FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AND PRINTING

is revolutionizing children's entertainment! 

He has put fun into safety, self-esteem and character
counts education for kindergarten through 12th grade!

:  

RETRO BILL's 2008 Tour has begun! His 2007 Nationwide Live Appearance Tour was seen
by over 1.5 MILLION SCHOOL CHILDREN in Kindergarten thru 12th grade!  This past July 3 & 4 RETRO BILL
proudly fulfilled his duties as the OFFICIAL "Kick Off" HOST & SPECIAL PRESENTER at America's
Independence Day Fireworks Celebration & Ceremonies at MOUNT RUSHMORE in South Dakota.  He
has been invited back for July 3 & 4, 2008!

July 2007 - RETRO BILL was in Nashville, Tennessee as a CLASSROOM INSTRUCTOR & AWARDS
LUNCHEON EMCEE at the 20th Annual International DARE OFFICERS Training Conference.  He will
be a Classroom Instructor & Awards Emcee at the International DARE Officers Training Conference
in San Antonio, TX in August 2008.

Law Enforcement Agencies, School Superintendents, Principals, Teachers and Parents coast-to-coast
consider RETRO BILL to be one of
the country’s foremost experts in children’s safety & self-esteem.
Well known children's advocate, talk show host & radio personality LEEZA GIBBONS, and CNN's
LARRY KING have called RETRO BILL, "The 21st Century Mr. Rogers!

RETRO BILL holds many honorable titles and affiliations, including:

  • The Official D.A.R.E. Safety Buddy (www.DARE.com)

  • Host of National Kids Day (www.NationalKidsDay.org)

  • Celebrity Spokesperson for KidsPeace (www.KidsPeace.org)

  • Nationwide K-12th grade Motivational Speaker

  • A "Character Counts" Presenter

  • National "Risk Watch" Program Presenter

  • "Red Ribbon" Assembly Performer

  • National Safe Schools Week Performer

  • Crime Prevention Instructor

  • Safe Schools Advisor

  • Radio and Television Personality

  • Host & Emcee

RETRO BILL corporate Sponsors include the following:

  • DaimlerChrysler Corporation

  • Choice Marketing

RETRO BILL is an Advisory Board Member for the "HOME SCHOOL RADIO NETWORK." He
is also a featured "on-air" children's safety and self-esteem expert on the network.

RETRO BILL is an "on-air"
contributor to the nationally syndicated LEEZA GIBBONS radio program,
"Hollywood Confidential!" 

36 million school children worldwide (26 million in the U.S.) enrolled yearly in the D.A.R.E. program
provides RETRO BILL (as The Official D.A.R.E. Safety Buddy) a built-in worldwide fan base of 36 million
children!  The Award-Winning "D.A.R.E. Safety Tips starring RETRO BILL" (video and DVD) used
by police officers in 350,000 classrooms throughout the nation each year has been an essential tool in
teaching children safety since 2001!

In 2003, RETRO BILL became the Official "Host of National Kids Day" with his first appearance on
The Elipse in front of The White House in Washington D.C.  The honorary Chairperson for National
Kids Day
is America's First Lady, Laura Bush. 

RETRO BILL is proud to be an Official "Celebrity Spokesperson for KidsPeace," an organization
dedicated to the physical and psychological well-being of children, and supporting kids in crisis.
 The
KidsPeace
Center brings together a coalition of nationally recognized child experts, family advisors, and
business and community leaders in order to examine specific issues impacting today’s families, and to
offer solutions.  

In May of 2005, RETRO BILL became the Official "Celebrity Spokesperson & Safety Advisor for ScanUSA."
SCAN (The Safe Community Alert Network) has made protecting families its top priority. 
ScanUSA is the
first national alert system that allows local police departments and public safety agencies to broadcast
emergency information directly to the computers, mobile phones, pagers and PDAs of their neighborhood
and local residents. Through
ScanUSA, residents can now receive immediate alerts for neighborhood
crime, sexual predators moving into neighborhoods, weather, natural disasters, cyber attacks, fire
advisories, health emergencies, Amber alerts, local acts of terrorism and neighborhood public
safety information.

In July 2007,
ScanUSA and RETRO BILL announced their combined efforts to pursue many different ways
of providing safety & self-esteem-themed content to children, parents, schools and law enforcement
agencies nationwide.  Areas of development will include internet streaming video, podcasting, dvd
distribution, and safety & self-esteem related materials provided to schools nationwide.
 

In 2004, RETRO BILL received "personal thanks" for his efforts on behalf of America's youth from the United
States Senate Pro Tempore.  RETRO BILL has also received accolades from The White House Office of Drug
Control Policy, The FBI's Community Outreach Specialist Program, and the United States Drug Enforcement
Agency (DEA).

Since December 2004, RETRO BILL has Hosted the FIRST LEGO LEAGUE's "Robotics Championship" held
in California.  The annual event is sponsored by LEGO, 3M Corporation and Duracell. 


In 2003, RETRO BILL Hosted The Beach Boys "Endless Summer" concert appearances in Southern
California. 

The Who, What, When, Where and Why of the "man underneath the pompadour..."

RETRO BILL is a wholesome, supercharged “blast from the past!” He's the alter-ego of writer, director,
producer, artist and actor BILL RUSS.  RUSS grew up in a midwestern Chicago suburb.  He is the oldest of 4
children, and is proud of the well-balanced, typical American household he was raised in.  "I had a tree fort,
skateboard, paper routes, a bike and lots of open corn fields and forests to explore as a kid," RUSS has said.

"I was raised by a Dad who was a U.S. Army Sergeant, who instilled patriotic values into his children. 
He raised us to respect God, Country and Family... typical American family values. Mom always made
certain we had a family "sit-down" dinner prepared nearly every night... which helped keep us
a strong family-unit that continues today."

At a young age, RUSS knew that he wanted to someday walk in the shadows of his childhood heroes
Walt Disney, Jim Henson, Fred Rogers, Steven Spielberg and George Lucas.  "I also loved the 1950s era
Elvis Presley!" RUSS has stated.  Following his passion to be a role-model and Motivational Speaker,
RUSS studied psychology, read HUNDREDS of self-help motivational books, and countless Biographies. 
His voracious reading habits continue...  in fact, he tries to read at least one book a week!

RUSS started dressing in his flashy 1950s-styled clothes and began blowing drying his hair in an
Elvis-inspired pompadour when he was a high school senior.  He took to the motivational speaking circuit,
beginning with high school presentations where he spoke out against drugs and teenage alcohol abuse. 
He also gained much attention for his acting in school plays and the 8mm films and videos he was
directing at the time.  "I would make these elaborate 8mm movies and videos with stunts and
neighborhood kids in costume.  It was fun, and valuable experience writing and directing at such a
young age," RUSS fondly remembers.

His good grades, student films and videos took RUSS (via scholarships) to college, where he studied
Filmmaking, Television Production, Art, English, Psychology, Interior Design and Architecture.  While
attending Columbia College in Chicago, RUSS caught the attention of Steven Spielberg and his company
AMBLIN Entertainment.  A meeting with his childhood hero, Steven Spielberg, ended with RUSS receiving
a scholarship to attend the prestigious USC School of Cinema-Television.  At USC, RUSS wrote, directed
and produced an American CINE Eagle Award-Winning student film entitled, "The Last Ride," starring
Academy Award-Winning actor, Ben Johnson.  The film made its debut at the AFI Los Angeles Film
Festival, where the Master of Ceremonies was actor, Charlton Heston.  The film was remade into a
feature film by Warner Brothers, entitled, "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys." The feature film
starred Scott Glenn, Kate Capshaw-Spielberg, Ben Johnson and Mickey Rooney.

Over the years, RUSS continued performing and speaking as his alter-ego RETRO BILL, supporting
organizations that he believes in, such as  D.A.R.E., Meals on Wheels, KidsPeace, C.O.A.C.H. for Kids,
the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, Risk Watch and Character Counts.  RUSS recalls, "One day, I realized
that it was time to devote my full-time energies to following my passion in life, which was (and is) to
Make a positive difference in the lives of America's Youth.
"  RUSS took his "RETRO BILL Safety &
Self-Esteem Show"
on the road, touring malls, schools, civic centers and street fairs. 

RUSS continued to make a living working as an actor, television host and a director/producer of TV
commercials, infomercials, and music videos (for artists such as Kenny G and Michael McDonald), and
clients that included Olympic Champion Bruce Jenner, World Champion Boxer Sugar Ray Leonard,
and well known companies such as Guess? and Sony.

"I decided one day that I really wanted to help the D.A.R.E. program, so I took take my entire life-savings,
maxed-out my credit cards, sold my car and wrote, produced, directed and starred in
the Award-Winning
"DARE Safety Tips (video and DVD) starring Retro Bill,"  RUSS said.

The D.A.R.E. Safety Tips (video and DVD) was produced by Bill Russ Productions, Inc. at a cost in excess of
$250,000.00 and was donated to the nation’s D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program in the fall
of 2001.  It features 20 of the most essential safety tips for children and is currently being used annually by
over 40,000 D.A.R.E. Police Officers and School Resource Officers in more than 350,000 classrooms
throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe and South America! 

The "D.A.R.E. Safety Tips starring RETRO BILL" has been touted by leading experts in children's safety
as the "Best safety video/DVD ever produced for children!"  It has received high-praise from educators,
students, parents and law enforcement officials, and has been awarded two of the most prestigious
Educational Awards available:

“Best Educational Video 2001-2002” from the International Children’s Film Festival - Los Angeles, CA

"Best Educational Video 2002-2003" from the International Family Film Festival - Los Angeles, CA

"The D.A.R.E. Safety Tips (video and DVD) was just one way that I could support D.A.R.E., a police
officer taught program that I had worked with extensively over the years." RUSS has proudly stated. 
Upon the video and DVD's release, D.A.R.E. America, the foremost anti-drug and violence program
in the world released a statement saying, “The DARE Safety Tips starring RETRO BILL” has helped
to boost the classroom effectiveness of the D.A.R.E. program’s K-5th grade curriculum.  The Safety
Tips (video and DVD), and RETRO BILL’s live appearances are entertaining and effective tools that
deliver important safety & self-esteem messages to children of an age when they are most vulnerable.”

Utilizing the most unique California locations he could find (from Hot Dog-shaped buildings to full size
Dinosaurs) to favorite classic toys (Rock 'em, Sock ‘em Robots, Mr. Potato Head and the Hula Hoop) RUSS
packed the Award-Winning "D.A.R.E. Safety Tips starring RETRO BILL" with enough sound effects,
lightening quick-editing, Aloha shirts, humor, Cameo Guest Appearances and informative
information to keep the "D.A.R.E. Safety Tips starring RETRO BILL" fresh and lively for years to come!

Hollywood Celebrities have praised RETRO BILL! 

  • Jay Leno of the “Tonight Show” has said, “I love RETRO BILL!"

  • Kate Capshaw-Spielberg has declared, "Our children love RETRO BILL!”

  • Larry King of CNN has stated enthusiastically, “I love RETRO BILL!  I wish I had his hair!”

  • Leeza Gibbons, talk show host and radio personality proclaims, "RETRO BILL is this generation's
    Mr. Rogers!"

The live "Retro Bill Safety & Self-Esteem Show” is so popular across the nation that it is booked ONE YEAR
in advance!  During the "live show" RETRO BILL utilizes a variety of colorful props such as Silly String,
Hula Hoops, Frisbees, a Slinky, Mr. Potato Head, Rubber Duckies and orange traffic cones to drive home
his uplifting messages of safety, self-esteem and "character counts" topics!  RETRO BILL also encourages
children (and adults) to maintain a positive attitude, exercise and eat right (including LOTS of water)! 
RETRO BILL encourages kids to do their homework, get good grades and to participate in "positive
alternatives" to bad things... like playing sports, reading a good book, being in a school play, or learning
to play a musical instrument. 

RETRO BILL's motto is:          “What goes around comes around!”

Many D.A.R.E. Officers, School Resource Officers, School Assembly Coordinators, Parent Groups,
Crime Prevention Associations and numerous business organizations nationwide are utilizing
RETRO BILL as a Keynote Speaker, Instructor, Emcee and Host!  He livens up a room and motivates
ANY SIZE audience of ANY AGE. 

RETRO BILL has received numerous “Keys to Cities.” Mayors, Law Enforcement Agencies and
Educational organizations across the nation have bestowed numerous Appreciation Certificates,
Plaques, Proclamations, and Letters of Recommendation upon RETRO BILL.

On November 7, 2003 RETRO BILL proudly received a STATE PROCLAMATION  from Nebraska
declaring the date as "RETRO BILL / D.A.R.E. Day" in the cornhusker state.  The City of Port Saint
Lucie, Florida officially declared February 11, 2005 as "RETRO BILL DAY."

May 8, 2007 was Officially Proclaimed "RETRO BILL Day" by the City Council and Mayor
of Leavenworth, Kansas.

When LEEZA GIBBONS was asked about working with RETRO BILL she said, "RETRO BILL is
awesome! 
He's informative, educational and entertaining all at the same time!  He's a positive voice
for kids at a time when they really need it!  RETRO BILL is cool!"

RUSS has big plans for his alter-ego, “As RETRO BILL continues to make ‘live appearances’ across
the country, I'm thrilled to be developing a RETRO BILL daily television show.  A RETRO BILL radio
program for kids and parents, and other projects including a RETRO BILL Internet Safety DVD.

"RETRO BILL's millions of worldwide fans have expressed an overwhelming desire for
him to have his own TV & Radio Show.  Those are dreams that I’ve been working towards
since I was 12 years old!" RUSS has said, adding, "It's so important to provide kids with positive
role-models, and positive messages, because the children of today are the leaders and parents
of our great nation tomorrow!  I want RETRO BILL leading the way to a safe, happy and
prosperous future for America's Youth!”

For more information, please Visit the Official Retro Bill website www.RetroBill.com!

                                                                                       

RETRO BILL™ is a registered trademark of
Bill Russ Productions, Inc.
All rights reserved.