Samantha Brown

Home for the Holidays

December 18, 2009, 4:30 PM  |  Comments (5,214)  |  Permalink

We actually shot the first half of this last year in December thinking it would just be a ½ hour episode. After the editors put it together we all realized that it would be great to do a full hour and turn it from a Great Weekend shoot to my very own holiday special. I can’t tell you what a threshold it is when you have YOU’RE VERY OWN Holiday show. I felt like I had entered into an elite group of people before me: Johnny Mathis, Kathie Lee Gifford …The Muppets. Alas, there was no singing around the fire for this one on account of we couldn’t afford the rights to any Christmas music and my Brooklyn apartment that I share with my husband of three years does not have a fireplace. When we shot the scene for my party in my home my cameraman actually had shot Kathie Lee’s Holiday Special for Home and Garden TV. He went on about how amazingly huge her house is. Sorry, don’t make Kathie Lee money and I quite like the fact that when I am watching TV and need something from the fridge I only have to walk ten feet.

One of the highlights of the show for me was to show off Dyker Heights Lights. This is a quintessentially Italian neighborhood. Every Holiday season the entire neighborhood gets all decked out for Christmas. Growing up there you always saw that ONE home that was outlined in twinkling lights which displayed the Nativity scene, Frosty the Snowman, bundled up penguins and Santa and his eight tiny reindeer all on the same front lawn. Now imagine house after house of the store bought spectacle. That’s what I love about it. It’s not the 65-foot Norwegian spruce in Rockefeller Center, or the million dollar windows of Saks and Bergdorf’s. These homes are the efforts of the little guy-with no corporate funded budget, market focus groups, or degree’s in design but what they accomplish is nothing short of holiday magic.

Watching the show you may recognize my friend Liz who is making her now third appearance on the shows with me: Girlfriend weekend in Miami, Cruise, and now the Holiday Special. She’s the best and I always love having her on because on top of everything — beauty, razor sharp wit — she’s a complete professional. I remember while shooting the cruise special I was at a loss for words due to being out in the sun all day. When I hesitated and then went blank she naturally took over and resumed the conversation. It was a small moment but I remember how grateful I was to be with someone who just knows how to keep the energy and pace going. We had a great time together helping sort coats for the NY Cares coat drive. Liz heads up a group and I helped last year so we thought it would be a nice addition to the show.

Another very nice addition to the show was the Indego Africa Fundraiser. Indego Africa is a non-profit that helps African women compete in the marketplace and alleviate poverty thru fair trade. I got to lend my speaking skills to the auction which I enjoyed until I was the thing being auctioned. I actually had to auction off a dance with me. Sometimes I think my producers hate me and just want me to wither in front of the camera. I started the bid at 25 cents. I believe a dance with me went for 80 dollars so I was happy and humiliated at the same time.

All in all both years of shooting this special-were just that …special. It was great to be home as it always is during a great time of year.

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Posted By:

5,214 Responses to “Home for the Holidays”

  1. I was suggested this web site by my cousin. I am not sure whether this post is written by him as nobody else know such detailed about my problem. You are wonderful! Thanks!

  2. ipod touch reviews 8gb Mellissa Casida http://ochrejelly3225.publr.com/post/1287319 Mellissa Casida

  3. bbw says:

    I simply could not leave your website before suggesting that I actually loved the standard info a person supply for your visitors? Is going to be back steadily in order to check out new posts

  4. The most interesting is no one can make this one like you, so keep your imagin about world.

  5. Klimatyzacji says:

    Hi my loved one! I wish to say that this article is awesome, great written and include approximately all significant infos. I would like to peer extra posts like this.

  6. Zodique says:

    boin coin for life !

  7. MGM Advantage seeks £200m cash injection from sale: Mutual insurer has appointed Evercore to seek out potential buyers. IYEdNAy6

  8. It indeed does take quite a lot to find great info. such as this. Thanks.

  9. Although this is an old article, Found your blog using Google. This is a pretty good post. I’d like to see you take the main idea of this post and create a second article, maybe embed a movie, too? If so, it will be much welcomed.

  10. you’re truly a good webmaster. The site loading velocity is incredible. It seems that you’re doing any unique trick. In addition, The contents are masterwork. you have performed a wonderful process on this topic!

  11. I do agree with all of the ideas you’ve introduced on your post. They are really convincing and will certainly work. Still, the posts are too quick for novices. May you please extend them a little from subsequent time? Thank you for the post.

  12. Extremely great information.

  13. Yopc’est sympa de trouver des gens avec le meme avis à ce propos, je reviendrait plus souvent.

  14. Jeabricesia says:

    In today’s time and age, smartphones and apps have obtained a good deal of level of popularity. As of now, a cell phone isn’t just restricted to create calls. Together with the enable of mobile cellphone progress, people and corporations have started off building one of a kind and modern purposes, which facilitate web browsing, email, faxing, online games, graphics and wireless data services. Taking into consideration the revolution with handheld equipment, mobile application developers are in rage.

    mobile app contractors incorporate distinct parts to formulate software program apps and options. Different companies have commenced exhibiting interest in small business applications and hundreds of them have started outsourcing their necessities to builders throughout the world. A couple of desired cell software answers consist of world wide web programs, online games and interactive business enterprise solutions throughout diverse know-how platforms. There are several things you should consider, before you choose on the unique cellular software.

    System

    Cellular cellular phone programs are distinctive from just one platform to another and a person are not able to devise an software that runs on all platforms. With distinct corporations, the mobile phone platforms are dissimilar and sure apps operate with specified systems only. For an illustration, an apple iphone software can’t focus on a Windows Cell or perhaps a Blackberry platform. Therefore, it’s essential to select the best mobile system, before you will get started off with cellular applications growth.

    Client Foundation

    Before you get started out by using a mobile software developer, it’s essential to determine the kind of audience you intend to target at. Based upon your target audience, you need to then make a decision no matter if you desire programs that may be used by particular person consumers or organization cellular apps. It could be simpler to the mobile application developer to type a do the job program, system to the structure as well as know-how for your cellular software.

    Spending plan & Timing

    Before you will get commenced with mobile software advancement, you should take into consideration the cost of your enhancement as well as the exact time frame to launch a selected product. To begin with, you need to do some basic research around the products being utilised by your competitors along with the price strategy adopted by them. In order to generate the most out of your investment, you’ll want to launch your product at the right time. Regardless of where you outsource your software progress companies, you’ll want to ensure that the application is developed within a predefined timeline.

    Features

    Wireless programs have revolutionized the way cell phones are being utilized today. Businesses are now getting interesting apps, which are revolutionary and one of a kind. The whole purpose of cell application enhancement is to strike a chord amongst the customers. Corporations require powerful cellular telephone apps, which serve a variety of purposes including browsing, gaming, entertainment, search and many more. Mobile application builders can style and design, create and customize the application in accordance to the shopper needs. These are professionals who possess the technical as well as the functional expertise to perform simple and complicated tasks. To conclude with, 1 can access the world with any handheld device today.

POST A COMMENT