Out of the Box Artist: Parker | Out of the Box | Salt Lake City Weekly
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Culture » Out of the Box

Out of the Box Artist: Parker

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parker.jpg
I really tried to be a firefighter. I passed my exam, was accepted into the academy and even got the red suspenders. Problem was to be competitive I needed to be a firefighter/paramedic. Paramedic school was the death of me. I started bringing sharpies to the 5 hour classes. I gave myself so many tattoo sleeves that the instructor asked me to keep the markers at home because I was being disruptive. I figured that it just wasn’t for me. One night in October I was in line at a haunted house with my girlfriend and she said the magic words. “Hey, you could do this”. I’d been doing magic since the age of 14 and it wasn’t too big of a change to delve into some freaky stuff. I learned how to pound nails into my face, swallow swords and eat fire. I went to haunted house owners and showed them what I could do. I worked the lines at Fear Factory and The Haunted Circus until eventually I got a show on stage. I loved working with haunted houses and I began to not only be a performer but a designer. I started making props and scares independently. I branded it Salt Lake City Sideshow and have been producing effects for haunted houses and creepy venues ever since. This is the 3rd box designed by Parker.