Mr. John has had more than 15 minutes of fame, appearing on several TV shows, film productions as well as on radio.  Recently, however, we have had the pleasure of working with a major film star on a production whose subject matter is near and dear to our hearts.

It all came about several years ago when Shane and Clayton Jacobson of Melbourne, Australia set out to produce a family oriented documentary and decided that nothing was more universally understood than toilets. With an inventory of plumbing stories and toilet humor at the ready, they rolled up their overalls and got to work.

Shot and acted by family members, the Jacobsons completed their project and arranged to show it at several film festivals.  It was a 47 minute documentary that received high praise and gentle laughter wherever it was shown.  The film also caught the eye of Glenn Preusker, owner of Splashdown, an Australian portable toilet company.  Glenn met with the Jacobsons and offered to provide the funding, equipment and staff to turn the film into a feature length production. 

Big in heart and humor, the film crosses the globe with a story line of common decency, pride of workmanship and an uncommon hero.  It was while filming Kenny at the Pumper and Cleaner expo, an industry event in Nashville, Tennessee, that the producers made contact with Mr. John. 

When the film was released in Australia, it immediately became a run away hit, and earned the title of the best performing film in Australia in the past three years.   It also swept the industry awards, picking up best actor for Shane Jacobson at the AFI awards, best actor and best screenplay at the Film Critics of Australia awards and best feature film and best script at the IF awards. People couldn’t get enough of the gentle hero, Kenny – the “knight in shining overalls.”  The film was so successful, the production team geared up once again to produce an Australian television series called Kenny - a World Tour of Toilets in which the star of the film travels the globe to explore various topics related to toilets.

While in the United States, Producer Rohan Timlock contacted Mr. John and asked if we would be willing to appear in the Kenny series as one of the largest companies of our kind in the US.  Kenny and a small staff visited the Mr. John corporate headquarters in Keasbey, NJ and filmed employees hard at work on a typical day.  While the crew was impressed by the scope of our operation, we were equally impressed by their passion, dedication and desire to obtain more than just the big picture.  The uncanny ability of Kenny to delve into the human factor with each interview speaks to his interest in human nature and is a defining factor of his broad appeal. 

The film Kenny has just been released on a limited basis in the United States and is available on DVD.  The TV series Kenny – a World Tour of Toilets is currently airing on Australian television.  We are proud to be a part of their success and look forward to seeing where Kenny will go next!