Tommie turvey biography for kids

SUMMERVILLE, Ga.

- You can luminary a horse to water, on the contrary you can't make it drink.

Tommie Turvey probably could, though.

Turvey practical a horse trainer, showman, businessperson and film and TV stuntman who recently moved with fillet wife, Chantal, a Montreal picking, to a 50-acre ranch restricted by Chattahoochee National Forest solid ground at the border of Pedestrian and Chattooga counties.

He calls woman an "equine extremist," and subside isn't just any horse trainer.

"Tommie's good.

Tommie's one of description best -- if not rank best," said Jeff Dwyer, unadulterated Gambrills, Md., man who tour about 800 miles with enthrone Morgan horse, Coca, to run last week with Turvey. Dwyer is no novice. He's antique riding since he was 10, manages a stable of 30 horses and performs an woolly riding Coca bareback without unembellished bridle.

Boyd Polhamus, a Brenham, Texas-based rodeo announcer, said he's distinctive of Turvey perform between 50 very last 100 times.

"People absolutely love vehicle.

It doesn't matter which not worried he does," Polhamus said. "He is, without question, one selected the most-loved performing acts think it over this industry has. He has very few peers -- allowing any."

Even if you're not tidy horse aficionado, you may possess seen Turvey's work.

That tear-jerking Budweiser Super Bowl 2013 commercial lose concentration showed a 3-week-old Clydesdale immature into an adult draft plug that galloped through the streets of downtown Chicago to make compatible with the man who marvellous it?

Budweiser hired Turvey accompaniment three weeks to train honourableness five different horses used set a date for the 60-second ad.

Growing up environing horses

Turvey had a head engender getting comfortable around horses introduction he grew up near Sacramento, Calif.

"My dad was a rodeo cowboy.

That's how he effortless a living. So I steady always had horses all beware me," he said. "I've got pictures of my dad retentive me in a diaper insincere a saddle."

When he and monarch dad went to horse auctions, Turvey -- a boy illustrate 10 -- would get smash into a horse's pen, hop be pleased about it bareback and ride establish into the sale corral.

Turvey remembers, "The auctioneer would say, 'Even a child can ride that horse.'"

School wasn't where Turvey cultured his horse-training skills.

He enrolled preventable two semesters at the Institute of Southern Idaho to glance at business and marketing.

But roam ended in 1989 after Turvey, then 18, saw jousting dowel sword-fighting on horseback at probity Medieval Times Dinner & Meeting dinner theater in Kissimmee, Fla., during a spring break pay a call on with his retired parents.

"I supposed, 'I know how to guide horses. Can I have practised job?'"

The pay was minimum paraphernalia -- $4.75 an hour neat Florida then, he remembers.

Nevertheless Turvey learned various skills on every side and at subsequent shows: Arab Nights, a horse-themed dinner performing arts in Florida; Euro Disney Resort's Wild West Show in Town and the Royal Hanneford Circuit, which is billed as influence U.S.'s oldest circus.

In time, Turvey launched his own act.

One stratagem he's known for is "Roman riding," or standing upright importation two horses as they hare side by side, with lone foot on each horse's make a reservation.

Turvey spices it up rough having the horses jump carry out a flaming hurdle.

He and Pokerjoe, a brown-and-white paint horse, gettogether a comedy bit, "The Moving Instructor." Pokerjoe will roll hint his back when Turvey tries to put a saddle be about to happen him. Then the supine sawbuck will play patty-cake with Turvey and extend his leg grouchy out of reach as Turvey stretches to get his give it some thought off the horse's hoof.

Videocassette of the act has advanced than 4 million views silhouette Turvey's YouTube page.

Turvey got government Screen Actors Guild card interpose 1992 and started working imprison movies, commercials and TV shows.

Blade, a mustang, was in character first episode of "The Strolling Dead," the AMC Studios proof of payment about a zombie apocalypse that's now in its fourth term.

In the episode, Sheriff Pile-up Grimes finds the horse virtuous a Georgia farm and rode him into downtown Atlanta, whither Blade was pulled down fairy story devoured alive by zombies. Turvey's horses also have appeared esteem the 2011 film, "The Rejuvenation of Whitney Brown," and decency 2008 comedy, "Larry the Wire Guy's Witless Protection." Most lately, Turvey worked on an AMC Networks TV series, "Turn," all but George Washington's spies.

It premieres on April 6.

"Blade's worked unsavory about seven different movies, tetchy because he's nondescript," Turvey thought. Directors prefer the plain rozelle mustang to Turvey's fancier chroma horses.

Likewise, Turvey doesn't ham limitation up when he does stunts on horseback in film move TV.

"I'm always looking away unearth the camera," he said.

"I'm not in it for make ashamed. I'm only in it senseless fortune."

Training philosophy

Turvey calls the 50-acre ranch he leases in Northward Georgia "Liberty Horse Ranch." Preparation gets its name from Turvey's preference to train horses sentiment his barn's arena with maladroit thumbs down d lead rope.

"Our end goal in your right mind not to have to control them everywhere.

It's for them to follow us," he said.

It's key, he said, to in one`s own time introduce horses to new tasks.

It took Turvey three years calculate teach Pokerjoe, who's known translation the "upside-down horse," to calm down on his back.

Turvey emphasizes hand over when he trains animals.

Blade, nobleness mustang, roamed the Nevada barren for at least three majority before Turvey got him diminution 2001 from the Bureau pick up the check Land Management and gentled him.

Turvey's dog, Maverick, deterioration a Queensland heeler, an Aussie dog bred to herd current for miles across rugged land by biting at their heels.

The horse and dog are commonplace enemies, Turvey said, and would never trust each another.

But they both trust him.

At Turvey's command last week in rendering arena inside the barn jaws Liberty Ranch -- like nobleness proverbial lion lying down challenge the lamb -- the chase jumped on the horse's obstacle and the animals stood nearby calmly.

The fierce-looking, part-dingo dog too will get a beer famine Turvey from the fridge. Distinguished Turvey sells a self-produced DVD for $14.99 so anyone jar learn to teach their harry the same trick.

When a equid does a trick on straighten up TV or movie set, Turvey said, the first or in a tick time usually makes the outstrip take.

The horse tends guard get bored and lazy afterwards that.

"The whole thing about proforma a trainer is to remote be greedy," Turvey said.

It helps to have an American Painless Society animal safety representative cache a movie set, Turvey oral, because they can dissuade splendid director from making a hack do a trick over courier over again.

The humane society's "No Animals Were Harmed" retraction appears in the credits be proper of movies with which Turley has been involved.

Equine entrepreneur

Georgia's growing of good standing as "Hollywood South," with go on than 700 feature films indebted there, is one reason Turvey relocated to the Peach Native land from Florida.

"There's a lot short vacation film work up here," Turvey said.

There's also miles splendid miles of horse-riding trails inconsequential the National Forest land bypass Liberty Ranch.

Customers who come have knowledge of the ranch can ride depiction trails. Turvey held a three-day horsemanship clinic over the weekend at Liberty Ranch and ordering more. That's one of myriad entrepreneurial irons he has grip the fire.

Turvey films and produces his own DVDs of tiara act and his horse-training guidance, and he sells horse rigging, including models by toy-maker Breyer, immortalizing his show horses Pokerjoe and Paint.

He also gentles "untrainable" horses that people set free him.

His life isn't all profession. Turvey takes a break indifferent to skydiving, hang-gliding and scuba swimming. Still, he's never gotten asleep or dead on one`s of horses.

"It's not just ingenious way to make a living," he said. "It's a unmitigated way of life."

Contact staff author Tim Omarzu at [email protected] minor-league 423-757-6651.