Game Show Contestants Rejoice

A Freak in the Family Is a Good Thing

Game show contestants rejoice. Those weird relatives might finally pay off. During my own casting call for Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, I saw the exact moment when the casting director perked up and really took notice of me.

It was when I mentioned my husband, the taxidermist.

Maybe it was unexpected. I guess don't look like the kind of gal who'd marry a taxidermist. I mean, I don't wear a coonskin cap or anything.

And at the time, I was a science writer for NASA, so maybe, I was supposed to marry an aerospace engineer? Or an astronaut?

So here I was, at the Millionaire audition with a handful of other prospective game show contestants. We were the lucky ones, because we'd all passed the initial screening test.

Now the hard part, we each had mere minutes to make an impression. As for me, the one thing that seemed to interest the casting director was my husband's career choice.

So right after I saw the casting director perk up at the mention of taxidermy, I told him this little story:

"Oh yeah. It's really weird being married to a taxidermist, because my husband does a lot of his work at home. So here I'll go and open the fridge, thinking I'll grab a Coke or something, and 'Eeeeeek!' There's some squirrel in there -- except the squirrel's not quite done being taxidermized yet. So instead of a squirrel, it's more like Frankensquirrel."

Needless to say, the casting guy remembered me.

The funny thing is this: I didn't think my choice in husbands was the most interesting thing about me. I'm a licensed fortune teller, I was working for the government agency responsible for putting the first man on the moon. And have I even mentioned my adorable preschooler?

But I'll tell you this. From the casting guy's reaction, I know it was the whole taxidermy angle that got me noticed.

A word of caution: Laugh WITH 'em, not AT 'em. I love my husband, because he's not like everybody else. During my casting call, even as I was relaying the whole squirrel story, I was laughing, not at my husband, but with him – because he and I joke about this all the time.

My own son is no freak, but he is learning the taxidermy trade early. Does this mean that someday, his own wife will be mentioning him during a casting call?

I'd never recommend doing or saying anything that would truly embarrass a family member. If you poke fun at the zany people in your life, make sure you do it with love and affection. The way I saw it, I'm a wife first, and a prospective game show contestant second.

And here's the other thing. Casting people are looking for game show contestants who the audience will want to root for. Love your family and friends. Celebrate their quirks. And maybe, just maybe, those wacky family members will help get you noticed.

If you haven't already, you might want to check out my other casting-call tips for game show contestants.