The Billy Graham Crusades: Behind the Scenes
About eight years ago, the Billy Graham Crusades came to Nashville. When Billy came to town, he tried to hire local contractors to build his set and only used the same crews for specialty work such as sound, lights and stages etc… So, before the Crusade, the Association (as I will refer to the Graham team) solicited bids for the set. Now Sam, knowing a good thing when he sees it, low balled the bid in order to get his foot in the door. It worked very well. During Sam’s first crusade, I was working for another company as I had left Sam a couple of years before. So I am not familiar with what went on at that Crusade. However, not long after the Nashville Crusade, I went back to work for Sam. When I worked for Sam, I was his shop foreman and lead set carpenter. When I returned to A.M.P.S, Sam had changed the name to S.F.Productions, in order to avoid paying his partners in Florida (Ocean State Rigging) their due. This was right before the Jacksonville Crusade.
During the Nashville Crusade, Sam had endured himself to Mike Drew and to another man who owned all the stages used for the Crusade. Now Mike, pretty much organized the Crusades and if you were enamored to him, you were in. Well, after Nashville, Sam now had all of the set work for the Crusades and kept his prices low. Where he made his money was on renting equipment or pieces of the set which were strategically left out of the contract. Of course, Mike was the one who approved these rentals. The set used in Jacksonville was basically the same one used in Nashville with the exception of green palm trees that I painted over the original.
The Jacksonville Crusade was held the same week as the 2000 elections. I saw history turn on a dime that second night and I knew the significance at the time. That night, Jeb Bush was in attendance, as he was the Governor of Florida at the time. So, during the Crusade, Billy Graham told a story. I must paraphrase as I do not remember it word for word. It went like this. “Every year the Billy Graham Association has it’s members and anyone else who would like to help, fill a shoe box with toys, personal items, etc for children at Christmas. Every year President Clinton is like a small child in his delight to personally shop to fill his shoebox. Every year George W. Bush also takes pains to shop and fill his shoebox for the children. And every year, Al Gore Jr, has Tipper fill his shoe box for him.” Now the story was much more elegant when the Reverend told it. I believe that it had its desired effect. For if you remember the 2000 elections, Florida was the key state that won the election for George. Reverend Graham told that story to approximately 50,000 people. If you cannot see the significance and timing of the story, well that is your loss.
On that same night the set designer (whose name also escapes me) left the Colosseum before the Reverend Graham was through with his sermon. Not realizing that you didn’t leave until Billy was done, I casually mentioned it to Sam. My mistake, for I cost the man his job, which Sam was after. For Sam, it was not enough to build the set, he wanted to design the set and collect the fee for said design. Sam submitted a design for the next Crusade which was to be in Louisville, Kentucky. His design was sent back with a giggle…Back to Jacksonville, after four days of crusading, it was time to pack up and go home. So late that night, (the last night at the crusade) Sam and I packed up our two tractor trailers full of junk including a pallet jack that Sam decided he needed more than Billy Graham did. No, it was not the first time I had seen Sam steal from a client, but it was the first time I seen him steal from God. As any item owned by the Billy Graham Association was considered God’s property.
Before I go any further I would like to make this very clear. I have great respect for Billy Graham, his wife, his son and his organization. They do more good in this world than any other televangelist. (which I must say, it is beneath the reverend to call him that) His organization is so large that there is no way for him to know what goes on around him. For, what used to be run by a few is now run by this giant wheel of bureaucrats. While working on the Crusades, I discovered my own spirituality. So upon returning to Tennessee, we unpacked and started to prepare for the next Crusade. This was accomplished be me building a scale model of the stage and the altering the set pieces to diamonds for Sam’s proposal to the Association. During this lull, we started building chair racks for the stage company out of Charlotte N.C. The chair racks held 50 folding chairs and were rented to different tours (George Straight was the first to rent them) as it is cheaper to bring your own chairs than it is to rent them from the local production companies (i.e. your local coliseum, amphitheater, etc…) While building these racks, our welder (Sam’s welder) through out his back and we were forced to look for another welder. (Yes, this is relevant) I recommended to Sam that we hire J.D.Russell, who was my best friend for the last 20 years until he stabbed me in the back. (thats another story) Sam hired J.D. and we finished the chair racks. Now Sam being a shrewed individual, payed us as sub-contractors by the job in order to avoid paying taxes and workers compensation. (which the first welder realized too late)
The Association hired this hot-shot set designer from Connecticut, (whose name totally escapes me) who designed a set we called the hands of God. If you were at the Louisville Crusade, you might have wondered what it was supposed to be, as the design was not as defined as it could have been. However, the set required a massive amount of labor to build. At the back of the stage was a curved wall made of aluminum pipe and scrim. On each side was two large wooden structures which were to represent the fore-arms and hands of God. They were built of 1/8″ plywood over an plywood frame. (Not really important, but I liked the end product) Even though they were of light construction, they held Kirk Franklin as he ran up them during his set.(scared me to death, I thought that they would crumble under his feet) Now, this set designer made the mistake of not staying for the entire Crusade. It was his first and last design for the Graham Association.
Two weeks before this Crusade, I rented an office from Sam for my girlfriend to use. She had a plotter and the software needed to make signage. Which we used for the sets and she used for auto-decals etc…(Her work was in Hot Rod or Super-Tuner or some Mag Rag that I cannot remember) Anyway, she asked Sam for a key to the building. As he walked away, he made the comment that she would have to get on her knees if she wanted the key. Oh, I was pissed. Now, I knew that he didn’t have any respect for women. But to make that comment in my presence was pushing his luck. I later told him that he didn’t know how close he came to being killed that day. So, were back at the Crusade and it is the third day. Sam had rode to Louisville with me in my truck. After the second night he made a comment about my girlfriend (who had joined me in Louisville) that I don’t remember. So, on the way back to the hotel, I was driving about 90 through the middle of Louisville. His comment, “Slow down, you know I’ve got pot on me!” he didn’t ask why I was pissed.
Did I forget to mention that we were both pot heads. To escape the Crusades, we would get in our golf-cart and ride around the parking lot and smoke pot. I have since quit smoking. (but I have a couple of great stories about it) On the third day of the Louisville Crusade, I quit and left Sam there. I heard that he had to catch a ride with one of the semi drivers. I gave my job up to J.D. who after being screwed over by Sam for a couple more years, eventually left him to. Sam eventually got to design a set for the Crusades. I heard that he won an Emmy for his design of the New York Crusade’s set. J.D. tried to go to work for Sam’s best friend, but the guy just couldn’t believe that Sam was stealing from him, he was.
At the Jacksonville Crusade, we spent close to two million dollars on the production. Eighty percent of the money was donated back on the first night. If you have ever been to a Crusade, you will notice the blue buckets being passed around. I saw with my own eyes, a golf-cart loaded with bags of cash and two men carrying another four bags full. There were six guards, provided by the Florida State Troopers. Before the Crusades, they would bring in bomb sniffing dogs and canvas the Colosseum. One night while walking around the stadium, I came around a corner to see two dogs sniffing the cadillacs (those are the black boxes with chrome edges that tours use to transport their equipment in) Well, since I had my own bag of pot in my pocket, I turned on my heals and walked the other way. Before I finish, I would like to ad that working on the Crusades made me take a long hard look at my life. I am a better man for it. If I had not had to work for Sam, I would have stayed with the Graham Association as they are some of the best people in the world.
I still talk to Sam, last I heard of him, he wanted me to make some columns for Billy’s son. As he is taking over the Association. I also heard that Sam is building sets etc… for Joel Olsteen (so Sam says) and for a large Baptist Church in Charlotte. That Emmy has served him well, however, beware of the face you see, it may not be the same as the one thats hidden. One last note, after the Jacksonville Crusade, the set was donated to a local church. That was the last set ever donated as Sam recycled the parts and charged them for new, over and over……Zgrinch…..out……
