Look for Mukilteo family on ‘Family Feud’

MUKILTEO — The show is called “Family Feud,” but from what the Seung family has to say about their recent experience on the show, it was nothing but fun.

Christopher and Shirley Seung, both 63, of Mukilteo, and their three grown children made it onto the show and taped their appearance in May.

It’s scheduled to air at 9 a.m. Monday on Channel 11. The Seungs are sworn to secrecy about the outcome until afterward.

“They treated us so well,” said Christopher Seung, who works in the mortgage industry.

The Seungs auditioned for the show at the Puyallup Mall last winter, Shirley Seung said. She said her sister heard about the auditions and let her know.

“We actually played the game right in the middle of the mall, in front of shoppers and everything,” she said.

The game involves two competing families trying to match responses to surveys on questions such as, “What would you want to handle with care?” and, “What would you not like to ride in after surgery?”

Shirley Seung was actually on the show once before, with her father and sisters, in 1977 with original host Richard Dawson, she said. They won parting gifts.

The rules only say that contestants can’t have been on the show in the previous three to five years, according to Christopher Seung.

Several families played the game that day in the mall, Shirley Seung said. They were instructed to speak up and “celebrate, give each other high fives, be animated.”

“They were looking for fun people, who enjoyed the game whether they won or lost,” Christopher Seung said.

The Seungs found out about a month later they were among the finalists and were later selected.

All five family members — Christopher and Shirley, along with their daughters Reyna Hwang, 35, Crystal Seung, 32, and son Brian, 30 — were flown, all expenses paid, to Atlanta for the taping.

They were treated to a nice hotel and were driven around in a limousine.

“We always like to know that the families on the show have a memorable experience that they cherish forever,” said Courtney Smith, a publicist for “Family Feud.”

The show has had several incarnations and hosts over the years since its inception in 1976. It currently stars actor and comedian Steve Harvey.

“He was just the most gracious host,” Christopher Seung said. Harvey stayed on stage during breaks and spoke with contestants and members of the audience, Seung said.

“He made each member of my family feel special. He’s just a great guy, a real human being.”

The show was shot in a small theater in front of about 150 to 200 people, Seung estimated. Several shows were recorded in one day.

He said the family was prepared because they had been watching the show even before the audition.

“We’d been fans of the show because my wife had been on years and years ago,” Seung said.

At the beginning of the taping this time around, when Harvey was asking contestants about themselves, Christopher Seung was able to share that he was a student of famed martial arts movie star Bruce Lee in Seattle in the early 1960s.

Lee, a student at the University of Washington, taught martial arts classes on the side. Seung was 12 years old and attended Lee’s classes for 3½ years. Lee died suddenly in 1973 at age 32.

Seung still practices the moves, he said.

“I have my own routine that Bruce Lee taught me,” he said.

Regarding the show, “It was just a fun experience and they made it fun. I would say they were a class act,” he said.

“It was quite an experience,” Shirley Seung said. “I highly recommend it.”

Want to try out?

For information about auditions, go to sites.google.com/a/familytryouts.com/tryouts

Bill Sheets: 425-339-3439; sheets@heraldnet.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Lynnwood
Crash in Lynnwood blocks Highway 99 south

The crash, on Highway 99 at 176th Street SW, fully blocked southbound lanes. Traffic was diverted to 168th Street SW.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

Imagine Children's Museum's incoming CEO, Elizabeth "Elee" Wood. (Photo provided by Imagine Children's Museum)
Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett to welcome new CEO

Nancy Johnson, who has led Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett for 25 years, will retire in June.

Kelli Littlejohn, who was 11 when her older sister Melissa Lee was murdered, speaks to a group of investigators and deputies to thank them for bringing closure to her family after over 30 years on Thursday, March 28, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘She can rest in peace’: Jury convicts Bothell man in 1993 killing

Even after police arrested Alan Dean in 2020, it was unclear if he would stand trial. He was convicted Thursday in the murder of Melissa Lee, 15.

Ariel Garcia, 4, was last seen Wednesday morning in an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Dr. (Photo provided by Everett Police)
Search underway to find missing Everett child, 4

Ariel Garcia was last seen Wednesday morning at an apartment in the 4800 block of Vesper Drive.

The rezoned property, seen here from the Hillside Vista luxury development, is surrounded on two sides by modern neighborhoods Monday, March 25, 2024, in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Despite petition, Lake Stevens OKs rezone for new 96-home development

The change faced resistance from some residents, who worried about the effects of more density in the neighborhood.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, left, introduces Xichitl Torres Small, center, Undersecretary for Rural Development with the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a talk at Thomas Family Farms on Monday, April 3, 2023, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Under new federal program, Washingtonians can file taxes for free

At a press conference Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene called the Direct File program safe, easy and secure.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.