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Game Show parties are goin' strong--for groups, corporate events, house parties, even for wedding rehearsal dinners! Find out more--click here! See a demo video by clicking here! And, to top things off, I now play "Pop Culture Trivia Teams", which allow groups the chance to break off into teams and work feverishly to come up with the answers and win! Be sure to ask about it when you call 352-874-7544 or you can write me here! Also, thanks to The Villages' Daily Sun for the great piece about my long radio career in the Albany, NY marketplace. Now, after 41 years on air, I look ahead to a new challenge and new opportunities! Wanna thank a fun group from the Village of Santo Domingo in The Villages for asking me to host their New Year's Eve block party! Nothin's better than a pleasent night, dancin' in the driveway and a move into 2012 with a charging Locomotion train! Call me if your group likes to have fun--352-874-7544!  Plus, there's a WHOLE bunch of wedding trivia and facts if you scroll down below......see where you and your intended fit in! I know a lot of what you read here is geared toward weddings but it's the attention I devote to ALL parties I host that prompt notes like this from Taryn and Sean:  Also, thanks to Tim and Angela for the great note after their April 15, 2011 reception at Longfellows! What a fun group! And what a great note from Colleen and Josh about their June 2011 wedding reception!  And Jennifer and Ryan for their heartfelt note about their recent wedding: Ric, I just wanted to let you know what an amazing job you did at my wedding! Thank you so much for everything! Everyone had commented on the dj and said what a fantastic job you did! Thank you again for making our wedding the 2nd best day of our lives!! Jennifer & Ryan Pechtel Congrats to ALL the brides and grooms I worked with this year! Whew! What a great season it turned out to be! I do appreciate your extending your trust in me for your special day! It's something I don't take for granted. As I have throughout my career, I look forward to making each reception and party a grand success! Maybe you and I will work together on a future event! Looking at the overall cost of a Wedding Day, the professional DJ's fee is a small percentage of the total price yet nothing can affect the total outcome of the day like the party portion and the music provided by the DJ. But, it's not just the music. It's the total overall presentation. The professional way introductions are handled, working with the other wedding professionals and being able to cater the day to all attending. Sometimes I hear people say, "Well, all it is is playing mp3s" or "An iPod would be just as good". Nothing could be further from the truth! I can't tell you the calls I've received at the last minute from couples frantically telling me their dad's co-worker's wife wants him to go to her mother's for a family function and he's had to back out of their affair... or their cousin who was going to play the music had a chance at a great vacation with his buddies and he decided to do that instead... or, even worse, their Uncle's sound system was no match for the hall the reception was planned at, his music was HIS favorite stuff from the 60s and 70s and featured very little for ALL the guests. There's more on this site--look around and find some valuable tips to make your party a GREAT one! Oh, and my Game Show parties have begun and are really taking off....get more info here. These can even be held for your wedding rehearsal dinner and I can tailor the questions around the bride and groom. How much does your family know about you and your fiance???? |
A little while back, I received a frantic call from a mom whose DJ wouldn't return her calls -- and it was a week before the affair!! Calls like this make me shudder not only because you can see guests just kind of sitting there when no one shows up but the mortified family who tried to save a few dollars got a LESS than professional no-show DJ. I took over the party at Longfellows in Saratoga Springs and we had a great time but most importantly, it showed her that a PROFESSIONAL DJ can and should be dependable. She later told me his quoted price for the night and it was obvious why he didn't show. Don't shop a DJ on price alone! Is saving a couple hundred dollars worth a bad party that your guests will remember as just that -- a bad party?Your DJ has to be able to competently scan the crowd and determine which music is going to fit. Plus, he or she has to capably deal with several types of persistent attendees to make sure their musical tastes don't overshadow everyone else's.
If you’ve seen one of my brochures, you know I have 12 tips to make your party a slammin’ one! Wanna see them? Click here!
Before you look at some trivia, this thank you made my day--it's what I try to do at every reception!
Before you look at some trivia, this thank you made my day--it's what I try to do at every reception!
THE AVERAGE WEDDING NOW COSTS…
If you're the father of the bride, you might want to look for a second job. The average cost of a wedding is $26,984--and that's if you're lucky. And that doesn't even count the honeymoon. It could be worse: Fully 20 percent of brides spend more than $30,000 on their wedding, while 12 percent spend more than $40,000. That's the word from the fourth annual survey by TheKnot.com and WeddingChannel.com of nearly 19,000 U.S. brides who were married in 2010.
Fun facts to know and tell about the average costs of weddings:
• Most expensive wedding location: New York City at $70,030
• Least expensive wedding location: Utah at $13,214
• Ceremony site: $1,393
• Reception venue: $12,124
• Reception band: $3,081
• Reception DJ: $900
• Photographer: $2,320
• Videographer: $1,463
• Wedding gown: $1,099
• Florist/décor: $1,988
• Invitations: $351
• Wedding cake: $540
• Ceremony musicians: $503
• Catering cost per guest: $61
• Wedding day transportation: $667
• Favors: $222
• Rehearsal dinner: $1,127
• Engagement ring: $5,392
Other fun facts to know and tell:
• Average number of guests: 141
• Average amount spent per guest: $194
• Destination weddings: 24 percent
• Age of the bride: 29
• Age of the groom: 30
• Number of bridesmaids and groomsmen: 4
• Length of the engagement: 14 months
• Most popular engagement month: December
• Most popular wedding month: June
• Most popular wedding color: white/ivory
• Least expensive wedding location: Utah at $13,214
• Ceremony site: $1,393
• Reception venue: $12,124
• Reception band: $3,081
• Reception DJ: $900
• Photographer: $2,320
• Videographer: $1,463
• Wedding gown: $1,099
• Florist/décor: $1,988
• Invitations: $351
• Wedding cake: $540
• Ceremony musicians: $503
• Catering cost per guest: $61
• Wedding day transportation: $667
• Favors: $222
• Rehearsal dinner: $1,127
• Engagement ring: $5,392
Other fun facts to know and tell:
• Average number of guests: 141
• Average amount spent per guest: $194
• Destination weddings: 24 percent
• Age of the bride: 29
• Age of the groom: 30
• Number of bridesmaids and groomsmen: 4
• Length of the engagement: 14 months
• Most popular engagement month: December
• Most popular wedding month: June
• Most popular wedding color: white/ivory
Interesting regional differences:
Age: New York City has the oldest brides (32 years), compared with West Texas, which has the youngest brides (24 years), on average.
Engagements: Northeast brides have the longest engagements (15.5 months), while brides from Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky and Mississippi have the shortest (12 months), on average.
Wedding Size: On average, Nebraska and Iowa brides have the largest number of wedding guests (213 and 200, respectively), and Hawaii and Nevada have the smallest number of wedding guests (82 and 59, respectively).
Wedding Style: Hawaii has the most casual weddings, while New Jersey has the most formal (black-tie) weddings.
Registry: Brides in Ohio, Kansas and Minnesota are the most likely to register for wedding gifts (96 percent).
