Fun in the sun with TV's brightest stars!

The 36th annual Daytime Emmy Awards can be described in one word, HOT, as in hot weather. Try nearly 100 degrees. This year the awards were moved from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood to the Orpheum Theatre in downtown Los Angeles. As the sun beat down on me, in my 6-inch heels and my designer dress, I  did what I came to do- interview the stars.  The daytime Emmys honors people I watch every day on television, from 'Regis & Kelly'  to the ladies of  'The View'  to those morning network shows… I LOVE IT ALL.

Every year the red carpet basically boils down to two types of arrivals, the familiar soap stars who show up 2 hours before the show are usually the first on the red carpet and then the more notable daytime TV hosts that show up minutes before the event, talking to one or two major entertainment syndicated shows before running into the theater to take their seats. This time I saw the backs of Rachael Ray, Tyra Banks and TV newcomer Wendy Williams as they were whisked away minutes before show time.

But the red carpet isn't just full of missed opportunities. I actually got a chance to talk to Buzz Aldrin, Erik Estrada, Lori Loughlin, Victoria Rowell,  Alex Trebek and a long list of soap opera actors and actresses. Mr. Aldrin was a blast. He told me he was getting an Emmy on Sunday for being old and grumpy and beamed with pride as he talked about accepting an Emmy on behalf of NASA the night before at the Emmy Engineering awards. Aldrin joked that he didn’t know why it took the Academy 40 years to recognize the momumental landing on the moon mission in 1969! Alex Trebek was a bit more straight laced. He offered some great advice on how to achieve longevity in show business: "You have to be fortunate enough to land on a great show… and luck plays a big part."

The backstage press area, or what I refer to as the "lion's den" is the place where winners like Tyra Banks, Rachael Ray, Montel Williams and even the cast of Sesame Street field questions from journalists without a time limit or a publicist running interference. Tyra talked about what it feels like to win an Emmy for a second time in the best informative talk show category. She also talked about whether she would show us her real hair when the show debuts on September 11th as promised in TV spots? And is the ring on "that" particular finger a wedding ring? She said yes she would show her REAL hair and NO it's not a wedding ring, but rather her high school ring ! And even though it was a night for those on daytime TV to let their hair down and get all dolled up, work was on the mind of Rachael Ray after winning for best entertainment talk show. She said it was the work ethic of her staff that deserved the credit.

Well said Rachael!