From Stephanie Becker, TODAY producer
You might have caught this morning's piece on Al Roker's day as host of "Celebrity Family Feud." (video) We followed Al for his 13 hours on the set. The show airs tonight. While I'm hardly impartial (I adore Al), I'm not a big fan of game shows. (Except the real life presidential nominating ones.) Al cracked me up, so I'll probably watch tonight, just to see how much of the really good stuff gets past the "standards" department. But I did see the standards rep laughing several times.
By the way, I know who won. I can't tell you. I know what's on Hugh Hefner's nightstand, according to what the survey says. But I can't tell you that. I know what the cast of Playboy's "Girl's Next Door" says it is. I can't tell you that either. I even know the No. 1 answer to what your mother always does better than your wife. I can't say. I know who wins the throw down between the team of Dog the Bounty Hunter and Mrs. Dog and their puppies versus Kathy Lee Gifford and her family. All I will say is Cody Gifford sure liked looking at the Girls Next Door. And I know if the doughy white guys of “The Office” beat the buff team of the “American Gladiators.” But, if I told you, Wolf or Titan would probably pummel me. (Which might not be so bad, Wolf's kinda cute in spandex.) And I can't tell you whom Al Roker had a verbal smack down with. Of course all in good humor. Really.
What I can also tell you is those Gladiators might look physically intimidating, but they're awfully nice. And Dog the Bounty Hunter and Mrs. Dog were lovely too. But I suppose that's because I haven't broken the law since I was in the second grade posse caught stealing milk money at P.S. 175 in Rego Park, Queens. I was a disgrace to my Brownie uniform.
And I can tell you that I'm glad I'm not a female feuder. I spent my 13 hours on the set wearing unfashionable, but extremely comfortable shoes. The women contestants wore either shoes that required their toes be pencil sharpened or they had to prepare for nosebleeds from heels towering at least seven feet high. I think in a shoe feud, you should go with the pointy ones; you're less likely to fall over:
(These boot ain't made for walking)
And I can tell you that in rehearsal, Ed McMahon kicked Tiki Barber's butt in the race to get to the buzzer. Just in case you need a reminder, Ed's recovering from a broken neck and carrying the weight of a foreclosed home on his shoulders. And he's 85 years old. Nice reflexes, Tiki. Keep your new day job.
I even had a sort of celebrity moment. It was with Bruce Jenner, the winner of the 1976 Olympic Decathlon. Although, my neighbor kids know him better as the stepdad to those cable crazy Kardashian gals. He headed "Team Kardashian." Bruce knows my Dad. Dad helped get him on the Wheaties box, after he won the gold medal. Bruce told me the boxes he autographed are worth a bundle. Dad still has one in mint condition, signed by Bruce to my Dad. Bruce says one recently went for $5,000. I think Dad's still has the flakes. That makes it worth $6.59 more. That, I can tell you.