What’s in a Name? Promotional Glitch or Marketing Genius?

Artwork from the sketch book of a St. Thomas artisan who witnessed the whole debacle

This past weekend Ron James, touted as "The Funniest Man in Canada", was forced to flex his improv muscles for an unexpected crowd in St. Thomas, Ontario. This event attracted several hundred spectators, mostly from St. Thomas and the surrounding areas, there was however a small enclave of less wholesome attendees. It seems that the event information found its way into the chatroom for fans of Ron Jeremy. How the event promotion became skewed is still unknown to the event promoters.

As audience members arrived at the launch of the Big Top it appeared that the night would go off without a hitch - that was until the leather-bound, bodice-clad ticket holders started to arrive. It didn’t take long for the misinformed group to understand that their anticipation was misplaced. Upon this realization the group took on cat calls, in an attempt to intimidate the upcoming comedian and make their displeasure known.

No one needs to mention that Mr. James is the visual opposite of the short, mustachioed, heavyset Mr. Jeremy, but their repertoire also resides on opposite sides of the spectrum. Using the confusion of the crowd to his advantage the humorist leapt onto the stage, opened with some tongue in cheek remarks, added a quick hip thrust, and continued into his planned routine. Long-time fans were confused, but appeased with the return to the familiar, and the Hedgehog fans were eased into an enjoyable night.

Deni Gauthier, a local musician closing for the Canadian comedian, even had a warm reception from the group upon his entrance onto the stage. 

Despite the initial shock, the comedian was pleased to connect with an untapped market and glean new fans, adding the observation that, “In the end we are all entertainers; we speak a common language.”

The Economic Development committee for St. Thomas was equally pleased with the outcome of the mix-up. “As we see it, everyone won. The unexpected visitors had a night of laughter, Ron James got new fans, and there was an increase in tourism dollars for St. Thomas,” chuckles the city’s chief economic officer.

In the aftermath of the event St. Thomas is ready to award Mr. James with a gold standard in Canadian comedy, while sending an empathetic wink to Mr. Jeremy.

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