Daily Blessings and Cinnamon Rolls--A Lesson Not to be Taken for Granted

Most people have heard many times in their life that they should never take anything for granted. This is true for all aspects of life from relationships to career success. Just ask Ron Santulli, someone that has been in the entertainment industry for decades. According to Ron, everything is a learning experience, especially in the entertainment business. All opportunities are important because they give an aspiring entertainer experience, great stories, and the ability to get comfortable with his/her own identity. These opportunities should not be taken for granted. 

According to an article on The Bright Path, we all need to learn to be thankful for what we have. This article states that in doing so, “you transform your perspective on life.  No longer are you a victim, lost as life pushes you in whatever direction it wishes.” This exemplifies Ron’s idea that by not taking anything for granted, you are allowing yourself the room to grow into something even better.

Ron has been fortunate enough to have many opportunities throughout the years. In fact, his story is extremely fascinating. I was lucky enough to have him share his story with me in an interview recently, and I want to share his journey with all of my readers so that they can hopefully learn something from it as well.

Ron’s story begins in Brooklyn, New York, where he was born. He knew from a very early age that he wanted to become a singer. Starting when he was 3 ½ years old, he began to perform at family gatherings. His dad would put a chair out and make him stand on it and sing—for 2 hours!!! 

As he grew up, Ron sang along with the songs on the radio. Eventually, he also developed a passion for Broadway. This came from his mother who listened to Broadway music. At the age of 12, Ron attended his first Broadway production—Oliver. An interesting fact to note about that production is that Davy Jones was actually part of the show. 

In 1964, when the Beatles were rising in popularity, Ron decided that he wanted to take guitar lessons. So take guitar lessons he did—for a whole $2.50 an hour. This generated his interest in bands and further increased his interest in music. In 1967 and 1968, he even was part of a high school rock band where he got to play the bass and sing baritone. 

Eventually, Ron’s entertainment interest expanded into drama. Initially, his Catholic high school had no drama club, so there was nowhere for him to develop his interest. Instead, he spent 3 ½ years on the track team, even though he hated it. However, his senior year of high school, a producer was putting on shows for high schools, and Ron had the opportunity to audition. As luck would have it, Ron got the lead role, so he quit the track team. He even got the best singer award for singing “I Left My Heart in San Francisco”. 

From this point on, Ron moved from one experience to another. In 1968 he joined a drama group. This happened to be where he met his future wife (to whom he married in 1975). Ron also auditioned on Good Friday in 1970 for Summerstock, which put on plays during the summer. He got to be both in the show and doing background stage. 

Ron went to Brooklyn College to major in speech and theater. He noted that one of the best parts of going to school there was that his professors were actors and stage techs on Broadway. While in college, he had the opportunity to participate in community shows in order to gain more experience. 

Before working for 11 years for Air France, Ron worked off Broadway in a box office. In 1987 he and his wife moved to Florida where he got a job working for Disney. He stayed there for 14 years and became a spokesman for MGM. He also put together a group that performed Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. It lasted a month. Later, he was asked to do a Halloween party as an Elvis character. He spent the next year and a half as an Elvis impersonator. In 2001, he moved to Las Vegas. He last performed as an Elvis impersonator in 2004, where he performed for 3-4 days in one of the casinos. 

The next chapter of Ron’s life began in 2010 when he moved to Branson. Ron was given the nickname of the “Branson Crooner” by Randy Plummer, a Branson musician with whom Ron had been friends with since the 90’s. Ron became a regular on Karen Berka’s Branson radio show. When a Christian nightclub called Nightlight opened up in Branson, Ron became a headliner there for 3 years along with Voices of Glory. This allowed Ron to develop a fan base. Unfortunately, the club ran out of funding and closed. 

As luck would have it, Ron’s associate producer, friend, and co-worker Mark Daniel invited Ron to perform at Grandma Ruth’s. Mark’s mom and brother work to make the cinnamon rolls that have made Grandma Ruth’s popular. These cinnamon rolls and coffee are available for people to consume while listening to Ron’s show. 

There is a neat history associated with Grandma Ruth’s as well that has led to its increasing popularity. The business started off on Hwy 76. As people began to fall in love with the cinnamon rolls, theaters in town began to call them to make cinnamon rolls for their shows. Then, the Leap Year tornado hit Branson in February 2012. It missed Grandma Ruth’s by 30 feet. Hwy 76 was completely closed, and they decided to take cinnamon rolls to the workers along 76. Power was finally restored after a week. A couple from Chicago contacted the newspaper about this good deed, and the local station, KY3, eventually picked it up.

Now, they have moved to a location on the corner of Gretna and Green Mountain. This past January, they opened up another part of the store. In addition to having room for people to purchase and consume the cinnamon rolls, there is now an area open for people to enjoy free live music and relax while eating the cinnamon rolls. This is how Ron became involved. Grandma Ruth’s will be going national next year with 6 stores in Iowa, Missouri, and Illinois. 

Currently, Ron is scheduled to perform from 9-11 on Thursday and Friday mornings, although he can often be heard even earlier. This is in conjunction with a position working in the Starlite Theatre box office. He plans to retire from his box office job this September, at which point he will be performing five days a week at Grandma Ruth’s. This is his ideal job because it allows him to have a wide repertoire, meet people, and perform in a family-like atmosphere. 

I had the pleasure of sitting in on one of Ron’s performances at Grandma Ruth’s and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a place to relax and listen to several hours of good music without having to pay an arm and a leg in ticket prices. Ron passes out a list of music to his audience and allows them to choose what songs he will sing. This means that each performance will be different. 

When I asked Ron about his plans for the future, he has two very definite plans. First of all, Ron has 6 CDs to date, but he intends to record even more. Second, he plans to keep performing at Grandma Ruth’s for as long as possible, or as he told me, for the next 20 years.

Ron is the perfect example of making every experience count. It is true that each of his experiences pushed him toward the next step in his life. Through the many challenges in his life, Ron was able to excel and discover himself. He never said no, performed as often as possible, received as much training as possible, and knew when to make sacrifices in order to reach success. I learned a lot from listening to Ron’s experiences. Mainly, I know I certainly will do my best to never take anything for granted. Every experience is important. Also, Grandma Ruth’s makes great cinnamon rolls!

A Little Hard Work Can Go a Long Way

How does an ordinary person become both famous and successful? According to JC Fisher of The Texas Tenors, it can be done by working hard your entire life. He is the perfect example of the product of hard work. Growing up in the small town of Pleasant Hope, MO, JC was able to build the foundation that would serve him later in life. Now, he is one of the members of the increasingly popular group The Texas Tenors. His journey to this point has been nothing short of remarkable.

As a young boy, JC had no aspirations to become a musician or singer. He grew up on a farm with several sisters and parents that were adamant that their children worked hard and pushed them to do well. As such, they were not given anything—instead, they had to work for it. They were raised to do the right thing. According to JC, even today he asks himself when faced with a problem, “What would Dad do?” In school, JC was an athlete. In particular, he was involved with the basketball team. Believe it or not, his involvement with the basketball team is what launched his music career.

JC and his dad courtesy of JC Fisher

At one high school basketball game, the school was searching for someone to sing the Star Spangled Banner. Although JC had very little experience with singing, he agreed to do it. As a result, he wowed the crowd. Even his own mother had no idea he was going to be singing for that game and was shocked at his voice. JC could not believe the reaction he got from the crowd. In truth, he got a thrill from it. From then on, he embraced his talent and became more involved with singing by performing regularly in church and at school.

After graduating from high school, JC went on to Southwest Missouri State for three years before transferring to Wichita State University. It was while at WSU that JC became serious about pursuing music as a career. The program at the school attracted him, and it was with the help of Rosemary Owens that he was able to grow as a performer. He began to take voice lessons, and as part of those lessons, he started listening to classical voices. At that point, he began to try to imitate several of the artists he listened to. Eventually, he took on a few solos that he performed in Germany with the choir. Upon graduating from WSU with his Bachelor’s degree in Music, JC began to put together his music career. Since then, he has dedicated much of his life toward developing his career. This hard work and dedication has turned out to be extremely important. According to an article on career success, “There is nothing more important for your career than hard work and dedication. You don’t have to love what you do, but you should be dedicated and care about doing the best you can. If you don’t care or have the drive it won’t get you anywhere in your career.”

It was while JC was one of the singing waiters at the Macaroni Grill that his life began to change. Some people that were in charge of putting together the Miss Kansas Pageant heard him sing and asked him to sing a duet from Phantom of the Opera with Miss America. This pageant happened to be where he met Jennifer Vannatta, Miss Kansas 1998 and his future wife. Shortly after the pageant, JC embarked on a 4-month program to Italy where he was able to perform in the Puccini Festival. He stayed with a family that spoke no English and became fully immersed in Italian culture. It was a great experience for him, and it allowed him to further develop his classical voice. Upon returning to the United States, JC put together his own show that he was able to take on cruise ships around the world. He sailed on more than 75 different cruise ships as a performer. In fact, it was on one of these cruise ships in 1999 that he met Marcus Collins, now a close friend and fellow member of The Texas Tenors.

JC and Jennifer courtesy of JC Fisher

Several years later, JC was working on a construction site and met John Hagen, a classically trained musician and now third member of The Texas Tenors. They developed a friendship while working together and eventually decided to put together a group with JC’s music teacher as the third person. JC sent in a recording of the group to America’s Got Talent. The response from AGT was that they needed to try again the next year. The next year, JC asked Marcus Collins if he would join the group. This time, AGT asked them to come to Houston for the audition. The trio graduated through the ranks of AGT and came in fourth place as the highest ranking vocal group in the history of the show. Ever since, The Texas Tenors have been touring around the world, including to the United Kingdom and China. They even perform over 60 shows each year at the Starlite Theatre in Branson. To date, they have performed over 650 concerts together since AGT. This past December, their very own PBS special entitled “You Should Dream”, named after one of their original songs, was aired for the first time. Since then, they have been rapidly growing in popularity. In fact, their newest CD has spent the last 11 weeks in the Billboard Top 10 for the Classical Crossover chart.

Photo courtesy of Helen Flynt

Somehow, JC has handled the rise to fame very well. He has worked hard to get to where he is today and credits his upbringing to achieving his goals. As he states, “God will give you the opportunity. You need to take that opportunity and work harder than everyone else. Then you will succeed more than everyone else.” According to one article regarding the importance of hard work, “Success is not measured by the position that you are in today but the amount of hard work you put in and the number of obstacles that you overcome to reach your goal.” Additionally, he believes it is important to follow your gut and have a positive outlook. He still maintains his humble attitude and instead uses the group’s popularity as a platform for causes he and the other group members believe in. They have the opportunity to make a difference through organizations such as Homes for Our Troops and Child Fund International. JC also would like to eventually work with children with disabilities.

JC has a soft spot for children. This can be seen through one of his favorite pastimes: spending time with his three children, Jackson, Jenson, and Jennings. Unfortunately, being on the road so much means that he is away from his family quite a bit. He states this as being one of the most difficult parts of the job. However, that means that the time he does get to spend with them is that much more special. Other hobbies that he has had to more or less give up due to his busy schedule include hunting, fishing, and pick-up basketball games.

In five years, JC has even more goals in mind to work toward. He anticipates new shows, new albums, and even wider name recognition. Also, he would like to be able to play his guitar much better. Although he only recently began to play the guitar, he has worked very hard at being able to play it in select portions of the show. He plans to continue working at it and eventually become an excellent player. Also, JC would like to have the opportunity to help more people and to have both his immediate and extended families be financially and emotionally secure.

JC and his children courtesy of JC Fisher

JC is the perfect example of how a little hard work can go a long way. There have been many obstacles along the way, but he overcame them and continued to work toward his goals. His journey from Pleasant Hope, MO to a prominent member of the group The Texas Tenors shows that an ordinary person has what it takes to achieve his/her dreams. 

Photo courtesy of Helen Flynt

Perseverance, Proficiency, and the Music Industry

As a young child, I was always encouraged to follow my dreams, set goals, and never give up. This theme of perseverance is something that sticks with a person throughout life. It motivates football players to work hard in the hopes of making it in the NFL. It inspires young booklovers to eventually become authors. It also is a common theme in the music industry. As one article on perseverance puts it, "You just have to be willing to not walk off the field when everybody else would have and you'll be the person who wins because you're the last one on the field. That is something that Brian Zerbe, a bassist in Branson, MO, discovered throughout his journey.

I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to meet with Zerbe to find out his story. It is easy to assume that people in his position came by it naturally as a result of talent. As he will attest, however, this is not the case. It takes much more than talent to make a living as a musician.

Zerbe was exposed to music at a very young age because his father was a music teacher. He began playing the violin at age 5. It wasn’t until he was older that he noticed that the liner notes on a Carpenter’s record mentioned an electric bass. Up until that point, he had never heard of it, and he had definitely never seen one. Still, it triggered something inside of him. To him, it sounded like fun. At that point, he decided to switch from playing the violin to playing the upright bass.

Zerbe playing his upright bass

 After graduating from high school, Zerbe, originally from Michigan, decided to start school at North Texas State.  He had two possible career paths in mind: journalism and music. One day, Zerbe saw a report on television about a hunting accident. He recalls that someone had accidentally shot a hunting buddy. He also noted that the person covering the story was disrespectful because the camera remained trained on the man who was bawling because of what he had done. Believing that this was extremely insensitive, Zerbe realized that there are many journalists like that; they will do whatever it takes to have a good story. He decided he wanted nothing to do with that, and from then on, his chosen path became music.

Two years into his schooling, Zerbe made the decision to leave for a club tour with a band. Unfortunately, the tour failed. Still, Zerbe never returned to school. Instead, he bounced around from club to club and took gigs wherever he could for awhile (even spending a year and a half at an amusement park). While many people would have given up at this point and decided they were not cut out for a career in music, Zerbe did not. Having many influences both in jazz and in pop music, Zerbe grabbed bits and pieces from many people. This assisted him in developing his own unique style. He believes that it is vital for an aspiring musician to become as proficient on the instrument as possible and to be able to play a wide variety of styles. This means there needs to be a lot of practice, and Zerbe definitely recommends practicing with a metronome because nothing is more important than having a good grasp of time. As one article written by Psychology Today states regarding practice, it is about the "quality of time spent practicing rather than quantity". Becoming proficient through quality practice is the key. Eventually, all of Zerbe's hard work and determination paid off.

At one point, Zerbe auditioned for a contract on a cruise ship. He was told to call in January to see if there was something available. At that point, they had nothing and told him to call back in February. When he called back in February, they told him to call back in June or July. Instead, he called at the end of April. The person he talked to said that he was assigned to a ship and all they needed to know was where to send his uniform. Had he not been perseverant and waited until June or July to call, he most likely would have received a call on the day the ship was leaving wondering why he wasn’t there. This experience taught him the importance of being available at all times and being ready to go at a moment’s notice.

Zerbe spent 13 years as a musician on cruise ships. He loved it because he never knew what he would be playing next and thrived on the variety. Eventually, Zerbe moved to Branson. He started out playing for ShojiTabuchi, played for #1 Hits of the 60’s for 5 years, and then landed his current position at Dick Clark’s American Bandstand Theater playing for Legends in Concert.

After the rough road that Zerbe traveled at the beginning of his music career, he finally found a position where he is extremely happy and content. He loves the fact that every show has its own challenges, as well as variety. He also is happy with the fact that he is no longer on the road and can remain in Branson with his family, including his two daughters. Additionally, it gives him time to pursue his other major interest: cooking.

I found myself fascinated while listening to him talk about his cooking. As it turns out, he is not only interested in cooking, but just as he likes to challenge himself with his music, he also likes to challenge himself with his cooking. While on cruise ships, he discovered many foods that he loved but for which he could never find a recipe. So he strives to recreate the recipes on his own. I certainly can’t say I know too many people that have spent 15 years trying to recreate an orange dipping sauce they had in Cozumel!

After having a wonderful conversation with Zerbe, I was able to attend the show he is currently playing for, Elvis Lives. It was really enjoyable to see how his hard work has paid off and the great results that he produces. The same could be said of all of the other singers, dancers, and musicians in the show. It is only playing in Branson until February 18, so I would highly recommend checking it out before then. It truly is amazing how far a little perseverance can take a person. Whether it’s to the NFL, a publishing company, or, in Zerbe’s case, to Branson, the sky is the limit if you are willing to work for it. 

Zerbe playing with the rest of the band for Dean Z