Confession from My Desk: Part III
by Mark Erwin
Sharing is probably one of my finer attributes and I simply couldn’t wait to share this new found “vice” that I quickly discovered I had an addiction to. I never met this guy; I didn’t stay afterwards to speak with him or anything like that; but I found myself going on line to discover, ”Where is he playing next?”
With a credit card in one hand and the telephone in the other, I ordered ten tickets for his very next show, which was, by the way, “Wonderful World of Christmas”. I needed people in my close circle to experience what I did. Most, but not all, weren’t even Elvis fans; but I got them to come (I can be persuasive when I need to be). While the show was moving along, and with half the row as my guests, I kept looking over to see their reaction. Ironically, although not surprising, they were looking at me with eyes of disbelief and a thumbs up! Upon conclusion of the show, the conversation was ON…and it continued. Those who weren’t already were now converted and found themselves at the local HMV buying Elvis Christmas CDs. You’re welcome. Lol!
Over the next few years, I would hinge a bet that I had purchased approximately 3-400 tickets, often times buying up an entire row. On one occasion, I took my staff of over thirty people. Of course it was getting expensive, but I needed to share this vice of mine…Lol! One particular year, in and around Valentines, I found myself, along with some invited guests, sitting in a church in either Mississauga or Oakville (can’t remember) for a Valentines show with Steve and the TVB ensemble (an acronym for The Very Best). On stage to begin the show with a little humour and set things up was one of the members of the quartet, Ron McKerron. As he was speaking, there were some snickers, whispering and very faint laughter. Unbeknownst to Ron, there he was, centre stage with his FLY wide open in the breeze and on display. I had an aisle seat and just couldn’t let this guy go through this anymore; so, with a deep breath, I walked between the pews amongst a few hundred people to find myself confronting this man centre stage and in the middle of his speech. He stopped talking, leaned down, covered the mic, and I whispered, ”Sir, you’re flying low.” With that he turned around, zipped up his fly and the entire audience burst into laughter! Definitely a moment! And believe it or not, it was my first meeting or encounter with any of the crew. Strange, but true!
Having said all of this, was I sheltered? Are acts such as Steve’s common? I was now on the hunt of discovery. Pen and paper in hand, downstairs I went to my computer and punched in the words YOUTUBE and Elvis Impersonators. Lo and behold, a plethora of videos came up and I noticed many used the terminology Elvis Tribute Artist. Today, I really understand why.
I would find myself getting lost in time combing over many of these acts just to find someone with the same calibre as Steve! Straight up--my wife used to get a little “miffed” with me and I don’t blame her, but she was cool; it was certainly better than the other alternatives available on the internet…Lol! For the life of me, I couldn’t find anyone with all of the characteristics, mannerisms, and most of all the voice; and when I thought I was close, somewhere in the song, they would miss. I did write down some names and would go back to them and then have my wife listen but not watch, as I wanted an honest opinion; and we kept coming back to Steve. For me, this small town Canadian Boy just had ‘IT’.
In and around 2010 or 2011, unsure where my thought process was, but I found myself at his shows looking around and saying, “Hmm; I don’t see anyone sponsoring these shows. Since many theatres have sponsorships, I wonder if I should approach him/them about sponsoring their “Wonderful World of Christmas Tour”; so, I went on line and found an e-mail address and fired off an inquiry. Unsure how long I waited for a reply, but it wasn’t instantaneous. In fact, when I received an e-mail back, I had actually forgotten. The note was very well written with an apology and the reason it took the time to get back to me, all of which made sense. At the end of the note, the invite was there to sit and have a chat and it was signed off STEVE. I found that interesting. I mean, surely this guy was far too busy to handle all of the business side as well; but, this polite and well written response was directly from Steve. If my memory serves me correctly, I picked up the phone and called him the very next morning and we set up a meeting which included a member of his ensemble.
Within in a week or so, I met Steve and Ron “flyin’ low” McKerron at Manhattans in Guelph. After we sat down and exchanged pleasantries, I had to have that quick conversation about the church and Ron’s predicament and we had a good laugh as he most certainly recalled the moment, but was also intrigued to learn that it was me.
The meeting was set up with no real design; moreover, a little exploration was needed to discover if I (my company) could sponsor their tour. The dialogue started slowly, as they had never ventured down this road; nor had I for that matter. I just felt that there was a need for it. I could attach my brand to this fascinating talented young man and gain exposure for both of us. Somehow, we ended up chatting about a number of other things which brought up my involvement in the world of Professional Sports. What? Professional Sports??? Where is this going? Ya…another one of my vices is the sports world, and while not by design, I ended up back in the 90s involved in the world of Professional Boxing. By the time the 2000s rolled around, I ended up becoming a manager of fighters, one of whom was a World Champion; and by the way, his name just happened to be Steve. Lol!
Photo of Steve Michaels in “This is Elvis” in Ireland. Photo Credit: Pamela Raith Photography.
Anyways, what seemed like minutes, turned into hours and time got away from us. Where do we go from here? When do we meet again? What do we talk about? So many stones to turn over and it was quite eye opening. Good, bad or indifferent, Steve was on his way to Ireland and wouldn’t be back for several weeks. For sure, it was going to be a spell before we reconnected.
I believe it was six weeks later when I received a call from Steve who literally had just arrived back from Ireland. Where do we go from here? I guess you can say that was a loaded question because neither of us had any idea what that question, or its answer would lead to. What was once an exploratory meeting turned into an excavation of sorts.
To Be Continued.
Edits for “Confessions from My Desk: Part III” by Carolyn MacArthur
Photos: Credited to Steve Michaels, Mark Erwin, and Elaine Wren, unless otherwise indicated.