Robert Alan "Bob" Cashell (born April 22, 1938) is an American politician. He is the current mayor of Reno, Nevada since 2002. He served as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Nevada from 1983 to 1987, and on the University of Nevada System Board of Regents from 1979 to 1982. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Due to his large contributions to students a field house at University of Nevada was constructed and named after him.

He is also a prominent businessman, owning Cashell Enterprises, a hotel/casino company.

He bought Bill & Effies, a truck stop, in 1967, and renamed it Boomtown Hotel Casino.

He sold it in 1988 after turning the property into a casino/resort.

He also managed several properties including: Karl's Silver Club in Sparks, Nevada, The Bourbon Street Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the Avi Hotel/Casino for the Avi Indian Tribe.

He was a partner in several ventures including: The Carson Station Casino, in Carson City, Nevada, the Comstock Hotel/Casino in Reno, Nevada and the Holiday Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

He has also owned several properties including: Winners Inn, Star Casino and Model T Truck Stop in Winnemucca, Nevada and the Alamo Truck Stop in Sparks, Nevada.

His son, Robert A. Cashell, Jr., is a partner in the new ownership of the Fitzgeralds Casino & Hotel in downtown Reno (which is now out of business).

Footnotes[link]

Kling, Dwayne. The Rise of The Biggest Little City: An Encyclopedic History, 1931-1981. University of Nevada Press. 2000

References[link]

External links[link]

• http://bobcashell.com/
• http://www.reno.gov/index.aspx?page=108

This article about a mayor in Nevada is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Harry Reid
United States Senator from Nevada
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 1987 Serving with Dean Heller
Preceded by	Paul Laxalt
Senate Majority Leader
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2007
Deputy	Dick Durbin
Preceded by	Bill Frist
Senate Minority Leader
In office January 3, 2005 – January 3, 2007
Deputy	Dick Durbin
Preceded by	Tom Daschle
Succeeded by	Mitch McConnell
Senate Minority Whip
In office January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2005
Leader	Tom Daschle
Preceded by	Don Nickles
Succeeded by	Dick Durbin
In office January 20, 2001 – June 6, 2001
Leader	Tom Daschle
Preceded by	Don Nickles
Succeeded by	Don Nickles
In office January 3, 1999 – January 3, 2001
Leader	Tom Daschle
Preceded by	Wendell Ford
Succeeded by	Don Nickles
Senate Majority Whip
In office June 6, 2001 – January 3, 2003
Leader	Tom Daschle
Preceded by	Don Nickles
Succeeded by	Mitch McConnell
In office January 3, 2001 – January 20, 2001
Leader	Tom Daschle
Preceded by	Don Nickles
Succeeded by	Don Nickles
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Nevada's 1st district
In office January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1987
Preceded by	James David Santini (At-large)
Succeeded by	James Bilbray
25th Lieutenant Governor of Nevada
In office January 1971 – January 1975
Governor	Mike O'Callaghan
Preceded by	Edward Fike
Succeeded by	Robert Rose
Personal details
Born	Harry Mason Reid (1939-12-02) December 2, 1939 (age 72) Searchlight, Nevada, U.S.
Nationality	United States
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Landra Gould
Children	Lana Reid Rory Reid Leif Reid Josh Reid Key Reid
Residence	Searchlight, Nevada, U.S.
Alma mater	Southern Utah University Utah State University George Washington University
Profession	Attorney
Religion	The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon)
Signature
Website	reid.senate.gov

Harry Mason Reid (born December 2, 1939) is the senior United States Senator from Nevada, serving since 1987. A member of the Democratic Party, he has been the Senate Majority Leader since January 2007, having previously served as Minority Leader and Minority and Majority Whip.

Previously, Reid was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Nevada's 1st congressional district, and served in Nevada local and state government as city attorney of Henderson, a state legislator, the 25th Lieutenant Governor, and chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission.

As Senate Majority Leader and a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Harry Reid has achieved a more senior elected position in the United States government than any Mormon in history.

Early life, education, and early career[link]

Reid was born in Searchlight, Nevada, the third of the four sons of Inez Orena (née Jaynes), a laundress, and Harry Vincent Reid, a miner.^[1] His paternal grandmother was an English immigrant from Darlston, Staffordshire. Reid's boyhood home had no indoor toilet, hot water or telephone.^[1] Searchlight had no high school, so Reid boarded with relatives 40 miles away in Henderson, Nevada to attend Basic High School^[1] where he played football, and was an amateur boxer.^[2] While at Basic High he met future Nevada governor Mike O'Callaghan, who was a teacher there. Reid attended Southern Utah University and graduated from Utah State University where he double majored in political science and history.^[3] Reid also minored in economics from the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business.^[4] He then went to George Washington University Law School earning a J.D. while working for the United States Capitol Police.

Early political career[link]

State politics[link]

He returned to Nevada after law school and served as Henderson city attorney before being elected to the Nevada Assembly in 1968. In 1970, at age 30, Reid was chosen by O'Callaghan as his running mate for Lieutenant Governor of Nevada. Reid and his mentor O'Callaghan won the race and Reid served as lieutenant governor from 1971 until 1974, when he ran for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Alan Bible. He lost by fewer than 600 votes to former Governor Paul Laxalt. In 1975, Reid ran for mayor of Las Vegas and lost to Bill Briare.^[5]

Reid served as chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission from 1977 to 1981. When Jack Gordon, LaToya Jackson's future agent and husband, offered Reid a $12,000 bribe to approve new games for casinos, Reid brought in the FBI to tape Gordon's bribery attempt and arrest him. After FBI agents interrupted the transaction as prearranged, Reid lost his temper and began choking Gordon, saying "You son of a bitch, you tried to bribe me!" Gordon was convicted in 1979 and sentenced to six months in prison.^[1] In 1981, Reid's wife found a bomb attached to the family station wagon; Reid suspected it was placed by Gordon.^[1]

U.S. Representative[link]

Prior to the 1980 Census, Nevada had only a single at-large member in the United States House of Representatives, but population growth in the 1970s resulted in the state picking up a second district. Reid won the Democratic nomination for the 1st district, based in Las Vegas, in 1982, and easily won the general election. He served two terms in the House, from 1983 to 1987.

U.S. Senate[link]

Elections[link]

In 1986, Reid won the Democratic nomination for the seat of retiring two-term incumbent Republican Senator Paul Laxalt. He defeated former at-large Congressman Jim Santini, a Democrat who had turned Republican, in the November election. He coasted to reelection in 1992. However, he barely defeated 1st District Congressman John Ensign in 1998 in the midst of a statewide Republican sweep.

In 2004, Reid won reelection with 61 percent of the vote, gaining the endorsement of several Republicans.

Ensign was elected to Nevada's other Senate seat in 2000. He and Reid have a very good relationship, despite their bruising contest in 1998. The two frequently worked together on Nevada issues until Ensign was forced to resign his Senate seat.^[6]

While Reid won the Democratic nomination with 75% of the vote in the June 8 primary, he faced a competitive general election for the 2010 Senate race in Nevada. Reid engaged in a $1 million media campaign to "reintroduce himself" to Nevada's voters.^[7] He defeated Republican challenger Sharron Angle in the general election.

Leadership[link]

From 1999 to 2005, Reid served as Senate Democratic Whip, as minority whip from 1999 to 2001 and again from 2003 to 2005, then as majority whip from 2001 to 2003 (except for a brief period from January–May 2001). From 2001 to 2003, he served as chairman of the Senate Ethics Committee.

Reid succeeded Tom Daschle as minority leader in 2005 and became majority leader after the 2006 elections. He was re-elected majority leader without opposition by the Democratic caucus on November 18, 2008, winning all 57 votes.^[8]

Committee assignments[link]

• Select Committee on Intelligence (Ex officio)

Political positions[link]

President Barack Obama shakes hands with Reid after signing the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act of 2009 on March 30, 2009.

Reid speaking at the State Children's Health Insurance Program Art Exhibit press conference

Reid has scored a lifetime conservative rating of 19% from the American Conservative Union (ACU),^[9] and a 2008 liberal rating of 70% from the Americans for Democratic Action (ADA).^[10] Other independent ratings include a 29% rating in 2003 from NARAL, the abortion pro-choice group,^[11] and a 57% rating from Planned Parenthood in 2006.^[12]

Reid has spearheaded several initiatives while in Congress. In 2006, Reid co-sponsored the "Prevention First Amendment" with Hillary Clinton, which would fund abortion prevention efforts, such as giving women broader access to contraception; however the bill faced Republican opposition and failed.^[13] In January 2007, Reid brought a Senate ethics reform bill to a vote to bar congressional members from accepting gifts, meals, and trips from lobbyists and organizations employing them, as well as barring Senators from borrowing corporate jets for travel and compelling them to disclose the names of sponsors, or authors, of bills and specific projects. The bill passed 96–2.^[14] In the 111th Congress, Reid shepherded the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act through the Senate.

Regarding specific issues, Reid believes that Roe vs. Wade should be overturned and in 1999, he voted against an amendment that explicitly expressed support for Roe v. Wade.^[15] He has stated that he believes in a restricted right to abortion, stating that "abortions should be legal only when the pregnancy resulted from incest, rape, or when the life of the woman is endangered."^[16] He has also voted several times to ban the "intact dilation and evacuation" or "partial-birth abortion" procedure.^[17] Reid has supported embryonic stem cell research.^[18]

Regarding same-sex marriage, Reid has stated he believes "...marriage should be between a man and a woman." He voted in favor of the Defense of Marriage Act but against the Federal Marriage Amendment.^[19]

In regard to local issues, Reid has firmly opposed the proposed Yucca Mountain federal nuclear waste repository in Nevada.^[20] Reid has opposed the legalization of online poker in the past, but has more recently changed his position, a move that some have argued was influenced by "the hundreds of thousands of dollars Las Vegas casinos contributed to his re-election campaign".^[21]

Reid called immigration reform one of his top priorities for the 110th Congress. He supports the DREAM Act the (Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act), which would allow certain U.S. high school grads who had arrived in the U.S. illegally as children, conditional legal status so they could attend college or enlist in the military. They could then obtain permanent legal residency after completing two years of military service or two years of college.^[22] In June 2009, Reid announced his intention to enact a new guest worker program as part of a comprehensive immigration reform bill.^[23]

Reid has supported the use of force in the Middle East but in September 2007 he called for a drastic change in strategy.^{[citation needed]} In January 1991 he voted to authorize the first Gulf War.^[24] quoting John F. Kennedy's 1963 State of the Union speech on the Senate floor, saying "the mere absence of war is not Peace."^[25][26] He also voted in support of the 2003 invasion of Iraq.^[27][28] In March 2007 he voted in favor of "redeploying U.S. troops out of Iraq by March 2008",^[28] and later that year, he said, "As long as we follow [President Bush's] path in Iraq, the war is lost."^[29]

Reid has also advocated the outlawing of prostitution in Nevada, an unpopular position within the state.^[30]

Criticism[link]

Over the years Reid has been criticized at times by both sides of the political aisle. Liberal critics have argued that Reid was not doing enough to end the American military presence in Iraq,^[31] and that he allowed Senate Republicans to create a 60-vote bar for passage of bills without a Democratic fillibuster.^[32][33][34]

Reid has also been criticized for several potentially self-enriching tactics. In 2005, Reid earmarked a spending bill to provide for building a bridge between Nevada and Arizona that would make land he owned more valuable. Reid called funding for construction of a bridge over the Colorado River, among other projects, "incredibly good news for Nevada" in a news release after passage of the 2005 transportation bill. He owned 160 acres (65 ha) of land several miles from the proposed bridge site in Arizona. The bridge could add value to his real estate investment.^[35] A year later it was reported that Reid had used campaign donations to pay for $3,300 in Christmas gifts to the staff at the condominium where he resides;^[36] federal election law prohibits candidates from using political donations for personal use. Reid's staff stated that his attorneys had approved use of the funds in this manner, but that he nonetheless would personally reimburse his campaign for the expenses. Those reports notwithstanding, the conservative group Citizens United announced it had filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission to investigate the matter.^[37]

A series of investigative reports in the Los Angeles Times^{[38][39][40][41]} suggested that Reid had introduced legislation and imposed pressure on regulatory agencies to advance the business interests of his close friend Harvey Whittemore, a Nevada attorney-lobbyist who contributed heavily to Reid's campaigns and leadership fund and who employed Reid's son Leif as his personal attorney. With Reid's help, Whittemore was able to proceed with construction of a $30 billion planned golf course development, Coyote Springs, a project heavily criticized by environmental groups for reasons including its projected effects on several endangered species.^[42][43]

In 2006, the National Republican Senatorial Committee attempted to associate Reid with the Jack Abramoff Indian lobbying scandal by pointing out he had "received more than $50,000 from four tribes with gaming interests between 2001 and 2004 after they hired Abramoff". Reid denied any wrongdoing, and media reported that the Center for Responsive Politics, a non-partisan research group, had produced an analysis showing a general increase in the amount and number of contributions by Indian tribes since the late 1990s.^[44][45]

Reid apologized on January 9, 2010, for racially tinged comments he had made when Obama was campaigning for president. In private conversations, Reid had remarked that Obama could win the Presidency because the country was ready to embrace a black presidential candidate, especially one such as Obama—to whom he referred as being "light-skinned" and "with no Negro dialect, unless he wanted to have one". These comments had been recently revealed by journalists Mark Halperin and John Heilemann in Game Change, their book about the 2008 election. In addition to his public apology, Reid called Obama to apologize; Obama accepted his apology, stating that as far as he was concerned, the book was closed on the incident.^[46][47][48] RNC Chairman Michael Steele and Senators John Cornyn and Jon Kyl called on Reid to resign his leadership position in the Senate, citing Majority Leader Trent Lott resigning because of a statement relating to race. However, multiple experts said there was virtually no chance of such a thing happening. DNC Chairman Tim Kaine and Senators Dianne Feinstein and Jack Reed expressed support for Reid and confidence he would retain his leadership position, and another senior Democrat indicated Reid has "produced supportive statements from key African American leaders in the Congress and civil rights community".^[49]

In August 2010, Harry Reid spoke in front of National Council of La Raza: "I don't know how anyone of Hispanic heritage could be a Republican, OK. Do I need to say more?"^[50] The following day, Dr. Manny Alvarez and Republican Senator Marco Rubio, both of Hispanic descent, spoke out against Reid's remarks.^[51]

Cultural and political image[link]

Reid speaks during the third night of the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado.

Part of Harry Reid's confrontation with Frank Rosenthal while chair of the Nevada Gaming Commission is reenacted in the 1995 movie Casino.^[52][53] Reid had a role in the movie Traffic (2000), in which he played himself.^[54] He appeared along with Senator Sam Brownback and then Senator Barack Obama in the 2007 documentary film Sand and Sorrow, which details the genocide in Sudan.^[55]

Reid was elected to the Gaming Hall of Fame in 2001.^[56]

An October 2007 Las Vegas Review-Journal favorability poll indicated 51% of Nevadans viewed Reid unfavorably, with 32% indicating favorability, although in May 2007 Reid had a 46% favorable rating versus a 42% unfavorable one.^[57] A December 2007 Las Vegas Review-Journal job approval poll showed 42% of Nevadans rating Reid "poor", 41% "excellent or good", and 16% "only fair".^[58]

Personal life[link]

In 1959, Reid married his high school sweetheart, Landra Gould. They have five children, a daughter and four sons. Their eldest son, Rory Reid, was an elected Commissioner for Clark County, Nevada of which he became Chairman of, and 2010 Democratic nominee in the election for Governor of Nevada. Another son recently ran for municipal office in Cottonwood Heights, Utah.^[59]

Reid (who was raised agnostic) and his wife (who was born to Jewish immigrant parents and grew up in Henderson), converted to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the Mormon or LDS Church) while he was a college student.^[1] In a 2001 interview he said, "I think it is much easier to be a good member of the Church and a Democrat than a good member of the Church and a Republican." He went on to say that the Democrats' emphasis on helping others, as opposed to what he considers Republican dogma to the contrary, is the reason he's a Democrat.^[60] He delivered a speech at Brigham Young University to about 20,000 students on October 9, 2007, in which he expressed his opinion that Democratic values mirror Mormon values.^[61][62] Several Republican Mormons in Utah have contested his faith because of his politics, such as his statements that the church's backing of California's Proposition 8 wasted resources.^[63]

In September 2011, Reid's wife was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer. She is currently undergoing treatment.^[64]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Harry Reid

Wikisource has original works written by or about: Harry Reid

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Harry Reid

• Senator Harry Reid official U.S. Senate website
• Senator Harry Reid official campaign website
• Biography at WhoRunsGov.com at The Washington Post
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Congressional profile at GovTrack
• Congressional profile at OpenCongress
• Issue positions and quotes at On the Issues
• Current Bills Sponsored at StateSurge.com
• Financial information at OpenSecrets.org
• Staff salaries, trips and personal finance at LegiStorm.com
• Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
• Appearances on C-SPAN programs
• Collected news and commentary at The New York Times
• Tough Reid, Eve Fairbanks, The New Republic, April 15, 2009

v t e United States Senators from Nevada Class 1 Stewart Sharon Fair Stewart Nixon Massey Pittman Bunker Scrugham Carville Malone Cannon Hecht Bryan Ensign Heller Class 3 Nye Jones Newlands Henderson Oddie McCarran Brown Bible Laxalt Reid

v t e United States Senate Majority Leaders Lodge • Curtis • Watson • Robinson • Barkley • White • Lucas • McFarland • Taft • Knowland • Johnson • Mansfield • Byrd • Baker • Dole • Byrd • Mitchell • Dole • Lott • Daschle • Lott • Daschle • Frist • Reid

v t e United States Senate Minority Leaders Underwood • Robinson • McNary • Austin • McNary • White • Barkley • Wherry • Bridges • Johnson • Knowland • Dirksen • Scott • Baker • Byrd • Dole • Daschle • Lott • Daschle • Lott • Frist • Daschle • Reid • McConnell

v t e Democratic Party Leaders in the United States Senate Underwood • Robinson • Barkley • Lucas • McFarland • Johnson • Mansfield • Byrd • Mitchell • Daschle • Reid

v t e United States Senate Majority Whips Lewis • Curtis • Jones • Fess • Lewis • Minton • Hill • Wherry • Myers • Johnson • Saltonstall • Clements • Mansfield • Humphrey • Long • Kennedy • Byrd • Cranston • Stevens • Simpson • Cranston • Ford • Lott • Nickles • Reid • Nickles • Reid • McConnell • Durbin

v t e United States Senate Minority Whips Wadsworth • Curtis • Gerry • Sheppard • Hebert • Wherry • Lucas • Saltonstall • Clements • Saltonstall • Dirksen • Kuchel • Scott • Griffin • Stevens • Cranston • Simpson • Ford • Reid • Nickles • Reid • Nickles • Reid • Durbin • Lott • Kyl

v t e Democratic Party Whips in the United States Senate Lewis • Gerry • Sheppard • Lewis • Minton • Hill • Lucas • Myers • Johnson  • Clements  • Mansfield  • Humphrey  • Long • Kennedy • Byrd • Cranston • Ford • Reid • Durbin

v t e Members of the United States House of Representatives from Nevada Territorial (1861-1864) Cradlebaugh Mott At-large seat (1864-1983) Worthington Ashley Fitch Kendall Ashley Fitch Woodburn Wren Daggett Cassidy Woodburn Bartine Newlands Van Duzer Bartlett Roberts Evans Arentz Richards Arentz Scrugham Sullivan Bunker Russell Baring Young Baring Towell Santini 1st district (1983-present) Reid Bilbray Ensign Berkley 2nd district (1983-present) Vucanovich Gibbons Heller Amodei 3rd district (2003-present) Porter Titus Heck

Terry Fator
Terry Fator performing in Las Vegas, Nevada
Background information
Birth name	Terry Wayne Fator
Also known as	Million Dollar Voice[1] The Human Jukebox[2]
Born	(1965-06-10) June 10, 1965 (age 47) Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Occupations	Ventriloquist, impressionist, singer
Years active	circa 1975 – present
Website	Terry Fator Official Site

Terry Wayne Fator^[3] ( /ˈfeɪtər/; born June 10, 1965) is a ventriloquist, impressionist, comedian, and singer from Dallas, Texas. Fator is capable of doing over 100 ventriloquial impersonations,^[4] and uses 16 different puppets in his act. He was the winner of Season 2 of America's Got Talent, and received the million dollar prize.^[5] The following year, he was signed on as the headliner at The Mirage hotel and casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.^[6]

Early life[link]

Terry Fator was born on June 10, 1965 in Dallas, Texas, the son of Jephtha Wesley and Edith Marie (Clifton) Fator. He has an older brother, Jephtha Jr., and a younger sister, Deborah.^[7] Fator's second cousin is Chris Sligh, an American Idol season 6 finalist.^[4] Terry Fator says in his audio commentary of Terry Fator: Live from Las Vegas (2009) that he went to college at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. The beginning of Fator's ventriloquism career dates back to when he was in fifth grade.^[4][8] While searching for a book for an assignment on Valentine's Day, he came across a book about ventriloquism^[8] titled, Ventriloquism for Fun and Profit, by Paul Winchell.^[9] Fator checked out the book and started learning about ventriloquism.^[4] A few weeks later, Fator purchased a Willie Talk dummy from Sears^[4] and soon won a $25 prize for a performance at a church picnic.^[8][9]

Fator got his first ventriloquism dummy when he was ten years old.^[10] Throughout his childhood, Fator entertained family and friends with his ventriloquism and did impersonations of singers and actors.^[4] When Fator was in sixth grade, he appeared on a popular children's show in Dallas called Peppermint Place that starred "Mr. Peppermint" Jerry Haynes.^{[citation needed]} Fator's mother saved up her money for three years and bought him his first puppet when he was 18.^[11]

Fator says he found he had the ability to impersonate singers by practicing ventriloquism while driving his car. "One of the reasons I learned how to sing as a ventriloquist was because I like singing in the car," Fator says. "I’d see other people singing in the car, and they looked goofy, so I’d do it without moving my lips."^[10]

Band membership[link]

Fator got his start touring as the lead singer of a band called "Freedom Jam" in 1987-88, produced by Young American Showcase. They performed at over 200 high schools and middle schools across the United States and Canada, averaging three performances per school day.

In mid 1988, he was the lead singer of a show band called 'Texas the Band'^[12] when he was 23, and incorporated his puppet Walter T. Airedale into his shows. Fator's band at one point was about to sign with a major record label and one of the label's representatives came to hear the band. Fator sang the songs impersonating the original vocalists. "He told me 'you gotta stop doing those impressions,' and wanted me to sing in my own voice," Fator says. "I tried it for a few weeks, and absolutely hated it. We told the record company 'no thanks.'"^[13]

Combining singing and ventriloquism[link]

Fator left the band and did a solo act combining comedy and ventriloquism but for many years had little success. "Fairs would stick me on a little stage in the back of fair and have me do three shows in the hottest part of the afternoon," says Fator. "I had heat stroke a couple of times, almost passed out."^[13]

In May 2007, before appearing on America's Got Talent, Fator was performing at a fair near Houston, Texas and the only spectator was a 12 year old boy. Discouraged, Fator contemplated pursuing another career, but his family encouraged him to hang in there. Terry entered the America's Got Talent competition with the hope that the exposure if he made it to the Top 20 might help his career and cause people to want to attend his shows. But Fator says the low point of his career was when he appeared at a 1,000 seat theater and had only one customer.^[8]

Fator's success stems from combining singing and ventriloquism^[14]. Fator had been the lead singer in a band and often did impersonations of singers Garth Brooks, Etta James, James Taylor and Dean Martin while ventriloquism was just a comic side gig for Fator. In 2005 Fator decided to join his two talents, ventriloquism and impersonations.^[4] "I had one of my characters sing Garth Brooks' "Friends in Low Places" and the audience went bananas," Fator says. "Boy, that was where my life changed." After his initial success Fator revamped his act. "It took me six months and I completely rewrote the show," says Fator. "It was then that people really noticed and I started getting standing ovations at the end of every show."^[15]

Prior to winning America's Got Talent, Fator was an opening act for Reba McEntire, Garth Brooks, Neal McCoy, and Styx. Fator also made corporate appearances at General Motors and AT&T.

[edit] Success on America's Got Talent

Terry Fator appears at the Poncan Theater in Ponca City, Oklahoma on May 6, 2008 with his character Winston the Impersonating Turtle.

Terry Fator with his character Johnny Vegas.

Terry Fator with his character Walter T. Airedale.

Terry Fator with his character Maynard Thomkins.

Before appearing on America's Got Talent, Fator had almost given up on achieving success in show business as a ventriloquist. "It wasn't easy trying to keep going all these years, and by the time I was in my late 30s, I wasn't sure it was ever going to happen," says Fator.^[16]

On June 19, 2007, Fator made his first national appearance on America's Got Talent. Fator never dreamed that he would win the show. "Not in my wildest dreams did I imagine I would win that show," says Fator. "Essentially I auditioned because the guy that was the ventriloquist the first season got on Late Show with David Letterman... So I figured I'd do three episodes like he did and end up on 'David Letterman.'"^[17] After winning the show, Fator actually had to turn the Letterman gig down four times before he could appear. "My schedule got so packed, and it broke my heart every time I had to turn him down," Fator says.^[10]

When Fator first came onstage, judge David Hasselhoff said, "Oh, no, a ventriloquist."^[16] "I was thinking, there's no way I would win," Fator says. "I gave myself zero percent [chance]." The judges, Piers Morgan, Sharon Osbourne and David Hasselhoff loved Fator and he won the competition.^[8] Judge Piers Morgan told Fator "You’re a great impersonator, a great singer and a great comedian." "You put a twist on the whole being a ventriloquist thing," added Judge Sharon Osbourne.^[18] Even Simon Cowell approved. "Simon Cowell said I was one of the top two entertainers on the planet," says Fator. "And getting a compliment from Simon Cowell, well, not many people get a compliment like that."^[17]

Performances/Results[link]

[edit] Life after America's Got Talent

It was announced on the show that in conjunction with winning, he was to appear at the Jubilee Theatre at Bally's. However, the spots were only going to be 15 minutes long, and in complete mutual cooperation with his management team and Bally's, the plan was dropped.^{[citation needed]} Fator performed at Christian rock legend Larry Norman's 60th birthday party in April 2007.^[19] Later Fator flew Larry to tapings of America's Got Talent and also to his debut show at the Las Vegas Hilton as an honored guest. Norman told friends shortly before his death that it was one of the most fun years of his life^{[citation needed]}.

On October 14 and 15, 2007, after winning America's Got Talent, Fator took the stage of the Las Vegas Hilton (formerly the International, the same stage that Elvis Presley performed on for many years.) Both shows were sold out to standing room only. Another show was added for December 3 to satisfy the demand for tickets.

In early December 2007, Fator signed a contract for $1.5 million with the Las Vegas Hilton to do 3 shows a month from January 2008 to May 2008. Fator also performed a 6 p.m. early family New Year's Eve show on December 31, 2007.

In 2007, Fator became an official supporter of Ronald McDonald House Charities and is a member of their celebrity board, called the Friends of RMHC.^[20]

On March 17, 2008, Fator appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show along with American Idol Judge Simon Cowell. To the amazement of Oprah, Cowell referred to Fator as one of the "two most talented people on the planet." Fator performed with three of his dummies; country singer Walter T. Airedale performed a Garth Brooks song and Winston the impersonating Turtle sang a Bee Gees song. Julius performed a Marvin Gaye song; Julius was a favorite when he appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show.^[10] "As soon as I brought out Julius, she had this look on her face, wondering what I was about to do," Fator said.^[10] "Once I started into Marvin Gaye, she fell out of her chair."^[10]

On May 13, 2008 it was announced that Fator had signed a five year, $100 million contract to perform nightly at The Mirage in Las Vegas^[21]. He replaced headliner Danny Gans and the theater was renamed the Terry Fator Theatre. Reportedly, Fator's deal is one of the largest entertainment deals in Las Vegas history.^[22]

Fator announced in July 2008 that he was at work on a book. "I never thought in my whole life I would write a whole book. It's called 'Who's the Dummy Now?'"^[17] Fator announced at the 2008 Bloomsburg Fair on the week of September 20–27, 2008 that he finished his book.

On September 10, 2008, Fator reappeared on America's Got Talent's Top Twenty Results Show as a guest. He brought back a larger Winston the Impersonating Turtle to sing Marvin Gaye's song, "Let's Get It On." Maynard Thomkins was also brought on to sing Viva Las Vegas. Winston was not the only puppet that was reconfigured; on an August 1, 2008 ABCNews Now interview, he brought a reshaped Emma Taylor to sing "At Last."^[9]

Also, on September 14, 2011, he was invited once again to perform as a guest on the Finals of "America's Got Talent" show. This time he brought Julius, the soul singer, that performed "Ain't No Sunshine".

Getting ventriloquism taken seriously[link]

Fator has fought to be taken seriously as a ventriloquist. "There have been so few good, successful ventriloquists - Edgar Bergen in the 1940s and Paul Winchell in the 1960s were respected and successful," says Fator. "And in the 1970s, I used to watch Willie Tyler and his Lester as well as Jay Johnson and Bob. But over the years, there have been so many bad ventriloquists - and most of them doing corny shows for children - that people began to think of us as a bad joke."^[16]

Puppets[link]

This is an incomplete list of the character names for the puppets that Terry Fator uses in his act.

• Walter T. Airedale - Airedale, a country singer, is the puppet that Fator has had the longest.^[17]
• Winston the Impersonating Turtle - Winston was inspired by Kermit the Frog. "Originally I had a Kermit the Frog puppet and I would have (him) sing "Rainbow Connection"," says Fator. "When I called up The Muppets to see if they would let me do a Kermit the Frog impression (on national TV), they said I could do the impression but I could not use the Kermit puppet. Necessity is the mother of invention, so I said, OK, I'll have a turtle do an impression of a frog singing with Louis Armstrong."^[17]
• Emma Taylor - "Emma Taylor is a lady who sang with me on 'America's Got Talent,'" says Fator. Fator says that Emma is his "best puppet friend." "I kind of like Emma. She's really cute," says Fator.^[17]
• Maynard Thomkins - "Maynard Tompkins is an Elvis impersonator --the only impersonator in the world who does not know any Elvis songs," says Fator.^[17]
• Julius - Julius is the soul singer. People are sometimes initially shocked by Julius as an African-American puppet. "Obviously, it’s going to be shocking. People look at me a little nervously," Fator said. "But when I start singing, all objections fade away and they love it." Julius was a favorite when he appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show. "As soon as I brought out Julius, she had this look on her face, wondering what I was about to do," Fator said. "Once I started into Marvin Gaye, she fell out of her chair.".^[10]
• Johnny Vegas - a lounge singer, often impersonating Dean Martin, Tony Bennett, etc.^[16]
• Duggie Scott Walker - Introduced as Fator's annoying neighbor, he is a heavy metal music lover. Loves AC/DC, Guns N' Roses, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and others. He partied so much at concerts he always thinks there are strobe lights flashing.
• Vikki the Cougar - a 49-year old (she keeps turning 49, so her actual age is unknown) female singer, singing songs from the Pussycat Dolls as an example. As her name implies, she prefers dating younger men, between the ages of 21 and 24, as she revealed in an interview on Las Vegas CBS affiliate KLAS-TV. Vikki is apparently Duggie's mother.
• The Fifth Beatle - Patterned after Paul McCartney, he was kicked out of the Beatles.
• Wrex - A crash test dummy that sings automobile-themed songs.^[23]

Fator is constantly creating new characters. "I've got several new ones I'm creating for the Mirage. We're going to be constantly creating new characters for the show," says Fator.^[17]

Other characters[link]

Fator has often impersonated singers himself alongside his puppets and/or volunteers from the audience. Michael Jackson has been a regular figure Fator impersonates alongside his Walter T. Airedale puppet. Fator also has incorporated audience members into his act via a remote-control mask. A volunteer wears the mask and the remote allows Fator to move the mask's mouth with Fator providing all of the conversation and singing. Fator usually dresses the volunteer as Cher and performs the duet "I Got You, Babe" with Fator as Sonny Bono.

Charitable work[link]

In July 2007 Fator appeared in Montana to help raise funds for the Kidsports Sports Complex in Kalispell and said he wanted to come back in 2008 to do another show. “We thought, we bet he wants to, but we bet he won’t have time,” said Nancy Manning of Rotary Club of Kalispell. “He made time because it’s so important to him.” All proceeds from Fator’s show went towards the field.^[24]

In 2007 Fator did a benefit performance for miners' families in Huntington, Utah.^[8]

In 2008, Fator performed at the Palace Theatre in Corsicana, Texas. Proceeds benefited the Navarro Council of the Arts and the Mildred Drama Club. Fator is a native of Corsicana.^[25]

On September 3, 2007, Fator made a special appearance in the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon at the South Point Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, thanking the crowd for the support.^{[citation needed]} His acts were a repeat of the acts he made on America's Got Talent.^{[citation needed]} He brought back Emma Taylor to sing "At Last" and Winston the Turtle to sing "What a Wonderful World" again.^{[citation needed]} He returned to the Telethon on September 1, 2008 and brought Julius to sing "Only You" from The Platters, Marvin Gaye's song, "Let's Get It On," and "Crazy" by Gnarls Barkley. Maynard Thomkins was also brought on to sing "Viva Las Vegas" to finish the show.^{[citation needed]} Fator made his 3rd consecutive telethon appearance(this time via satellite from his showroom during a performance of his show) on September 6, 2009 with puppets The Fifth Beatle and Vikki The Cougar with special guests The Commodores, who joined Fator performing "Brick House".

In 2010, Terry did a doodle for a charity celebrity doodle auction for Neurofibromatosis, more commonly known as NF. 100% of the profit from all the doodles went to help families with NF.

All proceeds from Fator's original song "Horses in Heaven" go to St. Jude's Children's Hospital.^[26]

DVD[link]

On September 1, 2009, Fator's first DVD, Terry Fator: Live from Las Vegas (recorded during a performance at the Mirage), was released just less than a week after its debut airing on CMT (originally aired on August 28, 2009) and copies sold at Target stores include footage not shown on the CMT broadcast.

Personal life[link]

Fator was the lead singer of a locally popular band called TEXAS The Band during the late 1980s through 2001 and met his first wife Melinda after she began to follow the band extensively. They married on January 8, 1991. Prior to landing his show in Las Vegas, Terry and his wife bought a home he deemed his "dream house" in Trophy Club, Texas. Melinda left Terry in January 2009 and returned back to Texas from Las Vegas where they had recently moved. She filed for divorce in February 2009 in Texas. Almost a year-and-a-half into the divorce, she then filed a second time in Nevada in 2010. After almost two years, a sudden settlement was reached in November 2010. On November 3, 2010, one day after the divorce was finalized, Terry married Taylor Makakoa (who, identified in the closing credits as "Taylor Dew", appears on Terry's DVD as his on-stage assistant) in Las Vegas. They had a wedding ceremony in Hawaii on November 7, 2010.^[27]

External links and references[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Terry Fator

• NBC's America's Got Talent
• Terry Fator's website

References[link]