The biography for Peter Sagal, the keynote speaker at this year’s Performing Arts Managers Conference (PAMC) from February 26-March 1, lists him as an acclaimed radio host, author and humorist. You might want to add salesman to the plaudits as the Chicago resident readily shares what will make this year’s 25th annual PAMC a special and memorable one in the Windy City.

“I’ve been pretty much everywhere in America, but I think Chicago is the finest city in the country,” the host of National Public Radio’s Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me! unabashedly confides during a telephone interview. “If the weather wasn’t so awful, everyone else would think so, too.”

See, we told you he is a humorist.

“In terms of one of the reasons that people live in the city, Chicago has got it all,” he continued. “It is a huge ethnic melting pot. There are so many communities to be a part of that makes it incredibly rich as a civic body. I have never been in another city with a better arts scene. We have created outstanding civic support.”

As a New Jersey native who also spent time living in Los Angeles, Sagal is at home in Chicago and is the host of a radio show heard by more than three million people every week, broadcast on 450 public radio stations nationwide and via a popular webcast. The show received the prestigious Peabody Award in 2008, the same year it celebrated its 10th anniversary.

“The main thing about Chicago in terms of its performing arts scene is you have a tremendous pool of talent and there is enough work here to support them,” he said. “It has a great economic balance between actors and artists to perform and live and work here, but mainly it has an audience.

“For example, I lived in Los Angeles for a while. There are a lot of very talented performers there. You might think why aren’t they doing more theater? The answer is nobody (hardly) goes to the theater in LA. There’s just not an audience unless you are famous at something.

“In Chicago, there is a vibrant and interested and excited audience of people who are not necessarily in the business but just like going out to see things. They support a whole bunch of theaters, large ones, small ones, medium ones. It’s wonderful to be in the city where performers are performing not just for their friends or for professional affiliations but for an actual engaged civilian audience.”

While Sagal sells Chicago, attendees at this year’s PAMC will be sold on Sagal. The interview continues next week with a look at his theater background and lifelong love for the arts.

Oak View Group (OVG) announced the acquisition of Venues Today, a leading live entertainment and venue trade publication and media company. In addition to the acquisition, award-winning live entertainment journalist Ray Waddell has joined OVG as senior vice president of media and conferences.

In his new role, Waddell will oversee the Venues Today print publication, venuestoday.com, the e-newsletter, VTPulse, as well as the company’s directories and conferences. Venues Today founder, publisher and editor Linda Deckard will remain with the publication and continue to lead the newsroom as publisher.

“Venues Today is the voice of record for our industry and a key acquisition for OVG in bolstering our media portfolio,” said OVG CEO Tim Leiweke. “Linda is an icon in this business and has built an incredible brand, and with Ray now at the helm the potential to grow that brand and its reach is unlimited.”

“I’ll always be grateful to Billboard for providing me the opportunity to cover this dynamic industry, and I wish nothing but the best for the brand going forward,” added Waddell. “If I’ve learned anything in covering this business, it’s that change is to be embraced, and I am thrilled to play a role in the game-changing vision of Tim Leiweke and the incredible OVG team. Stay tuned!”

During his three decade run with Billboard, Waddell spearheaded the trade’s successful touring conference in addition to leading its coverage of the industry. With OVG, Waddell will oversee OVG’s move into the media and event sector and look to build out a robust conference program under the Venues Today brand.

“This is a tremendous opportunity not only for us to work with visionaries such as Tim and Ray, but to experience powerful growth for the Venues Today brand by tapping into OVG’s resources and expertise,” said Deckard.

The news of OVG acquiring Venues Today follows the company’s recent investment in sports technology media company SportTechie in November.

The Saratoga Springs (NY) City Center Authority Board announced the appointment of Ryan McMahon as the new executive director of the Saratoga Springs City Center. McMahon begins his new position on January 1 and replaces Mark Baker, the venue’s only executive director since it opened in 1984.

McMahon has been with the venue since 2011 as operations manager and in fact will spend a busy New Year’s Eve as some regional bands will perform in three different rooms at the venue before being ushered outside at midnight for a fireworks gala. Even that event bears some familiarity for McMahon as prior to coming to Saratoga Springs he was the director of the Times Center, the New York Times’ premier performance, events and convention venue in Times Square.

“It will be a busy night, that’s for sure,” McMahon said. “We will have several thousand people coming through during the course of the night. It’s a big city celebration and quite a way for me to transition.”

After working at the venue for better than five years, McMahon has a strong sense of the challenges and opportunities before him.

“Our website needs an overhaul,” he said in talking about challenges. “We are going to look at technology. We know we need to establish a greater social media presence. We are very fortunate that our bookings are strong going forward. While we are working on a marketing campaign, it is not really going to be for the immediate future, but more for 2018 and 2019.

“We know that we are facing some other challenges. New York state has a bunch of new casinos coming online and one is about 30 minutes up the road in Albany. There is also a new convention center opening up in downtown Albany. So we have some new competition. I think our position is really strong, though. We can offer something that really no one else can which is a safe, walkable city with a robust business downtown.”

As for the City Center’s business activity, McMahon cited the strength of several state associations and conferences that choose to meet at his venue.

“We are close enough to Albany and kind of central in the state itself, so a lot of state associations come here,” he said. “That has been the lynchpin of this business. As with every convention center, it’s about driving hotel rooms.”

McMahon noted that when the City Center opened in 1984, Saratoga was primarily known as a summer tourist town with a big race track presence. “The legend was you could shoot a cannonball down Broadway and not hit anyone,” he said.

Baker and the venue proceeded to turn tourism into a year-round happening, thanks in large part to Baker’s many civic involvements to help drum business for the venue.

“Mark’s contributions to the community have just been outstanding,” McMahon said. “He has always been at the forefront when something needs to be done in town.”

McMahon plans to continue the proud legacy. His wife, Colleen Parker McMahon, is a Saratoga native.

“I said to my wife that I loved what I was doing in New York City, but there are so many people there,” McMahon said. “I wanted to be some place where what I am doing matters to the community, not that it didn’t matter in New York, of course. But it’s hard to find a better position than working at the Saratoga City Center and the town of Saratoga.

“We said that there are three variables in life: what you do, what you make and where you live. Most people average those out but we decided to spike where you live as high as we could and work the rest out from there. It’s the best recipe for success I can think of.”

The Spectra Venue Management managed-Owensboro (KY) Convention Center announced the promotion of some current staff and welcomes some new members to their Owensboro team.

Jared “Buddy” McCarter has been promoted to executive chef. Always having had an interest in food, McCarter completed the Culinary Arts program at OCTC and went on to work as the Sous Chef at the Campbell Club for three years before joining the Owensboro Convention Center team in 2015 as Sous Chef. “I am looking forward to a long and productive career with the Owensboro Convention Center,” McCarter said about his new position.

Jim Riggs is now the director of the Owensboro Sportscenter. Riggs is a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and a graduate of Carnegie-Mellon University. He has managed a number of professional sports teams in the East Coast Hockey League, Central Hockey League, American Hockey League, and Arena Football 2 before coming to Owensboro. He has also served as a sales and marketing consultant for a number of teams in both the United States and Canada. “I’m excited about the opportunity to help grow the Sportscenter and bring a number of new events to the facility,” he said.

Cody Thomas is a new event supervisor. Thomas has a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Business Management from the University of Kentucky and a Bachelor’s degree in Organizational Leadership from Western Kentucky University. Previous experiences included being president of Kappa Alpha Order Fraternity, event coordinator with Owensboro’s Chapter of U.S. Bank Development Network, and interning with the Kentucky Mavericks.

Caleb Farkas joins the Owensboro Convention Center staff as the new ticketing manager and will oversee all ticketed events on OwensboroTickets.com. Farkas is originally from Muskegon, Michigan and graduated from Central Michigan University with his Bachelor of Applied Arts in Sport Studies. He has worked in ticketing for the sports and live entertainment industries for the past seven years including collegiate athletics, professional sports, and live events and shows. Most recently he worked for IMG in Coral Gables, Florida as a box office manager overseeing the ticketing for a variety of events; including PGA and LPGA golf events.

IAVM has many resources available to our members, from our online member forum, VenueNet, to our Live Safety & Security training programs. We continue to develop important initiatives such as the Exhibitions & Meetings Safety & Security Initiative (EMSSI), an electrical power management program, and an economic impact calculator, all aimed at offering our members standards and best practices. 

IAVM members are a global community of like-minded professionals that manage multi-million dollar venues and provide products and services that are instrumental in delivering exceptional experiences to millions of guests each year. IAVM has brought together thousands of brilliant individuals who have exchanged business ideas and are now better professionals because of the networking, education, and sharing of best practices.

But IAVM is more – we are a family – connections that begin between peers and colleagues but quickly grow into friendships. This is what makes IAVM membership unique.

We have overcome some real challenges in 2016, yet have generated many accomplishments, which will be shared with you in the weekly newsletter, IAVM News, in early January. Challenges are what make us strong, and overcoming those challenges are what make us stronger. So we choose to celebrate our successes, and we choose to celebrate you, our members. Without your continued support and dedication, IAVM would not be the diverse, respectable, and relevant association it is today. 

For that, we thank you. And as we evolve and look forward to next year, ensure you have access to the resources that make you exceptional in the venue management profession!