Leadership / 04.16.24
My First Job in Ticketing — Part 1
Christine Payne
One thing I have learned in all my years with INTIX is that very few ticketing professionals chose ticketing as a career path.
Instead, ticketing somehow found and chose us. And thank goodness for that!
As INTIX members know, a career in this field requires incredible knowledge, passion, dedication, teamwork, flexibility and more. It also involves a lot of fun, frivolity and lifetime friendships.
But where and how does a career in ticketing begin? Every story is different, and we have almost two dozen to share in a new multi-part series that takes things back to the very beginning.
Roger Tomlinson
Roger Tomlinson circa 1970.
The year was 1968. Roger Tomlinson had graduated with an honors degree in geography and economics and a post-graduate teaching certificate. He had been applying for jobs as a drama teacher because his school and university experience had been in theatre, and his teacher training had been based on drama, too. Then he saw an ad for a U.K. House and Publicity Manager at the Victoria Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent, in the U.K.'s industrial “Potteries” area. The rest is history.
“When I saw this post, [I] was intrigued by the character and reputation of the theater,” Tomlinson says. “After my interview, I was told I was given the job, beating a dozen diploma holders from an early ‘arts administration’ course, because, at university, I had actually done, as a student, all of the things they needed in the job. While it was true I had organized the sale of tickets for the shows, concerts and gigs we staged, I had not actually run a box office.”
“The Vic” was a 350-capacity theatre-in-the-round with its stage in the centre of the auditorium and the audience on four sides. It had been converted from a former cinema in 1962 and had a resident professional repertory company.
On his first day, Tomlinson recalls learning the mysteries of paper seating charts and colored pencil markings for each performance.
“There used to be a popular expression in the U.K. that when you started in a job, you were put to ‘sit by Nellie’ to learn the job. So, I wasn’t surprised to be told I was to ‘to sit by Nellie’ to learn box office procedures,” Tomlinson says. “I was surprised to find her real name was Nellie! She took me through the eye-opening delights of the large paper plans [with] no numbered seats, colored pencils and codes for marking up bookings, the rules and procedures for ‘reservations' [that were] newly being accepted over the phone, when they had to be paid for [as there were] no credit cards then, and the actual tickets collected. Then [I learned] how the pre-printed ticket books were managed, stubs accounted for through ‘Long Toms’, especially to calculate the total take achieved when the performance ‘matured,' and the cash and cheques totaled and banked. Incidentally, it was my job to count up and take a leather pouch with the cash to a night safe at the bank every day after the performances.”
Tomlinson continues, “There was a huge advantage from not having numbered seats. The audience arrived down a central ‘vomitory’ on one side only. [I welcomed them as] the House Manager and placed them to ensure we filled up evenly on all four sides. [There] was human contact with everyone, talking to them all, judging where it would be best for them to sit [and] assessing the physical access requirements to get people to the best seats for them. It was great to meet and be friendly with the whole audience. In my two years, many repeat [attendees] started to greet me!”
Once the audience was seated, Tomlinson’s job was to cue the control room, giving them the thumbs up. Tomlinson would also often cue the actor who would make the first entrance. “For the first play I did this for, it was Bob Hoskins, later a world-famous movie star.”
Tomlinson adds, “The Artistic Director of The Vic was Peter Cheeseman, and he was obsessed with making the theater accessible in every way — social, physical, psychological. [It was] so friendly, welcoming and down to earth, starting with the friendly welcome in the box office. Nellie and her colleagues seemed to know the names of most of our bookers and give supportive service to the group bookers, some of whom brought groups from hundreds of miles away. And I was the only House Manager I knew expected to wear a casual shirt and a cardigan! Our language was to be simple English: performances did not ‘commence,’ they ‘started,’ etc., which for me was a valuable lesson applied throughout my life. Later in my career, as a consultant, I was horrified to meet managers who thought their box office staff were there to ‘police’ and enforce their rules, sitting behind glass. I asked the Artistic Director of one theater to spend a morning working in the box office behind the glass. He smashed it at lunchtime.”
Robert Bennett
After 40+ years in ticketing, Robert Bennett retired as Director of Ticket Operations for the Tampa Bay Rays in November 2023. It all began for Bennett in 1980 at the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans.
“My father knew the theater manager, and I was looking for any work I could find,” he says. “I had no idea that this would be a profession I would become successful at and love.”
What is Bennett’s fondest memory from his first job?
“This is a loaded question because there were many memories,” Bennett says. “Ann Johnson … took me in and taught me everything box office-related, including how to manage and treat your staff, promoters and, most of all, customers. When I was hired, Ann asked if I liked to write, so I naturally said yes, wanting a job. Little did I know I would be handwriting invoices based on information listed on index cards.”
Another fond memory for Bennett was the beginning of computerized ticketing.
“We were on Ticketmaster, which at the time included about six to seven buyer types, no accounts, no database, just raw ticketing. We ran our own phone center where we filled out credit card slips and sent [them] to another person to fulfill the orders once the charges were approved.”
Bennett has other warm memories, too.
“In the second season I was there, we had Rex Harrison in ‘My Fair Lady,’ Yul Brynner in ‘The King and I’ and Elizabeth Taylor in ‘Little Foxes.’ At the time, these were all heavyweights in theatre. We also hosted many concerts, including doing some shows with an 8 and 11 o'clock performance, and if there was still demand, we would put a 2 a.m. show on sale that night and still fill the place.”
Amy Pelzl
Four decades ago, in 1984, Amy Pelzl started as a Nitrun Operator for Ticketmaster of Houston.
“Our offices were located on the basement floor of the Astrodome, and I worked the night shift by myself, which was a little creepy sometimes,” she recalls.
That job was a stepping stone to a 40-year career that would see Pelzl go on to work for the Houston Aeros, Compaq Center, 12th Man Foundation and Reed Arena at Texas A&M, ExtremeTix and now Saffire, where she is Ticketing Team Lead. Taking that first job to bring in some extra cash would lead to a fulfilling career in live event ticketing.
“I applied to an ad in the newspaper for a part-time job working evenings, and I was looking to supplement my full-time secretarial job,” Pelzl says. “I would work all day and then go do another four to six hours at night at Ticketmaster … At 21, I took a part-time job that had me working by myself at night making copies of computer disks. I turned it into a career that has spanned 40 years and made me a ton of memories and long-lasting relationships. Anything is possible. You’ve just got to be willing to work for it!”
Pelzl adds, “My fondest memories of the job were after I went full-time and started building out the shows for The Summit and other venues. I would get to go see someone like Prince with a sold-out crowd and realize that I had a small part in all of those people being at a show and having an amazing experience. I also liked the perks of getting to go see a lot of concerts — comps were easier to come by back in the ‘80s!”
Amy Pelzl at Farm Aid in Austin in 1986.
Crystal Clinton
Almost four decades ago, on July 22, 1985, Crystal Clinton began working for Opryland USA as a programmer/analyst in the company’s computer information services (CIS) department.
“This department, including a full data center, was less than a year old and in the early stages of automating many manual systems,” Clinton says. “I was hired to work on the accounting system that served the [Opryland USA] theme park as well as the Gaylord Opryland Hotel. I hated accounting in college, but it seemed like a place loaded with growth opportunities, so I dove in with the help of a great manager. Within a year, a team was assembled to begin building an automated ticketing system. That sounded way more exciting than managing an off-the-shelf accounting package, so I convinced my boss to let me sit in on the ticketing meetings and then started offering to help with small projects along the way.”
This enthusiasm led Clinton to become part of the team of programmer-analysts who wrote the first automated ticketing system for the Opryland USA theme park, then the General Jackson Showboat and the Grand Ole Opry.
“The first tangible accomplishment was writing the code to format a six-part perforated six-inch by eight-inch ticket comprised of three-day park tickets, a cruise on the General Jackson Showboat and a box lunch in the [theme park]. The sixth slot was their itinerary.”
Now nine bosses, 10 offices, six ticketing systems, three company changes (from private to public to REIT) and just a few months shy of 40 years, Crystal is today the last remaining employee from the original CIS department.
Opryland USA was not Clinton’s first stop after college. She graduated from Middle Tennessee State University in December 1983 and was hired as a computer programmer by General Electric in January 1984. She would work at the small engine manufacturing plant for two weeks before learning that their location would be closing and that the staff was being relocated to Fort Wayne, Indiana. Clinton thought about it but eventually decided to remain closer to home and to her mom, who was having some unexpected health issues.
“I decided I didn’t want to be seven-plus hours away from home,” she recalls. “I found another job, but it was so incredibly boring. After six months, I was ready to find something else.”
Despite having worked at General Electric for 28 years, Clinton's boss ultimately decided at the last minute not to relocate to Fort Wayne.
“He was tasked with developing a data center [and] computer department at Opryland USA,” Clinton shares. “He was the person who hired me right out of college, so I ‘phoned a friend’ to see if there were any opportunities. He was gracious enough to open the door for me a second time.”
Clinton’s boss would grow the department, she says, “by building a great team and really forcing this entertainment company to begin establishing business practices and moving into the automated realm. He retired after 11 years, and we remained friends for the next 28 years until he just died in February. He was almost like a second dad to me.”
As Clinton's 40th anniversary at Opryland USA nears, and with nearly 39 of those years spent in ticketing, we asked her to share her most cherished memory. She said there are too many to pick just one.
“[There are] so many friendships,” she says. “In our earliest years, when most of us were in our 20s, we worked hard and played harder. [There was] softball, basketball, bowling, snowball fights [that were] occasionally in the office [and] baking themed cakes for every single person’s birthday. With a department of 30+ people, that is a lot of cake! We shared highs and lows together. Many are still friends today on Facebook, and several of us still get together once or twice a year. I am so thankful, blessed and proud to have had the opportunity to be on the original team and [to have] accomplished so many things for this company.”
And for those who are curious, Clinton reports that they do still celebrate team birthdays. The only change? There are not quite as many homemade cakes as in years past. “It really depends on whose birthday it is and whether their favorite treat is salty or sweet!”
Susan Farma
“I am retired now and happy looking back on my career [in ticketing],” Susan Farma, who “started again” by self-publishing a book of poetry called “Next Tuesday” a couple of years back, says.
Farma’s first job was with the Boston Symphony (BSO) around 1986. She started as a subscription clerk and later transitioned into IT.
“I got the job because I had some experience with data and finance. The BSO was changing from hard tickets to an automated system, the long-defunct PACT/3000. I wanted to change careers and work for a cool place,” she recalls.
“My first job was the stepping stone to a 40-year career that included working for not just the BSO but Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and the New York Philharmonic, the Museum of Science and Industry in Tampa, and the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Pacific Symphony in Southern California,” Farma shares. “I worked with six different ticketing software companies, becoming an expert in each.”
Farma continues, “My fondest memories are about working with friends who I am still in touch with today. I also developed a love for classical music that I didn’t have prior to working there. The rehearsals were broadcast into the office, and we got to hear everything.”
Jim Sachs
A successful, decades-long career in ticketing began in 1987 for Jim Sachs. His first job was as a Graduate Assistant in the ticket office at Wichita State University.
“I was a former student-athlete at WSU and was working on my master’s [degree in sports administration] at the time. I knew a lot of the people in the athletic department and had to do an internship in two areas. I spent a semester in the marketing department, and the ticketing position became available the following semester.”
Little did Sachs know that ticketing would become his career and his home away from home for the next 35+ years.
I enjoyed the connection and interaction with the fans,” he recalls. “This was before computerized ticketing and all sales were done through the box office. [I loved] the satisfaction, the fun of helping and being a part of the overall experience of the event or game.”
Sachs continues, “I learned how to appreciate the box office during that time. Everything was done manually [and we] had a wall of hard ticket drawers, one drawer for each basketball game. [I fondly remember] the nights of breaking down season ticket books into individual games and verifying every ticket that wasn’t sold [for the] season [and was then] made available to individual games. [I recall] interacting with patrons and fans, hearing the stories and needs [and] learning how to troubleshoot and research when a cash register didn’t balance, or tickets were missing. [There was] no reprinting back then. If [a ticket] was gone, it was gone. All these basics taught me so much that I still use today, [like] listening to fans [and] patrons, researching transaction journals, creating events wanting to be as accurate and detailed as possible, [and] being a part of someone’s cherished experience.”
Mark Arata
Starting as a part-time ticket seller at Miami Arena in 1988, Mark Arata gained early experience with large venues before becoming the Box Office Manager for ASM New Orleans.
“I was a sports admin major in college and a good friend of mine, Andy Elisburg, who is currently the GM of the Miami Heat, was an intern with the team at the time and told me they were hiring,” Arata says. “My fondest memories were that we were all so young and we did so much together both in and out of the office. I was hired by Jill Shepard, who went on to be one of the top programmers at [Ticketmaster]. Jennifer Gregory/Womack/Keller was the Box Office Manager. She is now the head of ticketing for [Live Nation] global touring, and the Assistant [Box Office Manager] was Sheri Voight, who became the [Ticket Office] Manager at the Summit/Compaq Center in Houston and is now at the Hobby Center in Houston. [There was] a lot of talent in that building and we all sort of grew up together. I loved my time in Miami and learned so much that I still used to this day.”
Next week, we will delve into the memories of ticketing professionals who started their careers in the decade when Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls won six NBA championships.
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Tags: Leadership , Ticketing