Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Big Brother's Jen Explains Her "Jenius" Strategy
by Nina Hämmerling Smith
Jen Johnson, Big Brother 8
After a week of bad behavior, Jen Johnson was evicted from the Big Brother house last Thursday, surprising most viewers only in how long she'd lasted. (Jen had been on the block three times in a row earlier in the season). The 23-year-old "fun nanny" for Vanna White's kids was characteristically open about why she went off slop and what she really thinks of Dick and Daniele.
TVGuide.com: You said that you just didn't fit in at the house. Why was that?
Jen Johnson: The rest of the house [guests] were much more into the game spirit rather than real-life spirit. I was there to experience the games, or wear a unitard, or make friends. Everyone else was two-faced and backstabbing and liars. It was like, "I don't want to be friends with these people," so I'd rather just be by myself. But then, how horrible is that?
TVGuide.com: You always said you were there for the experience, not the money. What kind of experience did you have?
Jen: It was quite enjoyable — it's fun to win competitions and be a part of something, and I also got the unitard. How often can you wear a unitard around and it's cool?
TVGuide.com: You were the first person on slop ever to break their food restriction. You said you did it because you were mad at Big Brother. Why?
Jen: I was previously told it was OK to destroy Dick's cigarettes, and then when I did it, I was told that they were going to replace them. I was really upset that I had gone through all that hassle, that I was going to deal with Dick being upset with me, and that I got nothing out of it. So I was like, "I'm just going to eat!" It was the only thing I could think of. But the sad thing is, I really did like being on slop. I actually gained weight on slop. It's kind of like lumpy, chunky oatmeal.
TVGuide.com: So in the end, did you have fun being on the show?
Jen: The parts that were Big Brother-involved, like the competitions, were definitely really fun. But I didn't enjoy everyone's deceitfulness.
TVGuide.com: What do you think about going into sequester?
Jen: At first I wasn't too happy with it. But at least I get books, and I'm going to try to learn Spanish on my iPod. It'll adjust me so that I'm not, like, completely in the world all of a sudden. It's my halfway house for the world.
TVGuide.com: Looking back on it, was Nick playing Daniele? Or the other way around?
Jen: Daniele has a boyfriend of two years — she lives with him, they have a dog together. And then she found her second true love? Nick was on the rebound, he had just been cheated on by his ex-girlfriend, so he was definitely looking for someone. He wasn't playing her, but I’m not sure if Daniele was. She says that they're just friends, and we all know they're not.
TVGuide.com: Are you mad that Daniele backdoored you?
Jen: I'm her biggest competition, so I think she knew that the only way to get me out was to backdoor me. It is lame, because she was like, "I have your back until the end," and the next week she gets HoH and puts me up? She'll do anything to win. That's why I'm done with those people. I don't respect her in any way, but I see why she did it.
TVGuide.com: How did you handle all that abuse from Dick?
Jen: I actually felt bad for Dick; he came up with a lot of his anger out of nowhere. I think he's an unhappy person and he doesn't know how to deal with it, so he takes it out on other people.
TVGuide.com: About some of your other housemates... what's your impression of Amber?
Jen: She's just kind of confused. She freaks out all of a sudden, then she's crying, then she doesn't get things, then she's really nice, then she's really mean.... She's all over the place. [Update: On Sunday, HoH Jessica nominated Amber and Zach for eviction.]
TVGuide.com: What about Jameka?
Jen: I definitely like her. She tries to make everyone a better person. I know people are like, "Oh, she's all godly," but she's really cool, she's funny and she's always willing to make fun of herself and stick up for what's right.
TVGuide.com: And Eric?
Jen: He's playing this game hard; he has studied every single reality show since he was born, apparently. Him yelling me out the door was basically him pretending so it looked good in front of the other houseguests, so he can say, "Jen hates me" at the end when I'm doing my voting. But then he leaves me a nice to-go message.
TVGuide.com: What's the story behind those "Jenius," "Jensa," etc. T-shirts?
Jen: My friend always calls me a Jenius. Before coming into the house, I bought 50 packs of letters, and I made a million shirts. But Jenius was my favorite, because it's the most funny, no matter what. It would be funny even if your name wasn't Jen, because you're spelling "genius" wrong. It marks me perfectly.
http://www.tvguide.com/news/big-brother-jen/070828-02
