Family Entertainment Group Leases Smoky Mountain Theater

Pigeon Forge, Tenn., June 3, 2010, — The Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group is about to add another venue to their entertainment destinations. David Fee and Jim Hedrick, co-owners of the company have taken over the lease left by the Temptations at The Smoky Mountain Theater at 2115 Parkway in Pigeon Forge. The theater will maintain the name of The Smoky Mountain Theater and will give the Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group a total of five theaters in the local area.

David Fee, president of the Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group said that he and his team will be looking into lots of different show options over the next few days with the goal of bringing something totally new to the area. Fee hopes to be ready to open around July 1. The theater will have two shows at 5:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. everyday through New Year?s.

Details of the new show will be released soon. The former popular Smoky Mountain Jubilee Theater seats about 800 people and will employ about 40 people.

The Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group is the largest privately owned entertainment company in the Southeastern United States. Other shows in the Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group include The Comedy Barn, The Black Bear Jamboree Dinner and Show, The Miracle, Magic Beyond Belief, The Blackwood Breakfast Variety Show and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. “Each show has its own demographics,” said Fee, president of the Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group. “We appeal to many diversified audiences. We have people who love to laugh and enjoy clean comedy, vacationers who want to see spectacular Broadway style shows, people who want to see glorious religious shows, people who want to hear great gospel music and some who want to watch a memorizing magic show,” he said. “We want to provide clean wholesome fun and entertainment for families who will return to see our shows again and again.” Fee said winning the family dollars with new shows to repeat customers give theaters their longevity. While bus tours make up about 30 percent of music-theater traffic, Fee said families are the real “bread and butter.”

In all their ventures, Fee and Hedrick are hands on leaders. They are intensely involved in the operations of all their properties, maintaining the same spirit of involvement they began with at The Comedy Barn Theater over 15 years ago. They believe the key to their success has been a sincere desire to make their guests happy. Their goal is to provide each visitor with exceptional value: great shows, delicious food, and wonderful service.

The Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group continues to give back to the community it entertains. They give charitably to many philanthropic organizations like The Sevier County Humane Society, The United Way, The Robert Thomas Foundation, and The Appalachian Bear Center to name a few. Across the board, Fee and Hedrick are truly men of vision who work diligently to win repeat customers, appeal to families, and above all keep their audiences entertained.

For more information about the Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group including operating dates and hours, visit the Web site at www.feehedrick.com. To purchase tickets, visit www.feehedrick.com, then click on the “Shows” button or call (865) 428-7676.
###

She will be the guest star March 1-April 9 for the Miracle Theater’s Broadway-style production of Tim Rice?s and Andrew Lloyd Webber?s “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.”

Nashville is where she got her start in music attending Belmont University and later working as a background singer for stars such as Michael McDonald, Aaron Neville, CeCe Winans and gospel group Anointed before auditioning with three other friends for American Idol for Season 6.

Her father was a drummer, and she grew up listening to his record collection of R&B artists and music took root in her soul. Her debut album “Coming Back to You” was hailed by critics.

Doolittle is no stranger to the attractions in Pigeon Forge having visited before riding the go-carts and “having a blast.” This will be her first time performing at the Miracle Theater and a recent visit to check out the facility left her impressed. “It’s amazing; I love the attention to detail, everything is so beautiful,” she told theater management.

“I am so excited!” she says of the upcoming run at the Miracle Theater. “I love shows that are out of the box. I like to have fun on stage and tell a great story that’s funny and lively.” In Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat she’ll get an opportunity to interact with the audience as she takes on the role of the narrator. Although she’s not seen “Joseph” performed live, she’s watched the video and loved it. Her favorite part of the musical is watching the king playing Elvis. “It’s amazing and hilarious,” she adds.

Performing before an estimated 30 million viewers each night on “American Idol” was life changing. The experience took her from singing background vocals to taking center stage as a star in her own right. “Now I have my own background singers and doing things I thought I would never be able to do,” she says.

She calls American Idol host, Simon Cowell, her “teddy bear.” “He says what he thinks without using a filter. That makes you do the best you can do. I think he is wonderful.”

Since leaving American Idol as a third-place finisher, Doolittle has been traveling with her band both at home and abroad. In June 2007, the Brentwood, Tenn., resident visited Zambia with first lady Laura Bush and the Malaria No More organization to distribute life-saving bed nets and raise awareness. Doolittle also supports the Ronald McDonald House program.

Her run at the Miracle Theater will offer an opportunity to visit with fans during a meet and greet event after each performance. Doolittle will take part in a Q&A session, pose for pictures and sign autographs for those who purchase a VIP pass.

Getting up close and personal with her fans is one of her favorite things to do. “I love to answer any questions,” she says. “I enjoy sharing my life and what I have learned along the way.” ?Those hugs from fans are a nice bonus, too.?

“I am really excited to be a part of this,” Doolittle says of performing at the Miracle Theater. “I invite everyone to come out and make it an experience that they will remember for years to come.”

Jim Hedrick and David Fee, co-owners of Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group which owns the Miracle Theater, says their company has invested millions in the production, even changing out the lighting rig for a more rock concert feel. Fee said even if audiences have seen a production of “Joseph” before, this one will top them all. “No expense has been spared,” Fee says.

Fee Hedrick Entertainment, one of the largest show production companies in the southeast, also owns and presents 5 other major shows in the Smoky Mountain area including The Miracle, The Comedy Barn Theater, Blackwoods Breakfast Variety Show, Magic Beyond Belief, and the Black Bear Jamboree Dinner and Show.

Adult tickets for Joseph and The Miracle are $39.95 each plus tax. When purchasing a Joseph ticket, there will be an opportunity to add The Miracle matinee for half price.

For each adult ticket a child 11 years old and younger is admitted free.

Cast members lead fifteen-minute backstage tours before both shows for $5. “Joseph” will be an 8 p.m. performance with “The Miracle” at 3 p.m. and both run through January 2011. For information, call 865-428-7469 or check out www.MiracleTheater.com.

Pigeon Forge, Tenn., January 28, 2009- — “Branson’s Award Winning Specialty Show of the Year for 2009″ Sean-Paul and company will soon debut at The Magic Beyond Belief Theater on the Parkway in Pigeon Forge. Master Showman Sean-Paul, his wife, Juliane, and their “baby” Frankie-the trained monkey, will hold audiences spellbound with their jaw-dropping illusions, telepathy, sleight of hand tricks and most of all ? breathtaking surprises!

The new “Magic Beyond Belief” Show will debut on February 5th with fast-paced magic sequences that will appeal to magic and illusion lovers of all ages. Sean-Paul will perform his rare combination of magic, quick-witted comedy and audience participation six-nights-a-week at the theater. The show will include birds, tigers, and serval cats in addition to Frankie the mind reading monkey. “No other show in the country has a monkey, much less like Frankie. Frankie has been seen on national and international television including ‘America?s Got Talent,’” said Sean-Paul. “Frankie has gained a national following. He slams a red buzzer every time I tell a lie. Frankie even grabs my microphone and talks! He is so funny!”

“I will be doing a combination of close up, sleight-of-hand and large scale illusion magic,” said Sean-Paul. “The close up magic will be shown on large video screens at the front of the theater so that everyone can see what I am doing. I will also be performing a new deadly escape illusion trick that is terrifying. I will be doing a lot of audience participation with children including a trick with an African Black Mamba snake.”

Sean-Paul and his wife most recently appeared for three months at The Comedy Barn Theater in Pigeon Forge where they received critical acclaim. Prior to that they performed their amazing specialty show at the Grand Country Theater in Branson, Mo. Sean-Paul has enjoyed many honors and accolades and most recently BransonCritic.com voted his show the Branson Specialty Show of the Year for 2009. “With so many great shows to choose from we were very excited to receive this respected award,” said Sean-Paul.

He has also worked at the Magical Palace in the World of Magic, Celebration City, Silver Dollar City, The Comedy Pet Theater and on the Branson Belle, all in Branson. In addition to his wife, Juliane, the show will be augmented by a group of four beautiful assistants: Jessica Smith, Brittany Payne, Mallory Mattney and Lindsay Fee as well as head usher, Johnny. The new family friendly show will be interwoven with short dance production numbers choreographed by Rusty Miller. Sean-Paul and his wife are former competitive ballroom dancers as well as entertainers.

Juliane is also skilled at telepathy and she will appear on the stage blind folded and will be able to tell members of the audience what they have in their purses and backpacks. She is also skilled as an amazing quick- change artist and can change outfits in as little as a half a second.

“Most of my life I have loved to perform magic,” said Sean-Paul. “When I was 8-years-old I saw a magician at the Cub Scout Blue and Gold Banquet in my home town of St. Paul, Minnesota, who took a glass of ink and turned it into a glass of water with a live goldfish and gave the goldfish to the kid who was sitting next to me,” said Sean-Paul. “It was the most unbelievable thing I had ever seen. Shortly after that I went to a magic shop and I saw a magic set and figured out how to do those tricks on my own.”

Sean-Paul has now become a recognizable name in Magic circles. He is a member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. As a youngster, his parents would take him to magic contest and talent shows and Sean-Paul had a dream of one day having his own magic act. At the age of 11-years-old Sean-Paul’s dream came true when he performed his first show at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival. He did that for four years and Sean-Paul said he gained a huge following after those shows.

At age 21, he traveled all across the country for General Motors performing at corporate automobile shows. He also performed Six Flags Over Texas, Magic Island in Houston, Texas, as well as on many cruise ships for Holland American Cruise Lines. He was the 1997 season opener for the Minnesota Timberwolves in Minneapolis, Minn., and the half time entertainment for the 2000 NBA playoff game the Lakers vs. Spurs in San Antonio, Texas. In 2004 he did a 12-state “Magic Within You” tour and in 2005 he performed at a change of command ceremony on the USS Oklahoma City Nuclear Submarine in Norfolk, Va. In 2006 he was featured at the Reno Hilton and was a guest performer at Mark Kalin and Jinger’s Magic Underground.

“My number one goal at any show is to connect with my audience,” Sean-Paul said. “I want to make even the biggest audience feel intimate as if they were crowded around the kitchen table with good friends, watching and listening to incredible entertainment as an amazing situation unfolds. I am fortunate to be in Pigeon Forge and very excited about our new show.”

This show is fun for all ages. Performances are scheduled at the new Magic Beyond Belief show at 8:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday and matinees at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Magician Duane Laflin will perform at the theater on Sunday evenings at 8:00 p.m. Laflin is a professional magician who is well known for his classy style, sleight of hand techniques, and magically creative thinking. He is renowned for his silk magic.

Ticket prices for both shows are $29.95 plus tax per adult and children 11 and under are free one per paying adult. Additional children are $9.95 plus tax. Call (865) 428-5600 for show reservations. The Magic Beyond Belief Theater is located at 2135 Parkway, Pigeon Forge (between traffic lights 0 and 1). For more information, visit www.pigeonforgemagic.com.

David Fee and Jim Hedrick of the Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group operate the Magic Beyond Belief Theater. Now in its fourth season, the Magic Beyond Belief Theater opened in April 2007, and quickly has become a popular attraction in Pigeon Forge, selling out most shows during the peak tourist seasons. The theater is an intimate showroom where everyone can feel they are part of the show. The company also owns and operates The Comedy Barn Theater, The Black Bear Jamboree Dinner and Show and The Miracle Theater, also in Pigeon Forge.
+++

Miss Ellie, a Chinese Crested Hairless dog from Pigeon Forge, TN, competed against over 50,000 other dogs this week in the World’s Cutest Dog Competition and won Week 5 of the online nationwide contest.

The competition, sponsored by All American Pet Brands in Beverly Hills, CA has a Grand Prize of $1 Million Dollars.

Just 3 months ago, Miss Ellie won the 2009 World’s Ugliest Dog Competition – Purebred Division, held at Sonoma-Marin Fair in California.

David Fee, owner of The Comedy Barn Theater in Pigeon Forge, TN said that while Miss Ellie was participating in the Ugliest Dog Competition, people would come up and say that Miss Ellie was so ugly she was actually cute.

As a result, Fee entered Miss Ellie in the Cutest Dog Competition last week and won that week’s online voting with the highest number of votes recorded so far to become one of 12 finalists. Out of the finalists, the title of America’s Cutest Dog will be awarded along with $1,000,000 in prize money. If Miss Ellie wins, Fee has pledged to donate the entire Grand Prize to the local Sevier County (TN) Humane Society.

Miss Ellie, and 14 other dogs, who were rescued from area animal shelters are trained by Comedy Barn animal trainer and performer, Dawn Goehring. The “Comedy Barn Canines” perform daily at The Comedy Barn Theater, a live comedy show devoted to clean family entertainment located in Pigeon Forge, TN.

“It’s a clean, family show where people enjoy themselves and laugh a lot” said Goehring. “Miss Ellie and the dogs are right in the middle of everything having a great time!” During every performance the audience is reminded to adopt a pet from their local animal shelter.

“The Comedy Barn Theater has always been a major supporter of the animals. More businesses across the nation need to give a helping hand to their local Human Society just as The Comedy Barn Theater helps us”, said Jayne Vaughn, Executive Director of the Sevier County Humane Society. “Here in the Pigeon Forge area, as well as all over our nation, the recession is forcing people to give up their pets in record numbers to animal shelters. However, at the same time, the recession is causing donations to animal shelters to drop. In short, we have more dogs and less dollars,” said Vaughn.

According to Vaughn, her animal shelter as well as many other animal shelters across the nation are in a crisis situation and desperately needs more funding. Vaughn said that the prize money from the Cutest Dog Competition would be a much-needed blessing.

The grand prize winner of $1 Million Dollars will be chosen from the 12 finalists later this year by All American Pet Brands.

According to Fee the lesson to be learned with Miss Ellie is that all dogs deserve to be loved and treated well. “A dog does not have to be beautiful to make a wonderful family pet,” said Fee. “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Dogs love all people; I just wish people loved all dogs.” Both Fee and Vaughn encourage animals lovers to visit there local animal shelters and either adopt a pet or make a donation. Go to www.comedybarn.com for more information.

FOR MORE INFO:
Jim Peacock
865 429-7183 ext. 3120
jpeacock@feehedrick.com

The new franchise location is co-owned by David Fee, president, and Jim Hedrick, vice president, of the Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group. Both agree that size is not their ultimate objective, but rather offering a quality family dining experience. Fee says, “The decision to open this particular franchise was based more on location and timing, in addition to the world-class reputation of Tony Roma’s first-rate food. This is a beautiful, first-class restaurant that specializes in providing a quality casual dining experience for families.

I ultimately chose to open a Tony Roma’s after seeing how it anchors large-scale developments in other tourist areas like Nashville and Myrtle Beach.” Fee says. The Fee/Hedrick Family Entertainment Group also owns the nearby Black Bear Jamboree Theater and The Miracle Theater, which is next door to the new restaurant. Fee adds, “Our opening takes advantage of the latest interior designs and menu additions Tony Roma’s has to offer customers. We’re happy to be the first restaurant to incorporate these new concepts.”

Tony Roma’s worldwide success story is attributed to its award-winning famous ribs and variety of mouth-watering sauces. But the Tony Roma’s story does not end with ribs. USDA Choice char-grilled steaks, original barbecue chicken, delicious seafood and fresh salads, make up a menu that is sure to please every guest.

The decor of the new Pigeon Forge restaurant features rustic stack stone accents, set against mustard-yellow walls, dark wood trim, sleek contemporary lighting, black leather and grey-printed upholstered seating and cherry-stained table tops. The interior focal point is a handsomely-trimmed wooden bar with a reflective glass backdrop that can accommodate 16 people at a time. The location will serve beer and wine, in addition to specialty non-alcoholic cocktails and milkshakes.

Vintage artwork hung in the restaurant features pictures of the original Tony Roma’s chef and a picture of the original Tony Roma’s restaurant in North Miami, Fla. that opened 30 years ago in 1978. To incorporate local flare, inset display cases at booths around the restaurant salute some of the biggest names in Country music – Kenny Chesney and Faith Hill to name a few.

Shane Womack, director of franchise operations for Tony Roma’s, is in Pigeon Forge for the restaurant’s opening. “This is considered an iconic opening for us. Tony Roma’s is a very recognizable brand that has a solid history of doing very well in tourist destinations. The business opportunity in Pigeon Forge is very similar to when we opened the International Drive location near Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla. We are hoping for big things from this new franchise as well. This appears to be a very good fit not only on the business side, but also for area residents and visitors alike.”

The new restaurant offers customer’s several special service options, including a private meeting/party room that can accommodate up to 60 people, a carry-out Ribs To Go service, gift cards available in any denomination, and Tony Roma’s online Roma Rib Expert Club, where you can get all the latest scoop on promotions, news, and special offers from the restaurant chain at www.tonyromas.com.

Tony Roma’s is located at 2050 Parkway (traffic light 0) in Pigeon Forge, Tenn. The new restaurant is at the same location as the former Country Legends Grill and Alabama Grill. Hours of operation are 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, and 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Reservations for parties of eight of more people are accepted depending on the day and time by calling (865) 908-8777. For more information or to view the menu online, visit www.tonyromaspigeonforge.com.