B: Cool, cool. So let’s turn to Survivor, if you don’t mind.
C: Let’s do it.
B: Once again, with the genesis of your game, how did you first hear about applying for Survivor? You said a friend told you about it, but what was the casting process?
C: Actually the very first season of Survivor, I’d just gotten done with the Amazon. They tapped me in ’99, and saw me the first time in 2000, and so a bunch of people affiliated with the show, not Jeff Probst or anybody, but other people came to me and said, “You need to be on this show, it’s called Survivor.” I was just coaching my first couple years at a college, and I was like, “Wow,” you know, “let me check this out.” So I checked it out and I’m like, “Meh, it’s fake Survivor. I’m not in.”
So I actually boycotted the show. “I’m not doing this, I’m not watching it. I don’t care how many people are talking about it,” because to me, I was in a different mindset. I was in a mindset of, okay, “Put us on an island for 30 days and let the best man win,” while the people are crumbling because they have absolutely nothing, no reward challenges, that kind of thing. So anyway, when I looked at the premise I thought, yeah, definitely, I’m not gonna do this.
As it turns out, it would have been great if I had gotten on that first season, although, Richard Hatch would’ve eaten my lunch. But, anyway, I ended up boycotting it for just under a decade, then my soccer players – I was coaching a women’s team at that time – and they were telling me “you need to go on TV,” you know, “you should get married,” and “we’ve never met anyone like you.” So they actually submitted me to The Bachelor. I didn’t realize it, but then I get this email, a random email saying, “some of your girls uploaded your profile and a picture for The Bachelor, and you’re not quite our demographic – which, of course, really bothered me – because it’s like, “you’re not really quite like what we’re looking for.” And so, they said, “you should try a show like Survivor, because you’d be phenomenal there.” They were not affiliated, and that got me thinking. So, I was just like, okay, download the
application, do a video, and send it in.”
B: So once you got in front of some casting people, and they found you interesting, was the process just speaking to the casting department, speaking to the producers? Was there any interaction with any other players or was it just with the show?
C: Yeah, strictly no interaction with players. One thing I can say about SEG (Survivor Entertainment Group) and also CBS, and Probst, Burnett and all those people, that they’re very very much into the integrity of the show. So there are no second takes, there are no pre-game alliances, they’re very very much into the integrity of the game. So you don’t speak to anybody until Jeff says, “You guys can talk to each other,” on that first day with the cameras on.
So, going through casting, the interesting thing is, they’re trying to figure out where I would fit because, at that time, I was middle/late 30’s, and they didn’t know (where I fit in). They’ve got the old guys every season, they’ve got the old women every season, they’ve got young guys, young girls, they’ve got “the nerds,” and I really didn’t fit into any of those categories. And it was interesting I almost didn’t get cast because I just kind of, was too much of an original. So I kept knocking it out of the park, going to my interviews, and you know, they tried to derail me, saying “we’ve already heard all that, please tell us something else.” And I would say, “No, let me tell you something, you’d better listen to me because you’ve never seen anybody like me,” that kind of stuff, so I just kind of turned the tables on them. So I kept knocking it out of the park, and kept going further in the casting process…
B: Nice. Alright, so Pre-Game, once players are told they’re on the show, do have any idea where you’re going? Like, “You’re gonna be in the South Pacific,” or “You’re going to be in South America.” Do you have any idea whatsoever, or is it just, “Pack for 39 days on a beach,” or “in a jungle.”?
C: Well see, that’s the idea. But now they’re doing back-to-back, so people can figure out, and also there’s a lot more spoilers out there today. Back when I did season 18, NOBODY knew where we were going. I had no idea until they took my passport, phone, and wallet, every bit of identity, and they gave me a plane ticket that said “Brazil” on it. So, we didn’t know where we were going AT ALL.
B: And is everybody shipped over there together? Or individually?
C: Everybody goes over there together. But you’re not allowed to talk to anybody.
B: Good to know… Here’s a question someone asked about Ponderosa. Once players get voted off, we all know they go to Ponderosa, but is that the same place you stay before the show begins shooting? I hate to spoil stuff for people, but do you already know where you’re going when you get voted off?
C: Ah, yes… Most people know that, it’s common knowledge. I had no idea. But when we were out there, there’s a lot of dead time, and like 90% of the people had a little knowledge of the show, and so they were like, “well, usually you build, a reward challenge, then an immunity challenge, tribal council, day off.” So it’s funny because I had no idea about any of that stuff. People knew about Ponderosa, and all of that across the board concept.
B: But it’s the same place you are Pre-game?
C: Yup.
B: Last season when you answered questions for us, we discussed the wardrobe that people are wearing on the show. Are there any conversations that Wardrobe or the producers have with the players before they leave home, like, “Try to dress like you’re an executive,” or if it’s a hot girl, do they say, “bring a lot of bikinis,” or are you completely on your own, once you leave home?
C: No, they’re very strict about what you’re gonna wear. Based on, if you think about it, a girl shows up in casting, she’s really really hot, and then she comes out there with, you know, hippy clothes…
B: Flannel shirts?
C: Uh-huh. Something like that… You know, they’ll think that’s not flying. They want you to be pigeon-holed into whatever they want you pigeon-holed. People are like, “Why did she wear a dress with high heels, that’s so stupid.” Well, she brought her choices. That’s how she wanted to be cast, they’re gonna make sure that’s what she wears.
B: Right. But once you get on the show, you’re just wearing your own clothes, right? They’re not giving you, like, “We want you to wear this…”
C: Correct. But you have to have it approved.
B: Gotcha. Ok, moving on to Camp Life, I’ve been wondering about whether a camera crew sleeps there every night, because when you see those early morning secret meetings between players, is it because there’s a camera crew sleeping there, and ready to record at any time, or do they only show up when players are “going to have” a secret conversation so there needs to be a crew ready in the morning? How does that work?
C: No, it’s all very organic. They have guys who stay there all night, with cameras taping, and then, if 2 players are going to go off, you’d better catch it. Or in the morning, 7 o’clock, 6 o’clock, everybody comes in, the regular crew.
B: So the camera crews have to be on their toes?
C: Yep.
B: A follow up question is, like this season, Joe really needed to find a hidden immunity idol. He was on the chopping block, and he went out and looked and couldn’t find it. And then later we see him at the lagoon. The question is, if you’re desperate and you need to find an idol, can you just go out all day, because you know you’ll be going home if you don’t have one? Can you just leave for 8, 9, 10 hours and go search for the idol? Or does the show require you, like, “We need you by the campfire at 6 o’clock because there’s a conversation and we need you there?” Is there any of that?
C: Like I said, it’s very natural, very organic, they never say, “Hey, be here at 6 o’clock for a pow-wow.” You either go to a challenge, go to Tribal Council – and you can’t get out of those – and you can do whatever you want in the meantime. That was part of my thing on the first time, you know I lost a lot of weight, really for 2 reasons. One, I was bored out of my mind, so I went out looking for snakes every day. You know, going out and exploring the designated area, and two, I was just poking around camp, which was foolish on my part, but I just wasn’t into the mindset.
B: Speaking of losing a lot of weight, that was a question that popped up to me this season with Jenn. It said she lost .2 lbs. in the 27 days she was out there. That just sounds crazy to me considering people are losing 15, 20, 25, 30 lbs. over the course of the show. How could she only lose .2 lbs.? Do you have any notion?
C: You know, everybody loses weight differently. And with everybody’s metabolism, the only thing I can say is that it’s something that really pisses off the bigger guys because we need more to sustain us. But the portions are almost always equal. So, she’s probably got a slower metabolism, probably ate a bunch of coconuts. You know, you can eat raw coconuts every single day, and I guess you wouldn’t lose much weight, but everybody gets sick of them. So maybe she just ate a lot.
B: Plus, she was a vegetarian, so she probably just feasted on coconuts every day.
C: Ah, right. Sure. Her body is kind of used to that anyway since she’s not used to eating a lot of fat, so she’s got less of an adjustment to make.
B: Good point. Continuing on with Camp Life, I always get the impression that it’s very dangerous there. You see all this footage of snakes and spiders and lizards and everything else just crawling around. Is it as dangerous as it appears? Or is a lot of that shot by a 2nd Unit crew somewhere/sometime else, or do you have snakes slithering through camp and rats and everything else?
C: I’m amazed that more people don’t get seriously hurt on that show. One time, in Tocantins, I woke up and there was a snake in the rafters right over my head. I actually yelled out, “snake!” And I was so tired I just went right back to bed. The next morning, we saw its skin, right by my head. In Heroes vs. Villains, I told the producer, “Look man, I know there’s rats going all over us, but when they get on my face, can you just like, shoo them off or something!?” They just laughed, and they’re like, “Yeah, right.” So, there is a lot of stuff out there.
In Tocantins, in Brazil, it was so, so rife with poisonous snakes. You know we were out there so far, 8 hours on a dirt road, I mean that’s probably gotta be one of the most epic locations. It was just…way out there. It was so far out there that the crew said, “Yeah, we’re not doing this again. We need to be somewhere where we’ll be near a resort.” Somewhere they could go out into the jungle, shoot, but then an hour later, they’re gonna be at a resort. And I can understand that. Some of the crew has been there from the very beginning. And 18 people out there, living in a tent? It gets old after a while.
They did have snake handlers come and comb an area before you would go into it, but there were some snakes that would just come back in. And some of those vipers, if they got you, you’d be dead. If they got you in a helicopter and tried to get you out, you’d be dead. So, they were more careful on that season than Samoa, because there wasn’t anything that was deadly poisonous. So that wasn’t as big a deal.
B: It’s as dangerous as it sounds.
C: I think so. I mean, other than that, I thought it was very tame, because you did have doctors there, and besides the really really poisonous snakes in Tocantins, it is what it is. You know, you’re out there in their element, so obviously, you’re a little bit at their mercy but at the same time, they’re probably as scared of you as you are of them. But you do have doctors there. I felt like, if I had met one of those snakes (when I kayaked) the Amazon, or the Orinoco, or one of the other rivers, you know, I’m dead. There’s not a safety net there. So, I felt that even though we were on the edge, it was reassuring knowing someone was there, in case something had gone wrong.
B: Cool. The last question about camp is do players sit around talking about other seasons, players and strategies?
C: Yeah, there’s all kinds of talk, and B.S. and stuff that ends up on the cutting room floor. A lot of talk of food, a lot of talk of normal life back home. But nobody really cares about that…
Thanks for the Coach interview. What a contrast to his seasons ( I only saw two) and this one. Oh well, here we go limping into the final. Sort of sorry to see Dan go, a final three of Dan, Rodney and POS would have really summed up this season.
The big question is, did Moobs play of the extra vote cause Carolyn to play her idol or was she going to play it anyway? Plus why did Moobs use his extra vote? Well I guess he thought someone would join Mama C and Mike and his extra vote would save him . He was wrong. I can see a reason to use it, but I see more reasons not to use it.
The way the game is now, shows how bad a move it was for Mama C to turn against Tyler last tribal. With Idol gone, if she does not win immunity she is gone. If she does, Mike is gone, and then following week, she is gone unless winning immunity.
Is Rodney intentionally performing so bad as to not seem a threat? I am surprised he did not cut off his foot with his pathetic tosses.
Your picks for Second Chance… We cant’ be friends no more and I dislike your thoughts so much that I am not even going to respond to future blog posts (I have to respond to this one so you know that) 😉 No, I agree with most of your thoughts, disagree with some too, but that’s what makes life fun. Imagine the horrors if everyone agreed with everyone… That being said, since you mentioned it, I want your picks for Survivor: Legends (you can wait until the end of this season, gives you a reason to write another blog entry or two during the downtime between seasons!) 10 men and 10 women. Since they’re legends, I’d say they’d have had to play long enough to at least reach the Jury, but I’ll let you decide that. I also see no problem inviting past winners as it is Survivor: Legends after all. We’ll make-believe the final reward is $5 million this time around.
Onto the recap and my thoughts on the show…
I agree, the teams seem evenly matched. Then I started to cry… then I laughed… then I cried some more. Let’s stare at these letters and they will magically form themselves. Even Jeff realized “Oh my… These guys have no clue, they’re not going to get it without help…” Hey guys! I say it all the time… at least once a season… Guys? Come on… Man, I could sure go for a hamburger with all the onions and tomatoes and lettuce and mayo and mustard… what’s the word I’m looking for Rodney? A hamburger with all the… what is it? It’s usually not grammatically correct but that’s ok cause it’s how it’s said… LOL, Rodney even beginning to catch on “Hey guys I think he’s hinting at us.” Sierra: Shut up Rodney you’re stupid and he’s stupid. Oh it was beautiful. Sad, but beautiful. I don’t think I’ve laughed that hard during an episode of Survivor in a LONG time.
OMG… Pobrecito Rod gets denied a reward challenge… AGAIN…. Oh please Survivor gods… PLEASE I want him to go without the final few days. No rewards for Rodney. Make it so! It’s too freaking enjoyable watching him complain and act all put out even though he doesn’t seem to realize that each time he gets the chance to complain about not going on a reward he’s actually ONE STEP CLOSER TO A MILLION DOLLARS. Next week he’ll complain again, even though he’s 1 of 5…
As I’ve been predicting, Dan would find a way to blow his advantage.
I think Mama C was comfortable going into tribal, but as soon as Dan got up I turned to my wife and said “If that doesn’t spook her into playing her idol, she’s an idiot.” I definitely think she was concerned, but I think she may have been blindsided if not for Dan playing, and thus wasting/ruining his advantage. Dan of course played exactly as expected and was an idiot to the very end. Thankfully the final three can no longer exist of the three worst people ever to make it to the end (and honestly that’s saying a lot, but rest assured POS is making it to the end so long as he keeps his mouth shut from here on out, and even then, he’ll probably make it to the end. He’s getting no votes. He’s a sure pick for the end.)
I want to extend my thanks for reaching out and getting Coach’s thoughts on a lot of Survivor things. It was an interesting Q&A session!
I literally jumped up and cheered when Mike won Immunity. And I clapped with glee when Mooby had his torch snuffed out. Not the best of seasons…but All in all a satisfying episode.
With the ridiculous gaff of including Mike and Carolyn in the voting pool for Second Chance…I just don’t see either of them being the big winner. I truly feel Mike is the most deserving of those left so it makes me sad. If you watch the Ponderosa videos…Dan’s is a classic. What an unaware fool that man is…he thinks he was “A Hero”. wow. Do you suppose he is watching the episodes now and realizes that Mike was RIGHT?…nah…Dan is far to convinced of his own righteousness.
Turns out Sierra’s uncle is a member of a barrel horse forum I am on…and he asked her to explain about her wonky eyebrows:
” This is what she said. “I got in a bad accident as a kid, a scar on my eyebrows doesn’t grow hair. They are tattooed so I actually have an eyebrow. When I’m not living on an island, they don’t look that bad haha. Another question is my neck. It’s a bad scar. Two surgeries to remove a precancerous lump.”
Straight from the horses mouth. Just thought you all might have wanted to know.
God job Fish! Loved the interview with Coach too! I too watch Ponderosa and Dan would be in for a sad, sad reality check except that I don’t think he will actually believe he is an asshat, I think the will trump it up to editing. Also, how do you react to a stranger saying, “nice tits” to your wife? Do you say, “you’re right” because it is true? Do you get offended but say nothing because you want to get into a street fight? Or do you just let it go? How does a man react to something like that? I should probably know the answer because it has probably happen to me a lot but I just don’t remember and I asked my husband but he doesn’t remember either.
PS I think you are an edgy writer.
doc: I know what you mean about a contrast in seasons. Survivor used to have a bunch of great players, a handful of mediocres, and a couple zeros. Now, we’ve been getting a bunch of zeros, a handful of mediocres, and a couple great players. It’s sad…
-I think him playing it prompted her to play her idol, but you’ll never know until she spills the beans. He could have put one vote toward someone in his alliance, just to be safe, but he wasn’t good at playing smart, just safe.
-Getting rid of Tyler was so dumb IMO at that time, because she always had the idol to protect her. She could have whittled one more off, before turning on Tyler. Bad move…
-Yeah, his grappling hook throwing is on par with…his ability to win challenges.
that guy: Whew! I thought I had lost you… Love the idea of picking Legends. Let me get my thinking cap on. I’ll have to plan it with Steve, if it’s not gonna be next week. Stay tuned.
-That’d be great if Rodney rolls a gutter ball all season. Something tells me only one of them (Rod or POS) will make Final Tribal, because I don’t see either of them winning any critical challenges.
-True about Dan. He’s just a big walking Moob. Did you read in his interview with Cockring where he rips Coach? What a dumbass… And in his Ponderosa video he claims Mike has no self-awareness! Look in the mirror, Fat Man and Little Boy…
-Thanks for recognizing the Coach interview. It was neat speaking with him and not just exchanging emails.
hathor: The season seems to be improving, which may just be a subconscious by-product of nearing the end. Sound plausible?
-And like I said before, Dan’s Ponderosa video is chock full of surprises. He must really think he’s liked? Can you imagine being around that guy every day?
-Interesting about Sierra, very good to know. I was wondering about those things. Thanks!
susie: Thanks, Toots! Yeah, unfortunately, I don’t think Dan will ever “get it.” He’s too self absorbed to think he’s coming across as a douche, even though he claims to be able to own his mistakes. He doesn’t even think he made mistakes. Remarkable.
-I didn’t have the opportunity to address the “nice tits” comment because we were on a hike and she was ahead of me. I didn’t even know it happened until I caught up with her and she told me. I’m not about to go running up a hill to say, “Hey, that’s not nice!!” and, in fact, she did have augmentation, so they do look NICE! As long as someone doesn’t grab them or tell her they want to grab them, I’m okay. I’m not one to make something out of nothing, and I pray there’ll never be a time I need to become the dude in “Coward of the County,” by Kenny Rogers. And if it’s “probably” happened to you a lot, your hubby must be a lucky man… 😉 I’m so edgy…
Thanks for everyone’s comments. We’re almost home, Toto!
Interesting interview with Coach. I went to the College he was a women’s soccer coach at when he went on “sick leave” to be on Survivor for the first time. Of course, we all had to watch to see how he did and that is what really got me into watching Survivor every single season. It was a small College so I was around him a lot, but I don’t think I ever spoke directly to the man, but his players loved him.
I am so relieved Dan is gone. I would have been extremely disappointed if it had been Dan, Will, and Rodney in the final three and of course, Rodney, the misogynistic, whining, unable to even come close to winning immunity challenges idiot would have won.
I have to disagree with you on Carolyn and Mike accidentally being “spoiled” on the “vote for me” videos. I think it was strategic to some degree to throw us off, but maybe I am just hopeful. I haven’t watched Jeff’s interviews to evaluate whether he was backtracking or not.
I think my biggest gripe this week is Sierra. She literally refuses to stick her neck out, take any form of leadership, make any moves let alone “big” ones, and for some reason she thinks this is a game winning technique. I honestly don’t think there is a single final three she can find herself sitting with she will win with and I don’t understand why a seemingly intelligent woman can’t figure that out. I am sure she is counting on Will and Rodney at this point, but I think Rodney will beat her simply because as arrogant and annoying as he is, he can point to all of his strategies that took him there. He did have the strategy of a big alliance of 7, with a 4 he actually planned on being his real alliance. And it has basically worked. What can Sierra say? I did well, but not great in challenges. Also I didn’t annoy you as bad as these other guys. Anyway, I am just very frustrated with her because she has had so many opportunities to shake things up and make herself a contender in the process and she just never would.
Carolyn has done a few things, she has made some intelligent decisions (even if they annoyed me) when it came to who to align herself with at the right times when it was in her hands, she found the idol and then more importantly actually kept it so well hidden from her tribe mates that she was able to blindside Dan when she chose to play it. She has won two immunity challenges and overall been very athletic for an older woman.
I don’t care for her, but she will win any final threes that don’t include Mike at this point.
Will/POS has no hope for winning at this point. Nether does Sierra. But I think they will both be in the final three. It is down to who is the winner that will be sitting next to them.
Just want to throw out that I completely agree with you oyoung1117. POS and Sierra seem like solid choices to take to the final three at this point (especially Will who will surprise me if he manages to get even one vote, Sierra may sneak in a vote or two, but I don’t see her winning against Carolyn or Mike and probably not against Rodney). My dream/hope is that it’s Mike/Carolyn/POS (Again, if POS doesn’t make it to the final three I’ll be surprised, he’s too easy a choice to drag along at this point). I feel Mike would probably win that but it’d be the most interesting (IMO)
Oyoung: Thanks for writing in! What’s the name of that college? Just for my own knowledge. I’ve heard that he was fired from there since he lied about getting “surgery” during that time. Would be good for some perspective…
-I respectfully disagree about the Mike/Carolyn situation. I don’t think there was any intention of “throwing us off the trail,” and I don’t think it was a total “Whoops, we made a boo-boo.” I think there was just a breakdown in communication and someone failed to mention certain things to certain people. But what do I know…? Coach said Probst was backtracking, and he would know more than me, but that doesn’t mean he’s 100% right, either.
– Re: Sierra. This is why I love Survivor. Because on one season, a player like Sierra (who makes it to FT) would be lambasted for being a “tag-along.” Similar to Monica vs. Tyson/Gervase. And on another season, she could win the damn show, like Natalie vs. Russell. Hell, Natalie beat Mick and he was the LEADER of Foa Foa at one point. It just proves a point that each season is an unique “event” where you can’t apply another season’s logic to determine who wins this time. I’m quietly (or not so quietly) hoping that Sierra goes to the final with Rodney and POS and CONVINCES the jury to give her the win, based on the fact she’s not an asshole. That’s a huge part of the game, too, and with a young/anti-asshole jury, that may be all she needs. Thinking ahead, if it came down to that 3, I think Hali/Jenn/Joe/Shirin/ could all vote Sierra, so she’d only need 1 vote from Mike/Carolyn/Tyler/Dan for the win, and I don’t think that’d be impossible. And she’s pretty…
-I agree with you on Carolyn. Maybe the whole idea of including her and Mike is because the show knows she won, and it’s their way of getting Mike back out there…?
thatguy: obviously, based on what I wrote above, this also applies to your comment (and, thank you!). Again, I think Mike is the most deserving, with Carolyn 2nd, which is why one of them will go next. My guess is Mike. I think Sierra will continue voting with Rodney/POS to get rid of one of them, and then that final immunity challenge will determine who’s going (as it always does).
Can’t wait for the finale! I’m going to do something different this season for it, so expect some surprises in Thursday’s column. Shhhhh, it’s a secret…. Will also be posting Mike Skupin’s answers to the questions I sent him. It’s much more brief than Coach’s, natch, but I’m happy to squeeze it into the final recap. Until Thursday, vote, and enjoy the finale. It’ll be a doozie!
Fish
Pingback: The Bachelorette Season 11 Kaitlyn – Episode 1 Recap, News & Notes, Tentative “Bachelor In Paradise” Cast List | Reality Steve
It was Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, MO. I don’t know if the administration originally intended to fire him for pretending to be sick although they said that was their reason, because they didn’t actually do anything until the show had been airing awhile and his edit was so negative and bizarre. But his players were livid about his dismissal, so I think that says something about his character.
And I didn’t really think about Sierra’s approach in consideration of the actual jury. Now that you mention it I do think a final three involving her, Rod, and Will would actually go her way. Because she has Shirin, Joe, Hali, and Jen for sure. Rod would have Dan, Tyler, and Carolyn, and Mike would be up in the air, but I bet he would go with Sierra.
Like I said I am hoping it is Carolyn or Mike. Mostly Mike. Which is interesting considering in the early days of his “I am the only one working here” tantrums I couldn’t stand him. I do think Mike will probably be the next out. After that who knows?
Get your votes in for the next season’s cast! One final day to do so!