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Fri 9 Jan, 2004 08:21 pm
I never watch the reality shows, but the Apprentice show interested me and I watched it. What did you think of the show's concept and of the people participating?
---BBB
Donald Trump Wannabes Drew Big Ratings for NBC
Fri January 9, 2004 04:59 PM ET
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The spectacle of 16 wannabe tycoons selling lemonade and sucking up to real estate magnate Donald Trump proved to be a winning formula for NBC.
The Thursday night debut of reality show "The Apprentice" drew the biggest audience of any series premiere on any network since Fox launched "Joe Millionaire" last January, according to figures issued on Friday by Nielsen Media Research.
The highly promoted show, buoyed by a lead-in from NBC's top-rated comedy, "Friends," averaged nearly 18.5 million total viewers.
Its 9.1 rating among viewers aged 18 to 49, the benchmark demographic used by most networks to gauge prime-time success, also marked the highest score for any series debut since "Joe Millionaire," and the highest for any single episode of a new show this season.
By comparison, Fox's "Joe Millionaire" premiered in January 2003 to a hefty 10.1 rating in the key young-adult demographic and 18.6 million viewers overall.
However, the biggest test for "The Apprentice" lies ahead. Next week, the show will move to its regular time slot on Wednesdays, opposite television's most popular drama, "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" on CBS."
The Donald also will face stiff competition from the finale to Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie's rural adventures on the Fox reality hit "The Simple Life."
"We do expect to see a big reduction when we're off that Thursday platform and go into what is for us a difficult time period," an NBC spokesman said. "That's going to be a pretty brutal hour."
"The Apprentice," created by "Survivor" executive producer Mark Burnett, features a group of ambitious, young entrepreneurs competing for a job as a top executive in Trump's business empire with a $250,000-a-year salary.
Divided by gender into two teams, the eight men and eight women face off in a string of projects assigned by Trump to test their salesmanship and street smarts. The losers are summoned to Trump's board room, and he fires one of them at the end of each episode.
In the series premiere, the women beat the men in a lemonade-selling contest on the streets of Manhattan. At the end of the hour, the ax fell on David Gould, a 31-year-old health care venture capitalist who holds an MD and an MBA.
I thought I wanted to be in a show like that until I watched last night - I missed the first 40 minutes.
enjoyed it
I really enjoyed the apprentice because I'm really into business and telling my MBA friends to shove it.
I thought the women were really out of control especially that project manager holly molly was she an idiot. I tell ya, those marketing peeps really lose it.
I thought that short guy should totally be kicked off, but Trump had a point, that guy knows how to use risk. I was really surprised by the method they used to fire someone. Yes it is up to Trump, but he really gives everyone their point of view. i thought both his counselieres (spelling), were awesome especially the woman, she was cold as steel.
I'm actually really looking forward to seeing the next show.
super7boi
super7boi, welcome to Able2Know, glad to have you here.
The only problem trying to watch The Apprentice is that its scheduled at the same time as CSI, one of my favorite shows.
If I had been a contestant, I would have found a construction site to sell the lemonade or a site near a hot pretzel sidewalk cart vendor. I also would have hired some young children to do the actual selling for me. People have a hard time saying no to kids, even on the streets of New York.
One of my interests in the show is my apparent gut reaction to making lots of money intense business type people. I fear I'm a hopeless labor working class underdog type person.
I guess I will have to get out the dusty instruction book re how to operate my VCR or to learn how to copy shows via Comcast digital TV. I've got all these bells and whistles high tech but rarely use them.
BumbleBeeBoogie
I think that show sucks, and should be banned from Public Television. I'm tired of seeing Trumpy Dumpy's Ugly Face.
I've heard the show being described as the reality show for smart people.
I've heard of several people who hate reality shows that like it.
It's one long, tedious job interview. Aren't job interviews tantamount to going in for a root canal?
Donald is being embarassed by the male group!
The male group is truly a bunch of disorganized wannabes. There's no leadership qualities that I can see there which several of the woman possess.
This job interview should have taken two hours tops.
Ive found it entertaining.
I especially enjoy how even though the girls cant get along they can win...its just amazing. Its silly though, down right embarrasing really.
I always want to cut the Donalds hair though, I find it very irritating....and he has a great presence when he does smile...he should do that more.
I am glad Sam is gone..he was just...lost..and Im not even sure where.
BBB
I'm getting irritated at the women's over use of sexuality to win their challenges. Having read about some of their backgrounds, I shouldn't be surprised.
I know sex sells, but it is annoying to watch them use the stereotypical female wiles to best the men. Sadly, I guess that means they are using their brains as well as their sexuality.
BBB
I believe that will be addressed in the next show, it seemed that way from the previews.
It is sad however, they are pulling together all their attributes to win..may not be right but, you know, its a game.
Oooooh.....thanks for starting this thread so I can get it out of my system that I absolutely, positively detest and abhor that despicable piece of garbage named Trump!
Did you see his apartment? The epitomy of lousy taste? That god-on-gold ugly-as-all-hell decorator crap?
And I hate the show as well. Mostly, I hate it cause da Trump keeps showing his arrogant face and disgusting way of treating other humans, but also because of the whole concept.
Imagine getting a dozen highly intelligent entrepreneurs together so you can then degrade them by making them sell lemonade on a Manhattan street corner.
I would've walked out the damn show.
And those 2 flunkies who sit next to Trump like 2 Stormtroopers next to Himmler.........disgusting!
And setting the men against the women just so da Trump can have his sexual fantasies?
It's evil, I tell you. It's capitalism at its absolute worst.
Thanks for letting me rant.
Now I can forget about it.
I hate da Donald
I hate da Donald
I hate da Donald
i agree about the tasteless Trump apartment. why live in an ugly museum? he doesn't even eat in that gargantuan dining room. that's more room for the billard table, ya know?
but the actual show ... i don't think that the men want it enough, the job. yea, sam wanted it but he was just a loose canon. the men would make excellent 2nd or 3rd in commands, definitely people who follow orders, loyal and do their job. the women seem to want it bad, which speaks well of them, except for the fact they rely on their feminity far too much. you could never get away with that for long in the real world, especially running a multi-million dollar corporation like the one Trump is dangling in front of them. but he does give them very good lessons that you can apply to any aspect of business. start at the bottom, learn to do the basics well first. know who your target is and who you work for (because even CEOs "work" for their clients)
on the whole i like it, but i'd like to see it move away from the themes thus far shown.
Did you see Sam's eyes when he got sacked?
I don't believe I've ever seen such total malice coming out of one pair of lookers. I thought he'd pull out a gun and murder da Donald right there.
About the women......I can't tell them apart. They're kooky-cutter non-persons who wiggle their bodies like they were lapdancing, and have little more to offer than a pair of stretchknit boobs.
I bet you they'll start to hate and kill each other, before long!
The men are at least individuals. Though I guess that anyone who hero-worships da Donald has got to be void of values.
BBB, I lved your suggestions for selling the most lemonade. It's that Occum's Razor kind of thing that your razor sharp brain figured out immediately.
Katya8, honey, you must learn to speak out and let us know your honest opinion!! LOL
I think this show is the best reality shows ever i actually even record it. HAHA
Lightwizard: I absolutely agree with ya!
quinn1: I feel the same way about Trump's hair and Sam. I bet there is some balding going on under that mop! Plus the dye job is atrocious. For someone so wealthy you would think he could afford a better stylist!
katya8: You and me both on his apartment. The word ostentatious comes to mind. Tacky too. Again, you would think someone with his money could afford a better interior decorator. It looks like some type of gaudy hotel. As for the look in Sam's eyes, I thought it was a look of "did he say that? did I hear right? I don't believe it". But then again when I think back on it, I can see it. The contemptuous look. All I can say is I'm glad he is out of there. The producers of the show couldn't have made him any more annoying than they did. I have to say, your passionate dislike for "da Donald" is entertaining. *L*
blue: I feel the need to, uh, correct you on one point. What those women are using isn't femininity it's their sexuality. And it's REALLY repugnant behaviour. I hope they felt like crawling in a hole when they saw themselves on t.v.
All in all I see these "contestants" as being money hungry and overly ambitious with a little wannabe-famous tossed in. After all, any self-respecting individual wanting to make it in the business world wouldn't stoop to being a contestant on a reality show. (At least I wouldn't be if I was in the business world. Come to think of it, I wouldn't want to be on a reality show period.) I'm sure the position Trump is offering will be quite lucrative and I can almost see them salivating at the prospect. It's rather pitiful to see these people kowtow to Trump so eagerly and readily.
I go toe 2 toe with Trumplike business men and women all over the world almost weekly or more often.
These people were pre-screened to fit a certain
profile the directors wants. I was totally disappointed at the sales skills of the guys - whose description says "sales executive", are they sales executive of what? Wiping the arse of someone!! What an embarrassment, any sales guy worth his sale would chew these guys up.
Shows such as this one, are a big waste of time. Better to read a good book or knit a rug.
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