Executive snapshot: Two different worlds, show business and insurance

Jack Yenchek has his feet firmly planted in two very different worlds: show business and insurance. This unusual combination has worked for him for nearly 50 years. As president and chief operating officer of Kellogg and Yenchek Insurance, he helps run an agency that has provided personal and commercial insurance products to Southern Nevadans since 1943.

But Yenchek brings a different perspective to his job, since he started his career as a stage manager and show business promoter. After serving in the Korean War, he got a degree in fine arts from Temple University and taught high school during the day while working in a New Jersey theater at night. He eventually left teaching to tour the world with stage productions, moving to Las Vegas in the early 1960s to stage manage shows on the Strip. He has produced shows locally and around the world, while maintaining a successful career as an insurance agent.

How did you get into the insurance business?

When I first moved to Las Vegas, I worked nights as a stage manager and had my days free. A friend of mine, who was the district manager for Farmers Insurance, suggested I become an insurance adjustor, and later I got my agent’s license and started selling policies. I still kept my night job on the Strip, and I’ve worked in both fields ever since.

How did Kellogg and Yenchek come into being?

The agency was founded in 1943 as the Cutler Agency, and Paul Kellogg bought it in 1971. I joined the company in 1995. Bobbie Smith and my son, JJ, are also principals in the agency. We employ four or five staff members, depending on our workload, and handle both personal and business insurance.

How does your show business experience help you in the insurance business?

I understand the unique needs of performers and can relate to them, so I focus on commercial accounts in the entertainment industry. We provide workers comp and liability policies for performers like Steve Wyrick, Dave Burton and Rich Little, as well as a number of lounge shows and jazz festivals, and the Tournament of Champions at the Excalibur. One of my clients maintains a habitat for lions that are used in local shows.

What was Las Vegas like when you moved here in the 1960s?

Obviously, it was a much smaller town. There were only eight major hotels, so all the stage managers knew each other. If we needed equipment in a hurry, we could borrow it from someone else. We all had the power of the pen and could comp each other for shows and meals. Since there were eight of us and only seven days in a week, we could enjoy a free show every night if we wanted to.

What’s your favorite show on the Strip?

“Jersey Boys.” I worked with Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons when they played the Riviera years ago, and they were really nice guys. I related to them because I’m from Philly, which is just across the river from New Jersey, and we’re the same kind of people.