Matt
is on the set of the game show Wheel of Fortune
, and is leaning behind the famous wheel.
He is on the set to interview the various soap
stars who will be appearing for Wheel's
Soap Star Week, as well as the game show's stars
Pat Sajak and Vanna White.
Matt:
Hi
there, I'm Matthew Ashford, today I am behind the
scenes at Wheel of Fortune for soap
stars week. Matt
is now outside the sound stage, and is welcoming
Michelle Stafford, Phyllis Summers Abbott, on
The Young and the Restless, he gives her
a kiss on the cheek, and a big hug.
Matt:
Hello,
good to see you, welcome to Wheel of Fortune!
Michelle: Oh boy!
There
is a quick shot of several of the other
soap star contestants greeting each other. Next
there is a shot Matt entering the sound stage
nine, there is a quick shot of him in make-up.
Matt is now describing what is going on in the
back ground.
Matt:
Where're
at what is called "a press junket." There
are press all around us in a circle. And we
have alot of the actors doing interviews of each
one (there of Kristoff St. John being interviewed).
This is a regular part of the show, and a part of
Wheel of Fortune as well.
Michelle
walks up to Matt.
Matt:
Here comes Michelle....
Michelle:
Hi, Matt! (Waves as she walks toward him) How are
you?
Matt:Michelle
Stafford, "Come on down!"
Michelle: Yeh,
"Come on down!" (Humming the theme for
The Price is Right!).
Matt: We here--
Michelle: (Realizing
her mistake) Oops, wrong show....
Matt: uh!
Michelle: ....Wrong
show! Oohh!
Matt: Ooohh!
Matt
is now talking to Rebecca
Herbst, who plays Elizabeth Webber on General
Hospital.
Rebecca:
I watch the show.... religiously (giggles).
Matt: You watch
Wheel
of Fortune?
Rebecca: Wheel
of Fortune (still giggling), yeah.
Matt: Alright!
Okay, we've got a rigger. Matt's
talking to Lisa Rinna now, co-host of Soap Net's
Soap Talk, and Days of our Lives
ex-Billie Reed.
Lisa:
I'm hoping that I channel the Wheel of Fortune
gods, because I'm not the best at playing
this game. Matt
is back talking with Michelle.
Matt:
So,
have you played this game before?
Michelle: You
know what, I.... I played it on TV with them...,
but, but, I'm really bad at it.
Matt
now chats with Corbin Bernsen, who plays John
Durant on General Hospital.
Matt:
Are you.... are you up for this?
Corbin: Ah, I'm....
I'm here. Matt
now is speaking with Ty Treadway, co-host of Soap
Talk, and One Life to Live's ex-Dr.
Troy MacIver.
Matt:
Oh, really?
Ty: My wife loves
The Wheel, so we've been solving all week. She said,
"Don't lose to Lisa.... that's all....
don't come home if you lose to Lisa!" that's
what she told me. Matt
now is chatting with Peter Bergman, Jack Abbot
on The Young and the Restless.
Peter:
I'm absolutely up for this day! This is about
competing, and I'm apparently playing two women,
and I hate to lose to women! (Bites his lip,
grimaces and groans). Matt
is now talking with Kamar De Los Reyes, Antonio
Vega on One Life to Live.
Kamar:
I've got a feeling that.... ah.... I'm going to
fail miserably! But you know--
Matt: No! Noooo!--
Kamar: But I'm
going in there with that mind set because.... at
the end.... at the end of the game I promise
you I'm going to win it all!
Matt
now is speaking with Ricky Paul Goldin, Gus Aitoro,
Guiding Light.
Ricky::
I was good at Hangman when I was a kid.
Matt: Hangman's
good.
Ricky:: Yeah,
and so, I think this is just a big, fancy
version of Hangman, really.
Matt
is outside the sound stage and is talking to Susan
Flannery, The Bold and the Beautiful's
Stephanie Forrester
Matt:
I understand there's certain consonants that come
up more than others?
Susan nods.
There is an immediate cut to Rebecca whom he obviously
asked the same question.
Rebecca:
You just use the... the... "R," "S,"
"T," "L," "N," "E"
letters, and--
Matt: (Repeating)
"R," "S," "T," "L,"
"N," "E," okay--
Rebecca: (Nodding
in agreement) Hmm....
Matt: Okay, "R,"
"S," "T," "L," "N,"
"E, "Rstlne." (Matt has a snarky
look). The
interview cuts back to Susan Flannery answering
the question.
Susan:
(Tapping
her head thinking) "E," "T,"
"R," "L," "N," "S,"
I did a little research.
Matt: Yes.
Susan
looks like she is not so sure, and gaffaws Matt
tries to make a word out of it
Matt:
"Erstl." Matt
has asked Corbin Bernsen.
Corbin:
You know, "R," "S," "T,"
"L," "N," "E," (throws
up his hand) I don't know, whatever, (trying to
make a word out of the letters) "Rslne."
Matt
is now speaking with Deidre Hall, Dr. Marlena
Evans, Days of our Lives, he has asked
her the same question.
Matt:
I don't want to tell you how to play the game, but
don't waste your money on a vowel! Okay?
Matt
is not talking with Lorenzo Lamas, who plays Hector
Ramirez on The Bold and the Beautiful.
They are obviously in the midst of a question.
Matt:
What vowels do you, know, okay, like, ah....
Lorenzo: Ahh,
l..., "L?"
Matt: "L"
is a good one!
Lorenzo: No,
no.... "L..."
Matt: No, actually,
"L" is a very good one (snarkily)! There's
c--
Lorenzo: But
I only knew that 'cause my name starts with it.
Matt: Well, (says
nothing but flashes the camera a look)--
The
shot cuts away again, next thing we see is Matt
pointing to the set.
Matt:
What you are watching is a rehearsal where the contestants
(pointing) get to warm up before Pat and Vanna get
her. There
are several shots of the Letter Board and the
contestants pr acting. Matt goes back to describing
what is going on.
Matt:
As you can see they're practicing spinning
the wheel (as he talks we see shots of this). And
I'm going to tell you right now, I tried it a little
while ago, it's really heavy, so you've got
a put alot of hmmmp into it.
Matt
is now chatting with his Days of our Lives
co-star, Alison Sweeney, Sami Brady.
Alison:
You, know, I have (touching her hand) a little
callous from spinning (motions a spinning action)
the wheel. I feel like I built up a little--
Matt: Do you
really (looking at her hand)?
Alison: (Still
holding her hand) Yeah, on my ring--
Matt: It's....
you know, it's not just in the wrist action, it's
in the (squeezing her shoulder) it's in the shoulder
action--
Alison: No, no,
you've got to your whole shoulder (grimacing and
imitating how to do it) in to it!
Matt
is not talking with Kristoff St. John, Neil Winter
on The Young and the Restless. They are
in the midst of talking about something, Matt
turns to the camera, flashes a grin, and raises
his eyebrow, with a knowing look.
Kristoff:
During rehearsal, ah, I actually got the chance
to spin the wheel and I ended up on "Bankrupt,"
so, my partner said, "You're not spinning the
wheel for the game, Pal!"
Matt
is now interviewing Pat Sajak, Wheel of Fortune's
MC.
Matt:
So,
Pat, you just let me know that you were working
on a soap at one point?
Pat: Well, I
did... (shot zooms in and out) My character name
was, (with an affected tone) Kevin Hathaway.
Matt: (Affected
tone too) Kevin!
Pat: Kevin Hathaway.,
ah, that's all.... and (slight shrug) they never
invited me back, so obviously, I stunk up the joint.
Matt: Or you--
Pat: It was on
Days of our Lives, by the way.
Matt: Oh (looking
at the camera)....
Pat: Yeah!
Matt:
Oh, well--
Pat: Did the
show ever survive (chuckling)?
Matt: (Thinking)
It's.... (nodding) you know, the show is still running,
I'm happy to say--
Pat: Despite my appearance?
Matt
is back talking to Ricky Paull Goldin
Matt:
With
the kind of preparation you do for your character,
for Gus, do you think that help is going to help
you in any way to put together the words
to--
Ricky:: Yeah,
yeah, no, (shakes head) not at all!
Matt
now is talking with Corbin Bernsen.
Matt:
Do you think your character would out play
you.
Corbin: Ah, John Grant would be.... bet everybody
here! Matt
is now asking Susan Flannery a similar question.
Matt:
If your character was going to play this game--
Susan: Oh. please!
Matt: Do you
think she'd play better than you?
Susan: Oh, she'd
probably buy the studio so she could win.
Matt
laughs.
Matt now is back talking with Kamar De los Reyes.
Matt:
Can Antonio think on his feet?
Kamar: Ah, uh,
you know, actually I think he could, he used to
be a detective, and, uh, yeah! I think he could.
Matt: (Surprised
by what he said) He's not a detective anymore?
Kamar: No, he's
not a detective, now he owns a Salsa club.
Matt: (Turning
the the camera and with a knowing look and tone,
tilting back his head) Oh! Matt
is now back with Michelle, asking her the same
question.
Matt:
Do you think your character could play better than
you?
Michelle:Oh,
way better!
Matt: Now why
is that?
Michelle: Because
she's alot smarter than I am.
Matt: (Turns
to the camera and gives a fake interview-esque laugh)
Ohhh! Susan
Flannery, Peter Bergman, Pat Sajak and Matt are
together talking, the sound is off. Peter says
he is off to see Vanna, and the group walks off.
Cut to a shot of Vanna at the Letters Board, then
of Matt and Vanna together.
Vanna:
I want you to touch the letter and see if it lights
up. (Shot cuts in and out; Vanna touches to the
board) Anywhere on this bar.
Matt
does so, and a buzzer sounds.
Vanna:
You've
got to have the magic touch.
Matt
turns to the camera and pulls a face. The
shot cuts in and out again.
Matt:
Vanna, thank you so much for having us here today
(smiling at her).
Vanna: My pleasure,
(taps Matt on the shoulder) thank you for being
here!
Matt: Oh,
it's my plea...., you know, this is so great
giving everybody a chance to.... to win for their
charities. Matt
is back talking with Michelle.
Matt:
Do you have a charity, that you're here?
Michelle: I do,
I'm playing for the "Smile Train."
Matt: (Nodding
his head) "Smile train!"
Michelle: It's
a non-profit organization that funds, ah, cleft
surgeries for children. He
is now asking Lisa the same question.
Lisa:
My charity is St. Jude's Children's hospital.
Matt: That's
excellent!
Lisa: Isn't that
cool?!
Matt: That's
great!
Lisa: You know,
they do not turn away a sick child!
Matt
has just ask Kamar De los Reyes the same question.
Kamar:
"The Gabriel Project" which I--
Matt: (Nodding
and smiling) Hmm.
Kamar:
....I helped raise money to bring children
from Third World countries to the United States
for life saving heart surgery.
Matt
has asked Corbin Bernsen. the question about his
his charity.
Corbin:
I'm playing for "The Rape Treatment Center"
in Santa Monica.
Matt: Hmm, mmm.
Corbin: It's
something I've been associated with since the beginning
of LA Law. Matt
has asked Ty Treadway the question.
Ty:
I'm playing for "Big Brothers and Big Sisters
of Greater Los Angeles"....
Matt: Hmmm.
Ty: ....and,
um, man, I'm very, very very proud of being able
to play for them. Matt
is back to chatting with Susan Flannery. Matt
points to a red pin, an anatomically correct,
heart shaped pin which she is wear on her lapel.
Matt:
Can you tell me about this pin?
Susan: This is
from the "American Heart Association,"
(holding out her collar to better show the pin)
women die of heart failure more than any other,
ah, disease in the United States.
Quick
flashes of scenes for the taping of the various
shows. Then back to Matt, with the set in back
of him.
Matt:
We've had a great time here on Wheel of Fortune
Soap Star Week. This is Matthew Ashford signing
off. Back to you at the studio! |
interviewees:
Pat Sajak; Vanna White; Lisa Rinna; Ty Treadway;
Peter Bergman (The Young and the Restless);
Corbin Bernsen (General Hospital); Kamar
De los Reyes (One Life to Live); Susan
Flannery (The Bold and the Beautiful);
Ricky Paull Goldin (Guiding Light); Deidre
Hall (Days of our Lives); Rebecca Herbst
(General Hospital); Lorenzo Lamas (Bold
and the Beautiful); Michelle Stafford (The
Young and the Restless); Kristoff St. John
(The Young and the Restless); Alison
Sweeney (Days of our Lives).