Drew Carey is no Bob Barker. Not yet, anyway.
Oct 15, 2007, 05:10 PM | by Michael Slezak
Categories: Morning Madness, Television
In the interest of full disclosure, I groaned audibly
(and maybe even swore like my name was Annie Barrett) when I heard the news
that Drew Carey was taking over as host of The Price Is Right. But then again,
it's hard to imagine my favorite childhood game show emceed by anyone other
than the now-retired Bob Barker.
Since today marked Carey's first day on the job, I
thought I'd tune in from "Come on down!" to "Showcase
Showdown" and see how he fared. The good news is, The Price Is Right does
not succeed and thrive on its host alone, but rather on the contestants who
convulse with excitement over the prospect of winning a dinette set, some
"fun scuba equipment," or A NEW CAR! There was Bernard, Carey's first
contestant, ignoring the host's pleas to focus on the game, and instead walking
off camera to inspect the new Jeep up for grabs (and get a hug from one of
Barker's Carey's beauties). There was Peggy, an older woman in a "Cleveland
Rocks" T-shirt, her face a mask of elation, panic, and terror as she
competed to win "a trip to exotic Bali!"
And best of all was Aura, who performed a hand-spring upon taking the stage,
nearly had a nervous breakdown trying to decide whether it was the cat food or
the hemorrhoid cream that cost $6.99, then finally leapt into the air and
collapsed on her back after winning $16,000. I was howling with laughter, but
at the same time, I felt a little choked-up. No need to tell me that's tragic.
Carey had a couple good moments, telling Aura he liked her "as a friend" after she threw her arms around him and declared, "I love you, Drew," and keeping with Barker's fine tradition of closing the show with a message about controlling the pet population. But to his detriment, Carey lacks Barker's innate charm and slickness; he doesn't inspire "I want to be on stage next to that guy!" tinglies. What's more, Carey needs to stop repeatedly calling contestants "buddy" (too casual!), quit trying to force the funny and let the contestants' natural antics provide the laughs (his insistence that a female contestant make pleas to the "mighty sound-effects person" was painful), and be sure never lose control of the game (he let Aura change her answer on "It's in the Bag" after soliciting audience opinion).
That said, I didn't dislike Carey's hosting debut as much as I'd expected, except for the fact that it felt like the producers had rigged the game, or at least made it super easy, to ensure all six contestants won their respective games; a "perfect show" has only happened 76 times in Price history, Carey noted. Plus, both Showcase Showdowners scored $1,000 bonuses for one-dollar spins. Carey himself, I'd say he spun something around 60 cents, and while that's not bad for Day One, he's got a lot of change to collect till he can be mentioned in the same breath as Barker. And sorry, that metaphor hurt me more than it hurt you.
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