The Williams family from Green River will appear on an episode 'Family Feud' Monday afternoon. The family, from left to right are Ryan Williams, Mary Williams, Stephen Williams, Joe Johnson and Erika Johnson.
A Green River family got to experience the excitement of being on a television game show, with the episode airing locally Monday.
Mary Williams, along with her sons Stephen and Ryan, daughter Erika Johnson and her husband Joe competed on "Family Feud," the long-running gameshow hosted by Steve Harvey. The episode airs during the two-episode block starting at 3 p.m. on KUTV
Mary said the process started when Erika contacted her about a audition taking place in Salt Lake City in January, 2017. At first, Mary was hesitant about committing to the audition because heavy snowfall would have made driving to Salt Lake City hazardous. When she found out Stephen committed to flying from his home in Denver, Mary said she decided to follow through.
Mary and Ryan drove to Salt Lake City as Mary's husband, Ed, was unable to join because of work.
Arriving at the audition, Mary said she was overwhelmed by the number of people seeking their chance to be on television.
"We go to this audition and there's like hundreds of families in this big room," Mary said. "I can't imagine how many families they had."
The family decided to represent Green River because Mary's children grew up in the city, with Mary representing the core of the family.
"We went to represent Green River, not Utah. Their home is in Green River, they were raised in Green River," Mary said. "This is home to us."
Mary said there were several other rooms filled with families aside from the room they were assigned to. When the time came to audition, Mary said Erika helped hype the family up, with Mary saying they gave it their best shot.
"We just pumped ourselves up and she talked about how she was going to introduce us," Mary said.
Their shot left an impression with the shows production staff, who asked the Williams family to a second round of auditions. After that second round, Mary said producers told her they would contact Erika if they decide to have the family on the show.
The producers decided to invite the Williams to Atlanta, where "Family Feud" is recorded and gave the family a May filming date to attend.
After arriving in Atlanta, Mary said they were put through a final audition with other families selected for the show.
"Going to Atlanta doesn't mean you'll get on TV," Mary said.
Hyping themselves up a third time and showing off their competitive side, the Williams family achieved their goal and made their way in front of the studio audience.
"It was a lot of fun," Mary said. "The questions they asked and the answers the kids gave were funny. They're some hams."
Mary said Steve Harvey asked a number of questions about Green River, including how big the city is and if the city had a Popeye's Chicken restaurant, a KFC, and a Wal-Mart. She said he also inquired about the county jail.
Mary said she and her husband had attempted to be on television once before, attending a taping of "The Price is Right" while Bob Barker was the gameshow's host. They didn't make it on stage.
Mary could not reveal if her family won or not and said she wasn't aware of what ended up making the cut in the episode. However, the experience and the memories she made from the auditions to being on stage with Harvey are some of her most cherished.
"It's going to be such a memorable time for us," Mary said.
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