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Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos show at Rancho Mirage near Palm Springs

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Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos weren't the only ones captivated by the Coachella Valley's charms.

On Sunday, I accompanied 2,000 viewers to two tapings of “LIVE with Kelly and Mark,” where we enjoyed the familiar desert sights of clear blue skies, wispy clouds, rows of palm trees, and breathtaking San Jacinto, Santa Rosa, and San Bernardino. Mountains. And of course more than 300 days of sunshine a year.

That's part of the appeal that led the show's crew to film four shows on Nov. 10 and 11 at the Westin Rancho Mirage Golf Resort & Spa, about a 20-minute drive from downtown Palm Springs.

Before her visit to the desert, Kelly Ripa told The Desert Sun, “Palm Springs is such a treat for America.”

And that's the lens I kept in mind when watching the most-watched syndicated talk show in the country, especially as someone born and raised in the Coachella Valley. What attracts people to the desert?

When viewers tune in this week to find out, they'll see Consuelos battle it out on the pickleball court with the Coachella Valley Scorpions at Desert Horizons Golf and Country Club in Indian Wells and learn how to trust his intuition from Char Margolis, per Local Psychic based in Palm Springs. Here's a sneak peek at the shows on Monday and Tuesday.

A joyful atmosphere in Palm Springs

“There's something about contingency here in Palm Springs, and I think the reason … everyone seems to be happier and more joyful than almost anyone else on Earth is because they've got it figured out,” Ripa told the audience some watched from the golf course's grassy knolls, under the shade of a tree or pointing from their golf carts.

Marshall Mallory, a 20-year La Quinta resident, was among the local veterans celebrated by the show. He serves as a U.S. Navy reservist and teaches social studies at Rancho Mirage High School, just five minutes from the golf course.

Prior to the taping, he was also one of five audience members selected for an onstage dance-off and featured in the “Stump Mark” segment.

“It was incredible. I was like, “Okay, I’ll go up there and do some moves.” I'm not a good dancer, I really don't care. “I just wanted to have fun today,” Mallory said. “I got to be with my long-time friends and I got to be with my wonderful wife. I had a lot of fun.”

He and his wife Cat, now a retired educator, were particularly excited when Ripa and Consuelos introduced Sheryl Lee Ralph, the Emmy Award-winning actress best known for her role as Barbara Howard on the ABC mockumentary sitcom “Abbott Elementary.” is known.

“A blessing from Hollywood”

As the first guest to kick off the Greater Palm Springs episodes of the show, Ralph wowed the first crowd who listened with rapt attention as she highlighted local features, evoking images of Palm Springs when it was an old Hollywood retreat, and Palm at the same time Springs highlighted 'food scene, mid-century architecture and nearby outlet mall.

“In fact, Palm Springs is a true blessing of Hollywood, so to speak,” she said.

That sentiment is shared by Avery Webb, a second-year geography student at College of the Desert. (Webb happens to be one of my former high school students who I met by chance when she was working as a fan coordinator for the show.)

“The Coachella Valley is a lot more relevant to pop culture than people think,” Webb said. “Everyone always likes to joke about how boring it is here, but when something like this happens it takes everyone out of it and gives people something to do.”

“A small portion of joy”

The show took the opportunity to highlight activities throughout the valley, including golfing with actor Jerry O'Connell at the PGA West Stadium Course in a friendly but delightful, rollicking competition that ended with a golf ball landing in the local residents' home and chutney sampled from her fridge.

O'Connell, along with his wife Rebecca Romijn, both stars of Paramount's “Star Trek” franchise, joked during the second taping, which aired Tuesday, that they visited Palm Springs for romantic weekend getaways before having children.

At this point in the day the sun is beating down on the audience, yet the audience seems livelier than before. Even Ripa joked that she hopes people bring hats the next day.

“That’s the big takeaway,” she said, laughing. “Even though we know it is sunny, warm and beautiful, it is even sunnier, warmer and more beautiful.”

Consuelos added: “It was magical. Seeing a lot of people come to our show – our little show, in our opinion – was so nice.”

And just as Ripa called the Palm Springs area a “palate cleanser,” she hopes this week’s shows will have a similar impact on the community and viewers.

“I just feel like positive energy can spread. It's really spreading. Giving people a good and hopeful feeling at the start of the day can continue for the rest of the day. I feel like the people of Palm Springs understand this better than anyone else,” Ripa told The Desert Sun. “They were the forefathers of positive energy and we hope they get exactly that – a little dose of joy.”

Not only were the shots an impressive feat under the desert sun and offered a healthy dose of escapism — they also served as a reminder of how lucky many of us are to live in what Ripa called “paradise.”

(This story has been updated to add new information.)

Jennifer Cortez reports on education in the Coachella Valley. Reach her at [email protected].

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