This is the shortened version due to line limits of Ferret Digest...
 
Another one of those "small steps" for ferretdom was taken recently.  Our
daughter Courtney was invited to participate in a new game show developed by
Nickelodeon TV.  The producer of the show contacted Kid City Magazine after
seeing the article on Courtney and her ferrets which appeared last year.
Kid City Magazine is a magazine from Children's Television Workshop which
also does Sesame Street show and magazine.  Mary and Eric Shefferman put Kid
City in touch with us.
 
Final arrangements were made and a "shoot date" was confirmed so off
Courtney and I went to Orlando, Florida earlier this week with a few ferrets
in tow.  We had to change the original date because Courtney was scheduled
to "emcee" the "Save Our Shelters" show last weekend in Baltimore and we had
to work around that date for our travel plans.
 
Upon our arrival at the Orlando airport we were met by one of the
Nickelodeon staff who drove us to the hotel.  She told us that a family who
was waiting to get driven to the airport that evening was anxiously awaiting
our arrival at the hotel so they could see the ferrets.  She told us that
the son, who had already gone through the filming experience, really wanted
a ferret but since they lived in California where ferrets are illegal, he
couldn't have one.  This was his first chance to see some up close and
personal.
 
At this point I should tell you that this new show is called "Figure It Out"
and like the old "I've got a Secret" and "What's My Line" TV shows, it had a
similar format, only for kids.  Eighty kids from all over North America were
selected to tape shows where a panel of four entertainers from various
Nickelodeon shows would ask "yes" and "no" questions of the contestants and
try to guess what was special about them.  There would be three rounds of
questioning and clues would be given out.  Courtney's specialty was that she
"Rescues and Raises Ferrets".  The panel was to guess three words (they were
given the word "and").
 
Courtney ended up being the first show taped that day and after everybody
and everything was ready on the set, the panelists were introduced and took
their seats.  Courtney was then introduced to the live audience of screaming
kids.  Summer Sanders, the former Olympic swimmer, was the host of the show
and she got things started by briefly explaining the show's format to the
audience.  The panelists then began asking Courtney questions; trying to
discover her specialty.  After the first round, they hadn't discovered
anything.  Courtney's prize for the first round was a prop from a
Nickelodeon show.  Before the second round the audience threw rubber life
preservers (rescues) at the panelists.  This didn't seem to help at all.
Even the musical clue of playing "Pop goes the Weasel" (ferret) escaped
them.  One panelists asked Courtney if it had something to do with her
ability to sing "Pop goes the Weasel." At this point that panelist was
slimed (a Nickelodeon standard).  After successfully stumping the panel
through round two, Courtney won a Sega Saturn.  On to round three where a
member of the "Charade Brigade" came on the set and began demonstrating
trying to lift (raises) something.  This succeeded only in a panelist asking
Courtney if she "pumped iron".  Needless to say, Courtney successfully
stumped the entire panel through all three rounds and she won the "Grand
Prize" which was a family trip to Key West, FL.
 
After the game was over the next stage of the show was for the person to
"demonstrate" their specialty.  The cage full of ferrets was rolled onto
center stage and the panelists gathered around it while Courtney answered
questions about her ferrets.  She pulled a couple of them out and handed
them to panelists who were in awe of how soft they were.  From what I saw on
the monitors as the ferrets were being rolled out, the camera got some
rather good close ups of the ferrets.  Hopefully, when the final edits are
done these close ups will stay.
 
Overall I must say that it was an incredible experience.  The folks at
Nickelodeon were wonderful.  We also got an overwhelming response to the
ferrets.  While I was backstage with the ferrets, almost every stage hand
came around to play with them and ask questions.  Almost every adult asked
the same first question - "Don't they bite?" I explained that ferrets are
taught, like most animals, that biting is not acceptable behavior.  When
they would hold the ferrets and pet them they realized just how nice they
can be.  The kids, of course, had no reservations at all and just wanted to
cuddle with all of them.  If I could have left them in Florida we would have
had homes for each and every one of them.  Several of the stage crew came
back to the "Green Room" throughout the day to visit with the ferrets, even
after we were done taping.  Throughout the rest of the taping you could hear
the talking into their headsets "I'm here playing with my ferrets" when
asked where they were.  I'm expecting to get quite a few calls from these
folks asking for ferrets within the next few days.
 
Courtney and I are still exhausted from our long day on the set and the
quick trip down and back to Florida but it was well worth it.  The ferret
diplomacy we practiced was well worth the effort.  It was fun being able to
tell an audience all about ferrets and have them hanging on every word.  And
of course, the fact that one of the Nickelodeon stars who was a panelist
that day was flirting heavily with Courtney all day didn't hurt either.
 
We won't know until June when the air date will be - we'll be sure to
tell everyone.  The show is supposed to premier about July 7th.
 
bill and diane killian
zen and the art of ferrets
http://www.zenferret.com/
mailto:[log in to unmask]
[Posted in FML issue 1914]