A behind-the-scenes peek at Live TV

As you know, I had the opportunity to do a Live TV segment on Fox 31’s Martino TV yesterday. I found out as I was headed out the door that I was going to be on that show, rather than Good Day Colorado.  I’ve been doing more and more of these little TV stints here and there, so I’m used to being flexible.

Still…I was shocked!  I was going to get to meet Tom Martino! He is a household name here, and he’s someone that I consider to be a celebrity. So, not only am I doing a presentation on Live TV, Tom Martino will be there!? Gee! No pressure!

But, I’ll let you in on a little secret. I was in sales for a good 6-years. I can do a presentation frontwards, backwards, and probably while standing on my head…but my wardrobe stylist frowns upon that.

Speaking of wardrobe stylists, I have to give my sister credit. She’s my go-to person when it comes to clothing advice. She helped me with my wardrobe for last Live TV appearance, too! She lives in California (and I’m in Colorado), but by the magic of texting and photo-mail, we put together an outfit that works! …and it only took an hour-and-a-half. Imagine how efficient she’d be if she could actually see my closet!

I told her she should do this for a living, but then I wouldn’t be able to afford her.

So, back to Tom Martino…

I figured out how to get to the FOX 31 studio, which wasn’t hard. Figuring out where to park was, but once you know what to look for, it’s super-simple. (It’s really easy to see where you need to go once you’ve gone past it. Funny how that works.)

I’d given myself plenty of time to get there, with the rush-hour traffic and possibility of getting totally lost. I finally figure out where to go, and park. I’m sitting there checking some last-minute things on Glenda when I see a truck pull into the parking garage.

It’s Tom Martino! Or, at least I think it is. I’m pretty sure it is. It has to be, right? What are the odds of a Tom Martino look-alike at the FOX31 parking garage?

I have to walk right by the truck on the way to the “Visitor Entrance” sign, so I stop and say, “Excuse me. You’re Tom Martino?”

He looks at me with a wary look and answers affirmatively. It’s official: Tom Martino thinks I’m a crazy stalker-lady.

I put my best “I’m not a stalker” smile on and said, “I thought so! I think I’m on your 9am show!”

He immediately relaxes and pretends that I’m not a crazy stalker-lady.

He escorts me to the building, and to Security, and then on to the Green Room.

All the while, he’s making small talk and I’m trying really hard not to shout “IT’S TOM MARTINO! YOU’RE TOM MARTINO!” out loud. I have to pretend to be calm. I need to be cool. This isn’t a big deal at all. *cough*

Unlike the other Live TV gig I did where I didn’t even have a mirror before I went on the air, FOX31 has a real Green Room. It’s a Green Room with soothing lighting and a lighted mirror and a sink! Yes, the photo I took of the sign is a tad blurry because I’m trying not to be conspicuous about taking a photo of the Green Room.

Amateur.

I have plenty of time to set up, and seeing the behind the scenes action is really cool. I’m amazed by the cameras that glide across the floor like sentient robots, moving with minds of their own. The lights and colors of the studio are fantastic. Everything is so vivid. Headset’d people are walking around saying random things to the people on the other end of their mics.

People I’ve only ever seen on TV introduce themselves to me.
I’m in awe.

I go over my script. Like any sales presentation I’ve ever done, I always have a script. It serves as a guide and safety net, and I know that I’ll be pulled off track, but I can always see it in my head. It’s there, ready to catch me, ready to pull me back on track. I never have ANY IDEA what they’ll ask me, so I have to be prepared. I’m good at going with the flow, so I wasn’t too worried.

Still…it’s live TV.

I’m mic’d, and it’s too late to turn back now.

Smile.
Breathe.
Don’t mess with your hair.
Smile.
Breathe.

And, just like that, it was over.

The segment went really well.  (Click here to see it!) I wasn’t sure what to expect with Tom Martino and Paula Haddock, but they were great.

I was asked by Paula to tape another clip that they’ll use during a 4pm show (I don’t know when, but I’ll keep you posted). We were going to do that when she was done with Martino TV, so I got to see the rest of the show from an inside seat.

There is a lot of bantering that goes on behind the scenes, and it was so much fun to eavesdrop.  I may or may not have tweeted about the fact that I was watching from the best seats in the house.  I loved seeing the comments about the segment come in before I’d even seen it.  That’s the funny part about doing Live TV…you see it after everyone else does, even though you’re right there.

When they wrapped up that show, I went with Paula to do another clip. If there’s anything worse than being mic’d once, it’s being mic’d twice. I have a love/hate relationship with the mic. Oh, who am I kidding? I don’t love it. It is fun to think “I wonder who will hear what I say if I talk now?”

I learned from my last Live TV Segment that they’re tricky little things. I’d figured that into my wardrobe choice. After a tiny bit of wiggling, everything was in place, and we were good to go.

When that clip was finished, Paula helped free me from the mic, find my way back to the Green Room and then back to the elevator.

And, just like that, I was back in the real world and found myself waiting in line to pick up Claire from preschool.

I’ll admit…the rest of my day seemed rather boring.