Fans of NBC's first installment of Average Joe knew Jason Peoples as the handsome, occasionally employed student who lived with his parents and still managed to win Melana Scantlin's heart. "I'm disappointed it didn't work out," he says. "At the same time, it's cool we met the way we did. I wanted more. I think we both did."
Peoples is currently dating a woman he had met before going on Average Joe. Was that an obstacle for him and Scantlin? "My girlfriend now wasn't in the picture," he insists. "We started dating after I did the show."
No doubt his main squeeze disapproved of those make-out scenes. "She watched the show, and I gave her a heads up before each one," he recalls. "She had a tough time with the last episode. Melana and I looked so happily in love, and she had to turn it off. She was great through the whole thing, but I'm sure it was a little tough."
It's safe to say fame hasn't gone to his head. "I'm st
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Now that Average Joe: Hawaii is on the air, you'd expect Melana Scantlin to go away and make room for other reality TV "stars." But no. Like Joe Millionaire's Evan Marriott, the original Average Joe bachelorette has found work on GSN (formerly known as Game Show Network). Starting March 15, she'll host World Series of Blackjack.
What's her connection to gambling, you ask? The former Kansas City Chiefs cheerleader claims it's in her genes. "My grandfather's name is Howard Huffley; his nickname was Ozark Monk," she told reporters at the Television Critics Association press tour in Hollywood. "He's from Arkansas, [so] I am a quarter hillbilly. But he is a card shark.
"You can give him any deck of cards, five decks if you want, and he could pull out anything," Scantlin says enthusiastically. "He's quite amazing with cards." In fact, some casinos have banned her granddaddy f
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