Be a SG, and you get Rewarded!!!!!

[Syndrome]

But year, asking for row one pretty much guarantees that we officially hate you.

Do you hate me when I ask for Row Three? I've never understood the appeal of Row One. Yes, I know you don't have feet dangling abive you, but I get so engaged that the feet don't bother me anyway. It's sort of like the ambiance of the ride. In Row One, I don't really like the curved top of the screen.

When we were on our Adventure By Disney and had an exclusive ride on Soarin', everyone ran for Row One. I was all by myself in Row Three and just loved it...and for once no feet either!

[Goofyernmost]

Oh my god... The row one requests for Soarin'... Pretty much the worst question you can ask. My favorite is when they ask for "the front row."


;) They're all the front row.

But year, asking for row one pretty much guarantees that we officially hate you. It gets so bad during peak seasons that people will wait one or even two flights just to have the top. It bugs me, because then there are 15 extra people standing in the gate area, and that's actually a huge safety issue. Sometimes you come out, and they've loaded themselves into the front row as soon as you leave, which gets them a very stern talking to from me. The problem is that they're only a couple feet from the theater, and could easily walk in without our knowledge. If there isn't a grouper, then there's about a minute and a half where the jet way is unsupervised. Scares the crap out of me on every flight.

I'm sure that I have told this story, but, it seems relative. The last time I went to Soarin' we were at a spot in the "Q" were we (my family group) would have gotten a front row. I love the front row because I find the rows of dangling toes in front of me very distracting. I would never ask for that location, just hopefully get the timing right and get it.

So anyway, we are standing in the "Q" all set to go for the front row. The group in front of use mentioned to the CM that the rest of their friends arrived a little late and wanted to ride with them. No problem, said the CM we will just hold it open until they get here. They were about 50' or so back. I was shocked. What was I, chopped liver? Because of that I became a SG and insisted that my group and I get into the front row of the next area. There was no objection but I felt bad about demanding, but, happy that I got that location. I just didn't understand the reason why she would have bypassed us and promised some group that far back.

[Euterpe]

Do you hate me when I ask for Row Three?

Row three requests never bother me at all. For one thing, some people are afraid of heights, and I understand the desire to be on the bottom. But also, people rarely specifically wait for row three, so we don't have people hanging out in the gates unsupervised. I don't mind that at all.

I only get mad because lots of times it gets to the point where there is always a group waiting for row one, every single time, and like I said it just messes everything up, and to me is just seems so pointless to wait an extra 15 minutes just so you don't see feet.

[Euterpe]

Goofyernmost, that seems wrong that the Cast Member held the line for the next group. I would have had them step aside and wait until they had their whole party with them. You were right in asking if you could go. They should have kept the line moving as it was.

[EeyoresButterfly]

Sorry, I'm talking from personal experience. I've been to WDW at least once a year since the year it was opened and I've seen PLENTY. 15 years ago I witnessed Donald "holding up his dukes" and getting punched in the arm by the kid he was "boxing with". I distinctly remember Donald holding his arm and "wincing" acting. It was exagerrated and stupid and I definitely didn't find it amusing. The kids in question were early teens and of course boys. Anyone watching that would think it was OK to box with Donald and I didn't see any attendant interfering. So maybe the rules have changed since then, but Donald was definitely "baiting" in this case. Because (as I said twice but apaprently it wasn't clear) the CHARACTER should walk away.

Thomas, as a former friend of the character, I felt the need to respond to a few of these quotes. I don't know about 15 years ago, but this behavior is not acceptable for a character now. We do not engage in any kind of simulated fights for a couple of reasons: a.) It encourages violent behavior and it is too easy for us to get hurt. b.) all it takes is for one person to take it the wrong way and say that we tried to beat up a kid and suddenly we are in the middle of a lawsuit and possibly criminal charges.

Again: the character should have turned tail and left in a huff. That's more than enough to get the kids to sit up and take notice this isn't funny stuff. I'd argue that Donald gave a VERY mixed message when he acted hurt. That's not a good idea with young children. When you were very young, didn't your dad ever have pretend battles with your stuffed animals? My kids LOVE when their stuffed animals "leap up and attack me" just like that deadly rabbit in Monty Python's Holy Grail. Should be innocent fun, but perhaps you feel that would motivate attacks on Donald?

My original assertion that the OP did not give enough information to bring out some of the lynching replies I've been reading still stands.

This is not always possible. It depends on the location in relation to the exit, where the attendnat is, what type of location it is, etc. etc. It also depends on the park, as somebody else mentioned, DAK is the worst for management for entertainment. I had a manager try to make me wear a dirty costume, I've been sent out in lightning storms, etc. all at DAK. I once had an obviously drunk 40 something year old man proposition Lilo at 9am. We wanted to leave set, but knew we would be in a lot of trouble if the manager came and we weren't there (even though it was a safety issue) so we hid until he moved on.

One thing that used to drive me nuts as a character's friend: Kids (usually boys aged 8 - 12) who thought that "high-five" meant "haul back and smack the character's hand as hard as they possibly can." You know what? That HURTS. And sometimes the parents would encourage it. Eventually we learn to see it coming and move our hands out of the way, leaving the kid to just smack air, but sometimes it's hard to see.

(Once, a friend of mine successfully evaded the dreaded hand-smack, and the kid's hand had so much momentum that he, um, smacked himself in the nuts. We had a REALLY HARD TIME not laughing out loud at that one. Kids: not coordinated.)

I HATE it when they do that! I have had recurring tendinitis in my wrists since I was 14. (think percussion, violin, piano, and several computer classes all at the same time.) I know the kids think it's cute, but after all day of that my wrists really hurt!

[EeyoresButterfly]

Sadly beating up the characters, or just plain being inappropriate happens more often then people realize. Here are some incidents that have happened to me during my time in entertainment:

1.) 13 year old boy punched Stitch in the back of the head after getting a picture outside the Timekeeper. Stitch immediately went inside with a huge migraine while the attendant went after the family. Apparently the mom was furious and gave him a good dressing down! Didn't help Stitch's headache though.

2.) A father smacked Stitch in the back of the head at the Hat at DHS. Even after Stitch and the attendant made it abundantly clear that that was unacceptable and hurts the father continued to laugh and say it was funny. FTR: with the way Stitch's thinking cap is designed, there is a lip that comes in right at the base of your skull, it is very painful when that gets forced into your head.

3.) Chicken Little got walloped in the gut by a 9 year old because he doesn't like to eat chicken. The parents restrained him and were very apologetic. They didn't get their picture with Chicken Little though they did get it with Abby Mallard. Chicken Little remembers thinking, "I'm not that kind of chicken" (the eating kind). That one I can laugh about because he happened to hit Chicken Little's fat so it didn't hurt.

4.) Minnie got rushed by guests who were upset when the attendants threatened to pull her inside because of line cutting. (Essentially, at the Oasis people were putting a member of the party in each line and hopping from character to character. This is never allowed, but it was especially bad because this was the last set of the day. Nobody not in line when it was not cut would be allowed to see the characters. There was a full scale riot). The guests became very upset and rushed Minnie. Several attendants had to hold back the crowd while security was called and Minnie sprinted to the backstage entrance. It was one of the scarier moments of my time in entertainment. Minnie is very short so already well below the average guest and mice have very poor vision. It is very frightening to have 50 plus guests rushing at you when you are backed up to a wall.

5.) Brazilian tour groups who try to steal heads/gloves/ etc. One time at the Hat they figured out where our exit/entrance was. Because the Hat is a round robin, characters enter and exit without assistance from attendants. Normally we are okay. On the day in question, the group blocked the door and held down poor Friar Tuck and tried to take off his head and other costume pieces. Thankfully people came to his rescue.

6.) A family with a little girl was very excited to see Minnie. They were at 1900 Park Faire (sometimes they put extra characters in the lobby when they have nowhere else for them to go.) This was my first day out of training, so I was a little nervous. Plus, there is only one attendant there and he pretty much stays in the restaurant. This little girl kept pulling on my costume, putting her hands inside my head, etc. I played with her when there were no guests there, but when guests came I turned my attention to them. People literally had to pull her out of their pictures while the parents sat and watched. Everytime the attendant came out I was with other guests so he never saw the behavior. What really burned my toast was the these guests were not eating at the restaurant and the seaters did nothing to turn them away. (I thought they were waiting for a table), even after she went into the restaurant and was bothering the characters at people's tables. Grrrrrr.

7.) The absolute doozy: SG family from hell meeting Br'er Rabbit. First thing out of their mouth is "Is there air conditioning in there?" It was all downhill from there. There were more inappropriate comments, and then the 15 year old daughter reached over and lifted up Br'er Rabbit's shirt! Br'er Rabbit had a hard time getting the attendant to understand (not helped by mom he kept asking if I wanted to lift up her daughter's shirt) and finally whispered it to the attendant. The attendant told the family they could not lift up the characters clothes. The mom said, "Oh, that's all she did?" reached over and proceeded to lift up her daughter's shirt exposing her bra to the entire line, including the man with his five year old daughter who were directly behind them.

As you can see, bad behavior around the characters happens more often than people realize. Most of the time, nothing is done, either because the attendants aren't sure what to do, we know we won't get back up, or the guest disappears before security or management can be called.

[Euterpe]

EeyoresButterfly, I'm starting in Entertainment in August, and stories like that pretty much scare the crap out of me! But I'm going to put in a bid (or as bid-like as CP's can do at least) for some pretty quiet places, mostly so I can hang out with my friends... The bears from Brother Bear are at Canada, and Canada entertainment shares a break room with Soarin'. And Max is sometimes at Blizzard Beach, and their breaktent is right next to the break from for the lifeguards and slide ops. I figure no one else wants shifts like that, so I'll take 'em. I also probably have less of a chance of being mauled!

The Minnie-Riot story and the Friar Tuck story are the ones that scare me.

[Shorty82]

EeyoresButterfly, I'm starting in Entertainment in August, and stories like that pretty much scare the crap out of me! But I'm going to put in a bid (or as bid-like as CP's can do at least) for some pretty quiet places, mostly so I can hang out with my friends... The bears from Brother Bear are at Canada, and Canada entertainment shares a break room with Soarin'. And Max is sometimes at Blizzard Beach, and their breaktent is right next to the break from for the lifeguards and slide ops. I figure no one else wants shifts like that, so I'll take 'em. I also probably have less of a chance of being mauled!

The Minnie-Riot story and the Friar Tuck story are the ones that scare me.

Things do happen sometimes but the majority of guests are good and will behave appropriately around and towards the characters. I'm working on getting to one of the auditions so I can try out to be a friend because it looks very enjoyable over all

[Syndrome]

As you can see, bad behavior around the characters happens more often than people realize. Most of the time, nothing is done, either because the attendants aren't sure what to do, we know we won't get back up, or the guest disappears before security or management can be called.

And the worst part is the parents who think that their obnoxious, bratty violent little darling's behavior is sooooo cute. I see it on the Disney cruise ships. The most prominent incident was the snot-nosed brat who ripped off Stitch's eye patch on Pirate Night. Never mind that Stitch had to hurry off stage to fix it and that an entire line of guests was inconvenienced. His family thought it was the best thing they had ever seen. Nothing was done to them...the ship needs a policy with some consequences for the jerks.

On the flipside, I can just imagine how gratifying it is when a guest really appreciates the characters. Onboard at dinner we were once seated with a family and their 3-year-old daughter. She was the most well behaved little princess I've ever met. One day she was itching to get to the kids' club for some event and just couldn't concentrate on the meal, so finally Dad gave in and took her. When he got back, he said they had met Lilo in the elevator. Lilo was on her way to the club, so she walked hand in hand with the little girl. It totally made that little one's trip...what a neat memory for her.

[EeyoresButterfly]

Euterpe: You cannot request areas as a CP, it's completely luck of the draw. Some weeks I worked in the same place everyday for better or worse, other weeks I was all over the place. The only way to be consistently in the same place is to be able to portray a hard to find character or get trained in a parade or show. If I remember correctly, they do not ask CPs for their preferences, or at least they didn't when I was there. I don't want you to get there and find out that you can't do it and become upset.

I was in entertainment for two advantage CPs. I also worked sometimes as many as 80 hours a week because I was constantly picking up shifts and doing special events. These are really the only experiences that have occurred to me personally or to someone else while I was working. I have known people who have gone their entire CPs without having a violent guest, and then there are people who have multiple experiences. Part ofit depends on who your friends are. For instance, Stitch and the villains tend to get beat up more than a character like Minnie Mouse. People see Stitch as indestructible and forget that he really is not.

You do have to be prepared for the possibility though. I knew one person who had to switch roles after a kid grabbed her head and swung by it. Had her CP been longer she would have been able to go back, but she was going to be on light duty for too long so she switched roles. I know another person who has had their ribs bruised by a cheerleader who punched him. These incidents are very few and far between (my worst guest related injury was the aforementioned migraine), but they do happen and you have to be prepared for the possibility. That is why teamwork between the attendant and character is important. That is why it is also important to keep an eye on the guests and be aware of your surroundings.