I have always wondered by people take their extreme problems to a TV show like Dr. Phil and let the whole world know, rather than dealing with it privately themselves…
I was pretty excited about today. Today was the first time we were going to be part of a live studio audience of a TV show. Some people asked us, “of all shows, why Dr. Phil?” and the reason why we chose to watch Dr. Phil was that it was the only show available.
We thought about being part of a live studio audience, The Big Bang Theory, and Family Feud, but they were all either fully booked or they weren’t taping around this time.
The show was taped at Paramount Studios and it was about one hour away from our apartel. However, since LA has CRAZY traffic, it took us over 2 hours to arrive. I was afraid that we were going to be late to the taping, since it was a “first come, first serve” process… Even if you have reservations, there is still no certain guarantee that you will get in.
But we ended up arriving on time and luckily, we got seats. The studio was very cold and I regretted not bringing a sweater. We couldn’t bring our phones so we unfortunately couldn’t take pictures.
Before the episode officially started taping, they had to get the audience pumped… through dancing. It was kind of like Ellen, except this would not be shown in the episode.
The first episode we were in was about an internet obssessed YouTuber who livestreams EVERYTHING about her life. To be honest, the episode would be boring to watch if there was no drama and there was in fact so much drama here. The girl “collapsed” on stage and threw a major tantrum.
Right after the episode finished, Dr. Phil came out to talk to the audience about what had just happened and soon, we were shooting a couple of short promotional episodes. Robin McGraw announced that she will be giving away to the audience skin care products, a candle, and a bow ring (which became my favourite piece of jewllery!)
By the time we finished, we took half an hour break for a drink and a cookie… we were going to be part of another episode!
For this next episode, I had better seats… I was on the 3rd row in the front and I had a better view. This episode was about a person who believes that they own the world, is engaged to Rihanna and that Trump and Obama work for him. There has been a few dramatic walkouts and some funny moments (not to him and his family, but to the audience).
Finally, the episode finished shooting but… the audience isn’t yet. Have you ever watched any show with a live studio audience and the camera sometimes cuts to them clapping? Well they had to shoot us to stand up and clap again…
and again…
and again…
and again…
Overall the experience of being part of a live studio audience was pretty cool. My family and I discussed that the next time we come to LA, we will book reservations to be part of Ellen’s live studio audience very early. At least I know how everything is done behind the scenes.
Right after we got out of the studio, it was extremely hot, especially since the studio was freezing. It was time to go to the Walk of Fame, but first we had to have lunch since we didn’t have any breakfast. We ate at Popeye’s… they had really good chicken and they had a drink inside a plastic bag… literally inside a plastic bag!
After lunch, we strolled through Hollywood Blvd. We passed by multiple stars on the Walk of Fame and took many photo opportunities as well, including the Hollywood Sign that looks way better in person.
After hours of shooting and strolling through Hollywood, it was time for worship service then dinner!
We had dinner with the relatives at Chilli’s, a restaurant that I haven’t eaten at in years. What I ordered was something that I wanted to try for a very long time… Chicken with Waffles! I know that it doesn’t sound appealing for some people, but it was genuinely tastes very delicious…
And of course, another day was over!! I cannot believe that our holiday is almost coming to an end. We arrived back to the Apartel by midnight… again and we had to wake up early to go to the Universal Studios…
I can hear Hollywood calling out my name to stay!
