Corporate - Education - NonProfits - Sports - Special Events
Non-profit Galas. A magical auctioneer.
As your magical auctioneer, Hondo serves several roles. Emcee, Headliner, Silent Auction, Live Auction and Fund-a-Need. Think about it - your donors and supporters have been to many galas and fundraisers. Most follow a very traditional format. When you are ready for a fun change, consider the Amazing Hondo. His close-up strolling magic delights your guests during the Silent Auction and Reception and warms them up for the after-dinner giving. Hondo kicks off the formal presentation with a welcoming mix of magic, humor and message, setting the tone for the Live Auction and Fund-a-Need. Hondo's natural performance style puts everyone at ease and opens them up to the spirit of giving. Hondo works closely with your planning team in assuring a fun, memorable, and successful event.
Hondo makes money magically appear!
Mingling magic during the reception and silent auction for Gillette Children's Gala set the stage for the dinner, Live Auction and Fund-A-Need to follow.
Close-up Table Magic during dinner further personalizes the experience for sponsors and donors at the Gillette Children's Hospital Foundation Gala in MN.
Hondo's unassuming and personable style serve to make him inviting and approachable to audiences of all types. Reactions like hers are commonplace.
Meetings and Conferences
Let's face it, business is tough. Time is limited. You have a meeting agenda. Above all, you have an AUDIENCE. You are the conductor of their experience. You almost need to be a magician to make it all happen. What to do? You want to balance the business side of your meeting with the people side. Yes you can do both: Have some FUN and still get the MESSAGE across. Enter the Amazing Hondo.
For better than three decades, Hondo's entertaining and inspiring keynotes have proven the perfect fit for functions where the message matters. Hondo works closely with you in crafting a well-tailored presentation that ties into your meeting theme while engaging and endearing your attendees. As your next Keynote Speaker, Master of Ceremonies, and Reception Entertainer, The Amazing Hondo will leave your guests not only amazed and entertained, but believing more strongly in the might of their own magic.
Hondo & meetings - more fun. More memorable. More meaningful.
Lutheran Brotherhood (Thrivent Financial) annual sales conference in New Orleans. Yes, there is an audience out there! A big one too ... in the Big Easy.
Boston Scientific (American Medical Systems) conference recognition dinner. Can you guess their theme?
Audience engagement at a Toro management meeting. His assistant's once destroyed $100 bill is about to be found restored in the company envelope. The lesson - Anything's Possible!
Universal Hospital Services annual meeting and awards dinner at the Minneapolis Marriott. Audience participation is paramount in the Hondo presentation.
Trade Show Attraction
Trade show marketers know the value of booth traffic. It's essential in attracting new prospects. They also know the value of reconnecting with existing customers in maintaining and growing their business relationships. How do you deliver your sales message in a new and engaging manner, bringing light to your products and services, while informing and entertaining your visitors? Consider the Amazing Hondo. His mix of magic and message, together with his gift of audience engagement make him a viable option in representing you and your brand. Hondo works your booth during the day, and VIP client dinners and receptions at night. Everything is customized and personalized in keeping with Hondo's hallmark approach to his "Magic with a Message".
SEMICON West trade show at the Mosconi Center in San Francisco for Minneapolis-based Advantek. International audiences unite under the universal appeal of Hondo's magic.
Hondo draws a crowd on behalf of exhibitor Snyder General at the ASHRAE Show in Chicago's McCormick Place. Magic helps "shorten the day" during long exhibit hours, and takes minds off of tired legs.
The Amazing Hondo's view of happy faces on a busy trade show floor. "The smarter the audience, the more fun to bamfoozle", says Hondo.
Hondo's first national trade show appearance in '85. West Publishing (Thomson Reuters) booked him for the ABA convention in Washington, D.C. Pictured here with CEO Dwight Opperman (center) and VP Jerry Cafesjian. Their theme - "Discover the Magic of Westlaw".
Accredo Therapeutics engages Hondo for numerous Arterial Pulmonary Hypertension shows. Seeing smiles on faces is magical for both Hondo and sponsor.
Sporting Events
The Amazing Hondo enjoys a kinship with athletes of all levels, from pros to amateurs, NBA to PGA, and retirees to juniors. Raised in a sports-rich area of Saint Paul, MN, Hondo pursued his passions of baseball and basketball long before he learned his first card trick at 17. He counts MLB Hall-of-Famers Dave Winfield and Paul Molitor as former teammates. Miami Hurricanes quarterback Steve Walsh was his student-athlete at alma mater Cretin High, the same school that spawned Twins MVP player Joe Mauer, Florida State Heisman winner Chris Weinke and NFL receiver Michael Floyd. Unable to make it as a pro athlete himself (too small, too slow, too weak ... but always had good hands), Hondo made it his mission and goal to bring his magic to those arenas. And that he has done. In a big way.
Athletes love magic - they appreciate the skill and inherent practice required to master one's craft. Fans love magic. Kids and adults love magic. Corporate sponsors and event organizers love how Hondo's magic keeps their clients, participants and guests well entertained and engaged. He's worked many PGA Tour events, Major golf tournaments, Country Club and Corporate Outings, Celebrity/Charity Events, World Series and All-Star Galas, NBA, NFL and MLB events as well as numerous college and high school team events.
Coaches call on Hondo to present his "Magic of Teamwork" for their players. Companies bring him to their VIP receptions, dinners and hospitality chalets. Banquet organizers engage him as their guest speaker. His humor, magic and 'stories from the circuit' keep all attendees well entertained and engaged from start to finish.
Be excellent. Master your fundamentals. Hone your craft.
Hondo teaches Muhammad Ali a card trick in his living room in AZ. The Champ loved magic, often pulling coins and silks scarves from behind kids' ears.
Hondo performs "Magic on the Radio" with baseball legend Harmon Killebrew and ESPN 1500 hosts Joe Soucheray and Patrick Reusse prior to a MN Twins game.
Entertaining members and guests at the grand opening of Troon Golf's Copper Canyon Club in Buckeye, AZ. Hondo's magic adds warmth even when the sun is not shining.
Hondo and friend Bill Fleischakker (the two short guys) with UCLA and NBA legend Bill Walton at the Lucky Duck Foundation golf benefit in Rancho Santa Fe, CA. Hondo kicked off the live auction with a stage show. Earlier he entertained the guests with his strolling close-up sleight-of-hand magic.
Payne Stewart invited his friend Hondo to perform at his Florida Hospital Gala Pro-Am. Bob Hope, upon experiencing Hondo's multiplying balls in the hand trick, quipped "I should take you on the road with me. We could pick up expenses".
Hondo's former Attucks-Brooks American Legion baseball teammate Dave Winfield and son at the Hall of Fame induction party in NYC, 2001. Little David Jr is now 6'9" and looks downward to see his dad. Now THAT'S magic!
The Amazing Hondo holds court at center court with the MN Timberwolves during training camp. Later that night, Hondo delivered his "Magic of Teamwork" keynote presentation at their team dinner. No, he WAS NOT the shortest person in the room. J.J. Barea (in the foreground) had that distinction.
A regular at the LPGA Nabisco Dinah Shore in Palm Springs, Hondo entertained the many guest celebrities, golfers and corporate sponsors. Says Hondo, "Along with Muhammad Ali, Jack & Barbara Nicklaus, and Arnold Palmer, Dinah was about as gracious and appreciative as you could ever imagine".
3M Championship Pro-Am Draw Party with Champions Tour golfers from left: Bill Rogers, Ben Crenshaw and baseball legend Johnny Bench. Hondo annually entertains at the Pro-AM Party and VIP Sponsor / Players party held at the home of tournament director Hollis Cavner.