A long-time dream was fulfilled for Vienna resident Angela Ellis after being invited to appear on “Wheel of Fortune” as a contestant for an episode airing this week.
A longtime fan of the game show, Ellis, 58, said she was thrilled when producers finally invited her to become a contestant after she tried out for the spot multiple times.
“I watched it a lot with my mom growing up,” she told Tysons Reporter, adding that her knowledge for the contest came primarily from watching the show, playing games on her iPad and looking through trivia books.
The episode, which will be part of a “National Parks” five-episode series, will air beginning today (Feb. 24) even though it was taped back in January.
As a traveler herself, Ellis said her experience and love for national parks likely helped her land a spot on the show.
Of all of the parks she has visited, Ellis said Acadia, which runs along the Atlantic coastline, is her favorite.
Through the 16-month contestant selection process Ellis said she passed a variety of screening processes that tested her knowledge, enthusiasm for the show and ability to keep up energy while facing challenges.
Once selected, producers invited Ellis to Culver City, Ca. for the taping of the episode.
Contestants are responsible for paying for their own airfare, hotel room and miscellaneous travel costs.”If you really wanna do something like this, it is once in a lifetime,” she said, adding, “It is really worth it.”
On-site in the studio she had the chance to meet Vanna White along with her fellow contestants. “Before the show, Vanna came in to talk to us before she got her makeup or anything on,” Ellis said. “She is very personable.”
Despite the glow of the spotlight, Ellis was shocked by how welcomed and at-ease everyone made her feel. “I couldn’t even tell you where the camera was because I was so focused on the board.”
Because of game-show rules, Ellis won’t be able to appear on the show again but said she had such a positive experience that she’d volunteer again “in a heartbeat” if given the chance.
For anyone hoping to appear on the show one day, Ellis said to never give up and keep trying out, even after the first few rejections.
Photo courtesy Wheel of Fortune/Carol Kaelson
Here’s what to expect when a popular Latin nightclub in Arlington brings a new rhythm to The Palladium in Tysons.
The Palladium’s owners — two brothers named Victor and Franco Villarreal — recently announced that their salsa club in Arlington will soon close to relocate to the Tysons location.
The Salsa Room is set to close its 7,5000-square-foot space, one-level in Arlington to move to its new 15,000-square-foot, two-level home (1524 Spring Hill Road) in late March. Tickets are available for the grand opening in Tysons from March 25-29 and start at $20 per person for general admission.
Ahead of the change, Tysons Reporter talked to Victor Villarreal about why the club is moving to Tysons, what Palladium club-goers can expect and why he loves The Salsa Room.
Tysons Reporter: I just have to say I’ve been to The Salsa Room in Arlington, but I haven’t been to The Palladium in Tysons.
Victor Villarreal: The Tysons one, when we opened it up [in late 2018], we made it more of an event place than an actual club. It’s been more events from all over the world.
TR: What prompted the move?
VV: We’ve been in South Arlington since 1992. It’s a pretty old building. The buildings up and down Columbia Pike are starting to get torn down.
We know eventually that’s going to happen to us. It could be in the next year. It could the next two to three years at most. We didn’t want to wait and get caught up in trying to find something at the last moment.
We decided a couple of years ago to start looking for a spot. We came across Iris Lounge and we decided it was a great spot. We saw a lot of potential in Tysons Corner that can be a great hope for this type of venue.
Our location in Arlington, again, it’s an old building. There’s a lot of investment that needs to be done to upgrade it and keep it modern and it’s really hard for us to invest any money knowing we may only be there a couple more years. This move was planned a long time ago.
TR: How long ago?
VV: About two-and-a-half years. It took us about a year-and-a-half to build and we’ve been open a year in Tysons.
A lot of the events we did in Tysons weren’t catered to the salsa events we do at The Salsa Room. It’s been more concerts from Mongolia, Thailand, Madagascar — all of these different countries that affect a sense of a diverse community.
We didn’t want to compete against ourselves because this was a short-term gap until we move.
TR: And you’ve personally been in this area awhile?
VV: We grew up in the McLean and Burke areas.
TR: How do you think this move will affect the nightlife scene in Tysons?
VV: I remember in the early 2000s, there wasn’t too much to do, but [eCitie] was insanely successful. And they had a 10-year run. You couldn’t even get in on most nights.
I think Tysons, maybe five years ago or so, there was not much. There were good restaurants, but I don’t know that there’s a good nightlife scene here.
There have a couple of spots that have opened recently. It’s just the growth of Tysons and how much development there is going to be. I’m sure businesses that are getting priced out in developments closer to D.C. may find some opportunities in Tysons.
When we’ve done events in the last year, we got support. People came from Maryland. [The Tysons club] is more central to a lot of places. We’re extremely excited about being here and helping to grow a night scene.
TR: How do you think your clientele will be different or similar to Arlington?
VV: We’re definitely going to lose some clients because it’s a different area, but I do believe there are some pretty loyal clients who will still come to us.
[Tysons] is a new pool of clients. We feel pretty confident that we’ll have the support of the community.
TR: Will The Salsa Room entirely take over The Palladium or just a part of it?
VV: It will take over the whole thing. It’s going to be completely The Salsa Room.
All the employees are coming from [Arlington] — the DJs, the instructors. Because it’s so much larger, it’s going to let us bring things that we were not able to do in Arlington. We’ll be able to get bigger acts. We have a stage.
TR: Do you have a favorite aspect of The Salsa Room?
VV: The history. Some of the best salsa artists in the world have played there, like Marc Anthony. He’s a super megastar. He performed there three different times when he was starting his career. There are so many stories. That’s really helped us develop a loyal client base.
People will come from all over the world. They will take a picture and tag us [on social media]. We’ve had paintings of people like Marc Anthony with original signatures. People tag us and those are awesome.
We have YouTube videos that have millions of hits that were filmed there and so [The Salsa Room] is really well known in the salsa community.
We definitely didn’t want to close it down. We need to continue that.
The interview has been lightly condensed and edited for clarity.
Photo (1) via Facebook; images (2-4) via Google Maps
When a Honda van T-boned a sedan near the Spring Hill Metro station in Tysons, a third driver caught it all on camera.
The crash happened on Tyco Road near the Adaire apartment building. The van pulled out of the parking lot for the Audi Service Center and Tysons Collision Center right before hitting the sedan, which was in the left-hand, southbound lane.
The video shows the driver of the van throw his hands above his head right after the crash.
The sedan’s fender and the van’s front bumper appeared damaged after the vehicles both pulled into the parking lot.
A Reddit user posted yesterday the minute-and-a-half video capturing the crash. Already, the post has 436 upvotes and 136 comments.
“The irony that he was pulling out of an auto service center vastly improves this,” another user said in the comments.
Vienna police are looking for whoever used a marker on the exterior of the Giant along Maple Avenue.
Juan Vazquez, a spokesperson for the Vienna Police Department, told Tysons Reporter that someone wrote words — “one politically related, one cop related” — on the walls and columns outside of the store, he said.
Vazquez declined to say what the exact words were.
The vandalism happened sometime between Feb. 5-15 at the store (359 Maple Ave E.) and was reported to the police by an employee, according to the police report.
Vazquez said that police roughly estimated that the markings caused $250 worth of damage, which would make it a misdemeanor.
The case is still active and police are reviewing surveillance footage, Vazquez said, adding that “Giant has a lot of surveillance.”
Image via Google Maps
Town of Vienna officials plan to host a meeting next Monday to get feedback from residents on outdoor living space and projects recommended in the Maple Avenue Corridor Multimodal Transportation and Land Use Study.
Councilmember Nisha Patel has a proposal that would allow for driveway expansion, decks, patios, outdoor sports courts, terraces, screened porches not enclosed by four walls, lead walks and pools, according to a press release from the town.
More from the press release:
The current Town code states that not more than 25% of a lot shall be covered by buildings, accessory buildings, automobile parking spaces and access, sport courts, tennis courts, patios, and terraces. Decks are regulated separately and may not cover more than 5% of the total area… These amenities, classified as outdoor living space and improvements, would be permitted as long as stormwater management systems are implemented, functional, and in compliance with current required standards.
Now, the councilmembers want to know what residents think of the plan: “Is it a good idea to allow for outdoor living space and other amenities in exchange for [the] implementation of a current stormwater management system on their property?”
“What we’d like hear on March 2 are residents’ thoughts about the pros and cons of this idea,” Patel said in the press release. “We’re looking for feedback on ways this concept could be modified. Help us figure out the right thing to do.”
Additionally, councilmembers want to know what residents want to be prioritized from the draft final report of the Maple Avenue Multimodal Transportation Study.
The study includes several recommended projects, along with an initiative currently underway to upgrade signal timing infrastructure and technology, the press release said.
The meeting is set to take place between 7-9 p.m. at the Town Hall. At the meeting, residents will have a chance to ask questions and engage in interactive exercises, according to the press release.
A puppy is now back home with its owner after local Fairfax County firefighters helped catch the roaming dog.
“Engine 401, McLean, B-Shift was driving along local street when they were flagged down,” Fairfax County Fire and Rescue tweeted earlier this week. “A resident was worried for a puppy that was roaming around alone.”
Captain David Hessler was able to get the pup, which did not have tags, by using webbing, the tweet said.
The dog’s owner got in touch with the fire crew and is now reunited with the dog.
Photo via Fairfax County Fire and Rescue/Twitter
The Vienna Police Department is looking for the man who allegedly exposed himself to a woman on Sunday (Feb. 16).
The incident happened around 7:30 p.m. in the parking lot at 106 Center Street N., which is near the Vienna Elementary School.
The woman, who was in her vehicle when the incident occurred, told police that she saw a man on the sidewalk near the building and that he exposed himself to her and began walking toward her, according to the police report.
“The woman immediately left the area and called the police,” police said. “Officers searched the area but were unable to locate the man.”
In a separate incident, Vienna police arrested a 25-year-old D.C. man for alleged prescription drug fraud.
Police said that the man tried to fill fraudulent prescriptions at the Vienna Drug Center (150 Maple Avenue W.) three times between December and February.
It is unclear if the man was able to fill a prescription on Dec. 17, but police said that he obtained fraudulent drugs from the pharmacy between Feb. 10-14.
On Tuesday (Feb. 18), an employee at the pharmacy reported to the police that the man was trying to fill a fraudulent doctor’s order, police said.
Police arrested and charged the man with prescription fraud and transported him to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center.
Photo via Facebook
Alexandria-based Urbano 116 is planning on opening in the former spot of Brine in the Mosaic District.
Common Plate Hospitality announced in a press release that the restaurant will open this summer and will be the second one for Urbano.
The Mexican restaurant will take over Brine’s old spot at 2985 District Ave, Suite 120.
“Look for an expanded menu and more traditional Tex-Mex items from the kitchen,” the press release said.
The menu is set to include nine taco options with “made to order” tortillas, burritos, taco salads, enchiladas, chimichangas and fajita platters.
After more than 20 years in Arlington, a popular Latin nightclub and bar plans to bring the beat to Tysons.
The Salsa Room recently announced that the Arlington location (2619 Columbia Pike) is set to close in early March ahead of its grand opening in Tysons later that month.
A Facebook post says that The Salsa Room is coming to The Palladium, a 15,000-square-foot nightclub with two levels at 1524 Spring Hill Road.
“Brothers Franco and Victor, [the] owners of The Palladium and The Salsa Room, have decided to move the iconic Arlington Salsa Room to the current Palladium location in Tysons,” according to The Palladium.
The Palladium opened in late 2018, adding a new option to Tysons’ budding nightlife scene.
Starting today (Friday), tickets are available for the grand opening in Tysons from March 25-29. Tickets for each night cost between $20 per person for general admission and $495 for six VIP attendees.
Until the grand opening, people can expect The Palladium to stay open with its usual events.
Meanwhile, the Arlington location plans to host closing parties between March 4-7.
“After 20+ years in Arlington, and countless, amazing memories, TSR would like to thank all of the artist, dancers, instructors, Djs and you for supporting us,” the Facebook post said.
Photos 1 and 2 via Facebook; image (3) via Google Maps
The Great Eight snapped a photo with local firefighters responding to a call at a house near his own in the McLean area.
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue tweeted out the photo this morning (Friday). The firefighters were all smiles with Caps star Alexander Ovechkin, sporting a hooded Nike sweatshirt, posing in the middle.
“Yesterday after a false alarm next door, this really GR8 neighbor checked in with E442, Wolftrap, to make sure all was well,” the tweet said.
The Washington Capitals captain lives about two miles north of Tysons.
Photo via Fairfax County Fire and Rescue/Twitter
