With no money and no connections to get into the game, on Wednesday night Sarah Spain decided to auction herself off on eBay to anybody willing to take her to the game as their date.
“Spainy” put up a picture from Halloween of herself in a Bears cheerleader outfit and made it clear that the date meant just that–no sex involved.
She also had a posted plea Thursday on her MySpace site, myspace.com/spainy.
By Thursday morning the calls started coming in, and by 11 a.m. Pacific time (she lives in L.A.) Spain had 300 e-mails from media, friends, family and, yes, lonely men with Super Bowl tickets looking for a date.
Here’s what Spain revealed to RedEye:
– She grew up in Lake Forest but rarely went to Bears games.
– She ran track and graduated from Cornell (yes, the Ivy League school).
– She is an associate producer at Fox Sports.
– She is not an “escort” in the shadier sense, and she doesn’t care if some people think she is.
“I don’t have $4,000, and I really, really want to go,” Spain said. “So if there are a couple strangers out there who get the wrong idea then that’s the way it goes.”
The bidding for the date reached the maximum figure of $99,999,999, becoming something of a joke to some bidders in addition to violating eBay’s rules. It had been taken down as of late Thursday night.
“Someone wants me to be their special guest at their friends’ bachelor party,” she said. “That sounds safe.”
But she’s had what she feels are some legitimate inquiries, including one she says came from an NFL owner’s son, and is now just trying to figure out whom to call back. And once again, Spain isn’t worried that the whole proposition might cast her in an unfavorable light with some people.
“I totally understand that,” she said. “It’s a hard line to walk because obviously it sounds like it could be something bad. I also know I’m an intelligent girl, and I know how to take care of myself.”
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jgreenfield@tribune.com
