Camp Pendleton Marine wins war of words

“When my daughter calls me to do fun and exciting things, I usually don’t have an option to say ‘no,’” Annmarie Tejcek says.

The Indianapolis mom had gotten a call from her adult daughter, Riley Compton, who lives in Carlsbad, begging her to embark on another adventure together. It was an offer she couldn’t refuse.

Mom and daughter once had jumped out of a plane on an Arizona sky diving adventure, and they had rafted through white water rapids in the Grand Canyon.

But this time when Compton said, “Hey, Mom, I have an opportunity for us,” it wasn’t something that begged for life insurance. Riley wanted her mother to be her partner on the TV quiz show “Lingo.”

Different versions of the word puzzle game show have been aired on American TV off and on since 1987. The latest revival debuted Jan. 11 (at 9 p.m. on CBS) hosted and executive produced by singer, dancer and TV personality RuPaul Andre Charles.

RuPaul, perhaps best known for “RuPaul’s Drag Race” reality TV competitions, was born and raised in San Diego. He was a member of Patrick Henry High School’s class of ’79 (although he moved to Atlanta and didn’t graduate with the class).

The school claims an A list of celebrity graduates: Academy Award-nominated actress Annette Bening (class of ‘75), Tonywinning Brian Stokes Mitchell (class of ‘74) and acclaimed screenwriter Lisa Morton (class of ‘76).

Compton, whose dad grew up in Poway, was born in San Diego and raised here briefly before the family relocated to Indiana. She returned in 2020 to Camp Pendleton, where she is a Marine lieutenant, awaiting promotion to captain.

A “Lingo” casting scout contacted her, urging her to find a partner and try out for the show. But her immediate reaction was: Is this a scam?”

Her suspicions were put