The Price is Wrong
The tragic tale of how $25.77 separated me from my wildest dreams.
First off, I am a lover of ALL games – board, video, television shows. You name it, I’ll play it. And I’m kind of competitive (to put it mildly). If you’ve played a game with me, you know a different side comes out and I can be…intense. I must also preface this post by saying I absolutely LOVE the Price is Right! Ever since I can remember I watched Rod Roddy call people down while Bob Barker gave away trips and cars. The highlight of being sick was staying home from school and watch that glorious hour of television.
Fast forward to 2019, when my parents asked me to tag along on a trip to Los Angelos. I immediately screamed, “We have to go to the Price is Right!” After confirming our schedule, I stalked the Price is Right website for tickets. Every morning, I would recheck to see if tickets had been released for the day of our trip. One day before work, the magical words appeared: Priority tickets available! I attacked the computer, clicking like my life depended on it. I stood in awe of the confirmation screen guaranteeing our seats in the audience.
With tickets in hand, I knew our next step…making t-shirts! I called my friend, Natalie, and we spent four hours making letters and shapes with the help of her Cricket. Her only request for payment was that I give her a shout out if I made it on stage.
I counted down the minutes until the day of our taping. We arrived thirty minutes early, and I could not keep the smile from my face. As soon as we checked in, we were given a number to stick to our shirts (I was number 48). We then proceeded to sign all the paperwork, get our picture taken, hand over our ID for the nametag and waited to be interviewed.
The interview: We were lined up against a metal railing 25 at a time. One producer would ask the first person a question like, “where are you from” or “what do you do for a living.” This continued down the row until he came to me - #48. When he asked what part of Oklahoma I was from, I threw my arms into the air and yelled HEY!!!! The producer was taken off guard as he jumped backward. I profusely apologized and said I was just super excited to be there. He replied, “Oh girl, this isn’t the time to hold back! Get excited!” A huge smile spread across my face as I jumped up and down, screaming. We talked about Tulsa and where I worked. He asked if I watched the show while patients were asleep. I assured him I didn’t (since that was unethical) but said I did watch it every day AFTER work. He asked my favorite game and was impressed by my answer, The Clock Game (it’s the only game that is pure skill). He finished our group and I skipped into the next line knowing I had a shot.
The holding area: For the next two hours we waited on metal benches while the rest of the audience was interviewed. They did show two reruns to get everyone in the mood. Finally, we were lined up in numerical order and taken inside the studio.
The Studio: All I can say is wow, to be in that historic room brought tears to my eyes. But I was also surprised by how small it seemed. (I know you always hear that, but it really was!) When it was our turn to enter, someone stopped us and looked at our numbers. They filtered through their notebook and told us to follow them. They escorted us all the way to the third row! RIGHT BEHIND THE BIDDERS!! As the rest of the crowd was seated, I noticed several producers walking around the stage with tablets, analyzing the group. I could barely contain my excitement as I bounced up and down in the show.
The show: Finally it was time to start. George Grey came out first and welcomed everyone. He gave us a brief overview of what to expect and encouraged us to help out the contestants because their mind would go blank on stage. (That would never happen to me, right?). He went to his booth and started calling names.
I must pause for a few things, first – there is no music, no sound effects, no voice amplification (from George or Drew) – only pure and utter chaotic screams. They even hold up signs to show who should “come on down” because you most likely won’t be able to hear it.
The first four people were called, and I thought my heart may beat out of my chest. I was shocked that I could not hear the description of the prizes or even what the contestants were bidding. I was just yelling “one dollar, one dollar” over and over. The first contestant won a toolset, and it was time for another name…
As soon as the syllable Au- was out of George’s mouth, I was on my feet and screaming like a banshee. My dream was becoming a reality. I cannot accurately describe the feeling of my name being called, but I imagine it’s something like doing cocaine. As I ran to the front, I blew some kisses to Drew, then kept running right past bidders row. I realized I had gone too far, and turned around to find my spot. Drew laughed at me as the next prize up for bid was displayed. I way overbid on the jewelry and had to wait for the next round.
The bid: My heart leaped when I saw the next prize – an underwater GoPro 360. You see, for about a month before our taping, I watched the show every day and wrote down the cost of all the prizes. I memorized as many items as I could in my spare time, and the GoPro was on the list! The first person overbid. The second person overbid, and I silently prayed to be called last. My prayers were answered as the third person overbid. My dreams came true yet again as I proudly yelled, “ONE DOLLAR DREW!!!”
I could barely restrain myself from immediately running onto the stage. Drew read the price, and another dream came true! I shook Drew’s hand and gave him a side huge. (I didn’t want to be too crazy). As George described a trip to Peru, I could see the game behind the curtain. My heart sank – the Check Out game. One of my least favorite games. I had to guess the exact price of 5 grocery items and be within $2. Long story short, I nailed almost every item – except the 24 pack of Wet Ones. I totally choked and guessed $6. I was so stressed to guess quickly (I didn’t want to waste anyone’s time), and when I looked to the crowd all I could see was a jumbled mass of fingers. The wet wipes were $2.99, and I was over by $2.77. I fell to my knees in defeat…but there was still the big wheel!
The WHEEL: I was first up, so I knew my chances of making it to the showcase weren’t the best. But I didn’t care since my hands were actually going to spin the wheel! I grabbed the handles and pulled as hard as I could so I could say hi to as many people as possible. (P.S. I’m sorry Meow, Pops, Megan, and Missy – you were on my mental list). I landed on 30 and spun again. There was no time for strategy, no finessing. I just spun as hard as I could. (The wheel isn’t as heavy as I expected.) To my shock and amazement, it landed on 60! I jumped over to the other side of the wheel and waited for my fate. Candice went over, leaving Daniel between me and the finale. His first spin was a 25, and while on the outside I was happily cheering for him, mentally I was shouting for him to go over. He landed on 80, and I WAS GOING TO THE SHOWCASE!!!
The waiting: In a daze, I was ushered back to my seat to watch the rest of the show. Fear resting in my belly because I knew I had a dilemma. Ever since I can remember, I had told myself if I ever made it to the showcase, I would tell the other person to bid $1, and I would promise to overbid. But now that I was actually in a position to do so, would I follow through? That was all I could think about during the second half of the show.
The showcase: Carole won the second showdown, and we were taken backstage. A producer explained how the next part of the show would work. It was my moment. I explained my scheme to have Carole bid a dollar and promised I would bid a million. The producer shut me down saying, “We can’t allow you to do that. No deals.” I turned to Carole and asked if she still wanted to do it. She enthusiastically told me no! She wanted to really bid. Alright, Carole – it was go time.
The first showcase consisted of a new kitchen, a trip to San Diego, and a trip to Sicily! Carole passed to me, and I started crunching numbers. According to my flashcards, a new kitchen was around 6K, a trip to SD around 6K and I didn’t have a card for Sicily but the one for Portugal was 13.5K. I decided $24,000 was a safe and close bet. I looked at my family. Don was clearly saying 18K (I immediately ignored his advice), and I asked my Mom if 24K was good. Apparently, she was saying 23K, but I couldn’t see her hands, so I went with my gut. Carole’s showcase consisted of a trip to the Hamptons and a new Toyota Carolla. She bid $18,000.
It was time for the big reveal. I was so nervous, I could barely think. Carole was up first. Drew pulled her card and said she had underbid by over $8,500. I was ecstatic. All I could think was “I’m going to Sicily!!” Drew pulled my card and hid the result from me. I expected him to yell out that I was the big winner, but he hesitated. His shoulders slumped, and that was when I knew I had overbid slightly. Drew sadly stated the SRP of $23,975. I overbid by a mere $25! I was in complete shock. Drew shook my hand and congratulated the equally shocked Carole. Earlier, the producers had told us to hug each other, then run off stage. I remembered to hug Carole then stood in disbelief and looked at my family. After several seconds of conversing with them, I turned to see 5 producers animatedly motioning for me to get off the stage! I ran backstage and watched Carole celebrate with her new car.
Drew walked over to me and gave me a hug. I told him I couldn’t believe I came so close and lost. He told me no one backstage could believe it either, and he was sorry I lost. He said, “I don’t know if this helps. You can take it and burn it, tear it, frame it.” He handed me the retail price card then left. I put the card in my back pocket since I didn’t have my purse. The producers walked all of the contestants through the crowd to get our information. Everyone in the crowd and especially the other contestants was extremely nice and counseled me on my loss.
After talking with the prize department, I met up with my family who was just as shocked as I was. On the way to the car, I reached for the memento that Drew gave me, but it was gone. It had fallen out during the craziness. We scoured the parking lot for 30 minutes but never found the tag.
What I learned: The show was an absolute dream come true, even with losing by such a small margin. I learned that, when it comes to your dreams, don’t hold back. I was so worried I wouldn’t be picked to play, I didn’t allow myself to imagine what I would do if I was actually selected. I had no strategy for the showcase and didn’t even think about lowering my bid slightly for fear of going over. I learned to take it all in – the good and the bad. There were almost 300 people in the studio that day, and I was one of the lucky 9 to be chosen. I learned that I will make mistakes, and have regrets and that I can’t travel back in time 5 minutes no matter how badly I want to. I need to do my best every day, not be lazy and settle for the average. I want every day to be as exciting as the Price is Right because we only get one shot at this life. So make the most of it. You never know when it will be your moment to “Come on down!”