COX TALKS

To Catch a ...WHAT..Chris Hansen

2009-04-22T09:19:00.003-06:00

He does this blog entry with his tongue, ya what he’s got left of it, planted firmly in his cheek.
Ok I might not be the most internet savvy guy around, but the other day I thought I’d innocently order a bunch of “Kinder Surprise” over the internet, for the family kids when they come to visit. The very next day I came home and low and behold there was Chis Hansen from NBC sitting at my kitchen table asking me to ..”Take a seat over there”....lol
If this happens to you I’ve come up with some excuses that you can say and do that will never make onto tv. If you ever come face to face with Chris Hansen in your kitchen...

1. Dance into the room naked, show him your resume and credits and say...”I’m an out of work Actor, and this is the only way I can get National coverage.” Then break into song.

2. Tell him you knew a TV show was going to burst in, but you thought you were helping with the show “To Catch a Teenage Whore”.

3. Come out with your own film crew and tell him that he’s on the new show, “To Catch a Newsman, who’s given up on REAL Journalism”

4. Come out with your underfed pet Bengal Tiger and say...Chris looks like you’ve got a choice...Play a nice game of “Sigfield and Roy” or if you really want to catch a predator...go head”

I may joke about a very serious problem but I really think we should leave it up to our fine men and women in blue and not have it plastered all over prime time television. We should do everything in our power to help the police do their jobs in catching these predators. Let Chris Hansen get out of gutter reality television and go back to giving us the facts on some serious news stories. He could come up with a new show like “To Catch an AIG Executive” or something. Chris Hansen...”Get off My Lawn”. Don't miss the Greatest Chris Hansen Lines ... The Hansen Soundboard

Thanks for reading this comedy bit
Bryan Cox- Voice Actor and Stand-Up
bigbry@sasktel.net

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Voice Actor-Behind the Scenes

2009-04-20T11:24:00.003-06:00

Being a voice actor may be looked upon as kind of a weird way to make a living. Out of all the media jobs I’ve had, voice actor is really different. The folks I’ve run into in this business have been giving and very kind. Let me tell you that when someone asks what you do for a living and you answer,”I’m a Voice Actor”, 90% of the time you hear, “a what”? In Voice acting, sure there’s a bit of the old “stab you in the back” but you’ll find that in any entertainment job. Being a voice actor is allot like being an on camera actor...you have to audition like crazy and know how to handle rejection. When you make it ...most voice actors are not afraid to give back and help the up and comers. Have a peek at this video to see what voice acting is about...kind of cool.

Thanks for the read
Bryan Cox - Voice Actor.

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TV's Ass Kickin'

2009-04-12T08:52:00.003-06:00

What’s going on with TV...now a days it seems that the networks will use any excuse stick on a rerun, Christmas, Easter, My mother is in the Bathroom...whatever. They think the viewers are doing something else and won’t watch the shows. Advertising revenue is down on all networks. One of the many reasons is, from an advertisers stand point, they don’t want to advertise on a rerun show that no one will watch. Reality Check...make more NEW episodes. How to fix the problem,

1. The regular working TV season is 13 weeks...expand that to 25 weeks of new episodes. The whole industry works more. More people tivo and watch because of new episodes. More viewers=more advertising!

2. Each network should have their own rerun channel. Not for the really old shows but all the stuff from the beginning of the season and even last season. They are starting to use the Internet for this right now.

3. A 2 Tier pricing system for Advertising...you can buy the rerun channel at one price or you could buy the main network channels at a premium price. Cause as you all know, more people watch new shows and episodes rather than reruns.

I really just touched the tip of the Iceberg here. It all comes down to making more money. These days you have to think outside of the box or it’ll become a coffin. You have to work harder... and smarter. Please feel free to leave a comment and or contact me...
Thanks for your time and the read.
Bryan Cox

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You've Worked in Radio To Long IF...

2009-04-03T13:42:00.004-06:00

Thanks to my hard working radio buddy Darren James for this...JUST TO FUNNY

You know you've been in radio too long if ...

You were first hired by a GM who actually worked in radio before becoming GM.

You excitedly turn the radio up at the sound of "dead air" on the competitor's station.

Sales guys wore Old Spice to cover the smell of liquor.

You were playing Elvis' number one hits when he was alive.

You worked for only ONE station, and you could name the guy who owned it.

You remember when normal people listened to AM radio, and only "hippies" listened to FM.

Radio stations used to have enough on-air talent to field a baseball team every summer.

You're at least 10 years older than the last two PD's who fired you.

You used to smoke in the studio's and control room, and nobody cared.

You know the difference between good reel-to-reel tape and cheap reel-to-reel tape.

You have a white wax pencil, a razor blade, and a spool of 3M splicing tape in your desk drawer.

You can start a record, run down the hall to the toilet, and be back in 2:50 for the segue.

You knew exactly where to put the tone on the end of a carted song.

You only did "make-goods" if the client complained. Otherwise, who cares?

Sixty percent of your wardrobe has a station logo on it.

You always had a screwdriver in the studio so you could take a fouled-up cartridge apart at a moment's notice.

Agents were people like Maxwell Smart, James Bond and the Man From Uncle.

You answer your home phone with the station call letters.

You used to fight with the news guy over air-time. After all, what was more important:
the dumb joke about your ex-wife, or that tornado warning?

You still have nightmares of a song running out and not being able to find the control room door.

You run a phone contest and nobody called, so you made up a name and gave the tickets to your cousin.
Thanks for the read
Bryan Cox

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The Economy "Killed" the Radio Star?

2009-03-30T12:44:00.003-06:00

With a massive downturn in the radio and television industries, there’s going to be a deluge of voices looking for work. A lot of these folks will turn to Voice Acting. If you think that you’re “Radio Sound” will get you work, you might as well try opening a GM dealership in Pakistan. Things have changed while you’ve been busy saying “Here’s a thousand in a row”. Now there’re a million of guys, armed with a “Barbie” microphone, calling themselves “Voice Actors”. You might find you’ll need alittle help.
OK there's probably one so called VO (Voice Over) expert with a course, CD or book to sell for every one that makes a true living from Voice Acting. I place these "teachers" in a group that I'd call Communication Gurus. With that said, they are in a very specialised area of the communication field but IMO still should be considered in the field of "communication". You can see here that NOT ONE is listed on Communication Gurus. What are they waiting for?
If you're looking for a "guru" please be careful. Do your research, talk to people in the business, ask questions. More times than not ...these “gurus” all have the same information that's just change around abit and repackaged...but it's still the same old message. Sometimes you'll even find that some of these so called VO Gurus don't even have their own vo demo. Aim to be yourself. That way you can offer VO agents and possible clients something that’s unique. Put together a demo but watch out there are the sharks that charge an arm and a leg to put together demos for you. If you’d like some FREE help please contact me and I’ll try to answer your questions.
I’m a Voice Actor, Common Sense Advertising Consultant and Stand-Up Comic. Thanks for the read
Bryan Cox

email bigbry@sasktel.net

PS...The 2 things Voice industry really like these days..
1. Female Voices
2. The young “guy next door” non-announcer type of read.

Your Comments are always welcome

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You need a Professional VOICE

2009-03-27T17:12:00.003-06:00

If you’re running an online business, or you’re a speaker about business or maybe you’re business is that of being a speaker. You are a professional at what you do and people pay you their hard earned money to hear what you have to say. Does it make any sense to have someone bumble through your intro as they bring you up to the podium or stage? I’ve seen this happen time and time again.
We’ll record an intro for you with exciting music...that will show you off, listing your credits and commanding audience applause and anticipation. This intro can be sent to you on an MP3 and you can burn it on to a disc or we can do that for you. Then it’s ready to be played anywhere anytime. It’s yours to keep for as little as 25.00us
Other uses you might find useful
--Video Narration
--Presentation Narration
--Web sites Intros
--Phone Messaging
--Commercials
Using the same voice is all part of your overall “Brand”
It’s time you showed everyone that YOU are a professional
Call or email Bryan Cox of Cox Marketing for your custom demo today.
306-653-1523 or bigbry@sasktel.net

Thus ends the commercial

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Fox News...BLOW ME !!

2009-03-23T11:19:00.005-06:00

I have to say I’m very proud of our troops fighting over in Afghanistan. Over 100 have died for a US cause. We are helping the US and then Fox News come out with a blatant onslaught on our troops. It’s not enough that they have to worry about getting killed by the enemy...now they're being attack by the media in the US. As a a guy who’s got alot of Stand-up comedy experience behind him, I know better than anyone there are certain things you should not say or do in the name of comedy. Like look at a woman heckler and call her the “C” word. That show, The Red Eye has crossed all lines of comedy and good taste by slamming our efforts in the Middle East. I’m sorry Fox News, but you guys really are a bunch of.... “C” words.

Please remember that we, Canada, are the only country in the course of your history that ever KICKED YOUR ASS in a war...REMEMBER, WE WON!!

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CBC Radio..What are you SMOKIN' ?

2009-03-19T12:56:00.002-06:00

CBC Radio get off the pot and sell some advertising. This would ensure income for you and your employees.
Spokes people for the CBC have said that they wouldn’t consider selling ads on CBC Radio. They would consider selling off assets, programming cuts and the biggest, they didn’t deny, laying people off.
Lets look at this, selling off assets, a good idea. Programming cuts would lead to... layoffs. Granted the CBC is the biggest employer of “Dead Weight” in the country...not to mention the CRTC. So some lay off should be deemed necessary. Now if you sold advertising that would increase your bottom line and you would’nt have to keep running to the Canadian tax payer for funds or maybe less funds. With an increased bottom line you could keep most of your people employed. Keep that programming, yes the same programming with the lowest ratings in Canada. That should keep the “Friends of Canadian Broadcasting” happy.
So as it stands right now the CBC and The “Friends of Canadian Broadcasting” would rather see people laid off and lives of hard working broadcasters ruined, have programming cut, hand the Canadian Tax Payer a bigger bill from the CBC, than sell a bit of advertising time. WHAT ARE YOU SMOKING!!

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RECESSION PROOF.. ADVERTISING

2009-03-04T09:53:00.002-06:00

I voice a ton of commercials written by others and it just kills me to see clients being ripped off. For those of you who write the odd commercial, you’ve got to be rubbing your head these days. Your hearing the same thing from clients, “I’m going to cut back on my advertising”, “It’s not working for me”. I would hazard to guess that you’re writing the wrong type of ads. Ads that worked for your client 1 year ago won’t work in these times.
Folks today are buying with their head and not their heart. You can’t scream Sale, Sale, anymore. Trying to install a sense of “feeling” and talking to the right “intuitive” side of the brain won’t work. In these times buyers have switched to the “Thinking” side of the brain. So you have to give them clarity and direct information. Yes back to common sense and nothing but basic information will work in this economy, “touchy feely” is out.
If you’re a client, look for more bang for the buck. If an agency tells you that it’s going to take them a week to write a spot...you are being ripped off. Give them a deadline. Of course if you keep running back to them with changes, it will take that long. Remember, it’s tempting to put everything you do in one commercial...resist this NOW. Put one idea or thing in one commercial. This will not confuse the listener. In Radio at least and to some extent in Television, if you think you must advertise everything you do, get more than 1 ad done up and run them on a rotating basis. We offer 3 ad’s for the price of 2 and this way your potential customer won’t get bored with hearing or watching the same ad all the time. If you have any questions about this I’d be glad to talk to you further about your next successful ad campaign.
Bryan Cox
bigbry@sasktel.net

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GANGS vs POLITICIANS..a Comic View

2009-02-28T13:34:00.002-06:00

Allot say that Gangs are ruling the country, weather it be the US or Canada. Asian, Mexican, Mafia, Black, Motorcycle, what ever. With my tongue planted firmly in my cheek, I’m going to look at gangs for a sec here because here in Canada we have new anti-gang laws going into place. This might fit any where in the World though.
Look up the definition of word “Gang” and you come up with
(1) are generally perceived as a distinct aggregation by others in their neighborhood...translation...a bunch of guys that always hang out together.
(2) recognise themselves as a denotable group (almost invariably with a group name);...translation....a bunch of guys that have a name for their group.
(3) have been involved in a sufficient number of incidents to call forth a consistent negative response from neighbourhood residents and/or law enforcement agencies.....translation...if the people around you and the cops don’t like what your doing...you’re in a gang. Another definition is...A gang is a group of people who through the organisation, formation, and establishment of an assemblage share a common identity....
There is a massive comparison screaming to be made here. The definition of a gang compared to Political parties or politicians.
-Gangs...have a name tattooed on their body or embroidered on the back of there jacket. Political Parties have a name too usually with some sort of symbol.
-Gangs have to vote you in through some sort of initiation. You can join a political Party but to become a politician...you have to go through an election as kind of a initiation.
-Gangs break the law...some politicians and parties break the law too. (Taxes, Bribes etc.)
-Gangs sell bad drugs, Politicians run the health care system and buy and sell good drugs.
-Gangs unfairly extort money from good people, politicians unfairly tax good people.
-Gangs do things and act in a way that most people don’t like, Political Parties and Politicians do things and act in a way that more people don’t like.
-Gangs hold conventions, Political Parties hold conventions
-Gangs gather at a club house, Politicians gather at the Hill.
Well this list could go on forever, but you get the idea. I’m not in favour of gangs, except for the ones that use to beat me up in the school yard...hey you guys are still cool...nudgen nudge, wink, wink!! But as we grow past those gangs we learn to take the punches from a whole new legal gang. Now more than ever we are all relying on the gang we elected to help us and show us a light on the other side of the school yard. I can only hope that you and your family stay and work together through these terrible times. The Gang we elected can’t give us all the answers, some of those have to come from deep down inside you.

PS ... I hope some lawyer doesn't use this in some kind of twisted defence. Please feel free to add any more comparisons that you might think of.
Thanks for the read and comments are always welcome.
Bryan Cox

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BRAND...Yourself !!

2009-02-27T08:39:00.002-06:00

This is going to be short and sweet...Mr. James is a very entertaining business writer and has come up with something that you might find interesting.
You can now brand your company or yourself in alittle over 2 minutes. What is branding? How much does it cost? Drop by and take a peek...watch out this could be addicting...lol
Branding in 2 minutes
Thanks for the Read
Bryan Cox

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C.B.C. in deep DO-DO

2009-02-26T08:35:00.004-06:00

The CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) is in trouble like so many broadcasters in Canada. Just the other day Greg Weston hit the nail on the head when he wrote a very cool article about the CBC...MORE.
“Mr. Weston writes, "The CBC brass evidently continues to operate on the assumption there isn't much a government cheque can't cure." CBC/Radio-Canada has not asked Government for a hand-out, an increased subsidy or an increase to our appropriation. In this economic environment, when every industry is in
difficulty, everyone has to tighten their belts. We understand that.”...MORE.
At that time, it’s true they didn’t ask for a hand out but a day later this happened.... “The CBC expects serious funding shortfalls in the upcoming fiscal year and is looking to the federal government for financial help.
CBC president Hubert Lacroix has said that a $65-million advertising shortfall forced the corporation to draw from reserve funds to balance its books this fiscal year.”...MORE.
The CBC has become to comfortable. Everyone that works at the CBC is looked after by a strong union and gets a fantastic salary. There are those that don’t want advertising anywhere near the CBC. Spouting things like, “it’s a National Treasure” or “it’s all about our Canadian Identity”. Come on WAKE UP!! If you want to be in broadcasting in Canada or anywhere...it’s about MONEY!! Advertising brings in Money and the sales force at the CBC are lazy!! On CBC television for example all you get are ads for...car insurance for the over 50 crowd...Canada’s biggest panhandler, Rod Black, asking for money to help some starving kid...how to get a reverse mortgage for you home and just when you are having dinner..some kid with leprosy pops on the screen. My guess is that you’ll be able to help those kids by driving to the bank in your well insured car and withdrawing oodles of cash from your reverse mortgage. Come on CBC get out there, hit the pavement and sell advertising time. While you’re at it CBC, make or bring in shows that real Canadians want to watch. Then you’ll be turning advertisers away fro the door. Use the money that taxpayers give you...smartly. If you don’t, you’ll end up doing pledge drives like PBS to protect the “Canadian Identity” type of programming.
Thanks for the read
Bryan Cox

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Recession "Snowball" Buries Voice Actors?

2009-02-25T11:09:00.004-06:00

The spider ate a fly.... and so on and so on. It’s becoming evident that this trickle down effect is being felt in the world of voice overs. Voice actors are starting to feel the pinch of the recession. According the one of my favourite business writers Jim Edwards at BNET, clients are taking much longer to pay the the ad agencies. His article is a real eye opener ...” The news is predictable: In a recession, every company will try to delay payments as long as possible in order to keep the interest earned on the money.
But in the advertising business, delayed payment is an ongoing issue that frustrates agencies, who end up becoming their clients’ banks. Basically, if a client expects an agency to handle large upfront costs and then delays payments, the agency ends up acting as the client’s financier.
The issue becomes thornier because, knowing that every day without payment is a day on which the agency loses its own interest on the missing cash, agencies seek ways to reduce their exposure that aren’t always in the client’s best interest.
The temptation is to manipulate the vendor bidding process in order to go with vendors that are more flexible about waiting for payments from agencies, rather than those that provide the best work.”...MORE. Also check out the article from the WSJ....MORE.
These massive companies get into bed with an ad agency and during a recession neither one leaves a virgin. What the company has to do now is start to advertise smarter, get more for their ad dollars. Look at new media like the internet, pick better times to advertise on TV, change your ads so people don’t get bored with them and shop around for a good fair priced ad agency. You are paying WAY TOO MUCH right now.
As for the ad agency, who by the way are in real trouble too.
“At least 24,502 jobs have been lost recently. That total is based on a Bureau of Labour Statistics report as summarised by Ad Age, updated with more recent individual reports tracked by BNET”......MORE. Just get back to good honest basics.
The voice actor is caught in the middle of this whole mess. The client hires the ad agency, who in turn hires the voice actor to voice the commercial. So the whole house of cards comes tumbling down if the client fails to pay the agency. As a voice actor I’d like to see ad agency clients and ad agencies, start using a grass roots common sense approach to advertising. In a recession you have to advertise more. A couple of reasons for you here, it takes a bit more convincing for folks to get out a spend their hard earned dollars and it gives you a leg up on your competition who cut their ad budgets during a recession. You won’t be history but, people will remember you after the recession is history. Thanks for the read, comments are always welcome and if you need help with your advertising, feel free to contact me.
Bryan Cox-Voice Actor
bigbry@sasktel.net

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Don LaFontaine SNUBBED by OSCAR

2009-02-23T07:36:00.003-06:00

Mr LaFontaine was not included in the Oscars In Memoriam montage. He was the voice of thousands movie trailers that put millions of movie goers in the seats of theatres across the world. Everyone seems of be upset that Brad Renfro (who was he TMZ?) was omitted. He was a drug addict and not a member of the Academy. You wonder why he was dropped...ummm. Don did more for the movie industry that Refro could ever do. Don didn’t use, good looks, box office draw, star power, to bring people out to the movies...he just used his “voice”. When folks heard that one line, “In a World”, they knew this is a movie the had to see. Shame on the Academy. Don you will not be forgotten!! If you'd like to complain to the Academy... http://www.oscars.org/contact/general.html

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CRTC "Don't know DICK"

2009-02-18T09:01:00.002-06:00

The CRTC is moving toward controlling Internet in Canada. China does a great job of that too. On the verge if having a whole new internet IPv6 unveiled, you wonder about their timing. The CRTC should have absolutely nothing to do with the Internet. In my opinion, these men and women, kind of know radio, tv and telecommunications, and in my opinion they don’t know that very well either. So why would they think they could handle the internet? If the Government thinks they MUST get involved with the internet, then there should be is a whole government ministry devoted to to internet. That works with Canadians to make it better and more useful. It should be staffed by qualified internet people not bureaucrats. But if they start to play the censorship card like the CRTC does so well...shut em down. Please keep the CRTC doing what they’re good at, ruining broadcasting in Canada.
Here’s a list of the government appointed commissioners and a brief bio , but to find out more please visit http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/home-accueil.htm
I ask you to think about how many REALLY know Broadcasting. I mean worked in it, have a solid background. How many have worked with the internet from the ground up...really have an understanding of it. I’m talking about QUALIFIED EXPERTS in both fields.
Mr Finckenstein...You have a Judge
Mr. Arpin..You have a guy with only 8 years Broadcasting Experience before becoming a Bureaucrat.
Mr. Katz..a Telecommunications guy...but also in charge of broadcasting
Ms Cugini...a broadcasting Bureaucrat.
Mr. Denton...a lawyer
Ms. Duncan...she was a financial officer.
Ms Lamarre..Broadcast engineer with the CBC
Mr Menzies...Newspaper guy
Ms. Molnar...Customer Service Bureaucrat for a phone company
Mr. Morin..30 years as a journalist, but worked for Radio-Canada and RDI.
Mr. Patrone...a reporter
Ms. Poirier...a municipal politician
Mr. Simpson...a marketing and public relations guy
Mr. A. Morin...been employed by the Government in various departments, a Bureaucrat.
You tax dollars are paying for these folks to be the watch dogs of Canadian Media and now the Internet. This is like putting a 7-11 gas jockey in charge of GM. I can’t sing a note but I have over 25 year experience in Radio and Broadcasting, maybe I should become a singer and make records. Hey, I used to play them. The world of Media is changing at a very rapid pace and in my opinion the CRTC has out live it’s usefulness. Time to go. Time to be replaced by people that know what they’re doing.
Thanks for the reading my opinion.
Bryan Cox

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The CRTC are Idiots

2009-02-15T10:48:00.002-06:00

They must wake up every morning and say, “I think people respect us too much. Lets come up with a idiotic idea.” Then they go over to the wall where they’ve written down all their stupid ideas and throw a dart at it, and when the dart hits one, that’s the one they go public with. The Canadian Broadcast Watchdogs, the CRTC, have really out done themselves this time. This arm of the Government not only tells Canadian broadcasters that they must run 50%+ Canadian programming but they also block US shows for being shown in Canada on the internet. Some what Communist China does with articles about politics and subjects like “How to make a product without Lead”.
Canadian Broadcasters are coming off a very bad year. Profits are down over 60% in some cases. Now the CRTC say that they are looking at the idea to retool Television in Canada. Their idea is, that for every dollar that Canadian TV execs spend bringing in a US show ( ie CSI, American Idol) they must spend an equal amount on the production on a Canadian show.
With a record layoffs, due to extreme financial losses in the Television industry, the CRTC have come up with an idea that's going to shove an already ailing industry, that makes stuff that no one wants to watch, into the dumper a bit quicker.
Let’s face it, people like the US shows, that’s why they’re watching. The US makes high budget good TV, most of the time. So the CRTC thinks that the more money broadcasters spend on a show, the better the show. NO. Shows in Canada are made on much smaller budgets that their US counter parts. So if more money is thrown at a Canadian show, they’ll take it, saying, WOW now we can pay our people like they do in the US.” Think for a minute here too, when the actor and broadcast unions find out that you’re getting more money, they’ll want more money. You end up with the same “Anne of Green Gables” or David Suzuki saving the gopher shows, just with a bigger price tag on them.
Here’s an idea, make shows that “real people” want to watch. You could go to the government and ask for a bail out. I’m sure that Canadians would mind their money being spent on keeping Television alive in Canada. After all, isn’t that what we’re doing by funding the CRTC?
Remember there are millions of Canadians out of a job... and what do they have to do all day, except watch tv..nudge, nudge, wink, wink.
In a perfect Canadian television world, the CRTC would shut down all US signals coming into Canada and force us all to watch nothing but television made for, and by Canadians. So much for free enterprise. That’s my opinion. I have over 25 years experience in Broadcasting.
Thanks for the read,
Bryan Cox

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Cox on Corner Gas

2009-02-06T16:24:00.002-06:00

Well it’s over with now and it’s been on the air. My little cameo on the hit tv show “Corner Gas”. Yes, it is the Number 1 sitcom in Canada. it was a blast to do and the whole crew was incredible. Although I have a 18 inch neck and the shirt I was wearing was 15...lol. Here’s a clip of what it looked like. Keep your eye’s open for the Passport Official...he’s a real Jack ass...lol
Hope you enjoy this as much as I did doing it.
Bryan Cox

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Demonstrations???

2009-01-12T09:25:00.001-06:00

What are you doing? Demonstrating is like flavour of the week. Back in the 60’s and 70’s if was the cool thing to do and it did have an impact on the government of the day. Nowadays there are actually people that make their living putting together demonstrations against what ever... Unions, the WTO, Israel, Palestine etc. They’ve become such an everyday occurrence, in the eye’s of John Q public, they’ve lost the impact they’re to have. Alot like trying to beat someone with a piece of wet spaghetti.
Now as for the demonstrations for Israel or for Palestine. Good for you both ...you have a point of view. You get up off that nice comfy sofa and hit the streets and if you get hurt, don’t worry your free health care will look after you. You yell and hold your little signs. Reality check, John Q public in Canada does not care about what YOU have to say. If you got hit in the head with a object, that’s worth the media coverage. Alot like watching a car race, everyone is waiting for that big pile up. And if you think the government is listening, good luck with that too.
Here it is for you Mr. Demonstrator, if you want to make a difference get off your sofa and go over to Israel or Palestine and fight for them. At one demonstration there was actually one person asking folks to sign up and go over and fight. His list was very very small. Or if that’s to much, sponsor a family or even just the children to come and live Canada. I’m sure our Government would love to have a few members of Hamas living in Canada and good luck with immigration. How about this, if you don’t want to go over there, send over , let’s say, half your monthly pay check to help with the cause. You don’t think the world wide recession has hit the war effort yet?
So have fun on the on the demonstration front line. It be nice to see you sponsored by some company. Have their company name on your placard. Who knows it might create some jobs in Canada.

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Election WINNERS?

2008-10-06T10:12:00.002-06:00

What are the chances that an election would be going on in Canada and the US at the same time. Pretty good if you consider that, in the US, a child could be born when the election process starts, and be walking and talking by the time it finishes.
In the US the candidates have high priced image consultants that make sure that they look good and show personality. In Canada, not the same thing at all, a couple of the leaders are pretty stiff. It’s so bad, that big drug companies are trying to hand out a few nicknames, Harper is toying with the nickname, Viagra, and Dion seems to be heading for, Cialias. Lets face it, in Canada it’s really a race between the Conservatives and the Liberals and the one thing that either leader wants is, E. D., which stands for “Election Deficit”. Who’s going to win, well it’s “hard” to say. Who ever wins, with nicknames like that, you just know what they’re going to do to Canadians over the next 4 years.
Now, everyone wants to know who’s going to win the US election. I’m going to make a prediction here, which based on the amount of displayed lawn signs. McCain or Obama who has more signs? As I see it right now the winner will be some guy by the name of.... “Foreclosure”.
Which ever country you live in, on election day, just get out and VOTE!
Thanks for the read.
Bryan Cox

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Really SCARY Halloween

2008-10-03T09:58:00.001-06:00

Well Halloween is almost upon us and the search for the scariest costume starts. This year if you really want to scare folks I would suggest dress up as the past CEO of Fanny Mae, Freddy Mac or Lehman Brothers. People will recognize you right away because of the limo your riding in and the golden parachute strapped to your back. You must also barge up to every door while kicking the little people out of the way. It’s very important to remember that when you arrive at the door and the person scolds you for your abuse of the little ones, you must say “Sorry it wasn’t my fault and by the way I need at least half your candy before I leave...you owe it to me”.
If you really want to have some fun at this time of the year here’s a plan. I always get weird looks when I do this. Here’s what you need...a spray bottle filled with water, a long dirty trench coat and a very crazed shaky appearance. During the busiest time of the day, go to the store. Before you go in spray your face with the water. Now go a get a bag of apples and a package of razor blades. Head up to the check up line, with water slowly dripping down your face, start rolling your eyes, throw in a few shaky jerky movements, then turn to a few folks in line and say something like...” I love Halloween, hope there’s tons of kids this year”.

Have a safe and happy halloween kids and thanks for the read.
Bryan Cox

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Radio Stars

2008-08-22T11:19:00.004-06:00

Did some digging and came up with a few pics from back in the day. These are from my days working in Radio. Ahhh memories of hair, only one chin, bad shirts and silly glasses.
Back in those times it was a real coup if you could snag an interview with a star. One day I heard that Wolfman Jack was coming to town and I got more than just an interview. After a set up interview, he asked, if he could sit in while I did my 6 hour on air shift. We had a great show... together. Then after he invited to his gig in town ...I even got to give him an intro and bring him up on stage. His show ended and we drank into the wee hours of the morning and talked about how radio had gone down hill. This was one of the highlights of my career for sure.
In the late 70’s I found myself working for a country station. I made about 50 calls and ended up interviewing Dolly Parton and Faron Young all in the same night. Hope you enjoy the pics.
Thanks for the read and comments are always welcome.

Bryan Cox

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PORN in Canada ?

2008-08-15T12:00:00.002-06:00

Who knew Canada had a porn industry. Well it looks like it’s about to boom. There’s going to be a new channel for Canadians. Here’s a bit of an article from The Broadcaster Magazine....
“The applicant stated that the proposed service would be Canada's first adult video channel offering significant Canadian adult content. The applicant indicated that it would also air the adult versions of Real Productions' cable television series and produce its own adult movies, events and series.
The CRTC noted that it did not receive any interventions in connection with this application.”
I came ...I don’t mean that literally... up with some names for new Canadian Porn movies and Series for Real Productions. Feel free to ad your own Canadian flavoured names.

Names for New Canadian Porn....

Tim Horton in Double Double
Hockey Night in Candy
Anne of Green Gobbles
Mount-TEEn
The Beach Cummers
Bon Cock Bad Cock
Corner Ass
Little Harem on the Prairies
Winn-a-Peg...oops sorry that’s the new Canadian Pirate game show

Thanks for the Read
Bryan Cox

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Real Radio Common Sense!!

2008-08-08T09:51:00.003-06:00

This is from Perry Simon....and make a ton of sense.
Radio doesn't need to be sexy. It has other advantages, like, well, the fact that unlike most other technologies, it has a nearly 100% market penetration. There's a radio in every car, in practically every home, at almost every bedside. It's not about convincing people to buy a radio; they already have one, or several. It's more intuitive than anything Steve Jobs can design, primarily because it's been around so long, people are practically born knowing how to use it.

And that leads to the problem: It's everywhere, sure, and people know how to use it. The trick is getting people to USE radio. The competition has invaded the same space that radio had to itself for the last 70 or so years, namely, the car. When I get into my car today, I can turn on the radio. I can also turn on Sirius or XM or my iPod or my EVDO cell phone or the music player in my GPS. That may be extreme, but a lot of people have at least the iPod connected, and Internet streaming audio is around the corner. No amount of marketing will convince me to get rid of any of that.

So how do you market radio to maintain or increase its share of listening? ("So, genius, what would YOU do?") I'd say the one surefire way to get people to increase radio listening, or pay more attention to radio, or think more highly of radio, is to develop and market programming that you can't get anywhere else. Instead of trying to sell radio as the Next Big Thing that it can't become, sell the programming. If that's hard to do when the programming's "another 10 in a row commercial free," that's another argument in favor of talk and personality radio. If the industry wants to spend a lot of money developing a campaign to market radio, perhaps the money would be better spent on talent development and luring creative people to work in the business and....

Okay, let's also recognize that the campaign is also aimed at media buyers and agencies and decision makers. Certainly, the fact that the radio group heads are doing the dog-and-pony show tour for the advertising industry indicates that there's a need to sell those folks on the relevance of radio in an iPod universe. But you're marketing to the marketers. They know what you're up to. They do that for a living. They can come up with counterarguments to everything you throw at them -- your huge audience is also an inability to narrowly target buys to specific demos, your it's-everywhere is also my-kid-never-listens. But if you can say that you have popular content unavailable through other media, that's something. Radio needs stars and hit shows the same way that TV needs "American Idol" and the music industry (and your iPod) needs hit records and satellite needs Howard Stern. (Stern... hmm... seem to recall a fella by that name around these parts...) Radio still has a few national and local stars, but it needs to develop and hold onto more of them. That takes time, money, and coaching, and that's a good topic for another Letter down the road.

Spending the money to develop star content instead of doing generic industry marketing, that's my fantasy. But there's probably no danger that anyone will listen. Maybe you have a better idea, or you violently disagree, or you think all hope is lost and it's time to man the life rafts. Let me know what you think at psimon -- at -- allaccess --dot -- com and maybe I'll do a follow-up with your suggestions. Think of it like I'm taking your calls. Or maybe it's like the Fairness Doctrine. (shudder)

China is a BAD Choice

2008-08-04T09:30:00.001-06:00

Sorry I used that word “choice” because in China that word isn’t used much. Picking China as host to the olympics was a bad choice. Now the best athletes in the world have to travel to an over polluted, over populated, information wasteland for olympic gold.
The air pollution is so bad that people have to wear masks as peddle their bikes. It’s no wonder that Chinese athletes do so well when they come to a western country to compete...they can finally breathe.
The chinese government has software that funnels all internet traffic and communication back to them for screening. Now the government has TOLD all hotels that they have to install this special software in their internet systems before the games. Get this, the hotels have to buy the software from the government and pay to have government installers come out and put the stuff in. All TV, Radio, and Newspaper media is also monitored extremely close as well. If the Chinese government hears or sees ANYTHING they don’t condone, that media outlet will be booted out of the country. So you can bet that NBC and all the others will be playing it pretty close to the vest, so to speak.
This is what we have to put up with from having the Olympics in China. Canada is hosting the Olympics in 2010 and you wouldn’t believe what going on in Vancouver. Trade Unions that are building the site are raping the government for more money!! Real Estate developers are doing the same thing when it comes to housing. Prices on just about everything have skyrocketed in the Vancouver area all because of the upcoming Olympics.
To end off, I just feel sorry for the athletes because they are the ones that are being used as pawns in this whole thing. The Olympics have turned into a money grabbing, political extravaganza!! What’s next a Taliban hosted Olympics?
Thanks for the read
Bryan Cox

If you’re chinese and reading this and take offence to it, you’re probably in in China. Be thankful that you can read someone else’s opinion. We call this...freedom.
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Voice Actor to "On Camera" Actor

2008-07-10T11:43:00.003-06:00

No one except the actors and crew were allowed on set. This is what they called a “closed set”. Just one of the terms I learned very quickly after being on the set of “Corner Gas”,which is Canada’s #1 sitcom.
The night before I showed up for a costume fitting. At that time, was told to be on set at 10:30 am. When I rolled in the next morning, I was given a dressing room and my costume was waiting, all clean and pressed. Also waiting for me was my script and bottles of water. The A.D., the person incharge of the actors, told me that my scene was to be done at 11:30 but things were running behind a bit and expect to be working by 12:30. So I started to wander around this massive soundstage, all ready in my costume of the Passport Office Official that I was to play. One really great thing, was that all the other actors that were waiting were very friendly and extemely interesting to talk to.
Now at 1:45pm I get the nod to get ready to enter the set. I take a short walk over to another building to where they have a small room made up to look like a Passport Customs office. A small podem-counter is set up against one wall. They tell me to take my place, which is behind the “counter”. There is a girl with a very low cut top standing in front of me. All the time I’m telling myself to keep my eyes UP. That was her job, a “stand in” for the other actor that I was to playing off of. The lights have now been set now was time for a practise. But just before the practise...a make up girl rushes in and powders my bald head...just to much glare...ha ha ha. The practise went off with out a hitch. I remembered all my lines. This amazed me. Now I introduce myself to the other actor. His name was Eric Peterson and his demenor was very calming for me. The camera and focus guys were busy getting all angels right as the lighting guys were tweeking the lights. All in all, there were about 30 people in this very small room. After another practise, it was time to shoot. Director belts out the word “Action”....All lines were said as per the script but my name tag was all wrong...so they rushed in another name tag. Then changed a few words in the script and off we all go again, this was a great take. But he wanted another one...just in case
It was a great day. Kind of wierd for a guy who makes a living “behind” the mic doing voice overs, to be thrust infront of the mic with a massive camera thrown in for good measure.
Thanks to everyone involved in that episode of “Corner Gas”. You all were very kind and supportive.
If you want to see the episode it’s call “American Resolution” and will be shown in the final season. In the US it will seen on WGN and a few other stations sometime Nov 08.
Thanks for the Read
Bryan Cox

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Want Success, just READ !!

2008-07-07T09:45:00.002-06:00

The one thing I wanted as a kid was to work in radio. My dream came true. When I was starting out I asked a seasoned pro what I had to do to become really good at this new profession. He told me “Read, read everything you can get your hands on. Even if you don’t like the subject Read son just read and learn”.
I ran across this story at www.invisibleheroes.com now it’s your turn to READ

Jimmy was an abandoned baby. Mabel, a widow deep in poverty with two hungry children of her own. Washing other people’s laundry ten hours a day, Mabel earns barely enough money to keep them fed. To keep a roof over their heads, she works for a real estate man who moves her and the children from shack to shack to “clean them up and make them salable.” But poor though she is, Mabel can’t watch a baby go unloved, so she makes room in her home and her heart for Jimmy.

Throughout his childhood, Jimmy will wear old, second-hand clothes because that’s the best that Mabel can do. His shoelaces will be broken and knotted. He’ll never own a pair of skates, a bicycle, a baseball glove or a toy of any kind. But when his little town opens a public library, he and a girl named Margaret Mead will be the first in line to receive library cards. One day, as the pair are searching for books they’ve not yet read, the librarian says, “Goodness, Margaret and Jimmy, I believe you've read all the children's books we have! If you wish, you can start on the other shelves.”

Margaret Mead will grow up to author 20 books and serve as president of a number of important scientific associations, including the American Anthropological Association and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. She will receive 28 honorary doctorate degrees from America’s leading universities and in 1978, be given the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

As an adolescent, Jimmy hitchhikes his way from Pennsylvania to Florida and back again with only 35 cents in his pocket. By the time he graduates from high school, he will have visited all but 3 of the 48 contiguous states. In the Navy, Jim rises to the rank of lieutenant commander, serving on some 49 different islands in the South Pacific during World War II. Each night, he writes his thoughts and impressions in a journal.

“Sitting there in the darkness, illuminated only by the flickering lamplight, I visualized the aviation scenes in which I had participated, the landing beaches I'd seen, the remote outposts, the exquisite islands with bending palms, and especially the valiant people I'd known: the French planters, the Australian coast watchers, the Navy nurses, the Tonkinese laborers, the ordinary sailors and soldiers who were doing the work, and the primitive natives to whose jungle fastnesses I had traveled.”

The book that will emerge from Jim’s journal will be published as Tales of the South Pacific and win the Pulitzer Prize in 1948. And by the time he’s done, James Michener will have written more than 40 books that will collectively sell more than 100 million copies. He will be granted more than 30 honorary doctorates in five fields and receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977. His cash donations to public libraries and universities will exceed 117 million dollars.

It seems a child can learn a lot by just reading.

Thanks for the read, comments are welcome
Bryan Cox
bigbry@sasktel.net

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On the Cover of "Rolling Stone"?

2008-07-05T14:05:00.005-06:00

Well not quite but did get a mention. This is going to be short but sweet. I have to thank Rob Sheffield from Rolling Stone Magazine. He heard my new syndicated radio show “Old School” and did up a bit of a review. Here’s that review for you to peek at,

"Old School is a fresh nationally syndicated rock and roll radio show spanning out music from the 60s to the 90's. Old School's host Bryan Cox uses a unique strategy of grabbing the attention of his listeners. Cox is like your close friend who tell important truths. Good buddies who get you smiling again. “If as many rock shows played with the honesty and passion of Bryan Cox, this would be a different world indeed.”

- ROLLING STONE, ROB SHEFFIELD

Also the show has now been picked up by over 100 stations and is played across the US and Canada. Let me tell you I couldn’t be happier.
Thanks for the read
Bryan Cox

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$2000.00 Voice Over Investment?

2008-07-02T16:33:00.006-06:00

As a Voice Over guy there are a few places that a business person can go to get their commercials read by professionals, one of these is voices.com. For the voice over person this is a pretty good site to get your voice out there. They have different levels for the voice over person to join. All of these levels have a price tag. Now voices have unveiled a new level... “Platinum”. If you're a VO person you can check it out, click the link. Is it worth 2000 dollars ? You be the judge. I’d love to hear from someone who’s bought in on this. This exclusive membership will only have 100 members. Of course it won’t be the most talented 100 but the 100 with the most money.
Voices Platinum Membership

Thanks for the read
Bryan Cox

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Host of a New Show !!!

2008-07-01T16:16:00.005-06:00

As a voice over guy and stand-up I find myself being thrust into an unlikely new role. The Borderline Radio Network has asked me to host a weekly radio show, that’s now been picked up by them for syndication. This is a great honour and believe me a ton of fun. I’ll be running a show each week called “Old School”. This show features music and entertainment tid-bits from the 60’s through to the 80’s. Currently with a few complete shows done and in the can, things are looking up. I’m doing interviews within the 1 hour show. So far I’ve had great chats with, Tommy James of the Shondells, Ken Marco, guitarist from the group Motherlode, Rick Coonce drummer from the Grass Roots, Tom Wilson from Back to the Future, Don LaFontaine the Movie Trailer Guy, Ernie Hudson “Ghostbuster etc.” and have quite a few more big names coming up, but I’m always looking. This is where you can help, if you want. If you know anyone from the music, entertainment, political industries that were popular anywhere from the 60’s through to the 80’s, I’d love to talk with them. Even if you know an agent that handles these folks, I’d love to talk to them. If you want to pass on my email, please do. This is a labour of love for me and free promotion for them. So if you know anyone that might want a friendly fun interview, let me know…and by the way I don’t bite. bigbry@sasktel.net

PS, Also looking for National Advertisers too !!
Here’s part of a press release,

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BORDERLINE RADIO NETWORK SYNDICATES
“OLD SCHOOL WITH BRYAN COX”

PORTLAND, OREGON - Borderline Radio Network is proud to announce the addition of Old School with Bryan Cox to its blue-ribbon line-up of nationally syndicated programs. Broadcast to approximately 1 million listeners. Bryan dominates evening radio in more than 70 markets nationwide and internationally - among men and women 25-54. “I’ve been working with Bryan for a few years and have seen his on-air presence and can’t wait for station reaction,” said Mitchell Keller, President/COO, in announcing the acquisition. “Our talent leads the pack in music programming through the evening for both Country and rock music format.” “His infectious smile and sense of humor makes him a friend to literally thousands of listeners, proving that women and men will choose radio as their medium of choice in the evening,” Keller added. Bryan Cox has that smooth-toned voice when it comes to imaging, “The Back Porch Show.” Cox has 25 years of media under his belt, from imaging radio spots to hosting his first radio show, where he called upon Charlie Daniels to be his first interview. Bryan, a successful comedian who has opened for the likes of Tom Jones and is heard online each week on the feature “Road Stories of the Real Highway Comics” by an audience of 3 million people, prefers working with clients from his home recording studio, one on one.
Thanks for the Read and if you’re one of the million listeners a week...I love ya!!!

Bryan Cox

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A Funny... Mac Ad ?

2008-07-01T08:40:00.005-06:00

A perfect commercial for Apple. I was on a flight recently and we were sitting on the tarmac waiting, for what I guessed, was our turn in line to take off. The pilot came on over the intercom and said..”Sorry folks but we’ll be a few minutes. We have a computer problem and I have to shut everything down and reboot the computer. It should take about 10 minutes...sorry about the delay”. The guy in front of me pipes up in a loud voice so that the whole plane could hear...”Great he’s using Vista”. That gave me an idea, being the smart ass that I am, in a matter of seconds...I stood up in the aisle and said in a loud voice...”Hello, I’m a Mac”. Hey, I got a free drink out of it.
Cheers
Bryan Cox

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Humor in the Price of Gas

2008-06-30T14:16:00.001-06:00

I love the advertising that big oil is doing now. Look at us we’re “Saving the Earth”. This kind of advertising sure makes us all feel so much better when we’re paying record prices at the pump. I know that we all think, as we watch the dollars click by on the pump, WOW...I’m actually help save the Earth by filling up. If you think that...it should be against the law for you to drive. With the record profits that big oil is making they could afford to reforrestate the entire Earth. Well that’s a start...lol
I thought if David Letterman can do a Top Ten why can’t Big Bry ?
You know gas is expensive .......
10. When the gas station attendant is in a tux has white gloves when filling your car.
9. You fill up your Mercedes Smart Car once and you get a platinum card from AMEX
8. When auto maker web sites have a mileage and gas fill calculator
7. When your car payment is lower than the fill.
6. When the prize on Survivor..... is a tank full of gas
5. When society has terms like “The Homeless” “Less Fortunate” and “The Tankless”.
4. When Food Banks build next to the gas stations.
3. When it becomes a family issue... to fill up or send your kid to college.
2. When Los Angeles applies for Third World Nation status
And the #1 reality check to tell you that gas is expensive is
1. When you can impress Paris Hilton just by showing her your gas receipt.

Thanks for the read...and if you can come up with any more...just "comment"

Bryan Cox

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Voice Actor vs The Union??

2008-06-30T08:42:00.000-06:00

As a voice over actor you will ask yourself 2 questions at some point in your career. “Should I join the Union”? and “Why do they always hire the A-List actors for parts that I could do”?
Here’s a great article from the NY Times....
Don’t Forget the Middle People
By BROOKS BARNES
Published: June 30, 2008

LOS ANGELES — From his break in 1992 playing Bank Nerd No. 2 in the sitcom “Married With Children,” to his supporting role on the HBO hit “Six Feet Under,” to a part in last year’s “Spider-Man 3,” Tim Maculan has navigated Hollywood more successfully than most actors.
Members and supporters of the Screen Actors Guild are calling for better terms than another actors’ union is seeking.
It is pressing studios for more lucrative terms.
Lately, though, Mr. Maculan, 45, says the actor’s place in the entertainment industry’s economic food chain has changed. And for middle-income working actors like him, it’s not for the better. “It’s not about networks being cheap or evil,” Mr. Maculan said. “It’s just that the industry is dramatically different than it was even five years ago.”

Mr. Maculan, a sarcastic character actor with a wicked grin, rattles off a list of industry shifts that have made it harder for middle-income actors to earn a living. Reality shows have crowded out scripted programs, comedies in particular. The studios are making fewer movies, and the ones they are making are less actor-driven. Networks like NBC have virtually stopped filming pilot episodes, meaning they are hiring fewer actors. Voice-over work, once a staple for less-known actors, is outsourced to other countries or given to A-list stars.

The Screen Actors Guild, now embroiled in negotiations with film and television producers over a new contract, has made the plight of the middle-income actor the centerpiece of its campaign for more lucrative terms. The guild is seeking increases for everything from reimbursement rates for car mileage to continuing payments called residuals. Guild leaders say the economic situation is so severe that they have no choice but to take a militant stance at the negotiating table.

The guild’s contract, which covers about 122,000 actor members, expires at midnight Monday. Because the two sides remain far apart on most issues, Hollywood has been on edge about a strike, taking care, for instance, to wrap production on films so costly location shoots are not drawn out.

But no strike can take place until about Aug. 1 at the earliest. Guild leaders have yet to call for a strike authorization vote, which must be put before the entire membership and approved by 75 percent of voters. Carrie White, a spokeswoman for the Screen Actors Guild, said on Friday that the process would take up to three weeks.

The guild has strongly indicated that it will not consider calling for a strike vote until July 8, when a second actors’ union, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, releases the results of a ratification vote on its new contract. That union reached an accord with studios and networks in May and shares about 44,000 members with the Screen Actors Guild.

“Any talk about a strike or a management lockout at this point is simply a distraction,” Alan Rosenberg, the president of the guild, said in a statement Sunday. He added that guild negotiators have been “coming to the bargaining table every day in good faith.”

The two unions have been sparring in recent weeks, with each side lining up marquee stars to push its own agenda.

Aftra, the smaller of the two, wants members to ratify its deal and move on; SAG thinks the rival union negotiated a bad deal, particularly on issues of digital media, and wants to keep fighting for a better one. It worries that its leverage at the bargaining table will evaporate if Aftra members approve their contract by a solid margin.

Like most Hollywood labor organizations, SAG bears little resemblance to unions as most Americans know them.

Most unions represent workers with wallets of similar size, but SAG is a hodgepodge of wildly varying careers. On one extreme, SAG represents stars like Will Smith, who will take home well over $20 million from his coming film “Hancock” once all the receipts are counted. The bulk of its members, about two-thirds, according to some estimates, make less than $1,000 a year from acting, either because they can find no work or because they have moved on to other careers but kept up their dues.

SAG said the average annual income for its membership was $52,000 a year. The guild said it could provide no other economic statistics about its membership, however.

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the organization that negotiates on behalf of studios, said its analysis of SAG membership showed that fewer than 4,000 of its members could be considered middle-income actors, that is, people making $25,000 to $100,000 from acting in a given year. Only 5 percent of SAG’s membership earns more than $75,000 a year, according to the alliance.

The alliance rejects the notion that a richer contract is necessary to offset changes in the industry that make life harder for actors. Cast costs rose at more than twice the rate of overall production costs between the 2000-1 television season and the 2007-8 season, according to alliance statistics. Total cast costs for television rose 78.4 percent during that period, compared with a 33.6 percent increase in overall production costs.

“Making a living as an actor is ultimately a function of how often someone works, and that can’t be guaranteed by the minimum terms that are set by the SAG contract,” said Jesse Hiestand, an alliance spokesman. “Our offer to SAG contains a number of increases that will benefit actors that do work, especially guest stars.”

He added, “SAG’s negotiators should be working with us to keep scripted TV and the film business healthy so that it generates more work for their members.”
Full Article Here.

Thanks for the read and comments are welcome.
Bryan Cox

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Using a Celebrity Voice

2008-06-29T15:16:00.000-06:00

There is a trend in advertising to use the voice of a celebrity...or an impersonation of one to plug a product. The main reason that a company would use an impersonation of a celeb, is that they’re too cheap to hire the actual voice. I've been doing impersonations ever since hell was a grass fire and what really bothers me is that the ad agencies, the folks that write the commercials for companies, don’t understand how to use an impersonation to get the biggest bang for the advertiser.
In a commercial you need to say something that grabs the attention and imagination of your audience. If you use one voice, unless really dynamic, you audience will get bored an tuned out. This is called listener fatigue and we all have it. So you say use two voices...yes much better. When one of those voices is a celeb impersonation...you have a spot that rocks. I was asked to audition for a commercial recently and the ad agency asked for full 30 sec read in the voice of Don Lafontaine. If you don’t know who he is, he’s the voice you hear on a billion movie trailers. For one thing you would never hear Mr. LaFontaine do a full 30 sec read, maybe 3 or 4 lines tops. What this agency didn’t understand, is that when you want your commercial to stand out...use the celeb impersonation as a supporting role. Keep the impersonation SHORT. This will ensure that the listeners attention will spark up and they will hear what’s being said. You might wonder how I found out how to use impersonations? Many years ago it was explained to me from one of the best in the business, Rich Little.
If you’re thinking of using a celeb impersonation in a commercial, you should be aware that some folks are being sued by celebrities now for using their vocal likeness.
Thanks for the read and comments are always welcome.
Bryan Cox--Voice Over Guy

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Is the Voice Over Guy, Camera Ready?

2008-06-29T14:52:00.000-06:00

This week coming up will very interesting for moi. Last week I got asked to audition for Canada’s #1 sitcom, “Corner Gas”. At first I thought it was for a voice over part, but after a bit of explaination, I understood it was for a speaking, on camera scene. Now you have to understand that for every 10 auditions for on camera and voice over work, you might and I say “might” get one. So you realize how shocked I was to find out that I got the part. I should be on set this week and will let you all know how it goes.
Thanks for the read
Bryan Cox

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