Talking with Jon Gabel reminds me of that scene from The Wizard of Oz: “Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain," bleats the old dude that Toto exposes as the wizard. Gabel is truly the wizard of New Year’s Eve. Through his companies joonbug.com and New Year’s Eve Central, Jon will sell 38,000 tickets to events he has produced in NYC, at 50 venues. In a "and your little dog too" type move, he's also doing events in LA and Vegas...too!!

I caught up to my old pal Jon while he was handling last minute preparation, working five phones, 50 assistants, his beautiful wife and aunt too. He didn’t have a second to spare, but he took some time to tell me how it all works. For eight years or so Jon has been producing multiple New Year’s Eve events. Clubs farm out their New Year’s Eve events to him. Otherwise the night becomes too consuming, distracting clubs from proper service during their Christmas season and disrupting the daily routine. Jon provides the public with reliable options so that they don't get banged bringing the year in with a bang.

How are sales this year? Dramatically better than last year. 8 million people lost their jobs and we should be hurting, but last year we were all hit with the economic shock and awe. So although the economy really isn’t better we have found a comfort level. We’ve adjusted our means of living.

Does the cache of the venue influence the choice of the consumer? To some extent, but not as much as you would think. There is a natural pairing of the venue to the individual. Most New Year’s Eve revelers are not traditional hardcore scenesters or insiders that consider whether a venue is trendy or cool. It really has little to do with the buying consumer's perception. For instance, Duvet, which was never a hot spot, was always an easy ticket to sell.

It looked fun in photos. Yes, to the mass market it was perfect. Touch sells well. When you live in New Jersey or don't go out that much it's just about what you've heard of. Yes, of course there is a natural difference between a Porky's and a Marquee and the crowds will naturally figure out what’s right for them and dress accordingly. Some places are t-shirts or club gear while our Cipriani's crowd will wear suits. We never post a dress code. It takes care of itself. People know. My staff will guide customers to a place with the right demographic as well.

You’re going to sell out all the venues? Absolutely and soon. We should be sold out by the end of today. But we are picking up additional venues. People need to move fast. Everybody is selling out.

What is being offered and for how much? All packages are premium open bars from either 9 to 2 or 9 to 3 and there's often some food and a champagne toast. Prices range from $75 per person to $1000 per person, depending on many factors including table service.

When was the first ticket sold and how far in advance does the frenzy start? We sold our first ticket over the summer. We sell to the Europeans starting over the summer. In the fall come the domestic travelers. By mid-December, the tri-state are buying fast. The last two weeks come the New Yorkers. The Manhatanites come the last three days.

So where can people check out there options and where are you going after it all settles? Joonbug.com. And I’m off to St. Barts after.

While I was with Jon, Track Entertainment’s Andrew Fox called in. Andrew’s newyearseve.com is also selling out venues. I asked Andrew about sales and he was word for word with Jon. Everything is selling. He said, "We’re happy to be exceeding our expectations.” His big party is at Tavern on The Green, which will be hosting its farewell event that night. Sales are up 25 to 30 percent over last year.

I also talked to Marky Ramone and his lovely Marion yesterday. Mark and I have been friends since the olden days. He will be DJing at the Hudson Hotel New Year’s Eve

Where have you been DJing? I just got back from London , Madrid, Barcelona and Sao Paulo. It's been great

What are you going to play at the Hudson Hotel? My usual rock and soul and dance and lots of punk. I’ve been honing my DJ skills and I’m having fun. I’m looking to hook up with some other DJs and compare and keep learning.

You blew me away last time I heard. What else? I’m putting out my Marky Ramone's Brooklyn's own pasta sauce.

Really. And don't they call it gravy in Brooklyn? Sauce sounds better. I got Vince Ray doing the art work on the bottle. I’m gonna send you a cases

And for 2010? Maybe a book in a year. I got a name for it: Marky Ramone, I Was There.