Candidates Announced for Celebrity Apprentice; Show to Debut January 3 11/19/07
SEVENTH INSTALLMENT OF REALITY HIT TO RETURN TO NEW YORK CITY WITH ALL-STAR LINEUP
Trace Adkins, Carol Alt, Stephen Baldwin, Nadia Comaneci, Tiffany Fallon, Jennie Finch, Nely Galan, Marilu Henner, Lennox Lewis, Piers Morgan, Omarosa, Tito Ortiz, Vincent Pastore, and Gene Simmons To Face Off on the City Streets and in the Boardroom For Charity
NEW YORK – Monday, Nov. 19th 2007 – NBC and Donald Trump return to New York City with "The Celebrity Apprentice," with an all-star celebrity lineup of candidates. Now in its seventh season, this installment of "The Apprentice" changes the game. "The Celebrity Apprentice" with host Donald Trump begins its latest edition on Thursday, January 3 (9:00PM ET).
Contestants will not be vying for a job with Donald Trump, but the business-savvy celebrity contestants will be working towards a greater goal -- as they raise over a million dollars for their various charities throughout the season. Not only will the final winner be crowned the first 'Celebrity Apprentice,' but he or she will also have the honor of delivering a two-hundred and fifty thousand dollar bonus check to their designated charity.
All 14 celebrities will be competing in business driven tasks around New York City, using their fame along with their proven business acumen to win challenges, while ultimately raising money and awareness for their respective causes.
Just as in the regular "Apprentice," the celebrities will be subjected to long hours, grueling mental challenges, personality clashes, and intense scrutiny -- all without the help of their regular support system of agents, managers, and personal assistants.
Certain tasks encourage the contestants to reach out to their network of celebrity contacts for assistance or donations -- making for entertaining surprise visits by some of the world's biggest stars along the way.
"This will be the most exciting season of 'The Apprentice' yet – maybe even better than Season One. Our fourteen celebrity contestants are incredible individually, and as a group they will make 'The Celebrity Apprentice' one of the hottest shows on television. I promise you a fantastic new season!" Said Donald J. Trump, executive producer of ' The Celebrity Apprentice.'
"We're back, and in our old time slot. The series is epic and Donald is on fire!" Said Mark Burnett, executive producer of 'The Celebrity Apprentice.'
All of the tasks will be judged by Trump and his advisors in the boardroom. Returning back to the boardroom are Trump's children (and colleagues) Ivanka and Donald Trump Jr., alongside longtime Trump Organization employee and "Apprentice" advisor George Ross. In a new twist, the boardroom will feature a "rotating seat," allowing a variety of famous business leaders and industry legends to join Trump in spirited judgment on tasks for the first time in the series.
"This season's celebrity version of 'The Apprentice' is going to blow people away," said Craig Plestis Executive Vice President, Alternative Programming, Development and Specials, NBC Entertainment. "We have assembled a group of savvy celebrities who are playing their hearts out for their favorite charities, on the streets of New York City." He added, "You may think you have seen it all, but there will be lots of twists and surprises to sweeten the pot for everyone. We had so much fun shooting this and we know viewers are going to embrace this amped up Apprentice."
ABOUT THE CANDIDATES
Each celebrity contestant was handpicked for their balance of notoriety and business skills. Capsule bios are below, with full biographies available on NBC Media Village.
TRACE ADKINS is a country music star with seven studio albums. He has had twenty-three singles on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, with two of those singles -- "(This Ain't) No Thinkin' Thing" and "Ladies Love Country Boys" – hitting No. 1.
CAROL ALT is a successful model/actress with over 700 covers and 65 films. She currently has her own natural cosmetics line and is an advocate for the health benefits of eating raw.
STEPHEN BALDWIN is an actor best known for his role in the 1995 film "The Usual Suspects". A born-again Christian, he travels the country as a speaker and is a best-selling religious author.
NADIA COMANECI burst into the limelight as the star of the 1976 Montreal Olympics, is the most celebrated gymnast of our time. The diminutive Romanian eventually produced a lifetime Olympic medal haul of five golds, three silvers and one bronze and she has left behind a competitive record which will be virtually impossible to match. In 2005, FOX.com considered her one of the "Greatest Athletes in 150 years of Sports History". Comaneci will be the new face of L'Oreal cosmetics
TIFFANY FALLON was named Playboy's Playmate of the Year for 2005. She is married to Joe Don Rooney from the chart-topping country band, Rascal Flatts. Fallon was also Miss Georgia USA 2001 and holds a sports marketing degree from Florida State University as well as being the host of IFL Battleground.
JENNIE FINCH won a gold medal as a member of the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Softball team. She was the first woman to host "This Week In Baseball" for FOX Sports. Finch markets the Jennie Finch Windmill, an invention of her father's to improve softball pitching technique.
NELY GALAN created Galan Entertainment, producing over 600 episodes of programming in both the English and Spanish language. Her TV talk-show with Padre Alberto has a huge following, and recently signed a deal with NBC Universal to create English-language telenovellas across all media platforms for the company.
MARILU HENNER is a 5 time Golden Globe nominated actress who memorably starred in "Taxi" and "Evening Shade" as well as countless films. Henner has enjoyed a second career as the author of six best-selling books on diet and health.
LENNOX LEWIS is a former heavyweight-boxing champion – a three-time champion, a distinction shared with Muhammad Ali and Evander Holyfield.
OMAROSA was the breakout star of the premiere season of "The Apprentice." She previously served as Deputy Associate Director of Presidential Personnel at the White House for then President Bill Clinton.
PIERS MORGAN is currently a judge on NBC's talent show hit "America 's Got Talent." He created First News, a newspaper for kids, and is a former British tabloid editor. He has written bestselling books such as "The Insider" and "Don't You Know Who I Am?"
TITO ORTIZ is an Ultimate Fighting Champion – holds the record for light heavyweight fighting from 2000-2003. He has his own clothing line, and is developing a new XBOX game.
VINCENT PASTORE was an actor in the Emmy winning series, "The Sopranos". He was the voice of Luca in "Shark Tale" and hosts "The Wise Guy Show" on Sirius Satellite Radio's Raw Dog Comedy channel. Pastore has been passionately involved in the music industry, starting his career running nightclubs and music venues. He is soon to star on Broadway in " Chicago".
GENE SIMMONS is best known for his persona in the band KISS, as well as his many other flourishing businesses such as his fashion label and KISS merchandise. He was an elementary school teacher, considered being a rabbi, and produced Van Halen's demo that got them signed to Warner Brothers Records in 1977. He is currently taping his reality show "Gene Simmons Family Jewels."
"The Apprentice" is produced by Mark Burnett Productions in association with Trump Productions LLC. Mark Burnett, Donald Trump are executive producers, Eden Gaha and Page Feldman are co- executive producers
