Each year the Renaissance Festival Podcast conducts their Annual Renaissance Festival Awards. During the second year of the Awards, a new category was created to recognize and honor those who have made a significant contribution to the Renaissance Festival community. This award is called the Renaissance Festival Hall of Fame.

Hall of Fame nominees are selected by any and all voters, although voters must describe how they feel their nominee has contributed to the Renaissance Festival community. The nominees are then reviewed by a committee of Renaissance Faire participants and members of the Podcast, and final selections are announced with the Annual Awards. Additional information about Hall of Fame inductees is also posted to the website.

Past inductees include:
2006: C. Wayne Owens, aka Seymoure
2007: Dan Mehn, Bill Huttel, Lolly Foy, and Barbara "Bodge" Burinski-Shelton
2008: Joe Kudla and Carol Black

Over the past years, nominees have been selected at the same time as selections for other Award categories. This year, suggestions for Hall of Fame nominees will be taken starting in May and ending in July. Top nominees will be listed in the Awards ballot for fans to make the final selection. The final ranking for Hall of Fame nominees will be announced with the Awards at the beginning of the following year.

Here are the 2009 Renaissance Festival Hall of Fame inductees:

Puke n’ Snot
Mark Sieve “Sir Ralph Puke”, Joe Kudla “Sir Thomas Snot” and John Gamoke “Thomas Snot Jr.”

“He who shall… So shall he who.” Puke n’ Snot has been entertaining fans at Renaissance Festivals everywhere for more than thirty years. Their self-described “mock-Shakespearean vaudeville” has pleased audiences as far and wide as Disney World’s Magic Kingdom in Orlando, where they performed as Perry & Slice, two crotchety pirate buccaneers. Puke n’ Snot is the longest-running two-man comedy duo in the country and a headline show at festivals and comedy clubs throughout North America since 1974.

The first appearance of Puke n’ Snot was at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival, where they performed under the name Mouldy & Wart. A year later they would change their name to Puke n’ Snot… and so their legacy began.

In 2008 Sir Thomas Snot (Joe Kudla) passed way. However, the Puke n’ Snot show continues with John Gamoke as Thomas Snot, Jr. and Mark Sieve as Puke. It’s a different show than that seen 30 years ago, but it's still got that same funny flair.

Actor, producer, and director Mark Sieve is the co-creator of Puke n’ Snot. Mark is the author of several books, with the most recent being “Call me Puke: A Life of the Dirt Circuit”. If you want to know the gory details of Puke n’ Snot, this is the book to read. As an act, Puke n’ Snot have put out four CDs and one DVD. To find out more about Puke n’ Snot go to http://www.magaga.com .


Don Juan and Miguel
Jose Granados “Don Juan” Douglas Kondziolka “ Miguel and Dakota Star Granados “Esmeralda”

Don Juan and Miguel ; “…charm friend and foe alike while engaging in the finest stage swordwork ever.”

Don Juan and Miguel have an enchanting stage act with breath-taking whip-wielding, side-splitting comedy, and hair-raising swordplay. For over 20 years this duo has shared their work in the Renaissance Festival Circuit. Jose Granados portrays Don Juan, the gallant and romantic Prince of Spain, while Douglas Kondziolka plays his faithful but odd manservant, Miguel. Dakota Star Granados plays Esmeralda, the beautiful daughter of the prince of Spain. Along with working the US Renaissance Festival Circuit, they’ve performed at Disney World's 25^th Anniversary Celebration, the Art Institute of Kansas City, various clubs in Las Vegas, private and industrial parties, and made numerous TV and radio appearances.

As well as their unforgettable stage show Don Juan and Miguel, these men stand out for the role they take in helping their community. They own a production company, Blind Dog Entertainment, through which they develop various enterprises at Renaissance Festivals. Since 1995 they have built two dungeons (North Carolina and Pennsylvania), an archery game and a life-size maze (New York). Blind Dog Entertainment was formed to “utilize and promote the talents of a Developing Arts Community in the United States Renaissance Festivals”. To find out more about Don Juan and Miguel visit http://www.donjuanandmiguel.com .

Labels: hall_of_fame