In the wake of the flap she caused by negatively spinning the circumstances of her back-home job situation during Sunday's Survivor: China reunion show, Denise Martin has issued a mea culpa, saying, "I would like to apologize to Mark Burnett, Jeff Probst, CBS, [school superintendent] Nancy Lane, the Town of Douglas [Mass.] and my friends and family. It was not my intention to mislead anyone. I take full responsibility for my actions and hope that you can find it in your hearts to forgive me."As for the $50,000 in feel-better funds she was surprised with by host man Jeff Probst, Martin says, "I do not feel comfortable about accepting [it]. I would instead ask that it be donated to the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation." A CBS rep confirms that the money will indeed be earmarked for the charity.Related:• Survivor's "Lunch Lady" Served Up Lies, Says School
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On Sunday's season finale of Survivor: China, Todd Herzog, the 22-year-old flight attendant from Pleasant Grove, Utah, beat out his two biggest allies, Courtney and Amanda, to win the grand prize. The next day, he told TVGuide.com about his strategy, those immunity idols and what he plans to do next.
TVGuide.com: Congratulations! So tell the truth — did you pretty much know you were going to win?Todd Herzog: I had no idea. I thought it was Courtney — for months I thought it was her. She surprised everybody. She came out there expecting to go home first, second or third, and instead she made it to the final three. This girl did an amazing job for the kind of person she is; she just took everybody by complete surprise. When it came down to the final vote, she owned at tribal council. Between me and her, we both did a really good job answering questions, and I felt kind
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The school system for which Survivor: China contender Denise Martin works was dealt their own chef's suprise when on Sunday's reunion show the "lunch lady" claimed she was demoted from her job upon completing the reality competition. "This statement is false," says the superintendent for Douglas (Mass.) Public Schools. "In fact, Mrs. Martin held a full-time position as a custodian" — a promotion for which Denise applied and got — "prior to her participation in the series, and she returned to this same position upon her return. We were pleased and excited to support Denise, and have enthusiastically cheered her on. Regretfully, the Douglas Public School District was inaccurately portrayed as failing to be accommodating to an employee.... This is far from the case." Denise has since explained to CBS News (see video here) that she tried to get back her old job, as lunch lady, after Survivor, but was denied.In related news, tomorrow's lunch special is "Chix Nuggets."Update:&bu...
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I’m not sure how I feel yet about the Survivor: China finale. I found myself cheering at the end. Strange since I wasn’t originally a fan of the winner though I did warm up later on. I ended up feeling unsettled about a player I had liked all along and I survived a mini-roller coaster ride with another player when I found myself with no clear favorite in the end. To sum up, I was a little all over the place during the final three hours of the show. Now I sit here somewhat dazed by it all so let me tell you how I got here and see if anyone else feels the same.The two-hour finale started with a final reward challenge that had Amanda, Denise, Todd and Courtney rebuilding Survivor’s version of China’s Great Wall. Amanda won and was rewarded with a meal. She could choose to keep it all for herself or share it with one or two people. She agonized for the appropriate length of time and then chose to share her meal only with Todd. This was, after all, a perfect oppor...
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The tribe has spoken, and (spoiler alert!) the winner of Survivor: China is someone who was all of 14 years old when the original edition of CBS' long-running reality competition aired. Thanks to his inarguably smart game play, Todd Herzog of Pleasant Grove, Utah, emerged victorious during Sunday night's finale, besting the formidable likes of both Amanda and Courtney. What's your take? Is this winner truly a winner? Did you think someone else would win?Missed the finale or want to revisit it? Keep an eye out for Rhoda's Survivor: China recap.
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