Founder of EDGE Entertainment
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Book Ray Blanco for a Speaking Engagement
Businesses, Non-profit organizations, event planners and companies across the country have worked closely with our booking agents to hire Ray Blanco for a speaking engagements, guest appearances, product endorsements and corporate events. Many of those same clients have continued to turn to our speakers bureau as we can easily align Ray Blanco’s availability with their upcoming seminar, gala, annual conference, corporate function, and grand opening. Our close relationship with Ray Blanco’s booking agent and management team further enables us to provide inquiring clients with Ray Blanco’s speaking fee and appearance cost.
If your goal is to hire Ray Blanco to be your next keynote speaker or to be the next brand ambassador our celebrity speakers bureau can assist. If Ray Blanco’s booking fee is outside your companies budget or your unable to align with his appearance availability, our booking agents can provide you a list of talent that aligns with your event theme, budget and event date.
Five years after his father's passing, the government of Fidel Castro threatened to send Cuban children to the then-Soviet Union for re-education. Frightened, Blanco's widowed mother responded by taking her two children to Spain " literally with the clothes on their back and albums of photographs. Once there, the family faced discriminatory obstacles so they sought refuge in the United States.
On October 26, 1962 at the age of 6, Blanco arrived in the United States. His mother went to work at two factories to support the family. Within a few months, he too was working at a local bodega on Manhattan's Upper Westside. At the same time, the youngster turned to politics. His heroes included Mayor John Lindsay, Rep. William Ryan, Rep. Shirley Chisholm, Rep. Bella Abzug, Rep. Herman Badillo and other legendary New York leaders. One of his proudest moments was becoming a U.S. citizen.
In 1979, Blanco bought a house in Plainfield, where he has lived for more than half of his life. In his hometown of Plainfield, New Jersey, he has been active in community affairs. On December 2, 1993, Ray Blanco returned to his birthplace of Havana, Cuba for the first time in 32 years. It was a wonderful emotional homecoming yet Plainfield, New Jersey remains home.
Over the years, Blanco has served at the pleasure of three of the city's Mayors: Mayor Al McWilliams's City Administrator Selection Committee, Mayor Al McWilliams's Committee on Motion Picture Studios Development, Special Advisor to the late-Mayor Everett C. Lattimore and the Plainfield Citizens Advisory Committee - appointed by both Mayor Paul O'Keefe and Mayor Everett C. Lattimore.
Presently, he is a Trustee of the Queen City Academy, the Board of Governors of Muhlenberg Hospital Regional Center, a Board member of the Plainfield Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Latin American Council.
A three-time Emmy Award winner, Ray Blanco founded EDGE Entertainment to create, develop and produce socially enriching and entertaining television programming over a decade ago. Prior to that, Blanco held management and production positions at CBS-TV, Fox-TV and the Walt Disney Company. As a producer, Blanco has always sought to enlighten audiences while entertaining them.
Blanco has produced and directed hundreds of hours of television programming. His recent or current projects include Clean for Gene: The Life and Times of Senator Eugene McCarthy, Orozco in Gringoland for PBS, Haunted New York, the 39th Annual Hispanic Day Parade Telecast, Broadway's Best featuring Harvey Fierstein, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Twyla Tharp; The Magic Garden"Still Growing, Oscar De La Hoya: Body and Soul and Gloria and Emilio Estefan: Made for Each Other both programs for the A&E Television Network's Biography; Black and White in Exile for PBS and the award-winning series, Viva! which featured Ricky Martin, Fat Joe, Jorge Posada, Lucie Arnaz, Marc Anthony and Joan Baez among others.
More than a decade ago, Blanco created the WB11 Broadcasting Seminar, an intense program to increase employment opportunities for students of color and women in the broadcasting industry. Out of the over 200 participants, nearly 50% are working in the industry. In addition, he has taught at Ramapo State College, Rutgers/The State University and the University of California at Northridge.
In 2002, Blanco appeared at Indiana University as part of their incoming freshman orientation week. He was interrupted several times with applause and received a 15 minute standing ovation - by over 6,000 students who were mostly Caucasian " when he challenged them to repudiate hate and bigotry.
This is nothing new for the Cuban-born producer. For over a decade, Blanco has been a much sought after speaker - nationally and internationally - on a wide range of topics from diversity to life after 911 to Latino achievements.
He has spoken at the Dallas Museum of Art; Ball State University, Ferris State University; Southern Illinois University; University of Notre Dame, Broadcast Business Club in the Netherlands, American Women in Radio and Television and the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation in Los Angeles.
Within a few months of being hired as an executive at CBS-TV in the early 1980s, Ray Blanco realized that the entertainment and media industries lacked people of color and women in front and behind the camera. But fighting the good fight has been on his agenda since he was 10 years old and was demonstrating against the war in Viet Nam.
So he joined the Hispanic Academy of Media Arts and Sciences, formed its New York Chapter and eventually was elected its National Chairperson. He also served on the Organizing Committee of the National Hispanic Media Conference and the U.S. Hispanic Media Conference. He has been instrumental in creating employment opportunities for hundreds of individuals.
Blanco believes service to community is a mandate we all must bear. Over the years, he has served as Secretary and Treasurer of the Jersey City Museum, Board member of INTAR: Hispanic American Arts Center, Asian Cinevision, Children's Friends for Life, National Latino Communications Center, New Jersey Teen Arts, New Jersey Fire Safety Commission and Statewide Coordinator of the 15th Annual Puerto Rican Convention (Congreso Boricua).
Ray Blanco has been recognized twice as one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics in the United States by Hispanic Business Magazine. In 1998, he received a Citation of Excellence from the New Jersey State Senate sponsored by then-Senate President John D. Lynch.
His community service has also been recognized with the Golden Age Award for Community Service from the Latino Gerontological Center, the Golden Mitten Award from New York Cares and outstanding community service awards from the National Hispanic Academy of Media Arts and Sciences, the International Hispanic Scholarship Fund, Pan American Theatrical Association and National Latino Communications Center.
Over the years, Blanco and his programs have won countless awards and honors including three Emmy Awards, one National Emmy Award nomination, a National Education Media Network Award, twelve New York Emmy Award nominations, five Los Angeles Emmy Award nominations, five WorldFest Houston Awards, two National Council for Family Relations Media Awards and the Aurora Platinum Award for Culture Shock which was hosted by then-Minister Conrad Mohammed.
Since he was eight years old, Blanco has been active in politics. One of his first campaigns was the presidential campaign of then-Senator Eugene McCarthy in 1968. In the 1980s, Blanco was a member of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials, Plainfield Coordinator of the Barbara Sigmund for Congress Committee, a member of the Plainfield Democratic City Committee and Secretary of the Union County Young Democrats.
In the 1990s, Blanco was a member of the New Jersey Finance Committee of then-Governor Bill Clinton's Presidential Campaign. In 2003, he actively supported the New Democrats of Plainfield. In 2004, Ray Blanco won the Democratic Party nomination for Plainfield City Council At-Large (Citywide) seat.
On November 2 nd, Ray was elected to the Plainfield City Council with 8,793 votes or 75% of the vote cast against two opponents.
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NOPACTalent acts as a Celebrity Speakers Bureau and Athlete Booking agency for corporate functions, appearances, private events and speaking engagements. NOPACTalent does not claim or represent itself as Ray Blanco’s speakers bureau, agent, manager or management company for Ray Blanco or any celebrity on this website. NOPACTalent represents organizations seeking to hire motivational speakers, athletes, celebrities and entertainers for private corporate events, celebrity endorsements, personal appearances, and speaking engagements.
