Backstage at The Price Is Right: Memoirs of A Barker Beauty (21 page)

Ivar and Jerry were absolutely stunned by the precision of our non-stop, upbeat, choreography and the fine quality that our vocals delivered. They couldn’t believe their eyes when they witnessed me do a cartwheel and the splits while wearing six-inch heels and singing lead on one of the songs. The combination was my signature move with the group during my heyday. It felt good to know that I hadn’t missed a step.

We kicked butt during our performance at the Century Club.
TPIR
attendees were all amused and amazed after we finished our exciting hour-long show. Back at Studio 33, everyone who came to the performance boasted about the group and me and looked forward to the next time we would perform. My stock skyrocketed backstage.

The women of Love Machine were not the same gullible, naïve young girls that started out back in the early 1970s, who had fallen under our debonair, smooth-talking manager, John Daniel’s spell. He had single-handedly run every aspect of our careers, which didn’t go over too big with the executives for the record companies with whom we were signed at the time. Inevitably, we were always let go because of John’s dominance.

While we were signed with Motown Records in 1975, two members of the famous group, The Miracles, Pete Moore and Billy Griffin,
who had replaced Smokey Robinson as the lead singer in 1972,
had written a song for us to record entitled, “Love Machine
.
” They had presented the lyrics and melody to Berry Gordy, telling him that the song would be perfect for the girls. Berry had loved the song right away and said, “This song is going to be a big hit—but you guys are going to record it.”

The song “Love Machine” was based on the relationship that we had with our manager, which inspired them to write the famous lyrics, “I’m just a love machine, and I won’t work for nobody but you. Yeah, baby … I won’t operate for anybody but you.”

Needless to say, the rest is history. The song became a mega hit—for The Miracles. We were heartbroken when we heard the story of how this song was taken away from us. We were so close to finally becoming world famous recording artists with a number-one hit song. The song “Love Machine” would have surely put The Love Machine at the top of the charts and well on our way.

We continued to work locally and in Las Vegas over the next few years, hoping that one of our fifty recently recorded songs would be placed in the hands of a major record company. But that never happened. As great a producer and creative songwriter our narcissistic manager was, there was always an underlying element that held us back over the years, preventing us and many of his other artists from venturing on to greater fame.

John and I had a mutual love and respect for one another, but we were two strong-minded Capricorns, always butting heads. It was a new day, a new era, and the girls were now more opinionated and knowledgeable about the music industry and wanted to share some of that knowledge with John, but as always, it was the John Daniel’s way or the highway.

He mistook my enthusiasm in wanting to help and my ability to promote and lead the group into the twenty-first century as trying to take over the group. We needed the assistance of modern technology in order to acquire the maximum exposure for the group’s success, and certain people in my family had the knowledge and ability to help make that happen. Taking over was the farthest thing from my mind. There is no way in hell that I would ever want to take on such a huge responsibility as managing a singing group. I was content just being a part of this magnificent group of women, who were striving and working hard to give it just one more chance and not give in before we gave out.

This was the perfect time to take advantage of my celebrity status and popularity from being on
TPIR
and use them to the hilt for the group’s best interest. John knew it and the girls knew it, but John was reluctant to push me out front in fear that the other girls would be resentful. He especially didn’t want anyone in front of his wife, Gwen. Gwen was to be the star of Love Machine this time around. Love Machine was known for its high-energy performances, a whirlwind of changing positions on stage, and utilizing each member as a lead vocalist throughout the show. I was perfectly comfortable with singing lead on one or two songs; I didn’t want the pressure of being responsible for holding an entire performance together. Gwen, on the other hand, was perfectly capable of doing so.

Shortly after she had taken my place with the original Love Machine
,
John had persuaded Gwen to leave and pursue a solo career. He focused heavily on pushing Gwen’s solo career and produced her in the greatest shows imaginable. She was extremely popular in Europe, sold thousands of albums, and had a successful run for many years with her Gwen Brisco show. Gwen was an awesome performer and compared to the likes of Tina Turner and Madonna. To this day, Gwen would be capable of giving Beyoncé a run for her money. Even my son admitted that Gwen was his favorite Love Machine performer. I had always admired Gwen’s talents and tried to pick up on many of her extraordinary moves on stage, but my body said, “Don’t
even
try it.” There was no doubt or argument from any of the other girls that Gwen should lead the majority of the show’s songs. I was willing to go along with whatever worked in order to get the job done.

We were planning and rehearsing for a big Christmas performance at Maverick’s. I was responsible for selling the majority of the tickets for the show, well over 150 at a mere $20 a ticket to my family, friends, and fans. The capacity of the club was only 250. The excitement was building, and it was about five days to show time. We were working really hard and long into the night in preparation for this big show. I gave this last hurrah my all and made big sacrifices, just like everyone else, and then some—because I was the only one with a sizeable family.

John had been trying my patience with one thing or another during the whole time we agreed to do this show. I really think the major stroke he endured a year earlier had tainted his judgment and actions, so I let some things slide and ignored his insults and innuendos. Then, one night at rehearsal, he made a sarcastic remark about my mother and her “little old lady friends” not being needed to help out at the entrance door with the tickets this year. They had happily helped out in the past and were so excited about helping again. John stated, “Everybody is expected to pay to get in, no exceptions.”

I had no problem with that, but it was the
way
he said it, and how everybody laughed—except me. I held my tongue. By this time, it was after midnight, and I was exhausted and fuming mad—a ghastly combination for me at the end of the day. Without a word, I proceeded toward the door and headed home. I contemplated whether to go back to rehearsal the next evening, to keep busting my ass when, in fact, John was grandstanding as usual. Reneé called that night after she got home and said, “Girl, after you walked out of rehearsal, John made a few more snide remarks about you. He said that you were full of yourself and needed to stop trying to control everything and be put in your place.”

As Renée continued to talk, my ears became steaming hot. Lord … why did Reneé tell me that mess?! That was it, over and out; that was the straw that broke the camel’s back. I would show Mr. Daniels exactly who had the power and held the reigns to Santa’s sleigh that year. I decided that night that I would not perform in the show and I would disinvite all of my 150 attendees. I figured that if John thought he was such a bad ass, he could pull it off and do the show without me.

All hell broke loose the next day. Ted called me after he had learned from one of the girls that I had made the decision to walk out on the show. “I am a professional, and working with John for all these years has finally taken a toll on my nerves. He can kiss my ass!” I said gruffly to Ted.

Ted was shocked and extremely concerned about my drastic decision. He tried his very best to convince me to change my mind. But I wasn’t giving in. Ted must have called me ten times during the course of that day, serving as the conduit between John and me. John didn’t have the balls to call me directly, which just further solidified my decision to stick to my guns. I was a little reluctant when I made the decision not to perform, only because I had left the girls in a terrible position, which they didn’t deserve. It was a selfish move on my part, and I really felt horrible for doing it, but I had to make a point to John. His hubris and overbearing behavior had once again caught up with him.

The Christmas show was cancelled and the ticket money was refunded. The group never got back together. It was a bittersweet ending. Yes, I had gotten my retribution against Mr. Daniels, but at what price? Was it worth taking the risk of losing some of my best friends in the world? The girls didn’t speak to me for a long time after that ugly incident, and I don’t blame them; my name was mud and probably a few other choice terms.

John continued to promote his wife, Gwen, as a solo artist, just as he had done in the past. We had all suspected from the beginning that this was his main motive for getting Love Machine back together—to help put Gwen back on the map.

In spite of our creative and personal differences, I will always feel a sense of gratitude for the many years of traveling abroad and wonderful opportunities that were presented to me as a result of being in the group and under Mr. Daniels’s tutelage.

Chapter 33

Another Milestone,

The 5,000
th
Episode

O
n March 11, 1998,
The Price is Right
reached another milestone, the taping of the 5,000
th
show. To celebrate episode number 5,000 and in honor of such a monumental event, CBS Television City rededicated Stage 33 as the Bob Barker Studio, distinguishing Barker as the first performer for whom CBS has ever named a stage. Stage 33 was one of the most historic sites in the history of television. It was from Stage 33 that Elvis Presley made his legendary first appearance on
The Ed Sullivan Show
. Stage 33, which opened in November 1952, has been the home of such historic television series as
The Jack Benny Program, The Red Skelton Show, The Danny Kaye Show, The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour
and
The Ed Sullivan Show
when it originated in Los Angeles
.

The most popular and longest-running variety show to grace the set of the 300-seat theater at Stage 33 was The
Carol Burnett Show.
Aired on CBS from 1967 to 1978,
The Carol Burnett Show
was a true variety show and a big hit with viewers from all walks of life. As a teen back in the day, I remember when my family and I would gather around our old oval-shaped tube to watch
The Carol Burnett Show
. I admired her knack for adlibbing with such ease, which made me laugh uncontrollably all the time. The skits parodied films, soap operas, and other popular TV shows. The show also featured musical numbers, some were serious, but most were outlandishly hilarious. Carol Burnett and her team struck gold with the original skit “The Family,” which was eventually spun off into its own television show called
Mama’s Family
, starring Vicki Lawrence as Mama and Carol Burnett as Vicki’s daughter, Eunice. In my opinion,
Mama’s Family
was and is still one of the funniest sitcoms on television to this day, as it continues to air in syndication.

Vicki Lawrence hosted her own talk show in the early 1990s and had invited the Barker Beauties as guests in 1993. The topic was the history of game show models. Holly, Dian, and I had represented
TPIR
. Janice was busy at the time, trying to wrap up some final details and information for her book. Also featured on the show were several veteran models: former Miss USA and
Sale of the Century
hostess, Summer Bartholomew, the first model on
Wheel of Fortune,
before Vanna White, Susan Stafford, and the model who started it all on
Let’s Make A Deal
, Carol Merrill.

Holly had confessed to Vicki during the show, “I have always wanted to be a comedienne and wanted to be Carol Burnett, but when you appeared on the show as a cast regular, I wanted to be
you
.” We all laughed and Vicki was seemingly flattered.

Carol Burnett dropped by Studio 33 to personally congratulate Barker, the cast, and staff on our grand 5,000
th
episode occasion. We were all stunned to see this iconic actress in our presence. She was so pleasant and approachable.

Since we’d shared the same stage at one time, I let Ms. Burnett know that I vicariously inherited her famous ear tug that she used to do at the end of her show. It was a message to her grandmother, a way of saying, “Hello. I love you.” At the end of the
TPIR
showcase, when the cameraman would pan over the excited contestants jumping up and down and as the models waved and blew kisses goodbye to the audience, I would tug my ear. Since the majority of my family resided in Ohio, I wanted to let them know how much I loved them and that they were all big parts of my success, especially all of my aunties. I also told Ms. Burnett that I had been a big fan forever and let her know what joy she had brought to my family and me. I thanked her profusely for all of the wonderful years of entertainment. She smiled with her big, contagious Carol Burnett smile, shook my hand, and wished us all well. How I wish I had a camera. To have missed the golden opportunity for a photo with Carol Burnett was unspeakable.

To make the 5,000
th
episode a unique and classic show, the producers decided to give away a new car on every pricing game played. When Barker made the announcement upon his arrival on stage, the audience was so excited that he could barely contain them long enough to hear Rod’s announcement for the first item up for bid. Before the first item was shown, Barker invited a special guest to come on stage and join him. It was Lucy Johnson, senior vice-president of daytime and children’s programming for CBS. She thanked Barker for the introduction and began her spiel by congratulating him on his Emmy nomination for Outstanding Game Show Host. She also congratulated him and the other
TPIR
producers for their Emmy nomination for Outstanding Producer for a Game Show. Barker has been named twice in Guinness World Records as “Television’s Most Durable Performer,” and as “Most Generous Host in Television History.” He had, at that time, won twelve Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Game Show Host, more than any other performer, and two more in the Executive Producer category for Outstanding Game Show:
The Price is Right
.

Barker’s maternal half-brother, Kent Valandra, his wife, Beth, and their son, Bob, were in attendance for this special show and seated directly behind Contestants’ Row.

The show proved to be an exciting hour of fun and surprises for the contestants and the Beauties. At the end of the showcase, during the closing credits, as one contestant ran frantically to view her winnings behind Door Number Three, much to our surprise, in walked our very own former Barker Beauty, Gena Lee Nolin. Gena helped Sherrell roll in a huge, five-tier cake that had “
The Price Is Right”
and a dollar symbol inscribed on the top and “5,000
th
Show” on the front. It was good to see Gena looking great after more than two years since she had left the show for
Baywatch
. We were all delighted that she came to celebrate this milestone with us. And although I had worked beside her for more than a year, when she came back to visit the set after her newfound stardom on
Baywatch
, she looked and smelled like new money; she exuded success. Gena hung around backstage for quite a while to help us celebrate, take photos, and get in on the media blitz. Barker’s brother and family also joined us backstage to help celebrate. But everybody made a big fuss over Gena, and we were pleased to claim her as our very own discovery, boasting that it was her exposure on
TPIR
that lead to her successful role as a sweet, sexy
Baywatch
babe.

The Studio 33 dedication ceremony took place following the taping of our 5,000
th
show. There were wall-to-wall photographers, press and media, radio, and television personalities on hand for this epic occasion. A magnificent plaque now hung permanently at the entrance leading to backstage. We were all invited to gather around as Barker unveiled the beautifully inscribed plaque that read:
“BOB BARKER STUDIO, MARCH 11, 1998, 5,000
th
EPISODE—CBS Dedicates Studio 33 to Bob Barker, Mark Goodson Productions, Staff, Cast and Crew of
The Price Is Right
in Acknowledgement of Their Continuing Excellence in Daytime Programming
.”

In retrospect, the Barker Beauties were a vital part of this dedication, and we were clearly acknowledged on the plaque as “Cast.” Like the saying goes, “The writing is on the wall”—and in this case, it
literally
was.