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Early Show, Julie Chen

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Jem Newbie

Jem

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For those who may have missed it.

Julie Chen Talks About Big Brother 7 All-Stars

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Julie Chen appeared as a guest on the Late Show With David Letterman on June 19, 2006. Before Julie Chen came out, David Letterman polished off his desk because he wanted to make a good impression since her husband owned the network. Letterman initially asked Julie about her work with the CBS Early Show. Letterman then asked about her marriage with Les Moonves.

Letterman finally asked Julie Chen to explain the Big Brother All-Stars show. Julie gave a brief overview of the show, pointing out that it

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DreamAngel Newbie

DreamAngel

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I found this in the real player "Superpass" section after I got my live feed subscriptions. It's a blog called "HouseHappenings" and I thought you would all like to read their prospects. Remember this is not mine and if you would like to read other posts they have to say you should sign up for the feeds.

House Happenings:

Casting the Men:

Despite my misgivings about the idea of All-Star Big Brother, I'll be the first to admit it: I did get a joyous little tingle watching the first few minutes of the casting special--reminding us of the good (and not so good) times gone by. Julie Chen was more animated than usual, the house appears to have been redecorated in Middle Period Hugh Hefner, and some of the promised twists indeed seem promising. Who could ask for anything more! (Dare we hope for another mime?)

There's 20 potential houseguests and I have a bit to say about all of them, so I'm going to divide the commentary between the men and the women, including my best guess about the chances of each of them to sneak into the All-Star lineup. We'll start with the men, and go in order of their initial BB appearance.

George Boswell (BB1): The man who nearly turned his season upside down by trying to lead a houseguest walkout now wants back in. We got a small taste of George's antics during Wednesday's show, and for those you who weren't around for Season 1, I can promise you that he really was that strange. He wasn't really cut out even for the more sedate atmosphere on the original BB and I suspect he'll be chewed up and spit out awfully quick if he comes back in.

Prospects for being in the cast: Good. George has some of the everyman quality that would presumably go over well with Middle American viewers. The only problem with this theory is that George finished 5th during his season, one in which the viewers had complete say over the evictees. Then there's the matter of his having appeared 6 years ago during a little-watched season. George's best chance to make the final cut will come if he is chosen by producers. The "father figure" is a staple of BB casts, and George is the only person who could possibly qualify from this group of 20.

Bill "Bunky" Miller (BB2): The novelty factor of having a gay houseguest disappeared a while back, and without that going for him I don't think Bunky has a lot to recommend him. He was by his own admission a passive player during his season, and I don't think a non-villain without game skills or an instantly memorable personality is going back in the house.

Prospects: Poor. My sense is Bunky has less chance of winding up as part of the Final 12 than any of them.

Will Kirby (BB2): His brief appearance on the casting special shows that the Evil Doctor is rounding into game form already, tossing off arrogant one-liners with intangible winks and nods. Assuming he does get on the show, I look for Will to attempt to stay out of the big fights again, and take any nominations that come his way with equanimity. But I have no illusions that he won't be a very early target unless he takes decisive steps to immunize himself.

Prospects: Excellent. Will is the only player from the early seasons of the show that has a good chance of being voted in by the viewers, despite the 5 years since his last appearance. But if he gets shut out by the voters, the producers will undoubtedly come through for him.

Mike "Boogie" Malin (BB2): There are 2 people on this list of 20 where the prospect of seeing them again on my feeds and on my show fills me with existential Bergmanesque despair. We'll get to the other one later. Arrogant, obnoxious, unpleasant to look at, and apparently still under the impression that he's a "star" that against all odds has yet to be discovered, Boogie is a blight on all my sacred memories of BB2. It's not a coincidence that the season really took off after he left.

Prospects: Fair. He doesn't have a chance of getting voted back in. Whether he'll be a producer's pick or not depends on whether they think they need another villain, and they just may feel that they do. My guess is that Jase will fill the Boogie role without the complication of having a past alliance with Will.

Marcellas Reynolds (BB3): One way to become an All-Star, apparently, is to do something egregiously dumb that hastens your departure from the house. Kaysar and Howie were geniuses compared to the refusal to use the Golden Veto that led directly to Marcellas's eviction. He's stayed close to the show as host of House Calls on cbs.com, and while he's somewhat controversial among fans, I think he has an outside chance of getting voted in, even though I'm not looking forward to hearing him and Danielle talk about every movie ever made for hours at a time again this season.

Prospects: Good. Just a wild guess, but I'm thinking Marcellas must have a pretty good idea that he'd be a producer's pick at the very least. You couldn't very well ask him to come back to House Calls if he wasn't.

Jase Wirey (BB5): Jase is one of those reality show contestants who cared more about making himself into a brand name than actually winning. He didn't have a particularly long run on the show (not conducive to having people remember you), but by the time he left most of the hard feelings about him within the house (and among the viewers) seemed to be forgiven. After the self-righteousness that marked BB6, I think a lot of fans might actually find themselves looking forward to some of Jase's unapologetic good times.

Prospects: Good. I've been assuming Kaysar, Howie, and Will are going to win the fan vote, but I think Jase is the most likely of the remaining males to be selected by the producers. He's a "villain" of sorts, but I don't think he ever forgets it really is just a game. I'll be curious to see if he tries to form an all-male alliance again.

Michael "Cowboy" Ellis (BB5): I see Cowboy took time off from his sitcom shooting schedule to try and get on Big Brother. Gee, I would have thought he'd be too busy. There's not much I can say about the guy without the risk of lapsing into all manner of offensive remarks about certain regions of the country and certain levels of mental acuity; for that reason among MANY others I really hope he doesn't make it.

Prospects: Fair. I think his best chance is if the vast Middle American viewing audience (the sort of people who really do think Taylor Hicks is a soul singer) took to this guy as a sort of spokesman. They might just resent a smart guy like me, with my "ability" to "spell" "correctly", knocking their salt-of-the-earth Cowboy. But I can't see him breaking into that top tier with the voters, and if it comes down between George and Cowboy to fill the Forrest Gump slot, I think the producers will go with the Chicken Man.

Kaysar Ridha (BB6): I have no reason to think that America's favorite Iraqi won't be back in for a third try at getting it right. But I am a bit surprised to see some of the anti-Kaysar sentiment out there--not so much anti him as a person as anti the idea that he should get a third chance, particularly when he was partially to blame for eviction #1 and solely to blame for eviction #2. This sentiment is likely limited to online superfans, so I expect he'll get voted in. But it's not easy to change your basic personality, and the character traits that did in Kaysar last season will likely doom him again.

Prospects: Excellent. The most likely person of all to be voted in.

Howie Gordon (BB6): Listed on the CBS site as a "light saber salesman." While his raunchiness threatened to go over the top on an hourly occasion last season, his attitude helped to bring a little humor into what was mostly a joyless house. His "star" quality rests entirely in his belief that he's a star, since his game playing was pretty terrible; and it was his mistake in getting rid of Sarah that proved ultimately fatal to his alliance. Howie and Marcellas together is going to be something to see.

Prospects: Good. I think he's going to be voted in by fans. He stands a decent chance of being a producers pick otherwise, but it's less a sure thing.

James Rhine (BB6): James came into his season clearly prepared to play hard, but he lacked a certain finesse with it--sucking up a little too aggressively after each new Head of Household was selected, and talking unnecessary trash. But his competitiveness is welcome, and he seemed to have developed a little perspective once it became clear last season he had no shot. He's even got the hint of a self-deprecating sense of humor these days. He's not good-looking in the least and has the sort of game skill that more casual fans tend not to like, but he'd definitely keep the house stirred up if he comes back.

Prospects: Poor. James's problem is that I can't see them taking 4 people from last season, and he's going to be the odd man out unless something totally unforeseen happens, like Kaysar not getting voted in. He's a pretty shrewd operator in there, but that has its limits when it comes to appealing to the fans. I was one of those who wasn't expecting to like him much and I ended up defending his actions on numerous occasions.

Casting the Women:

I think the prospective male All-Stars are pretty easily divided between the main contenders and those whose chances of making the final cut are more problematic. But the women are harder to gauge. Fewer female BBers have wound up as true "fan favorites"--why this might be the case is perhaps a subject for future discussion. And some of the more memorable women in the show's history (Nicole, Brittany, Amy, and 2 past winners) aren't even in the All-Star pool.

But nevertheless, we'll take a stab at guessing which women are going to be housebound beginning in about 10 days. Again, going in chronological order:

Monica Bailey (BB2): For a lot of people, Monica's tenure on BB2, a masterpiece of sitting in one place for 3 months and making incomprehensible statements, was something like the epitome of the Big Brother experience. She provided the show with its most enduring catchphrase, but her best attribute as a game player was her ability to stay totally out of the line of fire. That could come in handy on an All-Star season.

Prospects: Fair. Monica has a fanbase on the Internet, but I suspect it won't be big enough to get her voted on, and I don't think she brings enough to the table to be a producer's pick. I certainly hope I'm wrong.

Danielle Reyes (BB3): Architect of the best secret alliance in BB history, one that came one Head of Household competition away from achieving exactly what it set out to do. Danielle 's strategy on BB3 was to look for every opportunity to maximize her own power base and undermine the opposition, all the while keeping the identity of her true ally hidden. Her rise and fall was one of the great story arcs ever on this show--her last-week crack-up was the reality show equivalent of Act V of Macbeth.

Prospects: Excellent. Danielle was never especially popular with viewers (though outrage about her seems to have faded with time), but even if she doesn't get voted on, it's inconceivable the producers wouldn't select her given the way they've talked her up over the years. The fact that they changed the entire way the game is played because of her pretty much makes Dani the definition of an All-Star.

Lisa Donahue (BB3): She alluded to her riding of coattails that led directly to her winning BB3, but she's a bit too modest about that. Her move to switch alliances was decisive and perfectly timed, she played an excellent social game, and she won the crucial competition she needed to win at the end. Lisa's blueprint for winning--get into a strong alliance and make sure that everyone knows you're not at the head of that alliance--is probably the best advice you could given any houseguest on how to succeed at this game.

Prospects: Good. Lisa is attractive in a broad sense and fairly likable. What she isn't is terribly interesting on her own, so I doubt she'll be voted back in by viewers. I think she might be in competition with Erika for one spot, and the producers may have to decide if they really want 3 players from the 4 year-old BB3.

Erika Landin (BB4): Erika didn't always give us much of a sense of her personality during the BB4 season, possibly (as she alluded to on the casting special) because she was inhibited by her ex Robert's presence. Her popularity that year was almost a default popularity: the other women on the show were varying degrees of unlikable, and people found her chaste relationship with Jack an island of normality in a sea of weird.

Prospects: Good. I have both Erika and Lisa getting through to the house, because I think the producers will tend to favor bold personalities and "villains" (note the quotation marks) when picking the men and babes when picking the women.

Dana Varela (BB4): We got some highlights of Mad Dana on the casting special, but to her credit she seems to have mellowed, attributing her downfall (correctly) to her decision to abandon her initial alliance. Having said that, I'm not entirely sure what she brings to the table. Not only is she not the biggest potential female villain or best-looking babe, she's not even the best from her season in those categories.

Prospects: Poor. For the reasons I said above, she's not likely to be picked by either fans or producers. Another thing that works against her is that she simply wasn't on the show very long--I imagine some more casual viewers had to struggle to remember who she was.

Alison Irwin (BB4): Are we going to get a third summer in the last 4 with Ali on a CBS reality show? I think it's a pretty safe bet. There are good reasons Alison was unpopular with viewers, but she has two things going for her that make her a pretty decent BB player: she's competitive and she's an excellent liar. People who play like Ali never win, but they help drive their seasons.

Prospects: Good. I think she stands a good chance of being voted in by viewers because the women's vote looks a bit less competitive. And even if she isn't, I fully expect her to be picked by the producers. One other factor Ali has in her favor is her demonstrated willingness to flirt. Hopefully Jase is current on all his shots.

Nakomis "Jennifer" Dedmon (BB5): The woman who took all of 2 weeks to figure out a way around the new veto system in her season. I'm surprised, after the drunken rampage she went on a few days before her eviction, that she would agree to do this again. After all, Big Brother is responsible for her finding out that she shares genetic material with someone who makes Kevin Federline look like Cary Grant. How does one forgive that?

Prospects: Good. Nakomis won a lot of fans during her season; by the time BB5 was in its latter stages, she was probably the player more people wanted to see win than any other--an afterthought for most of the season who outlasted the likes of Jase. She has a fair shot of getting voted on by the viewers. As for her chances to be a producers pick...hard to say. She's not much for drama and she's not conventionally attractive, which is a bigger deal for casting a woman than a man (you may have noticed the lack of the female equivalent of Bunky or George in the final 20). On the other hand, if she's not in the house with Cowboy (pleasepleaseplease), she might be less inhibited. She's the one I would be pleasantly surprised to see make it.

Diane Henry (BB5): Once the "Four Horsemen" alliance broke down in Season 5, Diane stepped in to drive the action in the final half of the season--nominally in an alliance with 2 other people but working to keep house boyfriend (and eventual winner) Drew safe too. It would have been a virtuoso performance had Drew been as loyal to her as she was to him. Diane probably doesn't get as much attention as she deserves because "Project DNA" overshadowed everything else on her season, but as someone who combines drama, gameplaying, and looks (sure, she's cute enough), Diane is a good hamster to have.

Prospects: Good. I tend to think Diane won't get voted onto the show (unless she has a fanbase made up of screwed-over women), but she's a likely producers pick for the reasons mentioned above. She played a stronger game than Ivette and if it comes down to a choice between those 2, Diane ought to make it.

Janelle Pierzina (BB6): Janelle is pretty clearly the most popular female contestant ever on Big Brother. There wasn't much chance she could win once Kaysar was evicted a second time, ensuring she'd face an antagonistic jury, but she fought hard and even made a few tentative inroads with the Friendship toward the end of her season. One thing she has going for her that I think viewers really respond to is that she appears to regard the show as the lark that it is. A good season has both James's high-intensity scheming and Janelle's more casual, let's-hang-out approach.

Prospects: Excellent. There's no question. She has the luxury of sitting back over the next week and working out a strategy. Her outcast status last year seemed more or less an accident, a result of her crush on Michael more than anything. I wonder if she'll try to gravitate to the power this time?

Ivette Corredero (BB6): OK, so how much of Ivette's renunciation of her Friendship alliance was genuine and how much was the sort of thing Soviet prisoners used to say upon emerging from a re-education camp--telling fans what they want to hear? I always thought Ivette was the most interesting person in her alliance. Her extremes of emotion, the weird way she latched on to male authority figures, the florid heights of anger she would hit--she's good TV, no question. But her game playing was all emotion and no brains--her completely unmotivated and pointless trashing of Rachel may have cost her $500,000.

Prospects: Fair. Ivette has the same problem as James--she's probably too recent to be a producers pick if there are 3 others from last year voted onto the show. She brings drama like no other, but they have Diane and Alison to fill that void. I do think Ivette could get voted on by the viewers, though--she wasn't well-liked, but she's at least well-remembered.

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Mendes56 Newbie

Mendes56

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Thanks for the post, Dream Angel. Hamster watch also has a link to this blog. I like that site and they are good about keeping things current, so maybe everyone won't have to sign up for feeds to read future entries.

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Audrina Newbie

Audrina

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I have a theory...

So I was thinking to myself that the producers might want to make it sort of even and try to get one male and one female from each BB season.

Now, S1 didn't have any females on the list and S4 didn't have any males on the list so this is what I think could happen.

Men

S1: Chicken George; S2: Dr Will; S3: Marcellas; S4: no Male so Howie from S6; S5: Jase and S6: Kaysar.

Women

S2: Monica; S3: Danielle; S4: Allison; S5: Diane; S6: Janelle and for the S1 spot I could see any of the remaining females making it: Dana, Lisa, Erika, Nakomis and Ivette.

So, let's see how close I come to being right. Probably not close at all but it's fun to theorize and guess. :)

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