriving: Frankfurt, Germany November 16, 2014 - 12:05 PM to
Amman, Jordan
Now walking through Frankfurt airport…... Just landing there gives me back
awesome memories of either picking people up for their first time in country as
a Soldier or leaving the country for good on to my next military
assignment. Those memories came
back to me so quickly, just because I was walking through the airport. As I’m typing this I thought of the
names of the guys from those Army platoons in Schweinfurt….. TRAVELING is so
damn AWESOME!!! Ok, so now let’s get back to traveling with the GI’s of Comedy! No drama, and we’re
moving right along.
At this point I realized that I just forgot my battery and
charger at the hotel room… These tours have many moving parts and something
like that can put you out of the game very quickly. I realized that I need to step up my level of attentiveness
and organization more.
Next stop:
Amman, Jordan
Very Respectfully,
George Ohan
Instagram - @GeorgeOhan
YouTube - /OhanGeorge
#EDMG #EightDeltaMarketingGroup #EightDeltaGlobal
#GIsOfComedy #ArmedForcesEntertainment #LifeAtLAFS #AFE #VFT #GeorgeOhan #Ohan
#EntertainmentBusiness #Military #Veteran
*BLOG 2 of 5 series
*SUCCESS NOTE,
might be one of the steps that I personally took to get to where I am.
