Game show fan puts in her bid

By LINDSAY BIANCHI
lbianchi@theCitizenNews.com

It’s an American Mecca for many who have tuned in every weekday morning at 11 a.m. to hear the familiar call, “Come on down!” For a lucky few it means a chance to win big on television’s most popular and enduring game show, “The Price Is Right.” For Janie Herron of Fayetteville, the call finally came in June of 2004.

After several requests for tickets starting back in 1988, Herron finally received her passes for the show, but that was only the beginning. Getting into the audience was the next hurdle towards spinning the big wheel and ending up in the “Showcase Showdown.”

Herron and her sister, who she was visiting in California for Memorial Day weekend, headed down to stand in line outside the studio doors at 4 a.m. Armed with their sleeping bags, the two hopeful contestants were prepared to endure a little discomfort in hopes of hearing their name called out for a chance to bid.

“I fell asleep in line and was awakened by my sister who said she thought she heard rats in the bushes!” Herron said. It may have been a sleepless night for the two women, but it all paid off later that day.

After submitting to brief interviews designed to single out the more energetic people in the crowd, the audience of 325 is selected to be part of the excitement. Janie and her sister made the cut and Herron, was the fifth contestant picked to race down the aisle to the front of the stage.

“We all overbid the first time, but I won on the second go round with $1,079.”

What Herron won was a huge chandelier worth $1,300.

“We tried to hang it in the dining room when I got home. It was so big that we ended up putting it in storage until we move into a bigger house,” she said.

Once onstage, Herron was given the opportunity to play for an new Mustang.

“I really wanted to play Plinko. Instead I got to play The Spot.”

Herron was shown a group of smaller prizes which she had to price by moving around on a lighted gameboard. She successfully bid on a juicer, an iron, and a clock. Unfortunately, the Mustang had to go back to the shop when Herron stepped the wrong way and lost the bid.

She did get one more chance to win when it was time to spin the Big Wheel.

“I got booed because the wheel didn’t go all the way around. It’s really very heavy!”

Bob Barker had to help out with the spinning. Still it didn’t move Herron into the final round. “Bob was so sincere.” She added.

Even though she only came away with a few prizes, most of which she gave away to family members, Herron fulfilled a longtime dream of making it up onstage of “The Price Is Right.” Now that she’s a veteran of the game show world, she has set her sights on recruiting enough of her relatives to head to “The Family Feud.”

Perhaps we will all be watching as Janie and company guess their way to big bucks with Herron in big letters behind them and Richard Karn chatting them up.

Survey says “You gotta play to win!”