Game ON’s blog

Funk Fest 2009 

The Squirrel and I funk’d the night away Saturday as LA’s 92.3 FM (Old School and R&B) had their HOT SUMMER NIGHTS Funk Fest at the Greek Theater.  It was one of those kinds of nights where literally everybody in the amphitheater was dancing and groovin’.  I had heard of all of the band’s names but wasn’t sure what songs I was in store for until I heard them.  Here is a list of the line-up and one of each bands more popular songs:

Con Funk Shun (Ffun)

Midnight Starr  (No Parking on the Dance Floor)

SOS Band        Take Your Time (Do it Right)

Zapp (More Bounce to the Ounce)

Morris Day and the Time (Jungle Love)

There were only a few people on line selling tickets for the show, and those that were on line were asking way too much ($90 - $120 each).  We checked on Ticketmaster and found that there were a bunch of tickets still for sale, so we decided that we would forego the $22 “convenience charge” that we would’ve had to pay online and head to the Greek Theater box office instead. 

We parked in our free parking neighborhood off Vermont on Aberdeen Dr. (always free parking there, plus its way easier to get out after the show) and checked the box office.  Sure enough, there were tickets available in each of the sections.  The cheapest available ticket was $35.  We used that as the benchmark and set out to do a quick check to see if we could get them for less.

I walked up the stairs and the only guy selling tickets was one of the guys I had a run in with at the No Doubt show only a week ago.  They had threatened me last time that they were going to “charge the shit out of me” the next time they saw me.  Not much of a threat, but since he was the only one selling them, I sent the squirrel over.  She gave herself a $25 limit, and went in for the kill. 

I am proud to say that even though the dude started off at $65 for the ticket, she stayed true to her limit and walked away with one ticket in section B for $22.  She talked him down $43 in a matter of two minutes.  Atta girl.

While she was doing her thing, I noticed a group of guys handing tickets out to each other and it seemed like they were looking around for more friends to show up.  I strolled up to them and casually mentioned that if they had any extras, I’d be happy to buy one.  Since they had gotten them as part of a promotion, they gave me one and wouldn’t accept any money for it. 

So there we were.  We had spent $22 for a total of two tickets and ready to let the good times roll.  Our seats weren’t together, but that was not a problem.  We looked for the best available seats that wouldn’t cause a commotion if we had to move.  We ended up in section B, row D.  There is no bad seat in the Greek Theater but these were definitely better than average.  As we were sitting there between two of the bands, I overheard this group of four guys behind us.  One of them says “it always pays to show up day of the show!” That caught my attention.  I told them that we had gotten our tickets for $11 each, and it turns out they got theirs for free.  As they were approaching the box office, some guy out of nowhere walked up and offered them all free tickets.  One of the guys was so happy because now he could afford a carafe of wine to drink during the show.  We all laughed about that, but then it hit me that they were sitting in some pretty great seats for free.  I asked if this was their actual seats.  They all laughed and at the same time said “No.” 

We had found kindred spirits.  The show was so much fun.  We literally danced for three hours straight. Who would’ve thought you can have a great night of Funk Fest in Los Angeles on a Saturday night in the summer for $11?  

With one insanely successful NO DOUBT REUNION TOUR concert in the bag (I was filming that for a pilot we are doing for the Max Deale TV show, so I will blog about that concert story soon as I get the clearance to do so), I set my sights on the weekend shows they were doing in Orange County.  I wanted to share this experience with the Squirrel and long time friends Adam & Megan Warren.  The Squirrel had never seen NO DOUBT and I was positive she would love the high energy combined with the non stop dancing that the show ensured. According to Megan “nobody does it like Gwen”. 

We had four shows to choose from in Irvine, but with work, babysitter scheduling for their kids, etc., it looked like Saturday night was the only viable option for us.  It just so happens that Saturday night is EVERYONE ELSE’S first choice too, which made getting tickets that were both a good value and premium seating extremely difficult, maybe even the toughest ticket of the summer.  NO DOUBT is from the OC and this is their reunion tour, so to say that the show was a big deal is a major understatement.

As was the case in Los Angeles, all of the tickets in the venue (minus the lawn seats) were the same price ($90 per ticket plus venue fees).  Doesn’t matter if you are in the front row or the back row, the face value of your ticket was the same. Lawn seats were cheaper, but we were saving that option as a worst case scenario. 

The Squirrel spent three days leading up to the event looking at tickets online.  Prices were ranging from $100-$130 per ticket for the Terrace (the farthest seats from the stage), $120-$175 per ticket for the Loge, and $175-$500 per ticket for the Orchestra and PIT.  By mistake, she bid on 5 separate pairs of tickets on Sunday night.  Luckily she was outbid on all of them and we didn’t have to worry about re-selling them or going back for a third ND show (not that I would’ve minded, of course).

While looking online myself, I noticed a V.I.P. parking pass was available for $10.  I checked on the Live Nation website, and those same V.I.P. passes were going for $40, so I grabbed it.  Sweet!  V.I.P. parking is a huge upgrade if you can get it, as the regular parking can take over an hour to get out of after a show.  I picked up the parking pass on Friday.  Now all we needed was tickets for the show.  Easy, right!?

I had my eye on a few different groups of 4 tickets in the premium orchestra sections. One group was row B and one was row E (row 2 and 5 respectively). They were going for $999 and $1,199.  I tried in vain to offer $400 for them and didn’t even get a response.  These guys were set to make a killing with a 300% markup on their tickets.  There was no negotiating with these guys.  I wrote down where their seats were located…just in case (Which is a move in my book I call BROKER BACKFIRE. More on this later).

Saturday rolls around and the Squirrel was searching feverishly for the great deal that was sure to pop out at any moment.  That moment never came.  The best offer she found were for pairs of 2 seats together.  That would mean four of us would have to cram into two seats.  That can be done pretty easily at a concert like NO DOUBT where no one is going to be sitting, so we did have a few options.  But ultimately we let them go.  Besides, these seats were way too far from the stage to consider accepting that as our final option.  It was 3pm and time to take off for Irvine…with no tickets at all.  This was a tricky move considering the travel for both couples, the babysitter for Adam and Megan, and the fact that this was THE concert of the summer.  It would seem as though there was a slim chance at best that we were going to pull this off. 

I talked it over with Megan and decided that $150 was going to be the maximum we would pay per ticket.  This is 50% over face value and something I would NEVER normally do.  I wasn’t planning on doing it this time either, but at least now I knew where we stand.  Megan did a little Craigslist searching while we made the drive, but nothing came up.  We were on our own.

We arrived to the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Irvine at 4:45pm.  We drive straight past the giant marquis leading into the parking lot that boldly claims “NO DOUBT SOLD OUT”.  I was ready to have to take on the scalpers, but after a close call earlier in the week with a group of 5 of them (that story coming soon), I would prefer to avoid that scenario if at all possible.

The Squirrel and I pull up to the box office/will call.  The V.I.P. parking wasn’t going to be open for another hour or so.  Already, the NO DOUBT fan club faithful were lining up to be the first to enter the General Admission lawn area.  Guys dressed in Mohawks and Tutu’s, girls with the Gwen Stefani pig tails and crazy fashion statements everywhere.  The will call and box office windows were deserted.  Literally not one person was in line for either of them. I half figured that as I approached the box office window that read “ticket sales”, there wouldn’t be anyone there to talk to.  But to my dismay, there she was.

A wave of Zen flushed through me as I approached the window.  It seemed as though everything was slowing down. This is the play in my book that I call “OUT OF THE BOX.”

Almost jokingly I told the girl behind the window that I would like four seats together, lower orchestra, preferably row E or less (the first five rows of the orchestra are even better than the PIT tickets because you are just above their heads, with a clear shot of the stage).

I was fully expecting her to say one of three things:

1. All we have are lawn seats available.
2. We have four single tickets, but nothing together, and nothing in the orchestra.
3. Sorry, didn’t you see the huge sign with bold lettering as you drove in that the show is SOLD OUT!?

But instead, she comes back at me with “I don’t have any that close, but I do have four seats together in row M of Orchestra 3 (that’s the 13^th row of the stage right Orchestra section)”.

“Yeah, I guess those will do” I calmly replied.  I look over at the Squirrel who doesn’t fully comprehend what is happening.  The tickets are printed out and handed to me.  As this is happening I feel this amazing rush coursing through my veins.  I got so high from the feeling that my arms were numb.  I started dancing out in front of the box office.  A celebration was in order.  I called Adam and Megan who were already on their way, and Adam said he was never worried for a minute, that I always come through.

This was, in fact, the truth. I have always come through when it comes to this.  I have been so extremely fortunate over the years to have my ticket adventures turn out well.  But of them all, this was absolutely a top 5 event experiences.  To score like that is nothing short of amazing for me.

We met up with Adam and Megan and drove in together to the VIP Parking.  Moments later we are in our seats.  We enjoyed the two opening bands THE SOUNDS and PARAMOUR from our 13^th row seats.  About 5 minutes before NO DOUBT went on, I brought out my list of where those seats were located that were selling for $1,199 earlier.  It was in the same orchestra as me, but down in row E, the fifth row.  I brought Adam down with me to see if anyone was there.  We walked down the side of the stairs so as not to cause attention to ourselves and made it down to row E.  I looked straight across the row and there they were.  Four seats are available on the far end of the row.  The four empty seats next to the aisle, which is right next to Center Stage. 

I hear Adam say halfway out loud to himself “Is this our row?” The person who was sitting down in the chair as he was passing said “Probably not.”  Adam kept on walking. I signaled to the girls to meet us down there, and minutes later we were all five rows from the stage.  And then the lights went out. 

Madness ensued.  The crowd was so loud it was overbearing.  I figured if we got even one song in these seats, it is totally worth it.  The worst thing that could happen if someone came with the tickets for those seats is that we have to go back to the 13^th row. What a great consolation prize!  But no one ever came to claim the seats.  We got to enjoy the entire show from the 5^th row.  The last three songs we upgraded one final time to 3^rd row in the center. 

There is a difference between going to see a show and being  A PART OF the show.  Tonight, we were a part of the show. 

Rock On.

Max

Upcoming Blogs:

            No Doubt Los Angeles: Ticket Jedi in Training

            George Thorogood at The Greek

            Depeche Mode

            Dodgers

            Aerosmith/ZZ Top

            ….and many many more.

Thank you so much to Scott Ferrall (www.scottferrall.com) on Howard 101 Sirius Satellite Radio for lending his voice to the play by play action of this rediculously idiotic spoof commercial.  Also BEST ACTRESS nominee Angela Malhotra for putting herself in an embarrasing situation...all in the name of laughs.

This is the latest in the series of video spoof commercials for Sold Out SO WHAT! The secrets that high priced ticket brokers and scalpers DON'T want you to know!  I hope you enjoy it half as much as we did making it.

I just got these pictures back from my book signing in Seattle.  We decided to officially call it the BOOKS FOR BEER tour.  The idea was that anyone who came to the Fox Sports Grill and bought a copy of Sold Out SO WHAT! got a free domestic draft.  It worked out well and I met a lot of cool local people.  This was the day after my appearance on THE MENS ROOM on 99.9 FM KISW.  Thanks again Miles, Steve, Ted and Ben.  Great time.

I'd like to extend the BOOKS FOR BEER tour.  My dream tour would be to follow around Monday Night Football this season and do a book signing at a sports bar on Sunday in each city that is hosting MNF that week.  All I need is a sponsor.  Anyone out there game!?  I would do radio and television interviews on the few days leading up to the weekend, then do the book signing on Sunday and give away two tickets to MNF the following day and bring the winners with me to the game.  Sounds like a successful book tour to me!

It has been an incredibly busy week since I got back from Seattle.  I followed up the Fox Morning News interview (that you see below) with back to back to back Dodgers games and then topped it off with a little 80s heavy metal on Saturday night at Gibson Amphitheater with Sebastian Bach, Dokken and Poison! 

I did a photo diary of one of my trips to Dodger Stadium last week.  Starting with the free parking, then maneuvering to  better seats until I am right there in the action. 

Big thanks to Jean Martirez from Fox Morning News Los Angeles for inviting me on to speak to the fans of Los Angeles.  Jean saw my interview on KTLA last week and emailed me asking "what do we have to do to get you on our show?" which I thought was pretty cool.  All you have to do is ask, Jean! 

Here's the segment that we did.  It was fun and I'm starting to feel a little more comfortable on camera.  Maybe it's the dumb Manny Ramirez wig that I got to hide behind for this one!?  Who knows.  Thanks to Evan D. for the interview coaching.  Just breathe damnit!

No, it's not what you think.  The guys from THE MENS ROOM show at KISW FM in Seattle had me on today to promote my book signing tomorrow at Fox Sports Grill.  Yesterday, I finally came up with a name for my upcoming book tour.  It is now officially the BOOKS FOR BEERS tour and it kicks off tomorrow.  Anyone who comes to the book signing event and picks up a copy of Sold Out...SO WHAT! will get a free draft beer.  If you already have a copy, just bring it in, and you'll get a free beer anyways!

It's my way of saying thanks for the amazing launch so far.  I will be continuing the BOOKS FOR BEERS tour throughout the year at various locations.  Tomorrow I will be on IAN FURNESS at 950 KJR, Seattle's # 1 Sports Station.

Thanks again to Scott Ferrall who had me on the show again last night.  YOU'RE THE MAN!!!

Let's see if this works.  I embedded the video here, but it's my first time trying it.  If it doesn't work, I posted the interview on my you tube page (www.youtube.com/soldoutsowhat).  I had a great time with the KTLA morning news crew Tuesday morning.  Here is the five minute clip.  This interview brought almost 1,000 people from Los Angeles to our website (www.SoldOutSoWhat.net) which was a new single day record!  Enjoy.