By JON BAKER

LAKEWOOD, Calif. --- Ken Juber calls it a “stunning twist of fate,” how he became a contestant “of sorts” on NBC’s new “Deal or No Deal” daytime (30-minute) edition, slated to air for the first time Monday afternoon.

Local fans of the show may find his story of particular  interest, considering he was born July 31, 1954, at Memorial Hospital in Pawtucket, then lived with his family in the Saylesville section of Lincoln for 14 years (ages 9-23).
“Back in early April, I had a family wedding to attend back home in Rhode Island; it was my great-niece, Tiffany, getting hitched,” Juber, 54, said via phone from his West Coast home Wednesday night. “I was going to be the photographer/videographer, but about four days before I was going to leave L.A., I got a bunch of phone calls and e-mails from family members and friends telling me that ‘Deal or No Deal’ tryouts were going to be held at Twin River.
“They were, like, ‘You’ve got to change your flight! How cool would it be to qualify in your hometown?’
“I just said, ‘Listen, guys, that would be great, and thanks, but the show is based back here; if I decide to audition, I’ll do it here,’” he added. “I remember hearing about 5,000 attended, sleeping over and stuff, but that wasn’t for me.”
He flew to New England, had a blast at the wedding (despite the fact he worked it) and trekked home the night of April 15.
“When I got back that Tuesday, my co-workers told me that producers of ‘Deal or No Deal’ were coming to the very office I work at, in City of Commerce, on Saturday; that blew my mind,” offered Juber, who for 17 years has acted as manager of video and photography services at Smart & Final, Inc., a renowned West Coast retail grocery chain.
“I called my friends and family in Lincoln, and said, ‘Guess what? They’re following me! They’re coming to my building.’ I thought, ‘Man, this is too much karma.’ Everyone was amazed.”

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Turns out being on a game show is nothing new to Juber, who back in January began appearing as a “mob member” on NBC’s “1 vs. 100.” Still an aspiring actor, he spent the entire second season in that role.
When asked if he’s a “professional” game-show contestant, he can’t help but chuckle, “Yeah, I guess I am.”
His first experience came in 1980, when he landed a spot on “Face the Music,” followed by  “Joker’s Wild” in 1982 and “Scrabble” in 1984.
“Because the rules dictated at that time someone couldn’t be a contestant on more than three shows in a decade, I was out of luck; I had to wait,” he stated. “But, then, in 1991, I went on a show called ‘Shop ‘Til You Drop’ with my first wife, Tina, and we won $2,000 in prizes, but that was small change then. In ‘94, I was on ‘Quicksilver,’ and the same year, I got on ‘Wild Animal Games’ with my oldest daughter, Cassandra, and the host was Ryan Seacrest.
“I ended up losing, and Ryan poured honey all over me,” Juber laughed. “They ended up making a commercial out of that stunt. I’d still like to think I helped launch Ryan’s career.”
He figures he’s earned $20,000 in cash and prizes during his “career” on such shows, but he’s hoping more is in the offing.
“Like the evening show, Howie Mandel hosts it, and he’s great,” Juber stated. “Unlike it, this will run every weekday in the afternoon, and it’s only a half-hour long. And, instead of having the 26 gorgeous models holding the cases everyone’s familiar with, they’ve been replaced by 22 men and women of all ages and cultural/economic backgrounds. We’re considered the contestants.”
At show’s start, two regular models, Tameka and Patricia, spin a roulette-like wheel, and the number that comes up allows the person clutching the same-numbered case to take his or her place next to Mandel to play the game, with a top prize of $500,000.
If their number isn’t chosen, those “case holders” receive no compensation. The 22 contestants must arrive five hours before taping for revisions to hair style, makeup and wardrobe. They also meet with fellow participants to get to know them, which Juber called fascinating.
“I’ve taped five episodes so far as Model No. 11, but trust me, I’m no model,” he said. “My number hasn’t come up yet, but the casting directors have told me they plan on bringing me back for future episodes until my number is drawn. They want me to get my chance at winning a half-million dollars.
“I’ll tell you, it’s been wild,” he added. “In the very first episode — the ones I’m in will appear Oct. 6-10 — I was the last model standing. In fact, of the five episodes I was in, I was either the last or next-to-last model standing; and, in one, I was holding the $500,000 case.
“Howie was telling us on the set, which is the same as the nighttime version, that ‘Deal or No Deal’ is the No. 1 primetime game show ever; that as many as 35 million people were watching,” he claimed. “That means one of every 10 Americans were tuned in; that’s pretty phenomenal, if you think about it.
“That doesn’t make me nervous; it didn’t bother me at all. When I did ‘1 vs. 100,’ I’d walk down the street or shop for groceries, and people would stop me and say, ‘I know you from somewhere. Are you on television?’ They recognized me, and it was really cool. That never happened to me before.”