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opprairie.com News
the orland park prairie | April 5, 2018 | 3
Family appears on ‘Price is
Right,’ parties at Civic Center
Bill Jones, Editor
Gennaro Paolella and his mother, Cathy, got all decked out
in “The Price is Right” gear for a viewing party they threw
Thursday, March 29, for an episode of the show on which
they appeared. Bill Jones/22nd Century Media
“The Price is Right” typically
may be viewed at home
by retirees, youngsters with
a day off school or adults
playing hooky from work.
Such is its daytime nature.
But Thursday, March
29, it was a show Gennaro
Paolella and his mother,
Cathy, were eager to watch
with a large group of family,
friends and neighbors. It was
a show worth a party at the
Orland Park Civic Center. It
was a show that was, literally,
event viewing.
Such is the case when one
not only appears on a game
show but also wins the illustrious
Showcase Showdown.
It was never Gennaro’s
dream to be on a game show
— he said he does not even
own a television — it was
his mother’s. But when his
mother visited him in January
in San Diego, where he
serves as a pharmacist at the
United States Naval Medical
Center, she came with standby
tickets for a taping. And
Gennaro dutifully put on his
uniform and drove with her
to Los Angeles for the show.
“Luckily, I got picked,”
Gennaro said. “It was such a
great time.”
Mere minutes into the episode,
he was asked to come
out down as part of the first
wave of contestants. The
uniform undoubtedly helped
him stand out from the studio
audience.
“I don’t normally wear
my uniform when I’m not
on duty, but my mom said,
‘Today, you’re wearing it,’”
he recalled.
After a few rounds, he
had the closest bid, lost a
chance at a car but hit .90 on
the wheel to find himself in
the Showcase Showdown.
And he won it after his opponent
went over on the estimated
price. Oddly enough,
his prizes include a limo to
and hotel stay in San Diego,
along with a boat, in addition
to a motorized scooter, knife
set and volleyball lessons.
“It was a head-scratcher,
but I just feel so lucky,” he
said.
The hour-long episode
was over in an instant for
Gennaro.
“It was so fast,” he said of
the experience.
But Cathy, who was
caught on camera rushing to
the stage to celebrate with
her son, said she will not forget
the experience. She said
just attending a taping was
on her “bucket list,” so when
she heard her son’s name
called she could barely contain
herself.
“Oh my God, and they
pronounced his name correctly,”
she exclaimed. “It
was exciting. I was so excited.”
Gennaro said he also got
to chat with host Drew Carey
when the cameras were
not rolling.
“He’s really funny,”
Gennaro said. “He’s just a
really nice person.”
The event back in Orland
Park featured cupcakes from
Créme by Sarah Ashley, an
Orland Park bakery that created
themed flags to fit the
event, as well as flower arrangements
from Sherry’s
Flower Shoppe. But, like a
good studio audience, the
40 or so people who cheered
whenever they saw Gennaro
or Cathy on screen may have
been most important part of
the atmosphere.
“I’m absolutely speechless,”
Gennaro said of the
whole experience.
Cathy added, “It was an
opportunity of a lifetime.
I’m just so excited for him.”
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