Lucky spins, perplexing puzzles Lucky spins, perplexing puzzles (January 09, 2004)

Pleasantonian takes on 'Wheel of Fortune'
by Teresa C. Brown

"The New Yorker" is a three-word title that Kurt Kummer will always remember, but not the way most people do. Kummer, co-chair of the Bernal Property Block Party committee, will remember it because it was one of the puzzles he tried to solve as a contestant on "Wheel of Fortune." His episode will air at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday on KGO Channel 7.

"I was really excited just to get through the audition process," he said. He was one of 100 in the Bay Area chosen to audition, out of 20,000 who applied.

Time passed so quickly while they were taping, he added, that he could hardly remember any of the puzzles. "One I remember was 'warm wool overcoat with gloves,' or something like that," he said.

Although Kummer quickly solved the puzzle mentally, he could not say anything. "It wasn't my turn." As a co-contestant was spinning the wheel, Kummer was smiling and clapping, while secretly thinking "bankrupt, bankrupt," referring to the thin wedge on the Wheel labeled "bankrupt" that ends a contestant's turn and zeros out their potential winnings. "Finally, lucky for her and unlucky for me, she solved it," Kummer said with a laugh.

There is a lot of pressure playing the game in person, Kummer said. "At home it's always your turn," he explained. "If that player is on TV, you hit bankrupt, your turn is over."

Although Kummer was not the big winner of the day, he did end up with $1,000. And, he added, "I put in a nice plug for Pleasanton." He also met another Pleasanton resident, Erin Gilmour, a student at University of San Diego, who was also a Wheel contestant but for a different episode.

"It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," Kummer said - literally. He cannot appear on the game show again. But he had the time of his life, he said, and noted that host Pat Sajak and well-known letter-turner Vanna White were friendly, making all of the contestants feel at home and "like big stars."

Now Kummer is setting his sights on "Jeopardy!" But because "Wheel" and "Jeopardy!" are both from the Sony entertainment family, he will not be eligible to play for three years. But, Kummer said, he has put it on his calendar and will be practicing.

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