Friday August 23rd, 2013 – Fox Lake, IL
"It is impossible to win the great
prizes in life without running risks." – Theodore Roosevelt
This is not
only an inspirational greeting card quote - it has become the virtual blueprint
for my life. After too many snake eyed rolls of life’s dice to count, it’s high
time for at least one of them to hit the jackpot. I’m beginning to get carpal
tunnel syndrome from rolling those dice so much.
Today I did
it again, but I feel great about my chances to win. There are two people I know
that are starting a comedy content based website, and are looking to launch
next month. They came to me recently and asked if I’d like to be a part of it.
I said yes, and today we started the adventure.
I can’t say
who it is or give any details just yet other than it’s a project I feel is
timed perfectly for the circumstances of today. They’re putting together
original talent and ideas that haven’t had exposure anywhere else, and their
chances of something hitting is excellent. It’s a smart gamble.
The old way
was to hope to get seen in a comedy club, and be asked to appear on “The
Tonight Show” with Johnny Carson. He was it. David Letterman came along in the
‘80s, but before that it was Carson and a few other lower tier shows like Merv
Grifin, Dinah Shore and Mike Douglas.
There was
also “An Evening at the Improv” on A & E, but that came along later too.
For a long time, comedians moved to L.A. hoping to get a Tonight Show shot.
That was the big prize, but as with most any entertainment genre the chance of
getting that one slot was beyond astronomical.
It’s a
completely different ball game now, even though the objective remains the same.
An act needs to get in front of as large of an audience as humanly possible in
order to become known by name, thereby in theory creating a draw when they
appear live. That’s the basic success formula.
Network
television shows have become diluted, and that’s not necessarily the way to do
it right now. They don’t hurt, but how much do they help? I did a successful
Craig Ferguson shot, but it didn’t put me over the top in one appearance.
Nothing does. It takes a consistent plan to attain it.
If someone
can cultivate a steady following on the internet, that can lead to a totally
legitimate fan base. There’s a whole subculture of people gaining followings
maybe not in the millions, but enough to put butts in seats in places or sell them
some trinkets. Jenna Marbles is such a person.
She does
her own You Tube videos, and gets a staggering number of hits – sometimes over
one million or more. Wow! I’d be thrilled to get 100,000 paying fans who buy a
DVD or t-shirt every year. The potential is right there, now I have to make it
happen. I began work today as I recorded a video rant in character as the King
of Uranus. I see clearly what needs to be done to develop it.
I did a
daily rant called ‘The Sixty Second Soapbox’ on a few radio morning shows I was
part of. It’s a bit that got a lot of attention, and I loved doing it. It’s
short but effective, and it’s perfect for the internet world of ultra short
attention span. I’m going to rework a lot of those old soapbox rants and the
site will be my showcase. This is the perfect idea at the perfect time. I’m
pumped!
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| His Royal Weirdness - The King of Uranus! |
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