Making lemonade at the Niswonger PAC

You know the adage, “When you’re served lemons, make lemonade.”  Last week at this time, I wanted to share this information with you, however, I was scurrying to find some lemonade!  It was the next day that we squeezed the lemons, added a little sugar, and made that lemonade.

We not only had Tuesdays with Morrie booked starring Jamie Farr, but had sold tickets and even promoted the show with a community book read and panel discussion. The panel discussion of the book read was very enlightening for those who attended, but little did we know there were going to be problems with the show.

To review, Tuesdays with Morrie is a book written by Detroit radio broadcaster and author Mitch Albom. It is a very good and inspirational book. I was excited to bring the stage play of that book for our audience to enjoy. A real bonus, I felt, was that the lead character was going to be TV star and Toledo native Jamie Farr. Most everyone knows Jamie Farr from his portrayal of the character Klinger from one of TV’s longest running and most successful TV shows of all-time: M*A*S*H* (this was when a man dressing like a woman was still funny).

Farr had performed this stage adaptation of this best-selling book a few years back and toured Canada. The co-star was David Keeley and the director, Ron Ulrich, who are both Canadians. The U.S. producer of this show was a man named Bill Rogers. They were all planning to meet in Minnesota and start rehearsals for a 40-performance run of the show across the United States.

In advance of this U.S. tour, Farr had appeared on several TV shows and did interviews to promote it. Unfortunately, he discovered to his dismay that director Ron Ulrich and co-star David Keeley were never confirmed when he arrived for rehearsals in Rochester, Minnesota, on September 3. Farr and his agent learned that Producer Bill Rogers applied for work visas at such a late date that it would be impossible for the two Canadians to get to the U.S. in time for rehearsals or the show’s debut on September 25.

Farr had in his contract that he would only work with Keeley on stage since they had worked together in Canada and felt very comfortable on stage with each other. Based on this, Farr reluctantly had his agent pull him for the production. As they say, “that’s show biz!”  Farr’s intention was not to disappoint his fans, but felt he had no choice at this late date.

I found out about all of this just last week. We were in the same boat as 40 other presenters across the U.S. Venues were hastily looking for replacement shows they felt would work for their audiences.  As you can imagine, one of the shows was going to be at the Stranahan Theater in Toledo, Farr’s hometown.  We were going to be the next day because it made excellent routing.

With the many connections Jamie Farr has in Toledo, he agreed to fly into Toledo regardless and do “An Evening with Jamie Farr,” as he especially didn’t want his hometown left high and dry. I found out about this and got hold of Jamie’s agent to inquire if Jamie would agree to travel an hour and 40 minutes south and repeat that show as “An Afternoon with Jamie Farr” at the Niswonger.

After some discussion, Farr agreed to make a weekend of it and include us in the two-day mini-tour.  In this show, Farr will be joined by Lee Conklin, co-news anchor of Toledo’s WTVG Channel 13. I understand that Conklin and Farr are friends and work together very well. We will have our stage decked out in a nice set while the two of them discuss Farr’s career in cinema and TV and show rare pictures and clips of M*A*S*H*, giving hilarious and entertaining insight into this long-running TV show.

I feel very fortunate as there are 38 other venues throughout the country who are still trying to fill the void of Tuesdays with Morrie. Farr stated he is deeply disappointed he will not be able to be a part of Tuesdays with Morrie, but is very excited to meet the Toledo and Van Wert audiences and share lots of good laughs with all of us. At the end, he will even take questions from the audience. So get ready to have your questions for Jamie.  I’m sure his years with Alan Alda, Harry Morgan, McLean Stevenson, Wayne Rogers, and so many more will have Jamie filled with entertaining stories of his time at the 4077th. I’m also sure Jamie will enjoy seeing William Christopher’s (Father Mulcahy) picture on our Green Room wall.  Christopher starred in one of our “Church Basement Ladies” shows a few years back.

If you have tickets for Tuesdays with Morrie starring Jamie Farr, they will be honored for this new show.  It’s the same date and same time. I hope you can join us Sunday, October 8, at 3 p.m., as we make lemonade out of lemons with “An Afternoon with Jamie Farr!”

FINÉ.