I'm not quite sure where to begin blogging about our segment out on the rink this morning. There was so much going on, and so many people on-hand to witness it. Will Ferrell was on the show to promote his new movie in which he plays a figure skater, so what better location for his interview than our very own Rockefeller Center Rink. I wandered over to the rink a little before 8:30, and the crowd was already massive. Will was already out on the rink, riding around on the zamboni, entertaining the crowd. Everyone was yelling and screaming as he kept hamming it up for his fans.
Meredith came running over a little after 8:30, hurriedly getting into her skates and chatting with Will before the interview began. Stage managers were running around, rolling out some carpet for them to stand on while on the ice. Photographers were snapping pictures, Will was doing some fake stretches, and the crew members were making sure that all the cameras and sound checks were ready. Then Meredith and Will were out on the rink on skates, conducting the interview.
Other people were skating around on the rink during the interview, obviously captivated by the interview taking place in one corner. One guy kept skating nearby and taking pictures, and Will had some fun with him during the commercial by skating up to him and making priceless faces for his camera. Even once the interview was over, Will was still skating around and waving to all of his fans. The producer of this segment, Angela, seemed to let out a big sigh of relief once we went to commercial. It's always a big production to do a segment at a remote location, other than right outside the studio, and putting the participants on skates certainly ups the ante. Meredith's fall on the ice added another nervous element of surprise, but she was still laughing after it was over and seemed to be doing just fine. Maybe I'll go bring her some advil, just in case.