Wednesday, May 18, 2011

My Son's 5 Minutes of Fame on Oprah

                                                                                                 Julie Kemp Pick


When my oldest son was in first grade, a friend of mine asked me to get a group of children together to shoot a promo for an upcoming episode. After I happily agreed, one of the producer's called me to make the arrangements. She originally wanted to film in a park since we were enjoying beautiful spring weather; however, I was able to persuade her to bring the camera crew to my backyard instead. We had a swing set in a wooded setting, so I was thrilled when she accepted my offer. Suddenly, I felt like I was calling the shots for Oprah's crew, and the next step was to arrange the casting. 

I immediately called my closest friends who had kids around the same age, as well as a few neighbors. My son also asked his best friend and his sister to join the group. We had to work fast, as they were planning a special show with Hillary Clinton involving school reform, and they wanted to feature young school age children in short commercials leading up to her appearance. 

The next day the crew arrived at my house to shoot the footage. I had gathered about six kids together, and more followed when they saw the van pull in. My 4 year old ran around with the big kids, while I sat back with the other stage mothers. The end result was a scene with two children playing on the swing set, with a close up of a little girl with dark curls, and another close up of my son looking very serious, climbing a tree. The voice over announced the details of  President Clinton's wife's visit, "On the next Oprah" while the beautiful black & white footage of the kids appeared in the blink of an eye.  

The following fall, our group was called back for a special opening to launch Oprah's 10th anniversary season. More kids were added to the mix, so we headed to a lovely park in the city. There were over 100 participants there, hence they began to narrow down the list. That summer my son had lost a few teeth, and his brown hair had bleached out a bit from the sun. Since his appearance had changed slightly, I wasn't sure if he would make the cut. His little brother came along for the ride, so I brought two potential "stars" with me. 

Fortunately, my older son was asked to stay, as well as my neighbor's daughter who drove down with us. Before filming began, the children were sent over to a hair and make-up trailer. While they were primping on other's windblown tresses, they took one look at my boy's perfectly coiffed mane, and sent us on our way.

 The special 10th anniversary opening montage with Oprah, surrounded by children, as well as other memorable scenes throughout the years, aired for only one episode. I never was able to find out why they decided to go with something else instead. Afterward, I offered to buy my boy a special toy to celebrate his first job, not to mention his exemplary behavior, and all he wanted was a sword. 

I'm so grateful to my friend for making both experiences possible, beginning almost 15 years ago to the day. She was also kind enough to send me videos, which I'll convert onto DVDs with a combined running time of less than 5 minutes, but worth a lifetime of memories. With Miss Winfrey's departure from daytime TV, I'm saddened by the end of an era. If only I had the foresight, to take better care of our souvenir Oprah t-shirts.

24 comments:

  1. Great story: as for the t-shirts, as my Grandma Gannaway used to say "If ifs and ands where pots and pans, there wouldn't be room for kettles." The memories are worth a ton more than the shirts! Lampchop.

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  2. Great story and fantastic memories for you and your sons.

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  3. Very cool! I've always wanted to get tickets to one of her "favorite things" shows.

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  4. That's very cool. I played in the backup orchestra for the Moody Blues once. Apparently they use different orchestras everywhere they go, which tells you how expendable us classically trained musicians are.

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  5. Oh, wow! Your son is a star! How cool is that? Someday you can show that DVD to his children. (and they'll say, "Who's Oprah???")

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  6. Hi Julie .. a few good stories in here to dine out on .. your family and neighbours must have been duly impressed .. and no wonder you were giving your son A+s for his behaviour etc .. Fun for both of them too - and now you've got the videos (can do DVDs) .. brilliant .. perhaps you'll put it up for us to see? Cheers Hilary

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  7. A great story and how you must have been proud.

    Yvonne.

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  8. What a treasure trove of memories - It'd be fun to hear your sons versions of the events too.

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  9. Another fun post—thanks, Julie!
    Your experience reminded me of the time I was invited to participate in an Oprah segment on breast feeding...I'll just say that it was an interesting morning, and she carried newborn Oren around for a few minutes on her show. I have the tape buried somewhere in my basement, where it's been gathering dust for fifteen years!- Amy

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  10. @S - Thanks, it was a great experience!

    @Lambchop - Very wise words from your grandma!

    @mybabyjohn - Thanks, I think they'll appreciate it more in years to come.

    @Word Nerd - Those were the best especially for the people in the audience!

    @Angela - That must have been pretty exciting playing for the Moody Blues, and you are not expendable!

    @Susan - Very funny, but I think she'll still be going strong for a long time!

    @Hilary - Thank you, that would be fun to do one day!

    @Yvonne - Thanks, and I was very proud that it went so smoothly!

    @Sue - Sadly, since they were so young they don't remember the events. Once I convert the videos over to DVDs, I'll play it for them again. I'll bet if Oprah was a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, they would remember!

    @Amy - I would love to see that show! Oren must have been absolutely adorable and extremely well behaved if she was willing to do that, and he still is! Thanks so much Amy!

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  11. I loved your story. What a wonderful memory. Thanks for sharing it. Pretty cool that she will send you the DVD.

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  12. That's so cool! I'd love to be on Oprah!

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  14. @ Rhonda - Thanks, it is a wonderful memory! I still have to convert the high quality tapes into a DVD.

    @Talli - I could definitely see you guesting on an OWN show in the near future! Thanks for visiting! Julie

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  15. At least you have a memorable experience from the show that hardly anyone can compare to, and it will always be with you. That is truly an awesome story! I'm sad her show is coming to an end, but excited to see what OWN will bring now that she'll be able to focus all her attention on it.

    Ava

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  16. So, technically, since you met the crew and spoke with the producer, you're one degree of separation from Oprah herself.

    Cool.

    Lucy

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  17. @Ava - It will be exciting to see all the different venues she'll be involved in! Thanks for stopping by!

    @Lucy - I'd love to think of it that way, but there are so many different crews, and producers that even 6 degrees of separation might be unrealistic! Thanks Lucy!

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  18. Great story~I as well was lucky to be picked once to be on her show years ago but never kept track of the copies I made~It was shortly after i graduated college. Oprah has been around for quite a long time and has made has probably touched everyone on some level~She is an extraordinary women~I do not think this is the end of Oprah~I think she has just tapped the surface~

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  19. How exciting! Congrats on the TV debut.

    Joyce
    http://joycelansky.blogspot.com

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  20. @Laura - I'd really like to see the video! I agree that we'll be seeing a lot more of her. She probably won't stop until she has an EGOT!

    @Joyce - Thanks so much Joyce!

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  21. What a nice story, and memories to have. Oprah is definitely inspiring lots of great memories and thoughts as she airs her final shows.

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  22. What a wonderful story, and such great memories for your family. It is hard to imagine tv without Oprah, isn't it?

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  23. @Joanne - Thanks for visiting me, and I will look for you! She has had a tremendous impact on so many lives.

    @Julie - I can't believe tomorrow is her last show, but she'll be involved in many other things. Thanks Julie!

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