Watching Reality TV

Yep, it’s time for another roundup. Sit back and enjoy the reality-filled goodness!

• There’s news about “Dancing with the Stars” today, as we’ve got wind of some celebrity cast wannabes. Apparently, Chris Harrison, the host of “The Bachelor” wants to be on the show, as does Paige Hemmis from “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”. So far, Chris hasn’t been signed onto the show due to scheduling concerns. Rightly so, as it might be a little strange for him to be on a show that led into his own show directly after. Paige says it’s “not if, but when” and that the only reason she hasn’t been on the show yet is because she was in the middle of “Extreme Makeover’s” shooting schedule for this season. But maybe in the spring…
• In other “Dancing with the Stars” news, it’s going to be a video game released for the Nintendo Wii and Sony Playstation come the end of the month. Look to see player interaction with the game (which the Wii is already somewhat famous for). This looks to be capitalizing on the fame of the “Dance Dance Revolution” games while also adding the flair of the ABC reality show. I think this game could be a big hit for the holiday season. Check out the video below to see a portion of the game in action.
• Have you heard there’s going to be a “Celebrity Apprentice”? I sure hadn’t. After last season’s dismal ratings, I thought “The Apprentice” was done for. But apparently, that’s not all true and expect to see this installment hit the airwaves later on this year (or early in 2008). There are already some names of celebrities being leaked, such as Carol Alt, Stephen Baldwin, John Cena, Marilu Henner, Lennox Lewis, Tito Ortiz, Vincent Pastore, Gene Simmons, and former Apprentice cast member Omarosa. Omarosa?? AUGH!
• Do you all remember hearing about FOX’s “American Idol” clone, “The Next Great American Band”? It premiered, apparently, and didn’t do so hot in the ratings. Apparently, this show is no “American Idol”. But as with most insanely popular reality TV shows, you can’t duplicate a hit very well so this doesn’t come as a large surprise. But it’s disheartening to hear that this show is doing particularly bad and that so many people who had their hopes up for it may have them dashed all over again.

NBC’s “The Apprentice” had some pretty abysmal ratings this last season. And when “The Apprentice” was left off the fall schedule announcement that NBC made this last week, Donald took that as a sign. So what did he do? He quit. Rather than be fired (heh) by NBC, he chose to try to save face and get out while the getting was good. And while NBC has made no definite proclamations about the reality show, saying that they were still discussing the future of the show and there was a possibility of a spring run, we all know that “The Apprentice”’s time had come. Donald says he is “moving on from ‘The Apprentice’ to a major new TV venture.” Whatever that might be.

I wish I could say I was disappointed by this news. But I’m not. For one, the show was way past it’s prime. For another, Donald is a chump and I was tired of looking at him.

Have you heard of “jumping the shark?” It’s a pop culture term for tv shows that have gone south before going off the air. The “Jump the Shark” website can explain it far better than I can:

It’s a moment. A defining moment when you know that your favorite television program has reached its peak. That instant that you know from now on…it’s all downhill. Some call it the climax. We call it “Jumping the Shark.” From that moment on, the program will simply never be the same.

The term “jump the shark” was coined by site founder Jon Hein’s college roommate of 4 years, Sean J. Connolly, in Ann Arbor, Michigan back in 1985. This web site, book, film, and all other material surrounding shark jumping, are hereby dedicated to “the Colonel.”

The aforementioned expression refers to the telltale sign of the demise of Happy Days, our favorite example, when Fonzie actually “jumped the shark.” The rest is history.

Do you think “The Apprentice” has jumped the shark? Recently ousted contestant Derek Arteta thinks so. According to him, moving to L.A. and sleeping in tents is a sure-fire sign that the show has jumped that proverbial shark and the quality is on the serious downslide. And while the general consensus on the “JtS” site says the show hasn’t jumped quite yet, the votes otherwise are definitely on the rise. What do I think? I think the show has definitely jumped. And not necessarily because of the move to L.A. either (though that’s a definite sign). Basically? The show is about work and about business people and when it comes down to it, neither of those subjects are particularly exciting to watch. In this day and age of “Heroes” and “Lost” and “24″, viewers want something with a little pizazz, and “The Apprentice” is like watching C-SPAN.

The Apprentice, Donald Trump, Derek Arteta, Jump the Shark

NBC announced that they will air the live finale of “The Apprentice: LA” from the infamous Hollywood Bowl on Sunday, April 22 at 10pm. The Donald will grace the same stage as such greats as The Who, The Doors and The Beatles. The Bowl is 84 years old, but recently received a renovation in 2004. The Bowl is now wired for video with huge video screens which will serve the finale quite well. I hate to sound snarky (I do!), but this sounds like just the sort of buzz-creating stunt that Donald Trump specializes in. However, given my opinion of him (and via him, his series as well), this will only serve to tarnish my own opinion of the Hollywood Bowl. Let’s hope NBC euthanizes “The Apprentice” soon, eh?

Donald Trump, The Apprentice, season finale, Hollywood Bowl

Poor Donald. It’s quite possibly a blow to his ego. And I can’t help but smile at the notion (yes, I’m still miffed at The Donald for being such an arse back in December). NBC, disappointed in “The Apprentice” ratings on Sunday nights at 9pm, has decided to move the reality show back an hour to 10pm. “Desperate Housewives” has been handily beating “The Apprentice” (and then some) in the ratings each week. While this is the first time “The Apprentice” will be aired at 10pm, it’s not the first time the show has been shuffled around timeslots. The news of this latest move comes on the heels of some of the lowest ratings “The Apprentice” has seen during its tenure. I could have told NBC that putting “The Apprentice” up on Sunday night’s opposite “Desperate Housewives” and “Without a Trace” was a poor idea.

The new time slot for “The Apprentice” will take effect starting March 4th.

Even Michelle Sorro can spot a stinker when she sees one. On Sunday’s “Apprentice,” Michelle decided she’d had enough with the sensational aspects of this season’s competition and turned in her walking papers. Albeit, she was likely about to be fired anyhow since her team lost the competition. As she told Trump, “I would just like to say that, in light of the circumstance, and the fact that what I signed up for originally is not what I’m dealing with now… living in the backyard, being the losers… I don’t even feel like I want to come back to the boardroom. It’s not worth it to me to go through this, it really isn’t… I would love to resign from the process.”

I can see both sides to this issue. On the one hand, this is no way for formal business people to behave. Living in tents? Seriously? If you’re a serious sort of person and looking at this experience to give you more business experience, I can see where being forced to live in a tent to be a little absurd. You would definitely have the feeling that the experience is being sensationalized for ratings. Which, let’s face it, it is. This is a reality show, after all. And dignity isn’t exactly implied. And quitting when you’re about to be fired is a pretty immature move, but Michelle obviously didn’t see it that way. “Like Mr. Trump said, I can coat this anyway that I want so for me, it doesn’t feel like I’m quitting anything, it feels like I’m staying true to my integrity, saying true to a process that doesn’t work for me naturally.”

I know I, for one, would rather quit than being on Trump’s show but that could just be me.

The ratings are in, the public has spoken. “Grease:YTOTIW” is on the way up, “The Apprentice” is on the way down. It could have been better for “Grease”, but at over 11 million viewers, that’s a decent debut on a night where ABC generally reigns with “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” and “Desperate Housewives”. And let’s not forget that forever-favorite on Fox, “The Simpsons.” All aired new episodes on Sunday so The Peacock network had a lot to compete with. Zap2it called the debut “reasonably solid” while Variety was less forgiving calling it “good, but not great.”

Still, “Grease” fared better than “The Apprentice” which only brought in a little over 9 million viewers, the lowest rated premiere for the Trump reality show since it’s premiere. And that is taking all the publicity The Donald has stirred up lately. I’d like to think that this is the American Public speaking, that they’re done with Trump and his obnoxious antics. May be an awful lot to hope for, but a girl can dream. It’s hard to deny the numbers though. “The Apprentice” even ranked behind a repeat of “Family Guy” on Fox during the first half hour of the premiere. Ouch! The Donald had better watch out, of he’s going to be the one getting fired.

Donald Trump, The Apprentice, Grease: You’re the One that I Want, ratings, reality tv

Sunday is shaping up to be a big day for reality TV fans out there. Not only will “The Apprentice 6″ be starting on Sunday night at 9:30 (it will normally air at 9pm), but the much hyped “Grease; You’re the one that I want” will be premiering Sunday night at 8pm. Both shows are airing on NBC so check your local listings. I’m considerably less jazzed about “The Apprentice” this time around, mostly due to Trump’s atrocious behavior of late. I don’t see where feeding this man’s obnoxious need for publicity is going to help matters much. Hey, even reality fans can have standards, can’t they?

But the new “Grease: You’re the one that I want” sounds very interesting. The premise is very “American Idol”-esque. The show will audition broadway star-wannabes for the two top roles in an upcoming “Grease” musical. Starting later this month, the shows will be live and the audience will have a chance to chime in on who they think make the best Danny Zuko and Sandy Dumbrowski.

So I think I know what I’ll be doing come Sunday evening, how about you?

Grease: You’re the One that I Want, The Apprentice, Donald Trump, reality tv

I’ve been out of the loop for a while now and I apologize to all you reality tv fans out there. I had a very, very sick baby on my hands and (perhaps foolishly) we went out of town for the holidays as well. But I’m back home and the baby is on the mend, so it’s time to get back to the news!

• I’m sure you’ve all heard (if you’re not currently residing under a rock) about the mega-feud between Rosie O’Donnell and Donald Trump (creator and head honcho type over at “The Apprentice”). The battle, which originated when Donald granted a pardon to disgraced the Miss USA, has heated back up again after a cool holiday truce between the two personalities. I rather liken it to watching six-year olds fight on the playground. Regardless, it brings good press to “The Apprentice 6″ and the new season airing in January.
• Jenna Fisher of NBC’s “The Office” reportedly wanted to be on the first season of ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars” but was turned down by the show’s producers! At the time, she wasn’t sure that “The Office” gig would last and wanted perhaps another shot at fame. Maybe she’ll get another shot at it in the future? That is, if she’s interested since “The Office” has gained such popularity and probably keeps the young actress pretty busy these days. At any rate, it’s yet another celeb who has wanted to be on that show.
• “American Idol” winner Carrie Underwood is dating Dallas Cowboy quarterback Tony Romo. This quashes the rumors that Romo was seeing “Newlyweds” star Jessica Simpson. The two were spotted together on the field at Texas Stadium before the game on Christmas Day. The sports commentators even speculated that perhaps she was too big a distraction for Romo and what is why the Cowboys lost the game to the Philadelphia Eagles.

That should cover the highlights and hopefully sate your reality tv news-lust for the time being. I’m sorry for being gone and a Merry Belated Christmas to you all. Have a great New Years weekend!

The sixth season of “The Apprentice” will air this January on NBC and in a press release, we learn the identities of the contestants and some of the interesting twists that will occur during the competition. Most notably, the losing team will have to sleep outside in tents and use porta-potties while the winning team gets to enjoy the high life in a posh mansion. Harsh! Of course, since this season takes place in Los Angeles instead of NYC, I don’t expect the weather to be much of a troubling factor. Still, there’s a big difference between porta-potties and jacuzzi tubs.

In the last several seasons, “The Apprentice” has lost my interest, but I may have to tune in this year. Some of the twists sound interesting, and being set in a totally different city will inject some new life into what has become a rather tired show. Some of the contestants sound… intriguing as well. I think I’ll give it a shot.

If you’d like to learn more about the show, about the contestants and some of the surprising twists, check out the official press release.