WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS -- It feels a bit like meeting the Wizard of OZ -- to see the man behind the East Helena Fourth of July fireworks and peer at the tubes, wires and contraptions that make the magic.

Although Jay Paulsen of Big Sky Fireworks won't be on smelter hill in person tonight, he's scripted the fireworks extravaganza down to every detail.

And thanks to his early planning, buying fireworks far in advance, East Helena is one of the lucky communities to have a fireworks display.

Across the United States, at least 18 companies never got their fireworks from China this year, following a warehouse explosion in February.

Subsequent safety restrictions and then Olympics security concerns strangled shipments, according to recent AP news reports.

Tonight, spectators at dusk in East Helena can expect to enjoy some of Paulsen's favorite displays, like willow shells, which explode into willow-like streamers that flow close to the ground.

There will also be the chrysanthemums and peonies blossoming in the night sky.

And there are horsetails, made of hundreds of streamers of one or more colors and also crossettes -- made of multiple x-patterns, as well as some that swarm bee-like and others that swim sideways like fish.

Between July 1 and July 6, Paulsen personally shoots five shows.

That doesn't mean he's darting around a field with a punk or wooden matches lighting a tangle of fuses.

He's scripted each show. The shells have been taped and fused and loaded into a series of racks.

The shooter, dressed in a hard hat and fire-resistant clothes, then presses different buttons on an electronic firing box, detonating the fireworks in rapidfire, timed sequence.

Tonight Paulsen has 30 shooter crews spread out to cities and towns across Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, lighting up the skies.

The Fourth of July is their biggest day of the year, but Big Sky Fireworks also keeps busy with special events -- Helena's Symphony Under the Stars, weddings, fairs, rodeos and New Year's Eve celebrations.

Being the man behind the Fourth of July isn't what Paulsen set out to do.

Although he admits he's always been fascinated by fireworks.

For years he did custom farming, built and ran motels, worked in sales and ran an ATV business.

"I've sold lots of things in my life," he said, "and fireworks is the easiest thing in the world to sell.

"In other lines of work, you close one of 20 sales. In the fireworks business, you don't deal with people who don't like fireworks. You deal with people who love them."

Oddly enough, his wife, Krys, who partners in the family business, is one of those who doesn't love them.

But she sets those feelings aside and is the go-to-gal, especially on the Fourth of July. She's the one who drives to the rescue of any shooter who is stranded without an important gizmo needed for tonight's show.

In the business for 15 years, but most intensely the past six, Paulsen has seen a lot of changes since Sept 11, 2001.

"Rules and regulations have tripled," he said.

Background checks on workers now have to come up squeaky clean.

"It's made our industry much more difficult," he said. "It's increased the cost of a show.

"A good show -- a national quality show will cost about $1,000 a minute," he said. "If you want a quality, quality show -- including insurance."

In recent years, insurance costs have derailed many a small town celebration.

For that reason, Paulsen began to offer insurance.

"We cover it. We addressed the situation. My insurance company and I figured out how to help these people."

Each show is also tailored to the community or organization's budget.

And it's designed for our attention span. Paulsen hardly ever designs a show to run over 20 minutes.

"It becomes repetitive," he said. "The boom and the noise -- people become saturated." They can't take in any more and become distracted.

But boredom doesn't appear to be a problem at Big Sky Fireworks shows -- at least not in East Helena.

The shows sell themselves. Paulsen doesn't even need to advertise.

"We've had many, many rave reviews of our shows," he said proudly.

And he plans on keeping them coming.

He often asks an acquaintance to walk through the crowd and get feedback.

Paulsen wants to know, "What would make this show better for you?"

Not having any professional training in pyrotechnics or art, Paulsen relies on inspiration.

A vision comes to him of what he wants to create, he said.

"I'm always thinking about it. I think about different ways to do something in a show that people haven't seen before. That's what I strive for. I have no education in design. I just have to have the visions.

"Sometimes being self taught has its advantages," he said. He takes nothing for granted. It makes him work harder.

"What really makes a good show is in the eyes of the crowd."

Reporter Marga Lincoln: 447-4074 or marga.lincoln@helenair.com