TCA: New ‘Let’s Make A Deal’ Host Shows He’s Funny On His Feet

Wayne Brady showed some of the funny-on-his-feet skill he’ll need to host Let’s Make A Deal, during a panel for the show at the Television Critics Association press tour Aug. 3. CBS announced in the morning that the show will replace Guiding Light on its daytime lineup starting in October.

When one critic got hold of the microphone to ask a question, she said she believes Wayne Brady is one of the first African Americans to host a game show on TV. She then quickly amended her statement, saying she is not sure, that both Bill Cosby and Whoopi Goldberg did so before him. Right? “You would know better,” the critic says.

“Yes, because of the meetings we have, the African Americans,” Brady says plainly, sparking a roomful of laughter.

He adds that he has been part of a few firsts and that it’s great to be one of the few African Americans to do something. But really, he says, CBS reached out to him for this job because “I think I’m one of the only guys who could pull this off because of the skill set.”

He said he sees his responsibility as being the best possible host, to see the show through a long and successful run: “So kids can say, ‘I can be the president or I can be the host of a game show.’”

Yes, they can.