John Laurence Talent
BIO
I am a TV and movie producer, on camera and voice over talent, and public speaker.
Those are all the things I love to do. It makes for a wonderful life!
I’ve helped produce movies on NBC and FOX “Family Movie Night” with Walmart
and Gamble, am currently developing an amazing true story called REBUILDING ROME
into a theatrical movie, and have directed and produced three reality series that
have been seen around the world including one currently available on Amazon
called DREAM QUEST.
But most of all, I’ve always loved being on camera, being behind a microphone, or in
front of a crowd. Really I’ve been performing since I was about seven-years- old
when I pretended to be the play-by- play announcer for the St. Louis Cardinals
calling baseball games into an old tape recorder while watching the games on a little
black and white TV.
PUBLIC SPEAKING
I can remember the first time I spoke publicly. I was a sportscaster and talked nightly to crowds of tens of thousands of people. But that was to a camera and a crew of about ten? Speaking to 50 live people was terrifying! But it didn’t take me very many speeches to realize how energizing it was relating with a crowd. I was able to compel them, to get them to emote, to make them laugh, and even ultimately give me money when I spoke to raise funds for my not-for- profit corporation. Again I think it’s my energy and ability to just converse with people that allows me to connect with audiences.I have been a keynote speaker for many organizations and events, raised over a million dollars for my non-profit utilizing public speaking, plus been a regular emcee for multiple events ever since my days as a sportscaster.
ON CAMERA
I’ve had so many people over the years say, “How can you be on TV in front of thousands of people? I’d be so nervous!” Well, I was nervous when a first started as a sportscaster just out of college, but for many, many years it has been one of my favorite things to do. I’ve never had a particular “schtick”, I just have a lot of energy and love to relate to people conversationally. I also love to tell stories. I told someone the other day, being on camera is like breathing. It’s just what I was born to do!I’ve been an on-camera talent for over 35 years since starting my career as a TV sports anchor in 1982. I worked as an anchor for ten years in Jacksonville, Orlando and Champaign, Illinois, then spent another fifteen years producing and hosting my own TV sports shows in Jacksonville and around the state of Florida. Most recently I hosted an infomercial for a national financial company called Trade Stops plus I’ve been the talent for a number of promotional spots for my own company, Laurence Entertainment (see demos).
VOICE OVERS
As much as I enjoy being on camera, my first opportunity and love was radio. I have always loved the challenge of storytelling WITHOUT the advantage of video. I’ve spent over a quarter century telling the story of sporting events to audiences and sharing my enthusiasm and love for sports through the spoken voice. And now I love using those same techniques to tell stories in voice overs. Capturing people with your voice alone is amazing!I was introduced to radio in college where I had the chance to become a high school sports play-by- play announcer, show host and a DJ. Later in my career I spent 20 years as the play-by- pay voice for college basketball and baseball at the University of North Florida. I have done voice overs for many projects including for TV shows seen around the world for the past two decades.
