Chuck Smith

2009
So you think you’re a star?
Have you got the music in you? More specifically, have you got the CHRISTMAS music in you? If you’ve ever dreamed of producing your own CD of Christmas music, wait no longer! Life is too short to sit around and dream. With record companies losing profits every day, now is the time to jump in with both feet and begin your career as an independent recording artist. Especially since there are now so many ways to have your music heard even without the backing of a big record company. As they say at the Nashville Songwriters Association, “It all begins…
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2009
Think like your cellphone
My first year to install an extreme Christmas light display at my home was in 2005. I had to buy all the products, learn a new software program, stumble through installation procedures, install an electrical sub-panel in my garage and make about a hundred trips to Home Depot for electrical supplies. The display was fairly simple and included 45,000 lights, 80 channels of computer control and very few props or tricks. I programmed about eight unedited songs, one after the next much like a collection of songs on any given album. I thought it was really cool and I had…
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2009
Sequencing for a living
In the September issue of PlanetChristmas magazine, you heard from industry experts giving great advice on “Going Pro” with a Christmas lighting business. I’ve been fortunate to meet with many of these people and have learned a great deal from them. Following in those footsteps, I would like to share my industry experiences with you. While there are many aspects of a lighting business, I’d like to focus on sequencing a display that is not your own. Of the many services available the most popular is custom programming of light displays. In my many years of working with synchronized displays,…
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2009
Re-PLUS in Louisville
It started out a simple enough idea back in late May. Our normal bi-annual gathering of serious Christmas decorators was not meant to be in this challenging economy. Instead, the rule book was being thrown out the window and PlanetChristmas was going to sponsor a one day event in downtown Louisville. It was being called the 2009 retry of PlanetChristmas Lights Up Symposium (re-PLUS), targeted at the locals and focused on people getting together to share Christmas decorating experiences. If 50 people showed up, it was going to be deemed a success. The event was to be free but options…
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2009
The Rumor Mill
I dressed up as a miniature Hyatt employee and got in free to that re-PLUS event in Louisville on August 1st in Louisville. It wasn’t until the end of the day after I had stacked 200 chairs and filled a dumpster with trash I found out the event was free for everyone. As Homer the elf would say: DOH! To make things even worse, wearing that Hyatt employee uniform meant I couldn’t keep any of the PlanetChristmas bling Chuck was tossing out at every opportunity. Caps, shirts, coffee cups, cookbooks, LED necklaces, ducks, lapel pins. Wow. Where did he get…
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2009
Marking your territory
There’s a morgue under the house according to my wife. It’s where I store most of the Christmas decorations because it’s cool, relatively dry and full of critters that love living in blowmold cavities. Most have died but a few still move around enjoying a predator free environment. I learned years ago it’s best to pull most of the stuff out of the morgue during late summer so it can air out and de-mildew in the bright sunshine before the real Christmas decorating begins. That’s what I did last weekend. I had to put up a “private property” sign in…
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2009
Indoor displays
Let’s talk Christmas trees. I’m sure you’ve seen the pictures of Andrew Albertson’s trees. They are absolutely gorgeous, right? Let’s face it, that man knows how to decorate. Want to do the same in your own home? Wonderful! In order to do it, you have to have more than one tree and your best bet is to hit the after-Christmas sales when they go 50-90% off. As far as trees go, the sky is the limit. You can find pre-lit, multi-color, all white, incandescent, LED, white, silver, green, the other green or just about any type/size that you could possibly…
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2009
Wireframe tips and tricks
It seems that these days everyone is going to the LED lights. They use so much less electricity and seem to last longer than the old-fashioned incandescent mini-lights. Unfortunately, for long time decorators changing can be costly. In many cases, there’s nothing wrong with incandescent decorations if you give them gentle, loving care. You can expect many more years of life. There are some tricks of the trade for quickly refurbishing those old wire frames that are lit in incandescent lights. The obvious fist thing to do is replace the bulbs on the wire frame. This can be fairly easily…
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2009
Over The Top!
PlanetChristmas started it all with the original Worldwide Decorating Contest and never imagined the number of incredible Christmas displays there were out there. When the 2008 judges saw the first Shadrack display video shot from the other side of an Interstate exit in Knoxville, Tennessee they were dazzled by the sheer size. Then when the judges saw the second video shot in Bristol, Tennessee they couldn’t believe the Glover family had built two independent displays at the same time. They were then astonished to find out each display was controlled by 1,600 light circuits. Finally, when the judges found out…
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2009
LEDs are better?
One of my favorite aspects of our annual Christmas display is going outside when the crowds start to gather because I really enjoy catching the expressions on spectator’s faces. Most often people see me exit the house and start talking to me once I get to my “candy cane distribution point” across the street. The most popular question is “Wow, what’s your electricity bill like?” I should probably add an exclamation point based on how it’s often asked, but Mrs. Peck (my 5th grade English teacher) might object to that punctuation. My response is always “Actually, my bill has gone…
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