Frank Frederick is still buried in snow in his Utah redoubt, but his words in a recent Voices.com podcast should burn a path to your ears.

Click HERE for a listen to his 9.5-min. talk called: "THE YEAR OF PERSONAL BRANDING".  Frank has published a more complete version of his ground-breaking work on this issue called "LOVE NOTES". Give him a shout to get a copy.

While we're on the subject of copy.  East-Coast-based voice actor Joe Rodriguez just finished his first audiobook, "TEN MILE RIVER", and it's available on Audible HERE.

Extra nice read, Joe!

CourVO

Six-and-a-half weeks till the end of the year.

Ouch! 

Being a procrastinator of a high order of the Melchizedek priesthood, those words STING.

But have you ever heard the admonition that if you publicly declare your intentions, the fear of the embarrassment, then, of not achieving said ballyhoo'd goals is motivation for actually DOING them?

Herewith, then, my list Voice-Acting goals before January 1st, 2009.

1)  Notify all clients who have outstanding invoices for work done before Dec 5th that I'd like to collect before the end of the year.

2)  Write and send at least two more newsletters.

3)  Send out at least 30 new auditions in answer to leads from online sites, agents, referrals, or cold-calls.

4)  Approach at least 10 audiobook publishers for the possibility of sending them a demo.

5)  Check on all my buds at the VO-BB daily.

6)  Write at least one or two blogs daily (duh!).

7)  Take at least one more class or phone session with a voice coach.

8)  Begin my bookkeeping for next year's tax deadline (that's BEGIN…'cause nah, I haven't done anything with that yet).

9)  Write at least one more article for RainRecording.

10) Do a retrospective of my 2008 voice-acting New Year's resolutions.

THAT'S IT!

Now, keep in mind, that's just my voice-acting agenda…my personal agenda is off the charts, 'cause for the first year in many, the Courvo's are having all the families come HERE for a Vegas Christmas, instead of us all traveling to see them….so no…no pressure for preparations HERE.

So….what're you up to?

CourvO

A moment of silence please.

The undisputed king of voice-overs — Don LaFontaine — has passed.

————————-
Voiceover Master DON LaFONTAINE died Monday afternoon
9/1/08 at 2:10 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles at the age of 68.
  Don’s agent, Vanessa Gilbert, tells Entertainment Tonight that he
passed away following complications from Pneumothorax, the presence of air or
gas in the pleural cavity, the result of a collapsed lung.  The official
cause of death has not yet been released.  
Over the past 25 years,
LaFontaine cemented his position as the "King of Voice-overs."
  Aside from being the preeminent voice in the movie trailer
industry…Don  has also been the voice of Entertainment Tonight and The
Insider, CBS, NBC ABC, Fox and UPN, in addition to TNT, TBS and the Cartoon
Network.  By conservative estimates, he has voiced hundreds of thousands
of television and radio spots, including commercials for Chevrolet, Pontiac,
Ford, Budweiser, McDonalds, Coke, and many other corporate sponsors. He
recently parodied himself on a series of national television commercials for
Geico. At last count, he has worked on nearly 5000 films, including
appearances as the in-show announcer for the Screen Actors Guild and Academy
Awards. Based on contracts signed, he has the distinction of being perhaps the
single busiest actor in the history of SAG.
Don was an active supporter of
AFTRA & SAG, giving of his time, opening his home, lending his experience
& stature to the AFTRA Promo Announcers Caucus,  as well as
generously giving his advice & help to his fellow voice-over artists, in
addition to the many causes & friends he helped over the years.
Don is
survived by his wife Singer/Actress Nita Whitaker, and three children,
Christine, Skye and Elyse.

———————————-

Don had been a cigarette smoker, and even though he gave it up 20 years ago, always admonished his friends and acquaintances to quit.  Part of the complications which eventually took his life, stemmed from issues left-over from his smoking days.  This is not a moral lesson.  Don himself was adamant in his non-smoking message to anyone who cared to listen.

CourVO