Weeks Months Never Years from now, when I am a well-known celebrity, I will be completely blasé about television appearances. I’ll shrug my shoulders and tell you that Oprah looks so much more fit in person or that Matt Lauer is all stressed out or that it’s really no big deal to be a TV guest. But since I am not that celebrity person just yet (I don’t want to peak too early), I don’t have to be nonchalant. I can be a completely wigged out about the whole thing, right? Sure, I may look cool and collected on the outside. But on the inside, I am as excited as I was the first time I saw myself on a surveillance camera in the lobby of my grandmother’s apartment building.
MOM!!!!! DAD!!!!! I AM ON TEEEEEEEEEEEEEVEEEEEEEEEEEE! LOOK! LOOK!! LOOK!!! DO YOU SEE MEEEEEEEEEE???????
(Proceed to do goofy dance, make face, dance some more, run in and out of camera range, wave arms wildly.)
Yup. That’s pretty much how I felt on the inside.
A little backstory: A few weeks ago, I received an email from a producer for the ABC News show, “Moms Get Real”. She had read one of my articles on Babble.com about sibling rivalry and thought it was great. Would I like to appear on the show as a guest and give my opinion?
After handing her off to my agent, haggling over future rights to the spot, and negotiating an iron tight no nudity clause….. I said okay. Squeal!
Truth be told, I have done TV before but it has been for work. This was my Mommy blogging debut! So it meant I had to shop. Hmmmmmm. Something respectable, but not too business like. Must look approachable and smart. No white or black. I chose 17 different a few tops and made a game day call. As you can see, I could be wearing a tutu and hiking boots on the bottom and no one would be any wiser. I think it worked okay, although I do wonder if I should have buttoned up one more button. I swear I was not going for the slutty cougar Mommy look. Here are the two spots:
ABC Moms Get Real Sibling Rivalry Segment I
ABC Moms Get Real Sibling Rivalry Segment II
The biggest challenge? When you do remote television, you can not see who you are talking to. You sit in the equivalent of a broom closet with a photo of the city skyline behind you (no Dad, it is not real), and you talk to no one — but must look like you are talking to someone. In these appearances I have no idea whether I am speaking to Juju or Tanya. It’s completely disconcerting.
We are our own worst critics but I think I was a bit to frowny and a little slow out of the gate on a few occasions. Truthfully I was just glad I didn’t do a complete Cindy Brady (Baton Rouge, Cindy!) and managed to make a few good points. I was scheduled for one segment and they asked me to stay for the second so I took that as a good sign.
A few days after this spot ran, Juju Chang got the Good Morning America news reader job from Chris Cuomo. I think I might have had something to do with it perhaps this means nothing but good karma for everyone on the show, including yours truly.
Now if only that phone would ring.
