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Did You Watch the First Season of Survivor?

BuzzSugar — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 16:30:26 -0700

All this news about Richard Hatch trying to participate in a 10th anniversary edition of Survivor to help pay back the money he owes the IRS has me reminiscing about Survivor's first season in 2000. Hatch was the winner (or, survivor, I guess) of the show's inaugural season, and I can clearly remember how tense I was during those final few episodes before he won. Of course, I didn't have any kind of DVR back then, so I would race home every week in order to tune into this crazy and (at the time) intense reality show. Until then, I'd never seen anything like it, and I was so addicted.

After that first season, my interest in Survivor waned and now I don't watch it at all, but I will never forget how excited I was about that series, once upon a time.

Did you also tune in every week when Survivor first began? Or did you get hooked later? Or never?

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Buzz News Roundup, 5/18

BuzzSugar — Mon, 18 May 2009 13:30:03 -0700

Will Ferrell and Pearl Jam will be Conan O'Brien's first guests on The Tonight Show. - AP
Jennifer Love Hewitt and Jamie Kennedy are starring in Cafe, an indie drama about Philadelphia residents who frequent the local West Philly Grounds coffee shop where Love Hewitt's character works. - The Hollywood Reporter
Katherine Heigl is submitting her name for Emmy consideration this year after her controversial withdrawal last year. - Entertainment Weekly
Eminem is planning a free show in Detroit on the same day his album Relapse is released. Meanwhile, Kenny Chesney played a free show Sunday night in Dallas that drew about 25,000 people. - Billboard
Fox and Columbia Records have a deal to make songs from Glee available as iTunes downloads. - The Futon Critic
Milla Jovovich has joined Robert De Niro and Ed Norton in the thriller Stone. - ComingSoon
The tribe has spoken and named a new Survivor winner. - USA Today
Green Day and Black Eyed Peas are dominating the UK charts. - Billboard

Photo courtesy of NBC

Are You Excited for the Next Survivor?

BuzzSugar — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 16:30:31 -0700

Survivor: Gabon, the 17th edition of the stalwart Survivor series, premieres Sept. 25, and today CBS revealed the 18 castaways who will - in the network's words - "embark on an amazing African adventure, battling extreme conditions and interacting with wildlife such as elephants and gorillas while attempting to forge alliances with strangers from diverse backgrounds."

It's actually a pretty interesting group: An actress who was briefly on Gilmore Girls is in there, as is an Olympic gold medalist and a professional gamer. According to host Jeff Probst, there's a pretty strong good vs. evil theme this season. Also, the show will be shot in HD for the first time, meaning that even if the contestants are obnoxious, the backdrop will look beautiful (at least for those with HD screens).

Every year, I'm a little surprised when Survivor returns, and yet it keeps holding its own in the ratings. Check out the video introducing the contestants, and then let me know: Will you be watching this voyage to "Earth's last eden"?

Photo and video courtesy of CBS

Buzz News Roundup, 5/12

BuzzSugar — Mon, 12 May 2008 13:29:35 -0700

According to Variety, the Chipmunks movie will be getting a sequel which will open March 19, 2010.
Isaiah Washington has filed a complaint about his image being used in last week's Grey's Anatomy, writes Hollywood Reporter.
TV Week has the news that HBO will soon make its shows available on iTunes.
Hollywood Reporter has the news that The Hills' Audrina will make her film debut in Into the Blue 2.
No turning back now: NBC has made its official announcement about Jimmy Fallon taking over Conan O'Brien's late-night seat; you can read the press release at The Futon Critic.
German techno band Scooter has taken Madonna's No. 1 place on the Billboard charts in the U.K., writes Billboard.
The New York Post has news on some huge - huge! - changes coming for Weeds this season.
The Associated Press can fill you in on who won Survivor last night.
Steven Spielberg has stated that after completing the Tintin movies, he'll go on to finally direct the Abe Lincoln biopic that we've been hearing about for a while, Variety reports.

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Survivor Picks Its Favorites

BuzzSugar — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 15:32:42 -0800

CBS has announced the 20 contestants for Survivor: Micronesia, the whopping 16th edition of the show. This time, the network is throwing in a pretty ridiculous twist: The 20 contestants are divided into tribes of 10 former castaways and 10 superfans. The tribes will be dropped on the Rock Islands of Micronesia, where I suppose we'll see if experience with Survivor's challenges outlasts crazy fandom.

I know Survivor isn't the must-see show it once was, but if any of you were fans back in the day, I'm wondering: Are these the "favorites" you would have picked to compete in this special edition? Personally, I wish they could have brought back some really old-school contestants; nobody on this list competed before the seventh season, and most are even more recent than that. To see which favorites have signed up to be cast away again, just read more.

Yau-Man Chan (Survivor: Fiji)
James Clement (Survivor: China)
Ami Cusack (Survivor: Vanuatu)
Jonny Fairplay (Survivor: Pearl Islands)
Cirie Fields (Survivor: Panama - Exile Island)
Amanda Kimmel (Survivor: China)
Oscar "Ozzy" Lusth (Survivor: Cook Islands)
Eliza Orlins (Survivor: Vanuatu)
Jonathan Penner (Survivor: Cook Islands)
Parvati Shallow (Survivor: Cook Islands)

Photo courtesy of CBS

Buzz News Roundup, 9/21

BuzzSugar — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 13:30:29 -0700

Brett Ratner and Chris Tucker will team up for a film adaptation of the book Mr. S: My Life With Frank Sinatra, a tell-all written by Sinatra's valet George Jacobs, writes ComingSoon. Ratner will produce and direct while Tucker is eying the role of Jacobs.
Rather than watch celebrities get drunk and humiliate themselves, VH1 is creating a celebrity reality series that will follow "celebrities" going through rehab, Variety reports.
Billboard reports that Dr. Dre's 2008 album Detox will be his last album.
Hollywood Reporter has news that Warner Bros. will definitely make a live-action film adaptation of Justice League of America comics, with George Miller directing.
CBS' "Survivor: China" dominated the ratings on Thursday night, writes Hollywood Reporter.
Former Ramones member Richard Reinhardt is suing Apple and Wal-Mart for copyright infringement, Reuters reports.

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TV Tonight: "Survivor: China"

BuzzSugar — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 10:28:54 -0700

The 15th edition of "Survivor" kicks off tonight in China, with 16 new tribe members competing for $1 million. It's the first U.S. TV show to film an entire season in China, and one thing's certain: The scenery is sure to be gorgeous.

I don't expect "Survivor" to stray too far from its formula, but there are some intriguing things about this edition. The castaways will begin their challenges on separate islands in a man-made lake in the remote Jiangxi Province, and each will be given a copy of Sun Tzu's The Art of War. They'll also be camping on the Great Wall, and seriously, how cool is that?

Do you think "Survivor" still has any life in it as it moves into its 15th year? You can meet the contestants over here, or you can check out some behind-the-scenes videos from host Jeff Probst if you read more

Photo courtesy of CBS

Mark Burnett Invading China, Encouraging Piracy

BuzzSugar — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 10:13:58 -0700

"Survivor" creator Mark Burnett has China and piracy on the brain - and I'm not talking about illegal DVD bootlegs. Reuters is reporting that the next installment of "Survivor" will take place in China, making it the first reality show to film entirely in a Communist country. CBS has not yet said when or where production will get underway.

China will be a far cry from Fiji or the Caribbean. But lest you think Burnett is abandoning island life entirely, the reality-show guru also has a new summer series, called "Pirate Master," starting on Thursday, May 31. According to a CBS press release, the show:

"will send 16 modern-day pirates on a high seas adventure where they will live as buccaneers and travel around the Caribbean island of Dominica in search of hidden treasure that will total $1 million. ... Each week, the pirates will embark on extraordinary expeditions where they will decipher clues along the way in search of missing treasure."

Australian actor and musician Cameron Daddo will host the show, which follows the contestants as they live aboard a 176-foot ship. I, for one, would love to hear more about these "modern-day pirates." Is that just CBS's cute way of describing players pretending to be pirates? Or is Burnett recruiting people who currently earn their livings as pirates? I'm sure it's the former, but the latter would be awesome. Either way, this should be rich.

If You Had to Be on a Reality Show, What Would It Be?

BuzzSugar — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 06:00:18 -0700

Whether you dream of televised competition or despise reality shows, what series would you want to be on if you had to choose one?

Will You Watch "Survivor: Fiji"?

BuzzSugar — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 06:00:53 -0800

The 14th installment of the never-ending reality show that is "Survivor" premieres tonight, and this time, the 19 castaways are stranded in the Fiji islands. Tell me: Will you watch this season?