Posted by John on Jan 26, 2009 in
Business My “family” of clients from Jones Lang LaSalle, the leading international real estate services provider, recently grew with the first addition of 2009, Beth Raeder, who works in Dallas. Welcome, Beth! I’d like to also send out a shout to Paty Perman of JLL in Los Angeles, who became a new client last month before I launched this blog. I’m grateful to be working with both of you, I only wish it was in your sunny Sunbelt offices instead of from Cheeseland, where the temperature currently hovers at 3 degrees!
Posted by John on Jan 12, 2009 in
Calendar,
Music What’s the perfect antidote to a wicked Wisconsin winter? How about playing bluegrass in the Florida Keys with some of my best musical buddies? I’m joining Piper Road Spring Band for part of their annual Keys tour on February 5-7. If you can’t join the merrymaking in person (awww…), at least one of the evenings will be live on webcam. Check out my calendar for more on the gigs, and my music page to learn about this eclectic band, which plows musical turf from Bill Monroe to the Grateful Dead.
Posted by John on Jan 7, 2009 in
Me Howdy, and welcome to my new web site. A new design permits me to edit more easily and post these chatty little blogs. For a techie, I make a really good writer/musician/dog sitter, but I’ll try my level best. Take a look around and let me@johnduggleby.com know what you think.
Posted by admin on Jan 1, 2009 in
Business detail page
Posted by admin on Jan 1, 2009 in
Music,
Programs Several instruments.
A ton of songs.
Too much fun
I am John Duggleby, a performer for all seasons and any audience. My programs include:
Sentimental Journey: Take a “Sentimental Journey” through the music and memories of the World War II era. From “Chattanooga Choo-Choo” to “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,” you’ll enjoy favorites from the Hit Parade made famous by legends such as Glenn Miller, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and the Andrews Sisters. Seniors have free reign to sing along as they relive their youth, and I jog their recollections with stories and radio broadcasts from the era. The show is great any time of year, or it can be tied to appropriate dates such as Pearl Harbor Day in December, V-J Day in September, V-E Day in May or D-Day in June.
America’s Greatest Hits: As Yankee Doodle Duggleby, I lead a tuneful tour of the red, white and blues of our nation’s unique musical heritage. Covered along the way are over two centuries of All-American classics, ranging from Stephen Foster and George M. Cohan to Bruce Springsteen and Chuck Berry. Singing along is not only permitted, but encouraged! The show is perfect for not only the Independence Day period, but President’s Day in February, Memorial Day in May, Flag Day and Armed Forces Day in June, Labor Day in September and Veteran’s Day in November.
Holiday Sing-Along: An end-of-year celebration featuring many songs people know and can sing, plus a few surprises. I can make lyric sheets available for reproduction for participants. And since many of our most familiar holiday standards were popularized in the past 70 years, I challenge audiences to guess who first recorded them. The holidays hold deep meaning for many people, and my show is designed to evoke fond memories.
Smilin’ St. Paddy’s Party: Everyone’s Irish around March 17 including yours truly, who performs as Paddy O’Chair in a Celtic revue peppered with both familiar and lesser-known ballads and toe-tappers, as well as a golden pot of Irish jokes. And you don’t have to limit the fun to March, consider innovative programs celebrating other Celtic holidays such as Robert Burns’ birthday on January 25, St. Andrews Day in November, or be the only venue offering Celtic music at Christmas by honoring St. Stephen on December 26.
Circle of Life: Perfect party music for virtually any occasion, covering the entire life cycle, from “Baby Face” to “Old Friends.” We salute famous people as well as audience members whose birthday falls on the performance date, and I throw in some gentle humor about aging, including my song about reversing the process. Just because we grow older doesn’t mean we have to grow up!
Programs can range from 45-75 minutes and beyond, depending on your needs. Depending on the show, I’m accompanied by electric and acoustic guitars, mandolin and drum. I charge $100 for any of the programs, plus a mileage fee for round trips of more than 50 miles from my McFarland, Wisconsin home. For more information, including set lists and references, contact me@johnduggleby.com or phone 608-838-7834.
party time!
Posted by admin on Jan 1, 2009 in
Programs The paintings of Jacob Lawrence tell stories to us all. Stories of enslavement and freedom, of human migration and aspiration, of struggle and of triumph. I bring the vivid paintings of this great artist to life in a fast-paced show based on my family book Story Painter: The Life of Jacob Lawrence. I punctuate my messages on a conga drum, symbolic of the African-American experience portrayed in much of Lawrence’s work.
With sing-alongs, visual surprises and samples of Lawrence’s paintings, I launch a tuneful tour de force of a creative life that begins with a childhood shaped by the great African-American migration North and the Harlem Renaissance. Audiences learn how Lawrence helped initially popularize now-legendary black heroes such as Harriet Tubman and Frederick Douglass, as well as document people and events of his own lifetime.
I stress lessons from Lawrence’s success such as:
– Look closely at the world around you.
– Be true to yourself.
– Triumph rarely comes without a struggle.
– We are more similar than different, and we work better together than apart.
Each performance is customized as much as possible for specific audiences.
Story Painter, my sixth of eight children’s books, was honored by the National Council for Social Studies as best elementary school book of the year. It follows my award-winning Artist in Overalls: The Life of Grant Wood (Chronicle 1996). I also perform shows based on my books on John Lennon, Ray Charles and Grant Wood.
To bring this creative, mutli-cultural and truly American program to your organization, contact:
John Duggleby, 5322 Norma Road, McFarland, WI 53558,
(608) 838-7834, me@johnduggleby.com
Posted by admin on Jan 1, 2009 in
Programs
American Gothic is one of the most recognized paintings to people of all ages, yet how many know much about the artist behind this famous couple? My program, based on my book, Artist in Overalls: The Life of Grant Wood, reveals Wood’s story to young audiences in a fun, interactive way. Dressed like the famous farmer in the painting, I show how Wood’s Iowa childhood observations and resolve to follow his instincts instead of the crowd resulted in fame that endures through his American cultural icon on canvas.
I emphasize messages from Wood’s very special life such as:
— Take in everything going on around you; it might come in handy someday.
— Don’t ever give up on your dreams.
— Create from what you know best, in a way you feel best.
— Give something back to the world.
— Whatever you do, have fun!
The finale of each show is a group exercise in chicken drawing, Grant Wood-style. It features my co-star and model, Henrietta, a live Plymouth Rock chicken. Between the author and the egg-layer, audiences are guaranteed a performance that is lively and informative without being that “b” word: boring. Each show is customized for the audience age range, and may include singing and “chicken dancing.”
Artist in Overalls, the fifth of my eight children’s books, has received several distinctions including the National Assn. of Christian Schools’ Children’s Crown Award and the Parents Council Seal of Approval. I also perform shows based on my books on Ray Charles, Jacob Lawrence, and John Lennon.
To bring the world’s most famous couple and Iowa’s favorite son to life at your school, contact:
John Duggleby, 5322 Norma Road, McFarland, WI 53558,
608-838-7834, me@johnduggleby.com
“Nice mix of information, movement, music and drawing. Your sense of humor adds to the show.” — Becky DeWald, Pierce Elementary, Cedar Rapids, IA
“I had a better time at school than I ever had. You are a great author, Mr. Duggleby, and Henrietta is a great chicken!” — Catelin Bixby, 3rd grade
Posted by admin on Jan 1, 2009 in
Programs There was nobody, but nobody, like “Brother Ray” Charles. We can’t replace the “Genius” the world lost in 2004, but you can celebrate his remarkable music and spirit in my program based on my book for young people, Uh Huh! The Story of Ray Charles. The show demonstrates hands-on how he overcame poverty and blindness with enormous talent and determination to become one of the world’s most beloved entertainers for fifty years.
It’s near-impossible to sit still during Ray’s music, and audiences won’t have to as they’ll help me, my keyboard and electric guitar through renditions of songs such as “Route 66,” “Wha’d I Say?,” “Busted,” “Georgia On My Mind,” and “America the Beautiful.” A few lucky listeners will get to join me for a some numbers in retro wigs as my “Raelets.” The show can be customized for audience and age-appropriateness.
Uh Huh!, my seventh of eight children’s books, was published in 2005. I also perform shows based on my books on John Lennon, Grant Wood and Jacob Lawrence. To bring this creative, mutli-cultural and truly American program to your organization, contact:
John Duggleby, 5322 Norma Road, McFarland, WI 53558,
(608) 838-7834, me@johnduggleby.com
Posted by admin on Jan 1, 2009 in
Programs John Lennon’s impact reaches beyond the Beatles, and transcends music itself. My program is based on my book for young people, Imagine: John Lennon’s Musical Odyssey. It follows the musical legend through his largely parentless childhood; his scuffling, skiffle band days, the unleashing of Beatlemania; subsequent personal and musical transitions; and his call for world peace right up to the day in 1980 he was tragically assassinated.
This is not a sit-and-watch show, I engage the audience in helping me and my electric guitar through portions of songs such as, “She Loves You,” “Help!” “Revolution,” “Imagine,” “Give Peace a Chance” and “Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavor on the Bedpost Overnight?” Some lucky audience members will get to join my rendition of John’s original skiffle band The Quarrymen, while others will don wigs to perform as the Beatlemaniacs. The show can be customized for audience and age-appropriateness.
Imagine is my eighth children’s book. I also perform shows based on my books on Ray Charles, Grant Wood and Jacob Lawrence. To bring the high-spirited “Mr. Lennon’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” to your organization, contact:
John Duggleby, 5322 Norma Road, McFarland, WI 53558,
(608) 838-7834, me@johnduggleby.com
Posted by admin on Jan 1, 2009 in
Books Hollywood pairs may come and go, but the austere farmers in American Gothic are the most durable couple since Adam and Eve. Everybody recognizes the faces in the most parodied painting in the world, but what about the artist who created this icon? Artist in Overalls tells the story of how a shy Iowa farm boy followed his dream and became a celebrated artist. Grant Wood’s success teaches us all lessons about observation, determination, originality and honesty. Plus, Artist in Overalls also teaches you how to draw a chicken through a method so easy, even I can do it! After reading this, you may even be inspired to get up and chicken dance.
Here’s what some reviewers have to say:
Publisher’s Weekly: A Midwestern plainspokenness shapes this account of the native sons life and work, told here as a sort of farm-bred fairy tale of early hardship and eventual triumph. Wood’s monetarily poor but visually rich childhood and determined pursuit of his own artistic vision are described in an unsentimental but lively manner. Duggleby’s homage to his fellow Iowan is a quietly inspiring portrait of the hard work, perseverance and down-home quirkiness of a major artist.”
School Library Journal: “The author writes with great skill, telling Wood’s story not simply with dates and places, but with anecdotes, descriptions, and snatches of conversation. He brings the artist to life–his shyness and stubbornness, dreams and disappointments, his way of winning friends and his determination to paint in his own way. He makes Wood out to be a person worth knowing about.”
Kirkus Reviews (pointer): Duggleby includes many anecdotes from Wood’s childhood, to help readers understand the boy’s struggle to become an artist… an eloquent volume.
Boston Book Review: “It is beautifully illustrated with Woods’ works and is a wonderful introduction to the preteen artistically inclined child.”
The Horn Book Magazine: “A handsome, easy-to-read biography that places Wood’s life against the background of the aftermath of the Industrial Revolution and its influences on American culture… Duggleby captures this sense of Wood’s (Midwestern) roots, which the book’s lavish use of color reproductions and decorative sketches ably supports.”
Bulletin of the Center For Children’s Books: “Here’s a Wood biography that brings into focus more than just the famous farm couple… a clear picture of the awkward man whose passion for his art, his country, and his people translated into the art movement of Regionalism.”
The 58-page book contains over two dozen art reproductions and photographs, most of them in full color. Order the book here and receive something you can’t get anywhere else: a signed copy! I’ll be happy to personalize it with any message up to fifteen words, or my generic, “Happy reading, John Duggleby.” For a copy of the book, send a check for $15.95 for hardcover or $7.95 paperback plus $3.00 shipping to me at 5322 Norma, McFarland, WI. If you order additional copies of this or any of my other books, shipping is only $1.00 per book.