ARTICLE ABOUT RR AND REAL WORLD>>>TIMMY AND SUSIE WERE THE ONES ENGAGED READ TO END!!!
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by Josh Chetwynd
Call it the "Real World" and "Road Rules" bug. No matter
whether you wanted to be a doctor or a tatoo artist, once you get a
role on one of MTV's reality-based docudramas, the lure of fame
inevitably catches hold of you.
"Even if somebody didn't plan on a career in the entertainment
industry before they were on (RR), it's got to be in the back of their
mind by the end of it," says Kit Hoover, who was part of the original
RR cast in 1995 and now is a correspondent on the Foox newsmagazine
"Fox Files."
Jonathan Murray and Mary-Ellis Bunim, who created RW and RR,
say most castmates end up in careers outside Hollywood. But the
producers are aware of what being on TV can do to their stars
emotionally: A psychologist is available to help them cope after
their 15 minutes of fame.
"There is going to be a letdown," Bunim says. Some of the
cast members "confuse being on TV with talent. They think they are
able to use that on-air experience, but they are not trained."
That doesn't stop prospective cast members from believing that
a stint on RW or RR is a shortcut to a career in television or movies.
"The majority of the kids you interview to be on the show want
to be famous," says Jason Cornwell, who was psrt of the Boston cast of
RW and served as an assistant casting director for the show's new
season. "A lot of people don't want to admit it because it is a vain
thing to say."
Last week, Cornwell left his job helping map out episodes of
RR to work on a screenplay. He'll also appear in an independent
movie, "The Fluffer," shooting this summer. Cornwell, who has no
acting experience, recognizes that the fact he "already has a fan
base" helped him get the role.
He isn't alone in parlaying his MTV fame into a career.
Hoover put together a highlights tape from her RR experience that
helped her land her job at Fox.
Timmy Beggy, who was on RR the season after Hoover, used his
celebrity to get a job hosting "The Slant," a half-hour magazine show
on cable's Fox Sports Net.
"We were looking for somebody who would appeal to a younger
audience," Jon Vaden (producer of "The Slant") says. "Tim didn't have
a lot of other on-air experience, but here he is on a very popular MTV
show. Having him involved gave us instant recognition."
Others have capitalized on their instant fame. Jacinda
Barrett of RW's London cast was a regular on "Wind on Water," last
fall's short-lived NBC series starring Bo Derek. She also has
appeared on syndication's "Hercules: The Legendary Journeys" and Fox's
"Millennium."
Rachel Campos from the San Francisco RW season appeared on
ABC's "The View." She was a finalist in the talk show's search for a
co-host.
Eric Nies from the innaugural RW in New York hosted MTV's
since-canceled "The Grind." He also appeared in the film "Above the
Rim."
Patrice Bouedibeia, who was on RR in 1997, is a VJ on MTV
Europe. Getting the job had nothing to do with his RR experience, he
says. "I was discovered a second time by an MTV talent scout." When
he reported for work, "I was recognized."
Cynthia Roberts, who was in the Miami season of RW, is a host
on the California Music Channel, a regional TV channel in northern
Californis. "My aspirations had nothing to do with the entertainment
world," she says. "But everything sort of snowballed after 'Real
World'."
Not all cast members have been boosted by baring their lives
on TV. Jon Brennan, a country singer, had a solid following in his
home state of Kentucky before he joined the Los Angeles cast of RW.
He hoped that his turn on MTV would bolster his profile in Nashville.
"I don't think it has hindered me, but I don't think it has helped me
as much as I thought it would," says Brennan, who moved to Nashville
and is working with producer Mark Bright. "Nashville is not an MTV
town."
One unintended byproduct of appearing on RR or RW: Some have
found love with castmates.
San Francisco RW'ers Judd Winick and Pam Ling began dating
when they moved to Miami to care for former castmate Pedro Zamora, who
died of AIDS in 1994. They've been together ever since. Campos and
Sean Duffy, part of the Boston season of RW, are married, and Beggy
and Susie Meister, who was on RR in 1998 are engaged.
"We had a shared experience," Meister says. "It is easy to
get close."
But Winick, a cartoonist who has become an AIDS activist since
Zamora's death, hits on another common thread that might bring alums
together. "You've got to be a real pig to do the show," he jokes. "A
feeling that 'I'm important enough to be on television.'"
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