Terry Fator was so ill during DVD recording, he ‘could barely talk’

Mirage headliner singing ventriloquist Terry Fator has recorded his debut DVD, and it’s set for release next week -- but the new project almost went up in smoke! Terry told me: “I was so excited about recording my first DVD and had been preparing for months. The night before we taped felt like Christmas Eve, and I had trouble getting to sleep. My big day finally arrived, and I woke up sicker than I can ever recall being.

“Unbelievable! I could live with not feeling well, but I could barely talk -- with or without moving my lips. In 28 years, I had never canceled a show, and I certainly wasn’t about to start. My doctor prescribed something that helped my throat, but I still felt bad physically. (My friends tease me that I always somehow perform better when I’m sick. I wonder if they’re poisoning me before important shows? Just kidding.)

“I can barely remember that night; it was such a thrilling blur. It may not be burned into my memory, but thankfully it is burned onto my first DVD! I hope everyone is as happy with it as I am. “

Terry, who won the first $1 million prize on Season 2 of America’s Got Talent, which propelled him to Strip stardom, will be signing copies of the new Live From Las Vegas DVD. I received an advance copy and can promise you it’s incredibly funny, with Terry and his hilarious cast of characters -- those adorable puppets Walter T. Airedale, Emma and Winston the Impersonating Turtle, with extraordinary vocal impressions of Louis Armstrong, Roy Orbison, Elvis Presley and the recently disbanded Brooks & Dunn.

As a bonus, you get Chapter 1 from Terry’s autobiography Who’s the Dummy Now?, plus an exclusive look-in on a session with Terry, his writer Rick Kerns and his director Mark Goffman. I won’t spoil it, but the puppets do eventually take over! No wonder American Idol judge Simon Cowell ceased his normal putdowns to sincerely state, “Terry is one of the best entertainers in the world.”

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