Reality TV Options

[Enigmatics]

Is anyone else going to watch the second season of Hell's Kitchen when it starts in June? A friend got me started watching it part of the way through the first season and I loved it, especially Gordon Ramsay.

[AmarettoSour]

I like Hell's Kitchen...I'll be watching.

[RitterSport]

Snarkin, you HAVE to scan in those picture. There have to be some Survivor fans in your office who would understand - Survivor is so popular. People would freakin' kill to get their hands on high school pictures like that.

I love your notes. I have a bunch of stuff like that somewhere, I'm sure. I wish I'd saved some of the notes I used to pass back and forth to friends. Making fun of teachers one of our classmates who - I'm not kidding here - had a colored pants and matching shirt outfit for every day and wore a pocket protector. I heard he went on to make serious money in the computer biz.

[Radu]

Shit, I found notes from my first college math class and you can see my spiral into madness by going through it.


In more related news... reality tv is still kicking in the new year but nothing new (except 1) seems to be coming and an oldie was finally cancelled. Fear Factor is GONE.

Returning Shows:
Amazing Race/Survivor - CBS
Wife Swap/Bachelor/Supernanny/Dancing W/ the Stars/Extreme Makeover: Home Edition - ABC
ANTM/Beauty and the Geek - CW
American Idol/Trading Spouses - FOX
Biggest Loser/Apprentice - NBC

New:
America's Got Talent

No news yet:
So You Think You Can Dance
American Inventor

[Enigmatics]

So You Think You Can Dance starts 5/25. On the season finale of American Inventor, they announced that they were doing a second season. http://americaninventor.tv/ has a form where you can be notified when auditions start.

[PezKat]

I saw Skating with Celebrities on one of the cancellation lists as well. Is Average Joe gone?

[Gayl]

Sorry to be away for so long. I have been in a time warp I think. Still have not found a professional job since moving back to my hometown. I have been working temp jobs at kind of hours, spending hours looking for work, and fighting some fraud that happened on my old bank account. The bank did not file the papers in time so I lost over $400. Horrible week.

I had promised gossip about American Inventor. I am terrible at finding gossip. I can be too loose lipped, but I am not really a gossip type. Thanks to my blog at RTVC, I have spoken to a few of the contestants. It is all nice exchanges stuff. It means alot to be able to talk to other inventors that tried out and made it. Jodi, the wig lady is super sweet and a total doll. Interesting that she had alot of praise for Mary Lou, but she did not talk about Peter at all with me and she was in his final group. I am probably overeading that. The bullet ball guy is really alot more sane than he came across on the show. I did not have the guts to ask him about living in his car. He still had access to e-mail at least.

I found American Inventor almost too difficult to watch. Between a sucky format and being upset that I am at home and not there made it horrible. I rarely cry, but this show made me cry several times. I have no idea why I was not selected, I was told only super great stuff at my audition. I did not recognize anyone in the Top 50 from Atlanta. Atlanta was the last audition city and I almost think they did not bother to watch the screening tapes form Atlanta. What the show was calling round one was actually round two.

Jahnesta, the 12 year boy who was featured with the invisible nerve gas. His dad is in the military and he was trying to help his dad out with his invention. I sat next to him and his godmother (not grandmother like the show called her) all morning on the day of my audition. He is extremely brillant and he did not come across that way on television. His slow southern accent and shyness got the best of him. I am surprised the show passed up the opportunity to highlight that he was a Hurricane Katrina survivior and almost died as a child. The doctors even told his parents that he would be retarded. Instead he is one point shy of officially being classified as a genius. His IQ is probably around 179. He blew me away by how smart he was. I am a nerd myself, but it rare to talk to people who are as smart as he is. He loves math and chemistry. He will probably skip high school all together and go straight to college from middle school.

I still plan to try out again for the show next season. I am not going to wear a grey suit again. When I auditioned in December, I could not have matched the carpet in the waiting area any better if I would have tried. I was sitting in the corner of the room waiting to audition. I was sitting on the floor like many in the room were. All of all sudden, a door opened up that I did not even realize was there. I did not know who it was at the time, but some Brit that looks a whole lot like Judge Peter stormed through and very nearly stepped on me and crushed my right hand. So that is the last time I wear an outfit that matches the carpet when I audition. The Brit that looked like Peter stormed over to the middle of the room and started yelling at another Brit who was part of the show. The Brit that looked like Peter yelled that he did not have time for this. The other Brit replyed that your time is not more valuable than everyone's elses. The rest of the conversation I did not understand. Whatever it was, I don't think it was worth nearly crushing my hand. I want to be careful and not assume that it was Judge Peter, but it looked like him. It bothers me that he never even bothered to look down while storming through a room where many people were sitting on the floor.

A few people that I have spoken by e-mail told me that they would say more when the show ended. The contestants are put on time-delayed gags, so they really were not allowed to say anything yet. So maybe I will know more in the next few weeks.

(I just love this smilie for some reason.)

ETA: I hope that Judge Peter is alright because I thought I might try to angle to tryout in front of his group at an initial audition (The four judges get split between several panels for the initial auditions because there are so many people) and "confront" him about nearly stepping on me in a funny way. Like see this bright pink dress I am wearing, this is so you wouldn't step on me. Atleast I could be remembered. Catching their attention the first time is what is so difficult.

[RitterSport]

So that is the last time I wear an outfit that matches the carpet when I audition.

That line cracks me up, Gayl. Sorry about your hand though. That sucks that one of the people in the program could do such a thing and not even bother to stop and apologize. But then, why am I surprised with anything on reality TV?

That story about the kid and how they didn't tell his backstory seems pretty typical of these kinds of shows. I guess he didn't fit into their "casting needs".

Good for you for trying out again! Maybe you learned a few tricks and can catch the judges' eye a little better? Sometimes it's all in how you market yourself.

[Gayl]

So that is the last time I wear an outfit that matches the carpet when I audition.

That line cracks me up, Gayl. Sorry about your hand though. That sucks that one of the people in the program could do such a thing and not even bother to stop and apologize. But then, why am I surprised with anything on reality TV?

That story about the kid and how they didn't tell his backstory seems pretty typical of these kinds of shows. I guess he didn't fit into their "casting needs".

Good for you for trying out again! Maybe you learned a few tricks and can catch the judges' eye a little better? Sometimes it's all in how you market yourself.

My hand did not actually get hurt. I saw him coming toward me. I felt contact, but I was able to move it out of the way in just the nick of time. I have no idea how I was able to move my hand away so quickly. It was close. I am really surprised that I did not get hurt. The carpet matching outfit line cracks me up too. That why I think I can turn it into something to make the judges laugh. I am bringing it up to the judges, no matter who I audition for. I am going to use the story to break the ice for my audition.

[RitterSport]

I am bringing it up to the judges, no matter who I audition for. I am going to use the story to break the ice for my audition.

Do you have a picture? Maybe you could show them in your audition and it would get you a little further. Be SURE to say something along the lines of how invisible it made you - so much so that a producer almost stepped on you. Of course you'll have to show up in something loud to make your point, but it might at least get you on TV, if not more of a look by the judges/producers.

[yoroshiku34]

Thanks for your insights, Gayl. Now you've seen up close exactly how "real" a Simon Cowell production is.

[PezKat]

Gayl! Good to see you, & sorry to hear about your job & bank woes.

I watched the finale, and totally guessed the finishing order, not that it was that hard. I thought it was really cool that some "non-winners" are going to get big-time help to develop & market their products as well (did the bike boy get any? I just saw Jerry Rice for the football thing & the Hasbro folk for the 4-letter noun starting with G ). But what I really want to know is... do you know anything about the gal w/the public restroom door holder?! Because I want to buy like 20 of them, yesterday! Seriously.

[Radu]

What about the chick with the doll?

[Enigmatics]

, Gayl. Thanks for the info and s for your job/bank problems. I watched almost all of the episodes and was wondering if you were in any of them.

pez, the bike guy got an internship with some bike company (Trek??). Here's the web site for the bathroom door clip. It sounds like it might be possible that it will go to market. I want one too!

Radu, do you mean the Nya doll lady? If so, she made it to the final 12, but got eliminated in her group of 3.

[Radu]

Yeah, from Pez's post it seems like some of the not-winners in the Top 12 are getting more help on their inventions. Is she too?


ETA: Just looked at the bathroom clip thingie. It's really cool but since I'm lazy I'd probably just use an art clip on the door.