One big ongoing thing during the late eighties and nineties was the hype around Universal Studios beginning operations in Orlando. This bled over into the theme party biz a few times when our crackerjack sales department sold "Back Lot" parties. Mostly this involved renaming and repainting old stuff. For instance, rearrange the decompression chamber from the "Undersea World," paint it dark blue and call it "The Bat Cave."
The coolest thing, though, was the Indiana Jones cave. We took our two swamp ponds and the fiberglass rocks from the "Pirate" parties and set up the two rock archways as the entrance and the dead end. At the end we rigged two pumps to create the double waterfall that that rock archway was actually designed to handle, with the path taking guests between falls. One fell into a fiberglass rock with a built-in deep pool, into which we placed bones from the human skeleton that had broken years before. Between the entrance arch and the waterfall arch we flanked the path with every rock we had in stock, which was a lot, thatched it over and dressed it up with erosion cloth, reed fencing, areca palms, ferns and whatever else there was to turn the pile of rocks into a cave.
The purchasing department provided us with bushels of large, brightly colored bugs, lizards, snakes and rodents. We placed these throughout such that anywhere you looked and anywhere you might put your hand, there was a critter of some kind. (Of course, after the first time out our supply of critters was reduced by about 75% due to theft by party goers!) Just before party time, we broke out the cobweb machines, went in and went crazy with the cobwebs.
During the party, guests could sign up to be Indiana Jones in a video taped adventure in the cave, taking a tape home as a souvenir. Very clever, really, and hokey as hell. Of course, they weren't really prepared for the reality of it: they didn't have the hat and they didn't have the brown leather jacket! Lucky for them, they had a guy (me) with a brown leather jacket for riding my motorcycle, and several fedora styles from which to choose. Saved the day again!
Needless to say, the cave required exacting placement of ponds, rocks, archways and pumps to make it work properly. So when we invented it in the shop the first time, we laid it all out on quarter inch plywood, marking the placement of each element for future reference: The Template of Doom!
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Saturday, August 28, 2010
O Ghost Who Walks
There aren't many of you who will get the title of this post, so I'll explain it straightaway. Years ago there was an action/adventure strip called "The Phantom" in the comics section of the newspaper. The natives who lived around where The Phantom lived and fought the forces of evil called him "O Ghost Who Walks." Well... the next big hoo-hah that comes to mind from the Image International days was our New Year's Eve party at - you guessed it - The Marriott World Center. It was The Phantom Of The Opera. Once again, Al was gaga over the idea, spared no expense, and all things considered, it was one of the most interesting projects ever. My nick-name for it: "O Ghost Who Walks." Even twenty years ago hardly anyone knew what I was talking about.
Al brought in his Whiz Bang Filipino sculptor - an ice sculpture specialist who did other sculpting on the side - to do the giant sculptures on the stage. There were two twelve-foot tall ones of horned guys molesting half-naked women, one for each side of the stage, and one eight foot by eight foot angel thing flying over the center. Eddie and I were in charge of fiber glassing them and making the angel hangable. We also put rigging points on the twelve footers, knowing how these parties go and how unpleasant it would be if one - or both - fell over. The big deal with these was the nipples on the women. We put some on, Al came through and said, "Make 'em bigger!" We put some bigger ones on, the women from the front office came through saying, "That's ridiculous! They need to be smaller!" We tried about seven different sizes before everyone was satisfied. Then we fiber glassed them.
The entranceway for this one was very unusual. Guests who were willing and able were led down a back hall to a very steep set of steps up to an eight foot high series of platforms that led across one closed-off section of the ballroom. There were concrete-looking posts on both sides with chain connecting them, making it a bridge over the sewer, with pipes sticking out here and there down along the side. There were "bridge facades" on either side of the entrance bridge. In the thirty-foot space between bridges were twenty-something floor-standing candelabras with flicker bulbs, and a gondola was parked. This looked pretty hokey when we set it up, but after the fog was pumped in, it was way cool.
At the other end was a wide and long curved grand staircase. I built that baby, and I took the time to make it really beautiful. Unfortunately, my patience with this was not shared by Mr. Caputo, who told Eddie, "Don't spend all day making the curve! Just jam some plywood in there!" Eddie ran interference and I made it pretty. The staircase led down into the main part of the ballroom, which was draped all along all four sides with black rain curtain, also known as shimmer curtain. There were more candelabras standing at regular intervals along the sides. The stage was outfitted like the cemetery scene, with ornate wrought iron gates behind the entertainment. on the stage left front corner was a raised pulpit cantilevered out so it gave the illusion that the person in it was floating in space.
The Orlando Opera Company was part of the show, with full costumes and an orchestra. I never attended this or any of the other New Year's Eve parties, but I was assured everybody loved it.
As is the case with all of these parties, seen in the stark flourescent light the scenery looks pretty lame. But you turn out the lights and plug in the flicker bulbs and the whole scene comes to life. Get the partygoers a little drunk and it's all magic. That's what I was in it for: the magic.
Al brought in his Whiz Bang Filipino sculptor - an ice sculpture specialist who did other sculpting on the side - to do the giant sculptures on the stage. There were two twelve-foot tall ones of horned guys molesting half-naked women, one for each side of the stage, and one eight foot by eight foot angel thing flying over the center. Eddie and I were in charge of fiber glassing them and making the angel hangable. We also put rigging points on the twelve footers, knowing how these parties go and how unpleasant it would be if one - or both - fell over. The big deal with these was the nipples on the women. We put some on, Al came through and said, "Make 'em bigger!" We put some bigger ones on, the women from the front office came through saying, "That's ridiculous! They need to be smaller!" We tried about seven different sizes before everyone was satisfied. Then we fiber glassed them.
The entranceway for this one was very unusual. Guests who were willing and able were led down a back hall to a very steep set of steps up to an eight foot high series of platforms that led across one closed-off section of the ballroom. There were concrete-looking posts on both sides with chain connecting them, making it a bridge over the sewer, with pipes sticking out here and there down along the side. There were "bridge facades" on either side of the entrance bridge. In the thirty-foot space between bridges were twenty-something floor-standing candelabras with flicker bulbs, and a gondola was parked. This looked pretty hokey when we set it up, but after the fog was pumped in, it was way cool.
At the other end was a wide and long curved grand staircase. I built that baby, and I took the time to make it really beautiful. Unfortunately, my patience with this was not shared by Mr. Caputo, who told Eddie, "Don't spend all day making the curve! Just jam some plywood in there!" Eddie ran interference and I made it pretty. The staircase led down into the main part of the ballroom, which was draped all along all four sides with black rain curtain, also known as shimmer curtain. There were more candelabras standing at regular intervals along the sides. The stage was outfitted like the cemetery scene, with ornate wrought iron gates behind the entertainment. on the stage left front corner was a raised pulpit cantilevered out so it gave the illusion that the person in it was floating in space.
The Orlando Opera Company was part of the show, with full costumes and an orchestra. I never attended this or any of the other New Year's Eve parties, but I was assured everybody loved it.
As is the case with all of these parties, seen in the stark flourescent light the scenery looks pretty lame. But you turn out the lights and plug in the flicker bulbs and the whole scene comes to life. Get the partygoers a little drunk and it's all magic. That's what I was in it for: the magic.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Oz and Az
Eddie Channell had been with us for about four months when we got the word that Ray had sold the big one! Hardee's (of all people!) were having their big annual meeting at - you guessed it - the Marriott World Center, and they wanted two big party extravaganzas. Night one: The Wizard of Oz; night two: another Hi-Tech Aztec just like the one Al sold a year previously, and the buyer in California wouldn't rent it or sell it for less than it cost to build a new one. The good news: I still had a couple of both kinds of stringers for the step pyramids lying about in the steaming heap of old set parts.
Since I had done it once before, Eddie put me in charge of the Aztec set. We hired in two more guys to work with us, and three guys to work the night shift 3:30pm to midnight. Mostly we worked on Oz during the day, except for the time I spent doing drawings of Aztec pieces for the night shift to build. We'd come in every morning to find something Aztec standing up, ready to be taken down, painted and glittered.
In addition, Al had his "whiz bangers" come in to build the step pyramids. These guys were a construction crew that Al usually called in to build things like big-ass decks and step units. Yes, they built two step pyramids in a big hurry, thanks to my stringer templates, but the pieces that needed to come apart for shipping were screwed together in places blocked from access by the outer skin. We had to rip them apart with pry bars and repair them. Big time-saver.
Al was totally into Oz. He bought ten enchanted apple trees, fiberglass trunks with faces on them and fiberglass limbs to be screwed on with the "special screws" included with each tree (1 5/8" drywall screws!) He bought a couple hundred fake purple corn plants and a few hundred big fake Munchkin Land flowers. He bought Dorothy, Cowardly Lion, Tin Man and Scarecrow costumes for walk-around characters (I was Cowardly Lion for two later rentals, but not the first run)
The entranceway was excellent! Out in the hallway Auntie Em's house was all black and white and grey, with a grey pig pen and grey pigs off to the side. The front porch led you to the double screen door (to make it wide enough to please the fire marshall) where you stepped into the Grand Ballroom into Munchkin Land, with everything in brilliant color. The house on that side was kind of crunched up, with Wicked Witch of the East legs poking out from under, wearing Red Glitter Slippers. The Yellow Brick Road led you past Munchkin houses, through the Scarecrow's corn field, past the Tin Woodman's house, through the enchanted apple trees to the Emerald City (green glitter.) The stage for the band was backed with the Wizard's chamber, gold glitter, complete with fake flames and smoke and a lame, puny video of the Wizard's head in the middle. Then was the Witch's castle facade, which was huge and dark blue, and back to Munchkin Land. For some reason, Al didn't go for a tethered balloon thing for the end.
We worked a thirty five hour day finishing up all that stuff, loading it on the trucks and installing it for the last twenty three. We all went to breakfast in the morning, after twelve hours in the ballroom. We noticed people staring at us, and we deduced why: we were completely covered with glitter. Then we went back at it, finishing up a half hour before starting time. We went out in the hall to check out Auntie Em. What a disappointment! She was sitting in her white rocking chair in front of her grey and white house, wearing a blue dress and snapping green beans! Ruined the whole illusion - but...that's show biz!
We went home, washed off a half-ton of glitter and crashed for a few hours, then went back at 11:00pm to disassemble everything. The carpenters, who would begin installing Aztec the next morning, unscrewed and laid down all the pieces and went home, leaving the "goofies" to load the trucks. As it should be.
Aztec was anticlimactic after Oz. Different colors of glitter. The high point came when the President of Hardee's Himself came in while we were working and told us what a great job we were doing. It doesn't get any better than that!
Since I had done it once before, Eddie put me in charge of the Aztec set. We hired in two more guys to work with us, and three guys to work the night shift 3:30pm to midnight. Mostly we worked on Oz during the day, except for the time I spent doing drawings of Aztec pieces for the night shift to build. We'd come in every morning to find something Aztec standing up, ready to be taken down, painted and glittered.
In addition, Al had his "whiz bangers" come in to build the step pyramids. These guys were a construction crew that Al usually called in to build things like big-ass decks and step units. Yes, they built two step pyramids in a big hurry, thanks to my stringer templates, but the pieces that needed to come apart for shipping were screwed together in places blocked from access by the outer skin. We had to rip them apart with pry bars and repair them. Big time-saver.
Al was totally into Oz. He bought ten enchanted apple trees, fiberglass trunks with faces on them and fiberglass limbs to be screwed on with the "special screws" included with each tree (1 5/8" drywall screws!) He bought a couple hundred fake purple corn plants and a few hundred big fake Munchkin Land flowers. He bought Dorothy, Cowardly Lion, Tin Man and Scarecrow costumes for walk-around characters (I was Cowardly Lion for two later rentals, but not the first run)
The entranceway was excellent! Out in the hallway Auntie Em's house was all black and white and grey, with a grey pig pen and grey pigs off to the side. The front porch led you to the double screen door (to make it wide enough to please the fire marshall) where you stepped into the Grand Ballroom into Munchkin Land, with everything in brilliant color. The house on that side was kind of crunched up, with Wicked Witch of the East legs poking out from under, wearing Red Glitter Slippers. The Yellow Brick Road led you past Munchkin houses, through the Scarecrow's corn field, past the Tin Woodman's house, through the enchanted apple trees to the Emerald City (green glitter.) The stage for the band was backed with the Wizard's chamber, gold glitter, complete with fake flames and smoke and a lame, puny video of the Wizard's head in the middle. Then was the Witch's castle facade, which was huge and dark blue, and back to Munchkin Land. For some reason, Al didn't go for a tethered balloon thing for the end.
We worked a thirty five hour day finishing up all that stuff, loading it on the trucks and installing it for the last twenty three. We all went to breakfast in the morning, after twelve hours in the ballroom. We noticed people staring at us, and we deduced why: we were completely covered with glitter. Then we went back at it, finishing up a half hour before starting time. We went out in the hall to check out Auntie Em. What a disappointment! She was sitting in her white rocking chair in front of her grey and white house, wearing a blue dress and snapping green beans! Ruined the whole illusion - but...that's show biz!
We went home, washed off a half-ton of glitter and crashed for a few hours, then went back at 11:00pm to disassemble everything. The carpenters, who would begin installing Aztec the next morning, unscrewed and laid down all the pieces and went home, leaving the "goofies" to load the trucks. As it should be.
Aztec was anticlimactic after Oz. Different colors of glitter. The high point came when the President of Hardee's Himself came in while we were working and told us what a great job we were doing. It doesn't get any better than that!
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