A one-minute audition tape to be Southwest Airlines “Blogospondent” for a year earned Ori Kalmus a free trip to Las Vegas last week for the final competition when he was declared one of three finalists in the contest. A graduate of High School South, Class of 2004, he graduated from Lafayette College this year with a degree in modern European and Israeli history.##M:[more]##
Currently living in Beverly Hills with his brother, Perry (Lawrenceville School, Class of 1999), Kalmus is an actor who works as a bartender and at the Apple computer store in his free time. He is studying improv at the Upright Citizens Brigade theater and busy writing sketches, movies, and stand up material for the future. Kalmus is also working on making online comedy videos based on the sketches he has written. “They will star me doing various characters and in funny situations,” he says.
When Southwest offered him round-trip airfare for two, a hotel room, and money to spend, Kalmus invited his sister, Dari, (WW-P High School, Class of 2000). “My brother and his friend also came to Vegas to help me out and have some fun,” he says.
The final competition was to make a three to five-minute video about Southwest in less than 24 hours. His sister, brother, and his brother’s friend “went crazy with it and all of us contributed ideas and helped shoot the video. (https://southwest.spigit.com)
“The video was shown in front of a big crowd at the World Blog Expo, where the winner was announced,” says Kalmus. “Unfortunately I lost, despite being overwhelmingly favored among the crowd that watched. One fan was so impressed that he slapped a stack of 100 one dollar bills in my hand out of respect for the work I put in the video.”
Kalmus reports that highlights of the trip included the World Blog Expo and meeting Gary Vaynerchuck, creator of WineLibrary TV.
He is the son of David Kalmus, who works in information technology for Verizon Business, and Barbara Kalmus, director of Princeton Education Network.
“It was a fun experience no matter the result, and I was pleased to show Vegas to my sister, as it was her first time being there,” he says. “I was able to meet a lot of very creative and business-smart people who in my mind are ahead of the curve with their Internet brilliance and savvy business personas.”
