Tips for Company Banquets
A Dummy's Puppet's Ramblings - from Chip Martin, Mannequin American
Tips for Company Banquets
As our December and January calendar fills up with holiday banquet gigs, I thought I'd remind readers that there are Banquet Planner Tips on Dale's web site.
It's a page that you can print and use when planning your company banquet and includes:
- tips on setting your agenda,
- tips on the use and placement of podiums,
- sound systems,
- arrangement of tables,
- tips for masters of ceremonies, etc.
However I noticed that it's missing one important suggestion ... that being, "Hire an incredibly funny and entertaining Mannequin American who will present a customized program that members of your audience will talk about long after the party is over!" I have no idea why that was not included.
Click here to get an idea of how long I've been appearing at company functions.
The Olympic Winner is ... Sports Reporters!
It's official ... the world's oldest reality show, the Olympics, will not be held in Chicago.
The Olympics, an event where professional athletes pose as amateur athletes and compete for the glory of winning product endorsements, will be held in Brazil. Chicago's loss will be journalists' gain ... because now they get to go to Rio!
Between the "Recorded" and the "Recorder" Who's the Worst Villain?
Dale and I lived in Sheboygan, WI for about 10 years. During that time Sheboygan was recognized as "The best city in America to raise a family." Today, whenever that city is in the news, you can bet it's for something sleazy, inept, weird or all three. Enter Sheboygan Mayor Bob Ryan.
While the Mayor is in deep doo doo for being stupid, no one is talking about the jerk who surreptitiously recorded the inebriated politician. I think our friend Gene Mueller adroitly dealt with the subject on his blog. Here's an insightful excerpt.
"Sheboygan Mayor Bob Ryan finds himself in a world of self-inflicted hurt these days. But why is the coward who rolled tape on him in a local bar getting a pass? Ryan shouldn't have said what he did about his sister-in-law that day at the corner tap ... but the only people who should've heard it and passed judgment on it are the guys at the neighboring bar stool. Instead, he's a Jay Leno punchline. The Tavern Tape is a lurid curiosity ... a drunk guy being a boor and getting embarrassed on a global stage. By who? For what?
As SNL's Seth Myers pointed out: "You get a chance to party with Michael Phelps and your first impulse is to whip out a cell camera and take a picture of him sucking a bong? Really?"
Remember when we used to be so worried about Big Brother ... the proliferation of government/police/private security cameras that would catch us in our worst, unguarded moments? Who would've thought we'd be more of a threat to each other via cell cameras and cowardliness, than anything George Orwell could've possibly dreamed of?"
Soda to Become the "Tobacco" of Our Time?
Soft drink lovers beware. You may soon be paying an excise tax to enjoy your favorite beverage. And you could see warning labels on soda, just as there are on alcoholic beverages and cigarettes.
We're about to enter a Nanny State where I will be taxed up to my knothole. And if you're not a soda drinker, just wait. I'm sure something you enjoy is in line to be taxed.
The potential soda tax is just the latest in a series of events that is connecting sugar to obesity and all the health-related issues associated with being fat. Apparently it's easier to attack and tax products, rather than educating people on the necessity and benefits of exercise.
A paper published in the New England Journal of Medicine says the tax is necessary to help reduce costs of dietary-related diseases and health care costs. And now there is a report in Congress recommending a tax on Soft Drinks.
The Congressional Budget Office, which is providing lawmakers with cost estimates for each potential change in the health overhaul, included the option in a broad report on health-system financing in December. The office estimated that adding a tax of three cents per 12-ounce serving to these types of sweetened drinks would generate $24 billion over the next four years. So far, lawmakers have not indicated how big a tax they are considering.
Once soda is taxed be prepared for other of your favorite but "potentially" detrimental foods to be subsequently added to the list by zealots and a government seeking more of your money.
New York City's Health Department is ahead of the curve with its campaign against junk food. But the Center for Consumer Freedom (an advocacy group funded by food companies) took the offensive with the sarcastic Big Apple/Big Brother poster, above. I think a version of the "warning" above should be required on all food.
Urinals Tout Sobriety
These sobriety testing urinal ads have been introduced in Bucharest, where apparently a majority of drunk drivers are men who drive under the influence after drinking in bars or clubs. So urinals have been transformed into active reminders of the reduced ability to "stay within the lines" and not to drive when drunk. I like it. Via Ads of the World.
More "Potty" Marketing
From AdFreak: It's not just urinals that are having all the marketing fun. Say hello to the WOW Toilet Tank that displays ads, pictures, artwork ... whatever.
I'd guess companies like Taco Bell will probably pass. But Pepto-Bismol wouldn't be a bad fit. The Web site features both consumer and commercial mock-ups.
