Akeem Mair on How A Mustard Packet, Twitter, and “Let’s Make A Deal” Turned Him into a Winner

When financial banker turned actor Akeem Mair received the chance to join the popular CBS game show revival, “Let’s Make A Deal,” he knew it was an offer that he couldn’t refuse. Little did he know that a little serendipity would help him leave the show a winner.

“It was a blessing from Jesus,” shares Akeem on the once-in-a-lifetime experience. Originally presented to his cousin, Akeem would get an amazing gift after his relative offered it to him on June 1, 2020. Akeem said yes, and his cousin sent him the details. Upon receiving the details, the eager participant immediately emailed Pitman Casting’s Valerie Pitman, who was in charge of casting for the show.

On June 3, Valerie contacted Akeem to set an interview with the casting producer, Jerry Artukovich, via conference call. At that point, Akeem didn’t own a tripod, but his brother Wesley offered to help by holding up his iPhone 10 Max during the whole interview. The interview went great as Jerry and Akeem conversed for a while, but Akeem thought he had bombed the interview. But three months later, Akeem would receive a call and become one of the participants to an episode of “Let’s Make A Deal.”

A popular program revived by CBS, “Let’s Make A Deal,” features participants who play mini-deals with actor, comedian, and show host Wayne Brady. They’re given small games and offered to play or walk away with a cash prize instead. The show started back in 1963 but came back after CBS rebooted the show.

As the actor became set to join the show, producers instructed Akeem he would be part of a superhero edition. He originally planned to come in in a Green Lantern suit but was told that it would cause copyright issues. Producer Evelyn Bradfield would give him the idea of slapping a different logo with the name “Zonk!” on it. So Akeem rushed over to the closest Office Depot the night before to print the logo and transform his costume identity to Zonk.

Before joining the show, Akeem Mair started following the show’s Twitter account and caught sight of their “Quickie Deal Items” for the show, a set of regular objects that could give participant’s the chance at winning prizes.

He picked up two of the four items: a mustard packet and a roll of pennies. On the show, Wayne called on Akeem to ask him if he followed the show’s Twitter account. He responded by saying that he did. Wayne then asked him if Akeem had carried a mustard packet with him. He quickly pulled out his backpack from behind his stage pod and took out the item and won $500 right before the credits rolled.

Apart from appearing on “Let’s Make A Deal,” primetime TV audiences might remember Akeem after he appeared on one of Ellen Degeneres’ social experiments where he caught people’s attention after a standout improv performance during one of the highly-acclaimed show’s segments. Akeem hopes that these little moments on-screen will help him grow a career as a professional actor soon.

To follow Akeem Mair and his many other appearances and screen moments, visit him on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Backstage, Casting Frontier, LinkedIn, and Pinterest.