Tag Archives: Ron Onesti

QUESTION: How many careers did Dick Clark launch or foster? How many millions of Americans watched the 7,500-plus shows he produced? How many lives did he touch? ANSWER: Immeasurable! I never met the man. I never actually pursued it. And it’s ironic, because all the tributes and testimonials I read were by people I have known for years! Legends like Little Anthony, Neil Sedaka, Danny & The Juniors, Frankie Avalon, Frankie Valli, Tom Dreesen, Mary Wilson, Pat Boone, James Darren, Nancy Sinatra … the list goes on and on. All good friends of ours, and all who attribute their careers …

Where to begin? Probably like everybody else, when I was a young fan of the Monkees. We all were inexplicably drawn to their crazy antics, screaming girls and pre-MTV-style concert footage. The music was infectious and it sure wasn’t the show’s plots that kept me engaged. His natural qualities as a human being transcended into his character. I was fortunate to work with Davy on many occasions. Each time we got together, I was met with a warm embrace and his own impersonation of my Chic-ah-go style “How ya coin’?” He really loved coming back to Chicago, marveling at the …

The Arcada has made some great strides over the past seven years. From hosting big-name entertainment to becoming a venue the community can truly enjoy, the place has made a whole lotta people happy. But I believe what really underscores the theater’s move to the next level are its excursions into the land of television. After bringing together five of the country’s funniest stand-up comics, I co-produced a show called “The Godfathers of Comedy.” It was a seven-camera, high-definition shoot with all the bells and whistles of a big-time television production. We built out the stage and added amazing lighting …

Happy New Year! In putting on these concerts and shows that we do at the Arcada, often there are “moments” that help to make all the effort worth it. One such “moment” happened to me backstage recently at The Temptations concert on Dec. 15. “The Temps” were poised to go on stage, dressed in their perfectly pressed fuchsia suits, when they huddled in a circle with each performer putting one hand in the center. As I was watching this, one of the guys reached for my arm and pulled me into the circle. So here I am, in a sacred …

I would imagine if you would ask the question, “Who is the King of Rock ‘n Roll?” most people would do the quiver-lip thing and respond, “Elvis Presley, thank you very much.” But I guess it depends who you are talking to. Try and ask that question to Rock ‘n Roll pioneers Chuck Berry or Little Richard, and you may get a music lesson you will never forget. I never did. When it comes down to it, no singer has sold more records or is more of a larger-than-life pop culture phenomenon than the boy from Tupelo, Mississippi, who is …

The king of all show-biz impersonators recently performed at our Arcada Theatre and I am here to tell you, he is the real deal. His pre-Broadway premiere of “Jimmy Stewart & Friends” was a unique presentation and a rare opportunity to see a television icon do what he does best. The one-man play featured Rich Little as famed actor Jimmy Stewart telling his life story in character, with other Hollywood legends “stopping by.” He arrived the night before the show, just in time for dinner. He is in great shape and looks years younger than the spry seventy-eight years of …

I would like to think that after 25 plus years in entertainment, I am pretty well versed on the “who’s who” of the biz. I would also like to think that I am hip enough to know who is hot today. After all, I could tell the difference between a Katy Perry song and a Rhianna song on the radio (at least after being educated by my 8-year-old daughter I could). So when Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter and fellow Chicagoan Richard Marx told me he was adding a special guest to his lineup of friends performing with him at our …

I can’t tell you how many people come up to me and say, “What a cool job you have!” They see me on stage, hanging with celebs, and are filled with warm-hearted envy. What they don’t see is the other 97 per cent of the time when I have to create the shows, produce them, sell the tickets and pay the bills. But there are those experiences that make it all worthwhile. Sixties heartthrob, Beach Party movie legend and “Grease” Teen Angel crooner Frankie Avalon played at the Arcada theatre a couple of days before my May 8 birthday. We …

It was the summer of 2002 and we were rockin’ at Hawthorne Race Course in Cicero. We produced a concert series there every summer for years with some of the biggest names in country, rock and R&B. Of the 30-plus shows we did, one stands out as a career moment. It was with “The hardest working man in show business,” James Brown. We built a stage right in the center of the racetrack. It was an awesome concept that added excitement to the already cool experience of “The sport of kings,” horse racing. We had to do sound checks in …

It was like an ’80s MTV video! Platinum blondes, fishnets, leather miniskirts É and that was just the guys! Bret Michaels, front man from rock super-group Poison and a “Celebrity Apprentice” winner, pulled into St. Charles with a splash. His tour bus sported an enormous picture of his familiar face, causing countless double takes and bringing traffic to a stop, and his crazed fans filled the street to the point where we had to close it off. The “Shop All Day, Rock All Nite” Black Friday concert at the Arcada Theatre was really something to experience. When a guy like …