I am Derick Snow
I am Derick
Originally uploaded by snoweyes.
This is a story of the past. the story of Derick Snow.
I entered into the elevator, just like any other day. I was ready to get to some editing on a project I'd been working on this week. The elevator doors closed. It was silent.
"Oh, hi there, Derick!"
I look to my right and there's a nice coworker TPS is best known for. I ask how she's doing.
"I'm doing well. Hey, I was talking to Paula Wood and she told me you could do a great impression of Dr. Sawyer! Could you do it for me?"
"Uh-oh," my subconscious mind chimed in. I was trapped, and my past had caught up with me. I stood for a moment, eyes twirling about the room. This all happened in a split second, but my life flashed before my eyes.
I grew up in a somewhat unique environment. My family moved from Missouri to Selawik, Alaska when I was a youngster. The place was really just an airport in the middle of a snowstorm.
Feeling a bit of lonely, I entertained myself in many different ways. I recall spending hours looking into the mirror trying to make my face do silly things. One day I managed to raise my eyebrow. This habit moved like a snowball and soon I could make my wiggly little eyebrows do anything.
We later moved to another sparse location, this time in the most northern town in the United States the map calls Barrow, Alaska. Cold. COLD! How cold was it? So cold we kept our ice outside. So cold we didn't have running water from house to house. Yep, no septic system either. I won't mention anything about the Frozen Poopsicles. One positive thing was I did learn the native language, Inuit, and didn't freeze to death.
Flash forward to my family moving to Tulsa. I went to High School (Webster) and put all of my strength into the acting arena, wiggly eyebrows being my specialty. In this time I learned how to create some unique character voices and accents. I took this gift all the way to State Championships to get Webster some nice trophies and a fair few for myself. I had a lot of fun being silly.
After other schooling at a few colleges in and out of state, I found myself at TPS once again. I had done work interning in the television department at TPS in High School and once I came back they were looking for a part-timer. I took the work and became a production assistant for the district, later upgrading my position to photojournalist, which looks nice on a business card.
During the last few years I had been quite busy with outside artistic projects and traveling:
I went to Los Angeles and had my hand at acting, booking myself onto such shows as Desperate Housewives, Seventh Heaven, Grounded For Life, Scrubs, a movie or two, and all kinds of other junk I'd never bother to watch, but I had fun doing it. I even managed to get myself as a feature character on a television pilot for MTV (Critic's Corner), which of course never aired. It was a mish-mash of ideas from Saturday-Night Live, reality TV, and movie review shows. I learned so much about myself working in entertainment. I learned how to communicate with Hollywood big-wigs (call them five times a day or more or they will forget). I learned the fine art of character impersonations. I learned how to drive in a place with ten million people. And most importantly I learned that I really didn't like LA.
I took that lesson and learned that I could have fun acting and even making money at it wherever I was. I acted in many local commercials. You may remember me from those silly Bank of Oklahoma / Six Flags commercials, you can probably remember it; the thumping techno music; the creepy old guy dancing somewhere in there. The newest spot I was in will be on around Valentine's Day. I played Cupid, who's been arrested for assaulting people with a weapon (the heart arrows) and indecent exposure! It's family friendly but humorous. Lastly I currently play several characters in The Drunkard, the longest continuously running theatrical production in the United States!
In the visual arts, I've been gifted with some ability and turned that into one book I've illustrated called Big Green Eyes. I was happy to be paid and the checks didn't bounce. I also regularly paint live for audiences with musicians and poets here in town. I also do commissions for those who like art and artistic things.
Musically, I have worked with a band, Autumn Shade. With the group we've traveled around the U.S., playing shows when I had the time. I painted live works behind the band. Most recently I helped to record and master their second CD, Ezra Moon. The album will be released in February under the Strange Attractors label in Oregon.
"Derick? Please? Paula says you do a perfect impression!"
The past an present thoughts confused my brain and I snapped back into reality. I was there, back in the elevator. Back in the thick of things. She wanted that impression. I did the impression for her, only after I asked if she liked him or not. I only mock the ones I love.
You can see Derick Snow in the Drunkard by calling 587-5030 and making reservations.
Derick recommends the following websites:
www.snoweyes.com (his site with paintings, photography and more)
www.autumn-shade.com (the band)
I wrote this for a newsletter for my work, if you must know.
P.S.
I am nearly finished with the NEW IMPROVED Autumn Shade website. Come check out the skeleton of the site and tell me what you think here!
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