CORSICANA, Texas - With years of patience and lots of talent, Terry Fator's lifelong dreams came true this past year.
And he couldn't have done it without his supportive wife.
Fator is the million-dollar winner of the televised talent competition "America's Got Talent," capturing the title with his ventriloquism, impersonations and singing. He just signed a $1.5 million deal with Las Vegas Hilton to play three shows per month in 2008, which started New Year's Eve.
He will be headlining at Fort Wayne's Embassy Theatre Feb. 8 at 7:30 p.m.
During a telephone interview Jan. 24 from his home 1-1/2 miles from his hometown of Corsicana, Texas, Fator, 42, was busy preparing for a benefit show for a scholarship fund in honor of his former high school drama teacher. He was running late, but was excited to be able to do the show.
He will have fans and supporters at the show, but Fator said his wife of 17 years has always been his biggest supporter.
"She worked for years and years and years because I wasn't making enough to support us," Fator said.
At times, he said he thought about quitting his act, but his wife told him he couldn't.
"She's fantastic, she's amazing," Fator said.
When Fator won the $1 million on the show, he gave her a big hug and kiss and told her he could now give her everything she's always wanted. She replied she already has it with him.
"I said, 'I'll give you the life I've always wanted you to live,'" he said.
Fator started doing ventriloquism at the age of 10. He said he found a book in his school library on how to do it. That book got him interested in trying ventriloquism, and he found he really enjoyed it.
His first paid show was July 4, 1976, when Fator was 11 years old. His church was having a bicentennial picnic and they paid him $25 to do a 35-minute spot. For an 11-year-old boy in 1976, that was a lot of money.
"It was just the time of my life," Fator said. With that show, he found what he wanted to do with his life.
Audiences kept getting larger.
He used to sing in church when he was younger. In church, he'd have his puppets do the voices of Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith.
At age 20 years, Fator said he started a band that performed at bars and clubs. To learn a song, he learned it by listening to the original artist. He didn't realize it initially, but he was very good at impersonating people. During the band's performances, he mixed songs, impersonations and puppets. He'd cover artists and voices of everyone from Journey and Foreigner to Michael Jackson.
"I've always had a gift for doing voices," said Fator.
It wasn't until about two years ago that someone suggested Fator have his puppets perform the songs and impersonations. Almost overnight, Fator said everything changed for him.
"I am so blown away that I get to do it," Fator said.
Last year, Fator made his appearance on "America's Got Talent."
On YouTube.com, his first appearance video is available. For those who didn't see the show on television, the video shows Fator coming out and two of the judges, David Hasselhoff and Sharon Osbourne, unhappy that they have to watch a ventriloquist. But Fator quickly won the judges over, eventually winning the season's competition.
Fator said he is always looking for unique, interesting impressions he can do. Sometimes someone will suggest an impression and he incorporates that into his show. The song he won "America's Got Talent" with was a Roy Orbinson song that his wife, mother-in-law and sister suggested. He had done Orbinson before, but never with a puppet.
Now, Fator is working on the voices of Neil Diamond and Barbara Streisand. He wants to do an act with the two voices together.
"It's taking me awhile to get the voice down," Fator said.
He's also writing a book about his life and career called "Who's the Dummy Now," which he said will be out in a few months. He has his long-term deal in Las Vegas, he's working on a Christmas album for next year and is writing a series of children's books.
For those who make it out to his Feb. 8 show in Fort Wayne, Fator said what people saw on television is just a small part of his show.
"It's a very, very funny show," he said. "I have tons of different characters, voices and comedy routines. People can bring the whole family out. I put on a million dollar show."
Tickets for the 7:30 p.m. Feb. 8 show are $51.75 or $41.75. There are a limited number of VIP tickets with meet-n-greet for $101.75. Tickets are on sale at the Embassy box office, all other Ticketmaster locations and Ticketmaster.com
