Friday, January 9, 2009

Wait, Wait . . . . I'm blogging!

by Caroline


So here I am in Chicago; cold, snowy Chicago. Last night Mary and I took the El into the city for the taping of NPR's Wait, Wait . . . . Don't Tell Me. I can't tell you how giddy I was. It didn't seem real that I came all the way to Chicago specifically for this show. But I did! *squeal* What a geek:



The show was sold out and we joined the line that snaked around the waiting area. You can't tell from the picture but, as the line began moving to the auditorium, everyone stayed in congo line formation without the aid of posts or ropes. Good little NPR listeners.


We had brought our knitting, Mary and I, but were so excited to be there that we couldn't concentrate! Then the show began! They came out in a sports-like style: flashing lights and high fives. The panel was Adam Felber, Roxanne Roberts, and Mo Rocca. Peter Sagal talked about the taping and Carl Kasell gave the cues. It's a little weird, they all have headphones on and we don't hear the signals from the booth. So, sometimes, they would just stop talking and stand there a minute. After the taping they fix any stumbles and they do a Q & A.


I will restrain myself from giving you a word by word account of the show (you are welcome) but I will tell you that I laughed enough to get light-headed. That one of the funniest moments was when the subject of the porn industry bailout came up and they riffed on turning Senate names into porn star names. That might be edited out. I will tell you that I have had Peter Sagal's voice in my head all day today (I so wanted to call out "Peter, I love you" but I was afraid of being thrown out). Also, Carl Kasell's voice, in person, is a powerful voice. Adam Felber seems like he is having a ball up on the stage. Roxanne Roberts is very lady-like but she started some of the risque bits. Mo Rocca, as funny as he is, really impressed me after the show. He is a very gracious person, who seemed honored when I thanked him for the entertainment.















I didn't get Mo's picture. By the time I got to him, he had his coat on and I didn't want to hold him up. What a great evening!

Poor Mary, she had a class the next morning but waited patiently while I got my pictures, autographs, and souveniers. Tonight, we see Wicked! But right now, I am going to hit the hotel hot tub. Aah, hotel life.

5 comments:

Jackie said...

You lucky, lucky girl you!

Anonymous said...

Hotel life must be great...2 posts in a row. So happy you're have a good time.

Gigi said...

Color me G-R-E-E-N! Thanks for sharing the photos (and last night's play by play at knit night), at least I can dream that I was there. =-) Sounds like you are having a fantastic time.

Gigi said...

Oops, "Jen" is Gigi!

Anonymous said...

I listened to "Wait, wait don't tell me" yesterday in the car while I waited for my daughter to finish an employment test. I almost choked several times.

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