Thursday, November 29, 2007
Marisa Ortiz camped out all night for the auditions.
By GUY D’ASTOLFO
VINDICATOR ENTERTAINMENT WRITER
Marisa Ortiz had 30 seconds to convince the casting director why she should be a contestant on “Deal Or No Deal.”
It was more than enough time for the Campbell native. She earned a spot on the popular NBC game show. Her episode will air at 8 p.m. Friday on WFMJ Channel 21.
So what did the effervescent 1996 graduate of Campbell Memorial High tell the casting director?
“I have no idea what I said,” she recalled in an interview with The Vindicator. “I rambled. I talked about what I do for fun, what I do on weekends. I was making fun of myself and I made her laugh. I said, ‘It’s hard to embarrass me because I make a fool of myself on a daily basis.’”
Ortiz’s personality caught the attention of the director. She was flown out to Los Angeles in early September for a few days of taping.
Although she couldn’t reveal how she did on the big-money game show hosted by Howie Mandel, she said the whole experience was wonderful.
Ortiz, who moved to the Fort Lauderdale, Fla., area three years ago with her immediate family, said the whole “Deal” deal began this summer when she heard the show was holding tryouts in Miami.
She and her friend Carol Hanna of Fort Lauderdale, both fans of the show, decided to go for it.
“We got there at 2 a.m. and camped out,” said Ortiz. “We took beach chairs and a blanket and drank Red Bull and stayed up all night. There were about 200 people in line ahead of us, and we joked and played games all night.”
Though Hanna didn’t get selected for the show, she still made it on as one of Ortiz’s supporters. “Deal” contestants are always accompanied by a few of their most vocal backers when they compete.
Ortiz was also joined by her mother, Carmen Ortiz, and Bruce Figueroa, who manages a bar called Swig in Weston, Fla. Ortiz is a bartender at Swig and also works for a job recruiting company in Florida.
Her boyfriend, Boardman native Todd Santore; and an old friend Bonnie Chandler of Akron cheered Ortiz on as part of the studio audience.
Ortiz also has plenty of extended family members in the Youngstown area who will be in front of their televisions Friday night.
Ortiz described her time at the studio as a whirlwind.
“There was no down time,” she said. “I was always being prepped, preparing my hair, makeup, clothes ... even what to say. They told me to call it a briefcase, not a suitcase.”
Contestants on “Deal” select numbered briefcases held by models. The model opens the briefcase, revealing a dollar amount.
As the game progresses, the contestant must weigh his chances at maximizing his winnings. Tension is created as the contestant ponders whether to risk all his winnings for a shot at the top dollar amount.
“It was nerve-racking — you put stress on yourself wondering what’s going to happen out there,” said Ortiz. “But I would do it all over again.”