We are down to the final 5 on Survivor 50 (In the Hands of the Fans*) after the latest eliminations of fan favorite Rick Devins and All-Time Great Cirie Fields. Of the remaining 5, I’m rooting for either Aubry or RizGood. Jonathan, Joe, and Tiff have not done anything to make a case that they should win Survivor 50.

To have three of the final players left on Survivor 50 (In which the producers and show runners could have brought back a bunch of better-known and better-playing players), be Joe, Jonathan, and Tiff, to me is a kind of letdown.

* As for the season’s big runup, and it being promoted as “In the Hands of the Fans“, I think this fell kind of flat. The things voted on (Color of the Tribes, Rice or No Rice, and whether the live finale should return to LA or remain in Fiji) really made no difference to the game. And while the naming of the idols was cool, and having Zac Brown and Mr. Beast as celebrity guests was fun, it really did not have much to do with celebrating 50 seasons. I would have liked it if they re-ran the 1st ever challenge (The Marooning) to start the season, and threw in more flashbacks to old challenges. Maybe have some Survivor trivia to celebrate the 50 seasons. In the end, unless something pops up in the final episode, while a fun watch, this ended up feeling to me just like an ordinary season.

Best of luck to all 5 of the finalists, and I am looking forward to how things play out and the live reunion on CBS next Wednesday.

Here is an updated chart.

While Survivor 50 was airing, and while Survivor 51 just wrapped up filming, the show keeps going, and as part of that, there was an open casting call for future want-to-be contestants (like myself) held on Tuesday, May 12th, at the Mohegan Sun Casino in Uncasville, CT.

Since I had some free time, I decided to take the 3 1/2 drive to throw my hat into the ring. I had been to an open casting call in the past, almost 14 years ago – Saturday, July 26th, 2014, at the Trump Taj Mahal, in Atlantic City, NJ. I figured, since I have applied numerous times online (going back to the early seasons), why not add another live attempt to my resume?

I got to the Mohegan Sun around 11:00 AM, and was amazed (but not surprised) at the number of people in line. It snaked all the way around the casino, past a bunch of restaurants and stores. (Big Bonus – There was a Starbucks along the line. Once at the end of the line, the woman standing next to me guessed it would be about a 3-hour wait. She was close, as we stood and talked for 3 1/2 hours before getting my one minute to convince Jesse Tannenbaum, and the rest of the CBS Casting Team that I would make a great contestant on a future season of Survivor.

Then it was over. I think I did really well, telling a story about how a spelling test in 1979 showed that, given the opportunity, I have the motivation and drive to compete and get what I want.

The experience itself was a lot of fun. Reminded me of the times I stayed up all night, waiting online for concert tickets, when you had to physically buy them with cash at a Ticketmaster location. This was also similar to the Idol 50 Hunt I attended at the Stone Pony in Asbury Park, NJ, where everybody was nice and friendly and enjoyed talking about Survivor and how and when they became fans. I am terrible at assessing people’s ages, but I would guess I was older than most of the people online. Truthfully, I am probably older than most of their parents. But age has never been a deterrent or hindrance to me, and at 59, I still have the drive and desire to become a contestant on Survivor and show how all my years of living and all the knowledge I have gained through friends and family would help.

It was interesting listening to some of the people online reciting all their knowledge of Survivor. I thought to myself, how do they know so much? I have watched every episode of every season, and there are plenty of things I just don’t remember. Then I thought. Ah, OK, most of these people were very young, or not even born when Survivor premiered in May of 2000, so their knowledge of Survivor consists of streaming old seasons or watching them on DVDs. So while I need to try and remember what I watched 25 years ago, they saw recently. This gives them an advantage in recalling a lot of things. But I feel my experience of actually living through the entire run of Survivor live, how it was originally perceived, and what it has grown into over the years, would be to my advantage

Here are a few photos of the Open Casting Call

That’s all for now

AverageAndy

#NeverTooOldForSurvivor
#GiveMeAChance
#PEACE

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