Weird Al Interviewed on 1994 Wheel Appearance
Jul 29, 2014 21:09:01 GMT -5
Prizes, thiswheel13, and 3 more like this
Post by MarioGS on Jul 29, 2014 21:09:01 GMT -5
Weird Al Yankovic was interviewed by Rolling Stone about his appearance on Music Stars Week on Wheel of Fortune in 1994. The question of "Why did Little Richard and James Brown play as a team" was answered here...
"Weird Al" Yankovic was initially very unsure about appearing on Wheel of Fortune when he was approached by the show in 1994. "I said to my manager, 'That sounds kind of cheesy and I don't know if I want to do it,'" he says. "Then he said, 'You'll be playing against James Brown and Little Richard.' I said, 'I'm there!'"
16 Things We Learned After a Day at 'Weird Al' Yankovic's House
During rehearsals all the celebrities were shown the rules of the game, but there was no sign of James Brown. "They basically wanted to make sure we knew how to play Hangman," says Yankovic. "Everything went very smoothly. We figured it wasn't a big deal that James Brown wasn't there."
Shortly before taping, Brown came onto the set with a large entourage. The producers quickly showed him how to play the game, and had him spin the wheel in a test run. "I don't think he'd ever seen Wheel of Fortune," says Yankovic. "He didn't know the basic rules of the game. When the wheel stopped he said, 'Give me…Give me an A!' They said to him, 'You have to pick a consonant when you spin the wheel.' He said, 'Oh…uh…Europe!'" :lol:
When it became clear that Brown would have trouble playing the game on his own, the producers teamed him up with Little Richard. They played as a duo against Yankovic and Lee Greenwood. To be fair, James Brown clearly got the hang of the game and even managed to solve one of the puzzles. In the end, however, Greenwood beat everybody. "I've made peace with my defeat," says Yankovic. "And it's became one of my favorite anecdotes and my favorite James Brown story."
Read more: www.rollingstone.com/music/videos/flashback-weird-al-battles-james-brown-on-wheel-of-fortune-20140729#ixzz38uhUcb28
Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
16 Things We Learned After a Day at 'Weird Al' Yankovic's House
During rehearsals all the celebrities were shown the rules of the game, but there was no sign of James Brown. "They basically wanted to make sure we knew how to play Hangman," says Yankovic. "Everything went very smoothly. We figured it wasn't a big deal that James Brown wasn't there."
Shortly before taping, Brown came onto the set with a large entourage. The producers quickly showed him how to play the game, and had him spin the wheel in a test run. "I don't think he'd ever seen Wheel of Fortune," says Yankovic. "He didn't know the basic rules of the game. When the wheel stopped he said, 'Give me…Give me an A!' They said to him, 'You have to pick a consonant when you spin the wheel.' He said, 'Oh…uh…Europe!'" :lol:
When it became clear that Brown would have trouble playing the game on his own, the producers teamed him up with Little Richard. They played as a duo against Yankovic and Lee Greenwood. To be fair, James Brown clearly got the hang of the game and even managed to solve one of the puzzles. In the end, however, Greenwood beat everybody. "I've made peace with my defeat," says Yankovic. "And it's became one of my favorite anecdotes and my favorite James Brown story."
Read more: www.rollingstone.com/music/videos/flashback-weird-al-battles-james-brown-on-wheel-of-fortune-20140729#ixzz38uhUcb28
Follow us: @rollingstone on Twitter | RollingStone on Facebook
