Security keeps close watch on 'View' stars
Posted Courtesy of The Post and Courier (http://www.charleston.net)
BY JAMES SCOTT
Of The Post and Courier Staff
Television diva Barbara Walters had a shadow Monday in Charleston -- a 5-foot-10-inch, 215-pound shadow named Tommy Vickers.
Vickers, head of Lowcountry-based security company VIP Services, was tasked this weekend with keeping Walters and her morning talk show crew out of harm's way during their two-day visit to the Holy City, a tough job when the famous broadcast journalist wants to shop in the Market, take carriage rides through the French Quarter and chat with adoring fans.
ABC television's daytime talk show "The View" was broadcast live from Charleston because the group From Darkness to Light won "The View from Your Hometown" contest. The group, which works against child sexual abuse, received $25,000, and "The View" crew came here to do a show.
Hosts Walters, Star Jones, Meredith Vieira and Joy Behar talked of mint juleps, sweet tea, shrimp and grits and Rainbow Row. When "The View" ladies interviewed actress Tara Reid, a group of guys stage left yelled, "We love you, Tara!" A few moments later, another group of guys stage right bellowed, "We love you more, Tara!"
For Vickers, who spent Monday morning eyeballing the crowd of more than a thousand at the College of Charleston Cistern, it's all part of the job. "Our whole focus is on those four ladies up on stage," Vickers said. "If anything goes wrong, my job is to get them off that stage and out of here -- to make sure they are safe."
For Vickers, a 43-year-old former narcotics detective from Richmond, Va., this has been a way of life for the past decade, always staying just a few steps behind -- or in front -- of his client.
His clients are a virtual celebrity Who's Who. He guarded Mikhail Gorbachev during a visit to Virginia. He also guarded the musician formerly-and-now-again known as Prince, not to mention best-selling authors Patricia Cornwell and Tom Wolfe.
His crews also have worked television shows, including the "Antiques Roadshow" and "While You Were Out" as well as the blockbuster Mel Gibson film "The Patriot."
"You find that most celebrities are pretty nice people," said Vickers, adding that his staff is never allowed to ask for an autograph or a photo. "If you are not star-struck then you tend to find most celebrities are normal people who simply need a service."
While Vickers has a reputation for handling high-profile clients, his company routinely takes on a wide range of other jobs, ranging from escorting prisoners and private citizens to protecting spouses during nasty divorces.
Last year, his crew spent two weeks guarding 10 Russian sailors held in a local hotel by request of the federal government. His guys also spent two months protecting a drug abuser from relapsing. Vickers charges $15 to $20 an hour, depending on the threat level.
All of Vickers' 25 employees, most dressed like him in dark suits and sporting tiny earpieces and transmitters in a sleeve, carry firearms and are trained to use them. His staff is made up mostly of former law enforcement officers and military officials, including one who was a Navy Seal.
In the case of Walters and her crew, Vickers' duty included following her Sunday carriage tour around town on foot, keeping her safe as she shopped in the Market, then grabbing a little lunch Monday on East Bay Street. To prepare, he said his crew spends five hours planning for each hour guarding. That involves mapping out the area, knowing where the closest hospital is and the fastest way there in case something happens.
"You have to be fluid," said Vickers, who ejected one protesting student from Monday's show at the college. "You have to adapt quickly."
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