Feature
www.qns.com I LIC COURIER I MARCH 2019 37
Yd was actually in Peru when she
found out that she landed the “Deal or
No Deal” job.
“I was on a spiritual journey in Peru
when I found out,” Yd said. “It was sup-posed
to be a zen experience, but I was
bouncing off the walls when I found out.”
After two months of filming in Or-lando
and many fist bumps from “Deal
or No Deal” host Howie Mandel, the new
season premiered on Dec. 5, 2018, with
Yd holding case No. 1.
The popular game “Deal or No Deal,”
which originally ran on NBC from 2005-
2009, consists of one contestant picking
from 26 suitcases, each of which contain-ing
a monetary value ranging from 1 cent
to 1 million dollars. Throughout the game,
the contestant selects cases to open,
revealing dollar amounts that aren’t in
their case. At certain points in the game,
the Banker, who remains anonymous,
makes offers to buy the contestant’s
case based on the amount of money
that has been eliminated from the game
after being revealed in another suitcase.
If the contestant accept the banker’s
offer, the game ends and the player wins
that amount; however, if the contestant
rejects the offer, the game continues
until a deal is made or there are two
cases left. At the end of the game, the
contestant can keep their case or switch
it with the last remaining case.
This time around, “Deal or No Deal”
has a couple of twists that changes up
the game this time around. In addition
having a female banker, contestants
now have the opportunity to make
counter-offers to the banker.
“I love the new banker. She’s bad to
the bone,” Yd said.
What hasn’t changed is that “Deal or
No Deal” is that the show features 26
women who hold and present the suit-cases,
revealing each case’s monetary
value for each game. This time, however,
there’s more to being a suitcase holder
than meets the eye.
“It’s not just about being a model,” Yd
said. “The producers were very specific
about picking the 26 models. We all
come many different backgrounds. We
have women who are getting their Ph.D.,
olympians; even I’m my mom’s home
health attendant. Our backgrounds help
as all connect to the contestants. We’re
not just models; we’re human beings.”
One story that stuck out to Yd was
when a speech pathologist competed
on the show.
“I didn’t speak English or Spanish when I
was in kindergarten, so I felt very connected
to this particular contestant,” Yd said. “The
speech pathologist we had on the show
had helped a boy who hadn’t spoken at all.
If you speak to him now, he sounds like
an adult. We surprised the contestant by
bringing the boy on stage, which brought
so much emotion to the episode.”
To say the least, this particular con-testant
really hit close to home for Yd.
“To think of how invested he was,
how much of an impact he made on
this boy’s life, it’s incredible,” Yd said.
“I thanked him after the show. I told
him, ‘You are the reason that I can
do anything with my career.’”
No matter who the contestant is, Yd
says that see finds a way to connect
with the individual. It means so much
to Yd that she gets to be a part of their
“Deal or No Deal” experience.
“We hold something that can change
someone’s life forever,” Yd said. “It’s
such a special feeling to be a part of
someone’s memory.”
Yd believes that anyone is capable
of achieving their dreams, no matter
where you are in life.
“No matter the circumstances,
you can always make a difference
and change your life,” said Yd. “Don’t
give up!”
Tune in to CNBC on Wednesday
nights at 9 p.m. ET/PT to catch new
episodes of “Deal or No Deal.” Check
your local listings.
/www.qns.com
/www.qns.com
