Yesterday I blogged about a practical joke you could play if you attended a hypnotist’s stage show. That very afternoon, by a cosmic coincidence, I ended up in the audience of a hypnotist’s stage show. I did not try my prank.
About a month ago, I got a message saying one of my favorite TV shows, “Two and a Half Men,” wanted to make a Dilbert reference in an upcoming episode. They asked for permission, more as a courtesy than a legal requirement, and I used the opportunity to ask if my wife and I could attend a taping. Yesterday we flew down and watched them put the show together. While we were in the audience, between scenes, a comedian entertained us. He was also a hypnotist. The hypnosis part of his act got interrupted because the director was ready for the next scene, but what were the odds I would be in a hypnotist’s audience that same day?
When you watch the episode of Two and a Half Men where Jenny McCarthy guest stars, in about three weeks, listen for my laugh. Microphones hang above the audience to record laughter, and one was directly above me. I wanted to be sure I could hear my laugh on the episode, so I waited for a moment when the rest of the audience was laughing relatively quietly and I let out a good horse laugh of the HAA-HOO-HAA-SNORT variety. You can’t miss it.
The oddest part of the night was having actor Robert Wagner’s head in my crotch area about six times. This might require some explanation. I was in the front row, and the stage is elevated about five feet from the show floor. The people next to me were apparently friends of guest star Robert Wagner, and he kept hanging out on the stage near them, leaning on the audience stage floor, so his head was about two feet from my crotch. It was an uncomfortable feeling. If I looked down, there was my panted penis, and there was Robert Wagner’s giant head. It was wrong on many levels. I tried not to look, but I was only marginally successful.
After the show taped, our host and contact, Lee Lee Baird, took us down to the set to mill around and say hi to stars Charlie Sheen and Jon Cryer, show creator Chuck Lorre, and the excellent staff. Everyone was friendly and gracious and fun to meet. It was surreal chatting with the stars in the living room set where we’ve been watching them on TV for five years. We’re huge fans, so we just got stupid and babbled. People are extra nice when they assume you are mentally challenged, so we had that working for us.