Metal Sludge The Power and the Glory
TODD’S WISH COMES TRUE!
Updated 4/11/05:
By now, most people are familiar with the story of Todd Arnold and his quest for his one wish, which came to him in a dream. That was to meet Motley Crue when they came to Green Bay, Wisconsin this past April 5th! But if you missed out on all that, scroll down to the middle of the page so you can catch up on how this all came about.
The other day, we announced that Todd got his wish. Todd himself e-mailed us details of what happened when he met Mick, Tommy, Vince and Nikki. In Todd’s own words, here’s his report:
Rock Star For A Day
by Todd Arnold
For those of you that aren’t familiar with my story, my name is Todd Arnold and I’m a huge Motley Crue fan, and my biggest dream in the world has always been to meet Motley Crue.
So when I found out they were coming to my hometown arena in Green Bay, Wisconsin I knew that it was my destiny to do whatever I could do to make my dream come true.
You see for many years I was unable to go to concerts because of health issues. Both my sister Michelle and I were born with a neuromuscular disease called Spinal Muscular Atrophy which weakens the muscles so I couldn’t sit up in my electric wheelchair anymore to go to concerts, but my sister Michelle and best friend Jason Henke would still go and give me a full report on every show when they got home. Did I miss going to concerts? Hell Yes, metal music and rock concerts have always been my life.
So a couple years ago I had a special fledbed wheelchair made for me where I could lay down and still get around somewhat, and from that point on I knew rock concerts would be part of my life once again. Motley Crue was making there comeback, and so was I, and this time I was going to make sure I was going to meet them.
After several attempts and failing miserably to get passes, the idea came to me a dream to start a online petition in hopes that it would get enough attention and signatures that maybe somebody would see it that would have enough pull to make my dream come true.
At first I thought to myself, this is ridiculous, this will never work. But the more I thought about it, I figured why not, everything else I tried didn’t work and who knows maybe this is just crazy enough to work.
So on March 7th my Help Me Meet Motley Crue petition was launched and it took off like a rocket.
Thanks to metal-sludge.tv, motley.com, scrueyou.com, Wisconsin-music.com, local newspapers, local radio stations, and the countless number of fans that signed the petition and passed it onto friends and family I received over 1000 signatures in the first 3 days and a grand total of over 2400 signatures in all from 16 countries worldwide.
Because of the response Motley Crue’s management contacted me only 3 days into the petition and invited my sister Michelle and I backstage, along with my mom Karen, best friend Jason Henke, and my nurse Lisa Hidde to the April 5th show in Green Bay. Motley’s Management said they received so many e-mails and telephone calls from fans that saw the petition that they could hardly keep up.
So needless to say the next 3 weeks was pretty chaotic around home. Everyone was so excited and my sister and I sort of became local celebrities. Our local newspaper The Post Crescent did a feature story about us, and our favorite radio station WAPL did a interview with Michelle on the air.
So when the big day finally arrived all of us were pretty much on cloud nine. On our way into the arena we were stopped by 3 different groups of people in the parking lot that recognized Michelle and I from the newspaper and Metal Sludge and wanted to wish us luck which was weird, I felt just like a rock star.
When we finally made in it into the arena, we could hear Motley doing soundcheck and they sounded awesome.
So we went to pick up our passes right away at will call and we were told that Todd which is the head of security would meet us at 4:45pm to meet us and take us backstage.
Well we get to will call and no passes, and Todd didn’t show up so at this point I’m getting worried.
Luckily we met up with Brett Christensen from wisconsin-music.com who was covering our story backstage which was nice because he was asking questions to the security and arena people and making sure they didn’t forget about us.
After about a hour wait we were greeted by Todd and Tour Manager Alan and they apologized for making us wait, and they tell us that the reason why they made us wait because they wanted Motley to meet the press and other fans first and so that they could arrange a one on one private meeting with just us and Motley.
Alan was like this is a very special unique story and we wanted to make it special for you so you get a private meeting.
I was on cloud nine, we were all freaking out.
After another 15 minutes of waiting Alan and Todd brought the guys out to meet us and they were so nice and down to earth
Todd & Michelle with friends, family and the Crue
They loved my petition and they were really impressed with the things I brought along to sign.
I brought my old fan club pictures and newsletters from 1983 and my original Too Fast For Love Leather Records Press Kit, and they freaked out when they saw them. Nikki was like "holy shit I don’t even have this stuff, you are a insane fan Todd"
Then I gave the guys a copy of newspaper article about Michelle and I, and while we were signing autographs and taking pictures, Tommy was reading the article and he was quick to point out that it looks like I’m giving the camera the finger in the picture. Tommy’s like "Todd this picture of you is great, your giving the camera the finger, I love it.
They were all so great, even more than I could have imagined. There Security and manager Alan were so gracious it was unbelievable.
Nikki wanted us to sit down in the front row but our tickets were really nice and sitting down on the floor would have been kind of dangerous, so we declined but it was very nice to be concerned about us like that.
Nikki loved my shirt I was wearing, but he was like dude, you need the new merchandise. So he had the merchandise manager get us free t-shirts, posters, wrist bends, and tour books for everybody in our group. It must have been at least $400 in merchandise for free.
After hanging with Motley for about 15 minutes we had to say our good-byes and all the guys hugged my mom and kissed Michelle and Nikki even let Michelle goose him in the ass which made her day, and Nikki had somebody write down my e-mail address and our home address and told us that in the future if we ever needed anything that we shouldn’t be afraid to call and ask.
I don’t know if that means we have a lifetime backstage pass or what, but I just might have to take him up on his offer come August 10th because they are playing Milwaukee again and my mom had such a good time she is already talking about renting a motorhome to take me down to see them again.
The show was awesome. Naked girls, midgets, clowns, fire breathers, and acrobats. You name it and we saw it. If you haven’t seen the Red, White, and Crue tour yet, I highly recommend you do. I may be bias, but this was the best concert I have ever seen.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Stevie Rachelle and Metal Sludge, Brett Christensen, Katie and everybody at 10th Street, Tour Manager Alan, Todd in security, Todd Talady, Joe Calgaro and WAPL, Steve Hyden and the Post Crescent, Motley.com, and of course Nikki, Tommy, Vince and Mick for being such gracious hosts and making our dream come true.
Todd & Michelle Arnold
Todd and Michelle with family, friends & the Crue!
Motley Crue onstage in Green Bay, Wisconsin
Now doesn’t that make you feel all good inside!
And that’s not all! Here’s a report sent to us from Brett Christensen from www.wisconsin-music.com who was there and helped Todd out as well.
If there?s a will, there?s a way. Todd Arnold is proof of that, especially when it came to him meeting Motley Crue. Despite the fact that he has spinal muscular atrophy, the 31 year old Wisconsin man was determined to make his dream a reality. As any Sludgaolic knows, Todd started an online petition to help him meet his heroes. Metal Sludge then posted his story with a heartfelt plea to its readers, and the result was thousands of metal-heads signing the petition. Within a matter of days, the Crue?s management responded and Todd was about to get his wish.
On April 5th, Todd along with his sister Michelle (who also has spinal muscular atrophy) and some family members, waited patiently in Green Bay?s Resch Center for his special moment. They were told to be present at 4:30 sharp, but at 5:00 they were still waiting and their contact was no-where to be seen. Time passed, and a herd of fans were ushered into a meet and greet that did not include Todd. Eventually, one of the band?s crewmembers came out and reassured the family that they would get their turn. The meet and greet before the show was held in a small room, and there was really no room for Todd or Michelle to maneuver in. So plans were made for the band to come out to them.
After a detailed pat down and again more waiting, it happened. Motley Crue came to Todd, and shared a very private and special moment with his family. Introductions were made, autographs were signed, and pictures were taken. Nikki Sixx was familiar with Todd?s story, and asked who actually started the petition. When they replied that Todd did, Tommy Lee replied, ?Of course Todd did!? Then gesturing to a picture of Todd and Michelle that appeared in a local newspaper the day before, Tommy joked ?Hey Todd, it looks like you?re flipping the camera off !? Mick Mars and Vince Neil, although more laid back, were both still very pleasant and approachable. Nikki noticed that Todd had on a classic Crue shirt, and asked if he had a new one yet. He didn?t, so Nikki called over their merch man to set the entire family up with the latest in Motley swag. Several laughs and handshakes later, the band was whisked away to their next event. But not before Michelle was able to grab a handful of Nikki?s backside. It was, as she put it, his ?best feature?.
The family was provided with seats in the VIP section of the arena, where they had plenty of room and a great view of the stage. Later that evening, Motley Crue did what they did best: played their lude brand of rock n? roll with attitude and rebellion. But the Arnold family knows that there?s more to Motley Crue than that. Vulgar and tattooed? More than any other rocker out there. Kind, appreciative and giving? Again, more than any other rocker out there.
Brett Christensen
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Thanks for the report, Brett!
Seriously, that rules all the way around.
We’d like to thank Katie & everyone at 10th Street Management, and of course Mick, Tommy, Vince and Nikki for making Todd’s wish come true!
Updated 4/5/05:
TODD’S WISH COMES TRUE!
We’ve gotten word that Motley Crue took care of Todd Arnold in a BIG WAY tonight! Todd’s at the show in Green Bay, Wisconsin right now but before the show, the Crue took time to meet privately with Todd and his family. That rules.
More details will be forthcoming when we hear from Todd himself but we wanted to be sure to pass that along.
Thank you Mick, Nikki, Tommy, and Vince for taking the time to make Todd’s wish come true!
3/30/05:
The countdown to Todd’s dream is on!
Here’s an e-mail sent to us yesterday from the man himself, Mr. Todd Arnold!
From: NetCRUEzer@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, March 29, 2005 3:30 PM
Subject: WAPL interview
WAPL’s Joe Calgaro did a interview with Motley Crue’s lead singer Vince Neil at 4pm
Joe and Vince talked about me in the interview.
They were talking about the show, and Joe said, "you know, Vince, we have this local kid from the area that’s the biggest Motley Crue fan around and his name is Todd Arnold. Todd started this online petition that caught the eye of a famous metal web site called Metal Sludge and the petition received a lot of attention and signatures and you guys were nice enough to set him up with backstage passes next week and full fill his dream, that is so cool."
So Vince says, "yes its going to be awesome, we hooked Todd up, and we are going to take care of him and show him a good time"
Then after the interview Joe mentioned that my story and the petition is on wapl.com and that everybody should check it out.
I think I’m going to pass out.
I’ll ask Joe if the interview was taped and if I can get a copy
Todd
That is very cool, Mr. Todd. We’re looking forward to your report after this all goes down next week!
3/11/05:
Thanks to the incredibly large response to Todd’s request, Mötley Crüe has agreed to grant Todd his wish! So on April 5th, Todd will be meeting the Crüe for a few minutes and his dream will come true.
Special thanks to Katie and everyone at 10th Street Management for making this happen, and of course to Nikki, Tommy, Vince and Mick!
We anticipate a full report from Todd after the Crüe show on April 5th.
Thanks again to everyone who signed Todd’s petition and for showing support!
The original post appears below.
Metal Sludge ran a story on a few metal heads from Wisconsin last year. Not your average metal heads either. This brother and sister are true die hard CRUEheads from way back, and their story is amazing to say the least.
They recently e-mailed Sludge to ask for a favor, which is to get backstage to meet Motley Crue when the show hits Green Bay on April 5th.
For the band, their management, and everyone else in the world to read, we re-posted their story below and a recent e-mail.
What else can be said, but please read the story and let’s see what we all can do to help make this happen.
Hey Nikki, Vince, Mick & Tommy, please give this pair of fans two minutes, and we’ll all be forever grateful and then some.
Thank you,
Metal Sludge
Some people who heard about Todd on the message board started this petition as well.
http://www.petitionspot.com/petitions/NetCRUEzer
—–Original Message—–
From: NetCRUEzer@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, March 01, 2005 10:06 PM
To: metalsludge@metalsludge.tv
Subject: Motley Crue show in Green Bay
Hey Sludge,
We are going to see Motley Crue on April 5th show in Green Bay and we are so excited. The last time I saw them was the Dr. Feelgood tour when Faster Pussycat opened, that was so much fun that night.
I tried all my connections and nobody can get us backstage passes for the April 5th show. If you or any of your rock star friends have any connections that could get us backstage for the Green Bay show please let me know. It would be a dream come true for us.
We saw Metallica back on September 27th and got backstage, but Metallica left right after the show and didn’t do a meet and greet which was really disappointing, but Bubba Franks, Chad Cliffton, Ben Steele, & Brad Bedell from the Green Bay Packers were backstage so we hung out and talked with them which was awesome.
Plus I met a couple hot chicks from Green Bay and managed to get a kiss from one of them which was even better.
It’s hard getting backstage these days. It was easier back in the good old days. I’m there biggest fan, I have to meet them.
P.S. I still have to thank Tommy for the drum sticks from the Feelgood tour.
Todd & Michelle Arnold
Road Story #2 / Todd & Michelle Arnold
This is not your standard road story as I will not be talking about drunken roadies, hot groupies or bad monitors. This is a story about a brother & a sister who are huge music fans. They are also crippled and make me look in the mirror everyday with shame when I have a complaint. I just read an e-mail from my friend Todd (included below) and decided this should be written down now, while my mind is fresh and the tears in my eyes are wet.
As many of you might know I am from Wisconsin and spent 21 years of my life there before trudging out to Hollywood in search of Tuff. Since the spring of 1988 Tuff has been making regular trips back to the great cheese state, and we have played Milwaukee, Green Bay, Oshkosh, New London, Kaukauna, Almond & a few other unincorporated corn fields as well. Somewhere along the way I met Todd & Michelle Arnold. A sister and her younger brother who are both totally devoted to the 80s era of music, they especially love Motley Crue & Tuff. I?m guessing a ton of other bands as well, but Motley was the kings of that era, and Tuff (or at least me), was kind of like a hometown favorite turned rock star for a moment.
It is very sad and unfortunate that they both have been affected by Spinal Muscular Atrophy which is a form of Muscular Dystrophy. Todd was born with it and Doctors said he wouldn?t live past age 3. Michelle was born normal, walked until the age 10 and it developed from there. It is a horrible crippling disease which is passed down genetically and affects boys much worse than it does the girls. Michelle is still physically much better off than Todd and can even drive a specially designed van. She also has one of those scooters and has no problem plowing through people at concerts, in-stores, & back stage. Oh yeah, a camera is usually in tow, stickers on it & probably a CD/DVD player is attached by now. If you live in the area or are a band who toured through there, you no doubt might even know her. She is now 32 years old and rules!
I have met Michelle several times and Todd maybe a couple. You see Todd has this horrible disease much-much worse than his sister. He?s spent weeks, months & years lying in his bedroom. According to his e-mail at least 30 years, he?ll be 31 soon. So much for the Doctors predictions of not making it past age 3. This kid Todd is stronger than anyone I?ve ever met. If Brett Favre is the iron man, what does that make Todd Arnold? In his e-mail he wrote: ?the weather sucks, but health wise I have been pretty good.? Talk about balls of steel. He?s telling me he?s pretty good and he hasn?t had a fraction of the daily life we all take for granted. He?s never ever walked, ran, stood at a urinal or high five?d a friend on the playground. This e-mail was different than the others he has sent me in the last few years as he attached a picture. Upon opening it my eyes filled with tears as I see this grown man lying on a wheel chair cot & weighing roughly 40lbs is my guess. His sister sitting in her scooter and they?re both smiling like they just one the fucking lottery.
I would also like to say that if my memory still serves me correct Todd went to see Motley Crue on the Dr. Feelgood tour and ended up with a pair of sticks from Tommy Lee. (This story was just confirmed by Michelle, I called her today). I know this because my Mom was there and sat with Todd & Michelle. Bare with me as this could be a bit detail hazy as it took place about 15 years ago. According to my source (Mom) Tommy did his drum solo thing where he rides out over the arena on that cable wire drum kit and like all the shows, the crowd goes nuts. Tommy is 30 feet in the air, 10,000 screaming fans, tits being exposed from every angle, spinning sticks, hitting drums, and of course asking the crowd: ?hey fuckers, you wanna hear some more?? The crowd goes nuts again, Tommy is throwing sticks into the crowd, smiling ear to ear and after his drum rig turns around it heads back to the stage where he grabs the bungee rope and plummets to the stage again. The band goes about their business and within a few short minutes are right back into another song. Vince is screaming, Nikki bangin? his head and Tommy spinning sticks like only Tommy can do. Todd is no doubt in awe of Motley Crue live during this time frame along with the rest of the musical world. Next thing you know, out of the blue some roadie walks up to Todd and my mom and hands them a pair of sticks and says; ?these are from Tommy.? The roadie runs off back to the stage and its back to work for him. It?s also back to work for Tommy as he has 10,000+ fans to impress until he can get a beer and some chicks after the show. So, what did we learn here? That Tommy Lee is one cool motherfucker. He?s 30 feet in the air, thousands of faces, females half naked everywhere he looks and he?s got to play the drums and put on a show as well. Somewhere between the drums, the bungee cord, the tits, and the next song he took the time to tell his roadie something that probably went like this: ?Dude, take these sticks, Nikki?s side, 75 rows back, 1st balcony, there is a kid who?s in a wheel chair! Hook him up.? Then he swigs a beer, grabs a cigarette and heads to his drum throne to get back to work. Tommy Lee = Bad Boy from Motley Crue = Totally Genuine Guy! That moment I?m guessing is one of the highlights of Todd?s life as a rock fan. (Michelle just confirmed that as well ? Tommy if you?re out there ? you are the MAN!)
Todd e-mails me a few times a year and always has great things to say
like: ?I love ?American Hairband? the lyrics describe exactly how I feel.? Or ?I heard I Hate Kissing You Goodbye on WAPL today; Joe Calgaro is a great Dj.? I get e-mails like this regularly from fans of all walks of life. But these really hit home. Today he e-mailed to say Happy Birthday and then informed me that his Father passed away last Friday. No words can express how I feel reading that. My Birthday is and should be so irrelevant to Todd, but it’s not. This guy is a real man among men.
I?m hoping that this story will help you, like it has me. The world is a fucked up place, there are a lot of fucked up people and a lot of great ones too. This guy has so little, yet so much to live for. So, the next time you complain about traffic, being 50lbs over weight or the fact that your job sucks ? think about Todd. This guy would give anything to be 250lbs, stuck in traffic & late as hell for work!
Todd YOU FUCKIN? RULE!
Your friend,
Stevie Rachelle
P.S. Hey rock n? roll world. Show Todd some love? NetCRUEzer@aol.com
Todd?s E-mail to Stevie Rachelle, from the spring of 2004.
Hey Stevie,
How’s it going?
I had to e-mail you because a little birdie told me it was your birthday the other day, and my sister Michelle and I wanted to wish you a happy belated birthday.
So how is everything out there in the land of fun and sun?
Back here in Wisconsin everything is ok. The weather sucks, but health wise I have been pretty good. Unfortunately I do have some bad news, our father passed away last Friday which has been difficult to deal with. You know my Mom has been taking care of us now for 30+ years and things seem so weird around the house now. There is such void and emptiness, but we are coping the best we can, and we are a strong family and we will make it.
Michelle and I were lucky enough to get tickets for the Cheap Trick/Aerosmith concert at the Resch Center in Green Bay on April 24th so we are looking forward to that. It’s been almost a year since my last concert and I’m starting to have withdrawals. Hopefully we can get some backstage passes somehow, but I’m not going to hold my breath. It’s pretty difficult getting backstage at the Resch.
So anyway do you have any plans on coming home to do any shows this summer? I have a new wheelchair now where I can lay down in it and still get around pretty decent. I haven’t been able to see you perform in quite some time, and it would be great to see you again. If you do make it home, I’ll be that guy in the front row screaming my ass off.
Anyway Michelle and I hope you had a nice birthday and the next time you talk to that beautiful mother of yours tell her that Michelle and Todd Arnold send our love.
Take Care, Todd
P.S. I ATTACHED A PICTURE OF MICHELLE AND I TAKEN LAST FALL
