Schanze calls publicity 'good for business'

One of Utah's bustling entrepreneurs known for his unorthodox marketing schemes plans to channel the attention from his recent criminal charges into making money.

Dell Buck Schanze, known as "Super Dell," owns and operates a couple of multimillion-dollar companies along the Wasatch Front. He is recognized for his corny advertisements and his over-the-top enthusiasm.

He has been in the spotlight since facing misdemeanor charges filed after an incident in Draper last month.

In fact, Schanze is enjoying the publicity. He says it's "good for business."

This isn't the first time Schanze has been accused of criminal activity. He's got a rap sheet containing at least 30 charges, including various traffic and weapons citations. Schanze claims innocence on everything but the traffic violations and says police "harass" him because he owns a gun.

"I do not have a wanton willful disregard for people," he said.

In addition to a concealed-weapons permit, Schanze holds a class 3 weapons permit and a license to manufacture guns. He also says he is trained in martial arts.

"Any bad guy is in a world of hurt if he threatens me or my family," he said. Fighting the "bad guys" is exactly what he said he was doing nearly every time he's been charged with brandishing a weapon.

Currently, Schanze faces one count of threatening with a dangerous weapon in a fight or quarrel, a class A misdemeanor and one class B misdemeanor count of reckless driving.

Charging documents state that on May 21 several residents saw Schanze driving nearly 75 mph east along Draper's Steep Mountain Drive. A few men reportedly followed him to the hang-gliding park at the Point of the Mountain and confronted him about speeding through their neighborhood. One man picked up a rock and threatened to break the taillights of Schanze's Jaguar, court documents state.

Court records state that Schanze then pulled a handgun from his front pants pocket and pointed it at one of his accusers. When police arrived at the scene, they seized a Glock 10 mm handgun from Schanze, but he said they allowed him to keep another gun and a knife he was carrying.

Schanze said he is going to fight the current allegations because this time he can afford to defend himself in court, unlike previous cases when he said he was forced into plea bargains to avoid high costs.

"They just want to throw me in jail for another crime I didn't commit," he said. "It's all malicious harassment of a law-abiding gun owner."

"People can find the good and the bad about him," said Dan "The Laptop Man" Young, president of PC Laptops. "He comes off as wild and crazy, but he has a good heart."

Young recently went into Schanze's Totally Awesome Guns and Range for some shooting practice and found a packed store. The manager recommended he come back another time because it was so busy, he said.

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E-mail: wleonard@desnews.com; jdougherty@desnews.com