9/17 TPIR taping report

[gaubster2]

Got back from California last night and we attended the 1PM, Monday, 9/17 TPIR taping.  Our episode will air on 11/7.  A couple of observations...

There is a new male model.  This was apparently his 2nd day on the job.  And he wasn't good.  Seriously, I could model the prizes better.  I realize that the job is harder behind the scenes than it looks, but this guy seemed lost up there.  There were multiple stop downs for him to retake his shots (one including an electric scooter).  Not sure if he is replacing James or not?  I don't remember his name, but he and Rachel were the only two models for that taping.

Drew left the stage twice, leaving all of us just hanging there.  I thought it was odd and frankly, unprofessional.  And I like Drew.  At one point, he told us "I'm going to go see what's taking so long."  He was probably gone about 3 minutes.  George did a phenomenal job of taking over and interacting with the audience.  He seemed much more personable that Drew and I think he would probably make a better host.  George was warm and very comfortable in his role as "sidekick" to Drew.

There was a stop down immediately upon revealing the first Item Up For Bids.  There was a breakaway set and the stagehands didn't pull the halves apart at the same time.  And the male model had a surprised look on his face as if he wasn't ready for the reveal!  Overall, the episode was a good one and there were a couple of very exciting moments that I won't spoil here.

For those of you that have attended a Drew taping, is it normal for Drew to just walk off the stage?  I've been to two other Barker tapings (2002 and one about 7 weeks before he retired).  Bob stayed on stage the entire time.  Thoughts?

[gaubster2]

One other note I forgot to add...after an unsuccessful playing of Cliffhangers at the commercial, Drew REVEALED the "Secret" to the game!  IIRC, he said to always play it as $15, $25, $35, or $20, $30, $40.  Obviously, LFAT know this is a good strategy, but to blatantly reveal it was quite surprising to me.

[DoItRockapella]

For those of you that have attended a Drew taping, is it normal for Drew to just walk off the stage?  I've been to two other Barker tapings (2002 and one about 7 weeks before he retired).  Bob stayed on stage the entire time.  Thoughts?

I've been to two tapings of TPIR with Drew Carey - one in 2015 and one in 2017. There was at least one stop down at both, but I don't remember Drew leaving the stage at any point.

On the other hand, I've also been to two tapings of LMAD with Wayne Brady (on the same two trips to Los Angeles). Once they got the episode started I don't recall any stop downs, but Wayne doesn't even appear to consider staying on stage when he's not needed - he runs off at the end of each segment and runs back on when the next one starts. The good news is that Jonathan Mangum does an excellent job interacting with the audience during the breaks - I even won a Let's Make A Deal water bottle for naming nine game shows in ten seconds, and Jonathan said it was the first time he had seen someone successfully do that.

[DJDustman]

Drew left the stage twice, leaving all of us just hanging there.  I thought it was odd and frankly, unprofessional.  And I like Drew.  At one point, he told us "I'm going to go see what's taking so long."  He was probably gone about 3 minutes.  George did a phenomenal job of taking over and interacting with the audience.  He seemed much more personable that Drew and I think he would probably make a better host.  George was warm and very comfortable in his role as "sidekick" to Drew.

He must've been exhausted. I was at the 9/16 taping and I've never seen drew talk so much to the audience. Very funny guy.

[Unrealtor]

I was at the third episode taped for Season 44 and I remember a couple pretty lengthy stopdowns between acts when it was just the music keeping the crowd warm.

[TimK2003]

On the other hand, I've also been to two tapings of LMAD with Wayne Brady (on the same two trips to Los Angeles). Once they got the episode started I don't recall any stop downs, but Wayne doesn't even appear to consider staying on stage when he's not needed - he runs off at the end of each segment and runs back on when the next one starts.

Likely Wayne is getting any props, envelopes, $$$,... off-stage for the next segment and is getting a quick rehash on the next deal(s).  On this kind of show, it wouldn't be unusual for Wayne to frequently leave the stage between segments.

[SuperMatch93]

Likely Wayne is getting any props, envelopes, $$$,... off-stage for the next segment and is getting a quick rehash on the next deal(s).  On this kind of show, it wouldn't be unusual for Wayne to frequently leave the stage between segments.

That seems like the most logical explanation. Even on the old show, it wasn't uncommon to see Monty walking from somewhere coming back from a break, so it wouldn't surprise me if he was being briefed.

[Matt Ottinger]

George did a phenomenal job of taking over and interacting with the audience. 

The good news is that Jonathan Mangum does an excellent job interacting with the audience during the breaks

Keep in mind, that's their job.  It's not the host's responsibility to keep you entertained between segments.  If he decides to stick around and interact, that's just swell.  But you shouldn't count on it.

In the absence of a dedicated off-camera warm-up guy, the announcer/sidekick fills that role.

[danderson]

I wonder if Doug Quick is still the stage manager for them?

[nowhammies10]

I wonder if Doug Quick is still the stage manager for them?

He retired last season.

[Argo]

For those who had the pleasure of seeing "classic" TPIR in person, was there as many stoppages during tapings? I sometimes think there would have been more with the older mechanical sets, but at the same time tv shows seem to be a lot more picky and will stop for any little thing, or at least edit them out. Do any game shows go live to tape without stopping anymore, or are they all too complicated anymore.

[Brian44]

I went to four Barker-era tapings and I can only recall two stoppages, both in the same show:

--in Credit Card, when one of the pricing props fell off the stand after the model pushed the button

--in the showcases, when Bob accidentally revealed the ARP of the top winner's showcase instead of her bid

[chrisholland03]

From memory - Barker tapings ran pretty close to air.  Barker would usually stay on stage and banter during the 'commercial' breaks.  There was usually a longer break to set up the Showcases, and a pickup session at the end for any copy or graphical flubs.   

I've attended a couple of Carey tapings, both ran long and were apparently edited down.  In general they kept rolling with immediate pickups (mostly Drew/models flubbing the staging/reveals).

The TV Production Music museum at one time had a Barker era episode with the director's track.  Not sure if it's still out there but is an interesting watch if you can find it.

[BillCullen1]

Do any game shows go live to tape without stopping anymore, or are they all too complicated anymore.

I believe Jeopardy, Wheel and Family Feud come as close to "live to tape" as you can get these days, based on what a friend who lives in California told me.

[Mr. Matté]

--in the showcases, when Bob accidentally revealed the ARP of the top winner's showcase instead of her bid

Hopefully that was after both contestants made their bid...