About The McDuffie progress. (Thomson, Ga.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (June 20, 2019)
CYAN-AOOO MAGENTA-OAOO BLACK 01/29/08 Cfie IMBuffte Progress! www.mcduffieprogress.com Thursday, June 20,2019 Page 9A ^People 8 Places Temario Thomas makes metSa magic on the regular Photo courtesy of Temario Thomas Temario Thomas, pictured above, has been in Photo courtesy of Temario Thomas the entertainment industry since he was nine- Pictured is Temario Thomas with the wrestler Triple H at WWE years-old. He currently works as a producer. Greatest Royal Rumble in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. BYBREANNA DURHAM bdurham (Smcduffieprogress. com Temario Thomas’ first taste of the entertain ment world came through the wrestling fandom. This would lead him to producer life. As a kid, Thomas would dedicated- ly watch wrestling matches. “No matter what was going on in the world, my parents knew how I would act,” he said. “I wouldn’t make a peep.” His favorite wrestler to watch was Shawn Michaels. Thomas said he liked his showman ship and his presentation drew him in. Particularly, Thomas pointed to Michaels fin ishing move as an atten tion grabber- a ‘super kick to the face.’ “His finishing move was simple, but super effec tive,” he said. “It caught my eye.” Thomas became so enamored with what he saw on television that he wanted to take part. At nine-years-old, Thomas got his first chance to break into the entertain ment industry He started on the set of Stomp The Yard as an extra. While on set, Thomas watched the production for the film. Thomas then saw something else he liked, the creativity of produc tion. “Initially, you’re drawn to the lights and glamour and say ‘I want to act,’ but I was interested in pro duction too,” Thomas said. Create. Produce. Act. Thomas started to see himself on multiple sides of the industry. The bug he caught didn’t drive him into one avenue. “You want to be every- man,” he said. “You want to take over the entertain ment world.” Thomas knocked on the door of the assistant director trailer on set and told him he was interest ed in being a production assistant. The assistant director would later call him and ask if he’d work as an intern for him. “We were off to the races from then,” he said. Thomas worked in TV shows, films, and com mercials. His list of tv and film he’s taken part in include such things as Fast and Furious, Being Mary Jane, and Disney production, among other works. Thomas said he doesn’t have the total number of appearances. “It all starts running together,” he said. Thomas lived in Thomson for half of his childhood, going to school in the city for some time. He said he spent time in Thomson with his dad and then spent time with his mom in Augusta. He’d eventu ally graduate from Greenbrier High School in Evans in 2003. Soon after, he moved to Atlanta to continue his entertain ment journey. At first, he went to film school, first with American Intercontinental University and then to Georgia State University, for a total of two years. However, he dropped out due to his work schedule. Eventually, Thomas said he would like to go back and complete his studies. Ultimately, he said he wants to create and pro duce his own produc tions, most likely in com edy, action or horror. “Those are my three favorite genres,” he said. But from then, Thomas continued to strive in the industry and dealt with struggle. He said he was turned down several times. Competition is always out there, he said. “Everybody is trying to accomplish something.” In 2013, Thomas decided to apply to WWE, the pro duction that had enam oured him as a child. He could be a part of it. He did a phone interview and then got an offer. However, he found him self backing away from the opportunity. He’d have to uproot and leave to do it. The job was based in Connecticut. “I wasn’t quite ready at the time,” he said. So, he continued to hone his skills elsewhere. In 2015, Thomas received another chance. WWE was filming a live show in Atlanta a few days before his birthday. He had applied a second time. The manager of the show invited him to it, inter viewed him in Atlanta, and gave him another invitation to be a produc er with WWE. He took it this time. “Helluva birthday gift,” he said. “It you told me I’d meet Vincent McMahon and I’d work for him, I would have called you crazy.” Thomas moved to Connecticut to begin working on the show. Thomas handles announcer duties, off-site productions, audience engagement, rehearsal coordination, communi cation facilitation, and sponsor obligation, among other responsibil ities, all while dealing with a lot of people. “You have to be a people person because you have to manage different things, many different people, and many differ ent egos,” he said. Work ethic and people skills, he said, helped him to move up and stay in the industry. Problem solving and critical thinking also proved essential. “You have to have all of that at the drop of a dime,” he said. And a bad move could send him home. The biggest disaster he avoid ed in his career was a time he handed the wrong card to an announcer. He had two cards for the same show, but each card had two dif ferent reads. “That’s easily a way to get fired, no questions asked,” he said. ‘ You’re gone.” Luckily, it was a post production show. “The EP[Executive pro ducer] has a saying, ‘You get one.’” Thomas works an aver age 12 hours a day. On Monday and Tuesday, WWE has its live shows. On Thursday and Fridays, he’s at the sta tion working on the show. On those days, he gets down to eight hours. The show is live every week, 52 weeks of the year, Thomas said. “We make it look easy because we’re so good at it,” he said. But, Thomas said everyone isn’t built for the job. The first few signs of this are com plaints about the work load and travel. Thomas is often on the road. Recently, Thomas shot a show in Saudi Arabia. The government has con tracts with WWE for shows, he said. This is the third time Thomas has traveled there for a show, spending more time in the air than actu ally being in the country. But, Thomas said he likes the travel of his job. It’s just the personal aspect that proves difficult. “I’m big on family and I don't get to see family and friends as long as I like,” he said. “The job, I can do it with my eyes closed, it’s just the real-life aspect.” Thomas said his family and friends are proud of him, that they under stand, but his job still takes a toll. He has group texts with his family and friends to ease the issue. When he gets a break, Thomas also goes home. “Sometimes, I’ll take the rest of the week off and go home, get my fill,” he said of breaking after live shows. However, Thomas keeps coming back. “There’s nothing like when it’s showtime and you go out in front of that audience and do your job,” he said. “ There’s no other adrenaline rush like that.” One of his biggest moments as a producer, he said, was the first Wrestlemania show he did. A crowd of over 100,000 people filled the stadium. It struck him. “Even to walk out of that stadium and seeing all those people, it gives me chills,” he said. Thomas said he likes saying that he created something, which pro duction does for him. He gets to meet some of his childhood heroes. And, he gets to be a role model. People come up to him after the show and con gratulate him, tell him to keep up his work. He said he tries to inspire. “This is bigger than me,” he said.“ This is for every little black kid com ing behind me and there’s that representa tion to say you can do it too, you can go out and accomplish your dreams and goals.” So, Thomas pushes. He went from intern, pro duction assistant, to now producing. He wants to exceed this. “Still more to go,” he said. Photo courtesy of Temario Thomas Temario Thomas shakes hands with Hulk Hogan at WWE Super Showdown in Melbourne, Australia. Photo courtesy of Temario Thomas Temario Thomas shows off his wrestler suit for SmackDown Live with The New Day. Photo courtesy of Temario Thomas Pictured is Temario Thomas pointing at the WrestleMania sign for WrestleMania 33
