'Let's Make a Deal' to Feature Front-line Workers in Special Show
The online show goes on and doesn't require an audience with zany costumes
By Mark Kennedy •
Francis Specker, CBS / Getty Images
Special guest Julie Chen, right, applauds as host Wayne Brady tells April Mahoney of San Diego what she won on “Let’s Make a Deal.”
Wayne Brady and the folks at “Let's Make a Deal” want to honor those fighting the coronavirus — and they don't have to wear their capes if they don't want to.
The CBS daytime game show that usually has a studio audience in zany costumes is asking front-line workers to submit a video audition for an upcoming special online edition of the show.
“The idea sprang into my head because I wanted for us at ‘Deal’ to not only bring smiles to our loyal Deal Family, but to give hope and something to look forward to," Brady, the host, told The Associated Press.
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"In times like this, a small token can go a long way. Whether a joke or a $50 Amazon gift card, when the news is oftentimes bad, I wanted us to be that bright spot in their day.”
Several contestants on the “Let’s Make a Deal: At Home” edition of the show have been front-line workers, but the new recruitment is intended to help dedicate an entire show to them.
“Let’s Make a Deal” hopes to attract “doctors, nurses, paramedics, delivery drivers, nursing home attendants and any other individual out there providing care, safety and services.”
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The Omni Dallas Hotel carries the message “Light It Blue” across the skyline on April 9, 2020, in Dallas Texas. Landmarks and buildings across the nation are displaying blue lights to show support for health care workers and first responders on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The waning moon rises behind a building lit in blue to recognize health care workers, in downtown Kansas City, Missouri, April 8, 2020. The city is under a stay-at-home order, asking everyone to stay inside and away from others as much as possible, in an effort to slow the spread of the new coronavirus.
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The Seattle Space Needle and skyline is lit up in blue to honor essential workers during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak on April 9, 2020 in Seattle, Washington.
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The Empire State Building is illuminated in blue as part of the #LightItBlue for Health Workers movement on April 9, 2020, in New York. Landmarks and buildings across the nation are displaying blue lights to show support for health care workers and first responders on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Coit Tower is lit up blue on April 9, 2020, in San Francisco, California. Landmarks and buildings across the nation are displaying blue lights to show support for health care workers and first responders on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Gene J. Puskar/AP
Heinz Field, home to the Pittsburgh Steelers, is lit up in blue to honor essential workers on the front line of the battle against COVID-19, in Pittsburgh, April 9, 2020.
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The Lowry Avenue Bridge lights up in blue to honor frontline workers fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, April 9, 2020, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
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Knott’s Berry Farm is illuminated in blue lights to honor and support frontline workers during the coronavirus pandemic on April 9, 2020, in Buena Park, California.
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The Prudential building is lit in blue on April 9, 2020 in Chicago, Illinois. Landmarks and buildings across the nation are displaying blue lights to show support for health care workers and first responders on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The Forum turns blue for the #LightItBlue initiative — a nationwide collective salute to the millions of essential workers on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic. City skylines across the country transformed into beacons of blue Thursday night.
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Los Angeles City Hall is bathed in blue lighting as part of the #LightItBlue movement for frontline workers, April 9, 2020, in Los Angeles, California.
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Staples Center is illuminated in blue lights April 9, 2020, in Los Angeles. Landmarks and buildings across the nation are displaying blue lights to show support for health care workers and first responders on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
The Kosciuszko Bridge is illuminated in blue as part of the #LightItBlue for frontline workers during the coronavirus pandemic on April 9, 2020, in New York.
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Union Station and downtown Kansas City are lit up in blue lights on April 9, 2020, in Kansas City, Missouri. Landmarks and buildings across the nation are displaying blue lights to show support for health care workers and first responders on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
Buildings are lit in blue, April 9, 2020, downtown Chicago, Illinois. Landmarks and buildings across the nation are displaying blue lights to show support for health care workers and first responders on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The USS Intrepid is lit in blue, April 9, 2020, in New York.
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Billboards in Times Square and theater district show messages of thanks during the Light It Blue initiative on April 9, 2020, in New York. COVID-19 has spread to most countries around the world, claiming nearly 100,000 lives with infections nearing 1.6 million people.
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The Mercedes-Benz Stadium is lit up in blue on April 9, 2020, in Atlanta, Georgia. Landmarks and buildings across the nation are displaying blue lights to show support for health care workers and first responders on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Pier 17 and One World Trade Center are seen during the Light It Blue initiative to support frontline workers as the coronavirus continues to spread across the United States on April 9, 2020 in New York.
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Boston City Hall is lit in blue on April 9, 2020, in Boston, Massachusetts. Landmarks and buildings across the nation are displaying blue lights to show support for health care workers and first responders on the front lines of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
John Nacion/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Madison Square Garden shines in blue, April 9, 2020, in New York. Landmarks across the United States were lit in blue to honor doctors, nurses and other essential workers during the coronavirus outbreak.
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The Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, formerly known as The Tappan Zee Bridge, is lit blue on April 9, 2020, in Tarrytown, New York. Landmarks and buildings across the nation are displaying blue lights to show support for health care workers and first responders on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Universal Studios is illuminated in blue to honor essential workers on April 9, 2020, in Universal City, California.
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Metlife Stadium is illuminated in blue to honor essential workers on April 09, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
To land a spot on the show, hopefuls should submit a short video detailing their line of work and why they would be a good contestant. Videos should be emailed to LMADatHome@gmail.com.
Entries must be no more than 1 minute long, and participants must be at least 18 years old and a legal resident of the U.S.
Brady and announcer Jonathan Mangum have adapted to the shelter-in-place orders with a stripped down, audience-less version of the show on Facebook which still offers deals to a handful of contestants.
