February 2018
The News of Sun City Center
Lights, Camera, Action: BBC Division Films SCC on Thanksgiving Day
By Diane M. Loeffler What did you do on Thanksgiving Day? From 8:30 to 5:30 CA Director Marilyn Cote`-Miller and Sun Radio’s Vern Hendricks spent the day in their golf carts driving very slowly all around the north and south sides of Sun City center as Expectation Entertainment, Ltd., a division of BBC Worldwide, taped a segment for a documentary. The premise of the documentary is that Dale Winton, a well-known celebrity in Great Britain, is looking for a retirement home in Florida. Winton’s show business career began in 1972. Over the years, he has had his own radio shows, appeared on television and hosted several television series including Dale’s Supermarket Sweep (1993-2000 and 2007) and the National Lottery show In It to Win It (2002-2015). He also played himself as a game show presenter in Trainspotting 1995-1996. Miller was in the first golf cart. Sitting beside her was the director peering down at some sort of tablet that gave him immediate feedback on the taping. Sitting in the back-facing seats were the videographer and the sound man. Miller says, “We had to drive very slowly so that the cart with Vern Hendricks and Dale Winton could be close enough for the videographer and sound man to tape what they were saying. From time to time, the director would whisper that we needed to slow down or give some other direction. Vern answered Dale’s questions and gave a history of Sun City Center. A few times Vern conferred with me about a question.” Miller says, “Dale and the film crew said that they were very impressed with Sun City Center, especially the
sports complex, the range and variety of houses, the number of clubs, the fact that we carry no debt and how volunteers manage everything including The Emergency Squad.” Since Winton is a former radio personality, Hendricks took him to the SUN Radio Station to interview him for 10 minutes. Later, everyone went to Elysa (Lisa) and Vern’s home for Thanksgiving. Miller says, “They decided they wanted Dale Winton to experience a real American Thanksgiving dinner while he was here. We needed to find someone to host a dinner and to do it at a time that fit with their schedule.” Originally, the director just asked that Dale Winton be part of the Thanksgiving dinner. However, Vern and Lisa Hendricks insisted that everyone on the crew partake in the meal. So, Vern, Lisa, son Todd Hendricks, daughterin-law Sarah and Lisa’s 93 year old mother, Elyse Oddo, sat down to dinner with Dale Winton, the director, the videographer, the sound man, a woman who was busy with paperwork, Dale’s personal assistant, the makeup woman (to give Dale Winton a Florida tan) and four others. They ate turkey, sweet potatoes, deviled eggs, traditional stuffing, pineapple stuffing, cranberry sauce and other seasonal items. Oddo said grace before the meal while the crew taped her. It should be noted that this was not Oddo’s first brush with fame. In 1944 she won the title of Miss Wisconsin. Vern Hendricks says, “Dale was a real stand up guy. We had a great time. It was good for the community. I’m really impressed that Dale Winton, the director and the crew find us fascinating.
It speaks to what a wonderful place Sun City Center is to live. After the broadcast, we will get a copy of the documentary. The crew also took still photos. Unfortunately, it never occurred to any of us to take pictures too.” Marilyn Cote`-Miller says, “It was a wonderful experience. They were all very nice, polite and considerate. Afterwards they gave me a box of chocolates as a thank-you gift.” Miller was also involved in live and taped broadcasts when she was the director of Graycliff, a Frank Lloyd Wright home in Derby, New York. So, how did this all come about? Originally, Expectation Entertainment contacted John Luper saying they were
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considering having Sun City Center be one of the communities in the documentary and asked to interview him. John Luper invited Marilyn Cote`-Miller to join him because she is the Chair of Public Relations and Communications and also is active in the History Society. After the meeting, Director Matt Reid was convinced that he wanted Sun City Center in the documentary. Miller says, “They sent me an email a month ago saying they are going to release the film in March and that they would send a copy once it aired. I signed a release so I could get it.” Won’t that be fun for all of us to see!
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