The Boone Show - S5 E5 - Mill Town Players' Will Ragland and SC Comicon Jr.'s Rob Young

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Ever wondered how a community bounces back after a storm wreaks havoc, or what bonds a town together during power outages? Join us on The Boone Show with charismatic guests Rob Young from Borderlands Comics and Games and Pelzer Mayor Will Ragland, the brilliant mind behind the Milltown Players. Discover the heartwarming stories of community spirit during recent blackouts and how Pelzer's resilience shines despite setbacks like losing a handicap-accessible kayak launch. Get a sneak peek into upcoming events, especially the buzz around the much-anticipated Comic-Con Jr. event, where Rob will be showcasing his vibrant comic world.

Feeling the holiday excitement? Tune in as we share the magic of historic restorations and the return of the beloved Pelzer Light People, a whimsical Christmas tradition involving handcrafted light suits. From the friendly rivalry of Pelzer and Williamston's holiday festivities to the chaotic charm of tree-lighting ceremonies, we celebrate the quirks that define our community's festive season. 

The stage is set for an exciting theater season with everything from swamp-set whimsical plays to thrilling mystery productions. Theater buffs won't want to miss the Honky Tonk Christmas concert or the thrilling adaptation of Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None." 

Sports enthusiasts get an update on college and high school football, with reflections on Clemson's season and potential showdowns. 

And for those craving more pop culture, dive into the excitement of Comic-Con with stories of legendary guests and mesmerizing cosplay. Stay entertained and informed with The Boone Show, your go-to for dynamic community updates and event previews.

Thanks for listening! Direct all inquiries to [e-mail].

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey everybody, welcome to another edition of
the Boone Show on MyPulse Radio.
Happy to be with you.
We've got some great gueststoday and a normal great co-host
, my boss.
I get paid to say that, butHolly is here and our guests

(00:20):
tonight are a couple of icons inthe entertainment industry and
veterans on our show yes, in theupstate, and this is the the
time that we have them on,because they've got a lot going
on.
And uh, rob young is here andhe's uh from borderlands comics
and games.
Some people know him from thatand if you know him from that,

(00:41):
you know him from the and if youknow him from that, you know
him from the other stuff, whichis the Comic-Cons, and we have
the Comic-Con Jr coming up thisweekend.
So welcome again to the show.
Thanks for having me, it'salways great to have you, he's
always entertaining.
And speaking of entertaining,will Ragland is here too, and he
, of course, is the Pelzer Mayorand the Executive Artistic
Director of Milltown Players.

Speaker 5 (01:04):
You say it so well.

Speaker 1 (01:05):
Milltown Players.

Speaker 5 (01:06):
Milltown Players your home for quality, affordable
entertainment.

Speaker 3 (01:11):
Listen to that voice.
I know it.
I could listen to him all day.

Speaker 1 (01:14):
Listen to that voice Ten years Milltown Players.
Yes, sir, it's been ten longyears.

Speaker 5 (01:22):
They've done a great job.

Speaker 1 (01:23):
And we'll talk a lot about that, in fact Will.
We'll start out with you.
The question we ask everybodyafter the storm is how they're
doing, and how did Pelzer do,and how's Pelzer recovering, and
all that stuff.

Speaker 5 (01:37):
You know, I think Pelzer made out pretty lucky
compared to others in theupstate and beyond.
We got our power back prettyquickly.
It seemed that we got ours backa little bit quicker than
others around us.
So I feel very blessed.
You know, the historicauditorium is over 100 years old
.
We were very worried about itbut fortunately there's no tall

(01:58):
trees around it so we had a bigpine tree fall on it, the power
line that came to the auditorium.
I still have a Leland Cypressin my backyard but we have
rented some equipment and ourguys are out there every day
getting the trees up from publicproperty and putting it by the
road, getting ready for thepickup coming up from the county

(02:20):
and contractors that they arehiring.
So we could have fared a lotworse.
So we're counting our blessingsfor sure.
You know that river we're onthe Saluda River and it's never
flooded like that before.
It dumped a lot of sand on ourlower boat ramp area and also
the kayak launch.

(02:41):
It actually took the kayaklaunch with it of the kayak
launch.

Speaker 6 (02:44):
It actually took the kayak launch with it, the
handicap access, kayak launch.

Speaker 5 (02:48):
The place where they put in is gone.

Speaker 3 (02:50):
It went over the dam and it's down the river
somewhere and you've notrecovered it at this point.
No, no, we have not.
Oh my goodness.

Speaker 5 (02:58):
But again counting our blessings.

Speaker 3 (03:01):
That's right.

Speaker 1 (03:01):
When you say you have A Leland Cypress, I take it you
had more than one before.

Speaker 5 (03:06):
That's right, I'm pretending that just one in my
mind I have a Leland Cypress.

Speaker 3 (03:11):
We lost eight in our backyard.
There you go Eight LelandCypresses in our backyard.
It's probably a good thingbecause they're getting diseases
.
They are, that's right.
It's time to pick somethingelse, a different.
Evergreen, you always think thegood out of things will.

Speaker 1 (03:26):
I know I try something else, a different,
evergreen good out of things.
Well, I know, I try, I try.
Yeah, that's great.
Um, while we're on the subject,how'd you do rob we, uh?

Speaker 4 (03:30):
I mean, I guess, like a lot of people, we lost power
for I guess it was five, sixdays or something, and um sell
as well yes, we didn't have cellservice, even see a cell tower.
I'm sure the tower lost power,um, and the shop was same way
five days, um.
But you know, you look atWestern North Carolina and I
agree with what Will said.
I mean we are just so fortunate.

(03:50):
It's terrifying.
I mean I'm from North Carolinaso that kind of part of the
country is home for me and it'swild.
Wild to see what happened, butkind of inspirational to see how
just regular folks have madesuch a dramatic difference,
including people that aren'teven from here.

Speaker 3 (04:07):
Yeah, you know flying in and doing things.
You know I said I was soimpressed at the neighborhoods
because we didn't have power foralmost six or seven days.
And I go outside and the kidsare playing outside Right Like
they're playing with balls, andthey're grouping together and
playing games at night with glowsticks and you know like the

(04:28):
old days, oh my gosh, it was soincredible and I just literally
sat there and watched the kidsplay because it was beautiful
outside and it was incrediblefor them to be able to get
together and talk and do thingstogether.

Speaker 5 (04:41):
It was, it was great Someone told me I didn't know we
had this many kids and dothings together.
It was great.
Someone told me I didn't knowwe had this many kids in.

Speaker 1 (04:47):
Pelzer, isn't that funny.

Speaker 5 (04:48):
They've all been, they've been inside, but we were
preparing for our last show andso we were actually rehearsing
in the dark.
We brought in battery-operatedlights and we were building our
sets outside, and it was amazingto see the contractors that

(05:09):
Duke Energy hired coming in fromall over the place and they all
came at once and showed upright there, because the
auditorium parking lot is thebiggest and easiest to get to.
So they used our parking lot asthe staging area for their work
and they were there every day,every night and just nonstop
until it was done it was amazing.

Speaker 1 (05:29):
Yeah, were they allowed to park on the church
part of the?

Speaker 7 (05:33):
Sorry Will.

Speaker 2 (05:36):
You'll have to ask Too soon.
Too soon, you'll have to answer.

Speaker 3 (05:39):
Too soon, too soon.

Speaker 1 (05:41):
I'm sorry.
I couldn't resist.
Tell us about what's going onin Pelzer.
Put the parentheses around thestorm for a minute and tell us
what's going on with progressand some of the events that are
coming up.

Speaker 5 (05:55):
Sure, you know, we recently, this past year,
restored the infield of BillHopkins Field, our historic
baseball field.
It's been there for at least100 years and that was a big
deal, a big source of pride.
We had some money from thecounty and money from the state.
As you probably know, we don'thave any property taxes in the

(06:19):
town of Pelzer so we had somehelp to restore that infield and
the second it was done the verynext day kids were out there
playing.
So we have seen more use ofthat field than we have in the
past at least a decade.
And we decided to partner.
It was an idea of the PelzerMasonic Lodge to partner with us

(06:39):
to have a fall festival.
Now the town of Pelzer has notthrown a fall festival, at least
in 10 years, and so we'repartnering with them for a free
event this coming Saturday atthe Bill Hopkins Field right
there on Highway 20.
And they're calling it theJack-o'-lantern Jamboree.

(07:01):
Isn't that funny at theJack-o'-lantern Jamboree, isn't
that funny?

Speaker 6 (07:04):
It's going to be, this Saturday.

Speaker 5 (07:06):
October the 26th, free admission, live music, food
trucks, vendors, kidzonepumpkin decorating contest and a
chili cook-off by the MasonicLodge.
I tried to get them to do afart contest afterwards but they
said maybe not this year and itstarts at 10 am and it lasts

(07:28):
until 4 pm.
So 10 am to 4 pm this Saturday.
Jack-o'-lantern jamboree.

Speaker 3 (07:37):
Let me know if you have that contest next year.
Do you want to judge?
Well, I might enter.

Speaker 4 (07:41):
We'll just see, we'll see how it's going.

Speaker 5 (07:43):
It could be a pungent competition.

Speaker 1 (07:47):
Yes, indeed, All right, but that's this Saturday
and 10 to 4.

Speaker 5 (07:51):
You got it.

Speaker 1 (07:53):
So head on out to the ball fields.
That's great that they havethat festival there.
Anything else you can tell usabout as far as progress
building businesses, anythinglike that?
Far as progress buildingbusinesses, anything like that.

Speaker 5 (08:04):
I would love to tell you all about that old drugstore
at the corner of CourtneyStreet and Lebby Street.
Everyone knows that olddrugstore and the family has
been working on it for probablytwo and a half years now and
they're getting very close toopening this fall and they're
going to start as a coffee shop.
It is two sisters and they'vebeen doing this for years and

(08:30):
they do a great job.
But it's going to grow into acafe, which we're very excited
about.
But it's a family the Waltersfamily working on this and
Callie Walters lives in town andeven serves on our planning
commission and it's a piece ofhistory.
They've been restoring it andit's going to start out as a
coffee shop and I can't wait forthat to happen.

(08:52):
And, as you know, we're alsostill working on those historic
restoration projects of the oldhospital and the community
building.
I actually got a text todayfrom the historic consultant.
He's looking at paint chipsthat he has taken off of the
community building to see whatcolor it used to be, and so it's
going to be like a cream colorwith some hunter green trim and

(09:16):
a silver metal roof.
That building they believe ofcourse it was originally a
skating rink, possibly back inthe 1890s, which makes it,
according to him, the oldestfreestanding skating rink left
in the state.

Speaker 3 (09:34):
Oh, wow.

Speaker 5 (09:35):
So we're excited about that, and we recently
presented architectural plansfor the restoration of the old
hospital, which will be ourfuture town hall.
Very cool, yeah, I saw thepictures of that in hospital,
which will be our future townhall.

Speaker 3 (09:45):
Very cool yeah, I saw the pictures of that in the
paper or online.

Speaker 1 (09:48):
somewhere I saw them.
It looks really nice reallynice.
We're going to switch theschedule a little bit here
because Will's got to leave alittle early.
So we're going to save Rob alittle bit and we're going to
keep going with Will here.
Tell us about, well, firstChristmas.
I know it's still a little bit,and we're going to keep going
will here, uh, tell us about,well, first christmas.
I know it's still a little bitaway, but are we going to get

(10:08):
lit again this christmas?
I need to know, I need to know,oh, lord he in case you're all
wondering what he just asked.

Speaker 5 (10:22):
he's talking about the world-famous original
Pelzer-like people and yes, ofcourse they will be back out and
they will be getting lit inPelzer.
I don't have their schedule yet, but they have been touring the
upstate every year and visitingretirement centers and other
places and hospitals forchildren.

(10:42):
And it's an upstate traditionsince the early 90s and we're
very proud to keep it going.
And these are the originalPelzer Light people, the
original.

Speaker 3 (10:52):
Or at least the offspring of the original Pelzer
Light person, because notanybody can just do this.
You have to kind of no.
It's almost like a Pelzer mafia.

Speaker 5 (11:01):
And if you try, they will find you on their golf
carts and take you down.

Speaker 1 (11:07):
Well, didn't you try?
You've tried, right.

Speaker 5 (11:09):
I did, but they invited me, Okay, you have to be
invited, Right right.
And you have to make your ownlight suit by hand.
There's a certain way to do it,and if you do it wrong, you may
not be invited back Exactly.

Speaker 3 (11:23):
And if you do it wrong, you may not be invited
back.

Speaker 5 (11:25):
Exactly, it involves a lot of safety pins I wore I
think it was 2020, I made mineout of a jumpsuit and I was
wearing 600.
Christmas lights just on thefront.

Speaker 3 (11:41):
Is there a minimum?
You can't sit down on them, youknow Right.
Is there a minimal, like youhave to have between 500 and
1,000?

Speaker 5 (11:49):
There's not a quota, but, as always, more is more.

Speaker 1 (11:58):
More is more, yes, and of course, pelser West
Pelser will have the nighttimeparade again, or we?

Speaker 5 (12:04):
could just call it the Pelser Parade, that's fine.

Speaker 1 (12:06):
That's okay, we can do that.
It's going to be one of thefirst Saturdays in December and
you know that you have now hadthat effect on Williamston, as
they are having a night paradethis year as well.
Well, you know.

Speaker 5 (12:17):
Williamston, you know you've got to hand it to them.
I mean, what do they say?

Speaker 1 (12:21):
Flattery is the what is it the sincerest form of what
Imitation?
That's it Imitation.

Speaker 5 (12:30):
Sincerest form of flattery.

Speaker 2 (12:31):
That's right.

Speaker 5 (12:32):
That's right, and they've done a great job of
stealing all of our great ideas.
But I did put my foot down whenthey wanted to have people
dress up in lights.
I said, listen, that's ours,and so I think, they dressed up
as snowflakes or something sillylike that.
I'm sure it looked great, butthey're doing a great job.
They've got a lot of greatpeople over in Williamston.

(12:52):
They've got money to spend.
They've got EnvisionWilliamston.
They've got taxes.

Speaker 6 (12:57):
They have everything we wish we had and more.

Speaker 5 (13:00):
But we're Poe and we're proud dang it in Pelzer
South.

Speaker 1 (13:03):
Kakalaki.
So two nighttime parades.
Hopefully they're not on thesame night.

Speaker 5 (13:09):
That would not be right.
That almost happened.
I think it was last year.
I was like hold up we can't bedoing this.

Speaker 3 (13:12):
So when is your parade?
Because theirs is December 1st.

Speaker 5 (13:15):
Yeah, I think I wish you.
I want to say ours is the 7th,Okay.

Speaker 1 (13:20):
That would make sense .
It's always the first Saturday,right?

Speaker 5 (13:23):
They do this great thing Winter Wonderland, they
spray a bunch of fake snow onyour face.
And then Rocky Burgess gets outthere at the tree lighting
ceremony with his phone and itnever turns on Never works.
He talks about that when hecomes on too.
It's the running joke.

Speaker 1 (13:41):
We love it.
It's like Christmas vacation.

Speaker 5 (13:42):
Listen, I'd be disappointed if it did work,
that's right.
You know, I was like come on,it wouldn't be the same.
You've got tradition there,give us the countdown and then
mess up.

Speaker 3 (13:51):
And please, as technology savvy as he is, let
that be the tradition, and everyyear he gets so bent out of
shape.

Speaker 5 (13:58):
Christmas is a giving time.
It's a time of forgiveness.
So please screw up.
We expect it.
Give us the opportunity to giveyou some Christmas grace for
your mistakes.

Speaker 1 (14:09):
Come on.
He said after the first timehe's going to do all this
different stuff and put allthese different things in.

Speaker 5 (14:17):
When you've got a thousand people with cell phones
filming it standing around thetree, that's true, I mean you've
got to give them a break.

Speaker 4 (14:20):
The tree gets shy.
That's true I mean you've gotto give them a break.
Well, the tree gets shy.

Speaker 3 (14:24):
That's right, oh yeah Right.
So many people feel scared, butI will say every other town
around here has some kind of afake tree they put up.

Speaker 5 (14:29):
Right.
We planted a tree, we have aChristmas tree that's in the
ground and growing, and wheneverthe wind blows over all the
other fake Christmas trees, Ijust have to chuckle and say,
well, ours doesn't blow over,because it's real, okay.

Speaker 3 (14:43):
I didn't know that.

Speaker 5 (14:44):
One other little fact about Pelzer, and it's a little
tree because you know wecouldn't afford a big one.

Speaker 2 (14:51):
Charlie Brown.
So give me about 10 years, thiswill look great All right,
moving right along.

Speaker 1 (15:01):
Let's shift gears.
Talk about the Milltown Playerswe mentioned.
They've been around for 10years.
It's the 11th season.

Speaker 7 (15:06):
Yes, it's been a long , long time.

Speaker 1 (15:08):
Yes, you just finished the show, which is a
pretty popular comedy.
We did it was awesome.

Speaker 5 (15:12):
Yes, we had the best time with the Sugar Bean Sisters
.
It was such a weird play, whichis why I loved it.
It had some great one-liners.
It was set in a Florida swampand I've got nothing to spoil
because it's over.
At the end of it, the finalsister boards a spaceship.

Speaker 3 (15:28):
Oh my.

Speaker 5 (15:28):
God.
And it's taking it out into theuniverse and I got to build a
boarding ramp that we loweredand was all lit up.
Oh cool From the side of thestage and she climbed up it and
we closed, closed it and we'replaying 2001 space odyssey.
Everybody was cheering likeclemson to just score a
touchdown, you know.
But the best part is theythought it was over.

(15:49):
And then it's the old one too.
You hit him with the secondthing.
And what?
Do you use a drone?
oh, we had a remote controldrone flying saucer in the
background along the sky.
You know, connected with asound, so when it's like you

(16:10):
hear this, it just flies.
It was a double whammy.
That's cool, it's like.
Clemson scoring a touchdown andgoing for two, yeah, incredible
.

Speaker 1 (16:21):
That is incredible.

Speaker 5 (16:22):
And a Palmetto student was back there on crew
operating the drone.
So she created the magic.
It was pretty awesome.

Speaker 3 (16:29):
How cool is that.
That's great.
Not surprised, though.
Will Just not surprised.

Speaker 4 (16:34):
The day the swamp stood still.
That's right.

Speaker 1 (16:37):
That's the thing about the sets are always
amazing.
They are, we go for it.

Speaker 5 (16:46):
I Sets are always amazing.
They are.
We're crazy, we go for it, Ilove it.
I mean our obsession withdetail and getting it right and
research and you know you'vedone it right.
When people just walk up to thestage and just stare at it for
a long time and point and takepictures and talk about what
they see and they just can'tbelieve it, that's awesome.

Speaker 1 (16:57):
Very cool.
So then you've got the HonkyTonk Christmas A Honky Tonk,
christmas A Honky Tonk.

Speaker 5 (17:03):
Christmas I'm sorry, a Honky Tonk Christmas.
This is a themed concert.
People love our themed concerts, especially at Christmas, and
so we have put together somereally talented local country
singers and a live band andwe're going to have a big old
barn Honky Tonk set and we'redoing all of these classic

(17:25):
Christmas tunes.
There's no dialogue, it's not areview, it's just a concert,
and we spend a lot of timecurating these set lists so that
we think that our audienceswill get the most out of it.
And there's a lot of classiccountry.
There's some newer stuff andit's exactly what our audiences
love that we give them atChristmas, and so we're very
excited about that, excited tojump into rehearsals and release

(17:49):
that cast list.
It's going to be lots of fun.

Speaker 1 (17:51):
All right and keeping the variety going, then you've
got an Agatha Christie.

Speaker 5 (17:58):
I think her friends called her Agatha.

Speaker 1 (18:00):
Yeah, for sure, possibly.
And then there were none.

Speaker 5 (18:04):
Let me tell you, we've never done a mystery
before, really, and when Ilooked this up I was like, ooh,
it's a dark thriller and one ofher most famous I think it's the
most famous mystery that sheever wrote the book that is.
And we're so excited about thisone, I thought let's try

(18:24):
something different and new, andauditions are December the 7th
and we're getting a lot ofresponse from upstate actors who
are signing up to audition forslots, and so if anybody out
there is interested in being inan Agatha Christie dark thriller
, oh man, now's your chance.
That's going to be in February.

Speaker 1 (18:41):
Yeah, I did have a question about auditions because
somebody had asked me to askyou.
But are they open for peoplethat don't have experience to
try out as?

Speaker 5 (18:50):
well, absolutely.
We so often will cast a widevariety of actors with varying
degrees of experience, and Ihave cast people with no
experience before and lead rolesbecause I knew they could do it
.
And that's one of the manyexciting things about community
theater is that it is for and byyour community, and so our

(19:16):
auditions are open to anybodywho wants to try it out.
And you never know, you mightget a part or you might not, and
so keep on trying and see whathappens.
And if we do precast a role, wealways include that in the
audition notice to say you know,here are the available roles
and this role has already beencast.
And sometimes we do that ifit's something special or we

(19:40):
want to feature a special actorwho's worked with us a long time
, and there's nothing wrong withthat, as long as you are
upfront about it at thebeginning.

Speaker 1 (19:47):
Do you have these announcements posted on your
website or anywhere?

Speaker 5 (19:51):
We do it's?
If you get our website, whichis just milltownplayersorg,
there's an auditions page andthe most recent information is
posted there.

Speaker 1 (20:02):
All right, all right, all right, then you've got some
more music coming up in thespring.
Yes, sir Wave.

Speaker 5 (20:07):
Yeah, motown, but you skipped one part of the concert
series.

Speaker 1 (20:10):
Oh, the concert series, okay, separately.

Speaker 5 (20:12):
It is a crooners concert called Come Fly With Me.
I love the music of FrankSinatra and all those guys back
then.
I've been wanting to dosomething like this for a long
time, so we thought we'd try itout in mid-March to see how it
took with our audiences.
I think it will do well.

Speaker 1 (20:31):
Yeah, certainly, and then Motown.

Speaker 5 (20:34):
Motown, we're calling it Heat Wave.
You know, we've done this verysuccessful themed concert called
Under the Boardwalk, which is,of course, beach music, and
every time folks say this isawesome, how about a Motown show
?
I mean over and over and over.
So finally we're giving themexactly what they want with a
full-blown Motown concert inApril Nice.

Speaker 1 (20:55):
And then the Odd.

Speaker 5 (20:56):
Couple, the Odd Couple another classic, and that
was a choice based on a survey.
We put out a big old survey toour patrons and that was one
that they picked they wanted tosee for the comedies.
And of course Neil Simon,probably his most famous comedy,
and I've got my good buddy,reed Halverson, who's great at
Neil Simon, to direct that inJune.

(21:17):
It's going to be a lot of fun.
And then South Pacific.
Let me tell you I am mostexcited about that one.
That's our giant summer musical.
That show has not been donearound here in a long time.
I've never seen it performedaround here and I think now is
the time.
Our people love the big classicAmerican musicals because

(21:40):
they're classic for a reasonbecause they're so daggum good.
No one writes musicals todaythe way they used to, the kind
of tunes that stay with you inyour head over and over and over
.
Back then a famous musicalwould come out and the record,
the album, would be like thenumber one album in the country,
even with pop music.

(22:01):
You know they would buy it.
Things like Fiddler on the Roof, you know that sort of thing,
the Music man.
So we're excited about that.
And then, of course, in Augustwe're bringing back a local
Elvis impersonator, austin Irbyfrom Honeyapath.
He is so good.

Speaker 3 (22:19):
He is so good.

Speaker 5 (22:20):
And our people love him.
He does this full timenationally and he did our
Christmas show last year wecalled it Blue Christmas where
he sang a bunch of ElvisChristmas tunes.

Speaker 3 (22:30):
It was incredible.

Speaker 5 (22:31):
And then this time we thought, okay, I've got this
set for South Pacific, how aboutwe do something having to do
with Aloha from Hawaii or BlueHawaii?
And so we're taking those songsand creating something that
we're calling Rock-A-Hula,rock-a-hula, rock-rock-a-hula.
Put on your grass skirts andyour coconut bras and come on

(22:55):
down to Pelzer.

Speaker 1 (22:58):
All right, so tell people how they can get tickets,
and you have a lot of differentseason ticket type things as
well.

Speaker 5 (23:04):
Oh yeah, we have the best deal you can find anywhere.
I challenge you to find abetter deal.
Two things that we specializein quality and affordability.
That's been our mission fromday one.
We're going to stick to it,even to our own detriment we
don't even care.
So we give you the best show wepossibly know how and for the
cheapest ticket we possibly canand right now it's only $16 and

(23:28):
$14 for seniors and students andmilitary and season tickets
have been on sale for a whilenow.
You can get a good deal if youwant to see them all.
We've already had a coupleshows already, but we don't sell
all the single tickets at once.
We wait.
So, for example, when a HonkyTonk Christmas opens on, that

(23:51):
opening night is when the singletickets for and Then there Were
None will go on sale.
But if people want to go aheadand get their seats now for the
rest of the season, they can.
Middletownplayersorg.
Our phone number is easy toremember 947-8000.
947-8000.
947-8000.
947-8000, right?
Or you can just show up andtalk to Crystal with a K in the

(24:12):
box office and she will hook youup for quality, affordable
entertainment.

Speaker 1 (24:18):
Oh, that sounds great .

Speaker 3 (24:20):
You do a great job he's so entertaining.

Speaker 5 (24:22):
I'm stupid.

Speaker 1 (24:23):
Well, you've got to be in that field.

Speaker 2 (24:25):
He's a stupidest creator, you've got to be crazy
to do it right, that's right.

Speaker 1 (24:29):
Exactly.

Speaker 3 (24:29):
For $14 and $16.

Speaker 5 (24:31):
Well, let me tell you if you think that's expensive,
you're crazy, because locallyproduced plays in Greenville
right now oh my, I went to seethe last one at Greenville
Theater $50.

Speaker 3 (24:42):
And Juliet.

Speaker 5 (24:44):
I saw that at the Peace Center for 90 bucks.

Speaker 3 (24:46):
That was a dag.

Speaker 5 (24:47):
It was worth 90 bucks .
I'm talking about locallyproduced shows, right when it's
a nonprofit theater.
As you know, it's tough,because I believe that community
theater can be transformativeand that everyone should be able
to experience it.
And so that's why we do what wedo, so that we are economically

(25:07):
accessible to anybody.
If they want to see a show,they can Like.
Your meal that you eat beforeor after our show will be more
expensive than your ticket,right.

Speaker 1 (25:16):
That's true, all right, we're going to take a
quick timeout, will?
You can stay with us as long asyou'd like to Be part of the
conversation.
I know you've got anothermeeting to get to and we'll talk
to Rob coming up and of course,we have to sour the day with
talking to.

Speaker 6 (25:32):
Zach about.

Speaker 1 (25:33):
Clemson football because he has a contract with
this show.

Speaker 3 (25:37):
It should be a good conversation.

Speaker 1 (25:39):
Yeah, for once.
I mean, the last time we talkedto him was like after the
Georgia game.

Speaker 3 (25:44):
Let's just forget about that game.

Speaker 1 (25:45):
So, yeah, things have been a lot better, since You're
listening to the Boone Show onMyPulse Radio.

Speaker 2 (25:50):
Have you been looking for some cheap, good food?
Well, stop on by Elm againMexican restaurant on 101
Highway 20, pelzer.
They have all your favoriteMexican food, from enchiladas to
chalupas, or you can even havesweet desserts like fried ice
cream and get this.
They have up to 34 combos allunder $9.
Don't have the time to stop inand eat.
You can call 864-947-9101.
And they'll have it preparedfor you within 10 to 20 minutes.

(26:12):
To pick up, call 864-947-9101or just dine in at 101 Highway
20, pelzer.

Speaker 9 (26:18):
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hot or too cold, and to davisonsun heating and air, it doesn't
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(26:38):
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Speaker 2 (26:49):
I'm so sick of these crappy barbershops.

Speaker 6 (26:51):
What do you mean?
I want a barbershop that treatsme like family.
Have you heard of Doc's ChopShop?
Doc's Chop Shop yeah, it's aveteran-owned and operated
barbershop that provides qualityhaircuts at affordable prices.
They even provide discounts forseniors, military, law
enforcement and first responders.
Wow, that's great.
Where can I find them?
You can visit their location inPiedmont or visit their website

(27:11):
at DocsChopShopBScom for moreinformation.
Docs Chop Shop, where veteranscan be veterans.

Speaker 8 (27:18):
Envision Williamson is a non-profit organization
that puts together funactivities and events for the
town of Williamson.
Have to pay your water bill,ask about trash pickup or
inquire about other townbusiness Well, that's not what
Envision Williamston does.
Think new business, ribboncuttings, town cleanup day,
community fundraisers, adopt ashelter, the new dog park,
concerts and events such asBobbers on the Big Creek, cinco

(27:39):
de Mayo and Williamston WinterWonderland.
When you think about fun, thinkEnvision Williamston.
They're always open to yourideas too.
You can check outEnvisionWilliamstoncom or their
Facebook page.

Speaker 1 (27:51):
We're back.
We are back.
Yeah, I said it and then I saidit again Back on the Boone Show
on MyPulse Radio, will Raglin,of course, giving you all the
ins and outs of the Milltownplayers in the midst of season
number 11.
Time flies so much.
I remember when he was teachingover palmetto oh yeah and I

(28:12):
taught my son over there that'swhat got him interested in doing
drama and such and then hadthis wild idea to start milltown
players.
And now, 10 years later, it'scrazy, madeline Madeline.

Speaker 3 (28:23):
when she was little she used to do their little
summer camps.
It's just incredible what theyhave developed and what they've
done.
If you haven't had a chance togo see it, every show that I've
ever seen has been incredibleand you either laugh through it
or you enjoy it, or peoplesinging through it.
It's just well, well worth it.
And you know he used to be evencheaper.

Speaker 4 (28:49):
They just had to go up because, because everything
else has gone up yeah, I think Iwant to go to that motel show.

Speaker 3 (28:51):
I'm telling you, other shows are great.
Everything that we've seenthere is top notch, super, super
great.

Speaker 1 (28:55):
It's incredible yeah, but I want to see the uh, the
agatha, agatha I did it again, Iknow, agatha christie, the eggs
, the eggs I want to see theeggs, not the Texas A&M eggs.
What, what?
You pushed the wrong button,puggles.
I think he's on, you think he'son.
Let's go to the phone line.
Zach, are you there?
Sorry, I'm here.
All right, I'm sorry.

(29:15):
The youngster over there isback in the studio.

Speaker 7 (29:27):
It brings back memories of years ago.
Um, how you doing, buddy doinggood, man doing good.
Hey, I just want to saysomething before I get started
you talking about uh being sourduring the moment?
Yeah, here we go.
I do listen, by the way dang Iforgot it's hey, clemson
football's a lot better talkabout them, phillies baseball
right, yeah, yeah, yeah, you'reright about that you know, but
it is.

Speaker 1 (29:41):
Yeah, we're running out of time, but seriously, I
mean, the last time we talked toyou was after the Georgia game,
I think, and now you haven'tlost since then and finally it's
like the switch went on and theoffense started producing.
And explain to me what happened.

Speaker 7 (30:03):
I believe, in all honesty, clemson walked into
that game.
I said Clemson was going to winbecause that's just how much
confidence I have in Dabas whenhe gets his team ready, and
that's just how much confidenceI have in Clemson.
I mean, you know, I justthought maybe they were just
going to come in because alleverybody thought about was

(30:24):
Waipo Dix, the formerquarterback at Auburn and Oregon
grew up and I figured Cade wasgoing to grow up and I think,
personally, clemson walked intothat game knowing they were
going to lose and I think Cadewas intimidated, I think the
offensive line was intimidatedand I think it ticked a bunch of

(30:44):
people off because I mean, kadesaid in one of his post game uh
, interviews he said, man, behonest with you, it ticked me
off and uh, I've never lost agame like that, never lost a
game like that.
And I mean you see what, whatit can do.
But the thing is it's got tokeep going and it seems like
they're getting better andbetter every week.
I mean cage making betterdecisions.

(31:06):
You know he he made a terrible,terrible mistake in the
interception on saturday butthat's going to happen.
I mean, I remember freshmanphenom trevor lawrence spiking
the ball on fourth down and dabochewed him up one side, down
the other.
It's going, things like thatare going to happen.
But if you're going to winchampionships, you've got to
beat elite teams and georgia, aswe've seen, saturday night, is

(31:29):
elite.
I'm nervous, especially aboutthe virginia tech game.
I'm nervous about the pit game.
Um, you know, because they'reundefeated.
They're on the road.
Kate has showed he can playwell on the road, but he's got
to keep it consistent and we'llsee.
I I mean South Carolina'slooking good, south Carolina's
looking good.
They come in and caused us notto make the playoffs, you know,

(31:51):
two years ago.
We had a Clemson had a what a40-something game win streak at
home and South Carolina was thelast team I thought would end
that streak and they did.
And I mean, you know, and thenlast year clemson calls them not
to go to a bowl game, you know,and, and anybody can be beaten
any given saturday, that's right, there's still some games,

(32:14):
especially this year, it's hasbeen so unpredictable, uh.

Speaker 1 (32:18):
But yeah, you guys got the, you got the buy this
week.
And then even louisville, uh, Imean that game with miami was
unbelievable, the back and forthin that game, but they can put
up some points.
And then of course, pitt, whichhas gotten clemson in the past,
uh, and then you know um whoelse you got there.

(32:38):
Then you got, oh, virginia tech.
That's who I was leaving out.
You never know because are youon the road for that one?

Speaker 7 (32:45):
Yes, yeah, yeah, you get to hear.

Speaker 1 (32:47):
Sandman, though that's pretty cool.
And then, of course, theCitadel is always very, very
tough.

Speaker 7 (32:54):
Yeah, especially against teams down towards the
coast.

Speaker 1 (33:00):
They always like to beat teams down towards the
coast, but seriously, you neverknow this year, so they just got
to keep it going and you knowthe good thing about them lately
is that you've you've gottenmore confidence in them and with
that offense because even theother day when they got behind
early, it's like you didn't feellike this was going to snowball
anymore.
It's like you knew they hadenough offense.

(33:21):
They come back and they woundup blowing them out.
So so the attitude has totallychanged around the program.

Speaker 7 (33:29):
Holly, have you ever been to Virginia Tech?

Speaker 3 (33:31):
Yes, sir, chicken Hill.
I was on Chicken Hill when wetailgated.

Speaker 7 (33:36):
I have always wanted to go.
That was on my road trip listthis year, but things happened
and I talked to the boss and shesaid only one this year and I
chose Luke Vars.
So we'll see how that goes.

Speaker 1 (33:48):
Why'd you do that?

Speaker 7 (33:50):
I'm hoping to go to the South Carolina game this
year, so I'm saving up for SouthCarolina and that's the best
atmosphere in college football.
I mean to be honest with you,that's a very, very good
atmosphere is theClemson-Carolina game.

Speaker 1 (34:02):
Of course.

Speaker 7 (34:03):
But to switch things from college to high school,
wren's looking good.
Wren is looking very good.
You know they lost to a TLHanna team.
Tl Hanna seems to have theirnumber the past few years, but
we make our mistakes when weplay TL Hanna.
But down the stretch it's goingto be tough.

Speaker 1 (34:23):
They should beat Southside this week, then it's
Westside.
That's for the region.

Speaker 7 (34:26):
Yeah, westside will be for the region and then
they'll play, of course, emerald, because it was during a storm
and of course they'll playEmerald.
But Westside looks like it'sgoing to be for the region and
I've never been to Westside.
Has Westside lost?

Speaker 1 (34:40):
No, they have not, they're undefeated.

Speaker 7 (34:41):
They lost.
I believe it was the openinggame last year to BHP, I think
it was, and they have not lostsince.

Speaker 3 (34:50):
Okay.

Speaker 7 (34:52):
So I'm looking forward to that.
I've talked to a contractor atwork.
His son plays for Wren andthey're kind of going into that
game like I said about Clemsonand Georgia intimidated.
They don't think they have achance.
High school is like college.
I know it's two differentleagues, but anybody can be
beaten any given time any giventime.

(35:12):
So that's what's making thiscollege football 12 team play
off a lot of fun.

Speaker 6 (35:17):
Oh yeah.

Speaker 7 (35:17):
Because can a two-loss team get in?
Can a three-loss team get in?
You know, I mean it's justClemson.
I think, personally, clemson'sgot to win out to get in,
because they lost at thebeginning of the year.
So that loss of course don'tmean as much as it would have
with a 14 playoff Right Right,but it's especially who they
lost to because, like you said,Georgia's restored themselves,

(35:40):
restored order with their bigwin.
You know you were.
Well, you were talking aboutanybody can be beaten and about
how it's shaped.
But look at Alabama.

Speaker 3 (35:47):
I was going to say and look when it happened the
last couple of minutes.

Speaker 7 (35:52):
Right, and then Tennessee, tennessee, usually
putting up 50, 60 points a game.
They're putting up only like 20.
You know so, but we'll see.
I'm looking forward to it.
It should be good.
It should be good, it should befun.

Speaker 1 (36:06):
Yeah, it's good to have that uncertainty.
It makes it a lot more fun.

Speaker 7 (36:09):
Yes sir, yes sir.

Speaker 1 (36:13):
Who are you pulling for in the World Series before I
get out of here?
I don't know.
You know I'm one of those.
I like good baseball.
These are two very goodbaseball teams just looking for
some good games.
Now rob over, here is a bigdodgers fan.
Yeah, tried to true blue, so weknow who he's rooting for I
would I?

Speaker 7 (36:30):
I want that.
I can't stand the yankees.
I don't like the yankees, but Ireally wanted freddie
friedman's only world series tobe with the braves.
But if I've got to picksomebody to pull for, I'm gonna
pull for uh, the dodgers yeah,the yankees don't need another
championship.

Speaker 4 (36:46):
No, they don't, and Freddie can limp around and get
another one.

Speaker 7 (36:49):
If you come out and say you're pulling for the
Dodgers because they're in theNational League, like my dad
likes to do, you pull for yourconference.
That's like pulling for thedevil because he's in the Bible.

Speaker 4 (37:01):
That's a good one.
It's on me.

Speaker 7 (37:06):
Well, listen, listen, I will let y'all go.
I don't want to take up toomuch more of your time if you
cuss me out before I come on theair.
But y'all take care, hey, andif you know anybody, mr Boone,
with a parking pass to the SouthCarolina game, I got you.

Speaker 3 (37:22):
I got you.
Zach, again, I got you.

Speaker 1 (37:25):
Do you know where it is.
It's the only reason why hestays on the show is to get
these parking passes, youbelieve?

Speaker 7 (37:30):
so.

Speaker 3 (37:30):
I believe, so you text me.

Speaker 7 (37:34):
Okay, I will, I'll leave you unread.
Yeah, I know, I know you will.

Speaker 1 (37:39):
She does it to me all the time.
Hey, y'all, take care, allright, I'll talk to y'all next
time and go tigers, all right.
Thank you, zach howard, ourresident clemson slash red fan.
He's a nut, but he's, he's funto have on um.
You know, holly, that metallicais doing a concert at virginia
tech's stadium on their nexttour, as kind of you know,

(38:01):
because of the fact that EnterSandman is their big entrance
music.

Speaker 6 (38:05):
That's really awesome .

Speaker 1 (38:08):
Because they're going to all the giant stadiums but
then they're going to VirginiaTech to do a concert for them.

Speaker 3 (38:13):
It's a beautiful campus.

Speaker 1 (38:15):
It looks like it I've seen the pictures.

Speaker 3 (38:16):
It's just gorgeous.

Speaker 4 (38:17):
It's funny, my son was at that Wake Forest game.

Speaker 1 (38:20):
Oh yeah.

Speaker 4 (38:20):
Me and a couple of his buddies rode up.
They sat on the 30-yard lineabout I think he said 15 rows
from the field for like $60.

Speaker 3 (38:27):
Oh, wow.

Speaker 4 (38:28):
I said how'd you do that?
I didn't ask, I was likewhatever, Good job.

Speaker 3 (38:32):
Yeah, exactly.

Speaker 1 (38:33):
Enjoy your game, I don't know how you pulled that
off.
The Wake Forest fans have givenup.

Speaker 3 (38:39):
Uh-huh, I think so All right, we're working on a
stadium too.
That's my hometown.
Yeah, I'm from Winston-Salem.
Krispy Kreme.

Speaker 4 (38:47):
Home of Krispy Kreme.

Speaker 3 (38:48):
You can go to the stadium and get Krispy Kreme
donuts in the stadium.
Remember that, madeline.
Oh yeah.

Speaker 1 (38:55):
She just woke up.
Oh yeah, yeah.

Speaker 4 (38:58):
Whatever you said, I'll tell you what I saw there.
That's completely off topic,but at Wake Forest in the late
80s I went to a exhibitiontennis tournament there and the
three people in the tournamentthat you would know who were
kids they were like 17, 18, wereMichael Chang, andre Agassi and

(39:18):
Pete Sampras Wow, oh, my AtWake.
It was pretty fun, and the nextyear Chang came back and won
the event at might have been 16,maybe 17.
And a few months later, won theFrench Open.

Speaker 3 (39:34):
Oh, wow.

Speaker 4 (39:34):
That's when he upset Yvonne Lindahl and beat Stefan.

Speaker 1 (39:37):
Edberg in the final Crazy, and there really hasn't
been too many male tennisplayers since then that have
done a whole lot.
That seemed to be the glory erait really was.

Speaker 4 (39:49):
We also had courier too, and there's a real famous
story.
Jim courier told where he,sampras and agassi were on a
golf course together playinggolf, and this lady came over
and she wanted to talk to all ofthem, take their pictures, and
he said, ma'am, I you know wewere all okay players, but if
you want to talk to the besttennis player within 1,000 miles
, you should probably go talk tothe lady over there with the

(40:10):
baby carriage, because it wasAgassi's wife, steffi Graf.
Yeah, and he was really cool,he went.
You should probably go talk toher.

Speaker 6 (40:17):
She won like 24 Grand Slams.

Speaker 1 (40:20):
You should probably go talk to Steph.

Speaker 4 (40:21):
Yeah, it was a pretty fun story.

Speaker 1 (40:23):
I always kind of wondered what happened to their
kids.
Or kid, or kid how many kids dothey have?
But you figure they had somegreat athletic genes.

Speaker 3 (40:31):
You know they have to Between Steph and.

Speaker 4 (40:33):
Andre she was amazing .
You know she won a GrandSlammer last year when she
retired, so it's not like shecouldn't have kept going Right.

Speaker 3 (40:41):
And their kids got to be adults or real close to it,
right.

Speaker 1 (40:45):
Yeah, they're really.
They've kept their life prettyquiet.

Speaker 4 (40:48):
Yeah, they've been very private about it, which is
kind of stuffy right, she's nota very out there person.

Speaker 1 (40:54):
Yeah, well, anyway, we didn't come here to talk
about tennis, but but I alwayswill.
There you go.
But Rob Young, of course, isthe guy that puts together with
his wonderful wife, michelle,absolutely Puts together the
Comic-Cons.
And this week is the Comic-ConJunior, the smaller version, and

(41:15):
it happens this coming Sundayat the Greenville Convention
Center.
So what do we got planned forthis year's show?

Speaker 4 (41:22):
I should probably get together and put that together,
shouldn't I?

Speaker 1 (41:25):
Yeah, so you're running out of time.

Speaker 4 (41:27):
It's getting a little tight.
Michelle's probably got it.
Yeah, she's done something, Ithink.

Speaker 3 (41:30):
I'm sure she has.
Yeah, you need to bring her onetime with you.
Yeah, we always have it on whenshe's busy, just comes, she
doesn't have to talk.

Speaker 1 (41:45):
No, this isn't media stuff, this is just a
conversation.

Speaker 4 (41:48):
I think she'll do great.
That's honestly what I think.

Speaker 3 (41:52):
This is how to start.
Is on this.

Speaker 4 (41:54):
We'll get her to do it.
We'll get her to do it forApril.

Speaker 3 (42:00):
Great, I'll tell her I need her for moral support.

Speaker 4 (42:03):
There you go, it's all right.
Surprised, you're.
Okay, we got this.
So this year we have a prettybig guest list because the
one-day show it's about 40,000square feet, so size-wise it's
still pretty big.
It's not nearly as big as thebig one because that's pushing
200,000 square feet, but we dohave guests.
So this year we have joe godet,who is, uh, five nights at

(42:27):
freddy's, among a lot of otherstuff too.
Eric roberts uh, you know, darkknight, best of the best.
But something people don'trealize is he's the only
american to play the master ondoctor, who to play the big bad
guy?
Because when it was on fox theyran a short thing on fox back
in the 90s he was the master.
So that's kind of coolWrestler-wise.
We've got Hacksaw, jim Duggan,we've got Lex Luger, but the big

(42:50):
one is we have the big redmachine, kane Kane, the mayor,
and he is a super nice guy.
We had him gosh maybe threeyears ago and he came in to help
us out.
We were supposed to have theHardy Boys and we were supposed
to have the Hardy Boys and wewere supposed to have Rebby and
their daughter, or Matt'sdaughter, and they got booked
for an event in I believe it'sin Canada for TNA Wrestling, and

(43:14):
so they'll be there thisweekend and super happy for them
.
They're really nice people.
So Kane was just super cool,said he'd help us out and fill
in, and boy, what an awesomefill in right.
And then, from a comicstandpoint, we have Wilfredo
Torres, who's an incredibleartist, worked for Marvel, dc,
worked on the adaptation ofSuperman 78, the Christopher

(43:36):
Reeve stuff and his art'sincredible Kelly Yates, kind of
the Doctor who artist.
Anybody who's been to met KellyDan Fraggle will be there.
And not only is he a big comicartist he helped found Image
with Rob Liefeld and all thoseguys but he's also a storyboard
artist for the Doom Patrol TVshow.
I believe he was directing theLittle Mermaid cartoon, so he's

(43:57):
done a lot of really neat stuff.
It's a little different.
He's a really fun guy to talkto.
Bill Goyer, who works forArchie, actually is local and
he's been writing and drawingfor Archie, I think it's 30
years.
Oh wow, and really great guy,super laid back, really good
folks.
So, on top of vendors comingfrom all over, we're going to do
free trick-or-treating.
Kids 12 and under are freeperiod.

(44:19):
It's not per paying adult, it'sjust 12 and under free.
In the conversation we justwant to keep it easy for folks.

Speaker 3 (44:27):
And the kids need to come dressed up.

Speaker 4 (44:29):
They can.

Speaker 3 (44:29):
They can.

Speaker 4 (44:30):
They can if they want to Just bring their bags.
We'll have candy.
We'll have little signs on thevendors that are participating
in trick-or-treat that's not foreverybody, but most of them do
and tickets are $15.
Speaking of keeping itinexpensive, we feel like that's
super cheap for an event that's40,000 square feet.
I mean, you can spend all dayin there.

Speaker 1 (44:49):
How much bigger is it now?
Has it grown over last year?

Speaker 4 (44:52):
Yeah, there's definitely more guests.
It's kind of funny.
I know it sounds cheesy andit's probably not the best
business choice, but we havekept this the exact same size
and the same layout that we didfor our first show.

Speaker 7 (45:04):
Okay.

Speaker 4 (45:05):
Oh, wow.
So Junior is a little loveletter to that first show.

Speaker 1 (45:08):
Nice, nice.
And you spoke of the kids, andI was reading somewhere that
there seems to be a trend in thecomic book industry towards
kids.
Now there's more marketingtowards them not like it's all
there, but more marketingtowards them than there had been
in a while?

Speaker 4 (45:25):
Sure, I think it's.
So the terms we use arefloppies and trades right.
So the trades are what you seein the library and floppies is
what we think of as atraditional comic right,
something that's only 20, 25pages, whereas the trade is the
thicker book that maybe has 100,150 pages.
Young graphic novels is a hugemarket.
Dog man may be the best-sellinggraphic novel in America.

(45:48):
Every time it comes out it'sover a million copies, I think,
or it pushes toward that, and Imean we order full displays like
we're a Barnes, noble orsomething, and they all sell.
So yeah, I think it is in someways.
I think it's with therealization that all of this
electronics isn't necessarilyhealthy.

(46:09):
Sometimes Folks are trying topush their kids to read more to
what we were saying about beingoutside, so we're trying to get
them to read more books.
So I think it's definitelysomething that's working.

Speaker 1 (46:19):
Well, that's cool.
I also read in the same articledid a little research on
Comic-Cons and how they're puttogether.
But another marketing thingthat they're trying, and maybe
some of the bigger ones I wasjust wondering what your opinion
was, as maybe not for Comic-ConJunior but for the big
Comic-Con is Easter eggs andsome types of fan interaction

(46:41):
and stuff like that Surprise.
Have you thought about thosekind of things?

Speaker 4 (46:45):
So one of the things I feel like is people should
know what they're getting.
And you know you're paying yourmoney to go to an event and I
don't want it to be.
I don't know what's going to bethere.
So I don't like that model.
I want you to understand whatyou're paying for and I get it.
And some people like it.
Like mystery boxes are a bigthing.

(47:06):
People love buying mysteryboxes because it's fun.
It's that gambling aspect of it.
But it's just like when Whatnotcame out back during COVID, I
was called multiple times bypeople from that company before
they launched, trying to get uson whatnot, because they were
watching our Facebook Lives,apparently, and really liked how
we did it, because we weredoing these Facebook Live sales

(47:27):
during COVID and I said you guysrun an auction model and that's
just not what I want to do,because I feel like if somebody
during COVID and they've gotsome extra money and they're
sitting at home, they spend toomuch money, it's almost like
they're going to blame us right,I didn't get what I wanted or
get out of the hobby, and that'snot what I wanted.
So we, you know, there's thingslike that where you just have a
difference of a of how you wantto do.
It doesn't mean what they'redoing is wrong, right, it's not.

(47:49):
You're not comfortable with.

Speaker 1 (47:50):
It seems like everybody uses san diego as the
the big, uh comic con.

Speaker 4 (47:55):
Right, that's the one that kind of tries to model
after well in, I mean do you goout to all these big ones?
I've been out to San DiegoWe've been fortunate enough to
be panelists out there and dopanels for different things, and
it is uncomfortable.
The number of people I can'treally get across what it's like
.
It's more people than DeathValley.

Speaker 3 (48:17):
Oh, wow, wow.

Speaker 4 (48:19):
Right, like when you really start talking, that's
90,000 people yeah.
There's that, most it's morethan that.
Yeah, um, it's, it's awkwardand I, for me, I don't know that
that's the experience we wouldever want, but, granted, we, we
struggle with the logistics inour facility.
Now, right, we, we, we can'tget much bigger.
Um, but for those, you've alsogot like NBC setting up and ABC

(48:41):
setting up and movie studiossetting up, and it's really not
about comics and affordableentertainment, it's about them
pushing whatever project they'retrying to push.
The movies and all that.

Speaker 1 (48:51):
And I don't blame them.

Speaker 3 (48:52):
I mean, they're out there in Hollywood.
We're all making money.
It's a great event.

Speaker 4 (48:56):
Yeah, and we appreciate the ability to go
when we do, but for us thatmodel doesn't work for what we
do.
So I guess it's just different.
You know what I mean.
It's just more of a fun thinglocally than what they do, but
it is a crazy spectacle, I'mtelling you.
When you go it's wild they willbuy out areas behind hotels

(49:18):
facing it and they'll wrap likewe think of wrapping a car.

Speaker 1 (49:22):
Yeah, I saw pictures.

Speaker 4 (49:23):
I saw pictures they wrap hotels.
It's crazy but it's wild.
I mean, it's an experience todo and anybody that thinks it
would be fun it's worth doingonce.
Like some of those things likewould you do it again?
so I've had people go like it'sa little much, but I'm glad I
did it.
Like one year we were there andthey had a giant head of the
tick you know that funny show,yeah, oh, and the antenna were
moving and bobbing and the eyesI mean it was crazy.
I don't know what they spent onthat, but it was pretty fun.

Speaker 3 (49:45):
We actually had a Clemson game down in Atlanta one
of the first seasons a longtime ago.
Gosh, my son, who's 25 now, wasteeny, tiny, he was probably
seven or eight and we walkedinto Atlanta and they were
having a Comic Con and it wasamazing.

Speaker 4 (50:00):
Dragon Con.
Dragon Con is what it was,dragon Con.
It was set up there.

Speaker 3 (50:03):
And it was incredible to see the number of
participants and the people thatwere in it, which is a little
different.

Speaker 4 (50:10):
Yes, it is.
That is the best cosplay inAmerica.

Speaker 3 (50:14):
Dragon Con.
It's Dragon Con For sure,really A hundred percent.

Speaker 4 (50:17):
Yeah, every show I've ever been to, the best cosplay
is at Drive-In.
Yeah, I know a lot of peoplethat just go there for that just
for cosplay?
Yeah, that is a fantastic showand it's a very different show.

Speaker 3 (50:27):
And you don't dabble into that.

Speaker 4 (50:29):
I don't cosplay, no, my wife got me to dress up as
Hellboy one year for a Halloweenparty at the store.
You can find those pictures onBorderlands Facebook, I'm sure.
So she managed to get me to doit one time and I was like
that's great.
So I did it.
I don't have to do anymore thatwas it yeah, I'm not.
I've never been a dress-upperson, but my gosh, we have

(50:51):
some people that come that dosuch amazing jobs that I end up
getting selfies with them.

Speaker 1 (50:55):
So because they're so awesome, yeah, yeah they're so
awesome it's the number oneplace to go people watching is
at the.
Comic-cons and you're right,some of the work people put into
their costumes.
It's amazing.
It's incredible, absolutelyamazing.
Okay, so how do people gettickets?
And there's one thing aboutparking that Michelle's been

(51:17):
pushing to make sure everybodyunderstands, yeah, so there's a
couple things.

Speaker 4 (51:19):
Make sure you bring a credit card.
The building is not taking cashfor parking.
Parking is like $10.
I mean, literally it has been$5 for.
I don't know, 20 years $10 istotally reasonable, especially
if you go downtown or travel atall, absolutely, we had to pay
$75 to park in Chicago one timewhen we were up there.

(51:40):
But yeah, $10.
Bring your credit card to dothat.
Show up early the advice I canalways give people.
For heaven's sake, show upearly.
Would you rather wait on athing before it opens or after
it's opened?
That's the advice I always giveand tickets can be bought at
fccomicconcom.
Swing by the shop and buy them.
If you buy them now, we cangive you your wristband.
So you can just hop right in orbuy them at the door.

(52:04):
I mean it's moving pretty quickand it's not the size of the
other show, so it's fine Peoplecan get in okay.

Speaker 1 (52:09):
Yeah, well, let's talk about the store for a
minute.
What's going on?
Tell us about some of the bigtrends that are down there and
what you do at the store.
We haven't really talked aboutthis the last couple of times
you've been on, but you've gotall kinds of things happening
there.

Speaker 3 (52:22):
There's games.
There's all kinds of games.

Speaker 4 (52:23):
We were just really fortunate we had.
So there's games like Magic andPokemon that people are
familiar with.
There's also a Star Wars cardgame.
It's brand new.
The third set's going to becoming out soon.
We have pre-release for that onNovember 1st, where you get kind
of a teaser and a special event.
But we just had a they call ita planetary qualifier.

(52:44):
This past Saturday Only 20stores in North America were
allowed to have one and we werejust blessed and fortunate
because we're not normally thescale that this was going to be.
We don't normally run cardevents that big, so they trusted
us scale that this was going tobe.
We don't normally run cardevents that big, so they trusted
us.
Almost 100 people came andtraveled from North Carolina,

(53:06):
Georgia, Tennessee, Florida tocome play.
It ran like butter.
We were super happy with howthe event ran and it did really
well and got a bunch of goodreviews.
So a lot of things like that aregoing on.
We've got some Dungeons Dragonsstuff coming up also on
November 1st.
A Pokemon meetup on November3rd.
There's a Trick or Treat Magic,the Gathering Dusk Morn event

(53:29):
this Friday starting at 6.
So a lot of gaming things likethat going on in the shop.
The game space is always open.
It's always first come, firstserve.
Folks can come play, we don'tcharge.
We want you to come hang outand fellowship with your friends
and maybe make some new ones ifyou're lucky.

(53:49):
So yeah, and once again, whereare you located?
410 south pleasantburg, rightacross the street from waffle
house, because we like thatplace yeah, it's always open
tech area yeah.

Speaker 1 (53:57):
Yeah, we're a bunch of nerds, so we like that, yeah
um, okay, and, like you said,you can get tickets there too,
right yeah, tickets at the.
Yeah yeah, we're a bunch ofnerds, so we like that.
Yeah, yeah, okay, and, like yousaid, you can get tickets there
too, right, yeah get tickets atthe shop, We'll actually give
you your wristbands.

Speaker 4 (54:06):
Buy them online.
Pick them up at Will Call.
Got a lot of options.
We want to make it easy.

Speaker 1 (54:12):
All right, and again, that's SC.
Comic-con Junior this weekend,open from 11 to 6 at the
Convention Center in Greenville.
We'll be there.
The Platypuls will be theredressed as Beetlejuice Awesome
and we'll have maybe some of ourother people that are there
dressed up as well.

(54:32):
It's always fun to go toComic-Con Always a good time.
I did want to point out Rob forpeople that don't know Rob,
he's a person that that gives alot, and I know you don't like
talking about it, but, but I'masking you to mention a few
things because, um, you dosupport several causes every
year with some events that youhave, and we also spent a good

(54:55):
amount of time helping thosethat need to help out of the
storm.
If you could share some of thatfor us.

Speaker 4 (55:00):
Yeah, for the con.
We give a lot of tickets toVetTix, so it's thousands of
dollars in tickets that we dowith them, and so if you're a
veteran, log on to VetTix, getregistered with them, and when
tickets go up, it usually endsup being a raffle and so folks
go in and enter the raffle andthey can get free tickets that
way.
God, what was it?
It was the Thursday after thestorm and the Saturday, local Q

(55:26):
was amazing in Greenville.
They helped us put togetherlunches, sold them.
You know, they sourcedeverything.
They baked the bread for us andthen bought meat, sliced it,
and then we built 100 sandwichesthursday morning and saturday
morning, um, and made boxlunches, uh, and just gave them

(55:47):
away.

Speaker 1 (55:48):
So it's tough, yeah it's tough yeah, it is tough
yeah, he's, he's a good guy.

Speaker 3 (55:55):
Yeah, he's a good guy um and I'm sure that's just the
touch of things that he does.
Oh yeah, he, yeah.
He does all kinds of things,right.

Speaker 4 (56:03):
Well, I want to point out that I had multiple
employees tell me that theyrefused to be paid.

Speaker 3 (56:09):
Oh my gosh, Wow, that's kind of cool, good folks.

Speaker 1 (56:13):
Well, you're rubbing off on them, that's right,
that's what a good leader youknow, that's great to hear.
That's great to hear.
That's great to hear.
Okay, we're at the end of theshow where we do the
recommendations from the guests.
Now, last year, rob, you toldme the book Prepare, I believe,
was the name of it.

Speaker 6 (56:28):
Yes.

Speaker 1 (56:29):
And I just got the book.

Speaker 6 (56:31):
Did you get it?

Speaker 1 (56:31):
I haven't started reading it yet, but I just got.
It Seemed very timely to get abook like that.
But what can you give us thisyear?
Something entertainment, wiseto watch listen to read.

Speaker 4 (56:48):
So it depends on what you like, but Jack Carr just
came out with a book about theBeirut bombing.

Speaker 1 (56:55):
Yes, I think I saw that somewhere.

Speaker 4 (56:57):
Jack.

Speaker 1 (56:57):
Carr has done a bunch of books really good books
really good really good fictionbooks Chris Pratt and a bunch of
books really good books, reallygood fiction books.

Speaker 4 (57:03):
Chris Pratt and Terminal List was him.
But this is a historical book.
I was supposed to go down tomeet him in Atlanta, but he was
there on Hurricane Weekend andso I stayed home, take care of
the house and everybody.
But they were also in themuseum down there mailed us the
books, got them signed byeverybody.
It was really cool, but that isa book I would recommend if you

(57:24):
like history.
I think that's a uh.
That's something we can all getmore educated about.

Speaker 1 (57:28):
For sure, some good things about that, and, of
course, a food, uhrecommendation place to eat or
come on, I just well I got two.

Speaker 4 (57:36):
I just mentioned local q?
Um, but also if you haven'tbeen to Miles Pizza.

Speaker 3 (57:44):
How many times Madeline?
Do I talk about Miles Pizza?
Where's that?
It's right down from the shopon Pleasantburg oh my gosh, it's
so good.

Speaker 4 (57:51):
They are the nicest folks.

Speaker 3 (57:54):
Their cheese is amazing.

Speaker 4 (57:55):
Get the cheese bread and then go run Because it is
unbelievable, you're going toeat more than you should.

Speaker 3 (58:03):
Oh my gosh, the cheese bread's amazing, but the
pizza is overwhelminglytopping-wise.
The sauce is fantastic.
Very good choice.

Speaker 4 (58:12):
Both of them.
Can I throw one more out?
Sure, because it's right downthe street from my house.
Dacusville pizza is really goodtoo.
Okay, I love.

Speaker 3 (58:18):
Dacusville pizza, I've never been there.

Speaker 1 (58:20):
Yeah, oh my gosh, there's a first.
Holly hasn't been somewhere.
It's like everyone that'sbrought up, she's like oh yeah,
I love that place.

Speaker 4 (58:28):
I'm like how do you?

Speaker 3 (58:29):
It's like I love to eat out and I've moved.

Speaker 4 (58:34):
So we live out in.
Dacusville I never even hadthat Yep, sweet people.

Speaker 1 (58:39):
Thank you, rob, for being here.
We get you on every six months.
We talk about the comic bookstuff.
I've learned a lot from you,from someone who came from
nowhere, but my boys are into itbig time.
They play in D&D groups andother game groups and all that.
I'm sure they'll be atComic-Con as well.
But appreciate you taking timefrom a very busy schedule.

(59:01):
He actually moved some thingsso he could come in to our show.
Do you believe that?

Speaker 3 (59:04):
No, I do believe that Love seeing you guys.

Speaker 4 (59:06):
man, it's great to see you too.
I was going to be upset if Imissed you.

Speaker 1 (59:09):
It's always great to have you every six months, as I
said, and to you and Michelle,all the best with the Comic-Con
this weekend and of course,we'll talk to you before the big
one in the spring?

Speaker 4 (59:23):
Absolutely, she's going to be here.

Speaker 1 (59:25):
Yes, sccomicconcom, get your tickets.
And our thanks again to WillRagland for being here and all
the fun that he shared.
You should be full ofentertainment ideas now for
things to do over the nextseveral months, and we'll be
back with you at some point aswell, but for now, you can
always get this on Spotify as apodcast, so don't forget to tell

(59:47):
your friends.
It's the Boone Show on MyPulseRadio.
Thanks for listening.