By Donald H. Harrison
SAN DIEGO–Until a few months ago, my daughter Sandi Masori was known principally as an e-book author, video teacher and practitioner in the balloon entertainment and decór community. As a result of her concern about the possible impact of a helium shortage, she increasingly has become a television spokesperson for the industry, making guest appearances on stations across the country, including one on the Monday, Dec. 23, on the Today show with Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb.
Helium is a fairly plentiful element, but up to now refining helium and making it available for its many medical, research, and entertainment uses has largely been the province of the U.S. government. The United States has been considering closing down its helium facility near the natural gas fields of Amarillo, Texas, spurring some private companies to contemplate building similar production plants. Even with Congress recently voting to delay any shut-down, helium prices have been increasing.
Sandi worries that people might be under the misconception that the helium situation may adversely impact her industry’s ability to fashion large balloon sculptures such as her company, Balloon Utopia, makes for corporate events and major social occasions. It’s not really a problem, she says, because most balloon sculptures are filled with good old fashioned air, which is easy to breathe and easy to pump into balloons.
After receiving training in Las Vegas from media coach Clint Arthur, who teaches people with stories to tell how to get invitations to appear on television, Sandi began making the rounds of stations here in San Diego as well as in Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico and Florida. Ever-ready to talk about helium, Sandi also happily accepted TV station’s requests to show viewers how they could make their own simple Do-It-Yourself (DIY) balloon decorations for house parties and other occasions.
Daytime television shows like nothing better than to put a smile on viewers’ faces, and, as Sandi notes, “while balloons can be as elegant as a black-tie, formal-dress affair, there’s something about them that appeals to the inner child in all of us.”
Sandi’s time on the Today show was very brief, perhaps a minute or so on-the-air, with no time to talk about helium, but it brought her brand of balloon fun before millions of viewers, and won from Hoda Kotb what on her show is considered high praise– that Sandi is “loopy” as in “zany” or “crazy.”
Sandi explained that she had met the two stars on the set just before the segment began: “Kathie Lee and Hoda called me over, stuck out their hands and introduced themselves, and complimented me on my work and told me, ‘oh my God, you’re crazy–I can’t believe all the things you have done. You’re crazy, but that’s a good thing, we mean it as a compliment, you’ve got to understand!'” she related. “Everybody was really nice, and really warm and pleasant. Really sweet!”
Sandi had decorated the set for Hoda and Kathie Lee with candy cane balloon bouquets as well as with two poles upon which Sandi had festooned little balloon Christmas elves — balloon characters that the Today hosts later donated with Sandi’s enthusiastic blessing to a local children’s center.
While Kathie Lee and Hoda talked in their segment about airplane seating becoming ever more uncomfortable, the cameras panned to Sandi at work pumping up a balloon– some of the equipment for this gig lent to her for the occasion by New York City balloon artist Todd Neufeld. Balloon artists from all over the country keep in touch, trading ideas and referring each other business.
At the end of the opening segment, Sandi came onto the set, presenting Kathie Lee and Hoda with Christmas hats with twinkling “Party Dot” lights inside them. To prevent the balloon hats from messing up the two stars’ hair, Sandi had mounted the balloons on head bands.
If Andy Warhol was right that everyone gets at least 15 minutes of fame, then Sandi still has a minimum of 14 minutes more. But, wow, that one minute of broadcast time was a complicated affair. When balloons are your business, you don’t just walk on.
My daughter left her home very early Sunday morning for the airport– I know because I drove her there. She had three suitcases, in which she had stuffed not only her clothes, but balloons and the base and metal pole parts she would need for her creations. Not wanting to take a chance on the airline losing the material she needed to make her creations, Sandi carried as much of it on as the plane as was permitted. Of course, she had to go through security first, and her assortment of metal parts, lights, batteries, and wires for tying the balloons aroused more than curiosity from airport security personnel.
But after she showed to them what she had, explained their use, and mentioned the TV show on which she would be appearing, the security personnel were satisfied and waved her through. She was over her weight allotment, however, so the airline made her pay extra to transport all the balloon paraphernalia.
In New York City, she was met by her media coach Clint Arthur, who was delighted that Sandi was making the jump from local television appearances to national TV. Teacher became assistant as Arthur helped Sandi get ready for her Today debut. Sandi prefabricated the balloon poles, staying up all Sunday night and early Monday morning to do so. Arthur coached her on TV techniques up to air time, and took photos of her with Kathie Lee and Hoda during a commercial break.
A limousine service from the television program picked her up, with all her props, and she learned from the driver that he had taken a long list of celebrities to the Today show’s location in Rockefeller Center, among them, for example, actor Tom Cruise. “I felt very important!” Sandi confided.
When Sandi arrived at the backstage entrance of the Today show, labor union members carried the balloon poles onto the set, as is required, but once the poles were set into place, Sandi was allowed to arrange the balloons in their proper position.
Then she was escorted to the ready rooms below, where, compliments of the television show, she had her hair done “in cascading curls,” her makeup applied, and her jacket pressed — all for a one-minute appearance!
Watching the show at home here in San Diego, it seemed to me the whole thing was over before it started. Nevertheless, however short her time with Kathie Lee and Hoda was, Sandi was ebullient afterwards. Cast and crew had given her thumbs up signals, media coach Clint Arthur said he was pleased, and a producer inquired if Sandi might be available in the future to do segments in connection with other unspecified holidays. Well, er, sure!
I asked my daughter what she’d like to do next on TV, and she said she thinks some daytime television shows might enjoy her doing a segment on party decorating with balloons. She’s heard through the grapevine that Ellen DeGeneres for some reason is not a fan of balloons, so Sandi says she’d like nothing better than to have the chance to change Ellen’s way of thinking on that score.
*
Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted at donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com