When Ken Kragen's daughter was just 7-years-old she wrote a parody of the classic song "The 12 Days Of Christmas" using a different breed of dog for each day. The book became a national best seller with over 500,000 copies sold to date. It went on to sell 400,000 plush toy dogs and in 2004 it was made into a full-length, live-action feature film directed by Academy Award winning director Kieth Merrill. Released directly to DVD the film is well on its way to selling a million copies, an unheard of feat for a small independently produced project. All this has happened because of the delightful nature of this Christmas story. To find out more about this project, including watching the trailer and ordering the DVD, book and other 12 Dogs Merchandise, please go to www.12DogsofChristmas.com.
Suzanne Whang must be the hardest working woman in show business. Suzanne can be seen almost daily – and sometimes twice a day – as the host of "House Hunters", HGTV's most popular show, now in its fifth season. And nowdays she is also being stopped on the street because of her hilarious role as "Polly, The Spa Manager", in NBC's series "Las Vegas". As an actress Suzanne has also appeared in co-starring and guest starring roles on various series such as "Nip/Tuck", "Cold Case" "The Practice," and "Two & a Half Men".
She appears in the Keanu Reeves feature "Constantine" now out on DVD and was seen in 2006 in the feature films "Traci Townsend" and the Martha Coolidge directed "Material Girls" starring Hilary Duff. Her stand-up comedy alter ego, Sung Hee Park, is also enjoying enormous success both live at such comedy clubs as the Improvs at Las Vegas (catch her there this May), Lake Tahoe and Hollywood, as well as on TV in Comedy Central's "Premium Blend". 2006 saw her successful one-woman show at the Beverly Hills Playhouse to nightly standing ovations, and in 2007 she takes her act out on the road playing Colleges. Suzanne's outrageous comedy has won her both the "Andy Kaufman" Award from the New York Comedy Festival and the Las Vegas Comedy Festival's "Best Up and Coming Comedian" Award. In between hosting duties, acting jobs, and stand-up comedy bookings, Suzanne also fits in corporate appearances, where she is a popular guest speaker. Now she has added "author" to her repertoire: her book "Suzanne Whang's Guide to Happy Home Buying" is in bookstores everywhere and she finds herself in demand at Home Shows from Florida to Minnesota. We would laughingly add that brain surgery is Suzanne's next field to conquer, but with a B.A. from Yale and a Masters in Cognitive Psychology from Brown, this may not be a joke at all. Suzanne Whang has proven that there is nothing she cannot successfully do.
In 2007, after many years of playing to sold-out crowds at the Rio Hotel, Ronn opened his new show at the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas. This was after a year that saw Ronn Lucas travel the world from Los Angeles to New York to Paris performing his award–winning comedy–ventriloquist act as well as showing–off his acting chops in an acclaimed performance on TNT's Nip/Tuck playing – a ventriloquist of course. David Letterman invited him on his show during The Late Show's Ventriloquist Week (Scorch got to come too). It was a momentous year as Ronn celebrated his 25th anniversary in show business. Ronn has performed for every President since Ronald Reagan up to and including the current President Bush, as well as foreign heads of states and the Queen of England. At Jerry Lewis' request, Ronn performs every year on Jerry's Muscular Dystrophy nationwide telethon. Ronn has had his own Top Ten Variety show in England, been nominated for an acting Emmy, appeared on shows from The Smothers Brothers to the Tonight Show, and his been called "the world's best" by no less than the New York Times. Look for Ronn's book (co–written with comedian Chris Clobber) "Better Living Through Ventriloquism" coming out this Spring. Although his new show runs Saturday – Thursday in Las Vegas, Ronn is available for corporate dates.
Five times nominated as country music's Male Vocalist of the Year, with five Platinum albums and 15 # 1 and 24 Top Ten hits to his name (including the chart topping singles "Love Me," "That's My Story," "In This Life", "One Boy, One Girl," "Not That Different", "I Think About You," and many more), Collin Raye shows no sign of slowing down and resting on his laurels. As one of the finest vocalists and performers in music Collin Raye and his band are touring extensively in 2007 for both public and private shows. Check out his web site at www.CollinRaye.com for his ever expanding schedule . Collin is booked by The Agency For Performing Arts (APA) in Nashville with Steve Lassiter and Bonnie Sugarman as his responsible agents. He is co-managed by Ken Kragen & Pat Melfi. His publicist is Cathy Gurley in Nashville. A new recording deal has recently been finalized with "Nashville Records" and the first song from that project, "Soldier's Prayer" will be released in May .
Award-winning Journalist and Entertainer ROY FIRESTONE has been called "the best interviewer in the business" by Sports Illustrated. Firestone believes in "taking every talent you have and exploring it to see what happens". As one of America's most versatile and original talents, Firestone has followed that philosophy into a variety of genres, excelling as interviewer, commentator, and stage performer. As legendary host of ESPN's "Up Close and Personal" Firestone has interviewed more than 5,000 people, including every major sports figure in the worled.
Firestone is also an accomplished singer, impressionist and humorist. His multi-media review includes impressions of more than a dozen entertainers, sports figures, and assorted personalities. He's wowed audiences of all types with his compelling personality and hilarious comedy on such shows as Late Night With David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Nightline - and appeared as himself in the movie, "Jerry Maguire". He is constantly developing new material for his act and honing his existing routine. Currently Roy performs between 75-100 stand-up acts worldwide per year, a quarter of them for charity, the rest for a variety of business, sports, and social organizations.
They're red hot again. The irrepressible Smothers Brothers have made a sweeping impact on diverse generations of fans and once again find themselves in major demand for concerts, television and corporate shows. Constantly working, Tom and Dick have fit in recent television appearances as a team on "The Bonnie Hunt Show," "CBS 75th Anniversary," and talk shows from "Regis & Kelly" to "Bill O'Reilly." They've also taken solo turns on "Steven King's Kingdom Hospital" (Dick) and the ABC television movie "Once Upon A Mattress" (Tom) with Carol Burnett and Tracy Ullman. In the past two years Tom and Dick have been recipients of numerous honors for their accomplishments, including a retrospective by the New York Museum of Broadcasting, a seminar and TV show reunion at the U.S.A. Comedy Arts Festival in Aspen, induction into the Hollywood Bowl’s Hall Of Fame, 'The Freedom Of Expression Award" from the Video Software Dealers Association and honorary doctorates from their alma mater, San Jose State University. Their fabled 1960's "Smothers Brothers Hour," the subject of the acclaimed recent Bravo documentary "Smothered," is now studied in universities across the country. It is easy to understand why they have been described as one of the most successful comedy teams in history. Very simply they are as funny and entertaining today as they ever have been.
She has become a star in Europe and when you hear her voice you will know why. In 2005, Der Bild – Germany’s biggest newspaper – crowned her "The next Celine Dion." Liel has made hundreds of performances all around the world and is often invited to sing for presidents and prime ministers. She has performed on stage with President Clinton, the legendary rock band The Scorpions, Elton John, Bono and even Richard Gere. In Germany during 2005 she received an award for the most promising rising star. Liel has become a symbol as a Voice of Peace and received the prestigious Radio Award for being an artist who promotes peace and unity. This amazing young woman, only 16 years old, is from a Kibbutz in Israel, where she started her professional career at the age of 12. She sings in five languages, plays the guitar and writes her own music and enthralls audience of all ages. In the spring of 2006, Liel will represent Switzerland for Eurovision in Athens, Greece, as well as performing at several North American dates. Her new single can be bought and downloaded at http://www.israel-music.com/liel/.
Ken Kragen discovered Alisha Mullally when she was seated next to him on a plane from Oakland to Los Angeles. Not quite the same as the counter stool at Schwabs - but still a great Hollywood story. Knocked out by her intelligence and effervescent personality, Ken immediately realized Alisha's potential. Alisha it turned out was already a trained dancer and actress on her way to Los Angeles to film yet another commercial, but what Alisha really wanted to do was act. Ken immediately set out to introduce the 12-year-old (who looks much younger) to casting directors. Alisha almost immediately landed a costarring role on the soap "Days of Our Lives." She made her feature film debut playing a young Juliet Binoche in "Bee Season" which was released in the Fall of 2005, and she can be seen costarring as "Miranda" - the smartest girl in school - in the feature "The 12 Dogs of Christmas," now on DVD. Alisha, who lives with her parents and sister in the San Francisco Bay area, is also a featured dancer for the NBA’s Warriors basketball team.
