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Rabbi Yonason Goldson: What Judaism has to say about the secret of the Mona Lisa's smile
JWisdom.com: The (Jewish) Dating Game with Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff (8 minutes)
Nov. 17, 2009
Steven Emerson: How Does the 4th Amendment Impact Terror Finance Investigations?
JWisdom.com: If Frank Sinatra married Edith Piaf with Rabbi Y.Y. Rubinstein (2 minutes) Life lessons from what would be regarded as the most inappropriate lyrics ever sung
Nov. 16, 2009
The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir : When borrowing is stealing
JWisdom.com: Deconstructing faith with Rabbi Warren Goldstein (9 minutes)
Nov. 13, 2009
JWisdom.com Sarah's subjective reality with Rabbi Sroy Levitansky ( 6 minutes)
Caroline B. Glick: Obama's failure, Netanyahu's opportunity
Nov. 12, 2009
The Kosher Gourmet By Marialisa Calta : A sweet sweet potato treat
JWisdom.com Does God get tired? with Rabbi Harvey Belovski ( 5 minutes)
Nov. 11, 2009
Rabbi Avi Shafran: Jews and money: When anti-Semitism isn't
JWisdom.com Marriages are not made in Heaven with Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff (VERY fast 15 minutes)
Nov. 10, 2009
Michael Doyle: Author of book exposing CAIR ordered to remove supporting documents from Web
JWisdom.com If the creation so loudly shouts the existence of the Creator, why aren't more people believers? with Rabbi Naftali Brawer (9 minutes)
Nov. 9, 2009
Mark Steyn: Shooter exposes hole in U.S. terror strategy
JWisdom.com It's never too late to have a happy childhood with Sarah Chana Radcliffe (5 minutes)
Nov. 6, 2009
Rabbi Berel Wein: Choosing to hear
JWisdom.com Zero to 1/60th: How to Empower An Hour with Gavriel Aryeh Sande (7 minutes)
Caroline B. Glick The mullahs' big week
Suzanne Fields A Fallen Wall for Fallen Man
Nov. 5, 2009
The Kosher Gourmet: Three scrumptious -- but simple -- butternut squash dishes
JWisdom.com Hidden Hints: Unlocking Faith & Prayer with Rabbi Jay Yaacov Schwartz (10 minutes)
Nov. 4, 2009
Tom Hamburger and Kim Geiger: Should prayers be covered?
JWisdom.com When God played peacemaker With Rabbi Sroy Levitansky (5 minutes)
Nov. 3, 2009
Martin Peretz: Beware, Barack. Beware, Rahm. Beware, Axelrod
JWisdom.com Are you are closet idolater? With Sara Yoheved Rigler (10 minutes)
Nov. 2, 2009
Paul Greenberg: The Holocaust is now on Facebook
JWisdom.com Abraham's Strange Change With Rabbi Yitzchok Fingerer (5 minutes)
Oct. 29, 2003
Mortimer B. Zuckerman: Graffiti On History's Walls (MUST-READ!)

Jewish World Review Feb. 15, 2006 / 17 Shevat, 5766

Artificial intimacy

By Pat Sajak


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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | During a recent Wheel of Fortune taping, I was answering a few questions from the audience during a delay, and a young man took to the microphone and asked whether I wore a toupee. He got a good laugh with the question, and I got a good laugh with my answer, which was, referring to my Hair From Hell, "If I did wear a toupee, I'd buy a better one than this!"


That moment reminded me anew of the strange, artificial intimacy that exists between performers and some of the people who watch them perform. Think about it. That was an incredibly rude and potentially embarrassing question that that young man would never have asked anyone else publicly, least of all someone he had never met. It's hard, for example, to imagine him getting on the loudspeaker at his local grocery store and asking whether the guy in aisle one was wearing a "rug".


I've seen Vanna asked by strangers how old she is and how much money she makes, questions they would be unlikely to ask the female druggist or doctor. I've been approached by viewers who tell me to let Vanna know how rotten that dress was she wore last Friday or to tell me what they don't like about me or my performance or the game or the rules, most often with a pleasant smile, as if they were performing a public service for which I should be grateful.


I understand that showing up for 20-plus years in someone's living room produces a sense that people know you even if they've never met you, but that doesn't account for the liberties some take when they actually do meet you. After all, they may have had the same neighbor for over 20 years, but they still might hesitate to openly criticize his job, his clothes, his attitude, his wife or his personal grooming.


Don't get me wrong. The overwhelming number of people I meet are kind and courteous, as I try to be. But you'd be surprised at how many folks say outrageous things assuming it's okay because I host a television show. Politicians report similar encounters, but that has to do, I think, with an "I pay your salary" kind of mentality.


I've shared similar "war stories" with others in my business, and we all laugh and shrug our shoulders. I suspect the reason some behave this way is, in part, because we're considered TV performers first and human beings second. Others have suggested it's because some viewers believe you wouldn't have a job if they didn't watch, but you could make that same argument for any business. ("If I didn't shop at your store, you'd be out of work!") Whatever the explanation, it's an odd phenomenon.


None of this is a complaint; it's just an observation. I love my job, and I understand that part of it involves dealing with the public. And, again, most of my daily exchanges with strangers are pleasant, and, even when they're not, they're interesting. It's just one of those human puzzles I enjoy trying to figure out.

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JWR contributor Pat Sajak is the recipient of three Emmys, a Peoples’ Choice Award and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He's currently the host of Wheel of Fortune.



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