Who was there:

• Ted Zalewski - aka Teddy Roosevelt, Postman Roulen, E Hemmingway and our intrepid group leader
• Norm Conrad - Mini Minstral Show with Emily
• Bern Budd - aka Mark Twain
• Paul Manning - aka Christopher Columbus, Leonardo da Vinci, et al
• Mel Simons - Nostalgia Shows
• Deb Goss - The Proper Ladies, Charlette Cushman, Mother Goose
• Michael Fox Kennedy - aka Abe Lincoln
• Marianne Donnelly - aka Janet Joplin, Lousia May Alcott, et al
• Janet Parnes - Lady J, the Victorian Lady
• Kate Carney - aka Bethinia Owens Adair, Ann Sullivan, et al
• Belinda West - aka Dorothy Hancock, Emily Dickinson, et al
• Lou Catania - friend of Marianne and a business man
• Mike Francis - aka Galileo

Here are some notes on comments from around the table.

Michael Kennedy suggested anyone who has not looked into the Vermont Humanities Commission, should. He has been having pretty good luck getting work in Vermont through this organization. Bern Budd recommended visiting SonicBids.com as a new way to find bookings. Deb Goss is going to be down in Baltimore at the Walters Museum with the Proper Ladies and has added a new character, Celia Thaxter from the Isle of Shoals, a 19th century poet, gardener, writer and friend of all the big names of New England.

Paul Manning told us about his appearance on "Dead Space Live" on Somerville cable. This was a one hour live program, that allowed Paul to show a little of several characters and get a copy of the tape for future use. Folks may want to look into this program or other similar programs in your own area, like Arts Alive on Boston cable, to get some publicity and a tape to use when people want to preview, but won't be near a performance. Paul has also been honored with a statuette and having the new town observatory in Tewksbury named after him, for all of the wonderful events and projects he has done for the town.

Marianne Donnelly has been having a great time bringing Janis Joplin to life. She also brought Lou Catania, a business man, restaurateur and raconteur, who provided several anecdotes from his many businesses that could be applied to the way we run our own businesses. The most important one supported the idea we need to be different and provide something no one else does.

Kate Carney's Mrs. Larcom, boarding house lady has been taking off and will be appearing at the New England Regional Conference on Social Studies. Janet Parnes is adding Mrs. Russel Parsons to her repertoir. Ted Zalewski will be taking Teddy Roosevelt to Lubbock, TX and Breakwater, VA this year. Belinda West is on her way to perform on Nantucket. Mel Simon is doing well with his Life and Songs series. Stephen Collins (who was not at the meeting) is going to be doing Walt Whitman at Bentley in March.

Some general comments from the group discussion:

• Winchester Public Library is going to be trying to do a lot of programing in the near future, get them a flyer
• Put good venues where you've performed on you flyers, it's a quick and easy way to post references.
• Try to get venues to invite people from nearby who might be good prospects for future bookings. If it comes from someone other than you, it can have a bigger impact.

That was about all for the evening. Next fall we may have to move the location of our meeting for a while, as Bentley is going to be doing some major library renovations. If you have any ideas where we might try to meet, let Ted know.

     No date for the next meeting yet, but we'll keep all informed as we know. It will probably be the pot-luck-supper, so if you have a great spot for a casual group dinner, let Ted know. If you have anything you'd like to add to these notes, for the calander or to pass along to the group, send it along.