Los Angeles Hollywood
Price is Right
TV show taping at CBS Television City
Oct. 27, 2010
No Video or pictures allowed on the CBS lot or studios, but here is a couple of pictures taken by CBS price is right staff and pictures taken after the show just off the CBS lot
Description & Accessibility
This is the taping of the television show ‘Price is Right’ the tickets are free but you need to get them in advance…
The link above will outline all the options for obtaining tickets. Unless you managed to get guaranteed seat tickets; the fact that you have a ticket to the ‘price is right’ taping does not necessarily guarantee you a seat in the audience as they issue more tickets than the studio can seat and they do that so they can be assured of a full audience.
If interested please read all the information at the above link, the main street address for CBS television city is not the entrance for the audience, the audience entrance is on a street around the corner that does not have a street address on it. The dumb taxi driver that drove us there I had told exactly where to be dropped off, but insisted on having the street address so the only one I could give him was the main CBS front entrance, but I mentioned several time that it was around the corner on a nearby street, so he puts the address into a GPS (guess he did not know his way around) and after telling him several times where we needed to be dropped off he still goes to the front entrance which again had a hard time convincing him that was not where we needed to be dropped off.
Make certain that you bring at least 2 pieces of ID, if you are an American citizen then bring you social security number, if not then 2 pieces of ID including your passport will be all that is needed.
Your ID will be checked by security as you enter the CBS lot. At 6 am they start giving out order of arrival numbers, so if you do not have guaranteed seats make certain that you are there early as if you arrive too late and too many people are in front of you the studio may be at capacity before they get to you.
No video or pictures allowed on the CBS lot or inside the studios, please see the information at the link above.
There is a gift shop in the waiting area.
If you want to be considered as a contestant you must be on your guard at all times, as the interview process is brief and you may not actually be aware that you are being interviewed. At some point while you are waiting you will be given a name tag and an ID number as well you will be asked to fill out a card, this card that you fill out will provide a little information to the host ‘Drew Carey’ for a basis to ask you something in the event that they say ‘come on down’ and you end up on stage. The interview (the one that counts) could be anytime after that is done. The day we where there they brought people around to the side of the building where there was another outside waiting area and you better be excited as 2 people that you had no idea who they where, one with a clipboard, and they would ask you one question ‘like what do you do’ or perhaps something else and you have no second chance to impress them. When that process is done they have already picked who will be called to come on down before the audience even gets in the studio and before the show starts. Among perhaps other things that they are looking for in a contestant are people that will look and feel excited jump up and down when they get called down and sound like it was the best and most exciting thing in their lifetime.
Once in the studio you will be asked to remove your number tag and leave only your name tag on.
The studio itself is actually smaller than it appears on TV. I understand there are steps to get to the studio (with a scooter I took a different route in) but in the studio itself is a slop (no steps) from the back roll of the seats to the stage, but there are steps from contestant roll to get on the stage.
Video monitors hang from the ceiling to show the audience the video output of the control room (what is actually going to tape) there is also displays with the word APPLAUSE lighting up coming out of a commercial break to get the audience going. The back of the audience seating is actually close to being level with the stage where at the front you are looking up at the stage.
The show just starts out of no where as no warning is given to the audience that they are about to start but the Applause light comes on. There are two people on stage that has printed signs with the peoples names that are being told to ‘Come on Down’ the announcer will read the name at the same time out the camera view on each side of the stage is the persons name, I guess if there is a mispronunciations then you can also see the correct spelling of the name. A new sign is flipped around when the next person is called but you cannot see that on camera.
When contestants are bidding or pondering a bid or making a pricing decision, there are people (the same two that where holding the name signs) trying to make motions with their hands to get the audience involved and scream out what they think the price or correct number is.
You will have a good time here even if you do not get to come on down.
You will be told the air date of the show being taped.
Drew Carey the host is actually only there for the duration of the show and is not present before the show start and is gone immediately after the show ends, he does talk to the audience some during the commercial breaks.
Now lets say you have won something on the show, well it is not completely free as you may think, rules in the state of California and federally in the United States allows them by law to charge taxes on the value of the prices you have won (not for CBS but taxes sent to the tax man). For example in Las Vegas (state of Nevada) my wife won a cruise on the Las Vegas live version of the price is right, there they gave you the option of taking a cash payout which was less than a 1/3 of the value of the prize, or pay 30% taxes on that prize up front before getting it. I do not know if it is any different in California or not but consider the prizes you won at 70 % off of the retail price, I am not sure if the ‘Price is right’ CBS TV show has any cash payout option or not, or if you have to take the prize or forfeit it. Also remember they base the price of each item on the show at the suggested retail price which is likely lower in the stores. So lets say a store sells a product 10 % lower than the suggested retail price, lets say it was an item worth $ 1498 suggested retail price, the store lets say sells it for $ 1348.20 you win this on the show, now lets say you have to pay 30% in taxes, 1498 times 30% is $ 449.40 so now you got something that you could have bought in the store $ 1348.20 for the low price of $ 449.40 still a tremendous deal. I am not sure how state sales taxes may place a part in this, or if you can get them to base the taxes on the actual price in the stores not the suggested retail price. Unless you won something they do not explain the procedure and taxes to the audience. Oh course you may win something that you would never use.
Accessibility: Yes
After the processing and candid interviews, people with mobility issues or in wheelchairs / scooters will be taken to another location to wait, and when given the clearance will be escorted inside thru part of backstage and up an elevator and eventually into the studio at the back roll of the seats. This is actually a very good location as it is close to being level with the stage itself, the front you end up looking up at the stage.
As a person with a disability what are chances of being asked to ‘come on down’?
From a search on ‘you tube’, I did find some wheelchair contestants…
So you can see it does happen there are people that will help you in the event you get to ‘come on down’ and they route you through a different route to get on stage.
By: Donald Kerr