Talking Travel with Patricia Kara

Actress and tv host Patricia Kara returned to Global Traveler for her second Talking Travel interview. As she stated in our first interview, travel is her favorite subject.

Perhaps best known for her role as briefcase #9 model on television's Deal Or No Deal, Kara wrote "Dream On...Now Deliver" (notice the DOND acronym connection) about the entertainment business. On the surface it is a guide for making it and staying in show business, but there are plenty of other life lessons in the book.

On September 9 (notice the 9 connection), Kara will release "Open the Case," her book about her time on the popular game show. She promises it will be full of great pictures and stories. One story not in the book is the obstacles she overcame to finish it. She temporarily lost much of the content due to a computer issue. Fortunately, all was saved, but the release was delayed. Ever the positive and creative person, Kara decided 9/9 would be the perfect date to release the book.

It's always fun talking to Kara. Just like her live events, it's like being with an old friend.

You can watch the interview on the GT YouTube channel. I hope you'll enjoy it and subscribe. More subs, mean more fun content.

Friend Encounters: Patricia Kara and Tony

Friend Encounters is a weekly series featuring friends meeting celebrities.

My pal Tony has heard me talk of Patricia Kara on many occasions. He has heard the stories of my interviews and seeing her at a book signing. When I saw she was doing another book stop, I asked for his interest and of course, he was up for the experience. Little did we know how surreal the night would be.

After we made the trek to Homer Glen, we entered the room filled with Patricia's family, friends and fans. Patricia greeted us and I introduced her to Tony. Then the show was on. Tony and Patricia discovered they grew up near each other and had several mutual friends, despite Patricia being several years younger than us.

As always, Patricia couldn't have been nicer. Despite being surrounded by many folks, she talked to us for a long while and then again as we departed.

Patricia's book Dream On...Now Deliver is billed as a guide to show business, but I maintain it has many lessons and much info on life outside of that field. I recommend it for all.

Tony and Patricia Kara in Homer Glen, IL-June 2025.

Patricia Kara's Book Tour

A couple years ago, I saw Patricia Kara mention on social media how much she loved travel. That's all I needed to immediately ask her for a Talking Travel interview on Global Traveler. That interview is at Talking Travel with Patricia Kara.

Although I attended her book-signing event a few months ago, when I saw she was doing another, I asked my pal Tony about going, since he missed the previous one.

Patricia was so nice. Her and Tony hit it off, after realizing they grew up near each other, although a few years apart.

I wrote about the whole experience at Patricia Kara's Celebration on Global Traveler. I also got a quick update interview with her there.

Check out her book Dream On...Now Deliver. Also, subcribe to the GT YouTube channel.

Patricia Kara and me in Homer Glen, IL-June 2025.

Talking Travel with Patricia Kara

I set a personal record for longest interval between interviews with a person. I first interviewed media personality Patricia Kara in 2011 at Wizard World. Recently, I interviewed her again for Talking Travel on Global Traveler.

Patricia might be best known for her many years on television's Deal or No Deal. She originally held briefcase #9, but moved onto other roles in various incarnations of the show.

Knowing she traveled a lot while modeling and acting, I contacted her about an interview for Talking Travel. Her first response was "Travel is my favorite topic." With such a passionate response to travel, I figured this was going to be better and easier than I hoped and it was.

I chose to dive right into travel questions, because she was ready to talk travel! We covered everything from her favorite Chicago restaurants and spots to her world travels. I asked about Chicago, because Patricia has Chicago roots and was actually in the area at her sister's place during this interview. She also turned the tables on me, by asking me some of my favorite spots.

Of course, I also asked for her favorite moments on DoND. She shared some of her fondest memories.

Finally, she discussed her now-released book, Dream On...Now Deliver. She said it is a book of advice to folks breaking into the entertainment field. I'm not that person, but I will definitely pick up the book, hopefully at a signing in the near future.

I find fun stuff in all of my Talking Travel interviews, but this one seemed extra fun for me. Time flew. It was just like a conversation with a friend. I can best describe her as simply delightful.

The full recap is on GT at Talking Travel with Patricia Kara. All of the Talking Travel interviews are on the GT YouTube channel. Be sure to subscribe to the GT YouTube channel (it's free) for all of the travel content. Also, go to PatriciaKara.com for more info on Patricia and her book!

Johngy and Matt Need Your Votes

Wizard World is one of the biggest and best pop culture conventions.  It will be in Chicago August 9-12.  I have already received my press credentials to cover Wizard World for JohngysBeat.com (and other sites), but I have applied for an official vlogger position to cover Wizard World for Wizard World! Actually, Matt and I have both applied for these positions (there are 10 slots open...we want two of them).
We have already passed the first part of the process and have advanced to the "popular vote" round.  This is where you come in.  We need your votes.
It is pretty simple.  You go to the links below and "like" Wizard World on your Facebook page.  Then you vote for my interview with Patricia Kara of Deal or No Deal and Matt's interview with actor James C. Burns.  You can vote for both of us each day.  You can vote multiple times, but only once every 24 hours.  We would appreciate as many votes as you can provide.  Also, we extend this "invitation" to anyone else you might know who might be willing to help this great cause.

To vote for my video interview with Patricia Kara, click here.

To vote for Matt's video interview with James C. Burns, click here.

Thank you very much for any votes you give!

Patricia Kara and me in Rosemont, IL-August 2011.

On the Beat with Patricia Kara

Patricia Kara is an actress, a model and a tv personality.  I had the pleasure of meeting Patricia at Wizard World and I can tell you she is also a warm, engaging and fun person.  When I walked up to Patricia, she greeted me with such friendliness and energy that I knew this would be a fun interview. 
Patricia might be best known for being the model for the #9 briefcase on Deal or No Deal  (although she also substituted on some other numbers). She has made many appearances on tv shows and ads, in magazines and even in some video games.  She also appeared on a celebrity version of the game show Catch 21.  She won the game, earning $2500 for Trinity Children's Foundation.
Patricia is from Chicago and still has family in the area.  We talked a bit about that, too.  She named Lou Malnati's and Al's Italian Beef as her favorite local spots.  Those are excellent choices (and if either place is reading this, I think I see some sort of promotion possibility!).
We talked about Deal of No Deal, Chicago, future projects (including a fitness video) and more in the interview.  To learn more about Patricia, check out PatriciaKara.com.  I really appreciate Patricia for giving us some time, but mostly for being so incredibly pleasant.  She might hold briefcase #9, but she is totally #1.