American Press 07/13/2014, page B1 GRIDIRON Ad & Press Club crew gearing up for 42nd annual show BY CRYSTAL STEVENSON, cstevenson@americanpress t’s crunch time for the Ad & Press Club of Southwest Louisiana. In just six days their members will take the stage for the 42nd annual “Gridiron” show, set for July 19 at the Lake Charles Civic Center. Pam McGough, president of the club and a “Gridiron” mainstay since 1983, talked to the American Press about how the club is preparing. Q&A - PAM McGoUGH American Press: CAN YOU GIVE ME A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE AD & PRESS CLUB? PAM MCGOUGH: The club has been in existence since 1972 and “Gridiron” started 42 years ago. It was actually started by quite a few people from the media — from newspaper and TV, and then a few from ad agencies. As our positions have expounded, so did the club to include not only advertising and media people, but marketing, public relations, anyone involved within media or advertising fields, any communication-type field, graphic art, that type of thing. The whole purpose behind “Gridiron” as well as the Ad & Press Club has been to enjoy each others’ company, to network and to educate students. We sponsor scholarships both at McNeese and Sowela. At McNeese it’s for mass communications majors as well as marketing majors and at Sowela it’s for graphic arts students. HAS THE AD & PRESS CLUB ALWAYS PROVIDED THESE SCHOLARSHIPS TO MCNEESE AND SOWELA? By the time the money was actually built up and ready to be invested was in the 1980s. Joey Frazier, who is the director for this year’s show and a member of the Ad & Press Club, was the first (scholarship) recipient. In fact, we have had several former members who have joined because they were scholarship recipients — (former American Press editor) Brett Downer, Barbara Downer, Bill Taylor — and they’ve all been in the media in the area at one time or another. It comes back to us so it benefits us as well as them. FOR OUR READERS WHO DON’T KNOW WHAT “GRIDIRON” IS, CAN YOU EXPLAIN THE CONCEPT? “Gridiron” is a spoof on newsmakers, people in the news, politicians, people of that nature, or situations like after the year of Hurricane Rita. It was tough for anybody to laugh about the damage, but we found things to help relieve some of the stress. It’s like a “Saturday Night Live” Southwest Louisiana-style but we also include state figures, as well, because no one is immune. IS THERE A THEME TO THIS YEAR’S “GRIDIRON”? This year’s “Gridiron” theme is “Everybody’s Talkin’ ‘Bout” — all slang. It’s basically open field. HOW OFTEN DO YOU PRACTICE? We practice about eight weeks, close to two months for production. As soon as production is over, we give ourselves a couple of months and then we start working again. The actual rehearsals usually start two months out. ARE THERE ANY SURPRISES THIS YEAR? Umm. IF YOU TOLD ME WOULD YOU HAVE TO KILL ME? That’s right. If I told you, I would have to kill you so it wouldn’t get printed anyway! Actually, we are very excited abut this year’s show, especially with Joey directing. It’s hysterical. Usually at this time, we’ve been rehearsing for five or six weeks so some things just aren’t that funny to us any longer because we know each others’ lines, but this time it’s still hysterical because people are changing up some things and we’ve added some things. It’s amazing. Everyone is pretty much seasoned actors in the show this year, as far as being in previous productions. We can get a script now and grasp onto it. It has remained funny. If you know Joey, he’s a hoot so he throws in his own little comments which keeps us going. But over the years we have had some awesome, awesome directors and they have really helped make us funny and our writers have made us funny. WILL THE DIRECTOR ALSO BE ACTING IN THE SHOW? Some have in the past but, no, most do not because they are staying so busy even the night of the show making sure this one is doing what they’re supposed to be doing and this person’s where they’re supposed to be or that one. DO YOU HAVE ANY FAVORITE MEMORIES FROM PAST “GRIDIRON” SHOWS? I have several. The one that we’ve all sort of been thinking about, and I’m sure it’s because of our memories of (late American Press managing editor) Bobby dower, is one in which Bobby played the character one time of when (lake Charles attorney) Maurice Tynes was running for office. you see it a lot now, but Maurice was one of the ones that you really saw the signs in the back of the truck and they would ride around town. Well, we did a skit on that and Bobby dressed as a cowboy, similar to how Maurice normally dresses, and he was pulling a little red wagon across the stage with his sign as if he couldn’t afford a truck. That was one of my favorites. We’ve done some on the Cameron ferry and the character who has played that has dressed up in pink tutus. I had a couple of friends who did a skit like on “In living Color” with the Wayan brothers where they got into character. We had a couple of guys dress like two of the characters that were females and get into it on stage and one of the guys’ mother and father where in the audience and he hadn’t prepared them on that and they almost fell out of their chairs. I also remember one with (retired American Press editor) Jim Beam. I wasn’t in it at the time, but I attended the show that night and Jim Beam was playing (late Calcasieu Parish Sheriff) Ham Reid on the toilet. We’ve had a lot of fun. There is just so many great memories, it’s hard to remember all of them. We’ve had a lot on stage, but we’ve had a lot happen back stage that is just as hysterical. It’s funny now because he wasn’t hurt seriously, but we had a character several years back that was dressed as the sheriff. At the time we were up in the (lake Charles Civic Center) Buccaneer Room, and he was walking up some steps to get to the stage itself and he slipped and when he came down he came down on his chin and busted his chin open. So one of the ladies in back went on stage and said, “Is there a doctor in the house?” Well they were all cracking up in the audience because they think it’s part of the show or a skit and she’s like, “No, no, really. Is there a doctor in the house. One of our people fell.” Well three physicians went running back, dr. Charles Fellows, dr. Charles Smith and dr. lee J. Monlezun. lee J. actually got back there quicker, he beat the other two, and so he’s working on Eddie. And lee J. was an OB/ GyN at the time so we gave Eddie a hard time about being taken care of by a female doctor. But we ended up having to take him to St. Pat’s Hospital because he needed stitches. So one of our security people who was an off-duty policeman was in uniform and he took him to St. Pat’s. Well when they saw him drive up in his car and here is our friend Eddie in a deputy’s uniform and he’s bleeding and it’s a policeman bringing him, they run out, throw him on a gurney, rush him back there ahead of everybody. And the whole time, he’s like, “I’m in character. I’m in character. I’m not really that hurt.” So there have been a lot of memories in the front and back of the house. _____________________________________________ photo captions: Ruthie Broussard, Vera Hollier, Cathy Chapman and Pam McGough, from left, belt out a song during “Gridiron 42” rehearsal Thursday night. Donna Price / American Press Ruthie Broussard, who will be 90 in September, has been in every Gridiron production since the shows began Donna Price / American Press Cast members Randy Partin, Matt Felder, Daryl Boyd and Cornell Thomas, from left, take instruction from show director Joey Frazier at rehearsal Thursday night. Donna Price / American Press Dan Sadler plays piano while Gridiron cast members practice a song during rehearsal. From left are Beth Clark, Leslie Harless, Shireen Santhanasamy, Theresa Needham, Heather Partin and Patty Hebert. Donna Price / American Press Randy Partin gets vocal during a Gridiron skit rehearsal Thursday night. Donna Price / American Press
Posted on: Sat, 26 Jul 2014 14:18:27 +0000
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