Although contestants are forbidden to divulge the game’s outcome, Bishop, a senior copywriter at Crossroads ad agency Salva O’Renick, was able to share some of his experiences in his team’s quest for supreme geekdom.
The Pitch: How did your team prepare for the audition?
Bishop: We tried out for the first season and passed the initial test but didn’t make it in regionals. It just wasn’t meant to be. After that, we spent a year quizzing each other, and then we made it.
Did you ever feel embarrassed to know about, say, Lou Bega’s music?
Never. I was proud to know it because it took us to regionals.
Good point. How did your team do at regionals?
We won the first game, but then we were knocked out by Three Men and a Little Lazy, who ultimately made it to the show, too. After our first game, we were all kinds of confident. We thought it was a done deal. But then we lost. There was some disappointment leaving Chicago.
The producers said they’d call wild-card teams in three weeks [to announce who would get a wild card slot into finals]. I started carrying my cell phone with me at all times instead of leaving it at my desk, like I usually do. I had to know if we made it or not. It was killing me. One day I was in a meeting with one of the company’s principals, and my cell phone rang. It was VH1. I was freaking out because I couldn’t answer it. Then my wife was calling with the news, and my phone kept vibrating in my pocket, and all I wanted to do was pick it up, but I couldn’t.
A lot of last season’s players were pretty obnoxious on camera. Did your team decide to go that route during the interview process at regionals?
No, we definitely decided to be ourselves. We went in shtickless. That was our shtick, and we just hoped that our own regular selves would make for intriguing TV. My wife, Kelly, was pregnant at the time, so we definitely used that to our advantage. Our original team name was Let’s Solve Crimes. We all had T-shirts. But we had to come up with alternative names. My favorite one we came up with was The Aaron Spelling Experience.
Ooooh, nice one. Westerburg High started with a different name, too, right?
Yeah, they were originally called The Scene Stealers, based off a movie Web site a couple of the guys from the team run. I found out we both made the show when Andy and I were at the same Oscar party.
It’s easy to answer questions from the comfort of your own sofa. What was it like to actually be onstage and under the lights in front of an audience during taping?
It was crazy. We were nervous going in and meeting the teams. We knew nothing about these people. I didn’t even realize there was an audience there. A friend of mine from New York came to watch the show, and I remember looking for him in the crowd, but then I realized I should put my focus elsewhere, so I zoned out the audience.
Any advice for people looking to audition next year?
Make sure you know your stuff. And be you. That’s all you can do.
And make sure to bone up on your Bega.
To see how Team Westerburg fares, check out the show on Wednesday, July 11. Wocka Wocka shows its smarty pants Thursday, July 12. -- Megan Metzger
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Guys,
Just wanted to let you know that you guys did very well! Thanks to the two teams from KC/Lawrence, your metro area's "cool" factor has gone way up in this humble Atlantan's estimation. We, in Atlanta, get a lot of that from folks in the Northeast who still think we are buried in Antebellum days. When they come here, they are usually in for a pleasant surprise. I always equated Kansas with corn and that was that (talk of ignorance!). Thanks to the two teams, my eyes have (finally) opened.
Kudos once again to the other team too (Westerburg High?).
Sri
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