40 AT 40: Sam Harden
Job Title: Lighting Designer

The people are what sets Bandit Lites apart from the rest of the industry. Once a week, for 40 weeks, Bandit will showcase an employee that has made a substantial contribution to the company, whether it be in an office, on the road or somewhere in between. Bandit would not be celebrating its 40th Anniversary without the hard work and dedication of every one these employees.*

*Employee Spotlights are released in no particular order.

Sam Harden got his start lighting bar bands in the 1970s. Soon, bar bands evolved into working for rental houses and freelance touring. Harden met Bandit Vice President, Mike Golden and General Manager, Dizzy Gosnell and after a job ran dry at another company, Harden approached them about a position with Bandit. Here are a few questions we asked the current LD on Lord of the Dance to get to know him better.

Q. You have been with Bandit for 14 years, has your job changed or evolved during that time?
A. It’s a bigger inventory and the gear has changed, but I don’t think the process of putting together a rig has changed a whole lot. I mean, the general “Bandit Standard” hasn’t changed but it has been fine-tuned. The overall size of the company has grown really fast. When I first started, it was a fairly good-sized company, but I knew everybody. Now when I come back to the shop, there are a lot of new faces.

Q. What is something most people don’t know about you?
A. I’m 50 years old- that’s something that a lot of people are surprised to hear. That and maybe that I’ve been married for twenty years. Most people in this industry don’t stay married very long because they’re on the road so much, so I’m pretty proud of that.

Q. What is the biggest challenge you face in this industry?
A. Tagging on to what I was just talking about, I’d say having a family and being gone as much as I am is definitely hard. I think it works for me because that is what I was doing when I started my family so they don’t really know it any other way. But it is still difficult.

Q. What keeps you touring after all these years?
A. I’ve always been the type of person that has to enjoy what I’m doing, or I won’t do it. I still enjoy this after 14 years on the road.