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Ep 151 – Drew the Intern talks SeaWorld and Ken talks Feld

Drew the Intern of In the Loop joins Ed and Ken to discuss the rumors regarding the future of SeaWorld Parks and Entertainment. We also talk hurricanes, unions, Universal Studios Beijing, and Meow Wolf. Plus Ken reviews Disney on Ice’s latest show and what it may mean for the future of Feld Entertainment.

Recording Info- Recorded on Sept 14, 2018 at the WPRK Studios in Winter Park, FL
Important Links

Florence 

Port Canaveral RC Grandeur of the Seas and Norwegian Escape

Westgate houses employees from Carolinas, rent RVs for first teams back

Assisted living residents

In-state room rates at WDW, discounts at Rosen, Expedia activates Emergency website for Florida

UCF at UNC game canceled

Rip currents on Florida beaches, beach erosion

Disney on Ice – Review

Drew the Internet Interview

SeaWorld Chain – Wild Gravity spills the beans

Wild Adventures gets an alligator-themed kids area

MLS announces All-Star match in Orlando in 2019

WB I-4 in Maitland closed Sept 14, 17, and 18 10PM-5AM

Chef Lopez leaves Tapa Toro for North Quarter Mexican restaurant

Alan Littaye gives new details, maps on Universal Studios Bejing

Disney unions get a major win – CNBC quote

Frontier now has the most non-stop destinations from MCO

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Ep 150B – Jake talks HHN and college dorms, Skywalker Brian talks Star Wars and the future of UOR

Today is a double whammy of news and goodness. In the first hour, Jake surprises us by stopping by between classes to talk about what he’s most hyped for at this year’s Halloween Horror Nights and what he thinks the future holds for SeaWorld. Then in the second hour, Brian Saeger of Skywalking Adventures calls in to talk HHN, the 2019 at WDW, and what he’s hearing regarding the future of the UOR.

Recording Info: Recorded on Sept 7, 2018 at the WPRK Studios in Winter Park, FL

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Ep 149 – Dolly Parton and Jack Nicholson Celebrity Impersonators talk Sunburst Showcase

On this special episode of #OTRonFM we’re joined in studio by two celebrity impersonators visiting town for one of the biggest celebrity impersonator conventions in the nation; the Sunburst Convention and Showcase. One of the nation’s leading Dolly Parton impersonators and her husband, an official Jack Nicholson impersonator, give us an inside look at the world of professional celebrity impersonations.

Recording Info: Recorded on August 31, 2018 at the WPRK Studios in Winter Park, FL

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A message from Ken Storey

I don’t believe in instant karma, but I wish I did because those who have helped me over the past year deserve so much more than I could ever give them in return for all they’ve done for me.

It’s said that your life can change in a single heartbeat; for me, it changed in a single tweet.

One year ago today I was reflecting upon the horrific damage of Hurricane Harvey. The damage, the latest in a long line of floods for the region, had been predicted more than a year earlier but politics had gotten in the way of helping the region prepare. In a rant filled with links to various articles on those very issues, I fired off one of the most poorly written tweets I’ve ever posted.

Soon, alt-right groups focused on pushing liberal voices out of academia were causing my tweet to go viral. What followed was the most horrific chain of events I could have ever imagined: losing my dream job, police protecting me from self-proclaimed white supremacists, and interview requests flooding my inbox. Calls for my firing trended on social media and a live audience applauded my discharge.

Despite major news stories, and a president clearly not fit for the job, Fox News, InfoWars, and Rush Limbaugh instead focused on stories about me. These wildly untrue stories only fueled more threats against me. My students weren’t safe, my family wasn’t safe, I wasn’t safe. The alt-right had set their sights on me.

My entire world was collapsing around me and I had regular fights within my own mind. As I came to grips with this actually being my reality, I realized not just a horrific dream. As many whom I thought were friends turned their backs on me, some attempting to use my unwanted fame as a way to draw attention to themselves. I saw countless posts on social media from these former friends now proclaiming I had been brainwashed, was mentally ill, or hated our great nation. None of that was true, and they knew it.

I fully recognize my tweet was poorly written and insensitive, but a single tweet shouldn’t ruin a person’s job. A single tweet shouldn’t cause panic and fear for my family. A single tweet shouldn’t result in graphically detailed death threats, endanger my students, or cause prime-time coverage for nearly a week on Fox News. A single poorly worded tweet now meant I was a news story as far away as China or New Zealand. It felt like the entire world had gone crazy and the entire world wasn’t going to be happy until I was gone from it. Everything I had worked so hard for was now being ripped away.

But as right-wing media stirred fears by labeling me a “big wig democrat” and as James Woods weighed in calling me “worthless vermin,” there came rays of hope. Former students, colleagues whom I hadn’t connected with in years, and so many friends reached out to me. Nearly all of them with messages of support. Those simple messages are what gave me the power to push through the hardest experience of my life. And those same messages are what still keep me going today.

My nightmare is far from over. One year ago, there was a concerted effort to ruin my life and, honestly, it was much more successful than many realize. As I shared earlier this month with the New York Times, I still have many unpaid bills and few job prospects. But I also have a new hope for the future. This experience has shown me who my real friends are. Strangers reached out to me to show their support, and many of those strangers have since become friends. Today I am much more aware of the threats to our great democracy, and I hope my experience helps all of us become more aware of these threats.

We can’t let a few radical groups hijack social media. We can’t let a few bad experiences, no matter how bad, ruin our hope for the future.

When everything happened last year, I pulled away from social media, fearful of anything I post on it being used against me. But I realized that is precisely what the right-wing radicals, who tried to ruin my life, wanted. After a few days of silence, I returned to social media. The first thing I posted is a quote that is just as important in today’s hyper-political reality as it was then:

“You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is like an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.” – Mahatma Gandhi.

Keep hope alive, for this too shall pass.
-Ken Storey

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Ep 148- Orlando Parks Rover reports on a accident at SeaWorld plus the latest on Artegon, SeaWorld, WDW, and Gatorland

Orlando Parks Rover’s Kevin Sweeney calls in to tell us the about the animal accident he witnessed at SeaWorld Orlando. Then we take a deep dive into the latest news from Artegon, Gatorland, WDW, Orlando’s history museum. Plus we cover more details on the latest lawsuits against Ripley Entertainment after the Branson Duck boat accident.

Recording Date – 8/3/18 at the WPRK studios in Winter Park, FL

Important Links

Scary video showing a dolphin falling out of a tank at SeaWorld Orlando | Orlando Parks Rover

Gatorland to host rally for military wheelchair athletes

Praise Wave Returns To SeaWorld Orlando For The Second Time This Year (is SW looking to fill a void left by Disney ending Night of Joy?)

SeaWorld extends free beer promo, announce a craft beer festival

Free beer coming to an end at Busch Gardens Tampa but they’re debuting an entire beer festival the very next day

Marriott developer to buy Dabney school site in Leesburg

Tokyo Disneyland installs x-ray scanners for all bags, metal detectors for all guests

New details, including financing info, leaked regarding Epcot’s on-again, off-again $450 million Brazil pavilion

Filming begins for Disney’s Jungle Cruise movie starring Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt

Wells’ Built and Orange County History Center launch $10 joint ticket offer

Govt documents show SeaWorld Orlando’s Aquatica water park to get a new ride

Ripley gets sued in Orlando

Coast Guard opens the highest level investigation into Ride the Ducks

Michael Dezer announces $25 million Dezerland FEC for north Miami, plans to move his auto museum to Artegon.

Royal Caribbean showing Netflix film shot on Harmony of the Seas

Sky Princess to have Princess Cruises’ largest balconies

Carnival Triumph gets $200 million upgrade and a new name

Cool hurricane season

WB haunts impacting HHN?

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