Daily Cookie

I have always threatened to write about my experiences as an event producer, not to mention celebrity event producer.  What I have seen, been exposed to, covered up, shared and producd over the past 11 years is certainly worthy of a book with lots of chapters.  Tonight, I was out with two women (aka Toughie and Chiefy) that I have done most of the above with.  I still refer to them as my gypsy staff but have come to realize and cherish that they are my unknowns and unpredictable factors.

Truthfully, they are wonderful women that volunteer their time to various causes for many charity events.  I met them at a bar (shocker) on Cape Cod at an event they were working at for a former hockey great.  I guess you can say I poached them because since then and without fail, they have been at all my major events. With success, they have managed to create a little drama at each as well.

Chapter One: Payton Place. Talk about being out over your skis.  My first event for a certain just nominated for Best Actor in a Drama Series was an avalanche of emotion.  Little did I know that with all the guest list management going on, my girls were also tracking the extra curricular guests. Ahhh  to be be single and on television. . . This was also when I learned these girls were worth their weight in gold.  A certain celebrity guest (big guy. . .where everyone knows your name) flew in from the coast of Maine and was used to the fresh seaside air.  They changed his room 3 times and finally he just exclaimed that he really needed an ocean breeze.  My resposne to him , and I kid you not, was “We are in the middle of the state.  I can get you some bad clams and a fan.”  The girls went to WalMart that night looking for Glade Ocean Breeze air freshener and got the man a floor fan.      

Chapter Three: Missing Intern.   Yes I lost one.  Same event, different year.  The best part of this story, well besides the fact that we finally found her, was that no one told me she was missing.  My staff did their absolute best to recover the stray and not let me know anything was wrong until the situation was resolved.       

Chapter Five: Faulty Walkies.  This was the golf event that I freaked out because our walkies were completely silent.  There were no frantic calls of needing water, needing an EMT (or 3 that one year the last being called after that same actor hit a photog in the chest with his drive), needing more golf balls, needing a shuttle bus, or needing anything.  I finally placed an All Call to determine if I had a faulty walkie.  It worked and the response back was “to relax” everything was in control.

Chapter Seven: The Doorknob.  I wasn’t actually at this event, but the girls were and they get such a kick out of telling the story (have heard it now about 7 times) , I thought I should add it here. Their sister (aka the Exhibitionist) joins them for certain events.  As I have said before, as event planners you wear many hats.  This event she was the bellman and was simply trying to be friendly, polite and help guests enter the hotel.  Now add full service to the list.  She turned her head as she was reaching for the doorknob and greeted one very tall guest by grabbing his package.  Picture how a hand is clenched when reaching for a doorknob and then just applying slight pressure.  No need to squeeze, just a gentle turn.   

Chapter Nine: Lost in Manhattan. They were expected to be on site at our NYC venue at 7PM and it was now after midnite.  I called them every half hour. I went to bed but couldn’t sleep.  Finally I discovered that they had indeed checked in, so I got up and went to their room.  Or what I thought the front desk told me was their room.  They ended up finding me, or hearing me, as I was screaming bloody murder outside some poor guys room.  He opened his door to find me dressed in my pajamas banging and yelling like a crazy lady at this door to let me in.  I think he thought it was his lucky night.  It definitely was the girls.  They got off the train at Penn Station to learn Rob Thomas (should I hav called this Groupies?) was playing at MSG.  They managed to score front row tickets to the sold out show, forgot to call me and turned off their cell phones.

Chapter Eleven: Oh My God.  This happened last month.  One would think wisdom and maturity would change people.  I took them to NYC to a season premiere.  Adult beverage service began at 8AM on the train.  They were on “holiday.”  We arrived to a torrential downpour, similar to what I arrived to this week in NYC.  Funny that they knew there was a great Irish Pub right across from Penn Station.  We were parked at the bar at 11AM.  Toughie left with a roadie (she did not want to “offend” the bartender).  The trip ended pretty much the way it started.  But this time I managed to keep track of them, for a little while anyway.  Again the “let’s not tell her” came into play.  One left while the other distratced me.  Finally I let the other go home as well – they had an early train home the next morning (which was really in a few hours at this point). The “let’s not tell her” came into play once more.  These two decided to blow off their train, blow off their day jobs and stay in the city another night.  I discovered them the next morning as I boarded my originally scheduled train and was searching for a seat. Wow that really looks like Toughie and Chiefy.  But they left yesterday.  It is Toughie and Chiefy. . .Oh my god!

There are so many more stories to be told.  I might actually have to write that book some day.  Several chapters will also showcase all the amazing things my staff and volunteers do on a regular basis, Toughie and Chiefy especially.  I can not imagine doing any event without them.  I am always the one upfront and in the spotlight, but honestly its them who make me shine.  I chose to share this tonight becasue I just got home from spending some quality time with them.  I know these stories probably are not as funny to the common reader, but to us they are hysterical.  We laughed all night. 

They treated me to dinner and brought me gifts for being so good to them on our last NYC trip.  One gift was a roadie kit, the other was a certificate to the restaurant we were at.  They gave it to me after they paid the bill. . .they know me too well.  They have spent the past 7 years volunteering at all my events and are now thanking me.  Forgot what we are up to now, but perk number four of being an event producer is having the opportunity to work with some truly remarkable selfless people.  

Les and Jen, you two are definitely a couple of wild cards, but my deck is never complete without you.