University of Kansas - Jayhawker Yearbook (Lawrence, KS)

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Pt rr ni HUGH m I unc W :ur tits wrt: llllu' llb I 5. , I Y: , I I ml .l HUM l Qi! Lnfe-lang dream becomes reality for one pnppeteer: Student gets chance t0 learn from Sesame Street crew Althcjugh most kids Change their minds about the Sesame Street workshop last month in New York their future careers, Lott never wavered from his original Cny oy Maftin Robinson, Wno Play s Snnfneupagus notion of Someday becoming a puppeteer himself on Sesame Street. Lott met Robinson two years ago The Lawrence freshmen Said he get Serious at a convention in Connecticut where he played a about the idea in junior high, but friends and family Character in one Of Robinsons Plays- said that he was resolute from the start. Blake Af tne Workshop, Lon send he and tne Ofhef Thames, Lawrence freshman, has known Lott since onppeteers exannneo tne seams, eonsnnenon and sixth-grade. He said Lott had been making puppets movement Ofthe tfancyt' Puppets OH Sesame and putting ep Shows ever Since hers known him' He Street, trying to find ways to replicate the construction. looks at things and sees how he can turn them into He Was one of 5o people who attended' puppetsf' Thames said, citing broken umbrellas and Lon send he enjoyed perfomnng tne most' fumiture pieces as examples. He started his own company, Squiggle Puppet Lows mem Said he used to pepfepp for her with Productions, as a high school freshman and does Stuffed animals at the feet of her bed. -tHe would shows for churches, libraries and schools. He also pop up and do lime Shows aa She Said. made the two main characters and many of the Lett remembers Cutting up his Stuffed animals backup characters for a television show called and using Sponges Seeks and paper to make l'Lenny and Shirl, which a station in Los Angeles puppets as a Child' Lett has built elese to 70 puppets is trying to cast voices for. Lott pays for his supplies using a Variety of materials, including poly-foam, using the money he makes from his puppets and shows. Styrofoam, felt, fur, pool noodles, toddler's clothing, Duong tne snows, he Sits OH 3 Toning stool bath towels and a lot of hot glue.Lott said when he and moves back and fonn oenind a box stage he would complete a puppet he would immediately find eonsneneteo using PVC PiPeS' perfornnng every Ways to make it better evep after he had Spent up to character himself. Lott said he used basic structure several hundred hours and several hundred dollars points and jokes to Control the Plot, out the fest was Creating it. 1lT1pI'OV1Sf:lt1OIl. Most of his puppets are hand puppets, but Lett Much of what he makes the puppets do or say has also experimented with rod puppets, Shadow is dictated by what he can pick up and how he can puppets and marienettesi They new HH Storage move around at that point in the show. He controls containers and line shelves along the walls in a rented all tne puppets and does tnen Voices, but send n was room at the Ecumenical Christian Ministries building. difficult having 3 onennan snow' Hoomenmes I get Lott Said each of the puppets had its Own confused, he said. S'I'll do a troll voice for a little personality, like Jazz Monkey, who wears a sapphire gin and nave to talk my Way tnrongn nf Sequined gown and has plump pink lips. She up After a show, he invites his audience behind the Syncs to the Seng fcYeS We Have NO Bapapasaa in stage to see how he operates. By doing this. Lott said one of Lott's shows. Lott has attended national and he hoped to Create more interest from PCOPIR in tne regional conventions in Oklahoma, Connecticut, dying an fonn of Pnppeteenng' Minnesota and Missouri. He was invited to attend ,z September 2006 The J ayhawker '06 - '07 Yearbook Page 009

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Gryjin on cz Mission Kathy Griffin says she is on a mission to learn the identities of Suri Cruise's real parents, to explain her theory that Oprah Winfrey and Gayle King are slowly taking over the world, and to expound upon her obsession with Clay Aiken, during her show at the Lied Center on October 3rd.. I swear a lot, said Griffin, star of My Lyfe on the D-List and Chicago native. I want to make sure people don't bring any impressionable kids or any snotty freshmen. Griffin has gathered great enthusiasm among her many fans on and around campus. Kim Nicholson, Leavenworth senior, saw the Emmy-norninated comedian this summer. She said Griffin was one of the funniest comedians right now. She tells it how it is and doesn't sugarcoat it for anyone, Nicholson said. UDK l0!3 Stephanie Patyk, Student Union Activities special events coordinator, said SUA had originally tried to schedule comedian Darrell Hammond but she said he was unavailable. The organization contacted Griffin in August. f'We had seen her perform on her TV show My Lyfe on the D-List on Bravo over the summer and felt that her style of comedy just fit with what we were looking to bring to campus, Patyk said. Patyk said students loved Griffin for her ability to make fun of herself as well as others. Eric Steiner, Marion junior, said he didn't know who Griffin replaced, but said he was happy to see they couldnit make it. Miss Kathy is exactly what this state needs: a breath of fresh air. Steiner said. SUA expects a crowd of about 1,400 people. Tickets are on sale at the SUA Box Office on the fourth fioor in the Kansas Union. Griffin said despite the popularity of her show, she still thought she was on the MD-list and would remain so for quite awhile. I don't think it's ever going to end as long as I walk down the street and people shout to me, 'Hey, Kathie Lee Gifford! ' she said. Griffin said she was happy to be coming to campus because she loved college students. She said she preferred venues like the Lied Center that were designed for professional performers such as her. MI don't really like being in an arena where it's lots of folding chairs, Griffin said. I like to be able to suck my audience in. I like to suck 'em in, chew 'em up and then spit fem out.