Big Tex’s Glow-Up: Hank Hill No More | Mitchell Glieber

Show Notes

Mike Rhyner sits down with State Fair of Texas president Mitchell Glieber to peel back the funnel cake and show you the machinery that powers Dallas’ favorite 24-day carnival. From the Red River Rivalry chaos to Big Tex’s post-2012 glow-up (yes, the fire suppression and the…posterior), this one’s equal parts fried, factual, and flat-out fun. Mike needles, Mitchell dishes, and together they map the year-round grind behind the fair’s food, music, safety ops, and community impact—plus a heartfelt nod to Mitchell’s dad, legendary broadcaster Frank Glieber. Come for the corny dogs, stay for the civic master class.

00:00:02 Radio Roots & Frank Glieber
00:13:04 How to Build a 24-Day City
00:22:15 Cotton Bowl Forever?
00:26:12 Mid-Show Mellow
00:28:23 Safety, Clarity & Clear Bags
00:30:14 Winter Classic Flashback
00:35:27 What’s New This Year
00:40:16 Not Just 24 Days
00:42:50 Dates, Duds & Dudley’s


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Creators and Guests

Host

Mike Rhyner

Mike Rhyner… "a little on the bumpy side, but rather likable"…so stated famously by a grade school teacher in Oak Cliff, where Mike grew up. A complicated guy, yet a guy who can do long division and remember call strike three to A Rod. Probably best left unattended. Don't expect assistance from him if a medical situation arises.

What is Your Dark Companion Podcast?

"Whatever I want it to be about on a given day; is what it is." Your Dark Companion couples your familiar friends from radio, Mike and Grubes! Mike brings his classic interviews that draw you in, and Grubes—The Devil—drops…well the drops, and throws the occasional grenade. Mike likes to draw on his fascinating acquaintances and friends allowing them to tell their stories as you've never heard them. But he also goes outside his network, sharing Grubes' network, and often outside of both, to bring you those they don't know, but believe have a story that will make you laugh, make you think, think differently, or just entertain you…"that's what we are trying to do here."

0:00:02 - (Mike Rhyner): Nobody would have thought that I would be the one. Reiner, Sports talk. Baseball, baseball, baseball, baseball. Oh, with the big mic. Oh, okay. All right. Yeah, okay, now I get it. We've had a lightning strike, boys. What happened over there, Grego? We had a little lightning strike right outside the window. The Texas Rangers.
0:00:32 - (Mitchell Glieber): All right, all right.
0:00:32 - (Mike Rhyner): Here's a tip for all these Americano league teams. Don't.
0:00:36 - (Mitchell Glieber): Wait, you said tip?
0:00:36 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah.
0:00:37 - (Mitchell Glieber): Okay.
0:00:39 - (Mike Rhyner): Keep jamming the ticket, colon. Nothing but a big Gen X jerk off. This is a cool night. Or what? Although somebody would hear that. Go. I'm back. It can't be. It can't be time to go yet.
0:01:01 - (C): It's time, Shoopy.
0:01:04 - (Mike Rhyner): Okay. You asked for it.
0:01:05 - (C): We did.
0:01:08 - (Mike Rhyner): Hello everybody, and welcome to another episode of your Dark Companion. Let's see, this is the one. 151. 151. Episode number 151 of YDC. And we are coming down in the afternoon of the what, 10th of September. Okay.
0:01:36 - (C): I kind of thought that's where he was going at first, but yeah, gotta make sure.
0:01:40 - (Mike Rhyner): Well, I bring that up just because in case something happens between now and whenever this runs that everybody can say, okay, well, still.
0:01:54 - (C): But for those that watch later, yeah.
0:01:56 - (Mike Rhyner): There are always those who consume later.
0:01:58 - (C): That's fair.
0:01:59 - (Mike Rhyner): But we're live for right now. But for those who consume later, they won't be able to say, man, you didn't even know about that, right? Well, yeah, I didn't know about it. Hadn't happened yet. So screw you, man.
0:02:12 - (C): Yeah. You hear us?
0:02:15 - (Mike Rhyner): We have Shoopy back with us today.
0:02:17 - (C): Yay. Good to be with you.
0:02:20 - (Mike Rhyner): We have Ashley, we have Becca. You know what else we've got coming up here in the not too distant future? The start of the great state fair of Texas. And when I think of the great state fair of Texas, my thoughts go to one man and one man only. And that man is with us here today. He is Mitchell Gleber.
0:02:51 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah, thank you.
0:02:53 - (C): Very good name, by the way.
0:02:54 - (Mitchell Glieber): I thought you were going to say big text.
0:02:58 - (Mike Rhyner): Hub. I probably should have said him, but he's not here today. You are.
0:03:02 - (Mitchell Glieber): Good point, good point.
0:03:03 - (Mike Rhyner): So I'm just trying to stay in the moment, you know.
0:03:06 - (Mitchell Glieber): I hear you.
0:03:07 - (C): From what I understand, this man, though, is responsible for the tucus of big techs being a little bigger after he burned down that time, you know, back in 2012.
0:03:17 - (Mitchell Glieber): That's true.
0:03:18 - (C): I believe they now call Big Texas, but the Mitch a few people.
0:03:23 - (Mitchell Glieber): That's not an authorized nickname. So.
0:03:28 - (C): We'Ll Keep it.
0:03:29 - (Mike Rhyner): Is Big Tex, bigger text now after.
0:03:32 - (Mitchell Glieber): That he is actually. He's a little bit bigger, about three feet taller. And yes, he had a very flat posterior like a Hank Hill butt.
0:03:43 - (Mike Rhyner): I seem to remember that.
0:03:44 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah. And it's still a little. But I asked that it be, you know, plumped up a little bit and it just didn't look normal. So now it looks a little bit more normal and. Yeah, so he's a lot heavier. He can withstand 100 mile an hour winds. Doesn't have the guy wire. Guy wires on the side anymore. And he has a fire suppression system built in.
0:04:11 - (Mike Rhyner): All right, wait.
0:04:13 - (C): Real.
0:04:13 - (Mike Rhyner): See, he's been through a lot. Everybody thinks that. Big. All Big Tex has to do is get put up and then stand there for three weeks or whatever. There's a lot more to it than that.
0:04:24 - (Mitchell Glieber): There's a lot more to it. He's got. He can wave, he can make finger point in certain directions. Talks all the time, swivel his head back and forth.
0:04:36 - (Mike Rhyner): All right, we're going to have a little bit more hyperactive big text. I guess I'm just.
0:04:42 - (C): Yeah, I'm just curious how the fire suppression works.
0:04:45 - (Mitchell Glieber): We haven't found out yet, but it is.
0:04:48 - (C): They just keep like a fireman inside them just at all times.
0:04:50 - (Mitchell Glieber): At all times. Yeah. Just have a little fire, a little hydrant.
0:04:53 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah. Now, I've been in the orbit of Mitch for some years. First of all, is it Mitch or Mitchell?
0:05:03 - (Mitchell Glieber): I go either way.
0:05:04 - (Mike Rhyner): Okay. I've been in your orbit for some years now in various roles that we've both been in. And for some reason that I can't imagine, I can't even comprehend, there's never been any real cause for us to interact.
0:05:23 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah, that's true.
0:05:24 - (Mike Rhyner): I mean, I've known who you are. You might have known who I am, but. But as far as, you know, doing anything together or being in the same place at the same time, that's. That does not happen. So you're seeing a first today. This first time we've ever, certainly ever done anything like this.
0:05:43 - (Mitchell Glieber): Definitely. I've. I've introduced myself to you at Jason's Deli once or twice. And I will say this, I'm honored to be in your presence. I consider you a leader. I basically think of you as the man who invented radio as I know it, because radio was something completely different until you came on the scene and basically invented the little ticket. And it has provided me thousands upon thousands of hours of enjoyment and entertainment. So thank you.
0:06:19 - (Mike Rhyner): Well, thank you. You're Very nice to say so. I appreciate that. Can we just tickle each other? Okay, sure. I mean, hey, these are new times.
0:06:31 - (C): He's down for it.
0:06:32 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah. I mean, so how long have you been on the scene at the fair?
0:06:38 - (Mitchell Glieber): So I joined the State fair Texas in 1999. I worked after college. I worked for the mavericks for about nine and a half years. Yeah, during the 90s, right.
0:06:50 - (Mike Rhyner): I remember that.
0:06:51 - (Mitchell Glieber): Very dark time during the franchise's history. Never made the playoffs. During the 90s. I had two seasons where we won 11 games and 13 games back. Those tough days was selling season tickets. Became the sales manager, basically decided after 99, okay. I think I've enjoyed my time here in sports for a while and time to go do something a little different. I was in, you know, basically in the sales and marketing time or, you know, position there at the Mavericks. And then this marketing position came open at the State Fair in 99.
0:07:33 - (Mitchell Glieber): Interviewed got the position. Next thing I know, it's 2014, and my predecessor is retiring and transitioned into the president's role in 2014. All right, so this will be my 27th fair upcoming.
0:07:53 - (Mike Rhyner): Oh, my gosh.
0:07:54 - (Mitchell Glieber): Really shocking.
0:07:56 - (Mike Rhyner): That's a lot of fairs.
0:07:57 - (Mitchell Glieber): A lot of fairs. Yeah.
0:07:59 - (Mike Rhyner): What was. If we may flip back through what you just ran down, what was trying to sell the 11 and 13 win Mavericks teams to the masses.
0:08:11 - (Mitchell Glieber): Like, as you could imagine, it was very difficult. We got a lot of folks that were season ticket holders who were disgruntled, not really happy with us. So a lot of phone calls and trying to talk to people about renewing their season tickets. And then a lot of comments back about, hey, I can't give these things away. There's no way I'm going to do this again. And then, you know, trying to talk about, hey, the future is looking really bright. We've got these young rookies coming in, and occasionally we miss on some draft picks here and there.
0:08:49 - (Mitchell Glieber): And so, yeah, it was. It was tough during that time period. Right after I left is when Mark Cuban bought the team and kind of turned the corner at that point. But, yeah, that was a tough time.
0:09:01 - (Mike Rhyner): Now, one other tertiary thing that I want to mention is your dad, your dad was Frank Gleber.
0:09:09 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yes, sir.
0:09:10 - (Mike Rhyner): And when I was coming up through the ranks, I was a kid just starting to figure out sports and watching on tv. If somebody was doing sports on TV and on the radio, chances are it was Frank Gleber, because he was absolutely the guy. And this is like, you know, when the Cowboys were first starting out, the Dallas Texans were here and just on ever since then, if there were sports on tv, Frank Glieber was the guy. And I would run to him once I got in the game. I would run into him or.
0:09:50 - (Mike Rhyner): Well, I wouldn't run into him because I was too intimidated by him to say anything.
0:09:55 - (Mitchell Glieber): I am right now, actually. So I know how you feel.
0:09:58 - (C): Full circle.
0:09:59 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah.
0:10:00 - (Mike Rhyner): But I mean, he was just such a presence. He was everywhere. Like I say, if you had a sport that you needed, broadcasted, Needed broadcast, broadcasted, broadcast. Frank Gleiber was the guy you wanted to get. And I just had a lot of respect for him. And I don't expect you to react to this in any particular way, but I just had a lot of respect and regard for the guy.
0:10:27 - (Mitchell Glieber): Thank you.
0:10:27 - (Mike Rhyner): And he influenced me pretty profusely, as he did all of us.
0:10:32 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah, definitely influenced me, I'll say that. Passed away when I was 18, but certainly had a great time, you know, growing up around him, around sports. Had that opportunity to be around him, you know, going to games and going to cowboys training camps and Thousand Oaks and all those types of things. But I was certainly aware of, you know, what he was doing at all times. And I'm very honored that, you know, now, what is it, 25, 15, 40, 40 years later that people still remember him? You know, there's not many Gliebers in the world, so if I introduce myself to somebody, it's fairly common that they'll say, hey, are you related to Frank Gleber? And the answer is yes. And it's been 40 years, so it's pretty amazing.
0:11:26 - (Mike Rhyner): He was that kind of presence, man. He was that kind of presence.
0:11:30 - (Mitchell Glieber): I often wonder what he would think of radio today. You know, just the. The old KRLD radio and the sports shows and things that they would do and talk shows and things like that and how it's changed. You know, I'm sure he'd probably look at it the way Norm probably looked at it when he first was, you know, coming onto the ticket.
0:11:49 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah.
0:11:50 - (Mitchell Glieber): You know, just wonder how he would possibly react. That sort of situation. It's far drops and all that kind of stuff going on while he's talking.
0:11:59 - (Mike Rhyner): Well, I mean, if you don't talk about fart drops, there's the source right over there.
0:12:04 - (Mitchell Glieber): I know who the source is, but.
0:12:07 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah, it would require an adjustment. And, you know, I always, like. I was a little older than most of those guys and probably a little bit more familiar with Frank and Vern Lundquist and those other guys. And I tried to Be, you know, tried to keep all that in mind and be a little bit more respectful and have a little bit more regard for them and what they had done. Yeah, then the others might. But, but all that said, I can't imagine what a mind blow it would have been for them.
0:12:42 - (Mike Rhyner): All right, now let's get on to the fair.
0:12:44 - (Mitchell Glieber): Sure.
0:12:44 - (Mike Rhyner): I cannot think of a larger civic undertaking that happens every year than what it must be like to string the fair together and get it up and running. How far in advance do you guys start prepping?
0:13:04 - (Mitchell Glieber): Well, I would say the best time to start prepping for the 26 fair, for instance, will be during the 25 fair. Because as you know, down at Fair park, it's a national historic landmark. It's building. When you put the fair together, you're building a little city and everything that you put up must come down. So the best time to be able to look at the grounds and kind of see what's working, what's not working, where are there other opportunities?
0:13:31 - (Mitchell Glieber): What do we want to change is during the previous year's fair. So we'll actually be doing a lot of prep work during this year's fair. And then immediately after this year's fair, we'll start planning for 2026. We'll start talking about capital improvements that we need to make. You know, working with the city on projects that we need to do at Fair park to make the grounds better. So it never stops. I was telling groups this a little bit earlier. You know, it used to be a little bit slower after the fair ended. Now, you know, we end the fair and we're moving on and it gets busy again.
0:14:08 - (Mitchell Glieber): So a lot of my friends give me a lot of grief and say you only work 24 days a year. Right. So, yeah, not quite. It's not, that's not actually how I work.
0:14:17 - (Mike Rhyner): I heard something like that. You only work four hours a day.
0:14:19 - (Mitchell Glieber): Exactly.
0:14:20 - (Mike Rhyner): Right.
0:14:21 - (Mitchell Glieber): So it's not like there's any prep that goes into it. So. But yeah, our team, we have a team of 67 full time staff members that work year round in preparation for the fair. And it takes every one of them. We got a great team. They're all experts in the, in the field. And it's the way the product works is it's so diverse that you have to have experts in midway rides and you have to have experts in livestock and experts in creative arts and marketing and public relations and so on and so on. So it's just, it's very complex and diverse as far as the product goes.
0:14:59 - (Mike Rhyner): Is there any one thing that goes on at the fair every year that you would say is the most difficult to get together, the most difficult to stick the landing on or are difficult to really pull off?
0:15:17 - (Mitchell Glieber): You know, I think really kind of the most difficult thing and more complex thing, I guess I would say, in terms of planning is just the overall safety and security plan. Yeah, I mean, that's a big deal for us. For an event that draws, you know, 2 million plus people over 24 days, that's a lot of people coming during 24 days. It's basically like having a Super bowl every day for 24 days in terms of, you know, the numbers of people that are coming. And so, you know, we work, you know, really starting early in the year in preparation for that year in terms of our safety and security plan. How are we going to change things up?
0:15:57 - (Mitchell Glieber): Dallas police are great partners for us. And so then of course, we have our own private security team that we work with. And everything changes. I mean, times have changed. So you're constantly evolving on the safety and security side. And I spend. If there's one thing that kind of keeps me up at night, it's generally going to be something related to safety and security.
0:16:19 - (Mike Rhyner): Do you have a crew of maybe three, four, five guys, maybe even more than that, that have been with you for a long time and, and know what getting the fair together and getting up, up and running every year is all about?
0:16:33 - (Mitchell Glieber): Absolutely. You know, as I said, we have about 67 full time folks. Our team, our senior management team, we have a lot of tenure on our team. So I don't know the total number of years, but I would guess that among, you know, 10, 11 full time senior management people, we're well over 200 years of experience out there. So, yeah, these people, they know what they're doing. They're experts at it. You know, they know the fair like the back of their hand now. Know the fairgrounds extremely well.
0:17:05 - (Mitchell Glieber): And I'm very lucky to have a team that is as dedicated and knowledgeable about putting the fair together as our team is.
0:17:15 - (Mike Rhyner): What's the attraction at the fair this year that's got you most excited?
0:17:21 - (Mitchell Glieber): Well, it's always the football games. You know, we love hosting the football games. Every year we have grand lady and Prairie View, which is the first Saturday of the fair. That'll be the 27th. This is the 100th year of the State Fair Classic, so it's a big deal. Our promoter, Al Wash, this is his 50th year of doing the game. And then, of course, the Red river rivalry, Texas and Oklahoma. It's been in the Cotton bowl since 1929.
0:17:51 - (Mitchell Glieber): So, you know, there's a good chance, if both teams are playing well, that we'll have some big national things that, you know, like shows that'll come in, espn, game day, SEC Nation. And so a lot of time and energy is put into those particular events and then everything else. As we look at the fair every year, you know, we have a lot of folks that come back year after year, and so you kind of have to work to find that mix of new and tradition.
0:18:22 - (Mitchell Glieber): So it's always a real challenge for us each year to, you know, make sure that we honor the traditions, the things that people want to do each and every year. But then at the same time, you know, you need to keep the product fresh, and so just keeping that product fresh. So, you know, we always have our main stage. We have a great lineup of folks that come to our main stage. It's one of the few fairs out there that actually has a free main stage.
0:18:49 - (Mitchell Glieber): Most fairs have large grandstands and they sell tickets to their. To their shows, and ours is free. So that's always a big deal for us as well.
0:18:59 - (Mike Rhyner): Who you got coming in this year?
0:19:02 - (Mitchell Glieber): Oh, boy. I know. We have Wade Bowen. We have the Village People. I mean, we have. We have. The way we do it is we usually run our headliner acts on Friday, Saturday, Sundays, and then we'll have, you know, regional or local talent on other days. And we try to touch all the different bases, you know, as far as the genres of music. So we'll have, you know, a couple of big Latino acts, a couple of acts that will be big tlc, for instance, that will be there for Grambling Purview.
0:19:39 - (Mitchell Glieber): And, you know, so we have multiple acts that really. We try to touch all the bases, and we try to say that we have something for everybody. So we need to get petty theft out there is what we need.
0:19:54 - (Mike Rhyner): If you want to chase some people away, you do. No, for sure.
0:19:57 - (Mitchell Glieber): I would draw some people. I know.
0:19:59 - (D): I have a quick question.
0:20:00 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah.
0:20:01 - (D): You were talking about that if the teams are in the right position, you could end up having these national shows come out for the Cotton Bowl. How far in advance do you get to know and prep for something like that?
0:20:15 - (Mitchell Glieber): So let's take game day, because that's the biggest one, for instance. And normally they'll tell us a couple weeks in advance if such and such happens. We're very likely coming. If one of the teams loses the week before or really just, you know, or if there's another matchup that is in the same ballpark, we may miss out on it, but we won't know 100% certain until one week before the game. So they'll play that Saturday and then on Sunday we'll get word from game day whether they'll be coming or not. SEC Nation, you know, it's kind of new for us now with the schools being new to the sec.
0:20:56 - (Mitchell Glieber): They'll probably tell us a couple weeks in advance that they'll be coming.
0:21:00 - (C): How much of an undertaking is that then? Like, obviously, if you don't totally know with less than a week to go, how, how well, how do you prepare for either outcome? I guess.
0:21:12 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah, you know, we've dealt with it every year, so we kind of know the drill. Our PR team is very well equipped to be able to, you know, turn on a dime and handle those situations. They've done site checks before, so we know there's usually one or two locations that they would want to go that work well with them, that provide them the space that they need for the large, you know, number of people that they draw and has a backdrop that works well for them.
0:21:42 - (Mitchell Glieber): So we have a team on our primary group that actually they have it down to a science. I mean, they can make it happen. It's a ton of work. I mean, it's a big undertaking. A lot of work. A lot of moving pieces operationally to get these things in, you know, in the middle of the night. You can't just roll in an 18 wheeler during the day and have all this stuff set up. So it's. It happens overnight. Our people lose a lot of sleep, but it's unbelievable exposure for the fair.
0:22:11 - (C): Right.
0:22:12 - (Mitchell Glieber): So it's, you know, it's a real blessing when they come.
0:22:15 - (C): Man, that's insane.
0:22:16 - (Mike Rhyner): You know, every now and then, the idea of Texas ou, the Red River Shootout or Red. Red. Excuse me.
0:22:26 - (C): Take two.
0:22:26 - (Mike Rhyner): Red River Rivalry.
0:22:28 - (Mitchell Glieber): Tough to say. Yes, sir.
0:22:29 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah, the idea of that moving to one of the other large venues scattered around our Fairburg will pop up and it just. I can't stand the thought of that. I mean, Texas OU has been a part of the scene and part of the scene of the fair from the time I was a kid on. And I just can't imagine that that's. Is there any chance that that might happen?
0:23:03 - (Mitchell Glieber): I don't think so. I mean, that's my opinion. I know that the, the schools love coming to and having the game here. The fan bases Love it as well. One of the biggest issues and the reason why that is occasionally brought up is the Cotton bowl, the fact that the stadium is very old. I mean, let's face it, it was built in 1930. It was built for 45,000 fans. The concourses were not equipped to be able to handle 92,000 people.
0:23:37 - (Mitchell Glieber): And that's what the stadium holds now. So there was a lot of work to be done, and you've probably heard about it. There's $140 million worth of improvements that have been made over the past two years, most of them being done this past year. And it's amazing. When you see it, you will barely recognize the west side. Everything was done on the west side. Now need to go back and be able to address the east side.
0:24:04 - (Mitchell Glieber): But the west side of the stadium is something else. It looks amazing.
0:24:09 - (Mike Rhyner): Well, hope that never happens, man.
0:24:12 - (Mitchell Glieber): I really don't think it will. I mean, I think the schools, like I said, they love coming. It's great for them from a recruiting standpoint. You know, you turn it into a home and home or, you know, go to another stadium, then it just becomes another game on the schedule still. I mean, it's a rivalry game, but it's just another game on the schedule. The thing that makes it unique is the environment of the fact that it's played in the middle of the state fair, Texas, 92, 000 seats, splitting the 50 with the fans. It's just an amazing experience.
0:24:45 - (Mike Rhyner): It really is.
0:24:46 - (Mitchell Glieber): You need to come see the Cotton bowl. By the way, you need you. I'll take you and give you a tour before we open. If you want to come down.
0:24:52 - (Mike Rhyner): I'd love to check that out. I haven't been in that place in years.
0:24:55 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah, it's amazing.
0:24:57 - (D): Dan, do you think the SEC is actually going to be more supportive of the teams keeping this game at the Cotton bowl just because of the fan base that draws the market? Just marketing the game itself is pretty. Going to be pretty huge for the sec, I would think.
0:25:15 - (Mitchell Glieber): I think. I think the sec, you know, obviously they moved into Texas A and M was already in there, but they moved into Texas with, you know, with Texas and now Oklahoma, knowing that that game is going to be played in Dallas and it brings that market to them that it's not like the SEC didn't already have a lot of followers, but they certainly have a ton more followers now in the Dallas market because of the game being here.
0:25:41 - (Mitchell Glieber): So they love it. SEC folks have been great to work with thus far, and they love It.
0:25:47 - (Mike Rhyner): He is Mitchell Gleber. He is the man in charge of the great State Fair of Texas. And we'll have more with Mitch coming right up. But first, it's time for the dreaded and feared mid show read.
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0:27:55 - (Mitchell Glieber): Okay.
0:27:56 - (Mike Rhyner): All right. Excellent. Back into the good stuff. This is Mitch Gleber. He is the man in charge of the great State Fair of Texas. He is very excited because the great State Fair is nigh upon us here. How much downtime will you give yourself after the thing is over, before you really get going for next year?
0:28:23 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah. So there's not a lot, actually, when the fair closes, it goes away a lot quicker than it comes. I mean, it's just amazing how fast things go away. These people have been there for 24 days. Well, actually longer, because they've been there setting up, and they are ready to get out at the end of 24 days. We're talking about the vendors, and they have their next stops to go to. A lot of the ride operators, for instance, or exhibitors may have another fair that they're going to on their route.
0:28:59 - (Mitchell Glieber): So they're getting out of there pretty quick. So it takes a little bit of time to tear it down and get out. But the team, our team, we're really start jumping into budgeting and planning almost immediately. And then December gives us a little bit of time for some of our folks to take a breath and, you know, kind of get reacquainted with the family again. And then when we come back after the new year, you know, hit the ground running and get things going.
0:29:28 - (Mike Rhyner): You know, another thing that's gone on at the State Fair these last few years, and it's something I always enjoy watching on tv. I don't think I have the stomach for the fight to go out there, live for it. But one thing I do enjoy watching, and there's. I mean, this. It's the kind of thing that is singular in that I guess others can do it. Probably others do do it. But in this part of the world, this can only happen at the fair. And that's the Winter Classic.
0:30:04 - (Mike Rhyner): How did the Winter Classic start up? And tell us how that's gone for you and give us a little look at some of the things that go into putting that on every year.
0:30:14 - (Mitchell Glieber): Okay. Now, are you speaking of the hockey game?
0:30:17 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah. Yeah.
0:30:18 - (Mitchell Glieber): Okay, so they. They just played once in the Cotton Bowl. The Stars had that one game against, I think it was Nashville. Yeah, we were not necessarily totally involved in that, although there was a section of our midway that we operated in conjunction with that. But as far as year round operations of Fair park go, we're kind of out of the loop on that. We're tenants at the park, and so we operate and run the 24 day fair.
0:30:48 - (Mitchell Glieber): And if there's a big event like that that comes up, or maybe FIFA next year, for instance, when FIFA happens and they have the big fan fest that's going to be at Fair park, there may be an opportunity there for us to be able to open a section of Midway and do some things in conjunction with that. But the Winter Classic, we did participate in it. It was really cool. I mean, I thought that that was one of the neatest events that we've had in the city of Dallas as far back as I can remember.
0:31:18 - (Mitchell Glieber): And it was fun for us to be involved in it, but we weren't directly involved in terms of operating and coordinating it.
0:31:26 - (Mike Rhyner): Gosh, somehow I got it through my head that that was in conjunction with the fair, but I guess not, because it's two independent things.
0:31:34 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah, that was. I guess it was New Year's Day.
0:31:38 - (C): 20.
0:31:39 - (Mitchell Glieber): 20.
0:31:40 - (D): 20 right before the shutdown. But you guys, right before the shutdown.
0:31:44 - (Mitchell Glieber): Actually we were out there working though, because, you know, the midway portion of the midway, like I said, was open and that was part of the experience. And I think it was something that the NHL really liked. Again, kind of like the football games. It creates a really unique atmosphere to have a stadium like that and be able to open a midway and have, you know, rides and other attractions available for the fans.
0:32:08 - (Mitchell Glieber): I'd be, I'd be really surprised if they don't come back. I think they had a great experience.
0:32:13 - (Mike Rhyner): Boy, I hope they do because that was, that was really cool.
0:32:17 - (Mitchell Glieber): And you never know what kind of weather you're going to get that day. You could get 70 degrees and 70 degrees and sunny. You could have 50 degrees with like it was, or heck, it could be 20 below. You never know.
0:32:30 - (Mike Rhyner): So what kind of relationship do you guys have with between, you know, the state fair and Fair Park?
0:32:38 - (Mitchell Glieber): So Fair park is city of Dallas property. We have a contractual right to be able to set up, run and tear down the state fair. So we have the, the park for about a three month window. Now during that time there's other events that take place during setup and tear down, for instance, that fall within our lease window. And generally there's not a problem with it. Very rarely will they bring an event to us that we have to say, sorry, we can't accommodate that. The only reason we would is because if there's some sort of construction going on and safety is a big issue in that area of the park, but really that just doesn't happen.
0:33:18 - (Mitchell Glieber): So. But we have a good relationship with the city. As you may have known or heard recently, the city has retaken Fair park over. It was being run by a nonprofit, Fair park first, who subcontracted with the group OVG that actually was managing the day to day operations. And the city chose to terminate that agreement and take it back over themselves. And we're fine with whatever they want to do. I mean, it doesn't impact how we run the fair one way or the other.
0:33:52 - (Mitchell Glieber): We have a great relationship with the city and the park department that run the grounds.
0:33:56 - (Mike Rhyner): What kind of staff do you have?
0:33:59 - (Mitchell Glieber): We have 67 full time folks. So they all are 100% dedicated to the 24 days of the state fair Texas. And you know, we have people that kind of range in, in all sorts of different areas. Finance, accounting, human resources, public relations, marketing, exhibits, operations, Midway operations, livestock, creative arts. I mean people all over the place.
0:34:32 - (Mike Rhyner): So man, it's a Big undertaking.
0:34:34 - (Mitchell Glieber): There's a lot that goes into it. It's very complex. And we are kind of excited because, you know, we have. Our administration building is right at the top of the tunnel of the Cotton Bowl.
0:34:44 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah.
0:34:45 - (Mitchell Glieber): A little two story building that was an old firehouse for the 1936 centennial celebration at fair park. But it was built in 1936, so it's extremely old and we are busting at the seams. And so we're excited because after this year's fair, we're actually breaking ground and building a new administration building out there. So that's something that.
0:35:06 - (Mike Rhyner): Out there on site.
0:35:08 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah, kind of back at the. In the backside of the midway.
0:35:10 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah.
0:35:11 - (Mitchell Glieber): Be brand new. Should be a beautiful facility that will take the fair into the next 50 years.
0:35:17 - (Mike Rhyner): What other sorts of new attractions are we going to see this year that we have not seen, seen maybe in recent years, if ever at the fair?
0:35:27 - (Mitchell Glieber): So every year, you know, you've heard about the big Tech's Choice awards and so the big. The big item. When we do a lot of the things related to marketing or research on the fair, the biggest reason that people come to the fair, they say is for the fair food.
0:35:47 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah.
0:35:47 - (Mitchell Glieber): So that's probably the thing that we are hanging our hat on in terms of being most famous for at this point. That along with it just being an annual tradition. So the big Tech's choice awards happened recently. We had a ton of great foods that were entered into that. So you're going to have a lot of new food items to try out there. This year we will have several new shows throughout the grounds. We redefine each year our parade and our illumination sensation show, which is done on the esplanade.
0:36:23 - (Mitchell Glieber): Of course, the auto show will be back and having new models each and every year. That's a big deal for us. Lots of new exhibits that will be out there on the grounds. A few new rides that we'll have. Have 177 foot swing ride that will be out there on the midway. So yeah, y' all need to come try that out.
0:36:47 - (C): Yeah, we'll let you know.
0:36:48 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yeah, yeah.
0:36:53 - (Mike Rhyner): There was a time when I would have done that. I wouldn't do it now, but there was a time when I would have been all over it.
0:37:00 - (Mitchell Glieber): I'll put you on every ride that you want to go on and just. You can eat a corny dog and then go on a spin ride and.
0:37:09 - (Mike Rhyner): You know, just no, see what happens. I did that with my dad one time when I was a kid and threw up all over him, and he never forgave me.
0:37:16 - (Mitchell Glieber): That's happened before. It's definitely happened.
0:37:19 - (Mike Rhyner): I bet it has. Boy, it's just such a. Just an. Such an incredible undertaking that you guys put on every year. I mean, you've got a. You got to know a lot. You got to know a lot of people, and you've also got to have the capacity for when something goes wrong, knowing what to do about it.
0:37:42 - (Mitchell Glieber): That is quickly. Yes, sir.
0:37:43 - (Mike Rhyner): Right.
0:37:44 - (Mitchell Glieber): Yes, absolutely. Yeah, we do a ton of planning. You know, a lot of that's related to, as we discussed, safety and security. We have a great partnership with Dallas Police Department, and, you know, we've. We've made some changes over the past few years that have been a little controversial. You know, we. We banned firearms from being brought into the grounds, from. From folks that were licensed to carry, which really is just something that is common sense to us.
0:38:16 - (Mitchell Glieber): It makes all the sense in the world. But we caught ourselves up in a little lawsuit now with our attorney general, who doesn't believe that that's the right thing for us to do, but we believe it's the right thing to do and feel strongly that safety and security is the number one thing for us. And. And we feel like, you know, that's the right thing, even though we're kind of caught up in a bit of a legal situation now.
0:38:43 - (Mike Rhyner): So what are some of the things you guys do to make the fair safe and secure every year?
0:38:48 - (Mitchell Glieber): So we have a ton of police officers that are out there, and the state fair is through our contract with the city of Dallas. DPD comes up with the safety plan. They provide all the officers. Of course, we pay every penny for that. We actually now have a safety team in addition to that that is composed of retired Dallas police officers that sit on stands out there, and they're just an extra set of eyes and ears to help us monitor that. We have metal detectors that are coming through. We're introducing a clear bag policy this year for people as they arrive to be bringing clear bags, similar to what you would see at sporting events and things like that.
0:39:37 - (Mitchell Glieber): And we have a command center that we just built last year, where it's called State Fair Command, where everybody together, from Dallas Fire and Rescue to Dallas Police Department, to the cleaning crew, we have representatives from all these different areas that are there that if a call comes in and help is needed, you know, they. We have cameras all over the place. So we have our eyes on just about everything that's happening out there at all times.
0:40:07 - (Mitchell Glieber): So, you know, those are just a few things.
0:40:09 - (Mike Rhyner): Anything else you would like to get out there that people are going to need to know when coming to the fair this year?
0:40:16 - (Mitchell Glieber): That really, those are really kind of the main things I would say. You know, one thing that we always like to make sure people understand is the fair is a nonprofit organization. And the dollars that we raise through our fans, our fair goers that attend the State Fair of Texas go to a good cause. So we put our money back into Fair park in terms of capital improvements, which I think everybody knows are sorely needed out there on the grounds. Tons of deferred maintenance.
0:40:45 - (Mitchell Glieber): And then we have our scholarship program that we give scholarships to the 60 ISD high schools that are closest to Fair park, as well as kids that participate in all of our youth livestock auctions. We have a grant program for nonprofit organizations that are in the Fair Park South Dallas area that are home right there around us. We provide about $600,000 in grants to local nonprofits in that community.
0:41:13 - (Mitchell Glieber): And then we just started, actually the last few years, our urban farm program. We started that in 2017, where we are now approaching 2 million servings, where we have a team that's actually on grounds in a greenhouse that sits next to the Texas Star Ferris wheel. And they grow produce because we're in a food desert there at Fair park and they grow this produce through a hydroponic system. And then we donate all of that produce to organizations that are right around the South Dallas Fair park area that are in need of that sort of thing.
0:41:49 - (Mitchell Glieber): So, you know that I think that's something that gets lost on people.
0:41:53 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah, it does.
0:41:53 - (Mitchell Glieber): The fact that, you know, we're not just a 24 day event. We are a nonprofit that is striving to make a 365 day impact and be great neighbors for the city of Dallas and for our community.
0:42:08 - (Mike Rhyner): Can't wait. The great State Fair of Texas cannot wait. Mitch, thanks for coming out today and joining us here on ydc. We appreciate it.
0:42:17 - (Mitchell Glieber): I appreciate you having me very much.
0:42:20 - (Mike Rhyner): A couple of other things we need to tell you about before we get going here. Should I read this first? Okay. On Thursday 11th September, the OG will be live on Patreon on the first booth on the left here. And we'll be in a new spot. This is Dudley's Sports Grill up on Henderson. So come see us out there at Dudley's and join what, Grego?
0:42:50 - (Mitchell Glieber): Oh.
0:42:56 - (Mike Rhyner): And join us on Patreon. This is set up to look like a sports book straight out of Vegas. They tell us with an amazing lounge in the back. Dudley's is where you want to watch all the games. Now, if you've not been there yet, you want to check it out. We can scarcely think of a better time than Thursday the 11th of September will be there at 5 o'. Clock. It is the OG shooping Grego me for a little 30 second sports.
0:43:26 - (C): 30 minute.
0:43:27 - (Mike Rhyner): 30 minutes? I'm sorry, not 30.
0:43:29 - (C): I'm gonna say with as much as Ashley's worked, I think she's cool with 30 seconds.
0:43:32 - (Mike Rhyner): Yeah, I'm sure she would be cool with it. To tell you the truth, I would too.
0:43:37 - (D): Thursday is a special 9 11.
0:43:41 - (Mike Rhyner): Oh, that's right, it is. That's 9 11. So everybody get festive out there with. Well, no.
0:43:50 - (C): Y' all are gonna maybe recap your memories of doing the shows back then and all that.
0:43:55 - (D): How difficult it actually was.
0:43:57 - (Mike Rhyner): So you got this all planned out for us, do you?
0:43:59 - (C): Something like that.
0:44:00 - (Mike Rhyner): All right, well, that'll be the September 11th, 5 o', clock Dudley's on Henderson for the OG. There's nothing you can do with it. There's nothing at all that you can do with us.
0:44:15 - (D): And the Great State Fair of Texas will open on the 26th.
0:44:23 - (C): 16 days, man.
0:44:25 - (Mitchell Glieber): 16 days. 24 days of fun.
0:44:30 - (Mike Rhyner): Okay, I had another thing I was going to tell you, but I lost it on the teleprompter, so. Oh, here we go. Here we go. Yeah, I know. I did, I did. You can find all of our episodes is what I want to tell you. You can find them all on our Patreon page. Foreign thing to those of us who swim in the waters of the podcast. And while we're at it, if you're feeling what we're throwing down, how about a nice review? If you're by the channel on Spotify or Apple Podcasts, you can help others find us by leaving a review.
0:45:25 - (Mike Rhyner): Thanks to Mitch Gleiber, thanks to Shupee, thanks to Ashley, thanks to Becca. Most of all, thanks to you for watching your Dark Companion. Bye. All right, I'm gonna go to pants off. Your Dark Companion is a stolen water media presentation.