ZOOperstars! Interview
Gameops.com: You just added Myron Noodleman to your stable of acts (BirdZerk! And ZOOperstars!). Tell us more about Myron’s act and why you thought it was a fit for your operations.
Dominic Latkovski: Rick Hader, who created and performs as Myron, called and said he wanted to have us represent him and handle his bookings. We have been good friends with him for many years, and we had talked before about possibly one day teaming up. At the end of baseball season this year, he called and said he was ready to try something new, so we made it happen. If there is one act out there that does things similarly to the way we do, it’s Myron. We felt like he would be a natural fit for our group, and that we would compliment each other very well. His act is great, and it is nothing like what we already do with BirdZerk! and ZOOperstars! He has poured his heart and soul into his act, just as we have, for about the same length of time. I really respect him, and I am a big fan of his! He is proven in this industry, and he has stood the test of time. Teams know that when they hire Myron Noodleman, they are going to get a great show for their fans!
Gameops.com: Do you foresee any joint appearances with the 3 acts, or will they remain separate?
Dominic Latkovski: I don’t see that it would make much sense for teams to hire all three acts for one night, but all of us doing an All-Star Game might be a possibility. We’ve done numerous All-Star Games with both BirdZerk! & ZOOperstars! over the years, but those types of shows are rare compared to the total number of appearances we do.
Gameops.com: Are you on the look-out for additional acts? Are you looking to grow your business by adding new acts, or was this just a one time opportunity that you thought was a good fit?
Dominic Latkovski: That's a great question! We are always thinking of ways to grow and improve our company, and the Myron deal is hopefully the start of some great things to come. Our clients have been asking us for years when we were going to introduce something new, and we are happy to announce that the time has come!
In December we just launched a brand new act at the Baseball Winter Meetings in Las Vegas. It features a guy we met while we were on “America’s Got Talent” this summer. I thought he was one of the most talented people on the show! I was so impressed with him that I kept trying to think of a way to utilize his talents in some kind of baseball entertainment show. He is an unbelievable pop-n-lock dancer, and the name of the new act is Breakin’ BBoy McCoy. He will be dressed as a bat boy at games, doing normal bat boy duties, only he will get several times throughout the game to perform his craft on the field and on the dugouts. His moves are amazing! He does it all to cool sound effects and clever music. Then, between his performances, he will continue with the normal bat boy duties, so that the fans actually think he is a real bat boy. His finale will be playing the 7th Inning Stretch with his keyboard on top of the dugout. By the end of the night, the fans will be wondering how their local team found such a talented bat boy!
The response to him in Vegas was great, and we have already started booking dates for him for next summer. We are optimistic that Breakin’ BBoy McCoy will be a big hit for many years to come! He should be a great addition to our line-up, and he will help us as we strive to continue to be the very best in entertainment!
We believe strongly in making each game where our acts appear a memorable experience for the fans. Breakin’ BBoy McCoy will definitely do this!
As long as we keep this in mind, we should continue to prosper! Judging by the success we have had over the past 18 years, I would say we are doing something right.
Gameops.com: Any chance that we will get an inflatable Myron in the future? (I tried to come up with a wacky animal name, but fell way short….what would that be?)
Dominic Latkovski: I don’t see Myron putting an inflatable into his show anytime soon. (By the way, if we were making a ZOOperstars! costume from his name, it would most likely be Myron Poodleman, though!) He needs to stick with what got him to this point, and not try to be something he isn’t. Many folks have thought that all they have to do is get an inflatable costume and they will be able to replicate what we do with ZOOperstars! and BirdZerk!, but they soon find out there’s a lot more to it than just having a costume. It usually ends up helping our business, rather than hurt it, as people soon realize that it takes special talent to do what we do, and to put the whole business together!
Gameops.com: The ZOOperstars! just had a run on American’s Got Talent. What was the best part about being on the show?
Dominic Latkovski: Without a doubt, the best part of it was the exposure we got! We were able to show millions (Supposedly more than 50 million people saw the shows we were on!) of people watching at home what we do, and we have heard from many folks who now want us to appear at their events! Plus, now when we go to shows, teams are able to promote that we were on America’s Got Talent, which helps draw fans to the game. Personally, I love television production, and to see how it all worked, behind the scenes, was one of the coolest things for me.
Gameops.com: Let people know how to contact you for booking information.
Dominic Latkovski: The best way for people to reach us is on our toll-free number at 800-219-0899. We have created a new company name, THE SKILLVILLE GROUP, which incorporates all of the things we are now doing, under one umbrella. They can also email me at dom@zooperstars.com or they can reach Chad Wozniak, our General Manager at 
chad@zooperstars.com.
