The sensuous buzz of Hollywood neon. The wit and wisdom of the stars. The primal rush of a fierce game of tic-tac-toe.
While this is not what one normally expects to find in Houston Hall on a Wednesday evening, a talent-search team from the hit game show Hollywood Squares dangled all these temptations in front of 23 Penn undergraduates vying for a spot in the show's annual college tournament.
Returning to the University for the third year in a row, Hollywood Squares, or H2, has developed a taste for Penn. Though Wheel of Fortune has also held auditions on campus, H2 is the only nationally syndicated game show to return this year.
"They like our students," University spokeswoman Jeanne Leong said. "It's a fun show, and that's what they're looking for: fun, energetic people... they look for personality."
Lauri Janover, coordinator of College Search 2003 for H2, concurred that, though Temple or Drexel universities could also help capture the Philadelphia market, "this [university] is really perfect for us... we just love this school."
Indeed, as one of only 14 schools nationwide selected to participate in the tournament, Penn has quickly built a positive reputation on the show, with students appearing in three of College Week's five seasons. Last year, then-College Senior Yolande Tomlinson advanced to the semifinals.
Two sessions of auditions tested the hopefuls' general knowledge through a 25-question true-false test. Contestants then had a chance for headshots and to showoff game strategy during practice rounds.
A general lack of advertising left yesterday's auditions poorly attended. But, Penn made up for quantity with quality: all passed the written test, and the students' performance led H2 employee Gary Light to say, "some days we can have 50 or 60 people and find no one, [and] days like this we get 20 or 30 and we find someone -- which would you rather have?"
Indeed, the promises of victory and the reputation of the program attracted an especially eclectic mix of people. Wharton sophomore Courtney Schilling claimed to be motivated more by the prospect of victory, hoping to "make some money and pay off Penn," while others claimed to have come "for Whoopi" -- an unfortunate reason, because Goldberg has left the show for good.
Some, however, expressed ambitions of a different sort.
"My family watched Hollywood Squares every night," Wharton freshman Meghan Taylor said. "I just think it would be a great chance... to promote Penn."
For money, for glory and for Penn, those selected will receive free travel and room and board in Los Angeles and a minimum paycheck of $500. Not bad for a few games of tic-tac-toe.
