The 2010 class of the Texas Business Hall of Fame is notable for its variety, its members hailing from fields ranging from oil & gas, computers, commercial real estate, and beer distribution. That makes for a wonderful creative challenge as our Stonefilms production team puts together the video profiles of the inductees for this fall's TBHOF gala dinner.
We've been working with the TBHOF for nearly 20 years, traveling across the state and the country as we conduct the interviews with some of the biggest names in Texas business: President George H.W. Bush, Ross Perot, Boone Pickens, Lamar Hunt, Bob McNair, Michael Dell, to name a few. This year's class includes:
Carlos Alvarez, the man behind beer brands like Corona at the Gambrinus Company;
Robert D. Duncan, of Transwestern, one of the largest privately held commercial real estate and development firms in the country;
W.A. "Tex" Moncrief & W.A. "Monty" Moncrief (posthumously), father & son, two of the greatest oil wildcatters;
Harvey E. Najim, chairman of Sirius Computer Solutions, and one of San Antonio's greatest philanthropists.
Each video profile is about 5 minutes long, and we will interview the inductee as well as 3 other individuals (that he selects) who can provide us some additional perspective about career accomplishments, business philosophy, and character insight. We've been working with the inductees' respective staff members since the beginning of summer to collect research material and schedule interviews.
The TBHOF gala is planned and presented by International Meeting Managers, and IMM's president, Lynne Tiras, is as always a delight to work with. This year's Texas Business Hall of Fame gala will take place Monday, November 8, 2010, at the Grand Hyatt San Antonio.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
KPRC Comes To Battleship's Defense
Our recent video about the fragile state of the Battleship Texas and the need for a permanent dry dock at its San Jacinto location is making the kind of impact that the Battleship Texas Foundation was hoping for. Among the many people viewing that video on You Tube was Rusty Knight, a director at KPRC-TV here in Houston and a longtime friend. Rusty was so moved by the message that he went to the station's general manager, Larry Blackerby, and suggested that Larry devote one of his daily editorials to the subject. We're happy to report that Larry agreed. The resulting editorial is a strong reminder to all of us to come to the aid of one of the Houston area's---wait, forget that, one of America's---true treasures.
You can view the editorial at www.click2houston.com/video/23817917/
You can view the editorial at www.click2houston.com/video/23817917/
Monday, April 26, 2010
The Kids Are Alright
We love kids. We love them so much that between us Stonefilms producers we have 7 of them, including a precocious set of twins, a couple of beautiful college co-eds, a Little League slugger, a high school journalist, and a middle school singer. So no wonder we were excited when our friends at Pierpont Communications asked us to set up shop for a weekend at the annual Houston Children's Festival.
For Pierpont's clients Toyota and Autotrader.com, Stonefilms set up a dynamic booth that included no less than 6 50-inch plasma screens, all designed to showcase live interviews with children about their favorite car trip memories. Mom and Dad got to see their kids on all those screens in full HD glory, and Toyota and Autotrader.com got a big audience to see the new Sienna Minivans.
The response was so great, in fact, that over the course of the weekend our crews shot almost 300 interviews in those 2 days. The work was virtually non-stop; lunch meant inhaling a sandwich in between tape changes. Shot in HD, the near-300 interviews were then edited onto individual DVDs for the families of the interviewed children.
And what's it like to interview hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of kids? The following video puts it all in (fast) perspective.....
Thursday, March 11, 2010
TOO BIG TO FAIL
I just finished reading Andrew Ross Sorkin's "Too Big To Fail", and was fascinated with his look at the financial collapse of 2008. It was fun to read about so many people that our Stonefilms crews have interviewed for various projects. I remember interviewing Paul Volcker, former Fed Chairman at his office in Rockefeller Center, and then the same day heading over to Bear Stearns to interview the legendary Ace Greenberg. That was my first look at a major Wall Street trading operation, and it is stunning to think that one year later, Bear Stearns would be on the brink of collapse.
Both Volcker and Greenberg were great on camera, and wonderful hosts. I ended up spending several hours with Greenberg at Bear Stearns - hard to believe that it does not exist anymore.
Our team here has been blessed to travel the world and meet amazing people. On that specific trip to New York, I was doing interviews with financial figures, and my dad was across town interviewing lawyers that were involved in Watergate. Pretty great day of shooting.
Below is the video piece that we produced on legendary Texas businessman Boone Pickens. Look for Ace Greenberg...
-Billy
Both Volcker and Greenberg were great on camera, and wonderful hosts. I ended up spending several hours with Greenberg at Bear Stearns - hard to believe that it does not exist anymore.
Our team here has been blessed to travel the world and meet amazing people. On that specific trip to New York, I was doing interviews with financial figures, and my dad was across town interviewing lawyers that were involved in Watergate. Pretty great day of shooting.
Below is the video piece that we produced on legendary Texas businessman Boone Pickens. Look for Ace Greenberg...
-Billy
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Stonefilms Intern Reflects on Chilean Visit
In the past few days we have all seen heartbreaking images from Chile. The death toll from the massive 8.8 earthquake has soared past 800. For some of us that information and those pictures may seem blurry, indistinct----a faraway chaos that is unreal.
But Stonefilms Production Intern William Payne has a different image of Chile. This past July he was able to realize a long-held dream. After saving several years of summer job money, William's scheme of snowboarding in the Andes Mountains of South America became a reality. William and several friends, equally passionate about snowboarding and skiing, traveled to Portillo, Chile, about an hour northeast of Santiago.
William writes, "The natural beauty of Portillo is stunning and the Andes Mountains were more majestic than I could have imagined. The Chilean people were incredibly friendly and interesting. Chile is a beautiful country and my prayers are with all the people of Chile as they recover from this massive earth quake. I am especially thinking about my Portillo friends and that special place."
Our thanks to William for sharing his thoughts and bringing Chile and its people into a clearer focus for us all.
But Stonefilms Production Intern William Payne has a different image of Chile. This past July he was able to realize a long-held dream. After saving several years of summer job money, William's scheme of snowboarding in the Andes Mountains of South America became a reality. William and several friends, equally passionate about snowboarding and skiing, traveled to Portillo, Chile, about an hour northeast of Santiago.
William writes, "The natural beauty of Portillo is stunning and the Andes Mountains were more majestic than I could have imagined. The Chilean people were incredibly friendly and interesting. Chile is a beautiful country and my prayers are with all the people of Chile as they recover from this massive earth quake. I am especially thinking about my Portillo friends and that special place."
Our thanks to William for sharing his thoughts and bringing Chile and its people into a clearer focus for us all.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Saints and Stonefilms
One of the best sports stories in many, many years has to be the crowning of the New Orleans Saints as Super Bowl champs. For so long, the Saints were the little sisters of the poor of the NFL, and then the devastation of Hurricane Katrina threatened to cripple the city and the team for good. All of which made the Super Bowl victory a sweet moment for the many millions who make up Who Dat Nation.
And it reminded the Stonefilms staff of our 2007 interview with Saints owner Tom Benson. Benson was one of that year's inductees into the Texas Business Hall of Fame, and we discovered that, like so many other members of that elite group, he started his business career with absolutely nothing. Tom Benson was just another World War II veteran in the late 40s, trying to make a go in the business world; within 2 decades he was one of the most successful car dealers in Texas. Benson was approached by Louisiana's governor in 1985 to join a group of investors who were trying to keep the Saints in New Orleans. But as Benson soon discovered that the other investors weren't materializing---as he told Dad in the interview, "Hell, I was the group!"
He bought the Saints, and within two years the franchise was in the playoffs for the first time in team history. At the time of our interview, the Saints had made it all the way to the NFC championship game in 2006 and were just about to enter a new season. It was an extraordinarily busy time for Benson, and to make matters worse, he was battling a very heavy cold. But on that morning he was very gracious, and in the course of the two hours or so we spent with him it was obvious that he loved being a businessman. He talked about the simple joy of going to the dealership on a Saturday morning and meeting customers to show them the latest Chevy. And, of course, he was passionate about his Saints.
Once again, our work for the Texas Business Hall of Fame had given us amazing access to a truly remarkable figure. And two years later it has given us added insight into the great achievement of the New Orleans Saints----the beloved team that we can at last call World Champions.
And it reminded the Stonefilms staff of our 2007 interview with Saints owner Tom Benson. Benson was one of that year's inductees into the Texas Business Hall of Fame, and we discovered that, like so many other members of that elite group, he started his business career with absolutely nothing. Tom Benson was just another World War II veteran in the late 40s, trying to make a go in the business world; within 2 decades he was one of the most successful car dealers in Texas. Benson was approached by Louisiana's governor in 1985 to join a group of investors who were trying to keep the Saints in New Orleans. But as Benson soon discovered that the other investors weren't materializing---as he told Dad in the interview, "Hell, I was the group!"
He bought the Saints, and within two years the franchise was in the playoffs for the first time in team history. At the time of our interview, the Saints had made it all the way to the NFC championship game in 2006 and were just about to enter a new season. It was an extraordinarily busy time for Benson, and to make matters worse, he was battling a very heavy cold. But on that morning he was very gracious, and in the course of the two hours or so we spent with him it was obvious that he loved being a businessman. He talked about the simple joy of going to the dealership on a Saturday morning and meeting customers to show them the latest Chevy. And, of course, he was passionate about his Saints.
Once again, our work for the Texas Business Hall of Fame had given us amazing access to a truly remarkable figure. And two years later it has given us added insight into the great achievement of the New Orleans Saints----the beloved team that we can at last call World Champions.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Century of Success
Galveston was still reeling in 1910, an island city trying to rebuild after the devastating storm of 1900. It took people like Omero Del Papa, Sr. to bring Galveston back to life. A young Italian immigrant, Omero believed in his adopted city and was certain that better days were ahead. So he went into business with his brother-in-law, Frank Celli, starting a company called Celli & Del Papa, a distributorship that handled everything from beer and wine to olive oil and ice cream. 100 years later we are celebrating the vision of Omero Del Papa and the company that today is known as Del Papa Distributing, one of the premiere Budweiser distributorships in the country.
The folks at Del Papa wanted to find out as much as they could about the beginnings of the company. So much of the story seemed to be lost to history. Susan Elmore of Elmore Public Relations was working with the company to plan their anniversary celebration, and she happily suggested that the Stonefilms staff might be a resource for research. And that led to a year-long search into the past: digging in libraries and archives across the Gulf Coast, interviewing employees in Beaumont, Galveston, and Victoria, and scanning pages of old newspaper copy. A wonderful story emerged. Omero Del Papa, Sr. was a shrewd businessman who at the same time loved listening to opera. He worked long, punishing hours but he was devoted to his family, and his sons all followed him into the business. "It is better to have a good name than money," he often said, and his lessons in work ethic and integrity have lived long after his death in 1959.
Stonefilms crews will be on hand to document Del Papa Distributing's 100th year, and we'll keep you updated as we continue to explore the past, the present, and the future of a great American success story.
The folks at Del Papa wanted to find out as much as they could about the beginnings of the company. So much of the story seemed to be lost to history. Susan Elmore of Elmore Public Relations was working with the company to plan their anniversary celebration, and she happily suggested that the Stonefilms staff might be a resource for research. And that led to a year-long search into the past: digging in libraries and archives across the Gulf Coast, interviewing employees in Beaumont, Galveston, and Victoria, and scanning pages of old newspaper copy. A wonderful story emerged. Omero Del Papa, Sr. was a shrewd businessman who at the same time loved listening to opera. He worked long, punishing hours but he was devoted to his family, and his sons all followed him into the business. "It is better to have a good name than money," he often said, and his lessons in work ethic and integrity have lived long after his death in 1959.
Stonefilms crews will be on hand to document Del Papa Distributing's 100th year, and we'll keep you updated as we continue to explore the past, the present, and the future of a great American success story.
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