SEQUIM — Ross McCurdy had the chance to kiss Pat Sajak, and pounced on it.
And this Wednesday night, the kiss will be broadcast as “Wheel of Fortune,” starring Sajak, McCurdy and the “world’s most frequent clapper” airs at 7 p.m. on KOMO-TV channel 4.
That frequent clapper would of course be Vanna White, who was given the distinction in the “Guinness Book of World Records” for clapping an average of 720 times per show.
McCurdy, a 26-year-old amateur stand-up comic who works at the Oak Table Cafe in Sequim, is no slouch when it comes to enthusiasm.
He didn’t make it into the “Wheel of Fortune” auditions last summer at 7 Cedars Casino, but when the show’s producers came in for lunch at the Oak Table, he charmed them enough to get a tryout in Seattle.
No. 1-rated program
“Wheel,” which is based on the old word game known as hangman, is the longest-running syndicated television game show in history, and since 1984 has been the No. 1-rated syndicated program on TV.
McCurdy and fellow Sequim resident Willie Swetlow, who appeared on “Wheel’s” Oct. 31 broadcast, are two of about 500 contestants who have spun for money and prizes each year.
McCurdy had his day under the hot lights at the Sony Pictures Television studio in Culver City, Calif., on Oct. 30.
“They don’t let you out of the room . . . so you’re in there for about seven hours without any contact with anyone,” save the show’s staff, he said.
There are the personal coaches who make sure contestants are sufficiently enthusiastic while on camera — “the peppiest people on the planet,” McCurdy calls them.
At one point, McCurdy was so moved by the experience that he planted a kiss on Sajak’s cheek.
Between puzzles, however, both men had to hold still while makeup technicians swooped in to reapply foundation, blemish cover-up and hair spray.
So how much did he win?
“I did good. Not great, but good,” McCurdy said.
The “Wheel” producers forbid contestants from disclosing numbers until after their shows air.
“I was worried I was going to look like an idiot and win no money,” McCurdy admitted.
“That didn’t happen. Some turns went my way and some turns didn’t.”
Glorious experience
Overall it was a glorious day for the man who has always loved to perform.
“The whole experience was once in a lifetime,” said McCurdy, since another “Wheel” rule prohibits contestants from being on the show twice.
There was one other bonus: some pre-taping time with Sajak and White.
“Pat and Vanna came in and met us. They are beautiful people. . . . Vanna is stunning, even in a T-shirt and jeans.”
McCurdy paid his own way to California for the taping; “Wheel’s” policy is to provide a $1,000 consolation prize for contestants who don’t win that much.
McCurdy indicated that he made more than the minimum, but his winnings won’t affect Christmas for him and his wife, Nicole, and daughters Stella, 2, and Mira, 4.
“We don’t get the money for up to four months,” he said.
Meantime, McCurdy said he and Nicole hope to open a new Oak Table Cafe in Kitsap County and may move away from their home¬town in early 2009.
Yet McCurdy will continue his show-business career one way or another.
He’s set to host a fundraiser for the Five Acre School in Dungeness this February and predicted that he’ll mix some stand-up comedy into his master-of-ceremonies role.
“I can’t help it,” he said.
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Sequim-Dungeness Valley Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-681-2391 or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
