This collection of entries is from the Category "TV".
Friday, February 15, 2008
Rockstar Curling?OK... saw this today... and it just FEELS like it's something out of The Onion... but... could it be true?
Somebody is floating the idea of a reality show that can actually produce - as a winner - an Olympian.
So... what kind of sport would work for that? How about... curling!
Now, it has turned into a American Idol reality thing with five male and five female slots to produce the entries to the Olympic tryouts.
The cool thing, that was unfortunately false, is that at one time they were talking about "closet curlers" that are rockstars would be involved - specifically John Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen. How cool would that have been? How cool would it have been for those guys to expose more people to the sport?
posted at 01:32 PM | Link | Olympics | Care to comment? | § |
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Not a bad seasonI just realized tonight, after watching the episode "Toe Tags" of CSI, I realized two things.
One: I've missed some of these shows over the summer. CSI is one, with House and Lost... and as always, The Amazing Race (my favorite reality show) (not Survivor.. I think I'm not as attached to that show as I once was)
Two: I'm not as obsessed in watching other shows as much as I used to be. I am not sure why.
posted at 09:40 PM | Link | TV | § |
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
How could I have slept through this?Something wasn't right today. I felt tired. My blood sugar levels are a little "up" (just a few points, but up nonetheless). I feel really fatigued. I guess this is my life now. Just feeling horrendously tired.
So, I was all excited to sit down in front of the TV and watch the Season Finale of The Amazing Race. (Those of you that have been here before know that this is my absolute favorite reality show right now. I've been longing and yearning to try-out for the show and be on it... Why don't I? I need a partner and NOBODY I know wants to do it...)
So, I'm all geared-up to watch the show and...
I fell asleep.
At least I woke up at the very end to see who won.
Thank God for TiVo. I'll probably watch it sometime this weekend and get caught up and enjoy it. Awake.
I LOVE THIS SHOW.
posted at 09:19 PM | Link | Mundane | § |
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
51 MonthsGood ol' "fat naked guy" - Richard Hatch, the winner of the first Survivor, who didn't pay taxes on his $1M winnings, was sentenced today to 51 months in prison for tax evasion and, apparently to the judge, repeated perjury during the trial.
posted at 01:38 PM | Link | Survivor | § |
Thursday, February 02, 2006
A real podcast in prime time tonightSo, I was watching tonight's CSI. A killer is on a PC in his garage. He goes into Google to find out info about the guy that he killed. What comes up in the search results? Rocketboom. Yes, my favorite daily video podcast. Then he clicks on the link and launches the most recent podcast! And there's Amanda Congdon doing her show, only in front of a faux Las Vegas strip backdrop instead of the world map taped to her wall.
Very bizarre seeing the most popular daily video podcast cross-over into Prime Time drama!
posted at 09:35 PM | Link | TV § |
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
I found my answer - Robert FergusonI knew I would find my answer to avoiding tonight's speech in my TiVo. It's just that it took me by surprise. It was, by far, the most moving, remarkable, real moment of television that I probably have ever seen.
It was last night's Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.
I've come to really enjoy this show and specifically Craig. He's a wonderful host. I mean it, this guy should be the next host of the Tonight Show, not Conan O'Brien. He's a wonderful interviewer. He really listens to his guests and doesn't work off of cards with scripted questions. He researches the guests and really engages them. It's for these reasons we set a Season Pass on TiVo for him - it's worth it.
And then, this show happens.
Lately, when he comes out, he's been wearing a jacket but no tie. This started happening when he stopped doing a monologue and actually started telling stories, something unique and more effective for his style. Tonight, he's in a black suit and tie. He's not the same. He doesn't even sound the same. His Scottish accent is noticeably thicker.
He warns the audience that tonight's show won't be the same. Tomorrow, everything will be back to normal. But for tonight, he had a special thing he had to do.
read more of this entry »
On Sunday, his father died. The show was in reruns all last week (so were other late night shows, so it wasn't unusual). Craig had gone back to Scotland with this young son, to effectively say goodbye to his dad who had been struggling for a long time with cancer. He was 75 when he died.
The rest of the open was, in effect, a wake for his dad, with Craig telling many stories.
I friggin' cried like a baby throughout the whole friggin' show. I mean, snot oozing from my nose, ugly crying.
Craig - never once shed a tear. He broke once, though - pausing a long time to compose himself - telling a story... "When I was watching television with him, I used to sit in front of him and he would sit behind me and he would put his hand on my head. And I loved that. And he did it last week in the hospital."
Craig picked his guests just for tonight, "friends" he called them, because it's in times like these you just want to sit with friends and talk.
First guest - Dr. Drew Pinsky. The two talked about the grieving process and you learn more about the inside of Craig than any interviewer could have.
His second guest - Amy Yasbeck (you know, the wife of the late John Ritter) - also, perfectly selected to talk about loss, grieving, and how they don't want "closure".
The musical guest - yes there was one - was the Wicked Tinkers, a rockin' Scottish pipe and drum band, that Craig joined in at the end of the show (he plays drums as one of his many talents), playing a tune that I think is called "Highland Laddie."
(See TV Squad for more info about the show.)
If you get a moment and have Real Player, go to the CBS website and watch his tribute. See and experience what I'm talking about.
It's worth it.
Rest In Peace, Big Scrubber « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 07:31 PM | Link | TV § |
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Richard, the jury has spoken *snuff*What the hell was he thinking? Did he REALLY think he could get away with this?
Good ol' Richard Hatch, winner of the first series of "Survivor" back in 2000 was found guilty of tax evasion for not paying taxes on his $1 Million prize (not to mention of evading taxes on $327,000 he earned as co-host of a Boston radio show and $28,000 in rent on property he owned). He had seven bank, mail and wire fraud charges that he was acquitted of. He was deemed a flight risk an immediately taken into custody.
His future? Possible maximum 13-year prison sentence and $600,000 fine.
I mean, this guy had a deal on the table last March and he rejected it.
What an idiot. Outwit? I don't think so...
Somewhere, Susan Hawk is laughing her ass off...
posted at 03:59 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Cash Cab
I happened to stumble on to what I think is a cool, entertaining, fun game show on - of all channels - The Discovery Channel.
read more of this entry »
The show is called Cash Cab.
Imagine this - you're in New York City (probably just Manhattan). You're looking for a cab to take you somewhere. A van-style cab pulls up. You get in and tell the driver your destination.
Suddenly, you hear a musical "sting" over the speakers in the cab and the ceiling of the cab lights-up (it looks like the dance floor from Saturday Night Fever, only upside down and on the ceiling). The driver (the host, Ben Bailey) turns to you and welcomes you to The Cash Cab which is a rolling television game show inside the cab. And asks you if you want to play. The cab itself has at least 4 cameras hidden in the interior of the cab and up to two others buried in the advertising sign on the roof. The cab does have a medallion on the hood and it does have a fare meter. In fact, there's no way you'd know it wasn't just a normal cab. However, it appears that the people that show-up in the cab do not have to pay a fare.
Basically, the show is just a question and answer show. If the passengers want to play, Ben will ask them a series of questions while on the way to their destination. A graphical map pops up that shows you the route Ben is going to take and how many blocks away they are from their destination. the longer the drive, the more opportunities the passenger(s) have to win more money. Or, they have to pray for a traffic jam.
The first 4 questions - on the easy side - are worth $25 each. Each round the difficulty goes up, along with the cash - $50 for the next 4, or $100 for the rest. Answer the questions - you get the cash. If you miss the question, you are awarded a strike. If you get three strikes, Ben pulls the cab over, and kicks you out - without winning any cash, no matter where you are (you'll have to catch another cab to get to your destination!) There are sound effects and the ceiling lights with each answer.
Now, if the passengers get stumped, they have 2 one-time "options" (think "Life Lines" from Who wants to be a Millionaire): One is a "Mobile Shout-Out" where you use Ben's Motorola Razr phone to call one person to get the answer, or the "Street Shout-Out", where Ben pulls the cab over to the curb and you find someone (and only one person) walking by on the street to answer your question (could you imagine a cab pulling over to the curb as you're walking by and the passengers ask you to answer a question for them?)
If the "contestants" get up to $200 and Ben has to stop at a red light, they qualify for a "Red Light Challenge". The get 30 seconds to answer a question that will have multiple answers ("other than Rudolph, name all of the reindeer"). If they get the question right in 30 seconds, they get $250 - if not, there's no penalty (no strikes), they just don't win any additional money.
If the passengers make it to their destination without getting kicked-out, they win their money in cash on the spot, doled-out by Ben. HOWEVER, Ben offers them a Double-or-Nothing chance on a "Video Bonus Question". Ben flips-up a little LCD monitor for the passengers, they watch the clip and try to answer the question (it's always the hardest question of the trip). If they win, they double their winnings; if they lose, the get nothing but a free ride and the experience of playing in the Cash Cab.
It's simple and fun. The contestants are just everyday people off the street, not people applying for a gameshow, so that right there adds a nice flavor to the show. It's amazing how many people that get into the cab that you can tell within 30 seconds if they're going to get to their destination or not!
Entertaining! Weekdays, right now at 6PM EST on The Discovery Channel. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 06:25 PM | Link | TV § |
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
My Guilty Pleasures of Summer are overWell, a whole slew of my "Guilty Pleasures of Summer" TV shows came to an end tonight.
read more of this entry »
Big Brother 6 ended with Maggie winning. I got really turned-off by the casting this year. I'm tired of people that are just a bit too young in this game. I'm tired at how "divisive" they're tried to cast (and were pretty damn successful about it). The damn house got split in two, and I know a lot of people out there hated the "Friendship Alliance", but the "Sovereign Six" had people (Howie and Jenelle specifically) that had horrendous personalities - evidenced on how everyone reacted to the Kaysar eviction. The hateful vile that poured out of those two sealed it for me. The game isn't about that crap and once that happened, I lost interest in the show.
The show that I got interested in (and didn't expect to) was Rock Star: INXS. American Idol? Piece of crap next to this. Forget the crappy weeks of watching those goddamned auditions. These people that competed auditioned off camera and came there to rock. It was only Rock-and-Roll songs for each night's performances.Between producer Mark Burnett, based on his name alone, and the band itself, who worked tirelessly on this, they team was able to procure rights to rock songs never before performed on commercial TV. Quality songs performed by quality singers with a quality house band in front of a live quality audience. And not only that, but the winner doesn't get some record deal that may have them fading into oblivion. The winner becomes lead singer in a band that's been together for over 20 years and is well known. The performance were even made available for download through MSN music at the show's website. Just an all-around quality show. Live. Energetic. Rocked.
Unfortunately, hometown boy Marty Casey didn't make it and JD Fortune did. (Though the band wants to talk to Marty about possibly being the opening act on their tour. Cool runner-up privileges.)
I'd love to see this show again, but that doesn't make any sense - you can't do it with the same band because the whole idea was to find a replacement for Michael Hutchence and go forward as a band. They'd have to use a different band, but I can't imagine who that would be.
Then we have one straggler that won't go quietly into that dark night - "Dancing with the Stars: Dance-off". Yes that great little series that caught a lot of people by surprise and pissed-off a lot of them at the end came back tonight with a dance-off to prove who the winner will be (champion Kelly Monaco and her professional dance partner, Alec Mazo, went up against runner-up John O'Hurley and his professional partner Charlotte Jorgensen.) We won't know until Thursday who "won", though... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:16 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
New Sensation
I can't help it. I started watching this reality show the first week it was on CBS and fell in love with it.
read more of this entry »
It's Rockstar: INXS - a show where 15 people with rock backgrounds basically audition to become the lead singer of INXS, tour with them for a year and cut an album with them (it's still nebulous to me if the gig is a one-time/one-year thing, or could it be permanent depending on the chemistry)
It has all the good stuff about American Idol without the sugar coating and without the godawful weeks of showing the crappy auditions.
There ain't no crappy auditions. These 15 people come in experienced and capable. There's also one focus: Rock. You don't variation here as you do in American Idol. That's not the purpose of the show. It's all rock and roll, baby. And I like it.
Each week there are 3 shows.
The first show is the "Reality" show part, as all 15 people are living together in a huge house in the Hollywood Hills. It shows them living together, rehearsing songs, and interacting. To me, insightful bu ho-hum.
The second show is the "Performance" show. Previously, the contestants were given a classic rock song to sing (depending where they are in the process, they get to pick the song out of the bunch). They rehearse wit ha house band (called... wait for it... The House Band). On Performance Night, they perform with the house band at the Mayan Theater with a live audience and, more importantly, in front of INXS. At the end of their performance, INXS (oh, an host Dave Navarro) critique their work. At the end of the night, the viewing audience votes (via Verizon cell phone or via website on who they liked the best.
The third show is the "Elimination" show. Based on viewer voting, the bottom three people (i.e. the 3 people with the least number of votes), now have to sing an assigned INXS song. This allows INXS to see how the performer handles the band's work. The performer is critiqued again by the band and Dave. At the end of the night, INXS decides who will leave. Their elimination slogan: "You're just night right for our band, INXS". (Not as good a "the tribe has spoken" or "You're fired", but still till the point and re-emphasizes that it may be a public competition, but INXS still says who stays and who goes.)
So, tomorrow the contestants are whittled down to three. Our favorite is home-town boy Marty Casey. Our other favorite is MiG, and we like Suzie as well (even though I can't imagine an established rock band that's had a male singer all its life would be comfortable changing to a female lead singer). Our least favorite is J.D., who's been kissing ass ever since day one, because he really wants to be in the band... and may be doing a few things just for the band... but I always question if they're sincere or not or just a way to get closer to them.
The finale - one week from tonight.
Update: So long, Sweet Suzie McNeil. Next week's finale is between Marty (who was NOT in the final three this week), MiG (who was in the final three for the very first time), and ... J.D. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:28 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
CBS announces the cast of The Amazing Race: Family EditionBecause of rumblings that I've been hearing, I'm very leery about the next "special" season of The Amazing Race, which is Season 8 but is being called The Amazing Race: Family Edition.
Cool thing - there are 2 families from the northwest suburbs of Chicago - one from Park Ridge and the other from Des Plaines!
read more of this entry »
CBS UNVEILS THE IDENTITIES OF THE 10 FAMILIES COMPETING IN "THE AMAZING RACE: FAMILY EDITION"
Eighth Installment of the Emmy Award-Winning Series Begins With A Special Two-Hour Premiere on Tuesday, September 27, 9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT
The Amazing Race: Family Edition Moves To Its Regular Tuesday, 9:00-10:00 PM Time Period Beginning October 4
CBS today announced the identities of the 10 families set to compete in THE AMAZING RACE: FAMILY EDITION. For the first time ever, the Emmy Award-winning reality adventure series will feature teams of four instead of two, comprised of family members. The 10 teams of families will compete against one another in a race around the world for a $1 million prize. THE AMAZING RACE: FAMILY EDITION will begin with a special two-hour premiere on Tuesday, Sept. 27 (9:00-11:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.
THE AMAZING RACE: FAMILY EDITION will be broadcast regularly on Tuesdays (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT) beginning Oct. 4.
THE AMAZING RACE has won two consecutive Emmy Awards for Best Reality Program is currently nominated for a third time.
Following are the 10 families, listed in no particular order:
TEAM: GODLEWSKI SISTERS
Michelle (42)
Sharon (39)
Christine (37)
Tricia (26)
Hometown: Des Plaines, Ill.
TEAM: WEAVER FAMILY (WIDOW AND KIDS)
Linda (46)
Rebecca (19)
Rachel (16)
Rolly (14) - Male
Hometown: Ormond Beach, Fla.
TEAM: GAGHAN FAMILY
Bill (40)
Tammy (42)
Billy (12)
Carissa (9)
Hometown: Glastonbury, Conn.
TEAM: BLACK FAMILY
Reggie (42)
Kim (40)
Kenneth (11)
Austin (8)
Hometown: Woodbridge, Va.
TEAM: LINZ FAMILY (SIBLINGS)
Nick (24) – Currently resides in Buffalo, N.Y.
Alex (22)
Megan (21)
Tommy (19)
Hometown: Cincinnati
TEAM: ROGERS FAMILY
Denny (46)
Renee (42)
Brittney (22)
Brock (19)
Hometown: Shreveport, La.
TEAM: SCHROEDER FAMILY (DAD, STEPMOM AND KIDS)
Mark (40)
Char (39)
Stassi (16)
Hunter (14)
Hometown: New Orleans
TEAM: BRANSEN FAMILY (DAD AND DAUGHTERS)
Walter (51)
Elizabeth (25)
Lauren (22)
Lindsay (20)
Hometown: Park Ridge, Ill.
TEAM: AIELLO FAMILY (FATHER AND SONS-IN-LAW)
Tony (57)
Kevin (31)
Matt ( 31)
David (26) – Currently resides in North Providence, R.I.
Hometown: Mansfield, Mass.
TEAM: PAOLO FAMILY
Tony (52)
Marion (52)
DJ (24) - Male
Brian (16)
Hometown: Carmel, N.Y.
THE AMAZING RACE: FAMILY EDITION features 10 teams -- each comprised of four family members -- on a trek around the world for approximately 30 days. At every destination, each team will have to compete in a series of challenges -- some mental and some physical -- and only when the tasks have been completed will they learn their next destination. Teams who are farthest behind will gradually be eliminated as the contest progresses, with the first team to arrive at the final destination winning $1 million.
Jerry Bruckheimer, Bertram van Munster, Jonathan Littman and Hayma Screech Washington are the executive producers for Bruckheimer Television and Earthview Inc. in association with Touchstone Television and Amazing Race Productions. Amy Chacon and Evan Weinstein are co-executive producers. THE AMAZING RACE was created by Bertram van Munster and Elise Doganieri.
For more information on THE AMAZING RACE: FAMILY EDITION and the new 10 teams of families log on to www.cbs.com. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 11:38 AM | Link | Amazing Race § |
Thursday, August 11, 2005
SURVIVOR: GUATEMALA -- The Maya Empire cast announcedCBS announced the cast for the next Survivor series: SURVIVOR: GUATEMALA -- The Maya Empire.
Would you believe Gary Hogeboom? You know, former NFL quarterback from the '80's?
read more of this entry »
CBS ANNOUNCES 16 NEW CASTAWAYS FOR "SURVIVOR: GUATEMALA -- The Maya Empire"
Former NFL Quarterback Gary Hogeboom Among The New Castaways Set To Compete When The Eleventh Installment Of The Hit Television Series Premieres on Thursday, September 15
CBS today announced 16 new castaways to compete in SURVIVOR: GUATEMALA -- The Maya Empire. The castaways will begin their adventure with a grueling 11 mile hike through the jungle when the eleventh installment of the Emmy Award-winning hit series premieres Thursday, Sept. 15 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT), on the CBS Television Network.
SURVIVOR: GUATEMALA -- The Maya Empire takes place amid the ancient Mayan ruins and ceremonial sites (some as many as 2,000 years old) located in the northern area of Guatemala. Amid the excruciating triple-digit heat, crocodile infested waters, relentless mosquitoes and terrifying sounds of the howler monkeys, these new castaways will attempt to "Outwit, Outplay and Outlast" in hopes of winning the $1 million prize and title of "Ultimate Survivor." In addition to the grueling overnight hike, the castaways will be faced with two additional surprises in the first episode that will dramatically impact how they play the game.
Castaways that will be competing in SURVIVOR: GUATEMALA -- The Maya Empire (in alphabetical order) are:
BRANDON BELLINGER
22
Manhattan, Kan.
Farmer/Rancher
DANNI BOATWRIGHT
30
Tonganoxie, Kan.
Sports Radio Talk Show Host
MARGARET BOBONICH
43
Chardon, Ohio
Family Nurse Practitioner
BRIAN CORRIDAN
22
New York City (originally from New Milford, Conn.)
Ivy League Student
CINDY HALL
31
Naples, Fla.
Zoo Keeper
GARY HOGEBOOM
46 (turns 47 on August 21)
Grand Haven, Mich.
Ex-NFL Quarterback/Real Estate Developer
RAFE JUDKINS
22
Providence, R.I. (originally from Pittsburgh)
Ivy League Student
JIM LYNCH
63
Northglenn, Colo.
Retired Fire Captain
MORGAN McDEVITT
21
Decatur, Ill.
Magician's Assistant/Waitress
LYDIA MORALES
42
Lakewood, Wash. (originally from Okinawa)
Fishmonger
JAMIE NEWTON
24
N. Hollywood, Calif. (originally from Douglas, Ga.)
Water Ski Instructor
AMY O'HARA
39
Revere, Mass.
Police Sergeant
JUDD SERGEANT
34 (turns 35 on September 13)
Ridgefield, N.J.
Hotel Doorman
BROOKE STRUCK
26
Santa Monica, Calif. (originally from Hood River, Ore.)
Law Student
BLAKE TOWSLEY
24
Dallas, Texas
Commercial Real Estate Broker/Model
BRIANNA VARELA
21 (turns 22 on Oct. 29)
Edmonds, Wash.
Retail Sales/Make-Up Artist
SURVIVOR: GUATEMALA -- The Maya Empire is produced by SEG, Inc. Mark Burnett and Tom Shelly are the executive producers.
For more detailed information on SURVIVOR: GUATEMALA -- The Maya Empire and the castaways, log on to www.cbs.com/survivor.
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 01:18 PM | Link | Survivor | 1 comment § |
Wednesday, July 06, 2005
CBS announces Big Brother 6 Online Offerings THEME
CBS announced that the show will have a Head Of Household Blog, and the Head Of Household is have a digital camera. The Big Brother talk show "House Calls" is back with "Big Brother 3" Marcellas Reynolds, and there'll be a "Big Brother Fantasy League". All of these items will be at the CBS website.
Oh, and as usual, RealNetworks will be broadcasting live feeds from the house.
read more of this entry »
CBS.COM: THE ULTIMATE DESTINATION FOR "BIG BROTHER 6"
CBS's Official Website to Offer "Big Brother" Viewers a Wide Array of Bonus Features to Supplement and Enhance CBS's Three Weekly Broadcasts
For the First Time, A Head of Household Blog Will Provide Insight Into Life in the "Big Brother" House
Also New, The Head of Household Will Be Rewarded With a Digital Camera With Pictures Posted On CBS.com
CBS and RealNetworks Bring "Big Brother 6" to the Internet With 24/7 Live Video Channel For the Fifth Consecutive Year
"House Calls: The Big Brother Talk Show" Returns For Its Second Season
Interactive "Big Brother Fantasy League" Offers Fans A Chance to Compete for Prizes
CBS.com, CBS's official website, will offer BIG BROTHER viewers a wide array of programming and bonus features this summer to supplement and enhance the Network's three weekly broadcasts, including for the first time a Head of Household Blog, in which a BIG BROTHER houseguest communicates directly to BIG BROTHER fans through CBS.com. BIG BROTHER 6 premieres on the CBS Television Network on Thursday, July 7 (8:00-9:00PM, ET/PT).
"This summer, CBS.com is going all out to provide BIG BROTHER fans the broadest and most exciting companion experience we've ever offered," said Larry Kramer, President, CBS Digital Media. "From the 24/7 live Internet feed to the new blog to the daily talk show, BIG BROTHER viewers will have unparalleled access to activities in the BIG BROTHER house and a new level of involvement with the show."
New to the BIG BROTHER Internet experience is the Head of Household Blog, where fans will be able to read first hand accounts from each week's Head of Household on life in the BIG BROTHER house and what it's like to be under the constant gaze of dozens of cameras and viewed live on the Internet.
CBS.com will also provide a digital camera to the Head of Household with the pictures to posted on CBS.com along with their Blog.
CBS.com also announced the return of two other popular features: HOUSE CALLS: THE BIG BROTHER TALK SHOW and the interactive BIG BROTHER Fantasy League.
Returning for its second season, HOUSE CALLS: THE BIG BROTHER TALK SHOW is a no-charge, half-hour, streaming video daily talk show about the summer reality series seen every Monday through Friday (1:00 PM/ET, 10:00 AM/PT) on CBS.com.
HOUSE CALLS is hosted by Marcellas Reynolds, a houseguest from "Big Brother 3," and Gretchen Massey, an on-air host of "The Gretchen Massey Show," which is broadcast Sunday nights on Infinity Radio's KLSX-FM Los Angeles. The two hosts interact with viewers through phone calls and e-mails, discuss events that transpire in the BIG BROTHER house, offer prognostications, analyze strategies and interview former BIG BROTHER houseguests as well as current houseguests following their eviction.
Also returning is the "BIG BROTHER Fantasy League" game where fans compete for prizes based on the events that transpire in the house.
The official BIG BROTHER website at CBS.com will also include detailed summaries of all the events that happen during each televised broadcast, a live 24/7 chat room, popularity and opinion polls, a virtual tour of the BIG BROTHER house, descriptions of the week's challenges, voting history pages, photo galleries and a houseguest section with complete profiles.
For the fifth consecutive season, CBS and RealNetworks®, Inc. (Nasdaq: RNWK), a global leader in network-delivered digital media, have joined forces to provide exclusive 24/7 live video channel from inside the BIG BROTHER 6 house. The webcast coverage debuts immediately following the premiere of BIG BROTHER 6 on July 7 (8:00-9:00PM, ET/PT), and will be accessible through the official BIG BROTHER 6 website at CBS.com and through the RealNetworks' Superpass™ subscription service website at www.real.com/bigbrother.
Subscribers to the 24/7 video stream can watch any one of four live camera feeds from inside the BIG BROTHER 6 house or catch all of the action at once with the special quad-cam view which allows fans to see four different video feeds simultaneously. Subscribers will also have access to an exclusive, subscribers-only web chat that will allow fans from across the country to converse about what they are seeing live on the feeds.
The entire three-month live 24/7 internet feed of BIG BROTHER 6 is available through RealNetworks' SuperPass subscription service, or fans may subscribe to receive the three-month broadcast for $29.99 or pay $12.99 per month with a free trial for everyone who signs up.
CBS/Endemol Entertainment will provide the content from the house, while RealNetworks' content delivery division, Real Broadcast Network, will deliver the 24/7 live streaming webcast feed.
To preserve the drama for BIG BROTHER 6 television viewers, CBS may block or delay the webcast for a limited number of real-time events that transpire in the house.
BIG BROTHER 6 will be broadcast three times a week on Tuesday (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT), Thursday (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) and Saturday (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT).
Arnold Shapiro and Allison Grodner are the executive producers of BIG BROTHER 6 for Shapiro/Grodner Productions, in association with Endemol Entertainment.
About CBS.com
CBS.com, the official website of the CBS Television Network, has become the top web destination among all Network television websites. CBS.com has been the most trafficked website among its Entertainment competitors with more unique visitors every month for the past two years. With its proven success of intersecting traditional television with new media, CBS.com attracted a record high of more than 12 million unique visitors in May 2004 as a result of the "Survivor: All Stars" finale and online voting for America's Tribal Council. Home to the official websites for all CBS television series, CBS.com's notable sites include "Survivor," "CSI" and "CSI: Miami," "Big Brother," "The Amazing Race" and "Late Show with David Letterman."
About RealNetworks
RealNetworks, Inc. is a leading creator of digital media services and software including the award-winning Rhapsody® Internet jukebox service and RealPlayer® 10, the first product to integrate finding, organizing, buying, playing and managing digital audio and video in a single product. Consumers can access and experience audio/video programming and download RealNetworks' consumer software at http://www.real.com. Broadcasters, network operators, media companies and enterprises use RealNetworks' products and services to create and deliver digital media to PCs, mobile phones and consumer electronics devices. RealNetworks' systems and corporate information is located at http://www.realnetworks.com.
CBS AND REALNETWORKS TO OFFER EXCLUSIVE 24/7 LIVE VIDEO CHANNEL OF “BIG BROTHER 6”
LOS ANGELES and SEATTLE, July 6, 2005 – CBS and RealNetworks®, Inc. (NASDAQ: RNWK), the leading creator of digital media services and software, today announced that they will offer an exclusive live video channel from the “Big Brother 6” house 24 hours a day that allows fans to watch houseguest activity in real time, much of which never appears on TV. The webcast, which premieres Thursday, July 7, immediately follows the East Coast broadcast of the show at 8:00-9:00PM, ET/PT and will be accessible through the official “Big Brother 6” website at www.CBS.com and through RealNetworks’ SuperPass™ subscription service website at www.real.com/bigbrother.
Fans can choose either a discounted three month subscription of $29.99 or a monthly subscription of $12.99 per month with a free trial for everyone who signs up. Subscribers to the 24/7 video stream can watch any one of four live camera feeds from inside the “Big Brother 6” house or catch all of the action at once with the special quad-cam view which allows fans to see four different video feeds simultaneously.
“‘The Big Brother 6’ live webcast with RealNetworks has become immensely popular as fans can check-in on the houseguests at anytime and see the action unfold,” said Brinley Turner, Vice President and General Manager, CBS.com. “Whether used as a companion to the prime time series or as live theatre in its own right, it’s a unique Internet experience that further connects the fan to the show.”
“Big Brother 6’ online demonstrates how the Internet and TV industries can work together to create a richer experience for consumers,” said Dan Sheeran, Senior Vice President, Premium Consumer Services, RealNetworks. “Online subscribers will enjoy ‘Big Brother 6’ on TV that much more by following the 24/7 action and connecting online with their fellow fans.”
“Big Brother 6” follows a group of people living together in a new house specially built for this edition and outfitted with 47 cameras and 78 microphones, the most in “Big Brother” history, recording their every move, 24 hours a day. One by one, the houseguests will vote each other out of the house. At the end of three months, the last remaining houseguest will receive the grand prize. In a new twist this year, each houseguest is paired with a secret partner from the outside world and the final houseguest will win $1,000,000, the biggest cash prize in “Big Brother” history, if they complete the game with their teammate. If the twosome does not make it to the final two, the winner will win $500,000.
“Big Brother” 24/7 is a member benefit of SuperPass which also includes news and entertainment video, free music downloads, free game downloads premium online radio with over 70 ad-free music stations, Real® PhotoVideo for sharing personal photos and video clips, and more.
To preserve the drama for “Big Brother 6” television viewers, CBS may block or delay the webcast for a limited number of real-time events that transpire in the house. Other components of the official “Big Brother 6” website will include detailed summaries of all the events that happen during each televised broadcast, a live 24/7 chat room, an interactive “Big Brother Fantasy League” game, popularity polls, opinion polls, a virtual tour of the “Big Brother” house, descriptions of the week’s challenges, voting history pages, photo galleries and a houseguest section with complete profiles.
ABOUT CBS.COM
CBS.com, the official website of the CBS Television Network, has become the top web destination among all Network television websites. CBS.com has been the most trafficked website among its Entertainment competitors with more unique visitors every month for the past two years. With its proven success of intersecting traditional television with new media, CBS.com attracted a record high of more than 12 million unique visitors in May 2004 as a result of the "Survivor: All Stars" finale and online voting for America's Tribal Council. Home to the official websites for all CBS television series, CBS.com's notable sites include "Survivor," "CSI" and "CSI: Miami," "Big Brother," "The Amazing Race" and "Late Show with David Letterman."
ABOUT REALNETWORKS
RealNetworks, Inc. is the leading creator of digital media services and software including the award-winning Rhapsody® Internet jukebox service and RealPlayer®10, the first product to integrate finding, organizing, buying, playing and managing digital audio and video in a single product. Consumers can access and experience audio/video programming and download RealNetworks' consumer software at http://www.real.com. Broadcasters, network operators, media companies and enterprises use RealNetworks' products and services to create and deliver digital media to PCs, mobile phones and consumer electronics devices. RealNetworks' systems and corporate information is located at http://www.realnetworks.com.
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 02:22 PM | Link | Big Brother § |
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
Big Brother 6 Cast Announced THEME
Well, here we are in it's sixth year... gone is the house that we've come to know for 5 years (demolished to put up an office building). Instead, the "house" is now on the soundstage that CBS used for "Yes, Dear".
So, it starts next week. The Australia and UK versions have been underway this year for a while now (we're at about day 54 in Australia and Day 34 in the UK). These other versions have daily shows, showing recaps of the days activities. The UK has a second show, earlier in the day, that's a live show that also has guests and is sort-of like a "chat show" as they would say. Each has their own live eviction shows, done outdoors in front of large, rabid audiences. The Australia version has a Friday Night Live Games event, lasting a couple of hours, where the houseguests compete for 3 awards: The use of a "Rewards Room" (with food, alcohol, room service, DVD's etc. for the winner and a chosen guest), the assigning of tasks to the houseguests (yes, they have specific roles and tasks that have to be performed daily in house), and the ability to deduct "points" from any of the week's nominees, thus saving a friend or even themselves, but also risk re-shuffling the list and they may wind-up being a nominee themself).
Each show has something else we don't have: major activities for the houseguests to do every single damn day, risking their food budget money. This gives them something else to do - something somewhat interesting to watch - since the US houseguests don't seem to do a frickin' damn thing all damn day except sleep and sunbathe. Both Australia and the UK air their Nominations live, and each still has the main core component from the original Endemol recipe intact: the public votes out the nominees, not the houseguests,
In general, these shows are a hell of a lot better to watch and a hell of a lot more entertaining than what Shapiro & Grodner pulls off in their measly three shows a week.
read more of this entry »
CBS REVEALS THE IDENTITIES OF THE 14 NEW HOUSEGUESTS COMPETING IN "BIG BROTHER 6"
Sixth Installment of Series Premieres on Thursday, July 7th on the CBS Television Network
All New "Big Brother 6" Twist Revealed
Houseguests Will Move into a Brand-New Home and Location
Julie Chen Returns as Host
CBS announced today the identities of the 14 houseguests who will compete in BIG BROTHER 6, as well as the new creative twist that will play out during the summer broadcasts.
This is the BIG BROTHER 6 Summer of Secrets. There are secrets in the house, secrets in the game, and this summer -- every houseguest has a secret.
For the first time, every houseguest will be entering the house and playing the game with a secret partner -- someone they know from the outside world. Friends, co-workers and significant others will play the Big Brother game as secret duos. The twist is that each secret team believes that they are the only pair in the house (pairings will be revealed to TV viewers during the first live broadcast on July 14). Each twosome knows that if they can keep their secret and end up being the last two people in the house, the winner will win $1,000,000, the biggest cash prize in Big Brother history, with the second place finisher winning $250,000. If a twosome does not make it to the final two, the winner will win $500,000.
"Big Brother" follows a group of people living together in a house outfitted with dozens of cameras and microphones recording their every move 24 hours a day. One by one, the houseguests will vote each other out of the house. At the end of three months, the last remaining houseguest will receive the grand prize.
This season, houseguests will move into a brand-new two-story home, including a built-in pool and Jacuzzi in the backyard. Like the contestants that will inhabit it, the new house is also full of secrets and surprises that will be unveiled throughout the summer.
BIG BROTHER 6 debuts on Thursday, July 7 (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Following the premiere, BIG BROTHER 6 will be broadcast each week on Tuesdays (9:00-10:00 PM, ET/PT), Thursdays (8:00-9:00 PM, live ET/delayed PT) and Saturdays (8:00-9:00 PM, ET/PT). The Thursday broadcast, hosted by Julie Chen, will feature the live eviction of one of the houseguests.
Following are the 14 houseguests, listed across in alphabetical order, who will compete in BIG BROTHER 6:
Maggie Ausburn, 26
Las Vegas, NV
Single
Emergency Room Nurse
Beau Beasley, 25
Pembroke Pines, FL
Single
Personal Shopper
Ivette Corredero, 25
Miami Beach, FL
Single
Waitress
Michael Donnellan, 28
Orange County, CA
Single
Artist
Ashlea Evans, 22
Plantation, FL
Single
Fashion Design Student
Howie Gordon, 34
Chicago, IL
Single
Meteorology Student
Sarah Hrejsa, 22
Chicago, IL
Single
Retail Manager
April Lewis, 30
Dallas, TX
Newlywed
Pharmaceutical Sales Rep.
Eric Littmann, 36
Boston, MA
Married Dad
Firefighter
Janelle Pierzina, 25
Miami Beach, FL
Single
VIP Cocktail Waitress
Rachel Plencner, 33
Parker, CO
Single
Horse Breeder
James Rhine, 29
Atlanta, GA
Single
Loss Prevention Manager
Kaysar Ridha, 24
Irvine, CA
Single
Graphic Designer
Jennifer Vasquez, 27
Plano, TX
Single
Arena Football League Dancer
BIG BROTHER 6 is produced by Arnold Shapiro & Allison Grodner Productions, in association with Endemol U.S.A.
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 01:37 PM | Link | Big Brother § |
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
75 Games, $2,520,700, and outThat's it.
Ken Jennings' run on Jeopardy is over. As reported over on kottke.org some time ago, today was the broadcast day of Mr. Jennings' last day on Jeopardy.
He lost in Final Jeopardy. It was only a two person Final Jeopardy. The challenger - Nancy Zerg - had $10,000 - Ken had $14,000
The answer was: MOST OF THIS FIRM'S 70,000 SEASONAL EMPLOYEES WORK ONLY 4 MONTHS A YEAR
Ken's Response: What is Fed Ex?
The Correct Response: What is H&R Block?
The Challenger bet $4,401 taking her to $14,401 - one dollar over Ken.
Ken bet $5,601 taking him down to $8,799 and looses.
Update: Nancy Zerg's "Giant Killing" Championship lasted only one day, finishing last the next day
posted at 04:08 PM | Link | TV § |
Tuesday, November 16, 2004
Amazing Race 6 starts! THEME
It was great seeing Phil standing atop one of the Marina City towers in Chicago. They did some very nice drunken helicopter cameraman shots of the city and really made the place look great. The teams came in on the yellow Seadog boats that are available for rides at Navy Pier. The were let off by Buckingham Fountain where Phil officially started the race. It was also very intersting to see how the teams first interacted with each other on the 40-50 minute trip on the Blue Line to O'Hare. I don't think we've ever seen aliances being built before the teams got to the first airport.
I'm very happy the show is on the air again!
posted at 10:08 PM | Link | Amazing Race § |
Thursday, October 28, 2004
The Amazing Race 6 cast is announced THEME
CBS has finally set the schedule for The Amazing Race 6 and it will start on Tuesday, November 16 (taking the Tuesday Night slot of "Clubhouse").
The cast has also been announced (see below for the list).
UPDATE: Saw a new commercial this evening - no doubt about it, the start of the race is at Buckingham Fountain in Grant Park in Chicago! Check out the video here.
read more of this entry »
- Adam Malis, 27, personal trainer, Los Angeles; Rebecca Cardon, 29, personal trainer, Los Angeles (formerly dating)
- Avi Schneier, 32, high school teacher, New York City; Joe Rashbaum, 32, advertising-agency owner, Ventura, California (high school friends)
- Don St. Clare, 69, physician, Portola Valley, California; Mary Jean St. Clare, 66, interior designer, Portola Valley, California (married 20 years)
- Freddy Holliday, 34, pilot-model, Miami; Kendra Bentley, 25, model, Miami (engaged)
- Gus McLeod, 50, former CIA agent, Gaithersburg, Maryland; Hera McLeod, 24, special-education teacher, Los Angeles (father/daughter)
- Hayden Kristianson, 25, model-actor, Los Angeles; Aaron Crumbaugh, 25, model-actor, Los Angeles (dating)
- Jonathan Baker, 42, entrepreneur, Los Angeles; Victoria Fuller, 32, model-artist, Los Angeles (married)
- Kris Perkins, 30, student-waitress, Long Beach, California; Jon Buehler, 29, restaurant partner, Scottsdale, Arizona (long-distance dating)
- Lena Jensen, 23, student, Pleasant Grove, Utah; Kristy Jensen, 26, model, Pleasant Grove, Utah (sisters)
- Lori Harvey, 33, professional wrestler, Molino, Florida; Bolo Dar'Tainian, 38, professional wrestler, Molino, Florida (married)
- Meredith Tufaro, 26, licensing manager, New York; Maria Sampogna, 26, registered sales assistant, New York (best friends)
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 05:54 PM | Link | Amazing Race § |
Saturday, October 09, 2004
Dread Pirate Rupert
I drove out to Algonquin this afternoon to go to the Grand Opening of a new Galyans. Now, we've got a Galyans in Schaumburg that we go to often, and the Schaumburg one is a lot bigger than this new one in Algonquin, but I drove out here not to shop but to see someone. I went to see America's Favorite "Pirate" - Rupert Boneham.
The line to meet him was enormous and really net letting up, so there was no way I was going to meet him personally. I sort of camped-out by his table, taking pictures, which allowed me to listen to him interact with everyone and get a good idea of his character.
When I watched Survivor Pearl Islands and Survivor All Stars as well as the America's Tribal Council, that I liked Rupert. He seemed real. He seamed to care, he seemed "honest", and he truly seemed to enjoy his time in the show.
I was wrong.
He is double and maybe even triple what I thought.
He was engaging. He took time with every single person going through that line. He made sure he shook their hands. He made direct eye contact. He talked to them by name. He thanked every single person for coming out. When he talked about his time in the game, it was as if he just got off the island yesterday, speaking about details that you know he feels in his heart. He speaks well of some people (Like Sandra, the Pearl Islands winner, and Rudy) and he still talks about issues he had with a certain Mr. Fairplay.
The way he treats kids is wonderful and magic, working hard to win their hearts if they weren't already won before stepping forward to the show's only legitimate Pirate.
I watched a handler briefly talk to him, talking about that people may have been upset about the amount of time he was spending with people in line. It's obvious that those weren't the people at the front of the line who were meeting him, for each and every one of them just soaked-up his energy and everyone walked away with a smile.
I can't say anything bad about the guy. He is real.
posted at 02:18 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Monday, September 27, 2004
Jay's run is overThis past week seems to be just an endless list of things that have come to an end. It's weird.
The latest - Jay Leno will step down from The Tonight Show and hand it over to Conan O'Brien. (OK, not for a while, but the end comes in 2009)
read more of this entry »
NBC LATE NIGHT SUCCESSION PLAN ANNOUNCED: JAY LENO TO TURN OVER 'THE TONIGHT SHOW' TO CONAN O'BRIEN IN 2009 Published: September 27, 2004
BURBANK, Calif. -- September 27, 2004 -- In 2009, after what will then be a 17-year run as "America's Late Night Leader," Jay Leno has announced that he will turn over "The Tonight Show" to Conan O'Brien. Leno will officially make the announcement during this evening's "Tonight Show" -- a show that also celebrates the 50th Anniversary of the late night institution.
Said Leno: "In 2009, I'll be 59 years-old and will have had this dream job for 17 years. When I signed my new contract, I felt that the timing was right to plan for my successor and there is no one more qualified than Conan. Plus, I promised Mavis I would take her out for dinner before I turned 60."
"It is a great accomplishment and testament to both Jay and Conan that we were able to all work together on a long-term plan for this important institution," said NBC Universal Television Group President Jeff Zucker. "We look forward to more years of laughs from Jay and are thrilled to have Conan's future be as part of the NBC family."
"Late night talent is a rare commodity," echoed NBC Entertainment President Kevin Reilly. "Cultivating it and keeping it has always been a priority here and with this announcement, we couldn't be in a better place."
Conan O'Brien has signed a new contract with the network in a long-term deal that will keep him at the helm of the critically-acclaimed and top-rated "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" for the next five years and then has him taking over has host of "The Tonight Show" from Leno.
"'The Tonight Show' is one of the great franchises in television and I am thrilled to get this opportunity," said O'Brien. "I am thankful to everyone at NBC -- which has been my home for the last eleven years -- and I am particularly grateful to Jay for all the generous support and kindness he has always shown me."
Rick Ludwin, Senior Vice President, Late Night and Primetime Series, NBC Entertainment added, "Jay Leno and Conan O'Brien continue to be the most successful combination in all of late night. With today's announcement about Conan, we have locked in the future of this daypart for years to come."
"The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" continues to dominate late night and has won nine television seasons in a row, 34 consecutive sweep months and 36 consecutive quarters (including ties) with its largest 18-49 audience in three years and its largest 18-34 audience in four years.
In its eleven years on the air, "Late Night With Conan O'Brien" has dominated its time period, winning every quarter and every sweep month over that period. For the 2003-04 season, "Late Night" averaged 2.5 million viewers (nearly one million viewers ahead of its nearest competition) and won by a 71% margin among adults 18-49, its highest in five years and his adult 18-34 audience was "Late Night's" biggest in six years.
On its 50th Anniversary, "The Tonight Show" continues to be the most dominant late night institution in television history. Since it first premiered on September 27, 1954 with Steve Allen, "The Tonight Show" has had just four permanent hosts, including Jay Leno. Allen, host of the then titled "Tonight," eventually left late night to start his own primetime variety series on NBC. Jack Paar premiered on July 29, 1957. On October 1, 1962, Johnny Carson stepped on stage for day one of his nearly thirty-year tenure as host of "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson." Jay Leno, who began guest-hosting "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson" in September 1987, became host of "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" on May 25, 1992. Conan O'Brien joined NBC as a writer on "Saturday Night Live" in 1988 and premiered as host of "Late Night with Conan O'Brien" on September 13, 1993.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Rebecca Marks, NBC Entertainment Publicity, 818/840-3914
Jennifer Skorlich, NBC Entertainment Publicity, 818/840-4630
Carrie Simons, NBC Entertainment Publicity, 818/840-2515 (Jay Leno)
Marc Liepis, NBC Entertainment Publicity, 212/664-5424 (Conan O'Brien) « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | TV § |
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
Oh, *gack* THEME
I'm watching The Early Show on CBS and Phil is presenting the $1 Million check to Chip & Kim. But the more upsetting thing is that Colin proposed to Christie and she said yes...
posted at 08:49 AM | Link | Amazing Race | 1 comment § |
Tuesday, September 21, 2004
The summer's Guilty Pleasures are over... THEME
THEME
read more of this entry »
Big Brother has been our Guilty Pleasure Of Summer since it started in 2000. What we enjoy so much more than the packaged shows that CBS airs is the live Internet feeds. It allows anyone with a Real Networks player to watch up to 4 different feeds live from the house 24/7... or thereabouts. The voyeur aspect of the feeds is unbelievable. Depending on who is up and what is going on, Carol and I could watch the house for hours. This year's crop of people weren't too bad, though they weren't the best we've seen over the years. We so addicted, we have a computer connected to our Sony 27" TV so we can watch with ease - the audio going out through the stereo system.
Anyway, it's over for the year. The winner this year - Drew Daniel of Urbana, Ohio gets over Michael "Cowboy" Ellis of Durant, Oklahoma.
Then, my favorite multiple-award-winning reality show - The Amazing Race - ended tonight as well. Tonight's show seemed like it was the most physical legs at the end of a race since the show started. Anyway, due to fog and luck, Chip & Kim McAllister wound up as the winners on The Amazing Bathmat in Dallas.
Fortunately, Amazing Race 6 will be starting in just a few weeks! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:41 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, August 24, 2004
Confirmed: Amazing Race 6 was in Chicago THEME
More excited fans have started checking out the TAR6 rumors. The Chicago Film Office has confirmed the permit was for August 13th, and covered O'Hare airport and Buckingham Fountain.. Speculation now is that Chicago is the Starting point. (Buckingham fountain would be a great start point!) The what was the team doing on Adams? Don't know - going to a Blue Line stop to take the El to O'Hare? Union Station to the O'Hare Metra stop? There are reports of 8 teams (?) in Boston around that time (Friday the 13th, Saturday the 14th), and then a sighting of teams in Iceland at 6:20am on the 14th. (Makes sense - there are flights from United that connect in Boston with Icelandair. There's even a newspaper report with pictures (and a second). Too bad I can't read it! The next stop - if you can interpret a few things - appears to be Oslo! There is also a report today from someone that might have bumped into a team in the ticket line at the Ostbahnhof train station in Berlin today. This is really cool hearing about TAR in real time!
posted at 10:08 AM | Link | Amazing Race § |
Thursday, August 19, 2004
The Amazing Race 6 IN CHICAGO! THEME
The Reality TV website Reality Blurred: The Reality TV Weblog is reporting that not only is Amazing Race 6 currently in production, but a team was actually seen here in Chicago last week!!!
read more of this entry »
A team that was likely part of The Amazing Race 6, which is taping this month, was spotted in Chicago on Friday. As the show typically concludes in the US, and since it's late in the month, that suggests Chicago is either the final destination or a stopover in on the way to the final city in the US. Mike in Chicago writes:
Looks like TAR 6 may end in Chicago. On Friday Aug 13, I saw them running down Adams St, towards the Sears tower. ... I saw a team of 2 females, with a camera crew of two (one camera, one mic guy). The girls had on their fanny packs with the yellow/red marker/flag on them. It was about a second after they passed me by that I realized they were Amazing Race people.
Based on when TAR 6 airs, this is likely the end of the race, not the start. Unless Chicago is the first stop back in the USA, before they go to the final US city. Either way, looks like Chicago is part of the final TAR 6 episode! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 03:54 PM | Link | Amazing Race | 1 comment § |
Tuesday, August 17, 2004
Cast announced for Survivor: Vanuatu - Islands of Fire THEME
The cast for the 9th edition of Survivor, called Survivor: Vanuatu - Islands of Fire. There are 18 people (which is interesting since All-Stars was the first series with 18 people). It's also back to "Battle of the Sexes" again - the tribes' colors are yellow for Yasur (the women) and red for Lopevi (the men).
read more of this entry »
- Julie Berry, 23, a youth mentor from Gorham, Maine
- Chad Crittenden, 35, a teacher from Oakland, Calif. (Chad is an amputee, losing part of his leg to cancer)
- Ami Cusack, 31, a barista (coffee server) and model from Lakewood, Colo.
- Chris Daugherty, 33, who works in highway construction, from South Vienna, Ohio
- Brady Finta, 33, an FBI agent who was formerly in the military service, from Huntington Beach, Calif.
- Rory Freeman, 35, a housing case manager from Des Moines, Iowa
- Mia Galeotalanza, 30, a finance manager from Tom’s River, N.J.
- Brook Geraghty, 27, a project manager from Boston
- Lisa Keiffer, 44, a real estate agent from New Orleans
- John Kenney, 22, a mechanical bull operator and model from Los Angeles
- Scout Cloud Lee, 59, a rancher and entrepreneur from Stillwater, Okla.
- Lea "Sarge" Masters, 40, a drill sergeant who lives in Columbia, S.C.
- Dolly Neely, 25, a sheep farmer from Mercer, Pa.
- Eliza Orlins, 21, a pre-law student from Syracuse, N.Y.
- John Palyok, 31, of Los Angeles is a sales manager at a Home Depot.
- Travis "Bubba" Sampson, 33, of Johnson City, Tenn., works in loss prevention.
- Leann Slaby, 35, a research assistant from Kansasville, Wis.
- Twila Tanner, 41, of Marshall, Mo., who works in highway repair
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 11:31 AM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, August 05, 2004
Big Brother 5 - Episode 13 THEME
read more of this entry »
After a very stupid "Dumb and Dumber" POV meeting earlier in the week, where Jase won POV and took himself off, the nominees are now Marvin and Scott. In the strategically correct move, Scott is voted out 4-3.
The main event of the show, however, was the Twin Twist. (Wanna see the segment? I have a copy of it here as a DIVX AVI - be warned it's 36Mb)
With all of the houseguests in the living room, Julie Chen asked Diane a question: How many houseguests have played the game this year? Diane answers 13 and Julie tells here that the answer is incorrect - there have been 14. Everybody looks confused and Julie continues to remind the houseguests that the them this year is "Do Not Assume" and that one of the housemates has been playing the game with their identical twin. Drew and Diane, who both have twins, seem to be saying it's not them. Cowboy blurts out "It's Holly." (WTF? As a side note, the houseguests for the next couple of days, continue to talk about Holly and her "twin" and about the numerous times when she changed the way she acted while in the house. I have no freaking idea where this came from...) Even after Julie says that the twins have actually changed places 10 times, Cowboy is still convinced it's Holly. Throughout this, Adria is looking as confused as everyone else. Julie tells the group that the twins' goal was not to be discovered or evicted for 5 weeks. Tonight, they have reached their goal. Now the houseguests are thinking through this. Jase thinks that Scott has a twin (but, of course, that wouldn't fit with what Julie just said).
Natalie walks into the house through the Diary Room door and place goes nuts (It turns out Adria never talked about being an identical twin). What is most priceless is the look on Jase's face - he had just lost Scott, so his alliance was short one key person, and now another person enters the game - and they're not on Jase's side. You could just see how screwed he knew he was.
Anyway, HOH competition nets Jennifer as the winner, just about sealing Jase's fate in the house.
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:05 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, August 03, 2004
This year's Out-Of-The-House challenge THEME
Found this tidbit out on the web... it might be from Zap2It.
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The winner of the reality show's annual you-get-to-leave-the-house-for-a-while challenge will step out of the "Big Brother" set and onto the set of "The Young and The Restless," CBS' long-running daytime serial. The contestant will share a scene in the Genoa City Athletic Club with "Y&R" stars Michelle Stafford and Christian LeBlanc. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 11:44 AM | Link | Big Brother | 1 comment § |
Saturday, July 17, 2004
Big Brother 5 - Episode 5 THEME
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Clip show - nothing earth shattering if you watch the live feeds. They are so screwed this week for food. Imagine one whole week of just: Milk, yogurt, sausage, bacon, and seafood. That's it. You're probably better off on PB&J.
Marvin nominated Lori & Holly for eviction. That may change with the POV. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:05 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, July 15, 2004
Big Brother 5 - Episode 4 THEME
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In a unanimous vote, Mike is the first person evicted from the Big Brother 5 house. After playing a Majority Rules game, Marvin becomes the new HOH.
Well, we now know the new twist: Yes, Adria has a twin Natalie. Since Day Two, they have been trading places inside the house, playing as one person - Adria. Their 4th trade was shown live during tonight's show. The twin outside the house is also sequestered from the outside world, but does not see what's happening in the house. The Twist? If no one finds out by Week 5, both twins can play the game as individuals at the same time, thus earning the twin the right to go after the money. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:05 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, July 13, 2004
Big Brother 5 - Episode 3 THEME
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Nothing really new in the house. Mike and Jennifer are still nominated for eviction. Scott wins Power of Veto (POV) and leaves the nominations as they are.
I've been watching the live feeds on and off lately. I have to say that I'm loving this group of people. They actually talk about things, want to stay active instead of taking afternoon naps.
It sound like there was some twin swapping over the weekend - Adria accidentally referred to herself as Natalie, her sister's name. Then, a diligent live feed capturer over at TV Clubhouse actually got a screen grab of the two of them together in the Diary Room. So I guess it's safe to say that at least one set of twins have been playing in the house... Take a look at the pictures of them at their website, The Fitness Twins! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:05 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, July 08, 2004
Big Brother 5 - Episode 2 THEME
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Normally a Thursday live show, but it's all clips today since the houseguests have actually been in the house since the 30th of June. The houseguests won a Margarita building challenge to get their hottub unlocked. Yea. Project DNA unravels a little bit as Michael figures-out that Jennifer (aka Nokomis) is his half-sister, and proceeds to tell his posse before her tells her. It all goes down in a meeting that they call for the whole house in the living room, after which Big Brother calls the newly-found half siblings to the diary room to receive letters from their biological father, which they read to the house. It's interesting that there are people in the house that, even after the letters, don't believe the event at all.
In the first Nomination Ceremony of the season, HOH Jase nominates Mike and Jennifer. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:05 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, July 06, 2004
Big Brother 5 - Episode 1 THEME
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A new crop of hamsters are back in the house! I can't talk much about the show, because I haven't formed any opinions yet. Well, that's not true. Lori made a stupid move by taking $10,000 cash and forcing the house to eat peanut butter & jelly in the very first challenge. Bad move. Oh, and Holly? Ditzy! She should go soon so we don't have to listen to her... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:35 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, June 30, 2004
Big Brother 5 Cast Announced THEME
The cast for the U.S. version of Big Brother has been announced, along with a tour of the house.
Oh, and here's one of the twists: Two people that are in the house are related by blood... but don't know it.
And - for the first time - a daily internet talk show... with Marcellas!
read more of this entry »
The house was also shown on Entertainment Tonight. The house layout is identical to all of the years prior, just re-vamped. The three bedrooms have themes: The Wood Room has 3 single beds (it's the open area near the Diary Room), The Cloud Room has 2 double beds and windows that open-up into the Wood Room., but the windows are actually liquid crystal and can be "glazed" just by flipping a switch. The last bedroom is the Cement Bedroom. Yes, everything is made of concrete, including the beds which have only a thin camping mattress pad on them! (It sleeps 4). This is the bedroom next to the bathroom, which looks the same.
The dining room looks the same. Between the dining room and living room, where there used to be bar stools and a ledge is now a fish tank. Actually, it's a shark tank as there's a few baby sharks in there. The living room couches are of course different, much squarer, with two green pieces for the nominees to sit in.
The Kitchen is larger, now with an island with chairs, a full size side-by-side refrigerator with ice & water dispenser, and it looks like multiple ovens.
The door to the backyard has been replaced with a sliding patio door. and it's further down as the kitchen is actually a bit bigger due to the new appliances).
The backyard still has the pool but has lost the basketball court. In it's place is a putting green. There's also two hammocks instead of one and a kick boxing station.
Now, the cast:
- Name: Adria Okins
Age: 30
Occupation: Web Designer
Hometown: Birmingham, Ala. - Name: Lori Valenti
Age: 26
Occupation: Yoga Instructor
Hometown: Boston - Name: Karen O'Neil Ganci
Age: 30
Occupation: Portrait Artist
Hometown: Saddle Brook, N.J. - Name: Jennifer Dedmon
Age: 21
Occupation: Restaurant Hostess
Hometown: San Antonio - Name: Diane Henry
Age: 22
Occupation: Cocktail Waitress
Hometown: Burlington, Ky. - Name: Holly King
Age: Get a load of this - CBS is releasing her age as "in her 20s"
Occupation: Model
Hometown: Los Angeles - Name: Scott Long
Age: 26
Occupation: Sales Representative
Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pa. - Name: Drew Daniel
Age: 22
Occupation: Recent College Graduate
Hometown: Urbana, Ohio - Name: Michael Ellis
Age: 23
Occupation: Security Officer
Hometown: Durant, Okla. - Name: Marvin Latimer
Age: 36
Occupation: Mortician
Hometown: Conway, S.C. - Name: Mike Lubinski
Age: 41
Occupation: Commercial Painter
Hometown: Eastpointe, Mich. - Name: Will Wikle
Age: 26
Occupation: Registered Nurse
Hometown: Tupelo, Miss. - Name: Jase Wirey
Age: 28
Occupation: Volunteer Firefighter
Hometown: Decatur, Ill.
HOUSE CALLS: THE BIG BROTHER TALK SHOW, a half-hour, streaming video daily talk show, will debut Wednesday, July 7 on CBS.com, one day after the fifth installment of BIG BROTHER premieres on CBS.
HOUSE CALLS, hosted by Marcellas Reynolds, a houseguest on "Big Brother 3," and Gretchen Massey, an on-air host on Infinity Radio's KLSX Los Angeles, will interact with viewers though phone calls and e-mails, discuss events that transpire in the Big Brother house, offer prognostications, analyze strategies, interview former "Big Brother" houseguests as well as current houseguests following their eviction.
HOUSE CALLS is believed to be the first live Internet talk show produced exclusively for a television network.
HOUSE CALLS will be broadcast live Monday through Friday (1:00 PM/ET, 10:00 AM/PT). The call in phone number is 323-CBS-1000.
"BIG BROTHER has been the model for convergence between the Internet and television and this innovative programming takes it one step further," said David Katz, Senior Vice President, Strategic Planning and Interactive Ventures, CBS Television. "HOUSE CALLS will be another avenue for 'Big Brother's' loyal fans to offer opinions and dialog. This really puts the chat back into chat rooms."
HOUSE CALLS: THE BIG BROTHER TALK SHOW will be produced by Eye Net Works, a division of CBS.com. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 06:33 PM | Link | Big Brother § |
Thursday, June 24, 2004
Gwyneth wants a Big Brother film? THEME
Gwyneth Paltrow is apparently a big fan of Big Brother U.K. So much so that she has contacted her godfather - director Stephen Spielberg - about pursuing a feature film based on the 'Big Brother' reality show concept.
posted at 08:32 PM | Link | Big Brother § |
Thursday, June 17, 2004
Big Brother UK Fight THEME
I've been watching UK's Big Brother 5. I don't know why, I just wanted to see how they treat the show over there, which is such a huge hit and media circus there compared to how the show is treated here and how so many people hate it here.
read more of this entry »
I'm not watching the live feeds - they're not available outside the UK. Instead, I've been watching the broadcast shows. It's so popular there that there are shows every day of the week, the eviction show is live with a huge live audience (actually, it's just outside the house), one of the digital channels over there (E4) actually broadcasts the live feeds. To top this off, there's also a second show (Big Brother's Little Brother) that's aired almost daily. It's ridiculous.
Anyway, speaking of ridiculous, something historic (soft of) happened. It all started when 2 houseguests were removed from the house in what was thought to be an eviction. Instead, they just went into another room inside the house, where they lived for about 4 days, watching live feeds of their housemates. They were put back into the house (it's a long story on how... you could always go to the website and read about it), but a food fight erupted. That escalated into an honest to God fight, where the houseguests trashed the house. The staff had to call security into the house to restore the peace, and viewers called the police to help out. It was tense and intriguing to watch... too bad it was so hard to understand the diverse amount of heavy accents... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 05:43 PM | Link | Big Brother § |
Thursday, June 10, 2004
The Amazing Race 5 cast is announced THEME
CBS has finally set the schedule for The Amazing Race 5 and it will start on-time this summer on July 6, with TAR6 scheduled for fall! There's no indication as to why the "powers that be" changed their minds, or why they will run TAR5 and TAR6 right after each other.
Anyway, the cast has been announced.
read more of this entry »
- Alison & Donny - Dating - Yes, it's that Alison & Donny. Alison is 23, unemployed, and lives in Meadville, PA. Donny is 21, a student, and lives in Shenandoah, PA
- Bob Barron & Joyce Nicolo - Internet Dating Couple - Both live in Mount Laurel, N.J. He's 61 and retired, she's 53 and a Medical Practice Admin
- Brandon Davidson & Nicole O'Brian - Dating - Nicole, 21, lives in L.A., was Miss Texas USA 2003 and second runner up at Miss USA 2003, is also an actor. Brandon, 25, is a model and lives in Houston (they met at Bridal Extravaganza)
- Charla Faddoul & Mirna Hindoyan - Cousins - Both 27 and born at the same hospital in Syria one month apart. Charla is s store manager and has a form of dwarfism, lives in Phoenix, MD (I didn't know there was a Phoenix in Maryland). Mirna is a Lawyer and lives in Towson, MD.
- Chip & Kim McAllister - Married Parents - Chip is 46 and is the owner of a web technology company. Kim is 44 and is the owner of an information technology recruiting company. They've been married over 25 years and live in Coto De Caza, CA.
- Colin Guinn & Christie Woods - Dating - Colin is 24 and is the owner of a cell phone store, while Christie, 26, is the managing partner of a "Longevity and Wellness Center". Oh, an she was 1996 Miss Teen USA. They both live in Corpus Christi, TX.
- Dennis Frentsos & Erika Shay - Once Engaged - Oh, boy... that's a good moniker... this should be interesting to watch. Why did they break up? From the CBS website: Dennis broke off the engagement after Erika went skydiving naked. As Dennis describes it, "I thought I was dreaming, but no, here comes my future wife floating through the air with nothing on but socks and sneakers and a naked instructor strapped to her back." He's 27, a mortgage broker and lives in West Nyack, NY. She's 25, a wedding planner, and lives in Piermont, NY.
- Jim & Marsha McCoy - Father/Daughter - She's 26 and a law student at the University of Florida College of Law while living in Gainesville, FL. He's 53, a helicopter pilot, and lives in Jacksonville, FL. Oh, I guess Marsha was a Jacksonville Jaguars cheerleader.
- Kami & Karli French - Identical Twins - 26 and living in Eugene, OR, Kami is the general manager of a restaurant and Karli is a full-time student at the University of Oregon.
- Linda Ruiz & Karen Heins - Best Friends - Living in Palmdale, CA, are bowling doubles partners and mothers. Karen, 41, is a stay at home mom and Linda, 45, teaches tennis
- Marshall & Lance Hudes - Brothers - Marshall, 31, and Lance, 26, are from New York but live in Dallas, TX where they own and operate a pizza shop.
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 12:32 PM | Link | Amazing Race § |
Tuesday, June 01, 2004
DirecTV heaven...posted at 07:04 PM | Link | TV § |
Friday, May 28, 2004
G4TechTV
Well, today is the day. Today Comcast gobbles-up a very good computer & tech television network (TechTV) and smashes it into G4 - a gaming channel - to try to come up some new network that sure the hell seems a bit too gaming-centric called G4TechTV. Gone are some of TechTV's better shows, like Leo Laporte's Call for Help, and even Tech Live. At least The Screen Savers is untouched - at least so far. Comcast is shutting-down the San Francisco studios of TechTV, forcing anybody that wants to continue their job to transfer to LA.
Friggin' bastards of a cable company... No wonder I cut 'em loose and went to DirecTV... just another money-hungry media conglomerate...
posted at 08:44 AM | Link | TV § |
Monday, May 24, 2004
CBS screwing around with The Amazing Race again... THEME
CBS announced a month and a half ago that they were launching Big Brother and The Amazing Race on the same day this July 6.
Well, Les Moonves at the CBS Upfront presentations said last week that The Amazing Race will be on the Fall Lineup on Saturdays at 9 PM ET/PT. Now he's saying that they might might decide to hold The Amazing Race 6 for spring, not fall ... and air The Amazing Race 5 in the fall time slot instead of this summer.
They're screwing around with a great reality show...
posted at 09:41 PM | Link | Amazing Race | 1 comment § |
Thursday, April 29, 2004
May SweepsHow the hell did May Sweeps come around all of a sudden??? I mean, it feels like the season just started, and now we have to sit through star-laden season (and series) finales, bad made-for-TV specials, and - even worse - those stupid, stupid, stupid local TV news special reports...
posted at 08:35 PM | Link | TV § |
Tuesday, April 27, 2004
The Mole?!?!?!?!!!!
What the... ???? The Game Show Network is showing the first series of one of the best reality shows ever on TV - The Mole! Man, this was the one show that I really wanted to be on...
posted at 09:22 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Sunday, April 04, 2004
TAR6 Casting, TAR5 Sighting, new rules... and a Big Brother Tie-in? THEME
Well, it looks like The Amazing Race 5 is still shooting and has made a stop in Canada. According to the Calgary Sun, the racers had a challenge - either a Roadblock or Detour - at Bow Falls near the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel.
Also, in something of a shock if you follow the show, casting is now active for The Amazing Race 6, which is due to shoot in August. Applications are due April 13.
Another article also mentions that CBS will couple Big Brother and the Amazing Race to create a two-hour reality block on Tuesdays from 9-11 (8-10 Central). Both shows will have 90-minute season premieres on Tuesday, July 6, and will remain on Tuesdays. (Big Brother 5 will be Tuesday nights 9-10pm ET, Thursdays 8-9pm (evictions live in the eastern timezone), and Saturdays 9-10pm ET.)
In still another twist and tie-in, Big Brother 4 Runner-up Alison Irwin and her boyfriend Donny are one of the teams on Amazing Race 5.
There is a report that The Amazing Race may have two new twists (other than Alison):
During non-elimination weeks, the team that finishes last will be stripped of all their money -- and not be given any coin at the start of the next leg of the race.
There'll also be a new "yield" component to the game that will let each team slow down someone who's lagging behind them in the race. The "yield" can only be used once by each team.
posted at 08:17 AM | Link | Amazing Race § |
Monday, February 09, 2004
It was 40 Years Ago Today... Ed SullivanIt was 40 years ago tonight that the Beatles first appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. David Letterman is going to show a clip of the appearing - on the very stage in the very theater that Letterman now broadcasts from.
posted at 06:09 PM | Link | TV § |
Sunday, February 08, 2004
GrammysThe Grammy Awards were tonight. I am soooo disappointed. The "special" openning of the show turned out to be Prince (with Beyonce) which actually made for a good open since we don't see him too often. The rest of the show, in my opinion, sucked. Instead of being in a theater setting like other awards shows, the ceremony is now a show at the Staples Center and is only mainstream. 18 performances and a handful of awards - did you know that there are over 80 awards handed out? You couldn't tell it by watching the show. They don't even acknowledge the other categories anymore. It's as if they don't exist, and that is sooo wrong. Instead, the event showcases pop/rap/hip-hop/R&B and maybe one country performance and that's it. No latin, no classical, no polka...
posted at 10:05 PM | Link | TV § |
Sunday, January 25, 2004
Golden GlobesOK, so the Golden Globes were on tonight. Eh. Why the hell is Sharon Stone everywhere with everyone in every shot? I thought that The Office was a nice surprise, as well as Lost in Translation. One thing's for sure - I don't like the TV categories. They have multiple categories for the movies that they award, but the TV awards are all lumped together (why should you award an actor in a TV movie in the same category as an actor in a series?)
posted at 09:51 PM | Link | TV § |
Sunday Morning 25thI woke up this morning and flipped on the TV and couldn't figure out why there was stories about Charles Kuralt on. It took a while to realize that CBS Sunday Morning was celebrating their 25th Anniversary. What a great, uniquie, wonderful show. And wouldn't you love to have Bill Geist's job?
posted at 10:12 AM | Link | TV § |
Friday, January 23, 2004
Bunny Rabbit is sad...... Captain Kangaroo died. Wow, the second Children's Television icon of mine to die in just a few days. I barely remember the show when I was a kid, but it made an impression. Bunny Rabbit. Mr. Moose. Dancing Bear. Mr Green Jeans is long gone now, and now the Captain. Bob Keeshan seemed to be a gentle man. I hate seeing these guys pass... I'm just hoping Bill (Jackson) is OK....
posted at 03:19 PM | Link | TV § |
Monday, January 12, 2004
Survivor: All-Stars Cast Announced THEME
The cast for Survivor: All Stars was officially announced on The Early Show this morning.
read more of this entry »
The location is back at the last location - Panama's Pearl Islands, and the tribes are names after the islands where they camp. There are 18 people instead of the usual 16, and there are 3 tribes instead of the usual 2.
In the Chapera Tribe:
In the Saboga Tribe:
In the Moga Moga Tribe: « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:54 AM | Link | Survivor § |
Sunday, January 11, 2004
People's Choice: Survivor
Survivor: Pearl Islands won as Best Reality-Based Program tonight on the People's Choice Awards on CBS. You want to know what was really scary? Seeing the entire cast dresed-up in formal wear!
I never watch this show - I find it too... cheap. I don't know, I just don't "trust" it. Yes, I know it's voted on by the public (allegedly), but I don't buy it. Sorry. If it's not an industry awards show (Emmy, Oscar, Grammy, and I'll even "allow" the Golden Globes), I don't view it as a "legitamate" award.
posted at 09:25 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, January 07, 2004
Celebrity Mole Yucatan - Episode 1 THEME
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Oh my God, they brought back the "celebrity" version of this wonderful game. I'm not happy about this. This was a wonderful game that got cheapened with a) the replacement of Anderson Copper with Ahmad Rashad, and b) the use of "celebrities" (and please notice the use of the quotes around the word) instead of average Joes (except that's another show). The "celebrities" this year seem a step down from last year. Sure they have the absolute lunacy of having back again this year Stephen Baldwin and Corbin Bernsen, and I really don't think I mind Mark Curry and maybe Angie Everhart, but Tracey Gold, Ananda Lewis, and Keshia Knight Pulliam? And then, the one person you'd never want to see on a show like this - Dennis Rodman. I don't like it.
The show starts with Corbin having to pickup the other contestants in The Celebrity Mole Taxi. The game ("El Taxi Loco") is to decipher a clue (in Spanish and English) and find each "celebrity" and bring them back to Ahmad within 75 minutes. Every celebrity picked-up is worth $5,000. If he shows up after the allotted time, he looses the money. Well, it's a pretty lame game, but the piece was, well, "cute". I mean, between Bernsen & Baldwin, there's no trust between anybody. The taxi itself is "cute" with all of it's stickers all over it, not to mention the chihuahua bobblehead do on the dash and two chickens (Carlos & Pepe) on the front seat (they were in a cage). Well, they come up two short as they decide to get $25,000 in the pot than to risk getting back late.
The players get their numbered journals (probably after lunch) and everybody starts writing. Corbin starts going nuts again as he realizes that there's one gold fish of the patio wall, so he thinks that the Mole must be Tracey Gold (after he goes up to the wall and smells the paint). Stephen, at the table, says "I'm not saying he ain't the Mole, I'm just sayin' he's insane". The second game is "Artifact Or Fiction". Two players are chosen as "salesmen" (Mark and Corbin). The each get a Mayan artifact that they have to "sell" as real to the rest of the players, though only one of the artifacts is indeed authentic. If players "buy" the true story, $10,000 will be added to the pot. If they believe the false story, not only will no money be added to the pot, but the liar will receive an Exemption. Corbin talks about his gourd that's used to make tequila, and Mark talks about his rock that's a fertility piece. Mark doesn't do a good job selling, but everyone believes him, especially after Angie says she saw the same thing in a store yesterday and the shopkeeper said it was a fertility piece. Ananda knows that Corbin's gourd is exactly how the Mayans made liquor. The group decides Corbin is the liar. Turns out. Mark is the liar, the group doesn't get any money, and Mark gets an Exemption. (Mark's rock was found in South Central!)
Back at the hotel, Stephen leaves his hotel room to go to Tracey's room to form a "coalition". In the middle of the discussion, Stephen hears Mark coming and has to abandon the discussion and fake out Mark that he was just messing around with the camera crew. Ahmad finds Keshia in the Makeup Room (first time we have ever seen an actual "makeup room" for this show. Looks like they commandeered a suite and Keshia is sitting under a chandelier.) Because she pulled Journal #2 earlier today, she is being offered a special secret game called "Moon Over Yucatan". She has to convince the other players to join her for a night-time swim after dinner, but she can't tell them it's a game. For each player in the water, $2,000 is added to the pot. If anyone goes skinny-dipping, she gets an Exemption. It was a typical Mole dinner. Keshia feigns an illness and sets Angie to take a walk with her. They each go down to the beach and get their feet wet (two feet in water = $2,000). They called Mark over and he did the same. Keshia tries to convince mark to skinny-dip, but Angie volunteers if Keshia will do it. They use a towel to go out into the water and strip, earning Keshia an Exemption and the pot gets another $6,000.
The group then has their Exemption Dinner, and Keshia tells her story to the group about the game. The pot is now at $31,000, and the group takes the Execution Quiz. The person Executed? Ananda. Hotel accommodations provided by Occidental Grand Flamenco Xcaret.
I'm not happy about the show, but I'll watch again. Hey, wait a minute... Ananda was in the opening credits playing a game that wasn't in tonight's show, throwing balls at other players... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:04 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Monday, January 05, 2004
Sadly, it's not "What is Electricity?"
Well, my buddy Joe returned as 1 Day Champion on Jeopardy today after his $14,800 win on Friday.
He was in second place throughout the game, and just couldn't pull it out in Final Jeopardy, so he reign as Champion only lasted a day.
Anyway, good job, Joe! It's still pretty damn cool even being selected to be on the show, let alone winning!
posted at 07:10 PM | Link | Friends § |
Friday, January 02, 2004
What is Playing Banjo?
Back in October, when I was up in Wisconsin with "The Away Team", My buddy/former co-worker/former boss Joe told us he was going out to Culver City, California back in October.
So what, you may ask?
Well, he was going to compete on Jeopardy!
The show aired today - and he won! Took him to Final Jeopardy to do it, but he did it! Next week I think is Kid's Week, so he won't be back for another week. Of course, in accordance with his agreement, Joe can't talk about it. But, how cool is that?
Here's a link to his "Hello to Chicago" video from the Jeopardy website.
Here's an MPEG video (6Mb) of Alex Trebec and Joe talking during the intoduction segment.
posted at 04:08 PM | Link | Friends § |
Sunday, December 28, 2003
My Big Fat Obnoxious FiancéI was watching the Bears game on Fox (which I had to turn off... I couldn't stomach any more of this sorry season), when I saw a promo for a new Fox reality show premiering January 19 - My Big Fat Obnoxious Fiancé. A woman is matched-up with... a big, fat, obnoxious guy and for $1,000,000 must endure an engagement and wedding.
Oh, God... Fox sure knows how to mess with a genre...
Oh, in case you want to see what I'm talking about, I captured the promo here.
posted at 01:22 PM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Saturday, December 20, 2003
Oh, just get on with it already...I've been subjected to the absolute lamest publicity segments on the Channel 5 news this week. They built "Studio5" which is one of these studios that's on a plaza with glass around the studio down on Michigan Avenue - think Today Show in Chicago. They've been promoting this damn thing for well over a week. I really don't understand how this is going to help the local early morning news market at all. Well, they finally opened it this morning. Two things jumped out at me - they don't have a clue on how to light the set. I mean Andy Avalos was in from of a chromakey-green backdrop to do the weather and he had shadows all over him, not to mention the anchors being underlit (and shadowy) against the bright plaza behind them. It's awful. The audio levels were all over the place or non-existent. It's not like the audio guy doesn't know how to run a board... does he?
It's all a case of making the studio a news story, which I just hate. They even had Gov. Rod Blagojevich and Mayor Richard M. Daley out in the alleged "crowd" outside on the plaza (along with Rev.Jesse Jackson, who and former POW Shoshona Johnson, who was in town).
Ugh.
posted at 11:16 AM | Link | TV § |
Sunday, November 30, 2003
VH1 - Big in '03
Tonight, VH1 ran an ersatz awards show called Big in 03, which celebrated things that happened in 2003. Kathy Griffin was on to introduce - what else? - the Really Big Reality Star category. The coolest thing for a Reality TV fan was that she introduced the cast of many shows (some had only 3 people, some had what looked like the whole damn cast), so it was a hoot to see - on one stage - the casts of: The Amazing Race 4, I'm a Celebrity, Get Me out of Here!, Who Wants to Marry my Dad?, Survivor: The Amazon, Big Brother 4, Boy Meets Boy, Average Joe, Joe Millionaire, American Idol, Temptation Island 3, Last Comic Standing, Fear Factor, Paradise Hotel, Extreme Makeover, Race to the Altar, Mr. Personality, For Love or Money, and Cupid.
Oh, the winner of the category? Evan Marriott.
posted at 10:26 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Monday, November 24, 2003
Elisabeth done goodposted at 07:23 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Tuesday, November 18, 2003
Fab 5 Season 2 THEME
Holy crap! The Fab 5 are back with a vengeance this season! GREAT jobs on tonight's show!
posted at 09:23 PM | Link | TV § |
Thursday, November 13, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 9 THEME
Shocking! Simply Shocking!
read more of this entry »
So, the new Balboa tribe wakes-up after their first Tribal Council. Rupert tells Lil that she's a Drake, not a Morgan and he actually talks her up and pumps her up a bit - something she has sorely needed. Burton and Ryan O. also talk. A lot of strategizing, which you would expect out of a new tribe. Burton goes fishing and spears a ray. It turns out that this stingray shocks Burton. Rupert comes over and, sure enough, it shocks Rupert! It's an electric ray of some sort! Cool! They eat it anyway. (As Rupert says, it's "a high voltage meal".) Rupert talks about enjoying being able to feed the former Morgan tribemembers. Balboa goes to their first individual Reward Challenge. It's a typical slingshot challenge (hitting plates with marbles), and they're playing for a complete breakfast meal. Rupert wins the challenge, but in typical Rupert style, since Burton gave him his immunity at Tribal Council last night, he gives the reward to Burton. Burton gets to take a partner to the meal. You can hear Rupert under his breath say "Take Lill" and he does. Well, I guess she's a fellow Outcast, so it sort of makes sense.
The next morning, Burton says he's not thinking about is Drake tribe any longer - he wants to win this for the Outcast tribe, and he has no loyalty to Christa, Sandra and Rupert. Burton and Jon talk about getting rid of Rupert. (What? Ye bastards! Not the Spirit of The Pearl Islands!) The boat picks-up Burton and Lill for breakfast. Over the huge breakfast spread, Burton pumps Lill to get rid of Rupert and Lill, basically, pledges her undying allegiance to Burton. Back at camp, Christa and Sandra and talking about the same thing - getting rid of Rupert. Sandra then gets Tijuana and Darrah and they go for a walk. Back at breakfast Burton is still working Lill that Burton, Lill and Jon will be the top 3. (ed: gag)
There's a discussion about how lazy the Morgan tribe is. Christa says they just lay around. Tijuana thinks the Balboa tribe works a "great deal more than is necessary." It's time for the Immunity Challenge. It's a local pirate lore test. Correct answers earn the players coconuts, which they then place in a bin in front of another player. When a player gets 5 coconuts in their bin, they're eliminated from the challenge. Though everyone seems to have talked voting out Rupert, they concentrate on other players in the game and Rupert wins Immunity.
Ryan O. gets the feeling he's the one that is going at Tribal Council tonight. He tries to swing a 5-on-4 vote with Darrah and Tijuana and maybe work Jon & Burton. Christa talks to Jon about voting Burton off (obviously without knowing about Jon and Burton's alliance). Jon says it should be Ryan. Burton joins them and concurs. Jon in an interview says he will stab anyone in the back if it benefits him. (I totally believe him. Such a prick.)
At Tribal Council, Balboa votes-off Ryan Opray, the 31-year-old electrician from Los Gatos, California by a 8-1 vote. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Monday, November 10, 2003
No Opportunity Wasted
Carol and I were watching TV tonight and saw a commercial with Amazing Phil (as in Phil Keoghan, host of the smartest Reality TV series in production - The Amazing Race), who is producing and hosting a new series for The Discovery Channel - No Opportunity Wasted. In a nutshell: Seventy-two hours. Three-thousand dollars. And a chance to realize your dream — on national TV. Is there something that you've always wanted to do? This could be your chance!
posted at 08:58 PM | Link | Reality TV | 2 comments § |
Thursday, November 06, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 8 THEME
What the...? - PART 2
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I'm not sure how this week will top last week... all we seem to have to look forward to is dissent from the tribes when The Outcasts come back... but who will they be?
In another Survivor first, the Outcast tribe goes to Tribal Council to vote two people back into the game. Everybody makes their case to re-enter the game. The tribe votes. Burton Roberts, the 31-year-old marketing executive from San Francisco, California was voted-in first, and Lillian Morris, the 51-year-old scout troop leader from Cincinnati, Ohio, was second. Burton and Lill grab their torches and relight them. Jeff sends each of the other four off, one at a time. Lill then choses the Buff of her new tribe from a container... and it's Morgan. Each of the Outcasts goes back to their original tribe.
The storm has rolled in and Drake is talking in the dark about who could be coming back. Burton walks back into the shelter. Even though he was booted out, he came back to camp with an upbeat attitude and the tribe seems revitalized. At Morgan, Lill returns and it's just an OK reception. Lill seems a bit peaved (can you blame her?). Back at Drake, Rupert pulls Burton to the side and lays it out for him why he voted him out. Rupert viewed Burton as all the punks that teased him growing up. Burton felt bad and apologized and strategized, promising to vote out Jon at the the next council. Lill is back at Morgan, doing the work she's always done there, while everyone else has no energy left. Andrew seems bitter about the entire situation, having Lill back.
Burton, Rupert, and Christa go off looking for their lemon tree and talk about how decptive Jon has been and how much he's lied. It sounds like Jon is the target of the next Tribal Council. Back at Morgan, the tribe cooks the last of their rice - they are now officially out of food.
The tribes meet for the next challenge. Jeff asks Sandra about the food situation and she talks about the fact that there isn't a food situation - they have rice and corn and yesterday they had about 15 pounds of fish and refried beans at night and everyone went to sleep full. Andrew hangs his head in dispair. Andrew says they are surviving only on mussels and coconut.
Jeff asks if anybody came here today expecting a merge and counting on it to save them. Andrew says he disn't expect a merge or a big buffet under some table (huh? did he mean on a table? or under a tree?) Jeff says: "Once again the game changes when you least expect it. Drop your Buffs. You're merging." There's a lot of excitement, mostly from Morgan as Drake doesn't seem all that happy. Jeff passes out new black Buffs (fitting, don't you think?) Andrew takes his a burries his face in it as if he's hiding the fact that he's crying. The have to come up with a new name, paint a new flag (we never see that anymore on the show...) and they're going to live on Drake's beach. This almost means that they now compete for individual immunity, and that's what they're competeing for now. It's a variation on Keel Hauling, but they're swimming laps underneath piers in diffrent heats. Jon in his heat hits a cross at the end of the pier (like he's out of control) and falls in (he!). The final heat is between Rupert, Jon, Burton and Ryan O. The each have to do 5 laps, this time transferring gold medalions from a cross at the back of the pier to the front. In almost a photo finish, Burton wins over Rupert and wins immunity. Jeff tells everyone how this all works (like we all know already, I mean this is the seventh season of the show, but Burton already has immunity because he re-entered the game, so he can re-assign the immunity if he choses), and then Jeff says: "Oh, and one more thing, guys. Savage - that buffet you referred to? It's waiting for you back at camp." Everyone celebrates and paddles off.
The feast was ribs, lamb, bread, cheese, nuts, oranges, on a table with silver goblets (very Pirate Booty-looking), The new tribe is named Balboa (same as Rupert's dead snake). Then the game play begins... there's additional discussions about getting rid of Jon (by the Morgan tribe!) and Drake finds Lill is interested in "coming over" to Drake and vote off a Morgan. Andrew wants Lill to vote-off a Drake and she takes offense to this saying that that Morgan still wants her out.
At the Tribal Council, Burton re-assigns his immunity to Rupert since he's already immune. Andrew Savage, the 40-year-old attorney from Chicago, Illinois, is voted-out 6-4 over Jon.
Damn, I'm upset for two reasons... first, I think Andrew played the game so well, he "deserved" to at least be on the jury (now, he's not - he didn't survive long enough) and second, I really want that grinnin' Jon off that friggin' island and out of the game! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, October 30, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 7 THEME
What the...? - PART 1
BEST. SURVIVOR. EPISODE. EVER.
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It's dark at the Drake tribe and out of the darkness you hear a booming "Who the hell voted for me? Who the hell voted for me? JON??? Who the hell voted for me?" It's Rupert and he's going after pissant Jon for voting for him at Tribal Council. Rupert is pissed, but he gets over it. How the hell is Jon still around??? The next day it's raining and Morgan looks like they're in bad shape. They haven't been getting any fish since rupert left. They're eating beans. Osten looks like he's checking out again. The damn bastard looks like he's tired and depressed... and like he wants to quit. Drake finds Tree Mail (or Sea Mail as they say) and they realize that there's a challenge coming up. The tribe decides they want coconut popcorn before the challenge (if you fry-up coconut meat it's supposed to taste like popcorn). Everybody except Shawn, that is. More verbal sparring ensues between Jon & Shawn about the damn coconut popcorn.
It's time for the challenge. When the tribes arrive, Jeff starts to talk: Nineteen days, you've been out here in the Pearl Islands. You have survived the bugs, the lack of food, miserable living conditions and the ever shifting tribal dynamics. Together, you've voted six people out of this game - three from Morgan, three from Drake. The reasons you voted these people out vary. The only real common trait among the six people you voted out is that they're no longer in this game.
But that may soon change.
Morgan, Drake - your past has come back to haunt you.
Come in, guys. And with that, you see the six former players literally come out of the bushes. They have purple bandannas and Burton is carrying a purple banner. The six people you have voted out return now as a third tribe.
Nicole. Skinny Ryan. Lill. Burton. Michelle. and Trish.
You guys have a tribe name?
(Burton replies) "We're The Outcasts."
The Outcasts. Not unlike the pirate days, they got tired of somebody, felt they were no longer worthy, they shipped them out to sea - left them for dead. Typically, they died. But every so often, they didn't, and when they came back they usually had one thing on their mind. I'm guessing it's the same with you. Michelle?
(Michelle replies) "Revenge, baby. All about revenge." The music comes up. Close-up shots of the existing tribe members' faces. And... commercial.
When we come back from the break, Jeff describes how this will work: (why is it that when they show Jon, he's always got that smile on his face that makes me want to smash him in the teeth to get rid of it?) the Outcasts will compete against Morgan and Drake in a Three-Tribe Challenge. If Morgan or Drake lose to the Outcasts, they will have to go to Tribal Council tonight and vote somebody out. The Outcasts will go to Tribal Council and vote somebody in to replace the member you lost. If both tribes lose to the Outcasts, both will go to Tribal Council separately, both will vote somebody out and two Outcasts will come back into the game. If any Outcasts make it back into this game, they are Immune at the next Tribal Council to give them a fair shot at integrating with their new tribe and getting back into this game.
The challenge is a rescue to get out of three different cages. It's a bit convoluted, so I won't go into details. From the start, The Outcasts take the lead, but Drake gets ahead. When it comes down to the end and getting a key ring with a pole, the Outcasts get the keys first and win. Drake and Morgan have to go to Tribal Council and vote people out, while the Outcasts vote two people back into the game for the first time in the history of Survivor. Holy crap, this is going to get interesting...
The tribes go back to camp, and everybody at Morgan feels the same way - the Outcasts must go at the first opportunity, ans everyone is frustrated. Then Osten tells everyone to vote him off. His body isn't functioning as well as he would like, so he can't compete as well, so he wants out. Huh? Have you looked at this guy??? What the hell is wrong with you, Osten? At Drake, a purple crab is crawling around their shelter (Hmmmm... purple? The color of the Outcast Tribe? Coincidence?) Sandra asks for volunteers to go home. To no one's surprise, nobody volunteers. Rupert, Christa and Sandra talk among themselves and Sandra says they should just ask the other two (Jon & Shawn) to make their case on why they should stay (!) and they agree!
Drake goes to Tribal Council first and votes off Shawn Cohen, the 28-year-old advertising sales executive from New York, New York, in a four-to-one decision.
Morgan then goes to Tribal Council. The weather has turned nasty - it's raining with lightning and thunder with heavy winds.
We are now treated to another historic moment in Survivor history - something called "laying down your torch":
Jeff: Well Drake has been here and gone. They were lucky with the weather. Unfortunately, you're not. Been a while since you guys have been here. Had a nice run. Savage - what happened when you guys got back to camp? Suddenly you're faced with an unexpected Tribal Council and you're going to have to vote somebody out.
Andrew: Soon as we get back to camp, Osten steps forward, says that his mind and his body have shut down and that he needs to go. He can't take it another day. Absolutely insists that we put his name on the parchment and vote him out tonight.
Jeff: You had enough, Osten?
Osten: Ah... going into this I was like I want to go as far as my body would allow me go. And right now, my body is done. It's exasperated. (ed. huh?) Every bone in my body hurts. Ahh... I just can't go any further. I'll be more of a liability than an asset to my team, and I refuse to do that.
Jeff: Savage - how much of this experience is about finding out what you are made of?
Andrew: It's all about that, Jeff. It's all mental. Your mind controls your body. If your body is shutting down it's because you... in my opinion... it's because your mind is shutting down.
Jeff: OK. So, Osten, your body, although it appears to smack anybody's body that's still left in this game (shot of Tijuana smiling), I would argue probably that your mind has had enough as well. So, when you hear a guy like Burton come back and say today "You don't know what down is until you've been humiliated by being voted out," and yet he still has a burning desire enough to be back in this game that he'll risk it again, is there any part of you that questions your own will to go on when your body may be saying "I'm tired"?
Osten: Absolutely not. I equate my temple to a car. (yes, Osten refers to his body as a temple) If it has no gas it can not run.
Jeff: T - from what I gathered at the 2nd Tribal Council, it was Osten who was the mysterious person that wanted to quit. So this goes back to Day 5 or 6. What's going on from your point of view right now with Osten?
Tijuana: Um, I can't dictate to Osten or understand where he's coming from. This experience may not be enough of a sacrifice for him versus his health. It is for me. I'm willing to go until probably I'm dead here - either that or I'm voted out. But that's just me.
Jeff: Darrah - I'm watching your body shrink by the day - pulling your top up, nothing staying on. You want out of this game?
Darrah: No, I do not want out of this game. Like T said, you know, I guess you'll have to carry me away, because I'm going to leave this game until I have to.
Jeff: Rhino - What's your take on this happening tonight? Is it "You know what? Fine, Osten, you wanted to quit twice. Go home."
Ryan O: As far as I'm concerned, if was me, I would be clawing and scratching and have to have pneumonia and stuff but, you know, Osten is going to do his thing. That's... that's his wishes. I'm going to grant him his wishes.
Jeff: So, I'm going to go back to you, Osten. I think you know I'm not picking on you.
Osten: That's fine, if you are.
Jeff: So when you hear your four other tribemates, who obviously adore you, when you hear them say "I wouldn't quit. Not for nothn', Jeff", you can't tell me, somewhere in the back of your mind, there's a little part of that says "I am quitting"?
Osten: Take it for whatever you want. mean, if you want to say "quitting", you want to say "stopping". Yeah, I'm "quitting". My health to me is more important to me... ah... than a million dollars I guess right now. Does the means justify the ends? No, it doesn't.
Jeff: Let me ask you something, Osten. Have you wondered what the hell you're doing out here?
Osten: You know what? I'm clearly out of my element. As a situation I would of thought that hey, give it a shot. I can at least say that I went and tried it. I'd like to have been successful. Apparently I'm not going to be. But you know, I won't live my life saying "what if?".
Jeff: Savage - you're shaking your head.
Andrew: If were to do this I would have a "what if?" Flat out. What if what if I went another two days. What if I went one more day. And, then but that's just me. I don't pretend to walk in his shoes, Jeff. I can't... understand what he's going through. It's his decision.
Jeff: Well, Osten - I don't pretend to know what you're thinking either, but I know this: I've been to about a hundred Tribal Councils. Never, ever seen anybody lay down their torch. So, this is a first for me. Seems unanimous. I just want to make sure. Savage - you're going to indulge Osten, sending him home?
Andrew: Yes.
Jeff: Darrah?
Darrah: Yeah.
Jeff: Rhino?
Ryan O.: Yep.
Jeff: T?
Tijuana: Yes.
Jeff: No need to vote and waste any more time. Grab your torch>
(Osten grabs his torch and places it into the ceremonial holder. We then hear Jeff say something he never said before at Tribal Council)
Jeff: Osten - per your wishes - (he snuffs-out the torch) Go home.
(Osten leaves the Tribal Council area. Jeff pulls his torch out of the holder and throws it to the ground)
Jeff: All due respect to Osten, people work too damn hard to get in this game and fight to stay alive. If he wants to lay his torch down so it shall be.
Jeff: Who knows maybe this is the best thing to happen to the Morgan Tribe. All I know is you will head back to camp. Soon after, a new tribe member will arrive and I can promise you this: that person wants to be in this game.
Jeff: Grab your torches, head on back. Good night.
And with that, Osten Taylor, the 27-year-old equity trade manager from Boston, Massachusetts, becomes the first quitter in the history of Survivor.
Remember I had mentioned that Jeff Probst mentioned that there would be a big regret in this game. This was it.
Later, Mark Burnett in a print interview said that he had only made one mistake in casting Survivor over all these years - it was Osten.
Osten, unlike Shawn, was not given the privilege of recording any parting remarks.
Best. Episode. Ever.
Part II is next week. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, October 23, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 6 THEME
Me and My Snake
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We start off with Drake re-hashing Tribal Council. Balboa the snake dies, and Rupert buries him (so he won't be used for bait). At Morgan, we see their new mascot - a pelican - that flies in from the water. Ryan takes to it, names him Pelican Pete, and the bird follows him around to the amusement of the tribe. Osten freaks out (like he does at all animals on the island) and starts sharpening his machete, threatening to kill the bird and ruffling the feathers of his tribe (did I really say that?). Drake decides to rebuild the floor of their shelter. Shawn disagrees, and an argument ensues between Shawn and Jon (Shawn may have been wrong, but you know Jon is just an ass...). The Reward Challenge is firing actual canons at targets for a grill, utensils, spices, 3 very large lobsters and 6 steaks. It was interesting to see cannonballs hook and slice! Drake wins and enjoys the food. They send Jon to plunder Morgan. Bad move. Very bad move. He goes over and is welcomed by Morgan. Things go well. He takes a cooking pot while Morgan thought they would have wanted the shower. In a nice diplomatic move, Morgan allows Jon to wash and shampoo his hair. As I said, Jon is an ass. He tells Morgan (after he takes a cooking pot) that Drake threw that immunity challenge. Holy crap. You are an idiot. Morgan is upset. Andrew, in a narration, calls Jon a "little pissant". They're pissed and fired-up now. The tribes show up for the Immunity Challenge. Christa looks like hell - her face is full of bug bites and Jeff mentions this. The challenge is strategy & endurance - Tribe members from each tribe would be forced to hold a pole up on their shoulders behind their neck. Periodically, weight would be added to the pole. Members of each tribe would determine to which of the opposing tribe members' poles the weight would be added. The last tribe standing would win immunity. Andrew, Osten, and Ryan with the strategy of Tijuana and Darrah go up against Rupert, Shawn, and Christa??? Oh, this is so wrong... Jon and Trish doing strategy? Osten is the first one out at 160 pounds in weights (plus 15 pounds for the bar), then Rupert loses his pole, Shawn goes down at 140, Christa finally falls at 160 pounds - giving Morgan the win. Bad, bad, strategy. Back at camp, Trish turns the tribe against Rupert to vote out tonight. Huh? Oh, oh... the title of the show is "Me and My Snake" - if the snake died, will Rupert go as well? Sandra talks to Christa about the situation, and Christa alerts Rupert. Rupert talks to Shawn, forms a little alliance and then set their sights on Trish. Jon talks to Shawn and he plays along with the unsuspecting Jon. at Tribal Council, Trish Dunn, the 42-year-old sales executive from Annapolis, Maryland is voted-out 4-2.
Next week: Holy Crap! The former tribemates come back! And compete! It's "The Twist to end all Twists"!!! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, October 16, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 5 THEME
Everyone's Hero
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We start with Drake talking about the after-effects of their first Tribal Council. Next it's time to see how Rupert is doing over at Morgan. Morgan decides to move their shelter away from the incoming tides. Rupert, of course, helps out. Osten doesn't want to move the shelter. He's easily outvoted. Rupert just takes it all in. Drake starts talking about their fears that Rupert is giving away secrets. Boy, you people just don't know Rupert. Rupert goes fishing and sort of teaches Ryan how to use the spear. Rupert catches some nice fish for lunch. During the Reward Challenge, we see that: 1) Rupert makes a difference 2) Drake can't work together paddling a canoe and 3) Jon is still a friggin' idiot and must be wiped off the face of the earth. Drake's canoe goes everywhere and actually goes off the course. It's not a contest - Morgan wins the reward. Rupert is given the option to partake in the reward with Morgan and go back to Drake later or to go back to Drake now - and he choses to go home with Drake. He is welcomed back and tells them how bad it is back at Morgan. Andrew comes over from Morgan to plunder Drake's camp for the first time (he brings two coconuts as gifts). Rupert quietly goes up to Andrew and says "You can take whatever the #$&* you want, but I'm going to show you what I want you to take." Rupert makes a great offer - knowing that Morgan only has about two more bowls of rice left for food, Rupert pours some rice into a bag for Andrew. Big kudos for Rupert. Man, this guy knows how to be a pirate and knows how to play the game. Rupert finds a snake floating in the water that's injured - and takes it as a pet and names it "Balboa". (Next week's episode is titled "Me and My Snake".) The Immunity Challenge is this season's gross food challenge - blending up multiple seafood items and drinking them. Everybody does well and it comes down to a tie breaker and Sandra looses to Darrah. Three straight wins for Morgan. At Tribal Council, Drake votes out Michelle Tesauro, the 22-year-old student from Pittstown, NJ by a 6-1 vote. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, October 15, 2003
Where's Jed?
Looks like NBC folded at the last minute and pulled West Wing in favor of a Law & Order: Criminal Intent rerun. Sounds like they're rolling over knowing they can't beat Fox's baseball coverage tonight. All the NBC website says (other than having the corrected schedule for tonight) is "Tonight's West Wing episode will air 10/29"
posted at 08:04 PM | Link | TV § |
Friday, October 10, 2003
Oh, this can't be good... THEME
I don't know, I just don't see this going anywhere... and if it does, I have no clue how this could impact Big Brother (or even the CBS Morning Show)...
CBS head Les Moonves is dating Julie Chen.
posted at 04:22 PM | Link | TV § |
Thursday, October 09, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 4 THEME
Pick a Castaway... Any Castaway
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Oh, my... the Morgan tribe goes 0-6 as they lose the Reward Challenge and almost lose Osten in the process. Osten almost drowns and has to be rescued by Andrew and Ryan O. (or Rhino as they're calling him). Drake wins an old fashion manual sewing machine and fabric to make new clothing (though Rupert makes another skirt for himself). Drake gets the final clue for finding their Treasure Chest and they dig it up, full of odds and ends (candles, blankets, mosquito netting, honey, sugar, and even some chocolate), but some people complain that it's stinks. No, literally, it stinks - it got a little damp and some things were a little moldy. Some people didn't like it all that much (Jon, specifically... when are they going to get rid of him?) Trish plunders the Morgan Tribe and takes their lantern. Andrew and Ryan O. went searching for a good fishing spot and get into a dangerous situation by getting lost without any water. Worse yet, they eventually get back to camp without any fish. Drake is not really a happy crew, and some discuss throwing the immunity challenge just to get rid of other tribemembers. When the tribes arrive for the Immunity Challenge, Jeff announces how the game works and says there's also something else that goes with it that will be revealed later. Sure enough, Drake loses giving Morgan their first win. Then Jeff unrolls the scroll he was holding. "Chose one tribemember from the opposing tribe to come live with you until the next challenge. Here's what that means - you are going to chose a tribemember from Drake right now. They will leave with you right now. They will not go to Tribal Council tomorrow night. They cannot be voted out. They will participate with you in the next Reward Challenge and share in that reward if you win." Morgan picks Rupert. Drake has a bad day with lots of scheming. At their first Tribal Council, as Jeff talks to Jon, he realizes that Jon is drunk. I really thought he was going to tear him apart. In the end, Drake votes out Burton Roberts, the 31-year-old Marketing Executive from San Francisco in a 5-2 vote. This is going to cause lots of problems as there is betrayal involved (by the drunk). « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, October 02, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 3 THEME
United We Stand, Divided We... ?
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The Morgan tribe has now started Survivor: Pearl Islands 0-5 in the challenges. The are plundered again, this time for the large pot they use to boil water. Losing the tribe's last fish hook seals the fate of Lillian Morris, the 51-year-old scout troop leader from Cincinnati, Ohio, who was voted out of the tribe in a 5-1 vote. In a Survivor first, we see Jeff unable to extinguish Lill's torch on the first try. Symbolic?
More later... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor | 1 comment § |
Friday, September 26, 2003
"A Foreign Affair" THEME
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I left Montclair/Chino and tried my damnedest to get to Burbank by 5:30. But that's over 25 miles away, and it's a Friday rush hour in Los Angeles. The traffic is horrendous and I decided to override "Wendy" (That's what I called my Hertz Neverlost GPS Navigation system) and found a route that had no traffic. I programmed the wrong end point, though. I'm heading to Universal Studios, but I didn't want the main gate. I needed to go in the back way, and enter at Barnham Blvd. and Lakeside Plaza Drive.
I made it at 6pm and park in a special lot after I clear the security at the gate. I have to walk through a metal detector in the middle of the parking lot. I'm at a studio again, and again I can't take any photos. I hate that. I get to stand around and wait. I don't mind. Really. It's a gorgeous evening. The sun is setting, there's a slight breeze and it feels good just to stand around. I'm still in my suit from the funeral today. I had hoped I had enough time to check into the hotel and change before I came here, but there was no way in hell that was going to work out that way. The girls in front of me in line are eating dinner from In-n-Out Burger. That's when I realize that I didn't eat my honey baked ham sandwich during the drive.
There's a bunch of yellow signs everywhere that say "Paramount" and "Enterprise". I wonder if there's something shooting here today?
Two white shuttle buses pull up that have the Paramount Pictures logos on them. We board the buses and head over to Stage 42 at Universal.
I'm here to be in the audience for NBC's new show Coupling. It's a direct rip-off of the BBC version of Coupling (that's shown here on BBC America), which is actually a rip-off of Friends.
Tonight's episode is called "A Foreign Affair" (but the BBC version was called "The Girl with Two Breasts"... I wonder if they're using the same scripts???)
Allan Murray is the warm-up, and for the first time in my life, I actually get picked on a few times, interviewed by Allan, get a t-shirt, get tickets to the Laugh Factory (where he's performing tomorrow night) and I even get some quiet kudos for doing a good job laughing and reacting. Cool.
We get to watch the pilot episode of the show, since it was just on last night and we may not have seen it (I was eating Jack in the Box watching CSI - sorry). The cast is introduced and we start shooting.
Now, this is were it starts to get difficult.
Each scene is shot. The audience is good, the actors are OK, and the script just feels like it needs work. There's a large huddle that happens in front of me after each scene is shot, where there is hardly any major changes made. The scene is then reshot. Almost every scene that we see during the course of the evening is shot three times. It's really difficult as an audience to even try to laugh naturally after seeing the same thing three times in a row. I feel bad for the cast. It almost feels like the life is being sucked-out of the show. The cast is really pretty good. The show is getting scathing reviews, but it's more about the reheated "translated" scripts that seem to almost not work on American television. The original BBC series is a scream and somehow doesn't "translate" well to American prime-time audiences.
The curtain calls come at around 10:15pm and I'm back at my car by 10:25. It's time to get some sleep. It's been a long day. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:25 PM | Link | Travel § |
Thursday, September 25, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 2 THEME
To Quit or Not to Quit
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More pirate antics this week and it feels good! We've got a "Pirate's Booty" buried in each camp, with information coming only if you win reward challenges. Oh, and if you win a team reward challenge, you get to plunder the other team's camp for one object! Cool! It's too bad that Drake keeps winning and Morgan has nothing of value to pillage! So, after so many failures, Morgan kicks out Ryan Shoulders, the 23-year-old produce clerk from Clarksville, Tennessee, in a 5-2 vote (even though Osten, the most buff male of the Morgan tribe can't take it after just a few days on the island and wants to quit - or get voted off).
More later... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Warner Brothers StudiosIt's 9:30am and I pull off of Olive into the parking structure that's also gate 3 for Warner Brothers Studios.
I'm here to do what Carol & I did the last time we were out here - take the Warner Brothers Studios VIP Tour. But, this time, instead of a tour that takes about 2-2½ hours, I'm going to do the Warner Brothers Studios Deluxe VIP Tour and take about double the time. I am soooo excited about this. My sister Diane and Melinda were just here a few weeks ago taking the regular VIP tour, and when I found out they had this Deluxe tour, I had to sign up for that.
Look,if you enjoy movies and/or television, and want to see what a real working studio is like (no trams, no fake or staged productions), you must do this tour.
There's a nice waiting area on the first floor of the parking structure. At about 10:00am, a gentlemen comes around to walk us across the street to go into the main gate - Gate 2. We had to go through a metal detector, and then get on an extended golf cart for the trip across the lot to the tour offices.
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The tour office is not anything like it was back in the 80's, when they only had two tours a day out of a dark, dingy office. Now there's a huge waiting room with costumes and props from ER, Drew Carey, West Wing, Smallville and Gilmore Girls. There's also a little store (but this being Warner Brothers, it looks like stuff that was in the old Warner Brothers Studio Stores).
At 10:30, we are called into a small theater to watch a quick video about the studios and listen to the rules and regulations about the tour. Then one of the tour guides -
Dean Ricca - calls out three names. It's me and 2 ladies from Atlanta. The three of us are going to be on the Deluxe tour! Cool! The small, intimate group should allow us to do some pretty neat things!
One of the major rules - photography is extremely restricted. Movie people are possessive about copyrighted material. Our stuff will be locked-up in our golf cart and we'll only be able to bring them out at specific places. Nuts.
All of the tour groups get into stretched gold carts. Dean has a little gift for us - our own bottle of water for the day. Our first stop is at the Warner Brothers Museum. Its a really nice small museum that has a lot of costumes and props in it. - Like an entire George Clooney area (with costumes from Ocean's Eleven like George's tuxedo, Julia Roberts' gold gown and Brad Pitt's ugly shirt and jacket, his Batman cowl, his costume from The Perfect Storm... hey, did you know they're making Ocean's Twelve?), the Time Machine from The Time Machine (apparently, the thing was pretty dangerous when it was in operation with all of the spinning panels on it. They had to make a 15 foot safety area around it and no one was allowed inside that area otherwise they could get severely injured), the laptops from You've Got Mail, costumes from The Matrix and Christopher Reeve's Superman, a fake Haley Joel Osment and a "David" box from Artificial Intelligence: AI, and the crucifix from The Exorcist (creepy).
The 2nd floor of the museum is all from Harry Potter, like Hagrid's outfit with sling for baby Harry when he delivered him to the Dursley's, boxes and boxes of wands, Dobby the house elf, the set of Harry's room under the stairs, a petrified Hermione when she was in the hospital (spooky!), and Quidditch costumes and the carrying case for the balls and snitch. They had a "working" Sorting Hat that a security guy would place on your head to sort you into the different houses.
We left the golf cart at the museum and the rest of the regular tour people and walked down a street (are these things called "streets"?) to the Eastwood Scoring Stage. This is where scoring is done for productions. (yes, it's named after that Eastwood). It's a gorgeous, wooden stage. Acoustically, it was dead in there - not a single echo or reflection from anything. They were setting up for a recording session. Dean thought it could have been for Matrix Revolutions, even though it's going to be out in just weeks. Did you know that the musicians that play on these soundtracks don't get the sheet music until they sit down to record the piece?
We walked next door to Dubbing rooms 3 & 4. Because it's a working studio, Warner Brothers rents out facilities to anyone. Today, people from Disney were in house to do sound editing on the Saturday morning cartoon The Adventures of Lilo & Stitch. Since we were such a small group, the engineers sat around and talked with us for a while. Then, one of them took us to the "back room" (since the group was small), to show us the equipment used for editing. They're finally starting to edit all digitally, using swappable hard drives. But they still have to keep old analog equipment (including old film audio equipment) because the booming international markets are having studios re-edit existing productions for dubbed versions. They also had an "ISDN Room" which, from a technology perspective isn't that impressive, but from a production value perspective sure is. In the other dubbing room, techs were editing an episode of Third Watch. The ISDN Room allows the editing to be done in Los Angeles while the cast and crew are filming in New York. They use it to view the edits as well as doing ADR work with the actors (ADR is Additional Dialog Recording, or "looping").
We walk back to our golf cart and Dean takes us around the studio property. We can see a lot of construction going on inside a few of the stages. We pass by the ER stage. It's all buttoned-up, but I see a few women walking around in scrubs outside. All of the active stages have tons of trailers outside of them for the actors. They're all from the same company: Star Waggons. Why is it spelled that way? Why, it's because the owner is Lyle Waggoner from the old Carol Burnett Show.
We pull up to Stage 17. Dean has a master key to all of the stages and we go in. It's dark and it takes time to adjust to the light. We walk up some stairs and we're sitting in an audience area for The Drew Carey Show. They're not in production today, but it gives us a chance to sit and talk about a typical weekly sitcom production. The sets are all lined up in a row in front of the audience, with (from right to left) the backyard, Drew's kitchen Drew's living room, Winfred-Louder, and The Warsaw.
We walk next door to Stage 14. Now we're in a hour drama (actually "dramedy") Gilmore Girls. This stage only has all of the new sets that for Yale. Normally, sets are made with paint that looks like wood, or paint that looks like wood flooring, linoleum, or paving. In these sets, it's all real. That's because they want to make sure the look is correct (so that Yale approves!). These are gorgeous sets - hallways, classrooms, dorm rooms, cafeteria (with real pads of butter that seem to be melting...). We get to see how "wild" walls work - the ability to fly a wall out of the way to allow cameras behind to get a different perspective of a set.
Back to the cart and we visit Stage 16 - the largest movie soundstage in the US. We're outside because the doors are open and set construction is going on inside for a new movie with Keanu Reeves called Constantine. The stage is over 75' tall and it has a 25' deep tank in the floor (The Perfect Storm was shot inside here). The stage wasn't always this high. It was a normal studio, but years ago (for reasons I cannot remember exactly) they decided to make it bigger. They had people with hand jacks at every major load-bearing point around the periphery. They had 4 drummers, one in each corner of the building. They started a slow drum beat, and on each beat each person ratcheted their hand jack. When the entire structure moved up 6 inches, they threw in a railroad tie. The kept doing this until it was over 25' off the ground. Then new load bearing walls were built underneath. There was still an inch or two difference between the new walls and the base of the old stage walls, so they brought in huge slabs of ice to put between the two and removed the jacks. As the ice melted, the stage settled on to the new walls!
Back into the cart and we ride all the way across the property. Dean is giddy as he tells us we're going to Transportation since he knows the people there. We walk into a building that is a very large garage and auto/truck repair place for the studio. We walk through a chain link gate and there in front of us is a large group of cars. Dean goes over to one and throws the cover off of it. It's the General Lee from The Dukes of Hazzard. It's an original and it's in working order. There's another one next to it, but it's being used for parts - the last one available for parts. Next to them are two limos under tarps. The taps have the Presidential Seal on them - yes, they're limos for The West Wing. There's a DC Police car and escort motorcycles as well. Then there's a vehicle under canvas that looks pretty damn big. It's a bit wider than normal but it must be close to 30 feet long. It seems to go up in the back, like wings. Dean pulls the cover off - it's the friggin' Batmobile!!!! This is the last one (from Batman & Robin). It's huge. The tires are custom - the tread is the bat logo. Unfortunately, it's not street legal.
We walk over to the prop department and look at tons of furniture in a 4 story building. Set designers were walking through looking for items and tagging them to use for their own productions. Every once in a while you pass a piece of furniture that is so unique and it seems so familiar and yet you can't figure out what it's from. There's a pair of lamps that were listed as "Tiffany-style" that were used in one of the Batman movies. After they were hung, one of the art people took a good look at them and actually find a real Tiffany mark on them, They're no longer available for rental.
It's already 1pm and it's time for lunch. We jump in the cart and ride over to the Studio Commissary. We have passes for a complimentary lunch, so we head inside. The facility has only been open for 3 weeks. It's a gorgeous facility (as commissaries go), with many "stations" inside. The most popular one is "Paquito Mas" which is a mexican food chain, which is not included in our complimentary lunch. We all go to the Pasta bar and I get some Penne with a Tomato & Garlic sauce. Damn, that was good. I'm impressed. As we're sitting at a table having lunch,
Sherry Stringfield came through the line. She looked great, and looked shorter and thinner in real life than on TV (could be the white coat she always has to wear). After lunch we saw Jon Cryer walking into the Commissary.
Dean has been working the radio. He's trying to get permission from a production company to gain access to a set. We start driving around the lot when the radio crackles to life. We are given clearance. We head across the lot to Stage 23. It looks like just another soundstage... until we turn the corner on the back side. The exterior of the stage is... the side portico to the White House. We're going to see the set for THE WEST WING! Outside are the Star Waggons for the stars. There are 2 Jamaican flags flying over Dulé Hill's trailer, and a flamingo wind whirligig thing over Allison Janney's trailer (remember - her character's Secret Service code name is "Flamingo"). There's also a basketball hoop and a huge deck with chairs and tables for R&R time.
We walk into the "White House". The set is dark. The cast and crew are at another facility shooting scenes inside the Air Force One set. This side entrance is alongside C.J. Cregg's office.. We step into CJ's office. There's no goldfish on the desk, but everything else is there, including briefing notes on the desk as well as "while you were out" phone messages from Josh. Dean points out something we saw at the Gilmore Girls set. All of the windows on the set can pivot. This allows the crew to tilt the windows ever so slightly to make sure the reflections doesn't show a crew or anything off-set. Take a look next time you watch the show - you'll see windows just slightly out of "flush".
We walk into Josh's office. Dean tells us a story of a congressman who visited the set and actually saw his name on the blackboard in Josh's office as voting "Nay" against some bill going through the house. In a twisted piece of reality, the congressman actually erased his name and put it on the "Yea" side, Then he proceeded to write a message on a yellow legal pad to the character Josh telling him why he changed his vote.
We walk through the bullpen, past Donna's office. The entire set all fits together so that you can have those long "pedaconferences" done in all one shot. Wow. We go into the Roosevelt Room. Apparently the real Roosevelt Room doesn't have all these french-style door in it. When real White House staff people visit, they always ask why there's all those people walking around outside the doors. I guess either they never see them or they just don't have the people walking around in the real place. The Mural Room is across the hall. This room doesn't exist in the real White House, but was built for The American President. (Did you know that these are the same sets?) We see how the sets are lit using what look like spheres like paper lanterns. It diffuses the light for effect. Also, the set tops actually have a ceiling of muslin or canvas on top of them - something we haven't seen on any other set.
We go through another entrance and there is Charlie's and Deborah Fiderer's desks. There's a painting on the wall of an American flag done in kids hand prints. Apparently there have been a lot of letters asking where someone could get a copy of it. Turns out it's just something that one of the art people put together with their kids.
So, if we're here, that must mean that if we walk through this door we're in... The Oval Office. Oh, this is friggin' cool. Then the three of us just had to do it.
We each took turns sitting in President Josiah 'Jed' Bartlet's chair. Sitting on the desk in front of the chair was that small book of the US Constitution. Not a great chair but what an interesting view!
We briefly walk through the door "outside" which is where that long outside corridor outside the White House is, usually where President Bartlet goes outside for a cigarette. The backdrop is actually a photo of the exact views from the same places in the White House. The Clinton administration allowed the crew to come and photograph it. In fact, underneath one of the bushes on the backdrop, you can see Socks the cat!
A guard comes over, saying he has to lock up the set. We quickly walk through the rest of the set. We brush by Leo's office door and we look in toward Toby and Will's office but it's pitch dark - it's the only set with a real acoustical tile ceiling. If you look, you always see the ceiling in the shots around those offices. We pass by that "Visitor's Entrance" lobby, with its marble floors (actually paint) and columns (which are movable) nd the Presidential seal in the floor.
Then, it's back out the portico entrance and we leave the set.
Wow.
We drive off to "The Mill" Here's is were, under one roof, everything is built. Lumber shops, metal shops, plaster molding. It's all here in huge shops. Unfortunately, it's getting later in the day and the shops are pretty empty. The Scenic Art department is here, painting backdrops. It's a huge room that has a 35' drop on either side of the room. This allows the backdrops to be raised or lowered to paint - the painters never have to work on a ladder. We go into the basement to the Large Format Digital Printing shop. Here' instead of painting backdrops, here a large format digital printer prints backdrops and signage. this allows the use of digital images such as accurate photographs to be used. The printer looks like it's at least 10'-12' wide. When the piece is larger than that, a special microwave seamer is used to put multiple pieces together. Today, the printer is spitting out large advertising posters for Elf.
Our next stop is actually an appointment. Somebody wanted to meet us. We go to Costuming and meet Costuming Manager Elaine Maser. She's been doing costuming on productions for quite a while. We go into one of the large "Star" fitting rooms. We sit down and talk for at least 30-45 minutes about costuming and color palettes of productions. She even brought some wacky costumes for us to try on and "play dress-up with". I wound up getting into some Camelot thing (that looked more Moroccan than Camelot). Talk about feeling special, this was it. the head of costuming for Warner Brothers wanted to talk to us. This was so special, two other tour guides joined us so they could get the info as well. Wow.
We went downstairs. Here was the costuming "lockers" for all of the shows in production. We peeked into a few of them. They're about the size of a semi trailer, full of costumes, each group clearly listed for each actor. West Wing has three lockers, one of which is just uniforms. I looked into another locker and saw Mathew Perry's wardrobe - could he be coming back to the West Wing? There's laundry areas down her, too.
We then went into the costume rental area. Each aisle is the length of a football field, 3 racks high with ladders. Everything is sorted into categories. If you need ball gowns, suits, maternity wear, men's fedoras - they're all here, all cataloged and inventoried. Rentals are either single week (this allows music video shoots just to rent for about a week of production) or 12-weeks. (They don't rent to employees for Halloween - Dean asked - though that would be wickedly cool). The end wall that we were standing in front of was all womens shoes, sorted by color, then size. The whole wall. This was a really cool stop. I didn't think I'd enjoy it but I really did. Elaine made us feel "special"
It's off to the back lot now. We have our cameras and everything looks like we can shoot what we want. The main town square area is all dressed-up for what looks like a Fall Festival of some sort for the Gilmore Girls. I think the place is called Stars Hallow (sorry, I don't watch the show). I remember the town square from O Brother, Where Art Thou?. Dean knows I'm from chicago, so he's excited as we go to the next exterior set - it's the exterior of County General Hospital for ER. Specifically, the ambulance bay. But we can't get into the actual ambulance bay area - there is a crew in there working on pyrotechnics for a hoot (hmmm... another explosion in the ER?) Good old Doc Magoo's is gone (it burned down last season), replaced by a convenience store. We go around the back side to a street area that is being set for an episode of The Practice (no pictures here). Next to the street exterior is a studio parking lot. If you look closely, there is a box painted across quite a few parking spaces. Looking at the backside of the sets, It turns out that this parking lot gets re-dressed and it's the helipad on top of County General. (Yes, this is where Romano lost his arm.)
It's time to go back to the tour office. Time? 4:45! It's the longest Deluxe tour they've ever run at 6 hours and 15 minutes. We say our goodbye's to Dean and catch another golf cart back to Gate 2.
OK people, listen up. If you are in the Los Angeles area and can carve out about 5 hours of time and can spend about $95, DO THIS TOUR. You will not be sorry.
Now I'm off to my hotel. I've got at least a 30 mile ride ahead of me... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 04:46 PM | Link | Travel § |
Wednesday, September 24, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 33 - FINALE THEME
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Here it is, the final episode of the season. The first segment is about Alison and Jun in the house alone, and how they're feeling after the final eviction. Then we see the jury amd Robert joined then while they were at CBS (aw, no Jury House for Robert). There's a lot of discussion on how the finalists played. This past weekend, the Jury asked a question of each finalist. (The girls were upset that they couldn't see the Jury during the Q&A.) The questions were tough and pointed. The girls twisted and squirmed in their chairs. The jusry didn't feel some of the answers were good, or even accurate or pertinent at times. Then we see the actual voting process - putting the keys of the winner into the box. After the votes were cast, the jury was sequestered again and shown the complete season of the show. (Prior to this, they never saw any Diary Room footage or any footage of private conversations talking about other people). Then, everyone (Jury and others) came together and confronted each other on their issues in the house as a "round table discussion". All of them are shown live with Julie Chen in her little studio outside the house. They pack up, walk across the bridge and go into the house to meet Jun & Ali, who look extremely nervous about having everyone back in the house. Each of the houseguests reveal their votes - Jun wins 6-1. Jun's boyfriend Bob is waiting for her outside the house, while Alison's parents are waiting for her. Everyone leaves the house. Julie interviews the girls, and they are not surprised that they were not congratulated by the jury after the votes were over. Alison gets a message from Donnie... but it's hard to say if it's positive. Julie and all the houseguests (minus Scott, of course, as he is an un-person to the show) say goodbye from the front of the house. The last shot is of the mime eating cookies and milk on the couch inside the house watching the show on the plasma screen...
And so ends Big Brother 4. Though it appears to be a ratings winner this year, I didn't feel the same about the show. In fact, toward the end, based on how the game was played and who was still left in the house, I was disappointed. Oh well, I guess we'll have Big Brother 5 next July... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Rehersals for the final show THEME
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Looks like the crew is rehersing the final exits, greetings, and goodbyes outside the Big Brother house. They're using stand-ins for everyone (with cards hanging around their necks with the houseguest name on them). That usually means that there will be one more rehersal with the actual houseguests later today before the live show. Inside the house, Jun & Ali have been going stir crazy that last few days and the tension of finally being able to get out is rising. Also, it sounds like Alison knows that Jun will win tonight. We'll see. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 01:48 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, September 18, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands - Episode 1posted at 08:37 PM | Link | Survivor | 1 comment § |
Wednesday, September 17, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 31posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Monday, September 15, 2003
TAR5 Casting THEME
According to Variety, CBS has given exec producers Bertram van Munster and Jerry Bruckheimer the OK to begin casting The Amazing Race 5!!!!
OK, let's make this official...
WANTED
Blogger to join me as Team Blogger to audition for the next Amazing Race. Wife and family not interested. Apply via email.
OK, I realize that's a a loooong shot, but hey, a guy can dream, right? We've got to rush here... applications (including videotape audition) has to be in to CBS by Wednesday, October 8th, 2003 at 5 p.m.
posted at 10:19 AM | Link | Reality TV § |
Friday, September 12, 2003
Mime loose in the hoose THEME
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Imagine the last three houseguests alone in the house. With a mime. For three hours. Lets just say that Ali has issues. Anyway, Robert wins a luxury competition to view a movie in the newly renovated media room (the old Desert bedroom) with a guest. Robert chose Ali. The movie is Runaway Jury (with John Cusack, Rachel Weisz, Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman) which won't be out until next month! And they will be going to the Premiere at the Kodak theater! But for now, they're watching the movie before the public release tonight. While they were in the Desert Room watching the movie, the mime came back (and scared the hell out of Jun who was in the house "alone") and kept Jun company for an hour, while torturing Ali's stuffed animals. He left before the movie ended. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:49 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, September 11, 2003
Jeff's hints THEME
Jeff Probst was on Live with Regis and Kelly this morning talking-up Survivor: Pearl Islands. There really wasn't much he revealed (which is pretty normal for Jeff). Regis asked Jeff "What's been the toughest location?" for Survivor and I always thought the answer was Africa. Jeff's answer confirmed that - sort of as he said "Up until this one, I would say Africa, definitely. It's just stifling." Hmmm... does that mean Jeff is saying that the Pearl Islands could be worse? He reveals that the cast was setup in the fact that they were told that they would have to "do some press" so wear something that they would look good in. Guys had Armani suits, women had sun dresses. So they do the press, but then the show starts... as in the show starts. Some of the women... umm... don't have anything on under their dresses... so everyone starts with what they are wearing. The effect is that it ends up more like as if you were shipwrecked.
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Now the two interesting quotes are these: "There is one of the greatest lies ever this season. It is a fantastic, horible lie" (referring to a contestant and of course not Jeff). "There is a huge regret that somebody does that has a big impact...". Sounds like maybe somebody thinks someone should get voted-off and doesn't and comes back to bite them?
A clip is shown of the cast on deck of what looks like a 3-masted schooner. Jeff greets them: "Welcome guys to Survivor: Pearl Islands. The game is on. I know everybody here brought their suitcases and I know you got a lot more luggage downstairs, and it's true, in the past, Survivors have been allowed to go through their luggage and pick out a few essential items. You guys won't have that luxury. You're going into this game with the clothes you have on your back." « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:20 AM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, September 10, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 29 THEME
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Well, we see stories about Robert and the women, the first 3 evicted houseguests (Amanda, Michelle, and David), we see Jee arrive at the Jury House (and Dana, even though she's screwing Justin every night (or so we think) STILL looks pissed-off), and we see Alison use the Power of Veto as she takes herself off of nomination for the third time, automatically putting Erika up as a nomination for eviction. As Erika sits down in the orange chair we see a commercial about applications are now being accepted for Big Brother 5. After the break, we see Alison tearfully evict Erika live to her face. DAMN. I didn't want to see that happen. Eventually, it's time for the final Head of Household competition. It's going to be in three parts (The first is tonight, with the winner going to Part 3. Part 2 is probably tomorrow, with the winner going to part 3. The two people in Part 3 battle to win the final HOH). Anyway, just as last year, this will be an endurance challenge where you must hold onto your key. This time, the remaining houseguests are standing on little houses. Not a big deal... for a little while. Then a snow machine kicks-in over the wall, throwing "snow" (or more likely shaved ice) onto the houseguests. Apparently it's coming down in chunks, some larger than your fist and it hurts. The show ends and we are left to find out the results by watching the live feeds on the internet.
Update: Well, this didn't last long - only about an hour and a half. First out was Jun, followed quickly by Robert. Alison wins the first part of the final HOH challenge. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, September 09, 2003
The CasinoMark Burnett is allegedly working on a "spinoff" of "The Restaurant" called "The Casino". Yep, imagine a behind the scenes look at at the workings of a casino. He's been in Las Vegas talking to casino owners.
posted at 01:45 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Saturday, September 06, 2003
Big Brother Final 4 doings THEME
First Robert gets Head of Household. He then nominates Jun & Alison for eviction. Then Alison gets Power of Veto, which means she'll take herself off and Erika will be put in her place. Which means to me that Erika is gone next week.
This show sure got screwed-up this year...
Update: And then Rob gets a T-Mobile phone call from home for the America's Challenge and Allison wins a Luxury Challenge to get a ride in a blimp (but she doesn't like flying) along with Jun (who has motion sickness)...
posted at 07:51 AM | Link | Reality TV § |
Friday, September 05, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands contestant background "problems" THEME
You know, if you show up on a Reality show and you've got some baggage in your personal history, leave it to The Smoking Gun to find out about it. In this case, it is problems with four contestants from Survivor: Pearl Islands.
First, there's Christa Hastie, the 24-year-old computer programmer from Los Angeles. Even though her bio on the CBS website has She was once arrested for a misdemeanor and charged with "disrupting an officer's ability to perform his duties.", what's a bit more questionable are her postings to alt.drugs.hard and alt.drugs newsgroups in the late '90's about methamphetamine wants and uses as well as cocaine.
This is similar to Ryan Shoulders, the 23-year-old produce clerk from Clarksville, Tenn., who also posted messages, this time to the alt.drug.psychedelics newsgroup.
Third is Jon Dalton, the 29-year-old art consultant from Danville, Va., who entered a no contest plea to a DUI count and a charge of driving without insurance.
Last is Ryan Opray the 31-year-old electrician from Los Gatos, Calif., was arrested and charged with vandalizing the lawns of nine homes in his Los Gatos neighborhood with his Ford F-150.
posted at 02:46 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Reality TV Awards show?The Washington Post is reporting that ABC is going to create an awards show honoring broadcast and cable reality programs. It's supposed to be a two-hour show airing sometime this fall.
I'm not sure how I feel about this. The Emmy's have only an award or two in this area, and that should be fine. A separate show cheapens an already cheap genre. I mean, if you won one of these awards, who the hell would care? At least an Emmy is a "legitimate" award. Would it be for the show or would individual contestants be awarded? They've already said that there would be a "Best Series" as well as reality-appropriate categories such as "Best Twist." I don't know...
posted at 02:40 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, September 03, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 26 THEME
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It's Day 61 in the Big Brother House and oh, what a twisted game this has been... We saw an entire segment on how Robert lies. We saw a segment from the Jury House where we got TOO MUCH INFORMATION about Justin & Dana - <shudder>. Then we had a live Veto Ceremony where Alison uses the Veto on herself, so Jun puts up Robert in her place, all of which doesn't matter at Jee gets voted-off 2-0. In his goodbye message to Jee, Robert says "I'll do it for the Dream Team". Ugh. We found out that the last night of the show is now September 24. It got moved-up because CBS ordered a few more shows and so far the houseguests don't know that they will be in the house a little longer than they thought.
Late this afternoon while I had the live feeds on, I saw aa little goof. The crew didn't go to the "Front of the House" camera (and play that godforsaken them music over and over) during a rehersal for tonight (yes, they actually reherse the live show). They had the camera on in the empty "Desert Room" and the producer was giving instructions to the houseguests over the house P.A. (I didn't get the good parts, but I did get a short piece here as an MP3). I found out that the housegusests, after the eviction, were put into the old Desert Room so the crew could setup the living room for the HOH challenge. So, they do the HOH challenge tonight, which is guessing the answers of questions that were given to the Jury House guests. Erika and Robert tie. The tie breaker question is a math question, with the winner being closest without going over. The question: from the time the exes entered the house until now, how many hours have you been in the house? Erika answers 1440, Robert answers 800. Correct answer: 1434. Erika is over by 6 hours so Robert gets HOH for the week. Crap. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:04 PM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Saturday, August 30, 2003
Erika's boyfriend!!?? THEME
On the Internet feeds during the week, Robert walked out into the backyard where Erika was alone and asked her if this was the same house that the first season used. She said yes, to which he replied something about that it's funny that she is living in the same house as "him"...
Huh? "Him" is her current boyfriend!!! So, who would that be???
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posted at 02:11 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, August 28, 2003
Survivor: Pearl Islands cast announced THEME
CBS announced the cast of Survivor: Pearl Islands this morning on The Early Show. The two tribes are Drake and Morgan (must be in keeping with the Pirate-theme). Oh, oh... two Ryan's in the same tribe...
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- Rupert Boneham, a mentor for troubled teens, is 39 and hails from Indianapolis, Ind.
- Tijuana Bradley, 27, is from St. Louis, Mo., and works in pharmaceutical sales.
- Shawn Cohen, who turns 29 on Sept. 20, works in advertising sales and lives in New York, N.Y.
- Jon Dalton, an art consultant, hails from Danville, Va. He is 29.
- Nicole Delma, who turns 26 on Sept. 19, is a massage therapist from Hermosa Beach, Calif.
- Sandra Diaz-Twine, 29, an office assistant, is from Fort Lewis, Wash.
- Trish Dunn, a 42-year-old sales executive, Dunn is from Annapolis, Md.
- Christa Hastie is a 24-year-old computer programmer from Los Angeles.
- Darrah Johnson, a mortician, 22, lives in Liberty, Miss.
- Lillian Morris, 51, is a scout troop leader who lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.
- Ryan Opray, an electrician, is 31 and lives in Los Gatos, Calif.
- Burton Roberts is a 31-year-old marketing executive from San Francisco.
- Andrew Savage, an attorney, is 40 and lives in Chicago.
- Ryan Shoulders, hailing from Clarksville, Tenn., is a 23-year-old produce clerk.
- Osten Taylor, 27, is an equity trade manager from Boston.
- Michelle Tesauro, from Pittstown, N.J., is a 22-year-old student.
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posted at 08:45 AM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, August 27, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 23 THEME
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Yes, another twist in the show. First, during the live eviction voting, Jack was evicted on a 2-1 vote, against HOH Jee's wishes. Over the course of the past day or two, the crew have been removing items out of the house. The HOH competition was a quiz to identify the items. Jun won it. Julie Chen, after a commercial break, calls Jun to the Diary Room to tell her that there's a limo outside and she's leaving the house. her only question was where? She's going to New York to be a guest at the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City! Jun puts on a blindfold and leaves, with her housemates on the couch waiting for her. And waiting... and waiting...
Update: Sure enough, there's Jun on the Red Carpet during the VMA pe-show being interviewed by Gideon. She was also in "the Pit" for the whole show. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Friday, August 22, 2003
Gnome Food Challenge THEME
This afternoon, the Houseguests had a food challenge - even though they are eating PB&J for the next 5 days. The task - demolish garden gnomes in te backyard. The winner gets one meal from McDonald's on each of the 5 days and gets to invite one other houseguest. What would be a nice twist?
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posted at 04:19 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, August 21, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 13 - FINALE THEME
"It's Like Adam Building His First House"
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Here we are - the final episode...
We're on Ellis Beach on the North coast of Australia. David & Jeff (known to us as Team Who?) are the first to depart at 1:47am. "Teams must now drive themselves 20 miles to the Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park. Here, they will join in a traditional ceremony in which fire will signal tribesmen to bring them their next clue." Oh oh... Jeff narrates that he thinks that "they've made the least amount of mistakes of the three teams that remains at this point." Then they show that Team Who? doesn't really know how to close the rear doors of their Toyota SUV. All I can say is "oh, oh...". The Chipsters depart at 2:14am. There is only $1 given for this leg of the race. They narrate that people think all gay people are "queenie". Oh, boy. Team Who gets to the park to find out that Hours of Operation are 6am-6pm. Great - time for another "TAR Bunch-up". Jon & Kelly depart at 2:38am. Kelly: "Hours of Operation 6am to 6pm. We can still catch up." Jon: "Awwww... doesn't that stink for the boys.... let's go...".They are just way too nice to each other this morning. The sun comes up, all three teams are at the gate, and as it opens all break into al all-out run to the ceremony site. The watch intently as aborigines try to make a fire. In what has to be the most coolest visual thing of this season, a tribesman puts a long spear into a blazing fire, withdrawing what seems to by a bright sparkler at it's tip. He uses the spear to hurl the sparkling thing off the tip and across about at least 100 feet of water toward a very small wooded island. When the burning thing reaches the island, the whole frickin' island goes up in flames (must have had a huge open gas main out there). Way cool. More tribesmen show up with a container full of "message sticks" which hold their next clue. Teams must now drive themselves 15 miles to the airport in the city of Cairns and search for the General Aviation Terminal, where they'll find their next clue. Oh, oh... "General Aviation Terminal" is not good. It's drizzling/raining as the sun is coming up. There's a white-knuckle SUV race to the airport and Chip sends his SUV hydroplaning off the road after he passed Jon & Kelly. He's lucky the vehicle didn't roll. Kelly tells Jon to keep on going because they're OK (referring to The Chipsters). Team Who is first to the Route Marker, followed right behind by Jon & Kelly and The Chipsters. The clue is a Detour - "Wing It" or "Wander it". In "Wing It" teams must get into a plane, climb to a height of 10,000 feet, and skydive in tandem with an instructor to their next clue. The task is potentially frightening, but teams can finish it fast. In "Wander It", teams drive to a mangrove forest and find a boat, use it to navigate out of the forest and then to the skydiving landing zone to get their next clue. There's nothing frightening about the task, but completing it could take a very long time. Everyone choses "Wing It". (Reichen decides that this is better than being in a car with Chip!)
Everyone makes the jump, (though some (Kelly) were quite more frightened than others) and everybody had a great time. Team Who? is first on the ground and get to the Route Marker. Teams must now travel 4,700 miles to the island of Hawaii, also known as The Big Island. When they land, they'll have to chose a car (Another SUV - looks like a Ford) and drive themselves to Kaulana Bay - the southern-most part of the United States. It's now another trip back to Cairns Airport, but now to the International Terminal. Except for The Chipsters who want the Domestic Terminal. Team Who? (mostly Jeff) discusses that they should go to Sydney since Qantas was hubbed out of there so they'll get a better chance of getting to Hawaii.Turns out the Chipsters knew that even though they're at the domestic terminal Qantas is so good with customer service that they'll help them out. Kelly checks out a flight out of Sydney, but they'll miss the connecting flight. Team Who? books a flight to Sydney, with a flight to Honolulu the next day. They take off to Sydney, hoping to make better connections through there. The Chipsters book a flight from Cairns to Tokyo on Qantas and then a United flight that gets them into Honolulu at 6:55am (which sounds like they'll be in Hawaii before Team Who? leaves Australia). Kelly & Jon wind-up booking the same flights as The Chipsters from the other terminal. Team Who? gets to Sydney and works the phones for better connections. They think JAL can help them through japan, but all flights have left. They worked 3 hours trying to work any route and can't get out of Australia. In Tokyo the two teams try to make the transfer from Qantas to United - which is in a different terminal - within 45 minutes. The Chipsters got the bus and booked. Kelly & Jon get to a different terminal, get a United employee to help, get their own bus, and get to the gate - only to need boarding passes which they don't have. The Chipsters board the plane, the rest of the gate crew won't let them on and Kelly & Jon miss the United flight - as The Chipsters get upgraded to Business Class and drink champagne on the way to Hawaii.
Kelly is devastated that they missed the flight. They find a flight that gets in at 8:05am instead of 6:55am, so they take it. We see The Chipsters arrive at Kona Airport on the big island - but we have no idea how they got there (since they were going to Honolulu). They drive to Kaulana Bay. Team Who? is still in Sydney and is now worried since they didn't see any of the teams come through there. The get on their flight to Honolulu. Kelly & Jon arrive in Kona. Chip is steak behind a slow driver and you know that's just pissing him off. The Chipsters hit the bay and find the Route Marker. The clue is a Roadblock: "Who is a strong swimmer and good with a hammer?" In this Roadblock, the team member has to swim out to a floating tiki head, dive beneath the waves to the rock below and get the rock back to the beach. Once on shore, they'll have to smash the rock open to retrieve the clue from inside. Chip is chosen for the task, and gets the rock back to the beach. It takes a long time with a hammer and chisel to get the rock open. Jon & Kelly are on the road to Kaulana Bay. Chip finally gets te rock open. The clue is in a tube at the core. Teams must drive themselves 60 miles to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and find a lookout point.Then, they must follow a marked path across a field of hardened lava to a Route Marker. The Chipsters drive to the Park, Jon & Kelly get to Route Marker and Jon decides to do the task. But, he doesn't want to get his underwear wet, so he decides to do the task naked. Oh. Good. God. Who the hell would crouch over a rock with a hammer, chisel, and safety glasses, with pieces of sharp rock flying everywhere totally naked? Looks like Jon gets through the rock with little effort (or a lot of editing). Jon puts on his pants and drive to the volcanoes. The Chipsters arrive, walk the path, and get to the Route Marker. Teams must now travel 2,900 miles to their final destination city - Phoenix Arizona. Once there, they must search for a monument - the anchor from the U.S.S. Arizona, one of the ships sunk during the attack on Pearl Harbor. It's here they will get their next clue. The Chipsters decide to go to Hilo instead of back to Kona for the flight. Kelly & Jon reach the Route Marker and they take off. Kelly has flight info for flights back to Honolulu. They decide that Kona has more flights so they head back there. The Chipsters book a flight from Hilo to Honolulu that gets in at 8:17pm and then a flight leaves at 11:15pm for Phoenix that arrives at 8:15am. They fly to Honolulu. Jon & Kelly get to Kona and fly to Honolulu. The Chipsters, in Honolulu, try to get the best seat assignments at the front of the plane. Jon & Kelly, in Honolulu, book a flight to Phoenix - the same one as The Chipsters, and 4 rows behind them. The Chipsters start asking people in the terminal waiting areas on the exact location of the anchor. Kelly & Jon start doing the same. They enter Gate 33 and fly back to the mainland.
The flight to Phoenix looks stressful to the racers. They land in Phoenix and race through the airport. The Chipsters are first to get a cab. Chip looks like he's bribing the driver as soon as they pull away. Kelly & Jon get a cab right behind them. The Chipsters now say they'll give the guy $50 to get there as fast as they can. Jon gives his driver the "first hundred bucks" as their bribe. The teams talk about emergencies, the race, other cabs trying to overtake you. The Chipsters get to the anchor, while Jon & Kelly may have the right park but their cab driver doesn't know where the anchor is. The Chipsters read their clue: "You've come a long way from Dodger Stadium and you're almost there. So, make your way to the southeast entrance of Sun Devil Stadium." They get back into their waiting cab. Kelly & Jon's driver finds the anchor. They bolt for the Route Marker, read the clue, and head back for the cab. Did I mention that it's been raining in Phoenix? Well, Jon runs toward a low wall to jump over it when his feet slide out from underneath him as he slams into the wall. They get in the cab and take off. Reichen gives the cab driver another $50 "just to keep you motivated". Just then we see Jon tell their cab driver "I've got another $100 bucks if you drive like a madman." The Chipsters hit Sun Devil Stadium and run to the Route Marker. They have the cab driver turn his cab around so it's pointed put ward just to make sure they get a fast getaway. They read the clue: "To find your next clue, solve the following puzzle. Happy Valentine's Day + White + White." To solve the riddle, teams must first translate the date - February 14th - into the number 214. They must then figure out that "White + White" refers to the two players who's name's White are written on the stadium's wall. One White is number 33 (this refers to Wilford White) and the other is 11 (this refers to Danny White). Using all these numbers, teams must figure out that they need to get to Section 214 Row 33 Seat 11 to get their next clue. Chip is on the right track, checking out Section 2 Row 14. Kelly and Jon are still going to the stadium. Chip realizes that he 200's are upstairs, so they climb up the ramps. They get to 214 and Chip slowly walks up the stairs. He looks up, sees the players numbers and names on the facade and heads to row 33. Chip grabs the clues and start their way back down as we see Kelly & Jon's cab pull into the facility. Kelly gets out and bolts to the Route Marker. (Hmmm... I don't see The Chipsters' cab... bad editing... and you know what's weird? There's four clues, not three... a ruse so that the people don't really know who's in the lead?) Still on the ramps down, Reichen reads the clue: "Make your way to the west parking lot of Papago Park. Chose a pair of mountain bikes and ride the marked path until you reach the end of the bike course - the Finish Line." Jon & Kelly figure out the clue as The Chipsters pull away. John & Kelly get the final clue and get back to their cab and leave. Tension is building. It's 8 o'clock at night and the editing makes it into a mad scramble with the taxis. We see a cab pull up. The Chipsters get out and walk to the rack of marked mountain bikes. They take off down the path. We see Phil on the huge final mat, looking out toward the distance. All of the eliminated teams are shown cheering. Kelly and Jon pull up in their cab, get their bikes and take off. Reichen and Chip hit the end of the trail, drop the bikes, and start running up a trail and onto the stage/mat.
"4 continents. 24 cities. 44,000 miles. Reichen & Chip, you are the official winners of The Amazing Race!"
Chip has a tearful speech. Jon & Kelly run up to the stage. "Kelly and Jon, you're the second team to arrive. Congratulations." Kelly breaks down sobbing. They narrate a few things.
And then we see fresh, hot lava pouring over what appears to be an asphalt road in the dark at 5:30am. David & Jeff walk out of their SUV in the rain and darkness to the Route Marker. You hear David say "Are we first? Are we the first team?" dripping in not rain but sarcasm. David reads the final clue: "Route Info. Reichen and Chip have crossed the Finish Line. The Race is over. Kelly and Jon came in second."
And thus ends what might be the last episode ever of the best Reality show on television. As of right now, CBS has not committed to a fifth year. Damn
Hey, you want to look at an overview of The Race? Look at this from Television Without Pity as viewed by Reichen and Chip: On their journey, we have seen them riding 10 cars, 19 planes, 9 trains, 2 charter vans, 38 taxis, 2 ski-lifts, 1 zipline, 1 snow-raft, 2 buses, 1 gondola, 1 fiacre, 3 boats, 2 bikes, 1 bicycle wagon, 2 subways and 1 horse.
(Each taxi trip is counted separately, spoon-fed cars are counted as separate on different legs.)
SATURDAY 18 JANUARY - Day One
Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California, USA
Car to Los Angeles Airport, Los Angeles
Plane to Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Netherlands
SUNDAY 19 JANUARY - Day Two
Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Plane to Malpensa Airport, Milan, Lombardy, Italy
Subway to Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Milan
Walk to Hotel Nuovo, Milan
MONDAY 20 JANUARY - Day Three
Hotel Nuovo, Milan, Lombardy, Italy
Walk to Piazza Fontana, Milan
Charter Van to Piazza Roma, Cortina D'Ampezzo, Veneto, Italy
Taxi to Cinque Torri, Cortina D'Ampezzo
Ski-lift, Zipline and Ski-lift again at Cinque Torri
Taxi to Hotel Lajadira, Cinque Torri
TUESDAY 21 JANUARY - Day Four
Hotel Lajadira, Cortina D'Ampezzo, Veneto, Italy
Taxi to Trampolino Olimpico, Cortina D'Ampezzo
Snow-raft at Trampolino Olimpico
Taxi to Train Station, Calalzo, Veneto
Bus to Train Station, Alpi, Veneto
Train to Stazione Santa Lucia, Venice, Venito
Walk to Ponte Della Guglia, Venice
Gondola to Calle Querini, Venice
Walk to Palazzo da Mosto, Venice
Walk to Citta di Padova, Venice
WEDNESDAY 22 JANUARY - Day Five
Citta di Padova, Venice, Veneto, Italy
Walk to Stazione Santa Lucia, Venice
Train to Verona, Veneto, Italy
Train to Innsbruck, Austria
Train to Westbahnhof Train Station, Vienna, Austria
Walk to Friedrichstrasse/Operngasse, Vienna
Walk to Kaiserhof Hotel, Vienna
THURSDAY 23 JANUARY - Day Six
Kaiserhof Hotel, Vienna, Austria
Walk to Friedrichstrasse/Operngasse, Vienna
Walk to Stadtpark, Vienna
Fiacre to Schonbrunn Palace, Vienna
Walk to Figarohaus, Vienna
Taxi to Donautrum, Vienna
Taxi to Westbahnhof Train Station, Vienna
Train to Attnang Train Station, Gmunden, Austria
Taxi to Seeschloss Orth, Gmunden
FRIDAY 24 JANUARY - Day Seven
Extended Pitstop at Seeschloss Orth, Gmunden, Austria
SATURDAY 25 JANUARY - Day Eight
Seeschloss Orth, Gmunden, Austria
Taxi to Salzburg Airport. Salzburg, Austria
Plane to Frankfurt Airport, Frankfurt, Germany
Plane to CDG Airport, Paris, France
Taxi to Montparnesse Station, Paris
Train to Le Mans Station, Le Mans, Sarthe
Taxi to Circuit Bugatti, Le Mans
Car to Porte 4 Cap Janet, Marseille, Provence, France
SUNDAY 26 JANUARY - Day Nine
Porte 4 Cap Janet, Marseille, Provence, France
Same car to Sainte Marie Lighthouse, Marseille
Same car to Gorges du Blavet, Provence
Same car to Chateau des Alpilles, St-Rémy de Provence, Provence
MONDAY 27 JANUARY - Day Ten
Chateau des Alpilles, St-Rémy de Provence, Provence, France
Car to Marseille Airport, Marseille, Provence
Plane to Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Train to Magere Brug, Amsterdam
Boat to Scheepvaart Museum, Amsterdam
Car to Alkmaar, Netherlands
Same car to Smoker Statue, Monnickendam, Netherlands
Same car to Kasteel Muiderslot, Muiden, Netherlands
TUESDAY 28 JANUARY - Day Eleven
Extended Pitstop at Kasteel Muiderslot, Muiden, Netherlands
WEDNESDAY 29 JANUARY - Day Twelve
Kasteel Muiderslot, Muiden, Netherlands
Taxi to Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Plane to Malpensa Airport, Milan, Italy
Plane to CST Airport, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
THURSDAY 30 JANUARY - Day Thirteen
CST Airport, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Taxi to Film City, Mumbai
Bicycle to Studio 10, Film City
Bus to Goregaon Train Station, Mumbai
Train to Mahalaxmi Train Station, Mumbai
Walk to Dhobi Ghat, Mumbai
Taxi to Sassoon Docks, Mumbai
Taxi to Gateway of India, Mumbai
FRIDAY 31 JANUARY - Day Fourteen
Gateway of India, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Walk to Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai
Taxi to Panvel Train Station, Panvel, Maharashtra
Train to Ernakulam Train Station, Ernakulam, Kerala
SATURDAY 1 FEBRUARY - Day Fifteen
Ernakulam Train Station, Ernakulam, Kerala, India
Taxi to Highway 47, Kerala
Taxi to Sports Field, Pallathuuthi, Kerala
Taxi to Beach Road, Alappuzha, Kerala
Bicycle Wagons to Geogi's Chicken Farm, Alappuzha
Taxi to Finishing Point, Alappuzha
SUNDAY 2 FEBRUARY - Day Sixteen
Extended Pitstop at Finishing Point, Alappuzha, Kerala, India
MONDAY 3 FEBRUARY - Day Seventeen
Finishing Point, Alappuzha, Kerala, India
Taxi to Kochi Airport, Kochi, Kerala
Taxi to PL Worldways Limited, Kochi, Kerala
Taxi to Kochi Airport, Kochi, Kerala
Plane to Kuala Lumpur Airport, Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory, Malaysia
TUESDAY 4 FEBRUARY - Day Eighteen
Kuala Lumpur Airport, Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory, Malaysia
Plane to Kota Kinabalu Airport, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
Taxi to Monosopiad Cultural Village, Kota Kinabalu
Taxi to Kota Kinabalu Jetty, Kota Kinabalu
Boat to fishing boat on South China Sea, Kota Kinabalu
Same boat to fishery on South China Sea, Kota Kinabalu
Same boat to lobster boat on South China Sea, Kota Kinabalu
Same boat to Manukan Jetty, Manuakan Island, Kota Kinabalu
Walk to Manukan Beach, Manukan Island
WEDNESDAY 5 FEBRUARY - Day Nineteen
Manukan Beach, Manukan Island, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
Walk to Manukan Jetty, Manuakan Island, Kota Kinabalu
Boat to Kota Kinabalu Jetty, Kota Kinabalu
Taxi to Poring Hot Springs, Poring, Sabah
Car to Sepilok Orangutan Sanctuary, Sepilok, Sabah
Same car to Sepilok Nature Resort, Sepilok
Taxi to Puu Jih Shih Temple, Sandakan, Sabah
Charter Van to Kota Kinabalu Airport, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah
THRUSDAY 6 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty
Kota Kinabalu Airport, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia
Plane to Changi Airport, Singapore
Plane to Incheon Airport, Seoul, South Korea
FRIDAY 7 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-One
Incheon Airport, Seoul, South Korea
Taxi to Seoul Tower, Seoul
Taxi to Sheraton Hotel, Seoul
Taxi to Sundam Valley, Chirwon, Gangwon-Do, South Korea
Taxi to a subway station, Seoul
Subway to Seoul University Station, Seoul
Walk to octopus restaurant, Seoul
Taxi to Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul
SATURDAY 8 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Two (Thank you Miri!)
Extended Pitstop at Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
SUNDAY 9 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Three
Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul, South Korea
Taxi to Yeoido Island, Seoul
Taxi to Incheon Airport, Seoul
Plane to Brisbane Airport, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
MONDAY 10 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Four
Brisbane Airport, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Taxi to Holiday Inn Hotel, Brisbane
Car to UnderWater World, Mooloolaba, Queensland
Same car to Mooloolaba Yacht Club, Mooloolaba
TUESDAY 11 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Five
Mooloolaba Yacht Club, Mooloolaba, Queensland, Australia
Car to Australian Woolshed, Ferny Hills, Queensland
WEDNESDAY 12 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Six
Australian Woolshed, Ferny Hills, Queensland, Australia
Same car to Brisbane Airport, Brisbane, Queensland
Plane to Cairns Airport, Cairns, Queensland
Car to Wild World Tropical Zoo, Queensland
Same car to Wangetti Beach, Queensland
Horse at Wangetti Beach
Same car to Off Road Rush, Julatten, Queensland
Car to Ellis Beach, Queensland
THRUSDAY 13 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Seven (Thank you EmeraldFire!)
Ellis Beach, Queensland, Australia
Car to Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park, Queensland
Same car to General Aviation Centre, Cairns Airport, Cairns, Queensland
Plane to field, Cairns
Taxi to Cairns Airport, Cairns
Plane to Tokyo-Narita Airport, Tokyo, Japan
Plane to Honolulu Airport, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
THRUSDAY 13 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Eight (Thank you TheSchnauzers!)
Honolulu Airport, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA
Plane to Kona Airport, Kona, Hawaii
Car to Kaulana Bay, Hawaii
Same car to Chain of Craters Rd, Hawaii Volcanoes Ntl Park, Hawaii
Same car to Hilo Airport, Hilo, Hawaii
Plane to Honolulu Airport, Honolulu, Hawaii
Plane to Sky Harbor Airport, Phoenix, Arizona, USA
FRIDAY 14 FEBRUARY - Day Twenty-Nine
Sky Harbor Airport, Phoenix, Arizona, USA
Taxi to USS Arizona Anchor, W Washington Street, Phoenix
Taxi to Sun Devils Stadium, Phoenix
Taxi to Papago Park, Phoenix
Bicycle at Papago Park, Phoenix, Arizona, USA « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, August 20, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 20 THEME
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In a not too startling event, Justin is voted out of the house. In what was more startling to me was watching a segment on the Jury House where Dana has been staying. Holy crap this is a gorgeous place! It's not on the CBS lot as we had originally heard. Jee won the HOH competition tonight, which was a bocce ball/skee-ball event, and just about sealed the fate of either Jack or Erika.
At the end of the show, Julie Chen made this announcement to the houseguests and left them hanging:
"Well everyone, we told you from the very beginning you should never get too comfortable in the Big Brother house. Remember that our motto is 'Expect The Unexpected'. And everyone should know that the unexpected begins tomorrow. Goodnight houseguests."
What is it? How about isolating each houseguest to a room? How about "selling" Power of Veto to a houseguest? The stakes? How about PB&J for everyone else for a week? Two weeks? A month? How about geting POV before the nominations are made? How about an HOH taking the deal? « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Monday, August 18, 2003
Announcements to Houseguests THEME
This post is only for those people out there that are a bit obsessed with Big Brother, so the rest of you can just move along to another post right now...
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First, I'm sure you already have these feeds, but in case you don't, here are 5 broadband feeds that wont time-out after 30 minutes (because they're not feeds from CBS!)... Now, if you have been watching the feeds, there's something you've heard everyday that never makes it into the shows. The production staff does not like to talk to the houseguests outside of the Diary Room. Instead, they had an announcer produce a series of recoded announcements that the crew can put together at and use at any time. He recorded each of their names plus the word "Houseguests" and a series of "commands". The crew can then direct anyone to do something that needs to be done. If you've never heard them before, or if you're a fan and have heard them and want to hear them again, I'm going to try to collect a bunch and post them here. Check back every once in a while to see what I've added, if anything. Wakeup callsDiary RoomMiscellaneous « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:01 PM | Link | Reality TV | 2 comments § |
Thursday, August 14, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 12 THEME
"He's a Few Ticks Away from Having a Heart Attack!"
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Well, we're still at the Mooloolaba Yacht Club in Australia, site of last week's Clown Carnage and The Chipsters Penalty.
David and Jeff depart at 10:41pm. Teams must now more than 80 miles to the town of Ferny Hills, find the Australian Woolshed and search through one of these giant piles of wool for their next clue. The teams get $1 for this leg of the race. Guess there's no cabs, no hotels - no international travel this leg. Jon and Kelly depart at 10:59pm. Reichen and Chip depart at 11:33pm. (wow, Jon & Al must have finished around noon then). Ferny Hills must be small because teams are having trouble finding it - in the case of Kelly & Jon, even with a map. Team Who? arrives at the Woolshed first, and find that the Hours of Operation are 6am to 4pm, Team Mean (Kelly & Jon) arrive 2nd, the Chipsters arrive last. All decide to sleep in their SUV's until the morning (they have about 4 hours). I have to call them Team Mean only because they're mean to each other and what they say behind the backs of the other teams (and, at times, to their faces) is just mean. So, the teams are all bunched-up again when the gates open at 6am and the teams take off. OK, there are sheep and Wallabies here? What kind of place is this? They take off sprinting trough the facility and find a shed with three huge piles of wool. The teams rip through the piles. For once, the producers really took their time and really camouflaged and buried the clues. This wasn't easy. Jon find the clue, and he and Kelly quietly run away and open it away from the others. Teams must now drive themselves to Brisbane Airport and fly more than 1,000 miles to the city of Cairns. When they land, they'll chose one of these cars (looks like Toyota Land Cruisers) and drive to Wild World Tropical Zoo , where they'll find their next Route Marker. Team Mean takes-off. The boys keep looking. Team Who winds up going back through their piles because they missed the clue. Reichen finds their clue, whispers that he has it, and The Chipsters leave. Team Who still searches.
Team Who? finally find the clue and leave. Kelly & Jon pull into the Thrifty Car Rental parking lot at the airport (Thrifty has Mercedes SUV's?) at about 6:55am. They go inside to Qantas Ticketing and get on the 7:45 flight to Cairns. The other teams show-up and they all get tickets for the same 7:45am flight. At the Cairns Airport (which looks like it had just rained) the teams jump into their SUV's and take off. They tailgate each other down the highway. Kelly & Jon, in the lead, use a woman in a silver car to help box-in the other teams from passing. Jon narrates that this is getting to Chip (who is driving and trying to get around him) and the says the title of the show in reference to Chip. They find Wild World and park by the marker. There are 3 numbered tags on the Route Marker box (obviously to claim who does a task first, second, third). The clue is this year's product placement task: Teams must now follow the marked path to the crocodile pen. One team member will chose a feeding stick and feed a fish to the 15-foot crocodile named Sultan while the other teammate takes a picture with a Kodak Easyshare Digital Camera. Only one Team may perform this task at a time. Once Sultan has been fed and the picture had been taken, teams must find the souvenir shop, where they'll develop their picture at a Kodak printer dock and receive their next clue. (OK, we'll ignore the reference to "develop" a digital camera image. They're just printing them.) Kelly & Jon, the ones that pulled #1, leave with a curator. But now we see a table next to the Route Marker box that has 3 digital cameras on it. We see the other two teams. Then we see one camera on the table. David says to Jeff, as they're walking down the path "don't let them see this" and they hide the camera. Jeff realizes, as they walk behind Kelly & Jon that they don't have a camera! Team Mean get to the croc pen and we hear Kelly say "Where's the camera? Jon. Jon! Don't have the camera." They take the humbling walk back to the Route Marker. In an argument on the way Kelly asks Jon why he's blaming her. Oh, I don't know, maybe because she's taking the picture and she would need a camera for that. I don't know. Maybe it's just me. So, David feeds Sultan while Jeff takes the picture and they run to the souvenir shop. Chip feeds Sultan, Reichen takes the picture, and they're on their way to the souvenir shop. David & Jeff have docked their camera and are reading the instructions on how to print. Team Mean is back at the croc pen with the camera. Jon feeds Sultan, Kelly takes the picture and they leave. (I don't understand why the curator throws something like a small rock at the croc first - probably to get his attention.) Reichen at the souvenir stand docks his camera in the printing station. Jon gets there and docks his camera. Reichen looks puzzled, and he re-docks the camera. Team Who? gets their picture printed. The back of the paper says Make your way to Wangetti Beach for your next clue. Phil explains it anyway: Teams must now drive themselves 15 miles to secluded Wangetti Beach where they'll find their next Route Marker. Thanks, Phil. David & Jeff leave, followed by Kelly & Jon. Reichen finally figures out how to print an image and The Chipsters leave. (Here's a map for you - the zoo was in Palm Cove and they have to go to Wangetti Beach). Team Who? hits the beach, get the clue and find that it's a Detour - "Saddle" or "Paddle". Phil, over to you: In "Saddle", teams must explore this one-and-a-half mile stretch of beach on horseback and find one of four Race flags. They'll then search within a 25-yard radius for a cluster of clue envelopes. However, only one of the clusters contains the actual clue; the other three instruct teams to try again. The task won't be physically demanding, but searching the beach for the right cluster could take a long time. In "Paddle" teams have to inflate their own kayak and then paddle to an orange buoy to get their next clue. The task requires a good deal of energy, but the clue will be easy to find. Team Who? choses "Saddle". Kelly thinks they just past the turn-off for the beach. Guess what? The Chipsters pull into the beach parking area, get the clue and chose "Saddle". Jon pulls up to a road construction flagman and find out they've gone too far and have to turn around. Surprised? I didn't think so.
David & Jeff go to the right (south?) and Chip and Reichen go to the left (north?) down the beach. The Chipsters find a cluster, but it's not the real ones. The go further down the beach to another marker. It's another "Sorry. Try Again.". Team Who? finds a flag, find the cluster of clues, and actually find the correct cluster! Teams must now drive themselves 35 miles to the town of Julatten and look for Off Road Rush, an adventure sports company where they'll find their next Route Marker. Kelly & Jon pull into the beach parking area. They also choose "Saddle". They also notice that The Chipsters are coming from left, passing them, and going to the right. Team Mean actually see this and deduce that the clue has to be to the right since The Chipsters must not have found it to the left. Team Who? and The Chipsters pass each other on the beach. It seams that Team Who? isn't the greatest riding horses, but they're te first ones that leave the beach. The Chipsters get their clue and leave. Well, they try to leave, but Chip drives the SUV over Reichen's foot while they're still in the parking area (Chip started the car while in gear and without having the clutch engaged. Nice going. Drive a manual much?) We then see the first name-calling argument between the boys. Twelve legs of the race and this is their first argument. Team Mean can't get through 12 minutes. Speaking of them, Team Mean gets their clue and leaves. The Chipsters don't know where they're going, so Chip goes up to someone's house to ask for directions. Kelly & Jon try to do the same other other drivers. Team Who? finds the little sign for Off Road Rush and make the turnoff. At the Route Marker, they find that it's a Roadblock. In this Roadblock, one team member has to choose a race buggy and, along with a racing instructor, drive as fast as they can along a muddy and bumpy 7-mile course. As soon as they make it back to their partner, they'll be given their next clue. David gets suited-up and drives off. He did a really good job at a good rate of speed. Jon is still looking for directions to Julatten. The Chipsters find the turn-off. Chip decides to do the Roadblock. David hits the finish line in great shape, and gets the next clue from his instructor before he leaves the vehicle. Teams must now drive 50 miles to Ellis Beach. This picturesque beach at the edge of the Coral Sea is the Pit Stop for this leg of the race. They drive off, but David has to readjust to driving the SUV instead of the buggy! Chip suits-up, gets in his buggy and takes off. It's like he doesn't know how to drive - he's all over the track. He barely keeps it on the marked dirt. He plows into a line of small trees along the right-side of a stretch of track and totally busts-up the steering. Team Who? is still driving back to the highway. The company sends a new buggy out to Chip so that he can complete the task, which he somehow does. Team Mean passes The Chipsters on the way in to Off Road Rush. Team Mean pulls the Roadblock clue at the Route Marker.Even tough Kelly really really really really really wants to do it (after all, it's her turn), Jon does it. The last thing Kelly says is "Be careful, Jon" as he spits out of the starting area. Yes, spits. He popped the clutch and stalled the buggy. More than once. He finally leaves. and he's a maniac. He's more like David than Chip, tough - it looks like he's in control at least. Jon screams into a tight left-hand turn and... the buggy rolls over!!! Kelly is screaming "Oh my God!!! Oh my God!!!" in a pitch that only dogs could hear. Crew people start running with walkie talkies into the dust cloud. There's a quick shot of a helmeted Jon trapped in the vehicle and then... commercial.
When we're back, we have an overhead shot from the helicopter camera and you can see how many people are running to to the crash site. People help Jon crawl out of the buggy and he's laughing his ass off! He's unscathed. Kelly is screaming "Jon! Why did you do that!" and she runs over and hits him! "What's wrong with you!" The crew rights the buggy and Jon climbs right back in. Of course, we don't see the instructor do that right away. He's probably trying to figure out if he wants to do this again. As they scream off, Kelly yells "Babe! Please be careful! I need you to win the million bucks!" Team Who? pulls into Ellis Beach and the run across the sand to The Amazing Bathmat. Phil proclaims that they're "Team Number 1" and they win a vacation to Europe compliments of American Airlines' website "which you can enjoy after the race". Phis now does post arrival interviews for the teams. We see Jon finish his task. He's still laughing and giggling like a schoolgirl. Kelly takes the clue and reads it. Kelly narrates that Jon is doing all of the things he wanted to do before he got married and "all this race did was help me out!" Chip asks Reichen "Am I that bad of a driver?" to which Reichen replies "I'm not answering." The Chipsters pull into te parking area and "look for Phil". More interviews. Kelly and Jon pull in and jog up the sand to Phil who tells them that they're the last team and this is not an elimination leg (big surprise). Kelly then tells Phil: "We came to one very sad conclusion today, that we cannot have children because we do not want them to inherit our stupidity." Another big surprise.
Next week: so here we are - the final leg (of what may be the FINAL BROADCAST OF THE AMAZING RACE if CBS doesn't get it's act together!!!) « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, August 13, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 17 THEME
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Well, I was at a baseball game tonight, but I had purchased a new Sony Walkman that has a TV band, so I listened to the show from my seat (trust me - it was more entertaining than watching the ball game). The twist for tonight is that the Eviction Voting (which is usually done in the house sometime on Tuesday) was done live on the show (with houseguests going into the Diary Room and casting their votes). Nathan was voted out 5-0. Then came the Head of Household competition - the "Steel Cage Match". It's a little convoluted, but basically it's an endurance challenge - stand in a cage with your housemates and be the last one standing. No food, no drink, no sleep. This started around 10 minutes before the hour (that would be about 6:50 BBT - Big Brother Time, which would be Pacific Time). The show ends, so to follow the competition, you had to go online and watch the live feeds.
Update: What did you miss? Well, around 10:17 BBT Jun finally can't take it anymore and asks Jack for his shirt which she wraps around her waist to cover her butt as she pulls down her pants to pee. Yes, she peed live on the web. At around 11:17 BBT Alison borrows Jacks shirt and pees as well. Ew. Just a few minutes later, Robert leaves the cage, says he has a migraine, goes inside and starts swearing about Jack being ready to fall and in general being his normal pissy self (if you ever watched the live feeds, you know what I'm talking about). At 11:35 BBT Jun leaves the cage. Not sure why. Now comes a lot of negotiating and strategizing with those people left in the cage. At 1:19AM BBT Jack leaves the cage, followed just 4 minutes later by Jee, and one minute later Alison leaves. Erika is the last in the cage and wins HOH. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, August 07, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 11 THEME
"Such a Nice Pheromone Smell to You -- Just Makes Me Want to Stay Close to You!"
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Oh, well, it's the beginning of a sad episode for certain fans...
Teams are still at the Pit Stop at Gyeongbokgung Palace. Kelly & Jon depart at 3:46am. Teams must now make their way across Seoul to Hangang People's Park on Yeouido Island were locals go to fly traditional Korean kites. Once there, they must pull on the string that is attached to a marked pedestal. This will release the clue that's attached to the kites flying overhead. Jon & Kelly try to find a cab driver that speaks English. Reichen & Chip depart the Pit Stop at 3:55am. They, too, try to find and English-speaking driver. Kelly decides they should go to a hotel for help. The Chipsters settle for a cab driver they think knows were Yeouido Island is. Jon & Al leave the Pit Stop at 4:04am. They get a cab driver right away that speaks "perfect English". Kelly & Jon go to the Koreana Hotel and ask for directions at Registration. They get directions on a map and go outside to the doorman, who's standing next to 2 Korean drunks that are mock-fighting each other, and get a cab. Jon & Al see the kites illuminated in the night sky. Chip & Reichen see the kites as well, and Chip is flipping out, trying to get his driver to turn and get over to the beach that the kites are flying from. He's slamming his hand against the window and yelling "Hurry!!! I'm not going to pay you!!!" Jon & Al run onto the beach and start to tug on the line. The Chipsters arrive as Chip exasperatedly say "Just let me out! You speak no English - I shouldn't give you any money! Speak English!" What the hell??? You are in Korea, you idiot! Nice reinforcement of the ugly American stereotype! Jon & Al's clue floats to the ground in the night. Teams must now travel nearly 7,000 miles to Brisbane, Australia. When they land, they'll have to make their way to the Brisbane Holiday Inn, check-in with the concierge and be escorted to a penthouse suite. The Chipsters are on the beach and pull down their clue. Kelly and Jon see the kites from their cab. The Chipsters read their clue. The Clowns get a cab. The Chipsters get a cab and Chip tells the driver "Go-go-go-go-go!!!" before they even get inside, and "Quick-quick-quick-quick-quick!!!" as the sit down. Kelly & Jon hit the island. John starts pulling on a rope. In the background, you can hear someone say "ooooh no..." and that's when you realize Jon is pulling down the kites! What's worse? The string breaks!!!!! Kelly says "That sucks." Jon laughs as you can see the other kites rise further in the air. David & Jeff leave the Pit Stop at 5:15am. Jon realizes he was pulling on the wrong string and finds the marked one and they get their clue and leave. Jon & Al arrive at the airport. Team Who? arrives and pulls down their clue. Jeff hand David the Fast Forward as they read the clue and leave. Back in Kelly * Jon's taxi, you realize that some really bad fog has rolled in and you can barely see the road in front of you. Back at the airport, Jon is making phone calls to a 24-hour travelers network to get the best flight to Brisbane, which is a Korean Airlines flight to Singapore and then on to Brisbane. The Chipsters hit the airport and realize there are two flights - the Korean Air and a Singapore Air flight. Chip goes up to Korean Air ticket counter and requests booking on the flights. The counter books fro both Korean and Singapore Airlines and they find out the Singapore Airlines flight gets in earlier. Kelly & Jon show up as The Chipsters are at the counter. Jon comes up and tells the agent "Could I have exactly what they have?" Kelly laughs an evil laugh. Jon says he wants their ticket pointing to The Chipsters. Jon then says to Reichen to title of the show. The teams wonder where The Clowns are. In the meantime, The Clowns are at the Korean Air terminal, watching it getting brighter outside in the dense fog, wondering where the other teams are. Team Who? arrives and gets the Singapore flight. Lots of shots of the fog outside and teams worried about the fog. The fog starts to lift, and the Singapore flight starts to board. Jon calls Al over to the window to show that what he thinks is their plane is in a holding box on the tarmac, behind the plane that is currently at the gate. They have only 2 hours to make the connecting flight and they find out from a pilot of their flight that the departure is delayed by at least two hours. The Singapore Air flight leaves at 2pm and it's already boarding (as we know). We see the other teams sit down in their seats on the plane. The clowns negotiate tickets and get to the gate, but find out that because they are late - they are being denied access to the plane for security reasons. The door closes, the plane pushes back and The Clowns are left in Korea.
The Clowns are now really stressed. They negotiate a flight that is a direct flight to Brisbane. The Clowns start, well, clowning to lighten the mood. (Now, based on other detective work from other websites, this direct flight actually gets The Clowns to Brisbane one 30 minutes behind the rest of the teams.) The teams are shown queuing-up to leave their plane in Brisbane and are talking about not knowing where The Clowns are. The door opens and there's a mad sprint outside - except for Kelly because Jon is still on the plane somewhere. Team Who? grabs a van and they're off to the Fast Forward. In this Fast Forward, teams must drive an hour away to a beach (in Caloundra City) and pass a local lifeguard test. After paddling surfboards through the heavy surf, they must pull a swimmer out of the water and return her safely to the beach before they can claim the Fast Forward award. Reichen & Chip get a taxi at the airport (at least they shouldn't have a language problem here...) Jon finally meets up with Kelly, who finds out that taking a train is faster than a taxi to get into the city. The hotel happens to be at the transit center. Jon gloats over the traffic that their train is passing over. The Chipsters hit the hotel first, followed by Kelly & Jon. The elevator opens on the 17th floor, and a quick walk through the Penthouse Suite door puts then - out on a patio outside, overlooking the city. The Route Marker is here. The clue is a Detour - "Face First" or "Foot First". "In "face First", teams put on safety gear, step out onto the ledge of the building, and do an Australian, or Face First, rappel right off the ledge of the building 200 feet down, one team member at a time. It's a terrifying task, but if they muster the guts, they can finish it fast. In "Foot First" teams must spot the building with the race flag on top. (it's the Sheraton Brisbane) Then, they must travel on foot down the stairs, walk all the way to the building and climb up 30 stories to the roof where the Route Marker is waiting. There's nothing scary about the task, but traveling all the way on foot could tire them out and take a really long time. The Chipsters and Kelly & Jon decide "Face First". Kelly worries about her hand, which is still a mess since the board breaking last week.(she can't make a fist). The Clowns arrive in Brisbane. Team Who is still on their way to the beach. Chip & Jon go over the side and rappel down. Kelly gets nervous. Team Who? hits the beach, grabs two lifeguard long-boards and paddle into the surf with 2-4 foot waves out about 150 feet to the victim. They absolutely struggle trying to get the female victim on the board. On the roof, a worker comes up to Kelly, says "Welcome to Australia" and shakes her hand which now becomes more painful. Reichen & Kelly go over the edge. Reichen just walks down the side of the building. Kelly thinks she's not heavy enough to do this. Kelly comes to a planter at the side of the building, gets stuck, and freaks out and just about loses it.
Reichen gets down, Kelly is spinning. She's afraid. She's eventually down. In tears, she says "I didn't like that!". Teams must now chose one of these cars (more Mercedes SUV's. Sponsor?) drive themselves 43 miles to the town of Mooloolaba and find UnderWater World. Once they arrive, they'll follow the marked path to their next Route Marker. The Chipsters leave, but Reichen can't find the town on a map. Back at the beach, Team Who is still struggling to get the victim onto a surfboard. They seem to be continually dumping her off the side or rolling the board over. They finally get the "solid girl" onto the board and paddle in. They win the Fast Forward and must now drive themselves to the Pit Stop - the Mooloolaba Yacht Club, "a legendary haven for Australia's famed yachtsmen". The Clowns arrive at the hotel. Jon goes over the edge first and makes it - Al looks a bit worried. Turns out, The Chipsters didn't get a map and are trying to find UnderWater World by themselves. The next shot is Kelly reading a map as they approach the exit on the freeway for UnderWater World. Al is struggling to come to grips with going over the edge, but he finally does it and makes it. The Chipsters catch up and both teams find parking spaces at the same time and run into the facility. The Route Marker is a Roadblock - "Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water". In this Roadblock one team member has to put on scuba gear and cross a tank and grab a clue in a treasure chest. While this task might seem easy, consider this: the tank is home to rogue's gallery of sea creatures including 100 sharks. Man, these sharks are huge! Then again, this is Australia. Reichen & Jon decide to go. One piece of information is overheard as they get their instructions from a handler off-camera: And you're not allowed to stand on the sharks underwater. Otherwise, they'll bite you. Great. Another one: Put your arms together. You must stay like that because you can't trust the animals' behavior. Whoo boy. Jon is first in. OK, they're not swimming. They're weighted-down, so the walk across the bottom, holding their hands clasped together to their chests. Reichen, still above water, says "I asked him if the sharks bite and he said "let's just go'". Jon gets buzzed by a stingray and gets to the treasure chest and grabs the clue. Kelly, outside the tank, has been watching and trying to wave to him. Reichen is moving slower than Jon, and the cross paths just a a huge shark swims by. Reichen is more tentative and definitely more scared than Jon. Reichen slips a little, and instinctively throws his arms out to tread water to stabilize himself - just as another huge shark is swimming up!!!! Could this be it???? The first shark mauling on network television????? His arms are flailing as the shark comes up behind him - Kelly & Chip are yelling at him to put his arms back! And then... commercial!!! Damn.
Ok, so Reichen rights himself, clasps his hand together and the shark swims on by. Damn. Jon gets out of the tank. Reichen gets to the Treasure Chest and gets the clue. Jon & Kelly are together as Jon gets dressed. Kelly reads the clue. Teams must now race on foot to a nearby marina and find the Mooloolaba Yacht Club, the Pit Stop of this leg of the race. The last team to check-in here will be eliminated. Kelly emphasizes to Jon the words "on foot", and they start jogging. David & Jeff have found the yacht club, as they're parking their SUV in the parking lot. To run onto The Amazing Bathmat and are greeted by a blonde with a white sash, so she looks like a "Miss something". Phil proclaims Team Who? as Team Number One, and that they're one of the three teams racing for the $1 million prize. Oh, they also win a vacation to "exotic Mexico" compliments of American Airlines' website "which you can enjoy after the race". Reichen finally comes up out of the water and they're off. Kelly & Jon find someone who knows where the yacht club is (straight down the road they're on). Reichen & Chip leave the building, with Kelly and Jon already passed them. They start to run after them. Jon asks Kelly if there's any additional info. She says they have to go on foot. Notice how they're emphasizing something here. Chip insists that they should drive. Reaching the SUV Chip is just saying "c'mon - let's go - I've made a decision." Yep, they're going to violate the rules of the clue. Chip pulls out of the parking place. Jon & Kelly are running. Reichen says to Chip they may pass them on foot. Jon & Al reach UnderWater Room. Al will do the Roadblock. The next shot is of Al, hands clasped together, in the tank, waiting for a shark to cross right in front of him. Jon is trying to tell Al to "duck under him, just duck under!" Al nods back a definite "No". Kelly and Jon are now walking and Jon says "I can see the Pit Stop". They start to jog. The Chipsters pass Kelly & Jon as Kelly says "Chip & Reichen! They didn't walk! Jon they got here before us - they didn't walk!" Chip pulls the SUV into the parking lot. The two of them bail out and run around the place, up the stairs and onto the mat. Now, Phil has a few words for them: "Reichen & Chip - you're the second team to arrive. (they celebrate) However, (they stop and turn to Phil with that look of "Huh?) you chose to drive to the Pit Stop and the clue clearly states that you need to walk, (now the audio goes into a post production voice-over by Phil) so you've been assessed a penalty of 5 minutes for the time you've gained by driving the short distance, and an additional penalty of 30 minutes for the mistake. (back live). Your penalty is 35 minutes. You'll have to wait and see if the two remaining teams arrive here within 35 minutes.If they do, you'll be eliminated." YEAH!!! WOOO HOOO!!! The Chipsters are penalized. Come on Clowns! Kelly & Jon run in an Phil has news for them: "Kelly & Jon - You're the third team to arrive. However, (voice over again... I wonder how they handled it live way back when?) due to a penalty given to Reichen & Chip, you're Team Number 2." Al gets the clue out of the treasure chest. Al & Jon meet up again topside and read their clue. They run in, up the stairs, and walk onto the mat. here it is - the big news: "Jon & Al (Phil Keoghan patented long pause here) you're the last team to arrive.Now you do need to know that one of the other teams made a mistake and received a penalty (Jon & Al look at each other, and painfully giggle. Al wipes his eyes) However, the penalty was not enough to put them behind. So I'm sorry to tell you that you both have been eliminated from the race."
NNNOOOOOOOooooooooo!!!!!!! Not The Clowns!!!! Damn you Chipsters! Damn You All To Hell!!!!! These guys enjoyed the journey so much and played the game so hard, they deserve to be in the final three.
Next week: It's the final three - no more eliminations, it's the final run to the finish (OK, the start of the run to the finish since that's in two weeks) Kangaroos! Horses! Dune buggies flipping over!!! (Oh, and Chip runs over Reichen's foot with their car.) « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, August 06, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 14posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Friday, August 01, 2003
BB4 Erika in a movie? THEME
I was watching the live feeds just a few minutes ago, and found out that Erika said that she was a dancer in the movie Dance with Me (she was a Club Salsa Dancer and danced on-screen for a few seconds with Chayanne) and that she has had an agent. Now, I'm not surprised by this. I was a year or two ago when I was naive enough to realize that Reality Show Contestants may have alterior motives and actually signup with agencies...
posted at 12:09 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, July 31, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 10 THEME
"That's Me. That's My Face. Just Hit My face. Hit My Face!"
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Well, we're still in Borneo. The teams are at the Sepilok Nature Resort, and it's time to depart: Reichen & Chip at 10:26pm, Jon & Al at 12:56am, David & Jeff at 1:11am, and finally Jon & Kelly at 2:42. Teams must now drive themselves to the Puu Jih Shih Buddhist Temple, the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysian Borneo. Once there, they must search through thousands of tiny Buddha figurines for the one with their names on it. Hidden behind that Buddha is a key to a rattan bag, which holds their next clue. The teams get $400 for this leg of the race, so their must be some pricey things coming up. Chip & Reichen get to the temple first, find their Buddha, get their key and open their clue. Teams must now travel 4,000 miles to Seoul, South Korea. When they land, they'll have to find Namsam Park and make their way to the base of the Seoul Tower (Namsam Tower?), where they'll find their next Route Marker.Vans for the airport arrive every 30 minutes starting at 12:00 midnight, but each van can carry only one team. The Boys decide to chill and wait for the van and have time for a prayer in the temple. Then, they're off to the airport. Jon & Al do their thing at the temple, as well as David & Jeff, who exit the temple while The Clowns were still waiting for their van. Kelly & Jon do their thing. Next thing you know it's daytime and we're back at Kota Kinabalu Airport. All of the teams arrive and wind-up booking the same flights - Singapore, and on to Seoul. In Singapore, David & Jeff start making phone calls to airlines for an earlier connection, and find one through Hong Kong which gets them in at 4:55 - an hour earlier. They get on Stand-by. Or, they think they got on Stand-By. Jon & Al show-up and have the same idea. Quick shots of Chip & Reichen eating hamburgers and french fries at the airport. So, it turns out that David and Jeff bought a ticket but didn't "check into their system" whatever that meant. They're upset that they really don't have Stand By so they have a discussion and they can somehow get on the flight. So do Jon & Al. They leave at 7pm to Hong Kong. Meanwhile, the teams waiting for their flight to Seoul, start to wonder what happened to other teams. They depart on their flight at 10:35pm. Sure enough, it's about 5am and the Hong Kong flight arrives in Seoul. The teams have come most of the way around the globe, and it's here in Korea where they start hitting problems with language. No one seems to speak english. The two teams make it, somehow to Seoul Tower Teams must now travel over 50 miles to the rural Sundam Valley, only minutes away from the North Korean border. Once there, they must locate the Route Marker on the bank of the Han-Tan River. Team Who & The Clowns decide to share a van, since it's a bit pricey ($100 one way). The other teams land in Seoul at 5:40am, with Kelly & Jon taking the lead. Both teams pick up their clues and are on their way. Well, actually Chip & Reichen aren't on their way yet - their driver doesn't understand where they need to go (that language barrier again).
Chip & Reichen decide to get a taxi driver to take them to the Grand Hyatt Seoul and then tried to get the workers there (bellmen, concierges) to get them an English-speaking taxi driver - which they sort of get. Meanwhile the two lead teams are now at a gas station trying to get directions. Chip & Reichen's taxi driver now has his hazard flashers on, which somehow means he has an emergency and can actually run red lights. (?) Team Who & The Clowns all of a sudden realize that they are no longer in the valley, they see army tanks, and they're crossing a bridge they were told at the gas station NOT to cross. They are on their way to the DMZ!!!!!! They get their driver to turn around... and are somehow passed by Kelly & Jon!!! Chip & Reichen arrive at Rafting Korea - the first team to arrive - and they're shocked - SHOCKED! Kelly & Jon arrive 2nd. David & Job take the #3 claim ticket, while Jon & Al take #4. They open their clues to find a Roadblock "Which of you has the colder personality?" One Team member must plunge into the frigid water, fight the current, and swim underneath the frozen river to the exit hole. Once their body temperature rises to a safe level, a doctor will clear them to leave and they'll receive their next clue. There's a great little piece here... the clue says that the person has to "strip to their skivvies" to swim. As Chip and Reichen walk toward the river, you can hear Reichen ask "What are skivvies?" The Korean crew now cuts large square holes in the ice with chainsaws. The ice is about 12-18" thick. Damn, this has gotta be cold. The medical staff asks question of Chip as he gets ready. Things like "Have you had a heart attack before? Hearing problems?" And they lead chip out onto the ice - barefoot, of course. Chip just goes right in and swims under the ice. Kelly is astonished and excited to see this. The distance doesn't look too far. This just looks like hell. Chip warms up enough and they get the next clue. Teams must now travel back to Seoul and find Subway Station 228 - one stop among hundreds in the city's maze of subway lines. Somewhere in the crowded station, they'll find their next Route Marker. Chip & Reichen take off in their taxi. Time for Jon and his turn. Kelly runs along the ice with him and helps in the tent. They leave. Jeff is next and his body takes time to warm up. Al is the last guy. I just noticed that they get their clue in a Ziploc bag at the ladder that comes out of the ice. David & Jeff decide to leave, saying that they really need to split-up from The Clowns (saying that sharing the cab was a huge mistake). Now, wait a minute. Jon and Al are getting ready to leave. If David & Jeff left... there's no cab!
Turns out, Team Who? (aka "The Goats") moved the cab, and they decide that they will find another cab, and then they'll split up. Chip & Reichen tell their cab driver that they need to go to Subway Station 228 and somehow the cab driver knows that it's the stop for Seoul University! He obviously knows where he's going. The two Sharing Teams arrive at an intersection that looks IDENTICAL to when they caught up to Kelly & Jon. I need to look at this again on my TiVo... DAMN!!! It's the same scene!!! Not exactly the same scene, this one is actually a piece they cut out between two scenes of the trip there!!! Damn you Jerry Bruckheimmer!!! Anyway, Team Who? gets out of the shared van into a cab. The Clowns take off. The Chipsters run into really bad traffic. They all run into bad traffic. Everyone has the idea just to get to the nearest subway station and they all travel by subway to 228. Kelly & Jon have a little argument about having to get across the river to get to the subway station - as if Jon doesn't believe subways run under rivers. Team Who hits the subway and they're off. Off getting lost again, that is. They get out of the subway, and take a cab to the National University. In the meantime, Kelly & Jon arrive by taxi at Subway Station 228, just as The Chipsters get off the subway train inside Subway Station 228. The Chipsters scour the platform for the Route Marker, which we see through Kelly & Jon is upstairs. They get the clue first and we see that it's a Detour - "Strong Hands' or "Strong Stomach". In "Strong Hands" teams follow a map to a martial arts center. Then, using the ancient art of tae kwon do, each team member must break three sets of wooden planks. Breaking the planks may seem daunting, but if they master the skills they're shown by the instructor, they could finish quickly. In "Strong Stomach" teams follow a map to a restaurant, where team member will have to eat a Korean delicacy. What they'll find out when they get there is that the Korean delicacy is a live octopus. There's no skill required for this task, but teams will finish only as fast as their stomachs allowed. Kelly decides they should "break a board". (I'm ignoring the fact that Jon said that if they went to the restaurant they'd probably be eating "butt lickers".) The Chipsters decide to go to the restaurant. They enter, sit, down, hear chopping in the back room and notice the bowl of live octopus sitting in the middle of the table. Kelly & Jon enter the martial arts center. David & Jeff are having problems with their cab driver, who seems to be doing tai chi in the front seat. Back at the restaurant, the Chipsters get their plates of octopus. The plate is in constant motion - yes, even though it's chopped up, everything still works and still moves!!! Reichen talks about how he tried to chew and swallow it, but its tentacles attached themselves to his teeth!!!! He yanks it out of his mouth, flings it onto his plate and IT CRAWLS OFF!!!! HOLY MOTHER OF GOD!!!! Chip starts retching. Jon goes through all three boards, while still fully dresses, including this stupid hat that he wears. Kelly steps up and her first punch doesn't do a thing. You can look into her eyes and see the tears well up. She's hurting. Back at the restaurant, Reichen looks sick and he's slowing down. Chip decides that the best way to handle this is to do this like oyster shooters "like at their wedding". Who has oyster shooters at their wedding? Anyway, they take small bits of octopus and slug it down with cold water. Back at the martial arts center, Kelly breaks a board. She needs to break 5, unfortunately. She goes again and gets through her first stack. She hits the second stack - and cracked the first board. That looked worse than before. She goes again and breaks the stack. A close-up of her hand shows that it's red and raw. The last stack is 7 boards. Jon, trying to motivate her, says the quote that's the title of the show, and miraculously, she drives her hand through the entire stack. They get their clue - "make your way to the next Pit Stop..." Teams must drive across town to Gyeongbokgung Palace, the largest royal residence in all of Seoul. The pavilion on the palace grounds is the Pit Stop for this leg of the race. Waiting for a taxi, you see that Kelly's hand is red, and she's bleeding at the first knuckle on her thumb and index finger. The Clowns arrive via subway at Subway Station 228 and get the clue- The choose "Strong Hands". Back at the restaurant, Reichen finally gets the last pieces of octopus down and they're off to the Pit Stop. David & Jeff arrive via taxi at Subway Station 228 and choose "Strong Stomach". They have no idea. Jon blasts through his first stack of boards, and it actually startles him a bit. He easily gets through the other two stacks. Team Who? arrives at the restaurant for some san-nak-gee They freaked a bit that it was still alive. Jeff says "The tentacles still work, bro." David says "One's, like, climbing off my plate." David: "They suction on your teeth while you're trying to chew 'em." Jeff: "That's a big plate of it, too." David: "Dude, there's like eyeballs and stuff. This is disgusting." Oh, yeah. Panic sets in. They bail and decide to do "Strong Hands". Al takes his first strike at his first stack and blows it. His second try nails it. He sails through the rest, they get the clue, and they're on their way to the Pit Stop. Team Who? makes it to the center, and Jeff goes through his three stacks of boards. David blows his first punch and nails the next three. They're off to the Pit Stop. Chip & Reichen don't like their passive taxi driver. Kelly is bitching at Jon as they get out of their taxi that this isn't it and it's back where they were, and they should have listened to their first instincts. They are running around the palace grounds. The Chipsters arrive and they're off to find The Amazing Bathmat. There comes Jon followed by Kelly on to the mat as Phil tells them "You're Team Number 1". They also win a "vacation to the sunny Caribbean" compliments of American Airline's website "which you can enjoy after the race." The Chipsters find Phil and they're "Team Number 2". It's an edited cab race now. Here come The Clowns as "Team Number 3", as Team Who? walks onto the mat. Phil says: "David & Jeff - you're the last team to arrive. I'm... happy to tell you, however, this is the second of three predetermined non-elimination legs, and you're both still in the race." What, another one????
Next week: Kelly repels face first down a building and Reichen may sleep with the fishes... actually he may be eaten by sharks! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, July 30, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 11 THEME
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The house is in chaos. They don't like what Nathan did this week. Dana nominated Alison and Jack for eviction. Nathan, who has become very close to Alison, won the Power of Veto and removed her from nomination, forcing Dana (who Jack says in tonight's show has "her brains in her panties" and "has as much sex appeal as a buzzard's crotch" (!)) to put up David. Alison and Nathan realize that they have become the target of the house, and practice non-stop to try to win the Head of Household competition. It's obvious that everyone likes David, but he's a really strong player. By a vote of 5-2, David is evicted from the house. Then, in Dana's own nightmare realized, Alison wins Head of Household. The only thing I feel is good about that is I think she'll get rid of people I don't like. God, these people are young. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, July 29, 2003
Ground Force America THEME
BBC America aired the first episode of Ground Force America, this one being shot on Valentine's Day in Atlanta. OK, other than trying to do a garden in February in the United States (which, I don't care where you live, just doesn't give you great weather), I loved this show! It's the same format, but it's stretched to a full hour. They got back to doing something they haven't really done since Alan left - they talked about the plants they were using. Another odd piece of the show? The night of Day 1, they all went to an Atlanta Thrashers hockey game! (The cool thing for me is that the Thrashers are the parent club of the AHL Chicago Wolves!) This was a great first episode and I can't wait for the rest of the season. I like the one hour format.
posted at 09:10 PM | Link | TV | 1 comment § |
Thursday, July 24, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 9 THEME
"We're Not at Charm School Learning to Be a Gentleman, We're Racing"
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The teams leave from Manukan Island in Malaysia. At 2:05am, Jon & Al and Chip & Reichen depart by taking one of those boast they used on the last show to go back to the Boat Jetty in Kota Kinabalu, then grab a taxi to go to Poring Hot Springs 78 miles away and follow the flags to the next route marker by walking a series of rope bridges over 100 feet above the ground.(Oh, and they have $130 for this leg of the race). Millie & Chuck depart at 2:19am. The cab rides are a tad bit treacherous, as cattle have a tendency to sleep in the middle of the roads at night.David & Jeff depart at 2:50am, and Kelly & Jon depart at 3:36am.
Chip & Reichen are the first to arrive at Poring Hot Spring at 5:02am, but the place doesn't open until 6:30am. Jon & Al show up. Millie & Chuck show up. Kelly & Jon... aren't there yet. (There's a shot of Millie, yawning like a rooster, when you can hear the sound of a rooster crowing in the background. Weird.) The gates open at 6:30am and the teams rush in, with Millie & chuck stripping their backpacks and running toward the rope bridges, Chip & Reichen were right behind, followed by The Clowns. THe Road Marker tells then to chose a marked car (another SUV) and drive 145 miles to the Trushidup Palm Oil Plantation. Everyone starts to leave the rope bridges as Kelly & Jon arrive (but wait as Jon has to, um, relieve himself in the bushes before they go in! The groups pass Kelly & Jon on the way out, so they try to backtrack where the people were coming from, but without a lot of luck and get lost. The teams have a lot of problems with fogged-up windshields in the early morning sun. (In fact, the cameraman with David & Jeff had his lens all fogged-up as well). Chip turned on the defroster as soon as they got into the SUV so they were able to pull around the pack that had pulled over trying to clear their windshields. In the meantime, Kelly & Jon are still trying to find flags to follow at the Hot Springs. Millie & Chuck haven't slept well in days, and both of them are falling asleep while driving! Kelly & Jon still can't find flags. Jon runs ahead and yells back to Kelly who's off camera in the jungle "Let's, go Kelly, this is it I can see it." "Shut up!" you can here her yell back. "I see it!" "You do not!" she yells again from the underbrush. Then Jon stops and says slowly "Kelly? Move your ass. Now." Kelly comes running up and they run the rope bridge, get the clue and Kelly tells Jon to "Just open the Fast Forward, don't even bother opening the other thing." We sort of have to wait for Phil to tell us what the Fast Forward says because Jon mangles the words so badly you don't have a clue. Phil starts to tell us what's going on with the Fast Forward when you notice that he's in the middle of the jungle... and there are orangutans on a platform behind him in the distance. To use the Fast Forward, the teams have to drive over 140 miles to the town of Sepilok and find the world famous Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center, home to last last wild orangutans in northern Borneo. Then they will have to hike deep into the forest to a feeding station, a each has to feed two pieces of fruit to the orangutans to claim the Fast Forward. (hey, you know what? This place looks familiar... I think Julia Roberts was here doing a documentary for PBS a few years ago...) As Kelly runs to the SUV, she says "if somebody claims this, we're screwed. This is it. It's do or die now." Meanwhile, Chip & Reichen realize that they just may have been on the wrong road, and realize that, by accident, they're heading to the Fast Forward, and decide to do it.
In the meantime, Jon & Al have reached the plantation and have found a Detour - "Chop" or "Haul". In "Chop", teams must must use local tools to chop down palm nut bunches with clue envelopes attached. However, for every one envelope with a clue, there are three that are empty. In "Haul", teams must use a wheelbarrow to carry 25 palm nut bunches to a corresponding truck. The nut bunches are sharp and cumbersome, so getting it done could take some time. When their truck is fully loaded, it will drive away revealing their clue. Jon & Al choose "Haul". This looks like hell. The bunches were heavy and had sharp points. Trying to heave these nut bunches into the back of the dump trucks was hard and almost looked dangerous when they would roll back out and fall to the ground.
Millie & Chuck are driving around trying to find the plantation. They stop at any plantation they see, looking for directions. She can't read maps well (and she isn't driving) so they're just not sure where they're going, even after they get directions. David & Jeff pull into the plantation, and didn't see a route marker box. Well, there's a good reason for that as Jon & Al found out - the clues are in a wheelbarrow in the middle of the road. David & Jeff drove right on by and had to turn around. They stop by THe Clowns and ask "Hey, Dudes, where's the clue?" Al points straight ahead and says "Right up there, off to the right". The drive right buy - again They yell out "Al! Where?" Where?" "On the wheelbarrow" which is now behind them. "The first wheelbarrow?" "The green one!" I think they finally saw it behind the SUV. They get out "Oh, this one!" and mention that Jon & Al were really cool in helping them. They also choose "Haul". Jon & Al get their 25 bunches loaded and get a clue - using their map they have to drive 35 miles to Gomantong Caves for the next Route Marker.Kelly & Jon are still driving to the Fast Forward. Chip & Reichen arrive at the Sanctuary and hike 20 minutes into the forest.
Millie & Chuck arrive at the plantation. Millie wants to do "Haul", and they start to do it. After getting one bunch loaded in the dump truck, Chuck doesn't think they could do this. And go to see what "Chop" is all about. After a quick try at chopping palm branches (a very quick try), Chuck decides they should do "Haul".
Chip & Reichen arrive at the orangutan feeding station, and were able to feed the orangutans. They get their Fast Forward pass and now have to go to the Sepilok Nature Resort. Hmmm... that sounds like it's right there. Millie & Chuck ar trying to work together. Millie wants to help by tossing nut bunches to Chuck, but they're pretty damn sharp and spiny, so Chuck doesn't want her doing that.Millie wants to do everything fast. Chuck heaves a nut bunch onto the dump truck which rolls off and almost kills their cameraman. They finally get their 25 bunches loaded and get their clue and leave.
Kelly and Jon arrive at Sepilok as Kelly is trying to teach Jon how to pronounce "orangutan". They pull up, go to the baskets of fruit... and find a red tag that says "SORRY Fast Forward Taken - Pick Up the Race where you left off". Whoo boy. They climb back into the SUV and drive off as Kelly says "You're always right, I'm always wrong. We're done. *sigh*" To which, Jon, who's had enough of this, lashes back with "Kelly, go f*** yourself!" Kelly is all "What did you just say to me? What did you just say to me? I'll tell you what, Jon, you're walking a thin line. This was a chance that we decided to take, but YOU will not talk to me like that." She throws the map and gets out of the car. Wait - where are they that she could just walk off on him??? After a commercial break, she's back in the car and they're driving through the Malaysian jungle. They're still fighting, though. Jon is the person that says the title of the show.
Somehow, Millie & Chuck go down the road in the opposite direction of the sign for the Gomantong Caves. Since the only see the backside of the sign, they continue down the road in the wrong direction. Jon & Al pull into the cave parking lot and run inside. They get to the Route Marker and find a Roadblock - "It's time for the ladder part of the race." In this Roadblock, [that] person has to climb one of [these] two traditional rattan ladders to a point where they will be dangling 50 feet above the stone floor of the cave. Locals do this to collect birds' nests to make Birds Nest Soup. The teams will be doing it to get [this] basket and retrieve a clue from inside. Al says Jon will do it. Jon goes up the ladder, but the rungs ar far apart and he says in a voice-over that there's so many birds in the cave, that the rungs are slippery from the bird poop. Great.
David & Jeff arrive at the road to the caves, making sure there wasn't a Route Marker box that they missed. Jon gets the clue and gets down the ladder. The clue says to drive to the Pit Stop, the Sepilok Nature Resort. Phil shows the place, and there's even the obligatory zoom-in to The Amazing Bathmat. Jon & Al pass David & Jeff ("The Goats") on their way in. Chip & Reichen find their way to the Pit Stop. Phil tells them they're "Team Number 1" and they've won a vacation to "festive Latin America" (and where exactly is that?) from American Airline's website that they can enjoy after the race. David & Jeff hit the Roadblock, with David doing the climbing.
Millie & Chuck cross a bridge over a river and Chuck asks Millie if she sees water on the map, and they have to stop and try to get more directions. Kelly & Jon make it to the plantation. Kelly wants to do "Haul" and forces Jon to do it. David gets out onto the ladder and get their next clue. Kelly & Jon have a discussion about putting the nut bunches "in the appropriate truck". Their wheelbarrow says "5" and Kelly says that the truck says "C". Well, yes, it says "C" all right - right next to the hand printed "5". They look for another truck. They leave the wheelbarrow and go cut some palm branches. The first nut bunch they drop has a "Try Again" inside the clue envelope. Millie & Chuck are still lost, still asking locals for help. Jon drops the second nut bunch and they get a real clue. They start driving to the caves. Millie and Chuck ar now driving in the correct direction and see the sign that they passed hours ago. Chuck even asks "Isn't this where we came out?" They realize just how much time they've killed by going the wrong way. All of a sudden, Millie & Chuck and Kelly & Jon arrive at the caves at the same time and the adrenaline kicked-in. Everyone ran to the Roadblock. Jon & Chuck head up the ladders at the same time. In the meantime, Jon and Al arrive at the Pit Stop as "Team Number 2". Jon gets down the ladder first and the two teams run their asses off to their SUV's. Kelly & Jon are pumped.
Millie & Chuck don't know where they're going. They follow Kelly and Jon. Millie is almost crying as she pleads with Chuck to read the map because she can't do it. David & Jeff arrive as "Team Number 3" at the Pit Stop. Kelly & Jon try to shake Millie & Chuck by passing other traffic, and Chuck has trouble shifting. Millie gets her inhaler out and they get ready for a final sprint. THey hit the resort and there's a sprint.
The music swells, and here comes Kelly & Jon as "Team Number 4".
The mind starts reeling... At the beginning of the show, you realize Phil did it again - "Who will be eliminated... next." Every time some one reads the clue to get themselves to the Pit Stop, not one of them says "last team checking in will be eliminated". Phil doesn't say that that the last team arriving at the pit stop will be eliminated.
But then you realize that Phil has been saying the teams are "Team Number 1" and not "you're the first to arrive" like last week. Huh? What? Wait! And then Millie and Chuck arrive last and Phil tells them that they've been eliminated from the race!!!!
Next week: Swimming under ice in Korea, Reichen eats live baby octopus and Jon & Al take a wrong turn and pass a line of tanks on the way to the North Korean border!!!! AAAAUUUUURRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, July 23, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 8 THEME
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Note to Big Brother 4 houseguests: You idiots - a pawn is never safe. You've got a big friggin' chess set on the basketball court outside and you all should know this by now. Tonight, by a vote of 6-2. Michelle Maradie, the pretty 19 year old college student from Boca Raton, Florida is evicted from the house. *sigh* She was great eye candy and everyone told her she was "safe", but a pawn is never safe. Forget setting your sights on Dana, who won HOH tonight and is safe for a week. How about getting rid of Robert and Jee? Maybe Justin as well. All three need to go. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, July 17, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 8 THEME
"The Princess Reminds Me of My Grandmother..."
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There it was in the open... Phil's words: "Who will be eliminated... next." Ah HA! Is there an elimination tonight? If there was, Phil's words are usually: "Who will be eliminated... tonight."
The teams are still in Alleppey enjoying their pit stop when... WBBM butts-in to tell us about Tornado Warnings and Severe Thunderstorm Warnings! I have no idea what's happening in the show, since the local weatherman is trying to tell us to duck and cover. This also means that my DirecTV reception is going to degrade during the show and who knows what I'll miss.
The show comes back and the teams are sitting around yakking about themselves. Jon (of Kelly & Jon) thinks it's great that he's sitting next to 29-year-old virgins! Sounds like there was talking about Chip & Reichen's relationship.
Team Who? (David & Jeff) depart at 4:02am with $120 to fly over 5,000 miles to Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia and make their way to the Monsopiad Cultural Village for their next clue. Teams Clowns (Jon & Al) depart at 4:06am, in the middle of a thunderstorm. Kelly & Jon depart at 4:16am, Millie & Chick depart at 4:16am (the same minute?) and Reichen & Chip depart at 4:17am.David and Jeff hit the International Terminal at the airport (Cochin Airport?) and talk to a local who tells them to take Jet Airways back to Mumbai and surely you can get a flight to Malaysia from there, so they go to the domestic terminal. When Kelly & Jon get to the International Terminal, Kelly says: "Look - there's the goats!" (referring to David & Jeff) and follow them. David & Jeff at the Domestic Terminal find out that ticketing (which is a window outside of the terminal) opens at 6:30. Team Clowns show up at the domestic terminal. Chip & Reichen go to a back office of Air India to book their flights. Millie & Chuck arrive and hang outside of the office and try to eavesdrop on the booking arrangements being made inside. Millie gets pushed-out of the office by Reichen who's trying to shove the door shut.
Back at domestics, there's a short argument with locals trying to butt-in in line. Chip & Reichen have to go to the domestic terminal to book their arrangements. Millie & Chuck follow. The three teams at the Domestic terminal are all on the 8:30am flight to Mumbai. Millie & Chuck duck into the Domestic Terminal, see Team Clowns, and yell to Al "What flight are you taking?" and Al actually tells them.
Chip is at that Domestic ticket window asking if they can book a flight from Madras to Kuala Lumpur on Malaysian Airlines, and find out they can't (they're not helpful if the flights aren't with Jet Airways or Air India). Chip asks for a Travel Agent. They meet, he'll call his office and have the tickets issued. His office is an hour away in Cochin. If this whole ting works, they could get in before all the other teams.
The 8:30 flight leaves. Chip and Reichen and the Travel Agent arrive at his office - which is closed. They're waiting for someone to show up. When they finally look at the 12:20 flight that they were counting on - it was fully booked.
Meanwhile, everybody arrives in Mumbai and split-up. Kelly & Jon book a flight to Singapore. Millie & Chuck wind up doing the same. Jon & Al go to Kuala Lumpur. David and Jeff go to Singapore.
Back in Cochin, Chip & Reichen book a flight from Cochin to Kuala Lumpur and then everyone is in the air.
Kelly & Jon hit singapore at about 12:30am and they had to wait for their flight at 10:05am. The slept a full 8 hours on the carpet. Millie and Chuck are also in Singapore but they think there has to be an earlier flight. Millie starts calling around and gets a better flight at 8:40am
David and Jeff arrive in Singapore in the morning. Millie & Chuck arrive in Kuala Lumpur and then they see Chip & Reichen. Jon & Al are there as well, and they're on the same flight. They arrive in Malaysia and make their way to the cultural center, where they will receive a traditional good luck blessing and their next clue. Though Jon & Al's taxi pulled up first, Millie & Chuck are the first out of their cab. Chip & Reichen's driver misses the turn and can't turn around because it's a one way road and has to go kilometers out of the way to get back.
An elderly princess comes out to bless Millie & Chuck and Millie is scared and is freaking out, obviously because this just doesn't go along with their Christian beliefs (like "they could be putting a voodoo chant on us"). They receive the clue to make their way to the Kota Kinabalu Boat Jetty, where they will have to take a marked boat out to a fishing trawler to find their next clue.
Team Clowns take in the ceremony and look at it as a time to pause and reflect on their surroundings and what's going on - a pretty damn healthy way to approach the game!
The other teams finally arrive in Malaysia.
Chip & Reichen enjoy the ceremony, like they were getting married all over again.
Millie and Chuck grab a boat and go out to the fishing trawler. David and Jeff get their blessing and clue. Jon & Al hit the boat terminal. Millie and Chuck get to the trawler and find that it's a Detour - "Net" and "Trap" In "Net", teams have to take their boat to [this] fishing platform and use a net to catch 15 fish out of [these] marked pens in order to receive their next clue. The task doesn't require strength, but catching fish with a pole net requires a lot skill. In "Trap", teams must take their boat to [this] group of lobster boats. Then, they'll have to pull one of these weighted lobster traps up to get the clue inside. There's not much skill involved in lugging the traps out of the water, but raising the traps will require a good deal of brute force.
Millie & Chuck chose "Trap". Jon & Al chose "Trap" Kelly & Jon get blessed.
Millie & Chuck arrive at... the fishing platform? Huh? The boat driver drove them to the wrong place. So, they decided to do "Net" instead. Jon & Al get to a lobster trawler and start pulling. Chip & Reichen decide to do "Trap". Millie and Chuck decide to go into the fishing pens to help get more fish! Great scene where Millie is trying to put a fish into her basket and the graphic on the screen says MILLIE & CHUCK 4 Fish Caught and then you see this fish just jump right out of their basket , Millie yells "Shoot!" and the graphic changes to MILLIE & CHUCK 3 Fish Caught! Jon & Al are still hauling up the trap and get the next clue - "Have your boat driver take you to Manukan Island..." to the next Route Marker.
Chip & Reichen show up at... the fishing platform? Huh? Yes, their boat driver got mixed-up as well. They get back in their boat to go to a lobster trawler, and start hauling up a lobster trap..
Millie is working with the basket now. It's full of fish and water. The fish are splashing around. The graphic says MILLIE & CHUCK 8 Fish Caught. She says "I'm going to drain this water, Chuck..." and to the cry of "Millie!" from chuck, the graphic on the screen changes to MILLIE & CHUCK 7 Fish Caught as she dumps a fish with the water.
Chip & Reichen get their clue.
The graphic now says MILLIE & CHUCK 10 Fish Caught as she's walking around with the basket. Chuck says "Don't drop 'em baby, PLEASE!" and the next thing you know, Millie has fallen into the pen with the basket!
After a commercial break, we see Millie and Chuck get their next clue after (somehow) getting their 15 fish.
Team Clowns get to Manukan Island to find a Roadblock: "Who's skills are the most on target?" The person has to hit three different targets using three traditional Malaysian weapons: a bow and arrow, a blowpipe and a spear. Once they've hit all three targets successfully, they and their partner could race down the beach and check in here - the Pit Stop for this leg of the race.
Whoa! There's the proof! They're "checking in" - there's no mention of the last team being eliminated!
Jon is hooting arrows unsuccessfully. Chip * Reichen arrive and Chip starts to shoot. Millie and Chuck arrive and Chuck starts to shoot. Jon hits and advances. Chip hits and advances. Jon uses the blowpipe and hits and advances. Chuck is still shooting.
David and Jeff hist the fishing Trawler and decide to do "Net". Kelly and Jon arrive and decide to do Trap. Are they nuts? They have no idea how heavy that thing is..
Jon is now throwing spears, Chip is starting the blowpipe and Chuck is still shooting arrows, as Millie says very quietly "Oh, come on Charles...".
David & Jeff arrive at the fishing platform, Kelly & Jon arrive on a lobster trawler. Jon starts to pull on the rope while Kelly tries to get her gloves on. David & Jeff start scooping up fish... the problem is the fish are the size of a dime. They didn't go to the Official Amazing Race Fishing Pens - these were the wrong fish.
(At this point, my DirecTV reception goes to hell in a handbasket for the rest of the show, and I only get bits and pieces of what's actually going on)
Chuck is still shooting arrows. Jon & Kelly are trying to haul-up the lobster trap. Chip hits his target and moves on. Both Jon & Chip are throwing Spears. Chuck finally sinks an arrow. Chip hits his target with a spear and he and Reichen walk off looking around looking for the Pit Stop, which was down the beach. Jon hits his target, grabs his pack, and he and All haul ass down the beach. Chip & Reichen see The Clowns running down the beach and are upset like they were cheating. Both teams hit The Amazing Bathmat at the same time, but Phil decides that Jon & Al were the real First Place finishers and they receive a Vacation to Mexico courtesy of American Airlines website, "which you can enjoy after the race.". Chip and Reichen are then actually Team #2. Chuck hits his blowpipe target and starts throwing spears. David and Jeff are still catching fish, but Jon & Kelly just can't hold onto the lobster trap. David and Jeff get their 15 fish. Jon eventually lets go of the lobster trap. It's just too heavy for Kelly to help out. They get their boat to go the fishing platform. Chuck is still throwing spears. We now have a close-up of a basket on the deck of the fishing platform that has a graphic that reads KELLY & JON 8 Fish Caught, You see the water just churning inside the basket and then a fish jumps out and, yes, the graphic changes: KELLY & JON 7 Fish Caught. Kelly is yelling "He jumped out! That's not fair!" and goes over to the basket and proceeds to what looks like sit on the basket when Jon says "I need you to help, Kel. I mean, farting on the fish... I mean is not helping too much!" David and Jeff hit Manukan Island. Chuck is still throwing spears. Kelly & Jon get their 15 fish and their clue. Chuck finally hits his target and they sprint down the beach and arrive as Team #3. Jeff starting shooting his arrows and hits. Jon is betting on this is not an elimination leg. Jeff hits his blowpipe target. Jeff starts throwing spears. Jon & Kelly arrive on the beach. Jeff barely hits the top of his target and they sprint down the beach and arrive as Team #4. Kelly starts to shoot arrows while Jon is behind her "Be the arrow!" She's pissed. She hits the target. She hits her blowpipe target. She hits her spear target.
They half-heartedly trot down the beach.
"Kelly and Jon, you're the last team to arrive... The good news is this is not an elimination. This is the first of three pre-determined non-elimination legs, and you're still in the race."
Next week: Does Jon actually tell Kelly to go screw herself? « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, July 16, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 5 THEME
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What a strange show... the first oddity shows up in the tease before the show when they show an extremely short clip of Scott getting up off the couch in the Diary Room and there are two security guards in there with him.
Going for still another first for Big Brother (in the United States, at least) we are treated to a little sex in the HOH room between David and Amanda, which happened around 4am this morning and was available on the live internet feeds, at least during most of the action. It turns out that David got, um, sick and vomited after their lovemaking session. Apprently there was a bit too much alcohol involved.
In a 9-0 vote, Amanda Craig, the 25-year-old bar manager from Chicago, Illinois and former "ex" of expelled Scott, is the first houseguest evicted from Big Brother 4. We learn that the rumor I had heard earlier is true - there is a jury of 7 houseguests that will vote for the final winner, and those 7 will be sequestered before voting. Amanda is not one of the seven.
Finally, after multiple sudden-death tie breakers, Jee wins Head of Household. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Sunday, July 13, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Expulsion THEME
OK, before I head into another day of baseball bliss, I had to find out what is going on... it looks like Scott, the idiot who lists Chicago as his hometown and not New York (where he's really from), was thrown out of the house overnight.
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He had some kind of hissy-fit and was throwing chairs around. He just flipped, I guess. He's swearing up a storm, telling the producers: "you don't f---ing own me!!!" Well, duh, yes they do as long as the show is in production (and I think for some time after as well). He's called to go into the Diary Room and yells that he isn't going, you can f---ing come and get me" and then the live internet feeds drop. Some time later he comes back apologizing to the houseguests about having problems with dealing with genital warts (HPV?) and his STD, which freaks out the houseguests (who have been upset about him for days, even without the throwing of chairs and his genital warts, and have been talking specifically about "fear" and "safety" concerns), but freaks out Ali enough that later she starts bawling and gets sick in the bathroom (thinking that she can catch the STD and something about "signing away her rights" (to what, sue?)). I think Michelle doesn't handle it well either (some of the houseguests think "she'll be scarred for life"). I think they were affraid of contracting something because of the hot tub and other close confinement issues. Again - some of these people are a little "young" and may not handle the STD issue well.
Anyway, Scott gets called into the Diary Room one last time at around 10:30pm there time last night... and is never seen again. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 11:33 AM | Link | Reality TV § |
Friday, July 11, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 3 THEME
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Tonight, an awful lot of talk about how hot Nathan is, and then how hot Michelle is.
Then a Food Challenge: teams of two must put enough potatoes into a drum to be within 25 pounds of the partner's weight to win a food category. So, for the week, they won Snacks/Desserts(Scott/Amanda) - 18lbs off, Breads/Pastas/Cereals(Jee/Dana) - 23lbs off, and Beer/Wine/Soft Drinks/Juices(Justin/Alison) - 24lbs off. They're not going to have any Dairy (Jack/Jun) - 31lbs off, Meats/Poultry/Seafood(David/Michelle) - 38lbs off or Fruits/Vegetables(Robert/Erika) - 40lbs off.
I'm not happy with a LOT of people in this house - most of them are coming across as too "young". Anyway, Nathan nominates Amanda and Jee. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, July 10, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 7 THEME
"We're Going Down the Wrong Side of the Freeway... and the Lights Are Off!"
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The teams are still in Mumbai, India. Team Who? (David & Jeff) are the first to depart the Pit Stop at 12:51am. Teams must now travel 43 miles to the town of Panvel, find the train station, and ride 860 miles by train to a place called Ernakulam Junction. They have $70 for the leg. Team Who? arranged for a taxi the night before. Chip & Reichen go to a hotel's concierge to arrange their cab. Kelly and Jon talk to a local who says you can get to Panvel Station from Victoria Station. Millie & Chuck go to Panvel. Jon & Al also talk to a local about Panvel, and find out about Victoria. They opt for a hotel stay, since the ticket windows won't open until 4am. Tian & Jaree are in a cab going the wrong direction on a freeway! (hence, the title of this week's episode). Team Who? is out of their cab at a building... that used to be Panvel Station (they think it's someone's house!) and they have to go to the new Panvel Station.The get to the new place and opt for going to a hotel and wait. Tian & Jaree spend the night with Chip & Reichen on the floor of the train station. It's the next morning, and we see Kelly & Jon board the train from Victoria Terminal to Panvel Station at 6:38am. Team Clown (Jon & Al) catch the next train at 7:10am. You get the distinct feeling that these groups are falling behind since they're not even in Panvel. Kelly & Jon get to Panvel and meet-up with the others. Team Clowns arrive, followed by Team Who? (weren't they first to Panvel?). All of the teams are together, taking the same train, which apparently reeks. Jon & All decide they can't take the heat and smell after train is underway, so they opt to upgrade to a first class air-conditioned car. Everyone else then decided to upgrade - except Team Virgins (Millie & Chuck).
The train rolls-on for 26 hours. Kelly & Jon start talking about their mean-spirited nicknames for Millie ("Millie-Mole") and Chuck ("Werewolf") with Chip & Reichen. Jon thinks Millie's mole is growing during the course of the race due to stress.
The train pulls into Ernakulam and everyone tries to find a cab. Teams must travel along National Highway 47 and search among thousands of billboards for the route marker... David & Jeff get a cab driver who's name is Money??? Chip argues with drivers making sure that their gas tank is full. Team Who? finds the Route Marker first. Teams must now travel an additional 25 miles by taxi to the town of Alleppey and find [a] locally known sports field, where they'll get their next clue.
Lots of typical cab race jockeying. Millie & Chuck have to stop for gas. Chip & Reichen are the last team to find the billboard. Millie & Chuck's cab starts beeping and it's now overheating. Reichen & Chip's taxi has to stop for gas.
Team Who gets to this "field" which is actually underwater. The Route Marker is a Roadblock. In this Roadblock, that person has to take part in a sport invented over a hundred years ago by local farmers - Bull Racing. In this sport, they'll have to hang onto a team of bulls while they race at top speed along this mud track, approximately the length of a football field. If they can hang on until the end, they will get their next clue. But only one team may bull-race at a time, so if they fail to hang on, they'll have to go to the end of any line that may have formed and wait until they can try again.
OK, this sucks. this is mud (and probably bull feces and God knows what). David goes first and succeeds, but... he's wearing his clothes - his shirt pants and shoes. Ew.
Teams must now travel through the town of Alleppey to Beach Road (there's a beach here?) and find [this] Route Marker where they'll find their next clue.
Clown Al goes next and succeeds. (These people look like hell, and I don't know how the taxi drivers are letting these people in their cabs).
Tian is next and quickly fails (this is her sixth consecutive Roadblock for her Team). Jon goes next and succeeds. (At least he doesn't have his shoes on). Tian tries and fails again. Tian tries again and actually makes it. (Back in the cab, a bubbly Jaree tells Tian "You look sexy as shit, right now with all that mud on you, I swear to God. That's hot, dude. That totally hot.")
Chuck succeeds at the race. Reichen succeeds.
Team Who? gets to the Route Marker - a Detour. In this Detour, the choice is "Baskets" or Trunks". In "Baskets", teams must load 10 live chickens into the baskets on one of these traditional bicycle-powered wagons. Then, navigating for themselves, they must deliver the chickens to the farm circled on [this] map. Riding the bikes in the boiling hot sun could be exhausting, but teams can go as fast as their legs allow. In "trunks", teams must load two bales of traditional Indian fabric known as coir onto an elephant. Then, they must deliver the fabric to the coir shop circled on [this] map. Riding the elephant should not be tiring at all, but teams will only travel as fast as the elephant wants to go. Either either task, teams must deliver their cargo before they'll receive their next clue.
Everyone starts to take "Trunks" (not a surprise for Team Clowns). David: "Riding an elephant is painful. That spine of that elephant is very close to the skin, so you feel it right up the old... uh... you know... 'friendly family' there."
Tian & Jaree do trunks because Jaree wanted to do elephants if they went to India - it looked like Tian was thinking about "Baskets" but was definitely overridden. Then they start to leave without their two bundles of coirs. As they pull out, last place Chip & Reichen get to the Detour and choose "Baskets" instead, to try to make up time.
Best line of the show that should have been made the title: Jon: "I'm in so much pain!:
Kelly: "You are??? I have a chain up my cookie!"
MP3
Team Who? gets to the market first. The Route Marker clue tells them to go to The Finishing Point, which usually is the finishing line for the town's boat races (I guess there is a lake).
David & Jeff are the first team to arrive, a seven-night cruise vacation to the Western Caribbean on Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas. Phil also says to David "And you... really need a shower".
Team Clowns (John and Al) are the second team to arrive (Hey, Phil's wording this week is odd. They're not "Team Number Two", they're "The second team to arrive", almost like this could have been a non-elimination leg. At the top of the show, Phil said in the tease "Who will be eliminated ... next" instead of the usual "Who will be eliminated... tonight".)
It's now a Race for last between Tian & Jaree on the elephant and Reichen (pedaling) and Chip. Editing shows both of them getting the clue at the same time.
Kelly and Jon are the third team to arrive, Millie & Chuck are the fourth.
Reichen and Chip run down a path and are the fifth team to arrive.
A muddy, dirty, smelly Tian and sweaty Jaree hit the Amazing Bathmat last, and are eliminated from the race.
Next week: Millie drowns. Well, not really. At least I don't think so... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, July 09, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Episode 2 THEME
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You know, Carol & I were talking after the show last night and we realized there weren't enough beds. Big Brother invented the Bed Pass. The "exes" were given a Bed Pass that would allow them to claim any bed they chose, kicking someone out of their bed,m forcing them to sleep... elsewhere. Think "bed sharing". The first Luxury Challenge to open-up the locked Hot Tub involved bathing suits, slime, and having someone else removing the slime off your body and putting it in a container that's on a cantelever that will raise a box revealing the key to the lock. Another convoluted challenge with a lot of touching of bodies. Still a lot of scheming among the original houseguests to get rid of the exes. On Day 3, it's time for the Head Of Household (HOH) competition. Iy has to do with "kneelers" and "sitters", where the kneeler is in an odd position, kneeling on a trigger that will dump fish chum on their sitter if they move off. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, July 08, 2003
Big Brother 4 - Premiere THEME
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Well, the next edition of Big Brother has started. The house is still the same house, but redecorated. Much more colorful. No real feelings for the houseguests. They won their first food challenge. CBS got the reaction they had hoped when the 5 exes entered the house. An awful lot of people freaked over the situation. Should be interesting, but I'm not sure it's something I want to watch. We'll see.
Oh, here are the exes... - Amanda Craig - Scott's Ex - 25, Bar Manager, Chicago, IL
- Jee Choe - Jun's Ex - 23, Bookkeeper, Elmhurst, NY
- Justin Giovinco - Alison's Ex - 22, Headhunter, Pittsburgh, PA
- Michelle Maradie - David's Ex - 19, College Student, Boca Raton, FL
- Robert Roman - Erika's Ex - 33, Restaurant Manager, Los Angeles, CA
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:09 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
First boot out of the Big Brother 4 House... THEME
The show hasn't started broadcasting yet (though the houseguests are in the house), and CBS has booted out one of them.
Brandon Showalter, a 28-year-old computer engineer from Newport Beach, Calif., got booted after he was caught trying to make contact with his girlfriend while he was sequestered in a hotel for a week prior to going into the house, and has now been replaced with the ex-flame of one of the other contestants.
posted at 11:32 AM | Link | Reality TV § |
Monday, July 07, 2003
For Love or Money?
Bachelor Rob Campos blows it by choosing Erin over love-smitten Paige Jones. Erin choses $1 million over Rob. Rob loses. But, gee, just like every single other reality TV show this year - there's a twist. Erin comes back to the house 3 weeks later with her check in hand. Why? To burn her check. Why? Because she's moving into the house with 15 guys. She's been there - she knows the rules of the game. But, if she can get the one guy she choses to chose her over the money, she wins $2 million. If she loses - she loses everything. Sort of double or nothing. Yes, it's For Love or Money 2.
posted at 09:57 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, July 03, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 6 THEME
"I Could Never Have Been Prepared for What I'm Looking at Right Now"
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From Amsterdam to India, from cheese and eels to poverty, Bollywood, crowded trains, groping, washing, and carrying fish, you knew this wasn't going to be good. In the end, Team NFL, a.k.a. "The Supremes", Monica (or as Phil says, "Monicker") and Sheree are eliminated from the race.
More later. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
9 Big Brother 4 Houseguests announced THEME
9 of the 13 houseguests for Big Brother 4 were announced today...
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Lets see what kind of crop we have... - Alison Irwin - 22, Retail Manager from pittsburgh, PA. Her personal hero is Britney Spears, her favorite actress is Cameron Diaz, and she has a cat named "Meow Meow". Oh boy...
- Brandon Showalter - 28, Computer Engineer from Newport Beach, CA. His personal hero is The Rock, and his favorite TV shows are Jackass and Punk'd.
- Dana Varela - 28, Karate School Manager from Queens, NY.
- David Lane - 21, a former Army Ranger from Deerfield Beach, FL. His personal hero is Fred Flintstone.
- Erika Landin - 33, Pilates Instructor from Los Angeles, CA. Must be a transplant since her favorite sports teams are the Cubs, Bears, and Bulls.
- Jack Owens Jr. - 58, retired FBI Agent from Birmingham, AL, divorced.
- Jun Song - 27, Investment Manager from new York, NY. Her favorite outdoor activity is Laying out in Central Park.
- Nathan Marlow - 23, Personal Trainer from Edmond, OK. He's going to miss The O'Reilly Factor.
- Scott Weintraub - 33, a Waiter from Chicago, IL (oh, oh...). He's from Chicago but his favorite team is the Knicks? His favorite magazines are Slam, Playboy, and Penthouse, his favorite movie is Old School and he likes rap.
Everyone is single except for Jack who was divorced. The "X Factor" houseguests will be announced later - probably after the houseguests enter the house tomorrow, but most likely on Tuesday July 8 - the night of the Premiere show. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 04:32 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, July 01, 2003
The Big Brother 4 "twist" THEME
OK, here it is, before it gets officially announced later this week...
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On this next edition of Big Brother, there will be 13 houseguests instead of 12. Of the 13, only 9 are "total strangers".
Huh?
Well, there is going to be 4 houseguests that are "exes" - former spouses, ex-boyfriends or ex-girlfriends of other houseguests. They may have parted on good terms or not. The exes were recruited after the 9 houseguests were cast. The houseguests all enter the house on July 4th, though the first airing of the show isn't until July 8 (this is pretty typical for the show - gives them time to edit things together before the scheduled air date), and they were sequestered on June 29. The house is - allegedly - newly constructed on the same lot as the old house.
Another possible twist - according to a rumor, only seven houseguests would vote for the winner and they would be sequestered after being evicted from the house. In fact, according to reports, they will be put into a second house where they will still be taped, and some of that footage will be added to the show. However, they will only be allowed to see selected portions of the show, and nothing from the Diary Room, so they cannot change their minds based on what they see there. (Sounds like that big Danielle backlash from last year got to the producers).
In another case of backlash, no one will be brought back after getting booted out (like Amy last year).
There are no houseguests that are married this time around, and they have the youngest and oldest houseguests to date (19 and 59).
Other rumors - The U.S. version will be seen in the U.K. (Why? Their ratings are down this year, why broadcast another version, unless their's is so boring? The U.K. version is also in the middle of something very cool - they're swapping one of their houseguests with one from Big Brother Africa, which is a huge ratings winner on that continent, as well as igniting a new understanding of the people of its many countries.)
Oh, and Real.com picked-up the live internet feeds again for this season.
Let's see how much of this is true next week... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 11:22 AM | Link | Reality TV § |
Monday, June 30, 2003
Why am I not surprised???
We have the post office hold our mail when we go on vacation. Carol went today to restart mail delivery and pick-up what was held. She came home with an entire postal container full of mail. Buried in there was the latest issue of Playboy. There they were - on the cover. Survivor: The Amazon winner Jenna Morasca and her buddy Heidi Strobel have a 10-page pictorial in the latest issue. The shoot was done the day after the finale aired, right after Jenna's appearance on Letterman, and they were approached as a team, not individually.
posted at 06:52 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, June 26, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 5 THEME
"You Are Just Deliberately Trying to Make Us Lose"
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Well, here I am on vacation in Orlando, enjoying a wonderful meal at Emeril's, and overall I think I'd rather be doing this than watching tonight's episode. Unfortunately, my hometown boys - Air Traffic Controllers Steve and Dave are eliminated from the race. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Thursday, June 19, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 4 THEME
"Check Your Tires Because... Oh God, You Never Know What'll Happen!"
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OK, I'm way behind here and I'm running out of time... response time on my server is WAY TOO LONG to try and blog anything... I'll have to get to my synopsis some other day (I don't really know when)... needless to say Steve & Josh have been eliminated from the race... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, June 17, 2003
I miss Alan
BBC America started running the new series of Ground Force - this one without Alan Titchmarsh. I miss him. Never thought I'd say that. I mean, Charlie, Tommy, Will and new addition of Kirsty King are fine, but I just miss him. It's not the same. It isn't bad, it's just not the same. Did they have to change the theme?
posted at 09:13 PM | Link | TV | 1 comment § |
Thursday, June 12, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 3 THEME
"I wasn't Even Going to Touch You Until You Slammed My Head Backwards"
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Well, here we go again, another episode where the teams don't finish in the order that you think...
We're still in Venice as Team ATC (Steve & Dave) leaves the Pit Stop at 2:45am to take a train 300 miles to Vienna, Austria with $480 for the leg. After talking to a local at the train station, they decide to get out of Venice now and go to Padua and get a train from there. Team Rainbow (Reichen & Chip... I want to call these guys something different... maybe Team Arrogant... yeah, that's it...) leave the Pit Stop at 5:20am.
Now, to show you how everyone bunched up at the Masquerade Party last week, remember that the doors to the party didn't open until 5pm. The first team out from that party was Team Arrogant at 5:20, only 20 minutes after the Road Block started. The last team to leave the Pit Stop on tonight's episode (Team NFL) leave at 5:31. That's tight.
A discussion at the train station with Chip and a local produce another route - go to Verona, then Innsbruck and a very fast train to Vienna. Team Arrogant and Team NFL join up and take this route, along with Team Bimbo (Tian & Jaree), Team Buff (Kelly & Jon), Team Who? (David and Jeff - hey, TWoP came up with the name and it's just appropriate right now). The train leaves at 6:54am. Then, all of a sudden you hear Millie yelling "Chuck!! Chuck!!" Millie is in trouble - she's having a asthma attack in the train station. Team Clowns stay with them and give support to Millie. Team Bimbo are now having an actual argument on the train. They're not doing well as a team at all.
Meanwhile, Team ATC finds out that Padua doesn't work out - the only way to Vienna is through the Venice train station. They have now lost a substantial piece of time.
It sounds like Team Clowns (Jon & Al), Team Virgins (Millie & Chuck), Team Weezer & Geezer (Steve & Josh) and Team Friendly (Russell & Cindy - look it says Friends/Dating and I think each of them has a different view of their relationship. You can tell by the way they're talking to - or at - each other) take the same route as the leaders, but a later train one hour behind. Team ATC (Steve & Dave) are now back in Venice waiting for another train which leaves 2 hours after the first.
The first train arrives in Vienna at 6:37pm and the teams find the Route Marker in town. But alas, the great equalizer has come into play - the Route Marker has Hours Of Operation of 8am to 4pm. The teams now decide to get some sleep at the Hotel Kaiserhof.
The next morning, the teams start lining up at the Route Marker - it's an entrance to the Vienna Sewer System, where the teams will have to follow a marked route to get to the next Route Marker. As the teams go underground, the comments from the members are priceless. I believe it was Josh who said "Stinks like ass!". Wonder why Jerry Bruckheimer didn't use that for the title of this episode? Then another one, a woman's voice: "Is this potty water?" Finally, it's back into the winter cloudy daylight. The Route Marker says "chose a flagged Fiacre and find your way to Schonbrunn Palace". Phil explains that a Fiacre is a horse drawn carriage and you claim it by grabbing the ticket that's hanging on the outside of the carriage. They then have to direct their driver approximately 6 miles to Schonbrunn Palace for their next clue. the Fiacres will depart in groups of 3 or 4 every 30 minutes.
So this is how it goes down: Team Arrogant gets to the Fiacre Stand and climb in one of them. Team NFL and Team Buff do the same. Team NFL leans outside the carriage, pulls their pass of the door handle and gives it to their driver. The other teams are arriving and are standing in the line to wait for the other Fiacres to show up. There's a discussion between Team Clowns that the clue says to grab the pass to be able to go. Team Arrogant is just sitting in their carriage trying to figure out why they're not going anywhere. Next thing you know, Jon pulls the pass off the carriage and kick out Team Arrogant. Jaree pulls the same thing on Team Buff's carriage, kicking them off, only after Kelly hits Jon in disgust!
Reichen narrates that the clue says "as soon as you see the horses approaching you may go and claim a tag..." so this is going to look ugly. The horses approach and everyone goes tearing toward the carriages. There's asthma-plagued Millie running like a "bat out of hell". All of a sudden, the camera goes into slo-mo as Chip and Millie fight for a tag as a carriage passes. Chip gets it, Millie gets another and it looks like Jon has the third. Chip starts calling out "I only got one". What the...? They were in a little alliance with Team Who? to get a tag for them. Guess that didn't work out. Millie climbs into her carriage with a "God, he's a jerk! He is.. such a jerk. Oh my gosh." A little later we see Chip coming up to Millie's carriage and Millie saying "Did I do that?" to which Chip replies "It's not your fault". It turns out that somehow, Millie cut Chip's lip during the scramble for the tag. And then Millie says the title of tonight's episode: "You know, I wasn't even going to touch you until you slammed my head backwards because you started the manhandling crap". Hmmm... OK, that's it - Reichen and Chip are in my Black List. They need to be taken down.
The first team to Schonbrunn Palace is Team Bimbo. They find the Route Marker is a Detour. Phil explains tonight's choices of "Mozart" or "Beethoven": In "Mozart", teams must carry a string bass 6 miles to a house where Mozart wrote The Marriage of Figaro. The house is well-known and finding it should be simple, but lugging a bass fiddle across town could be exhausting. In "Beethoven", teams must carry a portfolio of sheet music 11 miles where Beethoven wrote a famous letter known as The Heiligenstadt Testament . It's not a physically demanding task, but in a city where Beethoven occupied at least 5 different homes during his lifetime, finding this little-known house could take a while.
Everybody takes "Mozart" - except Team Buff. They're going to the Beethoven Memorial, but Kelly complains that Jon is doubting everything. Team Weezer & Geezer decide in their carriage to take the Fast Forward. Phil: In this Fast Forward, teams must search the Palace grounds for [this] ballroom and put on formal attire. Then each team member will have to successfully cary a tray of champagne-filled glasses across a dance floor full of waltzing couples. The first team to cross the dance floor with all their glasses standing upright can claim the Fast Forward. Well it took a few tries, but they do it. They can now go to the Pit Stop via train - the Seeschloss Orth in Gmunden.
Team Buff is on a subway or train car asking people where Beethoven memorial is when someone on the train says "which memorial?" Confusion ensues. Team ATC is in their carriage, knowing they're in last place. They give a nervous giggle when the read the Detour that says that "each house is between 5 and 15 miles from here."
At what appears to be a bookstore, Kelly finds out that Jon was right - they're not going to the correct place. Team Bimbo & Team NFL trick Team Clowns into thinking that they didn't know where the house was - they waited until The Clowns left and ducked right into the house, earning them the next clue: "Make your way to the Route Marker at the base of the Donauturm..." - an 1,150-foot "spire" overlooking the Danube River.
Team Buff finds a "cute little old lady" that showed them where to go and they get the next clue.
The teams start arrive at Donauturm, or The Danube Tower and find that the Route Marker is a Road Block. In this Road Block [that] team member will take a 460-foot bungee jump off this immense tower. This gigantic leap is the tallest tower jump in all of Europe. Nothing really unusual happens - everyone readily accepts the challenge (though Millie starts to have another asthma attack at the top of the tower, and Dave does the Road Block to save Steve's knee).
It turns out, that getting to Gmunden isn't all that easy, as Steve & Dave find out as they take a train to the Vienna North station, and Team friendly gets tickets to Gmund instead of Gmunden. Team ATC now has to go to the Vienna West station instead, and Team Friendly just happen to find out they're going to the wrong town and have to go to a different train station, loosing 45 minutes in the mix-up.
Team Weezer & Geezer is Team #1, Team NFL #2. Team Arrogant #3, Team Bimbo #4, Team Virgins #5, Team Clowns #6, Team Who? #7, Team Buff #8.
There are a lot of cutaway shots to Team ATC and Team Friendly on trains, discussing being last and what their chances are.
It's dark. Figures emerge and walk on the mat. Team ATC arrive as Team #9 and can't believe they're still in the race. Team Friendly - Russell & Cindy, arrive last and are eliminated from the race. (Or, as TWoP says - Philiminated!)
Next week - race cars! Chuck has a panic attack! Team Bimbo causes a "showdown in Marseilles"! And we see the title of next week from ATC Steve: "Just check you're tires when you pull out because.. Oh, God, you'll never know what will happen." And it's said as a threat to Tian! The Chicago way! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, June 11, 2003
Poker NightIt's poker night at our house. Unfortunately, we don't play - we watch. We've got ourselves hooked on the World Poker Tour on The Travel Channel. Two-hours every Wednesday night and they package the action so that it really sucks you in. Tonight was the PartyPoker.com Million II Tournament hosted by Card Player Cruises - a $25 Buy-In Single Table event (they're already qualifying people for PartyPoker.com Million III in March 2004 here with Super Satellites every Tuesday Night). I'm feeling a strong urge to learn Texas Holdem.
posted at 10:07 PM | Link | TV § |
Thursday, June 05, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 2 THEME
"It Doesn't Say Anything About First Come, First Served. And We're Bigger"
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Here we are again, starting at the last Pit Stop - the Hotel Lajadira, with 3 teams departing at 11:52pm. "Make your way to the bottom of the Trampolino Olimpico... then take the raft van to the top of the hill... and snow raft to your next clue." Well, this is actually the hill underneath a ski jump that was built for the 1956 Winter Olympics, and it's only a mile and a half away in Cortina. They walk the distance, and the rules state only one team per raft van. This looked like a blast! The clue at the end: "Make your way to the Pone Della Guglia Bridge in Venice." The teams have to go to Venice and use one of two train stations (the clue also said "Note: you may not fly"). The Calalzo train station which is closer (only a 30-minute drive) or Alpi which is further away but has an earlier train. (They show the Route Marker on the bridge - and it's the first time I can remember seeing one that had "Hours Of Operation" posted on it.) The first oddity happens when Team Buff (Kelly & Jon) take a cab to the rafting site - but get let off at the top of the hill. They must take the raft van from the bottom to the top. What does Jon do? Why, he slides down the hill on his ass. Kelly follows. They get in the van, go to the top, and then do it correctly in the raft.
Everyone heads to the Calalzo train station, basically when they ask about a train to Venice, everyone tells the teams to goto Calalzo. Everybody is now bunching up... but something weird happens. Team Rainbow (Reichen & Chip) are now after Team Weezer & Geezer (Steve and Josh) and muscle themselves to the front of the line and physically hold onto the door handles and block the entrance (of course, it's pretty damn early in the morning and there's no one around but them TAR'ers). There's even a slight verbal altercation between Team Rainbow and Steve. Odd. A bus pulls into the parking lot and someone asks if the bus goes to Venice. The driver says no, this is the bus to the Alpi train station. The group then finds out about the earlier train to Venice and everyone gets on the bus to go to Alpi to catch the train. Except, everyone isn't there yet. Team Bimbo (Tian and Jaree) and Team Buff (Kelly & Jon) get to the train at Calalzo at don't have a clue where the other 9 teams are. They find out later when talking to a conductor about the earlier train. Cindy & Russell have a little spat. The Route Marker on the bridge is a Detour "Waterway" or "Pathway". In "Waterway", teams travel by gondola using a map to guide their gondolier along the canals to a small plaza... The teams must navigate using only the map and without asking for directions from anyone. In "Pathway", teams must travel by foot to the same small plaza... these teams can ask for directions from the locals and if they use the information correctly, they can complete the task quickly." What they don't know is that it's really not going to matter. Why? Well, Millie and Chuck are the first to find out that the Route Marker in that little plaza has a clue that says: "Make your way to the Route Marker outside the Pallazzo da Mosto..." where they will attend a party which doesn't start until 5pm. Here we go again - everyone bunches up again since this appears to be hours away. Well, eventually after Kelly & Jon find their way.
Team ATC, since they're all busted up, decide to use the time for the Fast Forward - by joining the Commedia dell'Arte street performers. They get the Fast Forward and proceed to the Pit Stop - the Citti di Padova boat docked in front of the Pallazzo du Calle on the Venice lagoon.
Meanwhile, the party eventually begins. The Route Marker is a Road Block And as Phil explains that "A Road Block is a task that only one person may perform", we find out that in this Road Block "that person has to take one photograph from a doorman who is holding pictures of 4 different masks into the Pallazo and search among rooms full of masked revelers and match the masks shown in their picture. If they find the right person, they'll receive their next clue. If they hand the picture to the wrong person, the masked reveler will take the picture and silently walk away. The team member must go back outside and go to the back of the line. Since the doorman will only allow 4 people into the party at one time, getting back in could take a long while." OK, people - this party is CREEPY. Like something out of Eyes Wide Shut, but without the sex and nudity. Think 1600's Masquerade Ball. On top of this, there are a lot of those "revelers". Russell is first Inside, followed by Monica (or as Phil has been saying, "Monicker"), Chip, and then Josh. It is shot twisted, and distorted with odd sound effects and music. CREEPY, I tell ya. Josh gets his photo rejected - back to the back of the line. Jeff is 5th inside. Chip is first out. Tian is 6th in. Russell is next to get his clue. Tian gets her clue. Jon (as TWoP calls him BuffJon) is next inside. Chris in next in. Jeff gets his clue. Jon gets his clue. Millie is the 9th inside. Chris gets his photo rejected. Clown Al is last inside. Josh gets his clue. Notice something by now? Monica is still inside! Team Rainbow (Reichen & Chip) hit the Pit Stop in 2nd Place. Team Buff (Kelly & Jon) are Team Number 3. Monica is still inside. Chris is back inside. Chris is rejected again. Chris goes back inside. Team Bimbo (Tian & Jaree) finishes as Team Number 4. Dave & Jeff are Team Number 5 (I need a team name...). Monica is still inside looking. Al gets his clue. Millie gets her clue. Team Clown (Jon & Al) are Team Number 6. Monica is still looking. Team Friendly (Russell & Cindy) are Team Number 7. Monica is still looking. Team Virgins (Millie & Chuck) are Team Number 8. Team Weezer & Geezer (Steve and Josh) are Team Number 9. Monica finally makes the offer of her picture and she gets her clue. Chris is still looking around and finally gets his clue. Everybody is out and now it's another final race to the Pit Stop with the last two teams. Team NFL (Monica & Sheree) get there earlier and are Team Number Ten. That could only mean one thing - Team Date (Amanda & Chris) are the last team and are eliminated from the race.
Next week: Millie has an asthma attack and puts them way behind, but I think she slugs Chip! We see possible bloody nose! Bungee jumping from a 1200' tower! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, June 03, 2003
100 Heroes/Villains
I really wanted to get some things done early tonight so that I could make some attempt at catching up on my lost sleep, but I got absolutely hooked watching the American Film Institute's "AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains" on CBS. It was a great show, and I have to say that I agree with everyone that was selected for the list, though I have one complaint with the ranking - though I love the character and agree that he should be on the list, I just don't believe that Indiana Jones should rank as the #2 hero character of all time. Here's a PDF from the AFI website of the press release of the list. What I hadn't planned on was sitting in front of the TV for 3 hours...
posted at 10:02 PM | Link | TV § |
Thursday, May 29, 2003
Amazing Race 4 - Episode 1 THEME
"Cheaters Never Win and They Cheated!"
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And another season of one of the best Reality TV shows begins... After the obligatory introduction of the 12 teams, host Phil Keoghan goes over the rules (13 legs, 9 Pit Stops...) with the teams at their starting point - Center Field at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. The teams race for their bags near the warning track, grab the first Route Info on top of their bags, and proceed through the Center Field fence to waiting Mercedes SUV's in the parking lot. The clue" "Get yourselves to Milan, Italy. Once you're there, find the Route Marker inside the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II ...". There's $200 for the leg, and there's only 3 specific flights to take. OK, if the parking lot is any indication of what's ahead, we're in trouble. Some teams can't even get out of the parking lot. The Models (Tiann & Jaree) have to get a new car - the back hatch won't stay shut, and somehow don't seem to be too rushed to get to the airport. No one seems to know how to get to LAX (Team ATC - Air Traffic Controllers Steve & Dave - from Chicago figure it out by looking up in the air and watching the planes on final!), not to mention what appears to be some pretty poor driving. The Flights are Swissair at 2:55 that can carry 4 teams arrives at 1:15pm, Lufthansa at 2:55 that can carry 3 teams, but arrives 40 minutes later at 1:50pm, and KLM at 3:50 carrying 5 teams. At LAX, Josh (of Steve and Josh) realized that these other other gentlemen (Team ATC) were Air Traffic Controllers, so he wanted a little alliance with them and got them their tickets (the last ones for the Swissair flight) ahead of Team NFL (Monica & Sheree) who were right behind Josh in line, forcing the ladies to go elsewhere, and prompting tonights quote that is the title of the episode. Everyone leaves the country.
The Swissair flight arrives at 1:40pm, while the Lufthansa flight arrives at 1:50pm. It's a dash to the Galleria. One things for sure - The Forum Shops at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas is definitely modeled after this place. The Route Info at the Route Marker says to search the Galleria for tickets for a charter bus, that leaves at 2am, 4am or 6am, and they only need to search the common area (which is over a mile of shops). Once they find a ticket and take it, it's theirs and they cannot exchange it. Well, these things were not easy to find, with two locations being in small crevices between a wall, and another underneath a railing around some al fresco seating at a café. At 3:20, the KLM flight arrives and now everyone is eventually looking for tickets. (Oh, BTW, one highlight of this episode is the repeated falling on their face of many different team members. I don't remember seeing this so much throughout the other 3 seasons!) The teams gravitate to the Hotel Nuovo to try to get a room for the night. Team Media (Debra & Steve) don't like the room rates, so they leave to "think about it". When they return later, the rest of the teams are there as take up the last rooms. Reichen & Chip decide that they would share the room with Debra & Steve. In an unusual event, later in the room, Steve breaks down and cries for not taking the room when he did. An awful sense of foreboding envelopes the scene. Meanwhile, Russel & Cindy "negotiate" a park bench in a plaza. Sniping ensues.
At 1:55am, teams start arriving to board their busses. Hay, wait a minute... where are thy going? They don't know. They are going into the Dolomite Mountains to the town of Cortina D'Ampezzo. The Route Info there says to goto Cinque Torri and go to the top via chairlift and find the Route Marker. The Route Marker is a Detour - "Search" or "Rescue". In "Search", teams get a locater beacon to search 160 acres of snow to find a signal under the snow, which is a set of keys for a snowmobile which they can drive to their next clue. In "Rescue", teams make their way to the huge rock "towers", crossing a 4-steel-cable alpine rescue bridge and using a zip line to get across a 250-foot ravine. No one choses "Search". Team ATC has problems after the crossing, when going down the hill to a route marker,
Team NFL goes for the Fast Forward and gets it by snowshoeing to a Route Marker on a hill in "nearby" Passo Giau. They now go directly to the Pit Stop - the Hotel Lajadira.
Now the moment of the night is when Team Date (Amanda & Chris) are coming down from "Rescue". Amanda is lagging behind and perhaps even whining just a little when Chris turns around and yells at her: "C'mon, Flo!" Whining and swearing ensues...
Team ATC, coming down from "Rescue" has a critical moment - Dave's knee buckles, significantly stalling and slowing their progress.
At the pit stop, three teams jump on the mat together - Team Virgin (Millie & Chuck), Team Date (Amanda & Chris), and Steve & Josh ( I haven't come up with a name for them yet). Phil looks a little confused, as if he's not sure he should say this, but tell them anyway that they've won a Trip to Hawaii from American Airline's website "which you can enjoy after the race". Team NFL shows up in 4th (remember - 3-way tie for first, no 2nd, no 3rd). Team ATC hobbles in in 5th.
The Models don't look like they're holding together very well. There's tension between Tiann, who seems a bit motivated and intense and Jaree who really acts like "Race? We're in a race???" This is evidenced as Jaree flirts with a shop owner and gets some free coffee - which she winds up not drinking because Tiann has been outside trying to get a cab and is finally successful.
Oh - another moment Team Clowns (Jon & Al) show up on the mat with red clown noses! (they finished 7th).
The "race" at the back of the back is actually "tight" between Team Media (Debra & Steve) and The Models (Tiann & Jaree). Debra is "freaking" on the Alpine bridge - her face is almost as white as the snow. It's a little tense as The Models go onto the bridge with her and pretty damn near push her out of the way at the end. Lots of careful editing follows the last two teams to the Pit Stop. Alas, Team Media slowly walks onto the mat, as Phil tells Debra & Steve that they are the last team to arrive. He's sorry to tell them that they've both been eliminated from the race.
Next week: snow rafting, Venice, and a Road Block that looks like it's from Eyes Wide Shut... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:34 PM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Wednesday, May 28, 2003
Fame™
If you can just stomach Debbie Allen, this is a great show that I think one-ups American Idol by requiring the "Triple Threat" - It's not just about singing, but it's about dancing as well. Oh, and that star-quality persona.
posted at 08:32 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
TAR4 and BB4Just as a reminder for you Reality TV junkies out there - one of THE BEST Reality game shows - The Amazing Race - starts it's 4th season this Thursday at 8pm (7pm Central) with a 90 minute premiere. (Hey! It's Jerry Bruckheimer! How can you go wrong?!?)
Big Brother 4 will start Tuesday, July 8. The schedule looks like it will be on Tuesdays and Fridays at 8pm (7pm Central) and the live show will be Wednesdays at 9pm (8pm Central).
posted at 10:04 AM | Link | Reality TV § |
Saturday, May 17, 2003
The franchise is out of control...
NBC just ran Trading Spaces: Boys vs. Girls. OK, it's only half an hour, and the host is even perkier than Paige Davis. The real kicker is that the teams don't have a budget. It really shows, too, as the final product for the two bedrooms had a much better feel (in regards to quality) than anything I've seen on Trading Spaces. I mean, they bought entertainment systems!
posted at 11:30 AM | Link | TV § |
Thursday, May 15, 2003
Survivor 8 - All StarsSurvivor 6 (Survivor: The Amazon) just finished airing, Survivor 7 (Pearl Islands) was just announced and hasn't even started shooting (they even, for the first time, outsmarted Survivor Maps from getting the scoop on the new location as they thought it was going to be the Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve in Quintana Roo, Mexico), and now word comes out (because of the networks UpFront presentations (where they tell the press about their fall lineups)) that Survivor 8 will be an All-Star show, with contestants from prior seasons.
posted at 11:22 AM | Link | Survivor | 1 comment § |
Tuesday, May 06, 2003
Amazing Race 4CBS has finally decided to start airing The Amazing Race 4, starting Thursday, May 29, at 8 PM EDT (in Survivor's time slot). Here's the team info:
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- Amanda Adams and Chris Garry, dating couple, from Sioux Falls, SD. Amanda, 25, is a medical technician; Chris, 28, is a freelance graphics designer.
- David Dean and Jeff Strand, best friends, from Los Angeles. David, 32, owns a marketing agency; Jeff, 37, is a real estate broker.
- Debra and Steve Carmody, the married parents, from Louisville, Kentucky. Debra, 49, is director of an artists' colony; Steve, 40, is news director for a radio station.
- Jon Weiss and Al Rios, best friends and clowns, from Long Island. Jon, 40, works as a "human cannonball" for the circus; Al, 34, is an ex-circus clown who now works as a substitute teacher with occasional cruise-ship clowning on the side.
- Kelly Parks and Jon Corso, the engaged couple, from Miami. Kelly, 30, is a model; Jon, 28, is a real estate agent.
- Millie Smith and Chuck Shankles, dating couple (for 12 years) and self-professed virgins, from Chattanooga, Tennessee. Millie, 29, works as an instructor for the Tennessee Aquarium; Chuck, 28, has worked in a series of short-term physical occupations.
- Monica Ambrose and Sheree Buchanan, NFL wives and moms, from Duluth, Georgia. (Wives of Atlanta Falcon Ray Buchanan and former Atlanta Falcon Ashley Ambrose, who was cut from Atlanta in February and was signed by the New Orleans Saints.) Monica, 29 and a mother of two, was an Indianapolis Colts cheerleader; Sheree, 31, has three children.
- Reichen Lehmkuhl and Chip Arndt, married couple, from Los Angeles. Reichen, 28, is a pilot and an instructor at a flight school; Chip, 36, has started his own media-related company. We do not know if this is a civil union or a legal marriage, but we'll probably find out before the race is over.
- Russell Brown and Cindy Duck, friends who are dating, from the greater Los Angeles area. Russell, 32, is a model and entrepreneur; Cindy, 39, is a former model and inventor.
- Steve Meitz and Dave Cottingham, air traffic controllers, from Chicago. Steve is 46; Dave 43.
- Steve and Josh Cottingham, (oh, oh... is there a screw-up in the names here?) father and son, from Santa Barbara and Los Angeles, respectively. Steve, 47, is a supervisor at a juvenile detention facility; Josh, 21, is a computer technician.
- "Tian" Kitchen and Jaree Poteet, models, from Miami Beach. Tian is 30; Jaree 33.
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 12:33 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Friday, May 02, 2003
The West WingI can't imagine how this is going to affect one of my favorite dramas: Writers and Executive Producers Aaron Sorkin and Tommy Schlamme have quit The West Wing. (Articles from LA Times, NJ Star Ledger, Washington Post 1 and 2, and New York Times). Has it really "Jumped the Shark"?
posted at 01:43 PM | Link | TV § |
Monday, April 21, 2003
Mr. Personality
OK, ignoring the Monica Lewinsky aspect of the show, I have a one word summary about "Mr. Personality": creepy. Just plain creepy. The whole Man Behind The Iron Mask/Phantom of the Opera mask-thing just makes the whole show feel... well, creepy. I can't explain it. Creepy. Very unsettling. It did have a Reality Television moment though, when one of the rejected suitors (Robert the mascot!) rips into our lovely bachelorette, Hayley Arp, and you can almost see the concern/fright on her face as if she was wondering if the producers had any security personel hanging around.
posted at 09:43 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, April 16, 2003
Ump Jumper Top 10
Dave just isn't letting it go... again... just like last time. Tonight's Top 10 List:
Top Ten Excuses From The Guy Who Attacked The Umpire
10. "I thought it was 'Attack A Defenseless Umpire Night'"
9. "Let's see you drink 15 beers and not do something stupid"
8. "Look at all the endorsements the shirtless father and son lunatics got"
7. "I wanted to impress Royals shortstop Angel Berroa"
6. "Umpire? I thought he was a vampire"
5. "It was Royals-White Sox game -- somebody's gotta make it exciting"
4. "You never heard of a little thing called 'spring fever'?"
3. "Pete Rose bet me I wouldn't do it"
2. "You're just not yourself when you've got shingles"
1. "From my angle, he looked exactly like Uday Hussein"
posted at 11:07 PM | Link | TV § |
Spike?Now, who thought this was a good idea? TNN changing its name to Spike. Oh, I guess it was this guy: "We just like the idea of having a guy's name," said Albie Hecht, network president. "We thought that was smart and fun and irreverent."
posted at 08:34 AM | Link | TV § |
Saturday, April 12, 2003
Michael Palin's SaharaHow the hell did I not hear about this??? Michael Palin has another travel show on the air, this time it's Sahara. I loved, Around the World in 80 Days, Pole to Pole, and even Full Circle. Now he's going around the Sahara - The size of the United States with a population the size of Norfolk. He's got such a great sense of style working on travel shows. He's just great - be sure to check it out on Bravo.
posted at 01:23 PM | Link | TV § |
Thursday, March 27, 2003
Reality TV updatesABC has decided to put The Family on hiatus until the summer - similar to what they did to Mole 2 last year. I like the concept of the show - I just don't like the family itself.
Speaking of The Mole, ABC has ordered seven hour-long episodes of another Celebrity Mole from Stone Stanley Entertainment, with casting set to begin immediately. The series is being targeted for either summer or even perhaps fall. Oh, great - Ahmad Rashad is expected to return as host.
Amazing Race 4 should have started by now. It was bumped when CBS ordered another series of Star Search, and there have been "unexpected delays" in production (wonder what that means... maybe they ordered more Star Search because of the delays?) and we're probably looking at summer for that one as well.
Big Brother 4 auditions are in full swing. Applications are due April 18.
posted at 06:33 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, March 18, 2003
Around televisionA bunch of things that caught my eye that have to do with television: CBS may have to dump Round 1 and Round 2 of the NCAA tournament coverage to ESPN/ESPN2, and whatever doesn't fit there would go to on TNN or TV Land. The Academy Awards are still scheduled to go on, even if the war starts by then. Oprah Winfrey wants "The Bachelorette" stars Trista Rehn and her intended, Ryan Sutter, to get married on her show. Oh, no - Discovery Kids is putting together a new series for 8 to 13 year-olds: "Trading Spaces: Boys vs. Girls". If you have a TiVo, did you know that when you zip through those commercials that you actually recall those ads at roughly the same rates as people who see them at normal speed in real time?
posted at 12:32 PM | Link | TV § |
Wednesday, March 05, 2003
I'm A Celebrity — Get Me Out Of Here!
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Well, it's over. A week ago today, viewers started voting off the "celebrities", starting with Robin Leach, then Alana Stewart, Maria Conchita Alonso, Nikki Schieler Ziering, Tyson Beckford, "Downtown" Julie Brown, and last night - Bruce Jenner. The final three had to do their own Bushtucker Challenge for their own meal. Then the next person gets voted out - "Stuttering" John Melendez. Interview, clips, tap-a-tap-a-tap s-t-r-e-t-c-h and finally host John Lehr makes the announcement: Cris Judd wins over Melissa Rivers.
The two-hour finale was just too long. Lots of clips, lots of interviews, hardly anything new. This was such a train-wreck of a series - I couldn't stop watching! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, March 04, 2003
The Family
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OK, well, this one's just not holding me. I think George Hamilton is the correct host for the show, but I just keep getting the feeling that all of his parts were taped separately from the rest of the action. Weird editing. The family is just clueless, thus fitting what's needed for the show. i do love the fact that the "Board of Trustees" that vote the people off are actually the house staff. I think that's a nice touch. I'm just not hooked. Maybe I'm just not in love with anybody in that family. Oh, they kicked out Cousin Robert (or as they put it - he is "denied access to the $1 million"). Actually, they don't get kicked-out. They stay and live on the estate because, after all, they're "Family". « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:57 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, February 27, 2003
Joe Millionaire 2???
How in the world is Fox going to pull off a second helping of Joe Millionaire??? If 40 million people saw the finale, don't you think people would be on to the premise??? At least February Sweeps is finally over and we have a bit of a breather until May.
Hey! You want Evan to show up at your next event? Aparently, all it takes is $15,000.
posted at 01:26 PM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Where's my neighbor?Fred McFeely Rogers died today at age 74 after being diagnosed with stomach cancer just after the holidays. "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" started on Pittsburgh's WQED in 1967. No more cardigans and sneakers.
posted at 06:35 AM | Link | TV § |
Wednesday, February 26, 2003
I'm A Celebrity — Get Me Out Of Here!
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The viewers voted out the first celebrity - it was Robin Leach. This is just so wrong. This guy really was the backbone of the whole group. He organized and took charge and really helped the group survive out there. This makes me think that the ratings for this show are skewing very young and they just wanted the old guy out. it's wrong. Bummer. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:12 PM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Sunday, February 23, 2003
I'm A Celebrity — Get Me Out Of Here!
Tonight's wacky quote comes from Nikki Schieler Ziering: "Guys! - Crocodile is a reptile!" (You had to see it - Alana had won the full complement of 10 meals for the campers. Everybody thought they were eating fish, though some complained it was a little tough. So, they wanted to know what kind of fish it was. That's when they found out it was crocodile and not fish.) This show is such a train wreck, I can't NOT watch!!!
posted at 08:23 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Friday, February 21, 2003
Big Brother 4 greenlighted
CBS has given the go-ahead for a 4th season of Big Brother, and has a contingency on a 5th.
posted at 01:00 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Ground Force America in production
It looks like Ground Force America is indeed in production, as last week a garden in Dallas Georgia (I didn't know there was another Dallas) was transformed. They're going to shoot 8 shows and have received 50,000 requests. Looks like a late June air date.
posted at 11:39 AM | Link | TV | 1 comment § |
Thursday, February 20, 2003
I'm A Celebrity — Get Me Out Of Here!
I love this! Host John Lehr just before a commercial break: "This just in, ladies and gentlemen. That leach you saw earlier is now attached to Bruce Jenner. Repeating... Bruce Jenner has a leach!"
posted at 09:38 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, February 19, 2003
I'm A Celebrity — Get Me Out Of Here!
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OK, first we have still another misuse of the word "Celebrity" by the ABC network (witness Celebrity Mole Hawaii), so we're not dealing with "stars" here. But I have to tell you, this is drawing me in like witnessing a train wreck. First of all, the shows are live for 15 straight days. That means they have to edit their pieces within 24 hours, not like a quality show such as Survivor where months may pass before an episode airs. The camp that the "celebrities" are is in an Australian rain forest (that allows for the show to go live from Australia at around 1pm). The camp itself looks small (at least that's the impression you get when you see how they're shooting it). Again, to allow for quick editing, the cameras, unlike Survivor, don't appear to be handheld - a director has to call the shots so they appear to be in fixed positions in the rain forest. The key thing that I like about this show is that it comes across, I believe unintentionally, like a laboratory experiment. Think Big Brother, but without walls. Also think Big Brother 1, where the viewing audience gets involved by voting (via website or phone) on who does challenges and who gets voted off. So we get to tinker with their little, pitiful lives on the jungle floor. Oh, and this is in a nature preserve, so the host and crew are actually above the camp on giant walkways and balconies used in the park. Way cool. It's like playing in a jungle petri dish. And it being a rain forest, our poor lab rats are wet and miserable. A few were already bitching over the fact that they were assigned clothes to wear. This put everyone on the same playing field, and most of the women didn't like the fact they had to wear the assigned clothes. (What's weird is that they were issued khaki shirts with their names and phone numbers on them, so if you didn't know who they were, you could find out so that you can vote for that person. Admittedly, in the rain and darkness, the lettering just doesn't work.) It is so interesting to see how these people are so "not normal". This could be fun... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:18 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
The Bachelorette - Finaleposted at 09:10 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, February 18, 2003
Survivor contestant ill
Daniel Lue, the 27-year-old Tax Accountant from Houston, TX (who I thought performed worse than Ryan in the Immunity Challenge last week) is laid-up at home after being diagnosed with malaria.
posted at 10:17 AM | Link | Survivor § |
Monday, February 17, 2003
Joe Millionaire - Finale
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Well, after enduring an hour of the women commenting on Evan and the other women, the last hour actually went well. So how did it all go down? After a lot of himming and hawing, saying things about "it's been a roller-coaster ride," he finally tells Zora Andrich "I've chosen you." Then he tells her about the "secret": "There's been something else I'd like to say to you that's been really weighing on my nerves ... I don't have $50 million. I don't have $50,000. I'm sorry I lied to you, but I wanted to find someone who loved me for who I am, not for what I may or may not have." You can see Zora roll her eyes and looked shocked, though she's trying to hide it. She has to tell him her answer later that evening. He then bumbles through telling Sarah Kozer that he didn't pick her, which means she's got to pack and leave - with the help of Melissa Mowery who comes back so that could have a smoke on a balcony and trash talk the whole situation. After Sarah leaves, we see Zora hanging out the window watching her departure. Then we see Zora packing. She's not saying anything, she's just going through her things and packing. Well, the time comes for Evan to get dressed and wait in the ballroom. Lots of pacing back and forth, lots of tense music. After a long period of time, Zora does show up, dressed in a royal blue ball gown. She's pretty damn nervous. "The good news is, I really was turned off by the fact that you inherited all that money," she said. "I would like to continue the journey and see what happens." So Joe gets the girl. Evan presents her with a diamond ring, which he places on her right hand. They're genuinely excited. Wait a minute - Paul is coming back in the room holding a silver tray with a silver dome over it. He has a short, quiet, and for Paul, emotional speech that ends with "With love in your hearts, all things are possible." He uncovers the dome to reveal a check to Evan and Zora for (best Mike Meyers' Dr. Evil voice here) One Million Dollars. They're stunned. Stunned. The start to dance (is there really any music playing?). Zora asks Evan if she can kiss him! (OK, that's a little turn of events, since she didn't want to kiss him before.) So this was the big twist and a real Fairy Tale ending. Eh. Why do I feel satisfied? Why am I left feeling good about the show? « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:15 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Why Reality TV Is Good For UsTime Magazine last week (I'm just getting around to reading it) had a great article in it: Why Reality TV Is Good For Us
posted at 09:09 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, February 13, 2003
Survivor: The Amazon - Episode 1
"Boys vs. Girls"
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It's 103 degrees as the boat moves down the Amazon with the new batch of contestants. Jeff says that as he calls someone's name, to get into the yellow boat tied to the big paddlewheel boat. After the fifth person, everybody realizes that he's calling all of the women. Yep, this year the tribes are split along gender lines. The men of the Tamaqui tribe untie their boat and head off to their camp. the women of the Jaburu tribe... try to untie their boat, but stumble trough it, delaying their departure. Eventually, they are off and there's an unsettling feeling that either the women are doomed or Mark Burnett is orchestrating the editing. The tribes get to their camps (which seem pretty damn isolated) and set up. Sort of. The men actually start putting together shelter, the women... not so much. The men are cocky and arrogant and think nothing of the women... unless if it's to "hook up". Oh, great, guys. Thanks for dragging all of us men along this dark, dank path along with you. The guys get a fire going promptly by using a couple of drops of kerosene in their kindling. The women don't take that tack at all, and use damp leaves, which results in a 5-6 hour delay in getting fire. Christy is having problems because, even though she told her tribemates that she is deaf, none of them are helping her at all, leaving her out of conversations and decisions. (This, of course, just pisses me off. She, of all people, needs to stay on this show as long as possible to show that someone that has a disability can still play this game. I start to worry that she'll be the first one out.) The men play with a Magic 8-Ball, asking questions about if they will "hook-up" with one of the women. Oh, God. Men - we're going down a long, slippery slope. Eventually, it's time for the first immunity challenge (huh? no reward challenge this week?) The tree mail says:
From the start,
As time goes by,
You'll surely part.
Use balance, agility
And a bit of wit.
Be the one to fall short,
And tonight could be it!
The tribes are bound together with belted chains and locks race through the jungle, negotiating an obstacle course. As each station is completed, they get keys that unlock their chains one at a time. The race is pretty even until Jaburu gets hung-up on deciphering a code to a hint. The race is even until Jaburu gets hung up trying to decipher a code at one of the stations. Tamaqui races ahead to a balance beam that they must cross is pairs (they're now down to just pairs being chained together). Daniel can't walk a beam to save his life (or his tribe's, for that matter) and has to keep redoing that part over and over again, chained to Ryan in the lead. Jaburu gets the code, hits the beam, and now leads the guys. Oh, oh. Eventually, the guys get to the next station which is just building a puzzle. The women get through it, the guys struggle while Jeff is yelling "Come on, guys! We got a rocket scientist and a computer guy stuck on a puzzle!" Heidi finishes the last leg, and Jaburu wins the first Immunity Challenge. The men a clearly dejected (gee, no kidding!). They show up at tribal council and the discussion begins about their performance and chest-thumping. Then Jeff asks about the guys about the women in the other tribe, and then the testosterone starts flowing and stupid just falls out of every single mouth of the tribe. Then Jeff finally says: "You know what's great? You came out from day one talking more trash than I've ever heard. Ever. You got your asses kicked, and yet, when we get to women, it's like 'ah, who cares... I wanna hook up!' That's why you guys can be really in serious trouble." ... and the voting begins. Ryan Aiken, the 23-year-old model from Ellicott City, Maryland, is voted out of the tribe in a 4-3-1 vote. Roger is in trouble with the three votes. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:35 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Still another Reality TV Update
Do you remember Vecepia Towery? (hint: winner of Survivor Marquesas) Well, her 15-minutes of fame aren't up yet. TLC's "A Baby Story" will follow her when she gives birth to a baby boy (named already: Jordan Levon) in May.
As long as I'm doing an update, here's one from The Bachelor/The Bachelorette. Apparently, Amanda Marsh ended her relationship with Alex Michel when she discovered he had slept with runner-up Trista Rehn.
posted at 03:40 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, February 12, 2003
Celebrity Mole Hawaii - Episode 6 - Finale
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Damn. I mean, DAMN. This was a good show. I didn't want it to be, but it showed the strengths of this flavor of The Mole. The "celebrities" were extremely personable, unlike many of the "civilian" contestants have been. They all looked like they genuinely had a blast doing the show. Having only 7 players allowed the show to showcase each player's style of play. Since the reunion probably happened before the show started airing (or soon after), their reactions were broad and priceless. In typical Mole style, the final three contestants were behind three doors (reminds me way too much of a confessional) and each was revealed in their own way. First - the Winner - Kathy Griffin, who takes home $233,000. Then The Mole is revealed - Frederique Van Der Wal, leaving Erik von Detten as the runner-up. I really enjoyed this episode - maybe not the whole series, but this was a good Mole episode.
Update: The following weekend, ABC Family ran a Mole marathon (more than once) with Kathy Griffin as the host. She said, more than once, to look for future Celebrity Mole's, so the network must have been happy with the ratings. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:01 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Tuesday, February 11, 2003
OK, people... just move along... move along...I was trying to do a few things on my website today when I noticed it was a little sluggish. I checked my stats and found out that visitation is up the last two days 755%! Why? I'm getting swamped with searches on Joe Millionaire's Zora Andrich and The Bachelorette's Trista Rehn.
Now look people - though I like the increase in traffic, I've got nothing here. I commented on them once and that's it. No inside scoop. No pictures. No information if either of them are pregnant. You'll have to find that info some place else - it's not here. Thank you for visiting. Look around and kick the tires if you're interested in what's here, but if not - THEN PLEASE, MOVE ON.
Thanks. I never thought I'd get inundated like this. Somehow, this crazy, little website must be high-up on some search engines, or people just have a more voracious appetite for Reality TV than I had thought.
posted at 03:12 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Cheers, Alan!
This is my 1,000th entry! w00t! So how should I use it? Hmmm... a little blurb about TV... It is with heavy heart that I find out that Alan Titchmarsh, after 67 shows, has left my favorite (or maybe I should spell that favourite) British DIY show - Ground Force. The show will go on with Charlie Dimmock, Tommy Walsh and Will Shanahan with the new addition of Kirsty King. It won't be the same, but I'll have to watch to see if the show can still hold together without Alan. I guess we'll find that out relatively soon as the crew should be coming stateside any month now to start shooting Ground Force America!
posted at 01:39 PM | Link | TV § |
Monday, February 10, 2003
Joe Millionaire
Next week: two hour grand finale! Typical Fox... lead you right up the decision and.. oh! it's next week! And there's the cryptic final message from Butler Paul Hogan: "And by the way - in the past, I have refused to comment on rumors that had Joe Millionaire's story will end in a twist. But this evening, I will comment. Those rumors are not rumors at all. In fact, the final chapter of our story does indeed have a rather big, surpising and remarkable twist."
posted at 09:08 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, February 05, 2003
Celebrity Mole Hawaii - Episode 5
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Yech. Why am I still watching. I love the game, hate this implementation. Shame on you Stone Stanley Entertainment!
The first game is the traditional "Three Questions" game - except they're not in a quaint village somewhere in Europe, so they make do with paths through a Hawaiian jungle, with the person in hiding wearing a camouflage outfit to blend in with the vegetation. The only win $10,000 of $30,000 and there is a lock of animosity that we've always seen with this game. Odd. I think the players are starting to hate the whole experience and just want it to end. The second game is called "It Takes A Thief" and is a convoluted, Mole-ish scavenger hunt in a Hawaiian mansion (very nice place). The players wear jumpsuits, they have to have two people lay on a bed to activate a blacklight out in the darkness outside (a backyard? a front yard? can't tell where the hell they are) to read hints on items/articles in a fluorescent ink. The clues find things that have numbers that they have to key in as a digital combination to a safe that has to be opened with 30 minutes, which somehow they were able to accomplish - only to find another clue inside which has them diving into the outdoor swimming pool (another nice amenity at this house) to collect bags of money (one for each person). They get $75,000 but they needed some hints from Ahmad along the way that cost $1,000 each, so they only earn $72,000. The pot is now $233,000. The contestants take the final 20 Question quiz and the Runner Up, the Winner, and The Mole are revealed next week along with a reunion of the cast.
Oh joy. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:10 PM | Link | The Mole § |
I got a Journal...
Now remember - I love the show's concept, I just hate the current implementation. I went and bought an authentic (complete with Certificate of Authenticity) Mole journal from ABC Auctions. It was just something I wanted because I still believe in the show and am a big fan of the first two seasons and I really would have liked to tryout for the next series (but I believe that was already cast). It's a cool journal, complete with embossed fingerprint on the cover.
posted at 09:44 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Reality TV PotpourriThere's so much out there on the web right now, so for you Reality TV fans out there, here's some comments, observations and a few links...
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OK. Celebrity Mole Hawaii. Just sucks. Nothing else to say about it - they've just killed what I think was a very clever Reality TV game. Sucks.
Joe Millionaire. Gee, where do I start... OK, we knew about Evan's Toll Evasion ticket and his past as an underwear model. Then we have finalist Sarah Kozer's odd little soft porn bondage films. We have supermarket tabloid The Globe saying finalist Zora Andrich actually married Evan at the French château. (There's also one totally unsubstantiated rumor that one of the girls on the show is pregnant from Evan.) Paul Hogan the butler is even in the frey, having been almost fired from an assignment just prior to the show (actually, he quit right before getting fired). Did you know that he's a member of the International Guild of Professional Butlers (and they have a webpage for him)?
The Bachelorette. Two days after the show was broadcast that had him being rejected by Trista Rehn, Greg Todtman was busted at New York's John F. Kennedy airport and charged with trying to smuggle drugs onto his American Airlines flight to Los Angeles. But we just know the winner is Charlie Maher.
The Bachelor. Remember Aaron Buerge and "winner" Helene Eksterowicz? They broke up. I mean, he blew off her January 17th birthday, what do you expect?
Amazing Race 4 appears to be in production - they were in Alappuzha, India, (somewhere around Kerala) where an article mentions 7 pairs of contestants (that will give you an idea on how far into the race they are) "participated in a traditional bull race, carrying bundles of coir on elephants, riding a cycle-rickshaw with chicken crates and a night on a rice boat." It also looks like there's a possibility of the show being pushed-off a bit as CBS has ordered more episodes of Star Search.
Do you remember Mike ''Boogie'' Malin from Big Brother 2? Do you remember his bar/lounge Belly? Don't you think that it's an odd coincidence that Gabriel Cade of Survivor Marquesas bartended there and Alex Bell of Survivor The Amazon was a doorman there? (nice little article on how Belly is a "Reality TV halfway house".)
How about a new ABC series based on a British Channel 4 show Wife Swap?
And not really part of the Reality TV genre per se, but guess what TV show was voted the favorite of HGTV's programming? Trading Spaces. That's not a good thing as Trading Spaces is not on HGTV - it's on TLC! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:59 AM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, January 29, 2003
Celebrity Mole Hawaii - Episode 4
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I'm chickening out - I'm bored with the show tonight, so I'm using the synopsis from Television Without Pity:
Tonight's first game involves the women surfing and the men hula dancing. Kathy fails to stand on a surfboard for five seconds, so they don't win any money. Erik has a chance to make up for her failure by standing on a surfboard for ten seconds, but he can't do it. Then all four of them get to compete for one final exemption that will guarantee a spot in the final round. First, they pair up to do math puzzles, and Kathy and Erik win. Then those two square off in a series of SAT-style logic puzzles, and Erik wins with a three-second faster time. Finally, Erik has to complete a game of concentration using a deck of cards in a mystery location before Kathy, Michael, or Frederique finds him. A security guard weirdly detains Frederique, and Erik gets the exemption. And then Michael gets executed.
The pot is still at $151,000 since no money was won in this episode. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:10 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Wednesday, January 22, 2003
Celebrity Mole Hawaii - Episode 3
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The first game is called Offshore Account. Corbin leads a the group in building a raft out of material dumped on the beach that will hold the entire team and get a flag out on a buoy within 30 minutes to claim $30,000 that is stashed there. Erik's only job is to make smoothies for the rest of the team. Ahmad offers Erik an exemption if he can get to the flag on the buoy first. the catch - he has to finish making the smoothies, and he has to rent a kayak from the cabana boy for $15 (which Erik doesn't have). Oh, and the money doesn't go into the pot either. Ahmad calls for the cabana boy and up pops - Stephen Baldwin! Erik must use a metal detector on the beach to find the $15 in change. Well, the raft making isn't turning out all that well, and falls apart as they test it. Erik finds enough change, rents the kayak, and gets out to the buoy to grab the flag and the exemption, stopping the $35,000 from making it into the pot. Ahmad calls Erik over to the rocks and offers to add $60,000 into the pot if Erik gives up the exemption. He gives it up. Erik finally tells the group what happened - and no one seems to care. During a meal outside the hotel (could have been a breakfast or lunch) Ahmad tells the group that he hopes they left some room for the next game and a woman walks out with a tray of six different hot peppers. The group goes inside. On a table is a plastic maze containing five mice. Ahmad explains that they each get to pick a mouse. The mouse will be released, and whichever door the mouse runs through will determine which pepper the player has to eat. Each pepper is worth $10,000. Ahmad will ask each player a pop-culture question. A correct answer means the player can either eat the pepper or pass it on to another player. An incorrect answer means the player has to eat the pepper for the money. Ahmad points out that each pepper is numbered from one to six. One means hot, and six means really, really, really hot. The game is called Hot Pepper Lookie-Lookie. The player must bite the pepper in the middle and chew, and when ready, the other players say "Lookie lookie!" and look at the chewed-up pepper before the player can swallow. Oh, and there's a big pitcher of cold milk - the perfect thing to combat the burn of the peppers. Each glass of milk will cost $1,000. Corbin goes first and blows his question, and his mouse (Stripe) picks pepper 6 - the hottest. Corbin eats it without a problem. Erik blows his question, his mouse (Grey Ghost) goes for Pepper 4, and eats his pepper. Corbin, for no reason, eats another pepper. Michael blows his question, the mouse (Daphne) picks pepper 5, and he gets through the pepper. Frederique answers correctly, her mouse (Zoro) picks pepper 3, and passes the pepper to Corbin who eats it. Kathy answers correctly, her mouse (Spooky) picks pepper 2, and passes it to Corbin - who eats the pepper and finally requests a glass of milk. The team wins $49,000 and the pot is now up to $151,000. At dinner, Ahmad asks the team to open their journals and tear out page 17. He collects them and reads them aloud to the group. Ahmad reads one of the pages: "I hate everybody. The game is driving me crazy. I can't stand Frederique. Every day she comes out and looks so pretty, and I just can't stand it. Michael thinks he's just the tops. Corbin? A bully." Everyone laughs because it's Kathy's - except it isn't: her page is blank and Ahmad is just making it up. Time for the quiz and execution. Ahmad enters the names into the laptop, and after four people come up green, they all look toward the only one left - as Corbin turns up red and is executed. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:31 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Sunday, January 19, 2003
What was she thinking?posted at 10:00 PM | Link | TV § |
Saturday, January 18, 2003
Trading Spaces Las Vegas Live Reveal
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This was a normal Trading Spaces episode, taking place in Henderson, sort of a suburb of Las Vegas, but the twist was dubbed the Las Vegas Live Reveal. This how was heavily hyped for the Live Reveal, prompting commercials featuring dance numbers and appearances from each of the cast members. The homeowners fortunately live across the street from each other, making the Day Zero setup for the crew a little easier. Now, remember, only the Reveal would be live. Usually, shooting a typical episode produces about 20 hours of footage that is edited usually six weeks later. Day Zero was Wednesday, shooting was Thursday and Friday, leaving Friday night and Saturday for editing the show before it was broadcast at 7pm locally. The neighbors spent Friday night in Vegas somewhere, isolated from the other neighbors, cast, and crew so the reveal tonight would be a surprise. Stephen and Caysi, the Green Team with Hildi did their neighbor's family room, while Jeff and Kim, the Red Team with Doug did their neighbor's bedroom. (Tonight's carpenter: Amy Wynn Pastor.) Well, a few Las Vegas celebrities stopped by (including an Elvis impersonator) and the live reveals went off on time without a technical hitch. The rooms, I thought, were just OK, and when the reveals were done, it just seemed like any other Trading Spaces show, not really worthy of the effort to produce a live reveal.
(Now, if any of you saw the episode before the "live one" (from Austin, TX), Hildi struck again by putting-up over 4,000 wine labels (from a Texas winery) on the walls of a kitchen of an associate pastor at Morning Star Christian Church, doesn't drink or want alcohol in his home, so within hours of the big "reveal," the labels were steamed off the walls. The next day, the damaged wallpaper had to be torn down and the kitchen painted. This story is here in the Austin American-Statesman) « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:23 PM | Link | TV | 1 comment § |
Wednesday, January 15, 2003
Celebrity Mole Hawaii - Episode 2
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OK, too much horseplay with Stephen Baldwin and everyone else. The first game, "Take This Job", has three groups of two - Short Order Cooks (Kathy & Frederique - Walk across a bed of hot lava to retrieve cooking chicken); Flight Attendents (Stephen & Corbin - Ride in a biplane performing stunts while cleaning the plane's gauges); Lifeguards (Erik & Michael - Plunge off a 40-foot cliff into the crashing waves of the ocean to retrieve a rescue buoy). Everyone has to videotape a prediction on whether the other players will complete their tasks. For every correct prediction, $1,000 is added to the pot, for a potential $24,000. Michael didn't jump. The results of the predictions only produce $17,000 for the pot. The second game was "Six Feet Under". Let's see if we can follow this: Corbin and Michael don scuba gear and act out charades underwater at night. Frederique and Stephen are in a submarine (dubbed "Das Mole") watching, and relay their answers to Kathy and Erik who are in a graveyard, who must figure out the character that died in the movie or TV show that was the answer and dig up the correct coffin, and dig up Josh Hartnet for "Pearl Harbor", Harrison Ford for "What Lies Beneath", Kenny for "South Park", and Chow Yun Fat for "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon". They don't get "American Beauty" as the last charade clue in the alotted time. The money is not in Chow Yun Fat's, or Kenny's coffin, so Ahmad offers $5,000 for the pot to end the game, or go on to look in the other coffins. The go for it. It's not in Harrison Ford's. Ahmad offers $10,000 to to quite now. Now, Erik accidentally opened the casket when it was dug up and he knows there's just bones in there. The whole group - minus Kathy who knows - agrees to go for it. Yes, it's just bones (the money is in the undug Kevin Spacey coffin) - the group gets no money. The pot - $67,000. At dinner, it's time for another game - the players are given 30 minutes to come up with a unanimous vote for who someone to get an exemption. If they do it, they get the $25,000 that was lost in "Six Feet Under". If they don't, they will lose $25,000 from the pot. Everyone - except Corbin - wants to vote for Erik. Corbin wants it himself. No one can agree. The pot goes down to $42,000. The quiz is taken, the cast is assembled and Stephen Baldwin is executed. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:14 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Tuesday, January 14, 2003
Touched by CBSAccording to CNN, CBS has canceled "Touched by an Angel".
*yawn*
It was still on the air???
posted at 12:31 PM | Link | TV § |
Monday, January 13, 2003
Survivor The Amazon Cast Revealed
CBS unveiled the cast for Survivor The Amazon this morning. (*Spoilers Below*).
read more of this entry »
According to CNN, it's going to be a tribe of men (Tambaqui) competing against a tribe of women (Jaburu).
The Jaburu Tribe ("Jaburu" refers to a bird or stork that is native to the area) wearing yellow buffs will consist of:
Christy Smith, 24, Children Adventure Guide for the Deaf, Basalt, CO (She is partially deaf and wears a hearing aid the first person with a disability to compete on Survivor)
Deena Bennett, 35, Deputy District Attorney, Riverside, CA
Heidi Strobel, 24, P.E. Teacher, Eldon, MO
Janet Koth, 47, Travel Agent/Abstinence Counselor, Manchester, MO
Jeanne Hebert, 41, Director of Marketing, North Attleboro, MA
Jenna Morasca, 21, Swimsuit Model (! - past work includes posing for "Stuff Magazine"), Pittsburgh, PA
JoAnna Ward, 31, School Guidance Counselor, Orangesburg, SC
Shawna Mitchell, 23, Retail Clothing Sales, Redwood City, CA
The Tambaqui Tribe ("Tambaqui" meaning a local fish) wearing blue buffs will consist of:
Alex Bell, 32, Triathlon Trainer, Los Angeles, CA
Butch Lockley, 50, Middle School Principal, Olney, IL
Daniel Lue, 27, Tax Accountant, Houston, TX
Dave Johnson, 22, Rocket Scientist (No, really, a freakin' rocket scientist from JPL!), Pasadena, CA
Matthew Von Ertfelda, 33, Restaurant Designer, Washington, D.C.
Rob Cesternino, 24, Computer Projects Coordinator, Wantagh, NY
Roger Sexton, 56, Vice President of Estimating, Valencia, CA
Ryan Aiken, 23, Model & Actor, Ellicott City, MD
Don't forget to check out Survivor Maps for info on the location, tribal camp sites, etc. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 02:36 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, January 08, 2003
Celebrity Mole Hawaii - Episode 1
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Damn it, they've gone and messed-up a GREAT (and one of my favorite) Reality TV Shows!!!!
ABC aired the first episode (of 6) of Celebrity Mole Hawaii. Crap. Good structure, bad implementation. Seven "celebrities" (and I use the term very loosely) in the competition with <shudder> Ahmad Rashad as the host (in place of Anderson Cooper, who is now firmly stationed at CNN, thank you very much. The "celebrities" are Stephen Baldwin (“Usual Suspects”, the only credit for something legitimate), Corbin Bernsen (“L.A. Law” and "Major League"), Michael Boatman (“Spin City” and ""Arli$$), Kim Coles ("In Living Color" and “Living Single”), supermodel Frederique Van Der Wal, Kathy Griffin (“Suddenly Susan”), and Erik von Detten (“Princess Diaries” and another ABC "hit" "Dinotopia"). Ewwww. ( Here's a great quote from Kathy Griffin: "I have gone from 'B-List' to 'D-List,'" she said in an interview. "I skipped 'C' altogether. I jumped right to 'D.'" )
Now, in case you haven't heard, there was a fire December 17th at the Hollywood Center Studios, where the show was being edited. Stone Stanley Entertainment (the production company) had issued a press release just yesterday saying they were able to make the premiere date today!!! (2500 tapes and hundreds of computer hard drives, as well as written logs were completely immersed in 3 feet of murky water used to douse the fire).
The show just doesn't feel right technically. The edits are poor, perhaps because there wasn't enough of recovered footage to make clean, flowing edits. The incidental music feels weird. Maybe they rushed the editing? On top of that, the press release doesn't say anything about the rest of the episodes - are they edited yet? Also, every single commercial break seems to lead with a tease for the next segment which I don't remember the show doing before.
So the first game was called "On The Line". While one player hangs from a zip line 50-feet over a waterfall, the other players must navigate them to buckets placed around the canyon walls. That player must then fill each with water, navigate back and empty its contents into a container counterbalanced with a moneybag that must be raised to win. Stephen Baldwin completes the task quickly. Frederique fails to beat his time, but Michael Boatman succeeds, adding $20,000 of $30,000 possible into the pot. The second game was called "Baa Baa Black Jack" Ahmad, wearing a white cowboy hat, stands behind a blackjack table and deals a hand for himself: a 3 and a queen, totaling 13. The object of the game are for three teams of two to corral 2 of 52 sheep (each marked as a playing card), beating Ahmad's hand. Only Erik von Detten and Frederique succeed in getting two sheep in the pen and win with 19. Because Stephen sat-out, he had a special game: catch "The Mole Sheep" (one wearing the Mole Logo) that is out with the other playing card sheep, and he will double the pot and earn himself an exemption. He does it successfully. Time for dinner and an execution, where we see the familiar Red Thumbprint come up for Kim Coles, and she leaves.
Accomodations Provided by The Fairmont Orchid Hawaii.
I just don't know if I can stomach the bastardization of the show. At least they've kept all of the game elements intact (even the fact that the players keep the money, unheard of in celebrity versions of shows). « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:14 PM | Link | The Mole § |
"Joe Millionaire" killsCrap. The premiere of Joe Millionaire this week was the highest-rated premiere of the season on any network -- scripted or unscripted -- in adults 18-49 and 18-34 (key demographics) with 18.61 million viewers overall. The audience makeup was roughly 42 percent male (compared to 31 percent male for "The Bachelor" - that must be a Fox "thing"). That 18-49 rating is higher than every episode of CBS' "Survivor Thailand" earlier this season, and better than all but the finale of ABC's most recent edition of "The Bachelor."
posted at 12:12 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Monday, January 06, 2003
Joe Millionaire - Episode 1
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Oh, oh... here it is: Fox's new reality show Joe Millionaire. I don't know, it's such a "Fox'y" twist on things, but I just can't imagine this guy not blowing his cover by the end of the show. I don't know, I think I'm also questioning is $19,000 job (seems low for a heavy equipment operator) and the fact that he's 28 and still doesn't have anybody in his life. The whole gold-digging aspect of the show is almost unsettling and uneasy to watch since the audience knows the secret and the girls do not. The biggest rumor going around is that this is not all there is to this reality show - that the producers may have still another twist up their sleeve before the curtain falls on Joe (actually, he's Evan Wallace Marriott. Gee.. I Wonder why they don't use his full name?) And I just like Paul the Butler. Oh, The Smoking Gun says that Evan has been cited for "toll evasion" for blowing through a toll plaza on State Road 73 near Irvine, California on September 25. He paid a $104 fine for what could have been somewhere between 50 cents and $2.50 in tolls. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:02 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, December 19, 2002
I'm OK with Brian...At least I'm not throwing things at my TV tonight like last night. I think it may have been different if Clay won...
posted at 09:09 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, December 18, 2002
Amazing Race 3 - Episode 11 - FINALE
"They're Slithering to the Finish Line Like the Rest of Us!"
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Damn it, I just can't do it... I wanted to do a whole recap like I've done in the past for tonight's 2-hour finale. I just can't. I wanted to tell you about the teams leaving Ho Chi Minh City to take a four-hundred-mile train trip to Hue and find the Imperial Palace. But, you see, this is just the beginning of the madness that is Flo. By the end of the first hour of tonight's finale, Flo will have actually declared defeat and/or intent to quit no less than nine times. The teams go from Ho Chi Minh City, to Hue, to Nam O Da Nang for the first Detour - "Basket Boats" or "Basket Bikes" (where Flo - honest to God - looks like she has, in reality, "lost it" and has - at a minimum - a "meltdown"). The teams to the town of Hoi An, find the Boat Guay, choose a sampan, and travel to the middle of river for their next clue which is a Road Block (to choose a traditional Vietnamese fishing platform and use the wooden winch to raise a net out of the water, where either they or their partner could grab the clue dangling from the net). Flo & Zach have done parts of their Detour at least once. It's painful. I am compelled to throw objects at the TV. Carol and I are screaming at the TV to make the whining end, but Flo, though she says she will, never quits the race... or quits whining, for that matter. The teams travel travel 15 miles to China Beach. Teri & Ian are first (and get a a seven-night Royal Caribbean cruise to Alaska), Oh Brother is second, and Flo & Zach are - of course last... Flo is almost smiling... BUT - Phil chimes in "The good news is that this is not an elimination...". Oh crap, I've got to endure another hour of Flo... So the next leg of the race begins with the teams having to make their way across the city of Danang to a buddha at the Guange Mihn Temple, where their next clue tells them to fly 6500 miles to Honolulu, Hawaii to receive a blessing from the Big Kahuna. A small problem first - Noi Bai Airport in Hanoi requires that all persons entering the airport must have a ticket, so they have to stop at a travel agency to handle the ticketing. This is where Ian shows his true colors again, and becomes the prick that we know. (I mean, he goes behind the ticket counter to help the agents!) So it's flights from Hanoi to Narita Airport in Tokyo, Japan. From there, the teams have two different flights to Hawaii, but because of rain, the flights depart within 15 minutes of each other. When in Hawaii, teams drive Mustang convertibles twenty miles along the Oahu North Shore to the secluded Kaiwana Point, get their blessing, and find out they have to fly 100 miles to the island of Kauai, drive a car 25 miles to a ranch gate and follow markers to the next clue - a Detour: "Quick Drop" and "Slow Walk", where everyone including - Shock! Horrors! - Flo opt for "Quick Drop", a 160-foot tandem drop to the Wailua Falls below. The next stop: Kerry Park in Seattle. After the flight and finding the park, they have to use their feet to get to the International Fountain, which sent them to the west side of Seattle and Lincoln Park - the location of the final Roadblock: it's a totem pole with animal faces. The person needed to spin the faces in the same chronological order they appeared in the race (which was "donkey, dolphin, horse, goat and manatee"). When they were lined-up, a little door opened up and spit out the final clue - get to Gas Works Park. Lots of editing. Lots of cabs (including cabs running red lights and cutting through corner gas stations).
And then comes the shot of the park. All the eliminated teams are there. And in the distance, you can see the trees at the edge of the park... and then they appear...
The winners are Flo & Zach. Now the objects are being hurled at the television. Now comes the swearing and yelling at the TV.
Crap.
Flo and Zach are the winners of The Amazing Race 3. In second, Teri & Ian, and in third, Oh Brother - Ken & Gerard.
Crap. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Flo?I'll publish my little synopsis some other time - I'm too wrapped-up in throwing things at my TV right now...
posted at 09:58 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, December 17, 2002
Misdemeanor Corporal Injury to Spouse
The Smoking Gun has more twisted Survivor news. This time, it's about Misdemeanor Corporal Injury to Spouse charge... against Charmaine Ann Heidik who, allegedly, punched her husband Survivor Brian Heidik in the nose. She was jailed for two days and was released on her own recognizance. Trial started yesterday. In the meantime, the court has ordered that the "Defendant shall stay at least 100 yards away from the person, place of residence, place of business and/or schooling of Brian Heidik." and "not own, use, or possess any dangerous or deadly weapons, including firearms, knives, or other concealable weapons." Charmaine was also known as C.C. Costigan in adult films, and has appeared with her husband Brian in at least two films: 2001's The Regina Pierce Affair and 2000's Scandal: Passions Obsession.
posted at 08:47 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Friday, December 13, 2002
GROUND FORCE AMERICA
I think this is so cool! My favorite show on BBC America is Ground Force. They are going to shoot a new series - Ground Force America! Yes, they are coming here for surprise garden makeovers! They are planning to film this February in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and this May in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and Washington, D.C. The potential problem that could kill the viewership of the show? No Alan Titchmarsh! That's just not right! On the flipside, you will get Charlie Dimmock, Tommy Walsh, and Will Shanahan. They are accepting applications now to be one of the gardens!
posted at 09:34 PM | Link | TV § |
Thursday, December 12, 2002
Survivor Thailand - Episode 12
"The Tides Are Turning"
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The tribe received a special Tree Mail, which accompanied a full-length mirror and pictures of themselves taken just before the game started. Everyone took time to gawk at themselves in the mirror. Actually, the men took the time and the women couldn't even get to the mirror! Later Ted and Brian had a discussion about their "alliance", leaving Ted skeptical about Brian's loyalty. On the way to the final Reward Challenge, the tribe is almost run over by Jeff Probst driving a Chevy Trailblazer. He picks up the tribe and they ride together the rest of the way to the challenge site. They are playing for the Trailblazer (this year's SUV of choice), as well as a full Thai dinner, a shower, and massage. The challenge was to retrieve a series of placards with English letters on them (mixed in with Thai letters), and then come up with a two word answer from the letters that spell "an activity". An odd thing happened at the beginning of the challenge - all of the tribe members were standing on a small platform. The first letter was underneath the platform. Jeff told them that they were standing on the first of eight letters. When the challenge starts, everyone starts running to the next station. No one checks underneath their little platform to get their first letter. Jeff has to run after them yelling "You're standing on the first one! Guys!" You're standing on the first one!" Eventually everyone hears Jeff and goes back to the start and the rest of the collection goes normally. Brian figured it out first, but misspelled the clue. He said the clue out loud - "Road Trip" - giving Ted the correct answer. Ted rearranged his tiles correctly (Brian had flipped the "o" and "a" in "Road"), and Ted won the challenge. Because of being saved in a prior Immunity Challenge, Ted chose Helen to join him on the reward. Ted got to drive the two of them in the Trailblazer to the reward site, where there was a feast setup. Neither Helen nor Ted drink, and there were about a half dozen bottles of wine. They decided "what the hell" and started drinking while enjoying their meal. Well, needless to say, Ted got drunk. He was slurring his words, had that "droopy-eye" look, and was just getting loud and obnoxious - hard to enjoy a soothing massage when a big black man is yelling out loud in the shower and yelling in ecstasy when getting his massage. The next day, Ted and Helen go back to camp - with the rest of the unopened wine and food stuffed into their canteens. There were some private discussions on who to vote out. The Immunity Challenge was to build pieces of a 10-step staircase. First one to the top is the winner. Brian wins immunity again. At Tribal Council, Ted Rogers, the 37-year-old software developer from Durham, North Carolina, was voted out of the Chuay Jai tribe 4-1. Next week: The Sole Survivor! « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:09 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, December 11, 2002
Amazing Race 3 - Episode 10
"Don't Try to Play the Moralist Now!"
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The teams leave the 10th Pit Stop at Mount Faber overlooking Singapore. Teams have to fly 700 miles to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam and make their way to Rex Square and find the statue of Bac Ho (we know him as Ho Chi Minh, the military leader). The crew had to change the flags from Yellow & Red to just Yellow so there would be no confusion with the official colors of Vietnam's flag. There's a little mix-up with a cab that lands Oh Brother at the airport ahead of The Twins. The Twins try to go to Ho Chi Minh City, but can't find a flight, while Oh Brother flies back to Kuala Lumpur. The other teams get to the airport, to find out that Flo & Zach made reservations for The Twins! The teams take different flights, but everyone now goes to Kuala Lumpur, and winds up on the same flight to Ho Chi Minh City, leveling the playing field still again. Flo & Zach's relationship looks like it's unraveling. The Twins get to the square first. The teams must travel 70 miles into the Mekong Delta and find the town of Cai Be and a route marker at the edge of its famous floating market. Teri & Ian pass The Twins in their cab, and literally they start a little race between the cabs. Flo is crying to Zach about the way they're playing the game. Ken & Gerard arrive in a very windy Cai Be first, and find that the next clue is a Detour - "Easy Buy" and "Hard Sell." Teams choosing "Easy Buy" had to choose a sampan, enter the floating market, find the one stall that sold water coconuts and buy one for any price they could. Between the boat travel and the rareness of the fruit, finding the stall could have taken a long time, but once they found it, buying one water coconut would be easy. Teams choosing "Hard Sell" had to choose a shoulder basket filled with fruit, enter the land market, and attempt to sell enough fruit to earn 40,000 dong, or two and a half dollars. With a small area to cover, getting around the market would be easy, but selling $2.50 worth of fruit to the locals when the going rate for one piece is 6 cents could be difficult. When they finished selling, they had to take their earnings to a woman who verified the amount and gave them their next clue. The rain starts to come down. Hard. The three lead teams hit the water looking for the water coconuts, but it becoming impossible to find - the rain is coming down so hard, that the vendor are covering the fruits with blankets. Ken & Gerard head back to do the "Hard Sell". Flo & Zach arrive and decide to do "Hard Sell" as well. Teri & Ian finally find the vendor and purchase their water coconut - that has a clue attached to it. They have to go back to Ho Chi Minh City and find the Route Marker at 2A Ton Duc Thang District 1 at the edge of the Saigon River. The Twins buy their water coconut. Oh Brother still tries to sell their fruit, as well as Flo & Zach. Teri & Ian and The Twins get taxis and head back. Oh Brother finally sells 40,000 dong worth of fruit and gets their clue. Flo & Zach check in with the lady and find out they're 500 dong short and have to go back out to sell, which Zach does. Teri & Ian find the Route Marker from their cab as they pass by it. They get out and find that it's a Roadblock. In this Roadblock, one Team member had to hop on a bicycle taxi, called a cyclo, and transport their Teammate along a course marked by yellow flags, to a ferry, across the river, to an end point. From there, Teams had to run a short distance to the Pit Stop at the Café Thu Thiem. Teri rides as Ian drives. Ian this whole time has been reminiscing about being in Vietnam during the war, and really seems pumped from the whole experience. The Twins see the flags and get out of their cab, but can't find the box. Ditto with Oh Brother. Flo & Zach actually see the box, and get out of their cab to get the Roadblock clue, jumping into 2nd Place. Flo rides as Zach pedals. The Twins and Oh Brother are totally lost and can't find the box. Teri & Ian wind-up at the Pit Stop and step on the mat in First Place. They also get a 7 night cruise vacation in Europe on Royal Caribbean's Splendor of the Seas (which they can enjoy after the race). Ian is different - he's actually really mellow from his Vietnam experience. Flo & Zach get on the ferry. Oh Brother gets to the ferry and Flo & Zach tell them to follow the flags back. The Twins see Flo & Zach on the boat, and then stumble on Oh Brother running away from the ferry. Oh Brother lies to The Twins saying they don't know where the clue is and they go in opposite directions. Oh Brother finds the clue box. Gerard pedals as Ken rides. Unfortunately, Gerard cuts a corner too sharp and dumps the cyclo, but they get up and keep going. The Twins, however, thing the clue is across the river, so they hop on the next ferry. Oh Brother makes their way onto the ferry. Flo & Zach get to the Pit Stop as Team #2. The Twins make it to the parking area of the cyclos and wind up on the mat with Phil who tells them that they have not completed the Roadblock and that they need... The Twins are off the mat before Phil can even finish a sentence and they try to find out what's going on. Flo & Zach had seen The Twins go to the mat and Flo yells to them to go back to the other side. As they get to the ferry, Oh Brother is coming off. Gerard tells them to go back all the way to the end. The Twins realize that they are in last and that "everybody is over there (at the Pit Stop)". The Twins worry and hope that it's a non elimination leg of the race. Ken & Gerard hit the mat as Team #3. The Twins get their cyclo, Drew drives the course, they get to the Pit Stop as the last team, and are eliminated from the race. Next week: The Finale!
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posted at 09:06 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, December 05, 2002
Survivor Thailand - Episode 11
"A Big Surprise... and Another"
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After Clay throws a hissy-fit about what Jake said at the last Tribal Council, the tribe heads out for the Reward Challenge. The big surprise waiting them (as alluded to in the title of the show) was that each tribe member had a loved one on the island and they were brought out one by one. Unfortunately, the tribe members couldn't go to them - they had to sit in their bleachers. The winner gets their loved one to spend 24-hours on the island as a tribe member. But Jeff explains: "For the losers - nothing. Hear me clearly - not a kiss, not a hug, not a handshake. You been out here for over a month. And so far, you've been able to find enough coconuts, and clams and edible plants that you've been able to avoid having to live off the bugs and the insects that are out here. But, what I'm curious about is, would you eat those bugs and those insects if it meant getting to spend one full day with your love one?" Everyone chimes in with what they would do. They're pumped. But then Jeff continues: "You know what? I believe you guys. I believe all of you would do just about anything to win this reward. But that's not the question. this question is: would they? Yep, it's this year's gross-out challenge and the loved ones compete! So they endure eating a spoonful of red and flying ants, a huge water roach (that Helen yells at her husband "Don't you dare!" when he starts choking on it), three live grubs, a boiled tarantula, and finally a boiled scorpion. Helen's husband Jim wins over Jake's wife Jenny in the final. Jim spends the next 24 hours as a member of Chuay Jai. There's nothing too exciting to his stay, just a gut-wrenching goodbye when it was over. Later at the Immunity Challenge, Jeff asks Helen what it was like to have Jim in the tribe, then asks Jake about Jenny and how well she played the game. Jake says "She tried so hard." So Jeff says "She didn't want to leave. Well, look. None of them wanted to leave. Funny thing is - they didn't." And sure enough, the loved ones run out of the brush and attack their tribe member. Jeff says they're going to stay and they'll help each of the tribe members with the challenge. It's a cube puzzle - be the first to put together the pieces to make a cube with all of the colored faces facing outward. Everyone tries hard (the couples are tied together at the wrist), but Ted and his brother finish first and win Immunity for Ted. After the necklace is put on Ted, the loved ones have to leave and the tribe goes back to camp. At Tribal Council, Jake Billingsley, the 61-year-old land broker from McKinney, Texas, the "elder" of Sook Jai and the last remaining tribe member of that tribe, is voted out 5-1. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:09 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, December 04, 2002
Amazing Race 3 - Episode 9
"Why Did You Have to Take Your Pants Off?!"
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TWO HOUR EPISODE! Actually, it's two episodes in one package, so strap yourselves in - it's going to be a long entry....
The teams start at the last pit stop - the Chalet Arnika in Grindelwald Switzerland. The Twins start first - the teams must go to the gletscherschlucht - a 260' deep glacier gorge. They have to figure out how to find a key at the bottom of the gorge to open a mercedes to get the next clue. The Twins pair up with Flo & Zach and decide to back to the chalet to rest during the 4 hours they have until the gorge opens. John Vito & Jill get to the lodge at the gorge first and are surprised that they beat everyone. At 9am, all of the teams take off down the gorge. The keys are on a pole next to a river that everyone passes up. Zach realizes they just past them and they go back, grab the keys, run back to the lodge's parking lot and open the car. The clue is on the windshield - drive 36 miles through the swiss countryside (absolutely gorgeous) to the town of Kandersteg, load the cars onto a car train, and train across the alps to a place called the Sports & Adventure Park in Niouc (Val d'anniviers) in the Valais next to this little tiny red bridge over a huge gorge for the next clue. John Vito & Jill - the only team that hasn't used a Fast Forward - decide to go for it. They have to drive themselves to a traditional cheese making cabin in the Swiss countryside. They'll find a large wheel of cheese that has been slices into cubes with toothpicks in the cubes. They'll have to eat as many cubes as it takes to completely uncover the Fast Forward reward hidden underneath. Jill worries that the cheese may smell bad - like feet! John Vito worries that the cheese is too big and that he can't eat it all. The teams reach the car train, and after asking around, they find out the red bridge is bungy jumping. Ian is in a nasty mood and decides to go over to Flo to make sure she knows that the red bridge is bungy jumping (so that she can worry about it!) Back at the farm, John Vito & Jill finally eat the first piece of cheese that uncovers part of the Fast Forward. They eventually eat the cheese and uncover it, and made their way to this leg's Pit Stop - drive 54 miles to Montreux, find a pedal boat and paddle it to the steamship Savoie floating on Lake Geneva, the largest lake in western Europe. The other teams load their cars onto the train. Flo hopped-in The Twins' car to flirt during the ride, leaving Zach alone. (I had no idea that you ride in your car on the car train). The train pulls in, and the teams try to find the bridge. Teri & Ian look like they get lost. The teams find the clue box and find out it's a Detour - "Extreme Swiss" or "Very Swiss". in "Extreme Swiss", the team must go out onto that little red bridge and take the longest bungy jump in Europe - 620 feet, but it's a quick drive to the next destination. In "Very Swiss", teams drive another 8 miles into the Alps to a farm, to search for a key hidden in a traditional Swiss bell around the necks of 75 goats to open a box to get the next clue. The Twins decide to do the bungy jump, everyone else decides to do goats. The goats are definitely harder - it's not like they're going to cooperate when you run after them to see if their bell has a key in it. Ken gets a key first and runs to the boxes. Each team has their own specific box, and when they open it, they find a clue and a cell phone. Zach is next with a key. The clue says to drive to the banks of Lake Geneva and find the route marker at the Château de Chillon and "as you walk to your car use this T-Mobile phone to call your loved ones at home." They must complete the call before getting into the car and driving to their next destination - the longer on the phone, the later they leave. Gerard calls his wife Jennifer - Ken & Gerard's parents are there, too. Zach calls his sister Ariel, and Flo's best friend Lindsey is there. The Twins do their jump, though Drew was a little skittish about it (oh, lot's of bumper stickers for www.bungy.ch around). They get a phone, too, and call Rebecca, Derek's wife (he's a newlywed of just a couple of months) and their mom. Teri & Ian are still going after the goats, and Teri finally gets a key. They call Teri's sister Phyllis and their sons Brandon and Seth. John Vito & Jill get to the peddle boats on Lake Geneva and paddle out to the steamship, and arrive as Team Number 1. They win a 7 night Caribbean vacation on Royal Caribbean's Explorer of the Seas. ("and you can enjoy that after the race.") Hey, did John Vito & Jill get to make a phone call? Oh Brother (Ken & Gerard) get to the Château de Chillon to find that the clue is a Roadblock. The task is to assemble a Swiss Army bicycle from a pile of parts. There's an identical bike to use as reference. An expert has to inspect it and make sure it's assembled correctly, then teams will ride their bikes to the next destination. The Twins are second at the Roadblock, With Drew assembling. The inspector is strict, making sure things are safe. The teams then ride the two bikes 3 miles to the Bassett Marina, where they pickup the peddle boats to go out to the steamship. Ken & Gerard take off, Flo & Zack just get there with Zach doing the assembly. Teri & Ian finally get there, and Ian assembles (though he seems put out by having to do it). The Twins take off. Ken & Gerard make it to the marina. Flo looks very upset. Oh Brother is hysterical with Phil, chiding him to finally tell them they're Team Number 2. Ian gets his bike completed and he and Teri leave, leaving Zach to build his bike. The Twins make it to the steamboat as team #3. Finally Zach is done, they get the clue, but Zach decides to take time to unzip his pants legs to make them into shorts. Flo is furious as they are now not going to catch Teri & Ian. However, Teri falls off her bike. Teri says the bike is broken, Ian chides her with "oh, Teri", to which she says "I fell off on purpose". Ian fixes it and they continue on. Flo, realizing they are last, doesn't want to exert much energy. She's crying. Teri & Ian are peddling out to the boat, and Flo just wants to walk to the boast since they're losing anyway. She doesn't want to get exhausted and she's humiliated being beat "by two retired people". Teri & Ian make it in as Team Number 4. Flo is mad at Zach for taking his pants off (the title of the show), and they get to the mat. Phil tells them that they are the last team to arrive - "The good news is that this is not an elimination. this is the second of three predetermined non-elimination points and you're still in the race". Apparently, no one is paying attention to the clues to see if they say that the last team is eliminated. So now the teams rest at the Pit Stop until we get to the second part of the episode.
Teams now travel over 50 miles to geneva to the base of the Jet d'Eau the largest fountain in Europe at 450 feet. The clue box is on a stone pathway in the fountain. The clue tell the teams to to go to the Petronas Towers, "in the country of represented by the enclosed flag - which means a 7000 mile flight the tallest buildings in Asia located in Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. On the way to the fountain, The Twins remember that it's their birthday! The airport appears closed. Flo & Zach are the only team that knows where the Petronas Towers are - everyone else has to ask anybody standing around. In any case, the airport finally starts to open up - but there's not a lot of flights to Kuala Lumpur. Teri & Ian leave at 7:50am on a Swissair flight that goes Geneva-Zurich-Vienna-Kuala Lumpur. The Twins get 4 seats (including Flo & Zach of course) because they don't want to see Flo cry. So all four of the other teams fly Air France at 9;00am Geneva-Paris-Kuala Lumpur. Teri & Ian are in front of the towers at 7:30am. The clue there is to get a local to take their picture using, yes, a Kodak EasyShare digital camera in front of the buildings. They then have to walk a mile to the Ampang Park Shopping Center to develop their pictures (huh?) at a Kodak Picture Maker kiosk to get their next clue. There's no timestamp so there's no way to tell when the rest of the horde gets to the towers from the airport (via train, BTW). Teri & Ian, though in the lead, can't find the shopping center and get side tracked to a train station. They can't find too many people to help them. Somehow, the stumble into the shopping center and the Quick Photo shop. They read the instructions to get a print from their digital card. When they print the photo , the back of the print has the clue printed on it. They have to take a train 200 miles to the Singapore National Orchid Garden and find Margaret Thatcher (an orchid). John Vito & Jill get to the Quick Photo second, followed by Flo & Zach, and then The Twins. They're all in the store and find out that Teri & Ian are actually ahead of them. Flo can't believe it - the entire group was making fun of Teri & Ian on the train trip from the airport. Teri & Ian get to the train station and get tickets for the 11:15 train. The rest of the teams catch up and they are all on the same train. When they get to Singapore, they find out that the Orchid Gardens doesn't open until 8:39 the next day, so the teams have to crash for the night. Teri & Ian get a recommendation from a European couple. Though Zach wants to stay at the YMCA, Flo doesn't want to stay there. They and The Twins find a hotel to split a single room for the four of them. John Vito & Jill find a boarding house. The next morning everyone hits the gardens. Though they are all waiting outside, no one is talking to one another. The Gardens open, and teams are running everywhere, since the Margaret Thatcher orchid isn't on any maps of the facility. Zach finds the clue box first, only to find out that its a Detour. The choices "Dry" or "Wet". In "Dry", teams choose a car to drive to an apartment complex known as Choa Chu Kang Central to find Block 229 at the housing development and apartment 10-137, where Singapore television's biggest star, Phua Chu Kang, would hand them their next clue. There's a hitch, though: all of the roads in this zone of the city are named Choa Chu Kang (they're looking for Choa Chu Kang Way). Once the teams find the correct building, they'll find out that the elevators don't stop on consecutive floors, and apartment numbers flop around from wing to wing. In "Wet" teams still chose a car but go to the Singapore Zoological Gardens to search for mermaids - which are actually manatees. They'll have to don wetsuits and goggles to swim across the manatee enclosure to get the next clue. Flo & Zach are following Ken & Gerard to the apartment complex. The Twins are going to the zoo, along with Teri & Ian. Oh Brother and Flo & Zach find building 229, take the elevator to the 10th floor, but it stops on 11. The Twins make it to the manatees ahead of Teri & Ian. Back at the apartments, the teams are still trying to figure them out, John Vito & Jill are lost and haven't found the complex yet. The teams stumble onto the apartment (gee - the door is decorated and sort of stands out) they get their clue from the very odd looking gentleman. The clue says to "get one step closer to great wealth by finding a clue at the Fountain of Wealth" - driving to Suntec City in downtown Singapore and find the fountain whose waters - locals believe - bring good luck and fortune. The clues are actually inside the fountain. Meanwhile, The Twins are starting to swim across the manatees while Teri is still struggling to get her wetsuit on. There's a flight over a map as Zach doesn't want to give up a map to Ken so they can get to the fountain together. Flo, of course, won't stand for this, grabs the map, and Flo & Zach follow Oh Brother to the fountain. The Twins get directions as they drip all over the people helping them. Flo & Zach are in a big argument as it's obvious that the team is fracturing. John Vito & Jill finally get to the apartment (they don't show them struggling to find the apartment). The Twins hit the fountain first to grab a clue - a route info: "perhaps this ritual will bring you wealth at the end of the race. Now drive yourselves to the next pit stop on top of Mount Faber" - a peak overlooks the city. Flo & Zach hit the fountain next followed by Oh Brother. John Vito & Jill are having problems with directions. Teri & Ian get to the fountain, followed by John Vito & Jill. The Twins hit the Pit Stop as Team Number 1 - they win a a 7 night cruise in Europe (haven't they seen enough of it?) on Royal Caribbean Splendor of the Seas "which you can enjoy after the race". Ken & Gerard are team 2 and Flo & Zach are team 3. Teri & Ian are team 4, John Vito & Jill are team 5 - the last team and are eliminated from the race.
Next week - Vietnam, rain, and Zach may want to quit. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:02 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Monday, December 02, 2002
Joe MillionaireWell, Fox has a new Reality TV show starting on January 6 at 9 p.m called Joe Millionaire. The setup: 20 single women who fly to France in order to win the affection of a handsome American they believe to be worth $50 million. The key word here is believe - You see the guy is actually a construction worker with an annual income of $19,000. Ouch. There are eliminations like The Bachelor, with the last woman finally finding out the big secret - only if she decides to continue the relationship.
posted at 01:56 PM | Link | Reality TV | 2 comments § |
Sunday, December 01, 2002
Chariot Race 2002Imagine recreating Chariot Racing from 500 B.C. in 2002. TLC is running a short documentary series Chariot Race 2002 where they actually do this - setting up a Circus, building chariots and training drivers and horses. Way cool.
posted at 09:26 PM | Link | TV | 1 comment § |
Thursday, November 28, 2002
Changing Rooms on TLC
TLC is running the BBC America's Changing Rooms marathon. It's really odd, though. Changing Rooms is a half-hour show, but TLC has edited together two episodes into an hour show. Weird. Why couldn't they leave the format alone? is it just because Trading Spaces is an hour?
posted at 06:51 PM | Link | TV § |
Wednesday, November 27, 2002
Amazing Race 3 - Episode 8
"This is More Important Than Your Pants Falling Down"
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The teams start from Neuschwanstein Castle in Füssen, Germany, the last pit stop. There seems to be a little "something" happening between Drew and Flo. The first clue sends them to Augustinerhof Farm (which doesn't seem far away) and search for their next clue buried in a giant haystack in a barn and, believe it or not, seemed easy to find considering how tall the haystack was. From there, the teams Freidrichshafen where a ferry would take them across Lake Constance to Switzerland. There's a bit of deception happening with The Twins as well as John Vito & Jill and who each pass Ian & Teri and tell them that they don't know where the farm is. At the Ferry Terminal, all of the teams come together and ride the same ferry. On the other side, in Romanshorn, Switzerland, they take a train to Schauffhausen. (It looks like they left their cars - either on the ferry or at the terminal and walk to the train). At Schauffhausen, the teams see a route marker perched on the Rheinfall Rocks in the middle of the Rheinfall, Europe's largest waterfall, and figure out that they have to take a boat to the island. Everyone except John Vito & Jill make the first boat. As the teams get to the other side, they leave their backpacks on the boat and run up stairways up the the rocks on the island. While they're running, the boat leaves to pick up more passengers. John Vito & Jill are on a second boat, going to the island. It turns out that there can only be one boat at the island at a time and they are both in motion, so as the second boat gets to the island, Jill stays on the boat and holds it there while John Vito gets the clue and comes back. They leave as the first boat starts to come back to the island, giving John Vito & Jill a big break. The teams now need to take train 32 miles to the city of Zürich, find the historic town square called the Lindenhof and an officer who would point them to their next clue in an underground vault. Unfortunately, though they all don't know it, all of the teams are on the same train. Everyone is teasing Flo and asking her questions about Zack & Drew. It turns out that the vault, when they find it, is a Detour. Teams had to choose between two ways of obtaining a six-digit code that will open a safe, "Count the Money" or "Run the Numbers." "Count the Money" had to count the Swiss currency in a bowl next to the safe (lots of coins). The total amount of money corresponded to the code to open the safe. Teams choosing "Run the Numbers" had to search the streets of Zürich to find three sets of two-digit numbers to open the safe. (a number on a metal statue on a street corner (12), the sum total of the numbers on the north face of the clock on St. Peter's Church(really - how hard is it to add up 1+2+3+4+5... = 78 - no one got it right!), and the number of trees in the Lindenhof that had red ribbons on them (50). So the code would be 127850, to open the safe.) Well, between adding 1 to 12, and counting trees, everyone was failing and no one tried to just change a few digits when entering the code, so let's just say it took a long time. John Vito & Jill are first to figure it out and open the safe, revealing the next clue - make their way (train) to Grindelwald and find a route marker in a field east of the station. Unfortunately, they miss their train by seconds. There are two trains to Lucerne that the teams split up over, and then they transfer to another train to Grindelwald. Once there, all of the teams run to the field at basically the same time. The field is a Roadblock - well, it's Switzerland, home of the famous folk hero William Tell. A team member will use a crossbow to shoot and apple off of the head of a child (nuts, only a mannequin). An instructor will reload the crossbow for each shot. Zach hits the target first and gets the next clue - find the Chalet Arnika in Grindelwald - the Pit Stop. John Vito can't see well through one eye, so he has to shoot left-handed and is just struggling. Ken is the next one to hit the target, Ian tells Teri to "go get the bags" and then proceeds to hit the target. Derek hits the target and you can see the life just drain from John Vito and Jill as they see all of the other teams running through the field and through town. The teams are now running though the mountainous town, having trouble handling the altitude, especially Flo. (The Twins, however, who run regularly, seem to be fine.) Everyone seems to bunch up. Flo has Zach carry her backpack. A few times. John Vito finally hits the target and now everyone is on the roads. Teri's pants are falling down (it looks like the backpack is pushing them down), and Ian is just a prick and chides her on (the title of this show is what Ian tells Teri). Oh Brother (Ken & Gerrard) take a shortcut around a church to get there quicker - but actually get a little lost in the hilly terrain. Derek & Drew get to the Pit Stop first (and get their Kodak EasyShare digital camera "that can be enjoyed after the race"). Flo & Zach arrive second, Teri and Ian third. Then, from two different directions, come Oh Brother and John Vito and Jill. Ken & Gerard hit the mat first, coming in fourth, making John Vito and Jill coming in last for the leg of the race - BUT it's not an elimination leg! It's the first of three predetermined non-elimination points. Next week: Two Hours! and a a 620-foot bungee jump! (When the hell are they going to leave Europe?)
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posted at 09:02 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Survivor Thailand
"A Closer Look"
ARGH! A DAMN CLIP SHOW! ON A WEDNESDAY! (Well, it's the last night of November Sweeps, so they snuck in one more program into the sweeps period.) Looks like there are visitors to the island next week.
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, November 21, 2002
Survivor Thailand - Episode 10
"While the Cats Are Away"
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After discussions about Ted's three votes at the last Tribal Council and about Jake "The Snake", the tribe shows up for a Reward Challenge, which is a series of obstacle course-like events, that vary from team to individual heats. In the end, Brian wins over Clay (after an interesting choice by Clay to pick Brian over Ted in one of the obstacles). Brian wins a helicopter trip to the Thai mainland to go on an elephant trek into the jungle, followed by a Thai lunch. He gets to chose someone to come with, and choses Clay since they were team mates through most of the challenge. The trek looked pretty cool, and the lunch was pretty big. Clay empties out their canteens and fills one up with a shrimp soap that they were eating and fills up the other with the rest of their beer to smuggle back to the Chuay Jai camp (a patented Survivor political/tactical move). The Immunity Challenge is at night, and is similar to the Marquesas Coconut Chopping challenge - everyone has three burning torches. It's a quiz - every correct answer earns you the opportunity to snuff-out someone's torch. When all three are snuffed-out, you're out. The winner - Helen. At tribal council, Penny Ramsey, the 27-year-old pharmaceutical sales representative from Plano, Texas, was voted out. Next week: this seasons clip show (blech). « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:05 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, November 20, 2002
Amazing Race 3 - Episode 7
"I'm Supposed to Be Indebted to Her for the Rest of the Race?"
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Teams start from the Riad Catalina in Marrakesh. The teams must fly to Munich, Germany (this sounds like they're going backwards?) and make their way to a statue called Friedensengel and find a puppet (Kasperle) at a puppet show for the next clue. (They only get $1 for this leg of the race!) The teams have trouble getting flights from Marrakesh to Munich and try a few alternate routes (like Marrakesh-Casablanca-Paris-Munich). Turns out that Kasperle is from Austria. The teams must take a train 60 miles to Innsbruck and locate Annensäule - the Pillar of St. Anna near the Olympic Village. Once there, it's a Detour: "Sled" or "Skate". It's a choice of two Olympic events: In "Sled", teams go to an Olympic bobsled track and ride along with a team of bobsledders That would be my personal pick). In "Skate", teams go to an Olympic ice rink and run a relay with a team of Olympic skaters. Flo & Zach feel that they are far behind and decide to go after the Fast Forward - find a surfer surfing a standing wave in the Eisbach River. The get the Fast Forward and now go to Fussen, Germany, the seventh Pit Stop of the race - a meadow below the Neuschwanstein Castle. The rest of the teams, after the Detour, now have to go across town to ride the Gondola Nordkette to the Seegrube Station. The teams wait a LONG time for taxis to show up to take them to the gondola. Andre and Damon are a DAY behind. At the Seegrube Station teams get a Roadblock: The person chosen "should welcome a chance to dangle for a while" They go further up on a cable car (gondola), don safety gear, and descend 250 feet to the ground on a rescue cable to get the next clue. The teams take the gondola back down and drive themselves to Fussen. Flo and Zach get to the Pit Stop first and win a Kodak EasyShare digital camera "that can be enjoyed after the race". Derek accidentally leaves the clue at the ticket counter and Teri tells him where he left it. Later, Teri expected the twins to try to help them because they helped them find their missing clue. Meanwhile, in Innsbruck, the train carrying Andre & Damon pulls into the station... and pulls out again with them as they fell asleep and missed their stop! The teams struggle to figure out how to drive to Fussen. Arguments ensue between team members. Andre & Damon wake up and find out that they have to go to Salzburg to get a train back. Ken & Gerrard drive for quite a while with a flat tire. Derek & Drew are Team #2 to get to the Pit Stop, John Vito and Jill are Team #3. Ken & Gerrard get their tire changed. Teri & Ian are Team #4. Ken & Gerrard are shocked to find out they're Team #5. Andre and Damon get to the Annensäule, and don't get a Detour - instead, they are instructed to go to Fussen. Andre and Damon are eliminated from the race. Their last act - give the $1 back to Phil (they didn't need it!) Next week: Deception, Zürich and falling pants.
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posted at 09:02 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Survivor 6 Location - The Amazon
This is really late, but Survivor 6 should now be shooting in the Amazon. Survivor Maps has the details on the site, including photos, maps and other information (they have had great detail on each of the Survivor sites, before shooting even begins). "The Production Camp will be located at the posh Ariau Towers Resort reserved October 22 through December 22. "
"Sources say the Tribal Camps will be located on the Rio Negro's Praia Grande (Great Beach). Rumors say Tribal Council will be deep in the Amazonia rain forest on the Rio Acajatuba near Acajatube Village."
posted at 03:38 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Clay's Bankruptcy
The Smoking Gun has documentation that shows that Clay Jordan piled up debts totaling $420,250, according to a bankruptcy case that was closed out in January, just months before he shipped off to Thailand.
posted at 03:24 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Monday, November 18, 2002
Trading Spaces in Changing Rooms Backyard
Our favorite DIY show is Changing Rooms, now in their 6th year on the BBC, but also being broadcast in the U.S. on BBC America (Even tough it's been 6 years and 100 episodes, I don't know what a "season" is over there as they are broadcasting the 10th "Series" episodes on BBC America). Anyway, TLC is going to broadcast Changing Rooms on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 28th, from 5 to 11 pm/et. (Wow... that's 12 episodes!) Why are they doing this? Well, on November 30. TLC is broadcasting a Trading Spaces in London, using Paige as the host and Genevieve and Hildi as the designers, but using "Handy" Andy Kane from Changing Rooms as the carpenter. I really enjoy Changing Rooms more than Trading Spaces, so this should be interesting... On a different note, Somebody wrote in the Trading Spaces Message Boards about TS being near them in San Antonio, and took some pictures as well.
posted at 07:55 PM | Link | TV | 1 comment § |
Thursday, November 14, 2002
Survivor Thailand - Episode 9posted at 08:02 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, November 13, 2002
Amazing Race 3 - Episode 6
"I'm a Much Better Liar Than You Are!"
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The teams leave the Borj Nord Fortress in the city of Fez. The teams must drive themselves 150 miles to the Hassan II Mosque, the second largest religious monument in the world, located in Casablanca. The radiator in John Vito & Jill's SUV blows, sending up steam as they pull to the side of the road. Phil then tells us: "If a car breaks down through no fault of the team or becomes completely inoperable, the rule is that a replacement car may be given to the team at their request, However, no time credit will be given for this unlucky situation." The delay is only an hour, and they are on their way. At the Mosque, there's an argument over a taxi between Teri & Ian (mostly Ian) and Flo & Zach (mostly Flo). Once at the Mosque, the teams must take a train 150 miles to Marrakesh, then a taxi to the outskirts of the city to an oasis called the Palmerie. It looks like Teri & Ian try for the Fast Forward, but then maybe so will John Vito & Jill and Flo & Zach and maybe Aaron & Arianne. To get the Fast Forward, teams have to go to a rug store in the Jamaa El-Fna Market in Marrakesh to search through hundreds of rugs to find one that has the Fast Forward symbol woven into it. Ken & Gerrard hit the Palmerie first, and find a Detour - "Now You See It" or "Now You Don't". In "Now You See It", teams have to ride a horse to a route marker that the can see, get off, and dig for clues painted on pottery hidden in the sand. In "Now You Don't", teams ride a sand bike along a marked route to a route marker that the cannot see, where they will take a rubbing of a clue engraved on a stone. The clue is in Arabic, so the teams need to find a translator. They find out that they have to find transportation back to the center of Marrakesh, and make their way to the roof (the Grand Balcon) of Café Glacier, which opens for dinner at 4:45pm. Teri & Ian get to the rug store first, followed by John Vito & Jill. Teri & Ian find the rug and now go to the Pit Stop at rooftop of the Riad Catalina in Marrakesh. They arrive first and win a Kodak EasyShare digital camera "that can be enjoyed after the race". Meanwhile, at Café Glacier, everyone is waiting for the place to open. Everyone except Aaron & Arianne who just got to town, went for the Fast Forward that was taken, and then had to go out to the Palmerie. When the Café opens, teams find out that there's a Roadblock. The team member must help a local food vendor set up his stand and then sell 5 bowls of escargot. The first team to sell the escargot is Andre & Damon, but the second team to the Pit Stop is Flo & Zach, followed by Ken & Gerrard. Andre & Damon get a cab ride from hell, get dropped off in the middle of nowhere, and wide up being detained. Meanwhile, Derek & Drew are Team Number 4 and John Vito & Jill are Team Number 5. The TAR Security Staff (!!!) had to negotiate the release of Andre & Damon and they arrive as Team Number 6. That means that Aaron & Arianne finish last and are eliminated from the race. Next week (one hour earlier): flat tires!
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posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, November 07, 2002
Survivor Thailand - Episode 8
"Sleeping With the Enemy"
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This whole thing of two tribes living together has proven very interesting. Even more so during the course of this episode. Chuay Ghan keeps the fire burning and soup warm for Sook Jai to come back from Tribal Council, which they seem to be appreciative of. Both tribes seem to have found a way to live together in peace, though Helen is getting on some people's nerves with constantly talk about recipes (not a good idea when everyone is starving). The Immunity Challenge comes at 23 minutes into the show, which has got to be the earliest in history. But then again, there was no Reward Challenge (hard to do with the two tribes living together). The challenge looks really simple - stay under water for the longest period of time (totaled by tribe) by using bamboo snorkels. Jeff thinks this could last a long time. It looks easy. Because Chuay Ghan has one more member, they sit out Helen The Navy Swim Instructor! What are they thinking! So anyway, the challenge starts and Penny lasts 9 seconds. Wow, that was quick. She must have panicked. Then Ken pops up at 15 seconds. Huh? Clay pops up at 20 seconds, Ted is up at 21 seconds. Jan is up at 23 and Erin is up at 25 seconds! What the heck is going on here! Chuay Ghan has a total of 64 seconds, and Sook Jai has 49 seconds! This is a long time? Jake bails out after a while, and Brian wins immunity for Chuay Ghan. The tribes return to camp, only to find "Magilla" the monkey has raided the food. Sook Jai takes the loss of immunity really hard. They kill/eat the last chicken (which Jan had to bury its head and feet in her "Pet Cemetery" because she was so upset). Sook Jai says their goodbye's to the Chuay Ghan members and go off to Tribal Council, where Erin Collins, the 26-year-old Real Estate Agent from Austin, Texas is voted off the island by a teary unanimous vote. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:09 PM | Link | Survivor | 2 comments § |
Thursday, October 31, 2002
Survivor Thailand - Episode 7
"Assumptions"
This week, both tribes receive body paint in 5 different colors. Each member chooses a color and paints themselves however they want, and then show up at a meeting with Jeff. Since both tribes received the same colors, like-colored people are paired off to spend the day with each other - Shii Ann and Clay, Penny and Brian, Erin and Ted, Ken and Helen, and Jake and Jan. Two groups also have special instructions - Shii Ann and Clay visit Chuay Ghan camp and Ken and Helen visit Sook Jai. At the end of the afternoon, everyone meets back together. Jeff tells then that there is going to be something different happening - "The two tribes will live together on one beach" The four people that went on visits chose to live on Chuay Ghan beach. The tribes walk there and are greeted by a nice bread,brie, apple and wine feast and party hard into the night. They now call themselves "Chuay Jai". Time for the immunity challenge (As they leave, "Magilla" the monkey, raids the camp for food!) When the group arrives at the challenge, Jeff asks Erin how the first night went. Erin, in her response, says the word "merge". Jeff says "You said merge. I never said merge" And sure enough! It's still tribe versus tribe, living together on the same beach!!! The challenge is a Prison Break that Chuay Ghan wins. The Tribal Council for Sook Jai is long, with a lot of discussion about division, loyalty and information sharing. In the end, Shii Ann Huang, the 28-year-old Executive Recruiter from New York gets the unanimous vote to leave.
posted at 08:03 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, October 30, 2002
Amazing Race 3 - Episode 5
"What Happens If I Slip? Am I Just Hanging Off A Cliff?"
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Teams leave the Torre de Belem, looking for "the western most point of continental Europe" - Cabo da Roca, just 22 miles away. The Detour at Cabo - Ropes or Slopes. In Ropes, teams take a shuttle bus to the top of the Ursa Cliffs and repel 300 feet down to the shoreline below. Slopes is hiking down, a longer and more demanding walk than the quick repelling. Aaron & Arianne get there first. When Flo & Zach get there, Flo starts to seriously freak out over the repelling, crying hysterically as she goes over the edge. She gives up, and they go on their hike. After successfully completing the task, the next segment is to drive 250 miles to Algeciras, Spain, to take a ferry to Tangier, Morocco. The big screwup actually come on the drive to Algeciras, when teams had to fuel-up at a gas station. The problem was that the trucks they were driving were diesel trucks. Aaron & Arianne (who are in the lead), Teri & Ian, Michael & Kathy, and Flo & Zach all fill-up with unleaded gasoline. All break down on the side of the road, everybody handles the situation differently (F&Z get a tow truck and get it fixed quickly, T&I pull the fuel line and drain the tank, A&A get help by the police.) Michael & Kathy, however, check into a 4-star hotel and spend the night, have the car towed to a Mitsubishi dealer, and just wait for the verdict. When finally in Tangier, the teams have to find the Viajes Flandria Travel Agency and book a ride on charter buses to Fez, to the Old City. Next: Roadblock. A team member runs through a marketplace known for its leather. Find a tannery that has 25 vats of "foul smelling dye". The clues are hidden in only three vats. The clues (when finally found), have to take a marked vehicle and drive across town to this leg's Pit Stop - Borj Nord Fortress. Team #1 was The Brothers Ken & Gerard. They also each won a Kodak EasyShare digital camera "that can be enjoyed after the race". They were followed by Andre & Damon and Derek & Drew, and then John Vito & Jill and Flo & Zach step on the mat together (something we haven't seen this year). Because of their delays, Michael & Kathy arrive last and are eliminated from the race. Next show: Road to Marrakesh. (Country Music Awards next week.)
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posted at 09:06 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Darrian Chapman
Chicago lost a sportscaster today. Darrian Chapman at NBC5 died from a massive heart attack at age 37 before playing at his weekly hockey game. He was a gregarious guy on air, and you can tell how much he loved sports and how much he loved the city. It was a shock to a lot of the sports people in town.
posted at 06:15 PM | Link | TV § |
Friday, October 25, 2002
Love... exciting and new...This sunday, the Pacific Princess - the original "Love Boat" - after 27 years of service, sails for the final time. It was introduced in 1975 and carried 640 passengers - "intimate" by today's standard of about 2,500. While in duty, she carried about 600,000 passengers on crusies for Princess Cruises. The Love Boat was only on the air at ABC for 9 years.
A new Pacific Princess is set to sail next year throughout French Polynesia and the wider Pacific region.
posted at 09:21 AM | Link | Odd § |
Thursday, October 24, 2002
Survivor Thailand - Episode 6
"Power of One"
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The men of Chuay Ghan decide to swim to the next island to find their lost boat - they don't find it. This time there's no footage of the boat by the production crew, so it may be actually gone by now. The reward challenge, a game of slingshots shooting balls into the air to be caught by team members using wicker baskets, was won by Sook Jai. They get a feast with music and dancing. The immunity challenge was a game of 21 Flags, and Chuay Gahn won. Now, I've skipped over a lot of things, most of which have to do with Robb - excessive banana eating, arguments, and a final epiphany in the dark after losing the immunity challenge that maybe there was more to life than a paycheck. Apparently, the tribe thought that now that he has finally grown-up, it's time to send the boy home. By unanimous vote, Sook Jai votes 23-year-old Bartender (and skateboarder) Robb Zbacnik from Scottsdale, AZ off the island. Next week: Time to merge the tribes - or is it??? « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:11 PM | Link | Survivor § |
The Mole?Happy Mole Day, everyone! Oh, wait... it doesn't have to do with the ABC Reality TV show... it's about moles... Avogadro's Number, not the animals. It's about chemistry... see, one mole is a mass (in grams) whose number is equal to the atomic mass of the molecule... umm... nevermind...
posted at 06:02 AM | Link | Odd § |
Wednesday, October 23, 2002
Amazing Race 3 - Episode 4
"Did You See How I Stopped It? With My Face!"
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The teams leave Dunnottar Castle to walk a mile and a half to Stonehaven harbor to find a message in a bottle - a bottle of Port. So, now it's from Aberdeen to London. The Twins Derek & Drew and brothers Ken & Gerard are off to Cologne (and then had trouble with a Lufthansa flight out of Cologne, yet were able to get the flight held for them). Everyone now heads to Porto in Portugal, to the Cálem Port Lodge. The lodge has a Detour - Old School or New School - Old school is delivering one barrel (weighing 90 lbs.) of port on boat that needs to be paddled (oared) to one restaurant in town. New school loads crates of bottles onto trucks to deliver 3 crates to 3 restaurants in town (ouch - dropped crates and broken bottles, not to mention the Legal Eagles Heather & Eve hitting a pole with their truck). The next leg is to take a train to Lisbon and get to Gate F at the Estadio do Restelo Soccer Stadium. At the train station in Porto, all of the teams bunch-up and take the same train. There's a mad dash to the stadium via cabs. The Brothers get there first for the leg's Roadblock. A team member has to go into a goal and block a penalty kick from a teenage Portuguese soccer player. Upon blocking the shot, the team must walk one and a half miles to the Torre de Belem, the Pit Stop of the leg. Between the cab rides and the soccer stadium, the teams get really juggled around. The Legal Eagles, however, take a cab and get there first. The Brothers get there second, The Twins get there fourth. (Did you notice Phil didn't say "you are Team Number n" but instead said "you are the n'th team to arrive" to each team?) Somehow, Teri & Ian get there 6th. The last team to arrive on the mat is Aaron & Arianne... wait! It's fading to black! Oh, Oh... Heather & Eve are walking through a dorway and they look sick. They're followed by Aaron & Arianne. It's a sit-down meeting with Phil Keoghan. Phill tells Heather & Eve that they didn't follow the directions for the last clue (walk, not cab to the Torre de Belem) thus saving at least 7 minutes of time. They are penalized the 7 minutes, as well as the mandatory 30 minute penalty for not performing the task correctly. Normally, this wouldn't be a big deal... but all of the teams made it to Torre de Belem within 31 minutes of each other, so the 37 penalty minutes means that Heather & Eve are ELIMINATED!!! Next week: a bawling Flo on the cliffs of Portugal, gasoline in a diesel truck's tank, and no brakes!
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:05 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, October 17, 2002
Survivor Thailand - Episode 5posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, October 16, 2002
Amazing Race 3 - Episode 3
"You Always Just Forget About Me!"
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Father and Son Dennis & Andrew drop from Ninth Place to elimination tonight. The teams start from the Diamante K Cabanas in Tulúm, fly 5,500 miles to London, England, and then make their way to Scudamore's Punting Company on the River Cam in Cambridge. Many teams take flights from Cancun to Mexico City, hoping for better connections to England. The Twins, and Michael & Kathy and Aaron & Arianne go via Miami, others go via Paris. At Cambridge is the Detour - Punt 1 mile on the river or Bike on tandem bikes 6 miles through Cambridge. Afterward, the teams take charter buses 350 miles to Aberdeen, Scotland. From Aberdeen, the teams have to take taxis to the Stonehaven to find a route marker in a field. Here's the Roadblock for this leg. Here, a member of the team must compete in 3 events from the Highland Games - Caber Toss, Hammer Throw, and Shot Put. After that, the teams race on foot to the chapel at Dunnottar Castle, the Pit Stop for the leg. In the meantime, Dennis & Andrew get to England a day later than everybody else, so they go for the Fast Forward. They still go to Cambridge, but they go to the Duxford Imperial War Museum and drive a war tank through a battlefield obstacle course. They then go to Dunnottar Castle in a chauffeured Rolls Royce limousine. The Twins arrive at the castle first. Somehow, the limousine didn't help and Dennis & Andrew are the last to arrive. Next week: Portugal.
« hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 09:09 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, October 10, 2002
Survivor Thailand - Episode 4
"Gender Bender"
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Well, Chuay Ghan fumbles two challenges again, and Ghandia Johnson, the 33-year-old Legal Secretary from Denver gets the boot - a deserved boot, if I must say. In the parting words at the end of the show, she says that she realized it was a mistake with the way she handled the "incident". In regards to Sook Jai - don't you think they're going to get sick from eating too many bananas? And what's happening next week? It looks like an injury to a Sook Jai tribe member (was it Ken?) and it looks like another "tribal makeup shakeup" is coming. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 10:03 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, October 09, 2002
Amazing Race 3 - Episode 2
"This Looks Like The Path Straight To Hell!"
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posted at 09:04 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, October 03, 2002
Survivor Thailand - Episode 3
"Family Values"
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Sook Jai tribe member Jed Hildebrand, the 25-year-old Dental Student from Dallas, got the first boot from that tribe tonight. That tribe is a mess, as was shown in both challenges tonight. The immunity challenge showed that they've got the wrong people trying to give direction to the team (Jed and Robb). Then in the reward challenge, Idiot Robb (that's right IDIOT ROBB) showed his true colors by literally going for Clay's throat for no reason at all, and then complain that they lost "because of the rules". HELL YES, BECAUSE OF THE RULES YOU IDIOT!!! Robb needs to go! I'm not sure where I'm sitting on the Ghandia and Ted issue - I think I'm leaning a little bit on the Ted side of things, only because of the way Ghandia handled the situation afterward. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Tuesday, October 01, 2002
DWI and, um, porn
The Smoking Gun has uncovered a DWI conviction of Sook Jai tribe member Jed Hildebrand, the 25-year-old Dental Student from Dallas, including RealPlayer or Windows Media Player footage of his sobriety test. And, in case you didn't know about it, The Smoking Gun also has stills from Chuay Gahn tribe member Brian Heidik's (the 34-year-old "Used Car Salesman" from Quartz Hill, California) "other occupation" - soft-core porn film star, credited as either "Dave Roth" or "Chris Hayden" or "Brian Linton".
posted at 08:14 AM | Link | Survivor § |
Friday, September 27, 2002
The Palmsposted at 03:09 PM | Link | TV § |
Thursday, September 26, 2002
Survivor Thailand - Episode 2
"The Great Divide"
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Chuay Gahn just can't win - they seem to get so close... anyway, "Tennessee" Tanya Vance, the Social Worker from Kingsport, TN, gets the boot this week. (I'm going to miss those eyes...). Jan is the weakest (and inadvertently causing tension) and should go soon. I don't know why, but I love the idea of Clay's luxury item: the golf club & ball. It just looks like a great "down time" item to pass the time. In the meantime, even though they've been winning, Sookjai just looks like it's a mess, like an accident waiting to happen - though it looks like the accident is going to happen at Chuay Gahn next week between Ghandia and Ted... « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, September 25, 2002
Shirtless Top 10
Dave just isn't letting it go.... tonight's Top 10 List:
Top Ten Shirtless Father And Son Explanations
10. He was obstructing our view
9. Autographed Tom Gamboa baseball would be worth more if he were dead
8. We're sorry, you'll have to talk to our shirtless lawyer
7. You try staying in your seat during a White Sox-Royals game
6. Dr. Phil says fathers and sons form stronger bonds when they commit senseless acts of violence
5. When two shirtless idiots can't attack anyone they want, the terrorists have won
4. People do crazy things after nine beers
3. For generations our family has proudly beaten first-base coach Tom Gamboa
2. Getting in shape for hockey dad season
1. Couple Mets players gave us some crazy weed, man
posted at 11:05 PM | Link | TV § |
Big Brother 3 - Day 81 - Finale
LISA WINS!!!
With the exception of Jason (which was expected), everyone Voted for Lisa - Lori, Tonya, Eric, Josh, Chiara, Gerry, Roddy, Marcellas, and Amy. Lisa wins 9-1. I've been watching the live feeds the last few days, just to see what they would say. Danielle called it - she knew she was going to lose 9-1. Big Brother 3 was very enjoyable this year (compared to last). The live feeds rule - instead of seeing the edited production on CBS, watching the houseguests live their lives like guinea pigs in a lab situation was intoxicating to watch. It showed the truth, it showed how much the people tried to like each other in a situation that didn't allow it to happen. It's an experience that I would love to try someday, though I know it would never happen. I'm going to miss these (as Roddy would call them) "knuckleheads".
posted at 09:02 PM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Saturday, September 21, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 77
The First Head of Household became the Final Head of Household as Lisa wins the final phase of the challenge over Jason who had won Phase II over Danielle. Then, on the live show, Lisa evicts Jason. Danielle was distraught, and after the live show was over, she told Lisa everything. Everything about Jason, (including the fact that she wasn't going to take Lisa to the final, even though she gave her word), and even some truths about Roddy. Wednesday night, the evicted houseguests vote on who gets $50,000 and who gets $500,000. Go Lisa! (Wish it was Jason.)
posted at 09:08 PM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Thursday, September 19, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 75
After 6 nominations, Amy finally gets the boot out of the house for the second time. The final Head of Household competition starts, as the first of three parts. Part One is endurance as the three remaining houseguests sit in liferafts in a pool, with one hand clutching their key which is in the nomination box in the middle of the pool. Last one that still has their hand on the key wins this phase of the competition. Oh, there's wind, lightning and cold rain that pass through every once in a while.
Update: Jason accidentally let go after about 30 minutes. After about 4 1/2 hours, Danielle gives up and Lisa wins Phase One - only after Danielle lies to Lisa that she doesn't have an alliance with Jason, and then lies again to say that it will be Lisa and Danielle in the final. So, Danielle lies, and admits to lying, but when Roddy may have lied, he was the devil? Bitch.
posted at 09:05 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Survivor Thailand - Episode 1
"The Importance of Being E...est"
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HEY! No conch shell trumpeting to open the show!!! (I don't think I like the new theme music). The title of the first show was "The Importance of Being E..est". Most people would immediately thing "Earnest" but in this case it meant "Eldest" as the two eldest male and female chose the tribes (like picking people for your pickup-game). So, that was Jan Gentry (53) that chose the members of Chuay Gahn tribe, and Jake Billingsley (61) chose the members of Sook Jai tribe. John Raymond, a pastor from Slidell, LA was the first booted off the island. « hide the extended part of this entry
posted at 08:02 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, September 12, 2002
Big Brother 4
CBS has started accepting applications to Big Brother 4 to be shot in 2003.
posted at 11:17 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Big Brother 3 - Day 68
Let's see if I can summarize a week... Jason nominates Amy and Marcellas. The houseguests all fail the Dinner Party From Hell food challenge and everyone eats Peanut Butter and Jelly for the week. The Power of Veto is now the Golden Power of Veto - the added twist is that if you are a nominee and you win it, you can take yourself off the block. Marcellas wins the Golden Power of Veto. Because of other programming, CBS hasn't broadcasted Big Brother until tonight. The Power of Veto meeting was held tonight live on-air. This meant that: 1) If a nominee is removed, the HOH (Jason) has to nominate someone in their place (again Live on-air), and 2) Since the Veto Meeting was held live on-air, the voting must be done live on-air. Marcellas doesn't use the Veto. Danielle goes into the Diary Room and votes to evict Marcellas. Lisa goes into the DR and votes to evict Amy. Jason, as HOH now has to break the tie vote - live in front of the nominees. In a distressed speech, Jason evicts Marcellas in something that no one except Danielle saw coming. Amy is shocked. No, She's SHOCKED. Marcellas looks worse - numb, zombie like. He leaves with little to say. Danielle wins the Head of Household competition for the first time since the show started. Damn - I wanted her out.
UPDATE: I was watching the live feeds at about 10:30pm. The houseguests were outside at the table, just talking. Then Julie Chen came over the speakers and said "Houseguests!" And they all replied "Hi, Julie!". Julie: "It's time for this week's luxury challenge!" (they cheer) "We have hidden four cell phones in the house..." (Amy screams) "Settle down, Amy. When I say go, you have two minutes to find them. Once you have found a cell phone, you must stay in the room that you found the phone in..." ... and the feed shifts to the Front Of The House (this is done on the internet feeds when the producers don't want you to see something happening in the house. They play that damn theme music on an endless loop forever). According to tonight's show, the winner of the competition will be able to call home. They were off the net for two hours. Apparently Amy won, being able to talk to her mother. I think the cell phones were from Verizon T-Mobile- Amy was complaining about the connection quality. She also won $10,000, too.
posted at 09:02 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Saturday, September 07, 2002
Big Brother 3 Court Date
According to The Smoking Gun, Chiara Berti "pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor drunk driving charge. On August 30, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge sentenced Berti to three years probation, fined her $1191, and ordered Berti to attend a three-month alcohol awareness program. The 25-year-old also has to take part in California's Hospital and Morgue program (H.A.M.), which brings participants to the L.A. coroner's office for an up close look at mangled bodies from car crashes, gunshot victims, etc. In addition, restrictions will be placed on Berti's driver's license so that she will only be allowed to drive to and from work." Includes the Smoking Gun hallmark - documentation!
posted at 08:35 AM | Link | Reality TV | 2 comments § |
Friday, September 06, 2002
The Isotopes
Do you remember an episode of The Simpsons from March 4, 2001 called "Hungry Hungry Homer"? Homer discovers that the owner of the Springfield Isotopes baseball team has a secret plan to move the team to Albuquerque. Now, in reality. Albuquerque doesn't have a baseball team. Well, they did - the Triple-A Dukes skipped town about about three years ago to go to Portland. Starting next year, however, the Calgary Cannons, the Triple-A Pacific Coast League affiliate of the Florida Marlins, is moving to New Mexico to become - you guessed it - the Albuquerque Isotopes! (I wonder if they'll sell Duff beer...)
posted at 10:39 PM | Link | Baseball § |
Thursday, September 05, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 61posted at 08:06 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Friday, August 30, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 56posted at 09:43 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, August 29, 2002
Eye yi yi
It's been four years, and I've been having trouble reading - time to get new glasses. I went to LensCrafters at Woodfield to get my eyes checked and get some new glasses. I have never had my eyes dilated, so that was also in the cards tonight. That, and the god awful retinal photography that really does blind you for a while. Turns out my distance vision hasn't changed at all - it's just that closeup reading part. Think the amount of time I've spent in front of a computer all these years has taken its toll? The exams and doctor visit went well. the doctor put the drops in my eyes to dilate them and I went out to the front of the store to pick out my frames. I really didn't want to change my regular glasses too much, so I picked out a similar frame. For sunglasses, though, I wanted a change. I picked out some RayBan frames and made sure that I could get the lenses with the bifocal no-line thingy and they could, so I got my order in. I could get the sunglasses tonight (cool!) but my regular glasses would take at least 10 business days (bummer!) due to the coating I wanted on them. I went back to the doctor so he can scope of the back of my eyes while they're dilated. Then it was off to Stir Crazy Cafe for dinner while the sunglasses where finished.
On the way to Stir Crazy, we were passing a Gingiss Formalware place when I noticed this really familiar face staring at me from a poster. It took a while to figure it out, but it was Marcellas from Big Brother 3! After dinner, back to pickup my sunglasses and have Carol drive us home - having your pupils dilated is a trip and I don't think I could have handled the headlights in the dark on the way home.
posted at 08:32 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Friday, August 23, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 49
In a highly convoluted food challenge, the houseguests only win half the food they need for the week. But, they get Dunkin Donuts products for breakfast all week. Later in the day, Jason nominates Gerry and Amy for eviction. Later tonight, the houseguests are painting garden gnomes. Go figure.
posted at 01:41 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, August 22, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 48
Chiara got evicted on a vote of 4-1, which, if you've been watching the live feeds, was a shock. I had thought that Roddy was a goner. I even felt that way during the live show when they were showing the houseguests discussing their decisions in the Diary Room (the DR). Jason won Head of Household in a quick competition. It looks like Chiara leaving the house has really effected Roddy, much more than I had expected. I found out later what it was - Chiara has been sleeping with a small blanket - believe it or not - since she was a kid. Yes, a security blanket of sorts. She can't sleep without it. You would always see it near her when she was in bed. Well, she left it in Roddy's bag when she left. Roddy showed this to the houseguests later tonight and all of them were crying and quiet...
Speaking of Roddy... I got this link from my BlogMom Erin - it's a webpage where someone has been doing screen captures of the houseguests when they've been naked on the live internet feeds... (It's really mostly Tonya, with a few of Amy and Roddy)
posted at 08:13 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, August 20, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 46 - Sheryl Crow
Just got finnished watching the private Sheryl Crow concert in the backyard of the Big Brother house over the internet. She only did three songs - All I Wanna Do, Soak Up The Sun, and Steve McQueen. But she had a full stage, lighting, her band, and it sounded absolutely great (it sounded like it was perfectly mixed). And to see the houseguests reactions was priceless. It'll be broadcast tomorrow night.
posted at 10:35 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
The Mole 2 party
If you enjoyed The Mole on ABC, word is out today that they have given the green light for a celebrity edition and a third regular-people edition. No word on if Anderson Cooper will be back as host.
On another note, I stumbled onto a picture of a reunion of most of the cast! Apparently they were in Las Vegas at The Palms. It appears that they take pictures of groups at the different venues there and post them on a website. I found the picture under the Ghostbar Photo Gallery for Saturday August 10. It's the last picture in the third row (it's a piece of the whole picture with Elavia and Bob).
posted at 11:02 AM | Link | The Mole § |
Saturday, August 17, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 43
Amy nominates Chiara and Roddy for eviction. The houseguests find out there's no America's Choice question for the week - my guess is because of the private Sheryl Crow concert (which is actually happening Tuesday night at 10pm ET but will be shown in a special 2 hour show on Wednesday).
posted at 07:36 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, August 15, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 41
After a difficult week for the houseguests, Josh was evicted by a 5-0 vote, which actually wound up being a little surprising. Danielle had made a push to kick Roddy out because he is viewed as the strongest player. In a separate competition, Lori, Tonya, Amy and Eric competed for a chance to re-enter the Big Brother house with questions about how much money they would be willing to give up and how much PB&J they are willing to eat. This whittled the group down to Amy & Eric. The houseguests then voted 5-2 to allow Amy back into the house! The Head of Household challenge required the houseguests to sit in a large bathtub while "things" were poured into it. The last one out wins. After enduring squid, seaweed, slime, eels, and cod liver oil, Amy won Head of Household! How can she make a balanced decision on who to nominate for eviction while being in the house less than 24 hours? Next week: a private concert by Sheryl Crow!!!
posted at 10:30 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Survivor Thailand Cast
Today, on the CBS Early Show (as well as in USA Today), the new cast for Survivor Thailand was announced. They are: Jake Billingsley, 61, Land Broker from McKinney, TX; Erin Collins, 26, Real Estate Agent from Austin, TX; Stephanie Dill, 29, Firefighter from Fayetteville, AR; Jan Gentry, 53, Teacher from Tampa, FL; Helen Glover, 47, Navy Swim Instructor from Middletown, RI; Brian Heidik, 34, Used Car Sales (!) from Quartz Hill, CA; Jed Hilderbrand, 25, Dental Student from Dallas, TX; Shii Ann Huang, 28, Executive Recruiter from New York, NY; Ghandia Johnson, 33, Legal Secretary from Denver, CO; Clay Jordan, 46, Restauranteur from Monroe, LA; Penny Ramsey, 27, Pharmaceutical Sales from Plano, TX; John Raymond, 40, Pastor from Slidell, LA; Ted Rogers Jr., 37, Software Developer from Durham, NC; Ken Stafford, 30, NYC Police Officer from Brooklyn, NY; Tanya Vance, 27, Social Worker from Kingsport, TN; and Robb Zbacnik, 23, Bartender (what, another one? Why do all of these shows have to have bartenders?) from Scottsdale, AZ.
posted at 08:41 AM | Link | Survivor § |
Monday, August 12, 2002
Amazing Race 4
NUTS! They are accepting applications for The Amazing Race 4, and I don't have anybody to team up with! (Amazing Race 3 premieres October 3) Carol won't do it, neither will my sister... Anybody want to put together a Blog Team for TAR4???
posted at 12:58 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Saturday, August 10, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 36
Drama in the Big Brother house... yesterday was Nomination day and Chiara nominated Josh and Roddy, only after getting everyone's word that they would vote Josh out. Josh immediately went ballistic and started packing his bags to leave immediately. Roddy stopped him, and got everyone together to agree that if he promised to stop playing the game and campaigning, it will be a good week. Everyone agrees - except Josh who says "he'll try". That lasted an hour, when he started cornering people one at a time to campaign against Chiara to everyone that would listen. This made Danielle try to talk Marcellas into voting out Roddy because the opportunity was there. So far, as of this morning, Josh is still in the house. This could be an interesting week to watch.
posted at 09:32 AM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Thursday, August 08, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 33
Oh. My. God. Well, the eviction vote comes down to 3-3. That forces Gerry to break the tie - and he evicts Eric. More on the eviction in a sec. Chiara winds up winning the Head Of Household challenge. Now, I had read something in a Las Vegas paper that when Tonya was evicted, she was sequestered. I thought this was unusual, as in all prior years, the U.S. houseguests always went back to their family. I've been trying to figure out why they would sequester the evicted houseguests. We found out tonight when Eric was evicted - next week, one of them gets to go back into the house and back into the game! Now, where have the evictees been? Well, Lori for the last three weeks has been sequestered in Cancun, Tonya has been in the Turks and Caicos Islands, and Amy has been in Ixtapa. So, they've been out of the country, not able to see anything happening with the game. Interesting! Within 30 minutes after the end of the show, through discussions with some of the houseguests, there's no doubt in my mind that Chiara will nominate Josh and she has the votes to evict him already.
posted at 08:23 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, August 06, 2002
The Mole 2 - Episode 13
My favorite reality game show ended tonight - Bill was The Mole (like I had thought) and Dorothy won $636,000 (meaning Heather lost). (I wonder if The Mole gets any special compensation?) Great show. I think Anderson Cooper was a great host for this style of show. Hope there's a Mole 3.
posted at 09:02 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Saturday, August 03, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 28
Quick update before the show: Chiara, Roddy, Danielle and Josh lose this week's food competition (a betting game on how much of an item someone can eat in 2 minutes), and have to eat PB&J and jalepeno-stuffed olives for a week (watch the show, you'll see). Gerry nominated Eric & Lisa for eviction. Chiara wins the Power of Veto, but will probably not use it. Late this afternoon, Roddy, Lisa, Jason, and Eric stood in front of the camera in the kitchen and asked all of the viewers of the internet feed to not vote for them for this week's America's Choice competition and to only Vote for Danielle (viewers vote by phone on who they would like to see get a letter from home).
Update: The sweet appeal to help out Danielle in the America's Choice poll was apparently too late. Jason won the letter from home.
posted at 06:16 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, August 01, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 26
Now for an unnecessarily WAY too long-winded Big Brother 3 summary...
From the Live Show tonight:
Funny interview between Julie Chen and the houseguests. Amy is evicted by a 7-0 unanimous vote. After a long time being tied, Gerry won Head of Household over Eric. Oh, no... "another new twist to the game" next Thursday night. And is it wrong that I'm drinking a Stolichnaya Citrona while watching the eviction?
Now, from the Live Feeds over the past few days:
Lisa's "thing" on her butt, which may not have been a spider bite, put her through hell for a few days - severe pain (she can't sit down because her butt-cheek hurt so much) required medication, which caused her to sleep a lot. The houseguests had to use toilet seat liners as a precaution while the doctor ran tests on her blood to figure out if it was contagious. She was afraid to get in the hot tub or lay out in the sun. There is significant amount of late-night talk between Danielle-Marcellas-Jason on what to do going forward - specifically, break up the couples no matter what. And whatever you see on the TV shows, Josh is one hundred times worse when watching the live feeds. He NEVER stops playing the game, and just flits between groups and individuals passing information and deception. He sucks. He must leave. Gerry lays on the couch in the morning after he's all sweaty from his morning cardio workout. Josh says he was "called on the carpet" by Big Brother for doing the same thing "because it isn't sanitary". Chiara was the subject of side bets among the houseguests - it was $1 bet with Roddy (in cardboard poker chips that they made for their poker games) that she would get called at least three times by the crew to put on her microphone. By 1:30 on that day she reached 3 times, and everybody went nuts (The over/under on the bet was 3). The crew had to tell her (in the Diary Room) that she had better get used to wearing the mic, or she would be put up for a penalty nomination and could get kicked-out. Did you know they give a 5-hour warning to the current Head Of Household to clear out their personal belongings so that the room can be cleaned and turned over so the new HOH can get the room during the Live Show? Did you know that they weren't allowed to wear anything from any major league team (cap, shirt, etc)? Did you know they were sequestered in a hotel for one week prior to the show, and entered the house on Saturday July 6 and not on Wednesday July 10?
posted at 07:58 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, July 30, 2002
The Mole 2 - Episode 12
No execution, because this is it. It's the final three: Heather, Dorothy and Bill. The group all failed the Three Questions challenge, the same game from last year. (BTW, where do they find all of these empty towns in Italy?) The final challenge was brutal, with Bill coming in all bloody as the winner of the challenge, and even adding $100,000 to the pot for not reading the Mole's dossier. Of course, I believe Bill didn't need to read it because I think he's the Mole. Heather had it the worst - frustrated at her situation, frustrated with the crew that was shooting her not talking to her or giving her any information, and then saying she was quitting. Then the crew piped-up, and wanted to understand to what extent she was "quitting the game" when all of a sudden, out of the pitch blackness of the nighttime woods, something that sounded like a wild boar charged them and they had to scramble to safety. The final pot is up to $636,000. All three took the final quiz together - 20 questions that went all the way back to day one of the game. Next week - all of the contestants come back together and the Winner and The Mole are revealed.
posted at 09:06 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Monday, July 29, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 23
Let's see, what can I tell you about what's going on in the house... Eric won Power of Veto and didn't use it, Marcellas won the America's Choice Private Dinner, which was held in the Diary Room, and he invited and Amy as his guest. Lisa was bitten on her ass by a spider, and now Eric is worried because she was nauseous and may have been seeing things last night, and may be delirious. She saw the doctor, said it was a bite, and that she may get a fever and it should swell a bit for a couple of days. Hew drew some blood for testing anyway. One piece that I saw Saturday night that will NEVER be broadcast on CBS: the girls sitting out in the backyard at a seminar being held by Lisa. Topic? Her guaranteed method of oral stimulation of a man's... well, I don't want to say exactly here because I don't wont a ton of hits from Google from people looking for Porn! The next night, a piece that probably will be aired - Lisa, Danielle, and Chiara on the hammock being all giggly about the bodies of Roddy and Eric as they were throwing around Marcellas's rubber ducks (using the International rules for Championship Duck Tossing...). Oh, there were quite a few people with bad dreams and nightmares last night, including Lisa who dreamt that Eric was throwing her through the walls of their bedroom.
posted at 01:26 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Friday, July 26, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 21
Quick update on the live feeds: The houseguests got a Mexican dinner last night, sometime after 10pm their time. It was the first real meal for half the household that was eating PB&J for the week. There was a food challenge early this morning (CBS woke them up at 8am which, for them, is unheard of) which they won, so there's new food for them for the week. They had a Subway six foot sandwich for lunch, after the challenge. Roddy nominated Amy and Marcellas for eviction. Both of them threatened to walk out later in the day, but I belive it took the producers to turn them around while the two of them were in the Diary Room. Here's another twist - Josh went to Gerry to discuss a "coalition" for the next week or two.
posted at 08:58 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, July 25, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 20posted at 08:09 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, July 24, 2002
Mole 2 - Episode 11 and Big Brother 3 - Day 19Alright, time to catchup on the Reality Television shows that I watch...
Al is gone, and we're down to the final three. Poor Al, having to stay in the "Tiny Bubbles" room of Anderson's Fun House is just too much for a mere mortal. The pot is up to $536,000, and now it's just down to Heather, Dorothy and Bill, who I still believe is The Mole. We'll know in two weeks.
Danielle didn't use the Power of Veto to try and save Josh or Tonya from possible eviction. I've been watching the live feeds regularly and I can't tell who's leaving tomorrow. I wouldn't be surprised if it was Tonya. However, there was a big argument between Marcellas, Amy, and Tonya, that was all resolved, but I believe may have shaded the feelings of anybody on the fence in voting and may throw Tonya out. Josh needs to go. Amy needs to go. Eventually, Gerry needs to go, too.
Update: I was watching the live feeds tonight. There was a time when Tonya told Josh her boyfriend's phone number so that he could call him if he gets out of the house. Well, the crew was asleep at the switch and they didn't cut to that infernal Front Of The House camera with the continuous loop of the the theme music. Tonya was told that her boyfriend was getting inundated with phone calls. I think this was a wakeup call that people really are watching the Internet feeds, so they have to start thinking about what they really want to say.
posted at 09:04 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Friday, July 19, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 14
Watching the live feeds today... apparently there was some kind of "argument" or at least "loud discussion" between Josh and Gerry. I also missed what appears to have been a food challenge of some sort. Half the house is eating PB&J sandwiches, the others are cooking. Apparently it was an eating or drinking challenge that was "gross" with lots of vomiting. Ew. Late this afternoon, I was watching Marcellas talking to Roddy in the HOH room, and he said he was affraid of what Josh could do in the house. It sounded a lot like what was said about Justin last year. Anyway, after an extended time in a network blackout (imagine watching the front of the Big Brother house, with the theme song playing on continuous loop for hours), it sounds like Marcellas nominated Josh and Tonya for eviction.
Update: Danielle won Power of Veto. Let's see what happens after the weekly Monday household meeting.
posted at 10:26 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, July 18, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 13posted at 08:11 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, July 17, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 12
So, Gerry uses his Power of Veto to veto the nomination of Marcellas. As Head of Household, Lisa then picked Amy to join Lori as the two houseguests nominated for eviction. I've been watching the live feeds when I have spare time, and Lori needs to go. Amy is actually growing on me, and she is more entertaining to watch. Lori is just a "box of rocks" as my wife Carol would say. Josh still needs to go (he's still and arrogant S.O.B.), and I think Gerry should be on the chopping block as well. He comes across a bit too sanctimonious for his own good, philosophizing a bit too often. Get rid of him.
posted at 09:20 PM | Link | Reality TV | 1 comment § |
Tuesday, July 16, 2002
The Mole 2 - Episode 10
Well, Bribs was executed, Al had an exemption, Heather tried twice for an exemption and failed, the group is down to four people and the pot is near a half million dollars. I'm still betting on Bill as The Mole. I mean, after seeing the tease for next week, how could you not? Complete with ABC announcer, bold graphics, and swooshing sound effects: WHO (shot of Heather) IS (shot of Al) THE (shot of Dorothy) MOLE? (shot of Bill)
posted at 09:08 PM | Link | The Mole | 1 comment § |
Saturday, July 13, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 8
Quick BB update - Gerry won the newly minted weekly "Power of Veto" Award, which allows him to Veto one of the two nominees. What doesn't come out in the show is that he already knows what he wants to do, and he doesn't have to tell anybody until Monday. If he vetoes somebody (he doesn't have to), the HOH has to nominate someone else, and it cannot be the person who holds the Power of Veto.
posted at 11:03 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, July 11, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 6
Nominated for eviction: Lori, the 37 y.o. Bank Representative from Foxboro, WI and Marcellas, 34 y.o. Fashion Stylist from Chicago.
Got my RealOne player all updated, watching the feeds this afternoon. This is not like last year's group of idiots. This is a decent group to watch.
posted at 08:06 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Wednesday, July 10, 2002
Big Brother 3 - Day 5 - First Episode
Here we go again... CBS has started Big Brother 3. Actually, it started over the weekend when the houseguests entered the house, it's just that there were no live feeds available over the internet to see what's going on. I absolutely hate to admit this, but watching the live feeds have been a great pastime of mine over the last two years. I don't know why, it just is. The house looks the best out of the three years - the decorators did a good job. OK, first HOH (Head of Household) - Lisa, the 26 y.o. bartender from L.A. The people that I need to get the hell out of the house: Amy, the 23 y.o. Real Estate Appraiser from Memphis, and Josh, the 28 y.o. arrogant prick of a Waiter from Long Island.
posted at 09:03 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, July 09, 2002
The Mole 2 - Episode 9
Well, I have to admit it was fun watching Al and Heather as well as Anderson getting drunk on wine for the Grape Game. The Assembly Line Game was OK, but the Night Ball Game was just a bit strange. Darwin is executed. I had my doubts earlier in the game about him, but I'm still set on Bill as The Mole right now.
posted at 09:06 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Saturday, July 06, 2002
White Sox 7 - Indians 3
What a gorgeous day! It never did rain. There were some clouds for a while, but it turned into something pretty nice. Back at Comiskey for a series against the Cleveland Indians. This used to be the one series we used to loathe to go to. When Jacobs Field opened in Cleveland, the games were always sold out. The Sox took out ads in the Cleveland papers to invite people who couldn't get tickets at "The Jake" to come to Comiskey. Well, it filled the place, but God it was awful to sit there with all these Cleveland fans, who just about out-numbered the Sox fans. those days are gone - The Jake is no longer sold out, Cleveland is not in the pennant race and is trading top players, and now Comiskey is not filled with their fans. What a nice day! Game time temperature - 81 degrees. Interesting confluence of promotions today - Kellogg's Kids Week and Extreme Day sponsored by Mountain Dew with rock climbing walls, mechanical bulls, bikes, skateboards... The game was good, too, a nice close give-and-take game (the kind I like). Sox won 7-3.
After the game, we drove up Lake Shore Drive to Barry & Buffy's (another glorious ride up the drive on a gorgeous day). We decided to do a movie and dinner, so we drove back up to Evanston, to the Evanston Century 12 to see The Bourne Identity. Wow. good flick. Great car chase... in a Cooper Mini!!! (I'd love to get one of those cars). After the movie, we walked over to Merle's Smokehouse for some barbecue. Hey, I was surprised - this was good food and we had great service as well. You know, even though I feel like I'm living in my car the last few days, I really enjoyed today.
posted at 10:32 PM | Link | White Sox § |
Wednesday, July 03, 2002
Ground Force New York
This is so cool! My favorite show on BBC America is Ground Force. I just saw on the Today Show that they were in New York City doing a garden for The New York Restoration Project, surprising Bette Midler! Wonder how long it's going to take to broadcast it on BBC America. Probably two years. Wait... No! Ground Force: New York premieres Tuesday, August 20 at 8 pm/et, 5 pm/pt. !
posted at 08:29 AM | Link | TV § |
Tuesday, July 02, 2002
The Mole 2 - Episode 8
I found the show a little dull tonight. And considering that the challenges had to do with reunions with family members, it wasn't as emotional as I had thought - except for the marriage proposal by Heather's boyfriend. The pot is up to $346,000, and Katie was executed. Oh, and I'm still sticking will Bill as The Mole.
posted at 09:23 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Tuesday, June 25, 2002
The Mole 2 - Episode 7
OK, let me reiterate how cool this show is and how much I would love to be a contestant on the show. I mean, what other reality television game show would have people running around Italy with a greased-up lawn gnome? Anderson Cooper is much looser this year as the host, allowing for more "fun moments" - Anderson: "I think you guys will have fun today. Actually, let me rephrase that. I think I'm going to have fun today. You guys - I hope you have fun." Or his physical demonstration on how to grease a gnome (you needed to see it). Or his final, pointed warning: "Now remember, you can grease your own gnome, but you can't grease your friend's gnome." Thus began the Gnome Home challenge. The group, chosen for preferring to watch "Romancing The Stone", could have won $30,000 for the pot but didn't when Bill dropped and broke the gnome, earning himself an exemption. Heather did fine, and Elavia never had a chance to run her leg of the race. The group that would rather watch Gladiator, played Gladiators (Katie, Al, Darwin & Bribs) protecting Caesar (Dorothy) in a battle. They are successful, with only Al dying. Bribs was offered an exemption for picking the "Brutus" helmet, but did not execute his team mates and Caesar. They win $30,000 and the pot is now at $266,000. At dinner the contestants were taken outside one by one and were asked to write on the back of a dollar bill their list of contestants from most favorite to least favorite. Shades of last week. At the execution, Anderson reads everyone's least favorite player. Elavia, again, is the least favorite. The lexicon of the mole keeps expanding. First, there's Execution. Then there's Exemption. Then 3 weeks ago we learned Neutralizer. Tonight the word word is Bought. Because Elavia was least liked, Anderson made her an offer - $49,992 plus the 8 dollar bills with the lists on them to leave the game now. Guaranteed money. She took it! She left the execution, briefcase with $50,000 in hand, and Anderson escorted her to the waiting car. To say everyone was shocked is an understatement. So many of them thought she was the Mole (me included). Then the fun part of the show: Anderson returns, the execution music begins in the background. "Alright, let's proceed with the execution." Shots of the players shaking their heads, putting hands to their heads, Katie hits her head with her journal. "...In a few moments I'll begin entering your names into the... just kidding (smile)!" I heard some one call Anderson a Jackass! Anderson starting "prancing" or dancing or something and in a sing-song voice says " I love this game!". So who do I think it is now that Elavia is gone? Bill. I'm going out on a limb. Bill.
posted at 09:15 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Tuesday, June 18, 2002
The Mole 2 - Episode 6
OK, let's start at the end - I never thought that Anderson would type in the first name and have that very first person executed! In another "tie goes to the slowest", Myra was executed. The team won $20,000 for the Bike Game part of the challenge, and won $20,000 for the Pizza Game part of the challenge. The team could have won $15,000 for the Least Favorite Player challenge, but Elavia turned it down in exchange for an exemption. The team was fined again tonight for a total of $10,000 - Heather touched a bike when she was told not to (suspicious, but I don't think it's her based on my "money talk" theory) and Bill and Darwin got some ice cream after the pizza dinner (this, in my opinion was accidental - hey they were hungry and it wasn't clearly stated that they couldn't buy any food that night.) Total in the pot - $236,000. My candidates so far: Dorothy, Elavia, Bill, and Bribs.
posted at 09:09 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Saturday, June 15, 2002
The Young and the DeadDid nothing today. Nothing. And it felt good. Caught up on some TiVo viewing. Watched an HBO America Undercover piece called "The Young and the Dead" about the Hollywood Forever Cemetery (check out the Forever Network), and how a young guy named Tyler Cassity has saved the place and is really "breaking ground" (so to speak) when it comes to technology and "innovative cemeteries, funeral homes and LifeStory production studios". Since Carol just watched all two seasons of Six Feet Under this past week, it was a nice "fit". Was a great documentary.
posted at 09:29 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Friday, June 14, 2002
Survivor Thailand
It's official - Survivor 5 or Survivor Thailand started shooting this past Tuesday. They are already in trouble with the local fishermen. AND GET THIS - the applications are already available for Survivor 6.
Oh! A scoop! From an article in today's Sports section of the Chicago Tribune: "Carey Schueler, daughter of former White Sox general manager Ron Schueler (who is now Sr. Vice President/Special Consultant to the Chairman), made the final cut of contestants for the next edition of the reality show "Survivor." Carey, an Orland Park native who was once drafted by the Sox, will test her survival skills in a remote part of Thailand."
posted at 04:17 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Tuesday, June 11, 2002
The Mole 2 - Episode 5
Goodbye, Rob. I didn't think you were the Mole, but everyone sure seemed to like having you around. I should have realized it when I read this article about Rob from May 28. You see, The Mole 2 was shot in the summer of 2001. He actually forgot he was on the show. Probably because 1) it was shot a year ago, and 2) he wasn't there long enough! Man, the weather in Vincenza Italy sure looked great. And the places that they've got these people staying in and visiting look wonderful. OK: My candidates so far: Dorothy, Elavia, and Bill. And maybe Bribs. The key thing is to listen to what people say in the confessionals, when they are interviewed, or what they say about the person that is executed right after they leave. Also, watch closely the reaction each one has as their name is called during the execution process. Do they react as if they have something on the line? (a player) or do they look aloof? (a Mole wouldn't care). People that talk about "wanting to win the money" and "winning the game" are players. A Mole will talk about other players, or how hard the game is. Why would they talk about "winning money" if they are the Mole and clearly will not win the pot? Speaking of the pot, it is now up to $206,000, after the team made no money on the Think or Sink challenge, but made $40,000 on the Get the Key challenge.
posted at 09:06 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Tuesday, June 04, 2002
The Mole 2 - Episode 3 & 4
The game keeps adding more and more twists. First we've seen The Exemption. Now we've seen The Neutralizer - neutralizing an exemption and adding money to the pot. Well, Lisa is gone. Nuts. Well, see you at Comiskey! Even though she said it was the last day to get her job back, at least we know it all turns out OK. The game moves from Switzerland to Italy, and Patrick makes an odd move - tearing out pages of his old journal now in Katie's possession, causing a $5,000 fine for the group. The team won $0 in the Rappelling challenge, $30,000 in the Morality Game challenge (helping change tires on cars of stranded motorists), and $50,000 in the Dumb vs. Smart challenge. The pot is now at $166,000. The team feels that Patrick isn't strong enough to get information by himself and he won't get far. Sure enough - Patrick is executed.
posted at 09:10 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Thursday, May 30, 2002
Another helping
It's official - they're baaa-aaack!!! The Osbournes will be back for a second season of 20 episodes to begin in fall! Now, to add a different spin, the show is going to follow the family on the Ozzfest tour, MTV plans a live episode or two, which I just can't imagine how they're going to pull this off. There's also a possibility of MTV picking them up for a third season, if the new season goes well.
posted at 10:38 AM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, May 28, 2002
The Mole 2 - Episode 1 & 2
Ah, The Mole 2 is back on the air. Hopefully this time ABC programming will get this right. Did you know that they haven't paid anyone on the cast, even though it was shot last summer? The two episodes tonight were originally broadcast last fall, so there were no surprises tonight. First executed was Bob and then fellow Chicagoan Ali. There's another double episode night next Tuesday (we've seen the first of the two next week before ABC pulled the show last fall). The group added $60,000 to the bank in the first episode (out of a possible $100,000 - the Burn The Bags event could have won them $40,000). In the second Episode, the team won $18,000 out of $20,000 for the "Lotto Clothing" event. Unfortunately, they lost $20,000 playing Blackjack, and then were fined $2,000 for Katie and Darwin breaking the rules for being out of their rooms - part of the "Blueberry Game". The bank is now at $56,000.
posted at 09:17 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Wednesday, May 22, 2002
Good luck, Rosie
Well, Rosie's last show was today. Look, I know a lot of people don't like her. I'm on the other side - I thought she was great, and I don't think I've seen a celebrity over the past six years do what she's done for kids and adoption. No one could touch her. I'm just hoping that she'll be able to keep up her philanthropic endeavors when she doesn't have a daily public outlet like her talk show. Good luck, Rosie. I'm going to miss seeing you every day.
posted at 03:06 PM | Link | TV § |
Sunday, May 19, 2002
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 13
THE SOLE SURVIVOR - Vecepia Towery. Whew. Well, I leave watching Survivor: Marquesas unfulfilled. I don't know what it is. I think it's because I wasn't fond of either of the finalists. Sorry. After Paschal and Kathy were gone, quite frankly I didn't give a damn. And speaking of Paschal, isn't this the first time that someone on Survivor was kicked out based on random chance? Man, I felt sick about that - here's a guy that wasn't even "in play" at Tribal Council and he gets booted because he picks a purple rock instead of a yellow rock. And no one had ever voted for him at other Tribal Councils. A sad way to go. HOWEVER, in retrospect, would he have been able to go on and compete? If he fainted from severe dehydration after he was out, what would have happened if he was still playing? A quick couple of notes about the Live reunion show in Central Park: I hate the helicopter bit. They've done that before with Australia, and well, let's face it, we all know that Jeff doesn't fly from the South Pacific to New York via helicopter. Neleh cleaned-up really well, and Kathy looked great as well (and it was nice to see Paschal with a little more weight on his frame). Oh, and SO LONG BRYANT GUMBLE - YOU WON'T BE MISSED. The Reunion show had a totally different vibe now that he is no longer with the network. And it was good that a fan of the Show - Rosie O'Donnell - hosted. She was natural in the role, and she handled it well without going overboard.
Survivor Thailand is next. The advance crew is already there. Shooting is scheduled for the summer monsoon season. Check out Survivor Maps for a map of the island (as well as maps of the other Survivor locations).
posted at 10:11 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, May 16, 2002
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 12
"A Tale of Two Cities"
Well, it took a while, but Sean Rector is finally out of the island, in what had to have been the best Tribal Council yet from all 4 Survivor series. That was the most tense, most aggressive, most acrimonious council. And up to the Tribal Council, I still had no idea how it was going to swing. After Kathy got immunity, I didn't know how it would go. I thought Neleh was definitely a good candidate (it would have broken-up the Paschal/Neleh alliance (if Kathy would just recognize that), but then I thought Paschal was a bit too vocal during the episode, which is usually a death knell for the person. I think Sean sealed his fate at Tribal Council with his speech/argument/tirade (though Paschal didn't come off well help either). And I have no idea what going to happen to Vecepia - she's just flying under the radar so well, who knows?
posted at 08:09 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, May 15, 2002
Amazing Race 2 - Episode 12 & 13
"Follow That Plane!"
Wooooo Hooooo!!! Tara & Wil did not win!!! THE WINNERS: Chris & Alex - Team Boston! I was pulling for Blake & Paige, but they finished third. A perfect example of karma: Wil, while in Maui, throws out the next clue for their trip to Anchorage, which means Wil, who has been screwing-over the other teams throughout the race, has to ask for help, and, gee, what happens? Everyone refuses. It still was an extremely close race considering it went around the world! And what is it about The Amazing Race where the separated couple who live/have roots in the final destination, finish in second?
posted at 10:14 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Tuesday, May 14, 2002
The Prince of %$&@#*%! Darkness
Alas, they're gone... the series ended last week, and I'm already in Ozzy withdrawl. A few moments and quotes to remember...
Ozzy on his tour bus trying to sing "I want my baby back baby back baby back baby back" when Jack is eating ribs.
Ozzy dancing in his hotel suite to his James Brown doll.
Ozzy singing "Always look on the bright side of life" and grinning his grin while cutting the Christmas ham.
Ozzy trying to hide Jack's knife.
Ozzy: "The this is about life, by the time you get old enough to undertsnad what it's all about, you die."
Ozzy: "I don't know what a typical American familiy is. It's not abnormal to me, the way I live. I live that way."
Ozzy: "I'm incrediby dyslexic... and I umm... umm... umm... umm... my con... my concentration span is really short. What's that called that?... whatever..."
Ozzy: "To be Ozzy Osbourne... it could be worse. I could be Sting."
To Sharon while she's vacuming: "Turn the thing off - it's driving me mad!"
Kelly: "My teeth, my car, my vagina - my business."
Ozzy trying to learn to use the remote control
Sharon: "Ozzy! Not wood! Ozzy!"
And then, my favorites:
Ozzy: "Bubbles! Oh, come on Sharon! I'm %$&@#*%! Ozzy Osbourne, the Prince of %$&@#*%! Darkness!"
Ozzy: "I love you all. I love you more than life itself. But your all %$&@#*%! mad."
Ozzy falling over in the director's chair.
And the final words of the series: Ozzy: "That's the way we are. We're the Osbournes. And I love it."
posted at 10:15 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Saturday, May 11, 2002
More Mole
I just got hold of an ABC Press Release that says “Mole II: The Next Betrayal” will be back on the air with double episodes starting Tuesday, May 28 at 7pm (Central) but it's normal timeslot will be 8pm starting June 11.
posted at 01:04 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Thursday, May 09, 2002
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 11
"Marquesan Vacation"
OK, first, let's start at the end - limo driver Robert "The General" DeCanio was booted. Again, not too surprising... except the setup made it look like Neleh was the target. Now, let's look at how CBS setup this week...
An unexpected event brings the castaways to tears for what one castaway calls "the most emotional moment of my life." OK, I was duped by this, but it was pretty emotional. The event was this week's Reward Challenge. Soliantu turns up for the challenge, only to find out that each of them has a loved one there on the island (well, Sean had a lifelong buddy). They're introduced, one by one and come toward the game board, as our island castaways crumble into sobbing piles of goo. The challenge is similar to one they've done before on another show, where you step on a tile on a game board, and turn over the ones that you've been on, trying to be the last one on the board. The twist - the loved-ones are the players. As each loved-one is eliminated, they go and say goodbye to their respective castaway, in still another sobfest. OK, it was very emotional. The winner - Patrick, Kathy's son.
A newcomer joins the tribe, but the honeymoon is short-lived when it comes time to plotting strategy. So, that's Patrick. He spends the night with the Soliantu tribe, and I really don't think he enjoyed it one bit. Kathy took him out for a walk and asked him what she should do to win this thing. So, that's the "plotting strategy" bit.
So, we're getting down to it. There's one more show next Thursday, and then the big 2-hour finale on Sunday the 19th (followed by the obligatory reunion show, this year hosted by Rosie O'Donnell instead of Brian Gumbel). There is a rumor floating around that Sean and Vecepia are in the Final Four.
posted at 08:08 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, May 08, 2002
Amazing Race 2 - Episode 11
"It's Hammer Time"
Team Cha Cha Cha - Oswald & Danny - Gone. It's down to the final 3 now. PLEASE, anybody but Tara & Wil for all the money. Would like it to be Blake & Paige.
posted at 09:02 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Monday, May 06, 2002
Keep him away from the punchAnother tidbit from the 88th Annual White House Correspondents dinner on Saturday night - USA Today had an article that had still another great quote from Ozzy & Sharon: And Ozzy, when asked if he was ready for another season of the show, said, "Yeah!" Then he turned to Sharon, "Can I have a drink? Please?" "Just one," she said. "You're going to fall down."
posted at 12:33 PM | Link | Current Events § |
Sunday, May 05, 2002
Dubbya and Ozzy?Anybody catch last night's 88th Annual White House Correspondents dinner on C-SPAN? Caught it on TiVo and sure enough, in the middle of the crowd, there's Ozzy! You gotta love Dubya's quote: "The thing about Ozzy is, he's made a lot of big hit recordings -- "Party With the Animals," "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath," "Face in Hell," "Black Skies" and "Bloodbath in Paradise"...Ozzy. Mom loves your stuff." And Ozzy stands up and cheers...
posted at 10:29 AM | Link | Current Events § |
Thursday, May 02, 2002
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 10
"The Princess"
I'm seeing a theme over the last couple of weeks. We're not seeing people win at Survivor, we're seeing people cause their own demise on Survivor. Rob lied and stirred the pot a bit too much and he finally leaves. John gets a bit cocky showing what he belives are his leadership qualities, turns arrogant, shows off what everyone belives is how he believes the game will progress (via an immunity challenge) and he's gone. In the same immunity challenge, "The General" and Tammy also show their true colors, and forcing Tammy to win immunity. Zoe gets a little vocal against the tribe and gets booted. Tonight, Tammy Leitner doesn't earn immunity (but The General does) and everyone still remembers the coconut immunity challenge and she gets booted off. But has "The General" gotten himself into a "must win immunity" situation? And even though Paschal won the reward challenge tonight, he brought Neleh with him, and she talks just a bit too much when they get back from their Cruise Ship reward. Is she targeted next? And why, oh why was Vecepia targeted for votes tonight? What made her the target of Tammy and "The General"? AND WHAT HAPPENS NEXT WEEK??? The promo makes it feel like it could be another Michael Skupin falling in the fire incident??? UPDATE: The CBS website has two items of interest for next week's show. The first: An unexpected event brings the castaways to tears for what one castaway calls "the most emotional moment of my life." Hmmm... maybe not fire, but flood??? The second: A newcomer joins the tribe, but the honeymoon is short-lived when it comes time to plotting strategy. Newcomer? Huh? Prior cast member or family member? Oooo... how about a spinoff of my prior guess - since he's the only one to not win or be voted off, how about Michael Skupin joining for more camera time???
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Monday, April 29, 2002
Too much "schlameil"...From the "Just Because You Can, Doesn't Mean You Should" Department - ABC does it again: "ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT PRESENTS: LAVERNE & SHIRLEY TOGETHER AGAIN" May 7 - 8:00 p.m., ET/PT and "THAT'S INCREDIBLE: THE REUNION" TUESDAY, May 21 8:00 p.m., ET
posted at 11:36 PM | Link | Odd § |
Sunday, April 28, 2002
Alan, Tommy, Charlie, Carol, Andy...
We spent most of the afternoon watching BBC America. Why? We are totally addicted to two particular shows. The first is Ground Force. This is basically a gardening show hosted by a great guy (and gardener) Alan Titchmarsh. The premise: people write in to have Alan and his team (of Tommy Walsh and Charlie Dimmock) transform their garden while their spouse/partner is away for two days with a budget of about £1,000. The cast is great and the transformations are wonderful to watch. The second show is Changing Rooms. This is the show that TLC's Trading Spaces is based on. Instead of Paige Davis, the host (or "presenter" as they call them on the BBC) is Carol Smillie, an ex-model from Glasgow. Now, I know that Trading Spaces has a pretty big following, but I think Changing Rooms is the better program (or is it programme?). Why? Because it's only 30 minutes long instead of 60 minutes. It makes for a faster pace and it just seems to hold your attention better. Today, there was a special Changing Rooms Marathon called Laurence Let Loose. Laurence is Laurence Llewelyn Bowen, a flamboyant designer who, at times, comes up with room treatments that actually bring the owners to tears. Well worth the watch for a laugh (Linda Barker and Anna Ryder Richardson are my favorites, and it turns out that they have a new show called House Invaders). I also like their carpenter, "Handy" Andy Kane better than Ty Pennington. (However, I also like Vern Yip.) Well, as part of the marathon, there was a hour-long episode titled "When Changing Rooms Met Ground Force" which was a hoot to watch since it was a melding of both of the shows. Alan hosted and had Tommy & Charlie remodel a bedroom of a couple. But when the wife was being interviewed by the Ground Force team ahead of time, she looked absolutely dejected that Alan and his team weren't going to do their garden. So, to make a cross-over episode, Alan had Laurence Llewelyn Bowen and "Handy" Andy Kane redo the garden, so both spouses wound up getting a surprise at the end of the show. A wonderful episode. I really want Alan, Tommy and Charlie to come to the US and do my yard...
posted at 05:26 PM | Link | TV § |
Thursday, April 25, 2002
No ring
Amanda?!?!?!??? Well at least he didn't give her an engagement ring... I feel bad for Trista for making it this far and not to get picked... actually feel bad for them all - on all different levels: for being rejected on national television, for having to go on national television to find a guy in the first place...
posted at 09:05 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 9
"Two Peas in a Pod"
Damn it, damn it, damn it... Since early in the show I've wanted Sean booted off the island. The he and Paschal win this huge reward challenge. Then you see when a young black man and an old southern white judge come together to share the moment and damn it I get choked up watching it. It was pretty damn moving and you see a totally different side of Sean. And the two of them smuggle out food for the rest of the tribe! Oh, and then after Tammy won immunity for the second week in a row, a unanimous vote booted out fishing boat captain Zoe "Lobster Lady" Zanidakis.
posted at 08:06 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, April 24, 2002
Amazing Race 2 - Episode 8 & 9
"I'm Not a Miner!" "No, You're An Idiot!"
Too much to watch, TiVo, or videotape tonight. TAR2 stitches together two episodes. Oswald & Danny (otherwise known as "Team Cha-Cha-Cha") were great in the Leg 8 episode. First they use a concierge at a hotel to get directions. During the first Detour, when they chose "Lion" (Teams had to carry a ceremonial lion-head through a course of narrow markets and steep stairs), I think it was Danny who was operating the head that said ""Believe it or not I'm actually window shopping"! They get the next clue, and ask a guy out gardening if they could use the phone in his house to make plane reservations! It's not over - they go to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel (looks like a 5 Star) and ask what travel agency they use. They then go to that agency (located in the "Lucky Building") to actually get their tickets. They need an hour to process, so these two guys, in the middle of the race, decide to go shopping! They go to Starbucks for a Mocha Frappuccino and buy some cologne. The go back and pick up their tickets and get a black Mercedes that drives them to the airport! What an interesting tact to play the game! I didn't understand the confusion that Tara & Wil went through if they should take the Fast Forward or not. Blake & Paige get in a taxi that goes the wrong way to Murray House and have the presence of mind to call the Hong Kong Tourism Board from the driver's cell phone to get the correct directions for the driver. Gary and Dave (also known as "Itchy & Scratchy") go from 1st to 4th just based on their performance in the dragon boats. Next stop - the Sydney Opera House. Cha Cha Cha actually beats everyone to Sydney! Wil & Blake screw up and don't pay attention to directions, and have to redo the entire Roadblock - the Sydney walking tour via Australian slang clues. Cha Cha Cha gets to the end of Leg 8 first and win a 7 night Caribbean Cruise! For the start of Leg 9, the teams had to climb the Sydney Harbor Bridge (but they had to wait for morning). Chris & Alex (also known as "Team Boston") decide to do the Fast Forward instead (by eating a Meat Pie at Harry's Cafe de Wheels in Woolomoloo) and get it. (Blake & Page decided to do this, too, but got there later and didn't get it). Chris & Alex fly to Melbourne that night, layover, and fly to Adelaide the next morning. Everyone else has to wait to fly to Adelaide directly, and then take one of three charter flights to a town called Coober Pedy, where it was 130°. The Detour was either mine for Opals or play golf in the desert. This is where the title of the episode come from: "I'm Not a Miner! No, You're an Idiot!" (the first statement is by Wil, the second by Tara!) (You know there is a Coober Pedy Experience Motel with underground accommodations?) The Roadblock is simple - stand in a circle, throw a boomerang, and have it land back in the circle. Well, again, Gary & Dave try one part of a Detour and change their minds and then do the other - and wind up being eliminated from the Australian outback (sounds like an old Survivor episode). Next week - Sheep!
posted at 10:07 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
POTUS - for real
Clip show, but what a great West Wing! Tonight's show was actually a documentary with people that actually worked in the White House, whether it's Dee Dee Myers, Henry Kissinger, Leon Panetta or former Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton. Very cool editing - everyone discusses their experiences in the White House intercut with applicable scenes from The West Wing. Good show.
posted at 09:05 PM | Link | TV § |
Survivor Marquesas - Epiosde *blech*
"Look Closer"
Clip show. Blech.
posted at 08:07 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Tuesday, April 23, 2002
Too much Dill
How priceless is it to watch Ozzy trying to open up a new DVD? How could they just give Lola away? At least she's back again (though she did barf when getting out of the pool...) Oh, and even though I can't take credit for this, but Jack's friend Dill should be called Skato Kaelin. What an idiot, what a moocher. Doesn't even try to clean the damn stove after he screws it up. (BTW, he's pro skater Jason Dill) I'm not sure on what side to weigh in on with wanting Sharon to pee in the Jack Daniels bottle... can't wait to see Christmas Dinner on next week's episode...
posted at 10:28 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Monday, April 22, 2002
That Braintrust at ABC
Let me get this straight... The Bachelor has been doing OK in the ratings (though not stellar), so the great braintrust that is ABC Programming decides to put the Series Finale on Thursday against Survivor and Friends. What are they smoking?
posted at 09:11 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, April 18, 2002
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 8 and Amazing Race 2 - Episode 7
"Jury's Out"
You know, people just don't like arrogance, and the Immunity Challenge tonight really showed that. That's why Sean Rector lives to see another day while John F. Carroll, RN gets voted out 6-3 by a disgruntled Soliantu tribe. Yeah, the immunity challenge was done in "good nature", but, boy did ever lay out everyone's alliances right out in the open. Let's ignore the fact that people had to get the answers correct in the first place to hack down the other person's coconuts. And Tammy Leitner was happy with her immunity. It was nice to see people realize what was happening around them instead of being oblivious and just get picked-off. Pagong comes to mind. Oh, and John - no crying in the final confessional, bud. Kind of reminds me of Bunky. You know, this kind of reminds me of the "Chilltown" alliance on BB2. You've got to watch out for the underdogs.
"I'm Gonna Throw Up On Phil's Shoes"
Which reminds me, I have another reality show that I watch that I haven't commented on - The Amazing Race. The week, Mary and Peach go from First Place to Eliminated in one episode. What is it about guys named Wil(l) in reality shows? First it's BB2 and then it's TAR2. The "Two Stooges" - Gary & Dave are now in First after taking the Fast Forward. Oh, I have a fear of heights and there would be no way in hell I could could climb up into one of those container cranes in this week's Roadblock, though once you were up there it'd be pretty cool to move the those containers.
posted at 08:04 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Saturday, April 13, 2002
Hey! It's Lisa!posted at 10:37 PM | Link | The Mole § |
Thursday, April 11, 2002
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 7
"True Lies"
Well, after a quick check of my TiVo I found out that construction worker Robert Mariano was thrown out of the new Soliantu tribe. I'm going to have to sit down and watch the show sometime to see how this all came about. All I know is that both Carol & I are happier after seeing the results of the voting...
posted at 11:33 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, April 04, 2002
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 6
"The Underdogs"
Well, though Maraamu won the reward challenge, they didn't make it through the immunity challenge, so they had to do something they didn't want to - vote off one of the "family" - and it fell to nature guide Gina Crews, the last original member of Maraamu. Robert Mariano and Sean Rector live another 3 days to be part of the merge on next week's episode. Please, oh please. oh PLEASE don't let these two bozos make it to the finals...
posted at 08:12 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, March 28, 2002
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 5
"The End of Innocence"
I know who the evil ones are and they're screwing up the game. Robert Mariano and Sean Rector are knocking off people that are good players just to show that - even though they don't want to do any work - they are in charge. This week they toss bartender Gabriel Cade. At least Maraamu won both challenges, and the "Pirate Raid" of Rotu was priceless.
posted at 08:03 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Monday, March 25, 2002
74th Academy Awards
We went to Barry & Buffy's, like we do every year, to watch the Oscars. We got there at 4:30, and we left at 11:30! We always have a good time, starting with watching the red carpet stuff. We have food, lots of drink, and take our shots at Oscar fashions . Then of course, there's the balloting, Every year, B&B go out and buy a present to be won. we all vote - most correct wins. This year, Barry just reproduced the ABC ballot that they had at the Oscar website, which meant we had to vote in all categories. We only had 8 people this year - Buffy keeps changing the mix to get it just right for entertainment and fun for all - including her. A few years ago they had about 24 people and that was really difficult to listen to the show, serve food and refreshments, and have a good time. We're still having problems actually listening to the show - there are times when people are socializing and not paying attention, causing others to get a little irate. The year of the big party was bad and may have strained a few friendships.
Since this is the first year that I'm blogging, I didn't think about blogging during the Oscars - I'm going to have to add to the post later!
posted at 12:16 AM | Link | Friends § |
Wednesday, March 20, 2002
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 4
"The Winds Twist"
OK, it only took three weeks and a shake-up in tribal membership, but Maraamu finally voted Account Manager Sarah Jones' ass of the damn island. She needed to go much earlier, and certainly way before Hunter Ellis was booted. Robert Mariano and above all Sean Rector need to get their pompous, lazy asses booted off as soon as possible. They're not deserving to continue this game.
posted at 08:06 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Wednesday, March 13, 2002
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 3
"No Pain, No Gain"
Third week in a row, and the Maraamu Tribe loses immunity and boots off the strongest castaway on Survivor Marquesas tonight. They booted off Hunter Ellis, the FedEx pilot. I hope the damn NoNo's eat every last one of them. The tribe will get systematically hacked apart by Rotu... unless the producers pull an "African Switch"...
posted at 08:03 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Monday, March 11, 2002
Six Months
We must never forget.
CBS ran 9|11 last night, and it was so moving, to watch the events through the eyes of firefighters (actually a documentary crew following the firefighters) on that day. Unbelieveable. A great record of the tragedy.
posted at 07:46 AM | Link | Current Events § |
Thursday, March 07, 2002
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 2
"Nacho Mamma"
Another wrong booting of a castaway on Survivor Marquesas tonight. Patricia Jackson, the Truck Assembler from Lugoff, SC got booted off because some people that she was "too bossy". Great. At least she was doing work, you idiots. You need to get rid of Sarah Jones, who seems to be the Doppelganger of Lindsey Richter from Survivor Africa. And oh, man, eating Fafaru just looks nasty. I was going to say "at least it's not bugs", but I think bugs or cow's blood would be better than that stuff...
posted at 08:02 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Tuesday, March 05, 2002
Sharon!If you're a fan of reality shows, you have to watch MTV's The Osbournes. Yep, imagine 13 weeks of watching Ozzy Osbourne and his family! Hysterical! I actually feel good about my life after watching this show!
posted at 10:09 PM | Link | Reality TV § |
Thursday, February 28, 2002
Zamboni
Great dialog from tonight's CSI: The scene takes place in the bowels of an ice rink, where our two characters have entered and are staring with their mouths agape as they gaze on a bright, shiny machine...)
Gil Grissom: There are three things in life that people like to stare at - a rippling stream, a fire in a fireplace, and a Zamboni going 'round and 'round.
Sara Sidel: Charlie Brown. I love a Zamboni.
Grissom: We all do.
posted at 09:15 PM | Link | Mundane § |
Survivor Marquesas - Episode 1
"Back to the Beach"
Ah, the sound of a trumpeting conch shell, the snuffing of a flame... Survivor Marquesas is back on the air. The location looks great. And no food, water or fire being provided - this should be good. First off the island - Peter Harkey a yoga practicing Bowling Center Owner (not a Bowling Alley Owner - they're lanes not alleys... oh and they're channels, not gutters... hey 20 years at the Corporate Headquarters for Brunswick Corporation and you get a few things drilled into you, you know?)
posted at 08:23 PM | Link | Survivor § |
Thursday, February 14, 2002
Luge Fantasy CampThe Today Show just did a piece on a Luge Fantasy Camp! Now that looks great! They started the teaching process slowly, understanding the start, then the actually went out to the track and started half-way down, and eventually working their way up the hill. One of the students wiped-out and had a mild concussion! This looks like a great time!
posted at 08:38 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Wednesday, February 13, 2002
Zamboni Fantasy CampThe Today Show just did a piece on Zamboni Fantasy Camp - a 2-day camp Utah Olympic Oval in SLC where they're setting records in Speed Skating! How cool would that be?!?!? At 4,675 feet in altitude, there's less room between water molecules, making the ice denser & "slicker".
posted at 08:43 AM | Link | Mundane § |
Thursday, January 10, 2002
Survivor Africa - Episode 13
"The Final Four: No Regrets"
So Ethan Zohn won Survivor Africa. The way it was being setup, I didn't think that was going to happen...
posted at 10:36 PM | Link | Survivor § |
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