The Princess Theatre for the Performing Arts will present Greg Screws—Local Media Icon” in a special fundraiser for the theatre on Fri., Jan. 11, at 7:30 p.m.

The one-man show will feature stories from television, sports, news coverage, and even…yes…stories on Greg and the Princess as he returns to a place where he was dropped off, and occasionally kicked out of, when he was a kid. Greg hopes his evening of storytelling will make you laugh.

Growing up in Hartselle, Greg had an unspectacular basketball career, which led him to become a little league parent as his daughter played hoops. Despite having Greg give her tips on how to play the sport, Emily became a very good player who played on a team that finished second in the AAU nationals and won the state sports festival three years in a row.

After leaving Hartselle and realizing higher education was a challenge in addition to being a goal, Greg went to the University of Alabama. His “brush with greatness” at UA was seeing Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant in a Shoney’s Restaurant. Greg majored in communications and worked at WCFT television before moving to WVTM in Birmingham. His stop in Birmingham television sparked his love of NASCAR and is also where he realized weathermen rarely pick up the check at lunch.

From there, Greg traveled to Richmond, Va., for a stop at WRIC television. There Greg worked with Chip Tarkenton, the nephew of NFL great Fran Tarkenton. His friendship with Chip ended when Fran and Greg got into a heated discussion at Tarkenton over the NFL Great’s lack of success in Super Bowls. From Richmond, Greg moved back to Huntsville where he did sports and morning television for right years. After 25 years in television, he had an itch to take a sabbatical and worked for 15 months with United Way of Madison County.

“Working at UW of Madison County was a remarkably rewarding experience,” Screws said. “It made me know how much I didn’t know about my own community, and made me want to give community service a priority in my life.”

Greg is very much in demand as a public speaker. His stories of covering news, sports and robust personalities make for great after dinner and public speaking.

Reserved tickets are $20 and are available at the Princess Theatre box office by calling 256-340-1778 or online at www.princesstheatre,org.