On Sunday night, firefighter Tom Westman was crowned the winner of Survivor: Palau. He did it by being a mostly nice guy, except when he had to muscle around alliance-mates Katie and Ian a little bit. But the humble 41-year-old and oldest Survivor winner ever learned a bunch during his 39 days in Palau including how to kill a shark and the importance of listening to his wife. TVGuide.com sat down with the new millionaire to find out how he feels about winning, why he got so annoyed with Ian and if he's really as chauvinistic as Jenn claimed.
TVGuide.com: Congratulations. How's it feel to be the sole Survivor? Tom Westman: It really is wonderful. I'm a bit of a fish out of water right now, but it is a nice pond I'm swimming in.
TVG: You sound a little overwhelmed. Tom: Yeah. I think even stranger than the moment of winning was walking out to the red carpet where the cameras were set up and the lightbulbs wer
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Survivor: Palau's Gregg Carey hoped his "friendship" with petite blonde Jennifer would carry him to the final two. The Ken doll made a fatal mistake, however, by taking the Barbie clone and her pal Katie on a reward cruise. Sure, they swam with dolphins, reunited with family members, ate and showered. But they also left tough competitors Tom and Ian behind with Caryn to plot against them. Here, Gregg talks to TVGuide.com about underestimating his opponents.
TVGuide.com: Were you confident about your decision to take Jennifer and Katie on the reward cruise? Gregg Carey: It's a fine balance between confidence and paranoia, and I let the confidence creep up on me. The problem was that I thought there were only five people left [in the game]. I forgot about Caryn. It was probably the dumbest move I could have made in the game. It was honestly an inno
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No season of Survivor would be complete without a few twists, and Palau has proved no different. Last Thursday, Janu Tornell was the first contestant to drop out of an immunity challenge that required the Survivors to be submerged in an underwater cage. Janu's punishment was temporary exile on another island. Surprisingly, the 39-year-old Vegas showgirl loved her solitary confinement, then voluntarily brought Jeff her torch to snuff during tribal council. Here, TVGuide.com learns why Janu called it quits.
TVGuide.com: You looked really thin toward the end. How much weight did you lose? Janu Tornell: About 12 lbs. It took a toll. There was no water and then no food. Then [when] there was food, I would throw it up every single time. It was really rough.
TVG: How was it dealing with the rats?Janu: At first they freaked me out. Afterward, they just became
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Another week, another Ulong tribe member voted off Survivor: Palau. Last Thursday it was Bobby Jon Drinkard's turn. That leaves only Stephenie, for those of you keeping track. After the not-so-dynamic duo lost their most recent tribal immunity challenge, they competed in an individual firemaking task, in which Steph smoked Bobby Jon. Here, TVGuide.com sits down with the 27-year-old Alabama native to learn what exactly went wrong for the cursed Ulong tribe.
TVGuide.com: No matter what happened, you were so optimistic. Did you ever want to give up? Bobby Jon Drinkard: Many times out there, losing time after time, you tell yourself, "Gosh, there is just no way I can keep doing this. I wish somebody would just come and sweep me up right now and take me away." Then I would always think that a lot of people would like to change positions [with me, and] that I sacrificed a lot to get there
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After she was set adrift in the Pacific in Survivor: Palau's premiere, former track and field star Jolanda "Jo" Jones hit the beach, earning an individual immunity that guaranteed her a spot on one of the two teams. Jo's tough personality proved too much for her Ulong tribemates, however, and they voted her off at the first tribal council. But this 39-year-old single mom and corporate lawyer is a true survivor — she's dealt with a sibling's murder, her father's suicide and an abusive relationship — and says this loss won't keep her down.
TV Guide.com: How did you stand out for Survivor's casting folks?Jolanda Jones: In all the interviews, Jeff Probst tried to pick fights with me. We always disagreed.
TVG: Were you drawn to Survivor as a fan? Jolanda: I'm not a big TV person because I don't have time. I am a single parent and I am self-employed, but if I was at home on a Thursday night, it is a sh
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OK, we can tell you the new season of Survivor begins in February with 20 new castaways, and host Jeff Probst says they're not the most even-keeled group. We can also tell you that the next round takes place in the Micronesian islands of Palau. Still, you might be wondering, "What's Palau?" And "Why don't I get out of my house more often?" We can answer the first question; as for the second, you're on your own.
What Is Palau? Palau (not to be confused with
Survivor's first locale, Pulau Tiga) is a nation of islands located east of the Philippines and north of Indonesia. It's one of the world's least populated (about 20,000 people) and youngest nations. The economy is based on tourism, and residents of this collective of islands mostly speak Palauan and English. (One useful phrase for the new castaways:
"Merkong!" Which means "Stop! That's enough!")
Hollywood Highlight This isn't the first time the islands have been the backdr
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Julie Berry may have just missed making the final four on Survivor: Vanuatu, but she did wind up with a nice consolation prize: As previously reported, Berry, 24, a youth mentor from Gorham, Maine, began dating Survivor host Jeff Probst shortly after filming wrapped last summer. With the Vanuatu season finished, Probst has gone public with the relationship and calls her "the love of my life."
Berry flirted with Probst during the game, "but," he says, "she was playing around and I was harder on her than on [the other contestants] because I thought she was not delivering as much as I wanted. We were definitely not having our own little party out there."
But a month after they returned from the island, Probst called Berry. "I had a lingering curiosity about her," he admits. "I have made a few friends on the Survivor shows, like Colby and Savage. And I check in on people sometimes to see how things are going."
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Survivor: Vanuatu has not been a friendly environment for strapping young men. In fact, the Lopevi tribe has ousted their strongest male members at every opportunity. Male model John Kenney was the last of their hot-lookin' fellas to go — unless husky Sarge is your type. Last week, John's tribemates booted the 22-year-old for slacking off work. Here, Kenney rings up TV Guide Online to (kinda sorta) defend his laid-back ways and discuss his odd profession.
TV Guide Online: Your job is listed as a mechanical bull operator. Huh? Do you ride them?John Kenney: No, I don't ride them. I don't even have that job anymore, I just put that as a joke. I do it, but it is not my primary job.
TVGO: What exactly does it entail — just turning on the machine and letting people go?John: No. I go around and get people to ride. Once I get people to ride, I operate them. It is a good job. I just do that a couple nights a week for fun.
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Survivor: All-Stars kicks off Sunday on CBS, right after Super Bowl XXXVIII. Which TV event will be the bigger showdown, we wonder? Well, since most of the 18 all-stars fancy themselves "celebrities," we're guessing their egos dwarf any player on the New England Patriots or Carolina Panthers. Still, just 'cause their 15 minutes will be extended, don't expect these castaways to get the star treatment on Survivor.
Executive producer Mark Burnett denies cash was used to entice Rich Hatch and Co. back to the show. "There are no appearance fees," he says. "There's just prize money... I'm not sure we're disclosing how much they win."
The all-stars will also have no celeb accommodations while duking it out in the great outdoors. "We kicked their ass," Burnett boasts. "They showed up with a machete [and had] no fire. They couldn't drink the water. It really was very, very hard."
"This is the harde
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