Every January, Tour Tech East in Halifax, Nova Scotia hosts a mini trade show and maxi charity event and party benefiting AIDS research. If you've never been then you owe it to yourself to make a point of going. It's a great way to get some quality time with different people in the industry and to help support a worthy cause at the same time. Plus, it's just a lot of fun. April Wine was one of the main headliners at this year's event, which was staged in the studios of Tour Tech East. On the two stages there were a total of 14 bands. All of them were excellent, and the production was over the top. It was a vivid reminder of just how fortunate we are to be working in this industry. About 2,000 people came out during a snow shower to support the cause and to have a great time. Many of those people were industry giants who took time out of their very busy schedules to help out.
I don't like to be a name-dropper, because it can make people think you're disingenuous. My friend Stevie Ray Vaughan once told me that. But let's just say that if this industry was a religion, between the trade show, dinners, and the party in Halifax, the guest list would read like high mass on a holy day. The Pope and his cardinals, not to mention some high priests – some very high priests – were all in attendance.
When industry folks gather, there are always fun war stories, especially from the long-time veterans of the industry. But what's even more fascinating is when you have a chance to glimpse into the character of the people in this industry and learn how they ended up where they are. Inevitably there are stories of rejection, disappointment, failure, and, finally, success. Not to name names, but take George Masek, who is a product manager at Vari-Lite, for example.
Early in his career, George tried to get a job with Vari-Lite. Since he lived in Dallas and they were the big game in town, it was a natural thing to do. He applied and was rejected on three separate occasions. Then one day he ran into a friend, Blake Dewberry, and fell into a conversation with him. George told him he was thinking about buying some PAR cans, dimmers, truss and motors. His friend questioned the wisdom of the move and asked him why he didn't just go to work for Vari-Lite. George laughed and said he had tried. So Dewberry picked up the telephone and placed a call to Larry Sizemore, who was working for Vari-Lite at the time. Within two weeks of this conversation, George found himself on the road working with Fleetwood Mac, working for Vari-Lite.
It's a classic illustration of one of the natural laws of the lighting industry; sometimes it's not what you know, it's who you know. And George knows a lot. He graduated from Southern Methodist University, which is a private university with a reputation for accepting only the best applicants. He knew the art of lighting; he just didn't know anyone at Vari-Lite, where he really wanted to work. Until, that is, he was introduced through a mutual friend.
But the story doesn't end there. When George was hired at Vari-Lite, they gave him exactly five days of training before they sent him out to tech VLs on the tour. It was normally a two week class, but they needed someone for the tour, and they need him pronto. When George arrived on site he knew he was in over his head. So he pulled off the ultimate horse trade. He pow-wowed with the more experienced VL operator, Wally Lees, and admitted that he didn't know how to fix the lights he was there to maintain. But, he said, after watching the load out, he figured that he could lop off 45 minutes, allowing Wally and company to get on the bus 45 minutes earlier than usual. In exchange, Wally would teach him how to repair the lights. It was a match made in heaven, and they lived happily ever after.
The moral of the story is: (1) never, ever, ever give up; (2) sometimes who you know is more important than what you know; and (3) if all else fails, see number 1 above.
Peter Hendrickson and everyone at Tour Tech East make us all proud to be associated with the industry. Thanks for caring enough to give back.
