Tuesday, March 3, 1998
The price was right
HOLLYWOOD Laura Rosenberg wins a Mustang, fireplace, desk and
$10, 500 in game show
By Pauline Vu
Daily Bruin Contributor
In preschool, when she devotedly watched "The Price is Right,"
Laura Rosenberg never imagined she would be on the show.
She never envisioned herself winning $10,500 in a game of
"Plinko."
Or foresaw her winning a 1998 Mustang Convertible in the
Showcase Showdown.
Laura Rosenberg, come on down.
When Rosenberg, a second-year undeclared student and Hedrick
Hall Resident Assistant (RA), came to UCLA, one of her wishes was
to attend a taping of "The Price is Right." Arranging the trip was
difficult, however, and the opportunity didn’t arrive until she was
an RA. But she jumped at it, arranging sign-ups on her floor. By
October 1997, she called and made reservations for 20 spots in the
audience for the earliest time possible – January of 1998.
So on that Wednesday morning Rosenberg awoke and prepared for
the trip; at 10 a.m., before the group left, Rosenberg and others
turned on the TV to watch "The Price is Right" – "to prepare
ourselves," she joked, though she didn’t believe the game would
call her name.
After their arrival the group endured a four-hour wait, during
which they had to answer various questions about themselves.
Finally, the game began, and out of 400 members of the audience,
Rosenberg was the fourth one called.
"The whole group was so excited," Rosenberg recalls with a
smile.
Not that she wasn’t excited herself; Rosenberg jumped up,
screamed loudly and came running down.
Being called down does not guarantee anything, however. The next
part of the game involves bidding against other contestants on an
item, the point being to get as close as possible to the actual
price without going over.
"Whenever I watched the show at home, I never got that part
right. I was one of the first people called up and I thought, oh
no, I’m going to be here bidding the whole time." After losing on
two guesses – a pair of glass statuettes and a motor bike,
Rosenberg bid $950 on a dresser – of which the actual price was
$999.
With that, Rosenberg got on the stage and the game "Plinko." In
this game a contestant starts off with one chip and uses that to
guess the price on other prizes and win more chips. Rosenberg had
to guess the prices for four prizes: a vacuum, a can of paint, a
vanity mirror and a waffle maker.
She guessed the correct price on all these items and not only
won all four prizes, but also increased her one chip to five chips.
From here she went to a machine where the amount of money she would
win was determined by which slot the chips fell into.
She got $5,000 on the first chip, zero on the next, $5,000 on
the third, again zero, and then $500 on the last for a total of
$10,500.
Rosenberg and the two other contestants who made it to the stage
then went to the Wheel, which has a variety of numbers in the form
of cents. Here contestants have two chances to spin the wheel and
pray that it lands as close as possible to $1 without going over –
Rosenberg spun $0.85 and advanced to the "Showcase Showdown."
With Rosenberg’s arrival at the Showcase Showdown, the first
half of the game was over and her next job was to wait for a
nerve-wracking half-hour for the next three contestants.
At the Showcase Showdown, contestants are offered themed prizes.
The contestant who has already won more money is presented the
first theme and offered a chance to either bid on that showcase or
pass and bid on the next.
Rosenberg, who was ahead in the game, was offered a showcase
titled, "Home Improvement."
"The announcer describing the prizes was saying, ‘A way to
improve your den is with this new roll-top desk and portable
fireplace!’ and I was thinking how most people would rather win a
vacation or a car or more money and I was trying to decide whether
or not to pass on it."
"But then he added, ‘And a way to improve your garage is with
this new 1998 Mustang Convertible!’"
Needless to say, Rosenberg took the showcase.
"My family was in a car accident not too long ago and my mom has
my car, so we’ve been saving up to get another car."
Rosenberg had to bid on the total package, again attempting to
come as close as possible to the actual price without going
over.
During a normal "Price is Right" game a rowdy audience attempts
to help the contestant by shouting out their guesses; Rosenberg,
however, relied solely on instinct.
"All my friends were in the back row and I’d forgotten my
glasses, so I couldn’t see them.
"Besides, when you’re up there, you’re just so nervous."
Her instincts – and the fact a friend had recently been looking
for a Ford Mustang – told her to bid $18,500 for the car, desk and
fireplace. The audiences’ reaction?
"No one cheered." All she heard was a collective and
disappointed "Oh" from the back.
"I thought I had way overbid because of that," she explained,
then laughed.
"Actually, everyone thought I had way underbid." Either way, her
spirits sank. When a worker came up to host Bob Barker and
whispered something, Rosenberg was certain it was, "She went
over."
"I told myself, I already won $10,500, I don’t need to win the
Showcase Showdown. But wouldn’t it be so awesome if I did and
everyone got to run downstage …" she trailed off.
Then it was the other contestant’s turn, and his showcase had a
Lincoln Mercury. The contestant bid $20,000.
"I know Lincolns are really expensive and I knew he was under,
but then my friends started cheering and I was just totally
confused." Even if the contestant had underbid, if Rosenberg was
even a dollar over she would have lost.
Then Barker announced the results: the other contestant’s prize
was worth $40,000, and so he was $20,000 off. The total price of
Rosenberg’s showcase was $23,000 – she was only $4,500 short, and
with that $10,500 richer, not to mention the proud new owner of a
roll-top desk, fireplace and 1998 Mustang Convertible.
Next came her friend’s reactions. "Everyone came running down,"
Rosenberg laughs gleefully, recalling her floor’s excitement.
Most of the prizes will be shipped to Rosenberg’s home in
Northern California where, she claims, her room is in dire need of
remodeling.
"I have the same bedroom I had since I was four, and my mother’s
saying I have to get a new bedroom set."
The car, of course, will come to UCLA. And the money? "Taxes,"
Rosenberg admits. "They tax you about 33 percent on prizes and my
total winnings were around $38,500, so I have to pay around
$12,000."
"But," she adds brightly, "I now have the money I was saving for
a new car, so I still feel I won."
Above all else, Rosenberg is happy she was able to share the
experience with her floor.
"I might do something for them, during finals week or something.
They were the ones who were with me."
Rosenberg shakes her head disbelievingly, still unable to
believe her good fortune.
"This just doesn’t happen," she says.