this ones in Florida

[jester]

email me if you are interested in this gig.

Hello,

My name is mrs sandra willams,am interested in hireing your service for my son up coming birthday which will be coming up on the 28th 0f april so i will need your service for you to perform for the children coming to the party so,if you are going to be avaliable let me know.then you tell me your price.if there is any other thing you are know. feel free to call me on my number
Thanks
Mrs sandra willams

[Chance]

Jester, did that lady authorize you to give her private telephone number to an open public forum?

[jester]

No.

Thats an important point and you could have emailed me personally to get my attention sooner.

Thanks for that.

[Ryan Dekoe]

SCAM! SCAM! SCAM! maybe

We just got an email from another "woman" in California (note the nice, sunny location) for her son's birthday party. "She" was going to pay us a large amount of money, fly us out, plus room etc.

Then "she" wrote back and said "she" was going to over pay us by $4000 but we had to pay the photograper. "She" would write a check, we would deposit it and send out a check for $4000 to the photographer.

Here is the scam. Her check bounces and we are out $4000. NICE!

I may be a juggler/sideshow freak with no hair and a husky physique, but come on. "She" might as well be the son of that duke in Nigera who needs you to send money right away to set his father free.

"She" had the same broken englsh way of writing as well.

Caution!!!

Caution!!!

After starting with the "she" thing in quotations, I had realized only later I had to commit to it all the way. Sorry.

[lucky john]

this is an old and worn out scam..its been around in the entetainment biz for years...i'ts starting to make a comeback..watch out!

lucky john

[Chance]

It probably is a scam if presented that way, but anybody that would believe a $4000.00 fee plus plane fare for a childrens birthday party deserves to get bitten.

[Tom B]

I also got an email from a woman for her sons bday party in California on April 25th. Same broken english, same deal pay a big fee pay all travel and hotel. Sounded too good to be true, but I replied with my cost. I then got an email back saying the price was ok, and she wanted my contact info to send the check.
I emailed back with questions, like sons name, age, etc.....
No response after 2 emails. Its been 3 weeks and no check. I have not made travel arangements, and wont untill I have at min a deposit+travel.
I was not asked to pay a photographer or anyone else.
If this is also a scam I dont get it. More like a joke thats not funny.

TomB

[Ryan Dekoe]

Same thing

Same exact thing. She basically booked it and then dropped off the face of the earth.

We never book flights or do ANYTHING till we have cash in hand or when working with an agent/client we know.

Would have been fun if it was real!

I like wine.

[le pire]

yes...

Several months ago I received an email about performing at a wedding reception in California. Some grammatical and spelllling errers, but no worse than Magrat's butchering of written English. I called the number and left a message. The name of the person on the answering machine was different from the name of the person who sent the email.

Later, around 10 p.m. I got a call from the potential client, but it was through one of those hearing impaired services where the deaf person types to an operator, they speak to you and then they type your responses to them. He asked some normal questions and some odd personal questions. This person had a different name from the guy who emailled and the answering machine. We somehow got disconnected and I was pretty weirded out so I didn't pick up when the phone rang again.

I never followed up and did not received another email.

I just figured it was one of you guys



etienne

[Frisbee]

it CAN go the other way too

A fellow friend and performer out here got a birthday party gig for a kid across the country, paid him a high fee and flight and sweet accomodations, for a birthday party gig...they also hired another performer for the same party...they just had the money to spend extravegantly for the kids birthday party.

Definately be cautious, but do not rule out that it may be legit.

[Chance]

Frisbee, you're forgetting the scam part:

Then "she" wrote back and said "she" was going to over pay us by $4000 but we had to pay the photograper. "She" would write a check, we would deposit it and send out a check for $4000 to the photographer.

I wasn't ruling out any legit offers....

Chance

[gav]

fools

april 1st people

it wasn't me

[Tom B]

You wont belive this.
I just got a reply back and she wants to over pay me by $3500 so I can pay the photographer. She dosnt need a contract, and I will be getting an online check.
I replied back saying that I cannot pay a photographer, and I only accept bank checks via snail mail.

Thanks Ryan Dekoe for posting your story, so I was aware of that paticular scam as soon as I saw it.

Thought I would let everyone know.

Tom B

[Ryan Dekoe]

NICE

Gald I could help Tom!

I think she would be much better off trying to work another group of professionals. Not a group of hustlers like us.

Three Card Monte anyone?

[jester]

On the upside

I was soo innocent...

I thought the poor lady had assumed I lived in the States and was therefore interested in booking me.

About once a year I get to do a birthday party some considerable distance from where I live and some people are prepared to fly us for their kids. I done b'day parties in Germany, Jersey, and Holland. The reason I do not go to the states is because I do not want all the work permit stuff for just one gig...

I'm glad I posted that now.