The list of candidates to replace the retiring Bob Barker includes top picks Mark Steines (Entertainment Tonight), George Hamilton, and Mario Lopez. Reuters also lists Todd Newton, Mike Richards (Beauty & the Geek), and John O'Hurley as other guys up for it. Personally, I'd back John O'Hurley. He's got personality, class, and presence. How is he not in the "top three" (no offense to the other guys)?

I watched the show with my grandfather Deyoe (my mom's side of the family, raised a family on a farm in Kansas). He watched it every day without fail, as older dudes do. One day when I was four, he had a quiet heart attack toward the end of the day's episode, sitting right next to me. I've never really been able to watch a show of The Price is Right all the way through since. I didn't really know what was going on at the time, but I get this feeling of dread right toward the end.

I enjoy watching pieces of it at a time, usually when I'm home visiting my younger brother, who fixates on game shows of any sort. Every time it rolls around to the Showcase Showdown, I have to pop over to another channel.

Funny thing is, people will actually poke fun at this when I share it with them. Usually, people think I'm joking or outright lying about it having happened, or they defer to humor because it makes them uncomfortable. I find the people who ask "really?" in a particular tone after I tell them tend to be better friends.

Boy this got serious and pensive and QUICK. I need to go find a funny wire story to comment on....