Exclusive: Ellen, Office Accountants Make a Deal

• Oct 27, 2007 01:21 AM ET
• by TV Guide News

Even as host of the most glamorous of Hollywood shows such as the Oscars and the Emmys, Ellen DeGeneres opted to sport beautifully tailored velvet or silk tuxedos instead of the more conventional gown. For that matter, it's been a very long time since fans have seen DeGeneres in a dress - but that may all change in January.

A good friend of Deal or No Deal host Howie Mandel (who in turn has been a frequent guest on Ellen), DeGeneres will be his game show's first celebrity spokesmodel. That's right: DeGeneres will be one of the 26 briefcase-toting, elegant, sparkly dress-wearing women who may or may not be holding the million-dollar bag.

"Ellen is a great supporter of the show and we were looking for our first celebrity model. Who better to do that than Ellen?" says Libby Hansen, NBC's vice president of alternative series and specials.

DeGeneres' appearance will be shot on Nov. 9 and air sometime in January 2008.

Ellen fans will get an early preview of the show, since DeGeneres will bring her own film crew and will tease her studio audiences about her Deal visit. That segment airs on her daytime talker later in November.

For the curious, all 26 spokesmodels wear the same dress, but a different dress each show. Sometimes dresses are custom-made, but more often than not, they are off-the-rack and altered by the show's costumer, Dina Cerchione, who hasn't yet revealed her plans for DeGeneres' episode.

Will DeGeneres really wear a dress? "Ellen knows our show and knows the kind of sparkly, sequined dresses our spokesmodels wear, and she's agreed to be [one of them]," Hansen says a bit cryptically. "Ellen won't do anything she's not comfortable with." Then again, Hansen says, "Who doesn't want to see Ellen in a dress?"

NBC also tells TV Guide exclusively that Deal - which will present its "10 Greatest Moments" as part of the show's Thanksgiving special - will feature surprise guest stars, including The Office's accounting staff, who'll assist a contestant who has trouble with numbers.

The installment featuring Angela Kinsey, Brian Baumgartner and Oscar Nunez was shot Sept. 28 and will air Dec. 12.

The week the eclectic Office staff visits will be dubbed "What's the Deal?" week, with Deal or No Deal airing each night and with "special guests" and "twists."

For those who enjoy gazing at the beautiful spokesmodels, NBC also tells us exclusively that during "What's the Deal?" week, all 26 ladies will don bikinis. Sounds like a very good Deal. - Reporting by N.F. Mendoza