Interview With Brian Hart Of CBS's Big Brother 10

Posted on 07/19/2008 in Big Brother 10, Cast Interviews

Last Thursday morning I chatted with the first evicted Big Brother 10 house guest, Brian Hart. I would like to thank the Big Brother 10 Insider and fans for submitting the questions below.

Q. Mark: RealityWanted.com: Brian, what up buddy, how are things going today?

A. Brian Hart, Big Brother 10: I'm doing man, I mean how often do you get to do something like this.

Q. Mark: RealityWanted.com: Talk with us about how you found yourself in the Big Brother 10 house.

A. Brian Hart, Big Brother 10: Big Brother actually ran into me. I ran into the producers in San Francisco when I leaving a happy hour and started to chat with them about being on the show. I was skeptical about the show at first but very happy I took part. This was a great experience from the beginning to end.

Q. Mark: RealityWanted.com: Obviously you knew about the show, were you a long time fan like Evel Dick and Eric from season 8?

A. Brian Hart, Big Brother: I knew about the show since I watched it when I lived in Australia but only watched season 7 of the US version prior to going into the house.

Q. Mark: RealityWanted.com: That might explain a few things to viewers since many felt you came on strong too fast.

A. Brian Hart, Big Brother 10: Since I had only watched season 7 of the US version of Big Brother that's what I used as a reference point to strategize and prepare to play. If you watched season 7, it was Big Brother All Stars with veteran players who started to plot and build their army as soon as the entered the Big brother house. I assumed there would be another "A" type personality in the house also building an alliance as soon as we walked in so I didn't want to waste anytime. I was shocked when I found out other players wanted to wait a week or so before they started to really play the game.

Q. Mark, RealityWanted.com: 24 hours more or less into the game, you started to create your army. Why did you choose to trust Dan & Jerry first?

A. Brian Hart, Big Brother 10: They came to me right away and that's one of the things I wanted to see in the house, see who is drawn to me first.

Q. Mark: RealityWanted.com: If you could do it again what would you do differently?

A. Brian Hart, Big Brother 10: I would play the game the same way, but hold off on plotting and being so aggressive so soon.

Q. Mark: RealityWanted.com: Explain to future Big Brother hopefuls what it's like to actually be locked up in that house 24/7 and what they need to do to play the game properly.

A. Brian Hart, Big Brother 10: I would tell them that they need to be ready to separate themselves from their normal life once they walk into the house. If you want a chance at winning the game you need to be a different person when you enter the Big Brother house and leave all morals and choices on social acceptance out the window. You need to rationalize decisions based on the game not who you are. Take a deep breath and realize it's a game. I think a few people in the house right now will fall apart soon, since they are such wonderful people and so trusting.

Q. Mark: RealityWanted.com: What's next for you?

A. Brian Hart, Big Brother 10: I always said regardless of what happens here I will go back to my life and business, but I had such a positive experience in the reality TV world, I would love to be able to work with CBS if they ever need me and I am open to any other opportunities.

BIG BROTHER 10: MIDSEASONREPLACEMENTS INTERVIEWS BRIAN
MSR: It seemed like you were pretty aware of things had gone wrong, but we'd like to from you where you thought things had gone wrong and what you would do differently.

Brian: Perfect! Basically what happened is, it's funny to say this, is you heard so many things from the houseguests, by saying my arrogance and things like that is what sent me. Well, arrogance was always the plan. That part never would have changed. The problem was timing. I needed to hold back a little bit longer to start to implicate [sic] the plan that I had. I always looked at a lot of the house like a herd mentality. One of the ways that I put it was, when you want the herd to turn in a certain direction, you don't tell them until the last minute. You give them time to think about it, all of a sudden they start to question it, and then one spooks and then they follow. Because a lot of the people in the house were of the personality type that if you asked him or her, "Hey, what do you want to do, what's you game plan?" "Well, I'm gonna sit back for a couple weeks then decide what happens" Are you kidding me? In a few weeks you could be gone. So that was always my aspect. What I would have done in retrospect, really the only thing I would have changed, was the timing of the implication [sic]. I would have held the Memphis card back a little longer, other than Jerry, and probably Dan, then probably 24 hours or even less before the ceremony, push the voting. And then people wouldn't have had time to question, because one of the things Memphis and I were laughing about the last couple days was, and he's a very smart guy, he knows that the same people that are his saviors now and that united to keep him here, are the same eight people that were ready to send him home eight hours earlier. So he's very aware of that. So I would have held back a little bit longer. That pretty much would have been one of the only things I would have changed.

MSR: You say arrogance was part of you game plan, could you explain that a little bit more?

Brian: Basically I always knew that I was going to have an alliance, with one, two other people, maybe even three towards the beginning, and the reason for the arrogance was I never mind…it was almost to have kind of a target. To have a target towards the beginning, and what that target would have done was that if you really did have the support and trust of the people underneath you, then you would take the heat off of them, and almost like they would be in the shadow, and it would allow them to operate maybe, kind of, underneath the radar a little bit more than me? Instead of three or maybe four of us trying to operate underneath the radar. I had no problem being the arrogant target as long as I had the votes, which would have been the numbers, and then later on in the game, arrogance would have worked for me, I thought, in the sense of eventually, once you start making a couple moves that work, a little bit of fear strikes into the house, which is "Well, is it really worth it this week for me to after him and perhaps piss people off, or is it more worth it for me to take out a floater or somebody else?" So arrogance was never a plan that I had to try and go in there and be quiet, I'm more of an extrovert anyways, and so even sometimes things that I don't intend to come off arrogant, you know, I might make kind of a sarcastic comment to somebody else's stupid one, and sometimes that makes me come out looking like an ass. So where Angie and Steven laugh, somebody might be "Well that wasn't funny" But that was always kind of the character that I wanted to portray in the house, and hopefully it was supposed to work because I had people who supported me underneath and even if one of them was to falter, I always knew I could be okay, I just wasn't prepared for both.

MSR: It seemed to some of our site members [MSR: Jennifer30309 pointed this out] that you made some of the same mistakes as Kail did, in charging out with an alliance so early, you were a target, to the point where you were targeted right out.

Brian: Uh huh. The only season I had seen of Big Brother was season seven. I had seen a very early bit of season two. And watching season seven, you see because they had all been there before, right out of the gate they started the game. So I went into the game with the mentality, which is, I'm not going to wait around a week or two to see if they're going to vote me out. I'm going to build an army now, because I was always expecting that other 'A' personality type, or one of the other 'A' personality types in the house, to just kind of build an opposition, that opposing alliance that was three strong, or four strong, that I was going to have to go up against, in order to swing the floaters. So this was always the idea that I had in my head and by the time that I realized what was going on, I realized I had built an army with no one to fight, and when soldiers get bored they end up abandoning.

MSR: You went beyond the three to four that you needed, to the point where…

Brian: It was basically, the army that I had built were Jerry, Dan and Ollie, and from there I had them bringing people in that they were close to, which I had Ollie for April, and Dan had, you know, abilities with Michelle and Jerry had the…it was kind of the surrounding scenario, to where we needed those extra people just for votes, not necessarily for an alliance, but it was like, for a vote when they needed it, where I wouldn't have to ask for the vote, and Dan would be like "Hey, I think we should go with Brian on this one." Or Ollie can be like "Hey April, I think we should go with Brian on this one." So that was more of the goal I had, before I realized what was going on, the majority was in this army with nobody to fight. So they realized "Okay, you know we're all sitting here doing what hopefully Brian is wanting us to do and…why?" They all freaked out, Libra threw a little gas on the fire and the next thing I knew I was on the chintz sitting in the chitter myself [MSR: I swear that's what it sounded like, I've replayed it ten times].

MSR: Seems like you definitely underestimated the women in the house.

Brian: It wasn't necessarily underestimated. I always knew that there was going to be a strong play by the women in the house, but as long as I was told what was going on by one of the people that had turned on me, then I was going to be okay. Like if Libra [?] would have come to me that night and said "Brian, I'm gonna have to do this to you, because really I don't have any other choice." I would have had plenty of time to kind of flip it. I mean you saw how much everybody turned in the last twenty-four hours. I almost had half the house without Memphis. So it would have been manageable. I always knew the girls were going to be issue, and that's why if I would have stayed in the house and won HOH, Libra and April would have been the first two people on the block, and they would have been substituted with either an Ollie…probably an Ollie or a Michelle, but most likely an Ollie, because they were strong, but they weren't strong to the point where they're not gonna just tear themselves apart. I mean the women, I didn't underestimate them, I just know what they're eventually going to do to each other, which is, after you've spent as much…I mean, the whole week in the house, those girls are going to eat each other alive over the next couple of weeks. Keesha can't stand April, neither can Angie. I'm sure April can't stand them. Michelle is going back and forth between the two groups like a ping-pong ball, and Libra thinks she's running the game and is bossing everybody around. Keesha can't stand Libra because she's treating her like a mother. So it's really only a matter of time, because that's the funny thing, if you watch Jessie and Ollie and Memphis, especially Memphis and Ollie, they're laughing, because they're just going to sit back and let those girls tear each other apart.

MSR: So if you had been in the same position as Ollie, being confronted, would you have done the same as he did?

Brian: It's really hard for me to do that, because it's not my personality type. I would have a hard time being a person that was…um…it's hard for me to do that because Ollie is playing the game from the personality type where he's gonna kind of float. Ollie floated to that side of the fence because, I mean, who would you rather spend the summer with really? You know, he's not only got a game play interest with April, but he definitely has a romantic interest as well with her, so I'm definitely not surprised at that. I don't know if I would have. It's hard for me to imagine myself as a person who would float around to kind of where the power is. But, you know, It's a game of self preservation, I don't know if I wouldn't have done it. It's hard for me to say that if was gonna be a do or die situation, I wouldn't have. But I also know if Ollie would have realized it, if I could have had access to what was happening, there was a really good chance that I could have flipped it around.

MSR: Let's talk about Memphis, you targeted him for eviction, but it also sounds like you really admire him, so was that targeting just because…

Brian: A 100% undeniable reason of why I did. A lot of the people in this game were…everybody says they're there for the money, but the funny part of it is so many people are there for the experience, you come to find out. As much as the money…they're there because they're huge fans and they really just want to be in the Big Brother house. Memphis from what I knew when I got there was playing the game and was there for the money. So I have a great time with Memphis, and I consider him a good friend from being in there. But I knew that he's intelligent, he has a lot of charisma, and physically I think he's the second most powerful person in the house, and the thing with that is, I didn't know if I was ever going to get another chance. And Memphis being there for the money, towards the end of this game, it was going to come down to him and I, or him and I and about four other people, but one of the things that I saw was I cannot beat Memphis in a physical competition. There's just no way. He's a very intelligent guy that a lot of people like, and I couldn't take the chance of him being there. I had an opportunity and I just really didn't know if I was going to get another shot at it. So that was absolutely why I went full force ahead. It was a big risk, but it was a risk I was willing to take.

MSR: But if he had been part of you alliance that would have kept him from being targeted? It seemed like that one conversation in the kitchen…

Brian: I extended kind of like an olive branch to him earlier in the week. And it was "Memphis, just a simple question, what are you thinking? What's your game plan? What do you see in the future? Do you like short term contracts or do you like long term contracts?" And Memphis's reply to was "You know, Brian, we have a lot of similarities. I can definitely see us working together late in the game, but nothing in the immediate future." And immediately what that told me was that he either had something else going on, and I couldn't take the chance of Memphis becoming an enemy. So once he said that, it was… it's time for him to go. Because I have to take the shot if I have the shot. And if he would have won the POV competition, it was simple, I would have just altered. If Jessie won, which what I hoped, then it was almost like I got a bonus prize because Jessie will be easier to get out later in the game as to where Memphis would have been very, very, very difficult. And I thought this early in the game, before anybody knows what's going on, take a shot at it. It just didn't work. Twelve hours is all I needed. If that POV ceremony was twelve hours earlier, I would have been fine. It happens the way it happens.

MSR: So it does seem like you were getting votes in your favor. Was the 9-1 vote- that much of a landslide- a surprise to you or had things turned again?

Brian: It was supposed to be unanimous. What happened was, as soon as I realized…Memphis was always the key, as soon as I realized Memphis wasn't going to happen I sat down and I talked with Steven and I talked with Dan and I wanted them…and Angie…and said you need to vote with the house. Steven said he still would have voted and I said it can't be a conversation. I told them Wednesday morning I'll tell you if something's changed, but other than that I told them I wanted them to vote with the house, because if they're going to have a chance at this game, they can't…everybody thinks that these people that I was connected to in the house are now some sort of target. So the 9-1 was supposed to be unanimous, but Dan just said he couldn't do it, because he's like "If I get booted out next week, I can't go home thinking that I did something against…" you know, what he believes. That was basically the 9-1 vote, simple as that. But the key was Memphis and if Memphis wasn't going to turn, then it was pointless for anyone else to, but I appreciate it. The whole last twenty four hours before, that was when I made the last attempt, and that's when I really got a little crazy and stirred up a little bit of drama.

MSR: In past seasons we've had the opportunity to vote somebody back in. What would be your sort of sales pitch for why we should vote you back in?

Brian: The shock on people's faces? I don't know what kind of background music they would play, but it would probably be something similar to the Darth Vader March. Everyone just thought I was this evil force. It depends on what people want to see…the puppet shows, the games, all that stuff was me and Angie and Steven putting together, having a good time, and laughing. If people wanted me back in, it would be because they wanted me to stir it up and give some of these front runners a run for their money. Or basically because they wanted to see more sock puppet shows or family feud games. It would be a great opportunity to go back in the house. It would scare the hell out of a lot of people. Because…I don't know, because the timing would have been different, but I definitely think I can put on a show.

I was already sad that Brian was the first houseguest evicted from the Big Brother house, but now I'm downright depressed. He was a delightful person to talk to and I think the house will be a lot more boring without him in it. Call me, Brian! Hahaha.

As some of you may know, Brian was found for the show walking out of a hotel in San Francisco. He caught the eye of a casting director who was in town for some Open Casting Calls and the rest, as they say, is history.

Are you glad you participated in Big Brother?
I'm absolutely glad I participated. I was skeptical all the way up until the move-in day, asking if this was the right decision. My mother and sisters were very upset with me about it, but it was one of the most positive processes and I had an unbelievable time doing it. I was worried about the negative associations, but every aspect of the process has been great.

If you could rewind back to when you entered the house, what would you differently?
The only thing I would change is timing. Arrogance was always a plan. It either scares people or makes them not want to be friends with you. I wanted to use it to take the spotlight or heat off of others in my alliance. The main reason I would change that tactic is because of the herd mentality. If you want the herd to turn, you do it at the last minute. If you give them time to think about it, one of them spooks. I should've kept the Memphis decision in my head about 24 hours longer. If the Veto Ceremony [had been] 12 hours earlier, Memphis would've been going home instead.

There have been comparisons made between you and Dr. Will, both young, good-looking, intelligent guys and Keesha mentioned in her good-bye message that the arrogance was your downfall. I got the impression that it was more like you were kind of an excitable puppy who just got a little ahead of yourself. What would you say you're like?
[laughs] I would say that's pretty accurate. The one season I'd seen before being on the show was season 7, [All-Star season] so I came in playing the game because in that season the game play started almost immediately. People wanted to wait a couple weeks and I thought, "In a couple weeks you're gonna be gone." I think my timing should've been delayed. I tried to do in one week what I should've done in three. The excitable puppy analogy is good because I really came into the game ready to play. I don't regret the moves that I made, I just regret the speed that I did them in.

Do you see Memphis as the frontrunner now?
I do, and the reason I do is the same reason I wanted him gone. I didn't know if I was gonna have another shot at him. He's a force to be reckoned with. He's intelligent and he's charismatic. Jessie looks up to him like a puppy dog. He's a sweetheart and he's nice and he's there to play the game. We had a lot of great talks because we are similar in a lot of ways, but I'm more extroverted and he's more of an introvert and that is the difference between him and I. If they [the other houseguests] don't see [him as a threat] they are fools. I could give you reasons why everybody else won't win, and I see him as the one to beat.

Give me some reasons, off the top of your head, why the others won't win.
Jessie is too young. He's there for the experience. His loyalty will sway depending on who is in power.
Libra is too mouthy and she's trying to mother everyone too much by things as small as controlling the amount of wine people can have.
Jerry is just there to make it to the jury house, he's said that several times. He is very easily manipulated.
Dan is too nice and too much of an unbelievably moral and strong person to let the house make any less of him.
Angie won't be able to handle the house without Steven; the girls drive her crazy. If Steven leaves, she may not think it's worth it.
April will eventually become a target because she drives the girls crazy.
Ollie will hold on to April's coattails as long as he can, but eventually he'll become an easy target.
Michelle is a joke-killer and tells the most ridiculous, fabricated stories. It's not that I don't like her, but she'd come hang out with us and she'd shoot down my jokes like ducks out of the sky and then everybody would get quiet.

What now? Are you headed back to your regular life in San Francisco?
Yeah, going to head back to San Francisco and just get back into the swing of things. I'm bummed to be out of the house, but now I won't miss my little sister's wedding on August 29th. This was an unbelievably positive experience, I'm so happy I did it. I would do anything else CBS or Big Brother asked me to because it was so enjoyable.

That's great! Thank you for talking to me today, Brian.
You're welcome, thank you!

'Big Brother': Steven Daigle's Exit Interview (SPOILERS)

By Andrea Reiher

July 24, 11:10 AM

Steven was the second evicted houseguest from the Big Brother house this week and was the second delightful interview I have had the privilege to conduct. He was pleasant and funny and even though it still stings a little to be evicted, he sees his experience in the Big Brother house as a positive one. Follow along after the jump for his complete interview. There are a few spoilers as to Keesha's thoughts on nominations, though, so beware.

What made you audition for Big Brother? Are you a fan of the show?
I become a fan during season 8. I had seen various episodes here and there, but didn't know much about the show until season 8. With that season, I watched every episode and Big Brother After Dark. I wanted to audition for season 9 but backed out. This time I sent my tape in and here we are!

Are you glad you did it? Who will you stay in contact with outside the house?
It's still too raw right now to say it was positive. I'm completely sure a week or two down the road I'm going to look back and think on all of it positively. Emotionally, I'm raw. There were so many ups and downs, it's a humongous roller coaster ride. I think I learned a lot about myself. I'm planning on staying in contact with Angie, Keesha and Dan particularly. We're planning a reunion down in New Orleans.

Do you hope there's some sort of America's Choice vote that brings back an evicted houseguest? Do you hope it will be you?
Well, of course! I don't think I got near enough time to play the game. I put a stigma on me with Brian. If America wanted to see me again, I'm totally game.

What did your goodbye message mean? Was it all inside jokes?
Everyone in the house knew me as a jokester. I always kept everything upbeat and fun in the house with silly humor, that's who I am. Most of the speech was inside jokes, things that had happened in the house. My goal was to walk out with everybody sort-of laughing, wondering and in a little bit of awe and I think I accomplished that. When you have so many hours a day to do nothing, you end up with a lot of running jokes.

I don't know if you heard, but Keesha won HOH last night. How do you feel abou that?
I'm very happy for her, she is just incredible. I initially started sleeping in a bed with Renny and ended up sleeping in a bed with Keesha and we talked a lot. I really hope she makes good choices with her HOH power. I told her immediately before eviction that if she won, I hoped she would nominated one of the Big 3 (April, Ollie and Libra) and I hope she will put two of those up and if they do win POV, replace whomever comes off with the 3rd member. They are the puppet masters right now, they are pulling all the strings in the house.

Would it surprise you to learn she's gunning for Angie?
It does surprise me. I actually heard that a little while ago, I heard possibly Angie and possibly Memphis. I was sort of the connection between Angie and Keesha. They were never really friends in the house, but they had a connection because of me. The only thing I can guess is that since I'm gone they have no connection anymore. You never know what's going to happy until the very last minute, so I really, really hope taht she makes the decisions that I asked her to.

Who is your frontrunner to win?
I think Memphis is going to do very well. He's going to be one of the tough competitors and Brian was right on track with saying that we need to get him out of the house. He's a very strong competitor.

Any parting thoughts?
If anybody wants to see me, I'm going to start bullriding again. There is a calendar of events at www.igra.com and I'm going to start hitting up as many as I can possibly make it to. I'm going to start riding again, so if anybody would like to see me, come on out! I'd love to meet some of my fans.

Steven was the second person voted out of the BB10 house. He will totally be missed.

& Jessie is still a tool.

STEVEN: Hello Jackie.

MF: Hey Steven. So good to talk to you.

STEVEN: Yes, You too. How are you doing today?

MF: Good. You are going to be so missed in the feeds. I just have to get that out there. I watch the feeds all day long, you are a blast.

STEVEN: Oh, thank you so much. That's so flattering.

MF: It's going to suck so much cuz you were a light in that house.

STEVEN: Awww.

MF: First thing I want to know is, why didn't you try & rally everyone up to the HoH like you guys did to get Brian backdoored & get Libra up?

STEVEN: Well, you know, I attempted it. I went in the room with Jessie & Michelle. Well actually first with Jessie. I ran up there, I saw the opportunity I said, "Jessie, here's the deal". I can remember that moment like it happened 5 minutes ago. My heart was pounding & I was so nervous & I just went to him & I said, "Jessie, I have a plan. Let's get Libra out of here. Everyone's upset with her. No one likes her at this time. She threw a big drama scene yesterday. I think we can do it." Jessie told me you got to get Michelle. Michelle's the one with the Power of Veto. You've got to get her on your side. Go get her. So I ran downstairs & pulled her in the room. Michelle was just scared. She was scared. She said if I could get some people to agree to it, we were trying to do it all without letting everyone know what we were doing. It's so difficult when you're there. You know instantly anything you say to anybody can then be turned around & told to people. Nothing is a secret.

MF: Why do you think that no one stands up to Libra? We've seen Renny & Jerry take shots at her but everyone else seems like they are pretty much scared of her & she just takes control of everything.

STEVEN: She's intimidating. I almost want to compare her to Dick Donato. He was just intimidating. He kind of says what he wants & does what he wants & he's very upfront. She's very upfront with how she feels about you & what she wants to say. & as much as you don't want to be intimidated by it, it's just natural to sort of feel intimidated. I'm guilty of it too. There were times I was so upset w/ her & hated her & yet she would come to me & talk to me & I would be nice to her.

MF: I understand being nice to her. I just go, ugh, she is just upsetting everyone in the house. Why doesn't the house unite to take out the cancer?

STEVEN: You are preaching to the choir honey. That's exactly how I felt. I thought for sure I had a really chance of making it happen right before the PoV. The day before I sat on the couch & listened to Keesha, April & Ollie complain about how much they do not like her. & how they were tired of her & sick of her. & I sat there & listened to who I thought were her greatest allies complaining about her. So I thought here's my shot. Here's what I'm going to do. Then the big fight with Jerry & all that happened & I thought I got it in the bag. It's gonna happen. But when it came down to it it was like everyone was scared. They were too afraid of the repercussions. I also feel you have to mix that with the fact they looked at me as a strong competitor. They looked at me as someone who was good in competitions, could make things happen possibly & they weighed it out.

MF: So is that why the house targeted you & instead of Dan? They used this big reason of Brian, Brian, Brian, guilty by association but you voted with them & Dan did not. & yet you're the one they all go after.

STEVEN: Absolutely. Absolutely. & that was my argument. I was constantly trying to pull people aside & say you think that I was with Brian. I promised Brian one favor & everyone was so certain I was completely aligned with him the whole game. I promised him one favor. It backfired on me. & then when it came right down to it I voted how the house wanted me to vote. But yet I was still stigmatized with him. With being with the person who tried to bring Memphis down & was against the house.

MF: I don't get, I understand, I have been calling them "Mob" too so I thought it was funny how you said mob mentality on 'The Early Show' I believe it was. But I don't get the OK we put these people up & this is the one we want to go & its well you better not talk to that person & then so everybody else...

STEVEN: Exactly. The mob mentality I felt very strongly about. That's what they had going on in the house. & I tried to prove a point. I said you know what, I am going to tell everyone I'm not with Brian but I am going to sit back & be his friend because at the end of the day he is a nice guy. We could not stop laughing when we were around each other. He made life in that house bearable. I was not going to forsake him just because they wanted him out of the house. Hindsight it was a mistake because it was part of the reason I was evicted. But at the same time I do not regret the decision that he is my friend & I know how it feels to sit there waiting. Basically you know you're leaving & you have to sit there & wait. To at least have people sit with you & talk to you & be your friend, it makes things a little easier to swallow.

MF: I don't know if you know who got HoH & that stuff?

STEVEN: I do. I was told Keesha won HoH which I was ecstatic about. I love Keesha to death. She's such an incredible woman. I hope she makes the right decisions.

MF: So then you don't know who she's targeting?

STEVEN: I have heard some rumors that it's possibly Angie & Memphis.

MF: Yes. I just watched Angie & April. Yeah. She's going after Angie cuz she's blaming her for some reason for your eviction.

STEVEN: Oh, you're kidding.

MF: No.

STEVEN: That's very disappointing. I had a talk with Keesha, I don't know if you saw my talk with Keesha right before the Eviction Ceremony. I had a long talk with her & I told her what I thought she should do & that was to break the big 3 up.

MF: She's twisted your words & she repeated it right away to April, Libra & Ollie & basically is telling people that you meant that Angie was after her & then she went to Jessie & said that you & Angie talked & said that Jessie was the head of that & to go after Jessie cuz she's trying to get Jessie's vote against Angie.

STEVEN: Oh my gosh.

MF: Yeah.

STEVEN: Wow. That's hard to swallow. I mean, I have to say this about Keesha. Keesha is trying really really hard to play the game. & I think she's done a good job because I mean, she's not really totally in with everyone. This is the way I look at it. This is my point of view. She's not completely in with everybody & she's not completely out with anybody. She'll sit there & tell me how much she can't stand Libra & April & hates them & the whole big fight with "go tell that Barbie Bitch to get out" & everything. Yet she somehow manages to stay good enough on their side. She's doing a really good job. I think if she wants to have any staying power in the long run... I feel like Angie & Memphis would be more assets to her than April, Libra & Ollie. I think they are going to stab her in the back the first second they get.

MF: Well they've already discussed this that they will use this now that she's the one that didn't go with "The Plan" that Dan was next & let everybody rip into Keesha next so she has no clue that she is being set up.

STEVEN: Oh gosh. That's awful. You know, that's why I had that conversation with her yesterday. & I'm really sad that she's falling victim to when things are spread. It's amazing the level of paranoia that goes on in the house.

MF: Oh, I'm sure.

STEVEN: It's almost impossible to put into words the level people begin to get paranoid & it takes control of you & makes you make poor decisions.

MF: I want to give you a chance to say something about this. Early on you made some comments in the house that people online have now deemed you racist. I look at it as when you are talking to Angie it's a sense of humor type thing but other people have gotten all up in arms about it so I wanted to give your chance to have your say on that before people blow it up even bigger.

STEVEN: Absolutely. I will be the first person to admit that I fall victim to stereotyping people. I fall victim to being ignorant to other races cuz I have not spent a lot of time with a lot of races & different ethnicities & different types of people. However, at heart I am not a racist & I give every single person an opportunity, the same opportunity regardless of what color or anything about you. You have to understand that in the house we make jokes about things & Angie was the first to joke on herself about being Asian & then the big joke about calling her "Oriental". I honestly did not know that calling someone Oriental was bad. Could totally, like I just didn't realize that that was a politically incorrect thing. So when I first said she laughed about it & thought it was a joke & then it just became a running joke. & then I've heard some things that some people are saying that I called Libra "the colored girl".

MF: Right & that's something I've defended cuz I do the feeds all day & I never heard it & so I can't go on that.

STEVEN: I was telling a story about how Jerry kept forgetting Libra's name & couldn't remember to say "Libra" & called her "the colored girl". We discussed it several times. Me & Keesha & a couple other people that someone should go tell him that he can't be saying that. Not that he's a racist, just that there's a generational gap there & he probably doesn't even realize what he's saying is so politically incorrect. Me on the other hand, I said a lot of politically incorrect things as a joke. As humor. No one in that house has ever offended me once or offended by me once that I'm aware of. If you can take that & run with that, I am not a racist.

MF: & I never thought so for a second. I wanted to know, now Jessie, his reasonf for putting you up. What is his reason, he said you didn't go to his HoH room. You didn't show him respect. What do you think?

STEVEN: I had had a really bad day. After HoH I was basically having an emotional breakdown. Just the homesickness & everything had gotten to me that afternoon. I slept. I did not go see his room. There was also another reason. Immediately following the HoH competition I walked up to say congratulations to Jessie & he walked right by me. He didn't hear me or just ignored me. I was a little annoyed with him with that too. That on top of my emotional state I wanted to sleep. I did not go in his room. I came to his room the next day immediately following the food competition & I went to his room, I asked about his pictures, wanted to know everything. I did show an interest. I think that was his way of rationalizing putting me out of the house.

MF: Makes sense. Did you get your phone?

STEVEN: [Laughs] No, I don't have my phone yet. I'm dying. It's close in hand though. It's very close & I am dying to get my phone. I know I've got a bunch of text messages & voicemails that I'm going to return.

MF: I just wanted to know that cuz I knew how badly you just wanted to be in touch w/ loved ones.

STEVEN: I do. There's someone special that I cannot wait to hear his voice.

MF: I'm sure.

STEVEN: & Jackie I just want to let you know too if you want to tell anybody that wants to see me I am going to be attending as many gay rodeos & riding bulls as much as possible for the season so if they go to http://www.igra.com/

& they can get a rodeo schedule & I would love for them to come out cuz I would love to meet some of my fans.

MF: I will definitely put that up on my site & if there is ever anything I can do to promote anything I am MediaFiends.com, just send it my way & I will happily put it up.

STEVEN: Ok. Thanks Jackie. It was great talking to you.

MF: It was great talking to you too.

Exclusive Interview with Steven from 'Big Brother 10'

Thursday, July 24, 2008
Being a strong competitor is not always a good thing on Big Brother. No one knows that better than Steven, the second houseguest evicted from Big Brother 10, who was sent home by a vote of 9-0 mostly because he was perceived to be a stronger player than Dan, who spent the week sandbagging to appear like he wasn't a threat.

BuddyTV spoke to Steven about his time in the Big Brother house. The gay rodeo champion talked about Jessie's perceived dumbness, who he thinks will win, who his good friend Keesha will nominate this week, and the details behind Porno Password.

Hi, this is John from BuddyTV, and I'm talking to Steven, the second person evicted from Big Brother 10. How's it going?

It's going great. How are you?


I'm doing great. Going right into last night, did you know that it was going to be nine to zero, or did you have some expectations of getting at least some votes?

I had gone at least a few of the houseguests and asked, "Would you at least give me a vote so I don't go out under a unanimous decision?" But, I also gave them the option that I understood they had their own game to play. I really kind of expected it to go that way.


I'm just wondering. When we're watching at home, we don't really get the full scope. But how much do you guys know when something like this happens, when the Power of Veto happens, when the nominations happen, when someone's evicted. Do you guys all pretty much know exactly how it's going to play out, or were there any surprises?

When Brian was put on the block, Jessie was removed by Power of Veto, of course, he took himself off. And then I was under the impression that Memphis was going up because that was what had been decided. Unbeknownst to me, the night before, everyone else in the house got together, had a quick meeting, and decided that instead of Memphis, Brian should go up. So when I was sitting at that Power of Veto meeting, I was shocked that Brian went up instead of Memphis. But most of the time, usually there's a general consensus. You know, I knew, once I didn't get taken off the block, I was the prime target. I was a threat to a lot of people in the house because they told me they considered me a good competitor.


Is that one of those backhanded compliments, where you accept it? Because Dan tried to do it almost the opposite way, where he tried to go against that and prove that he wasn't a good competitor. Do you think that was a good strategy?

Yeah, I mean, absolutely. I think Dan played it perfectly. It was the general consensus, I was a good competitor. I had lots of conversations with lots of people about it. And even my friends and people that wanted me to stay in the house, they said the same thing. Dan ran around the house talking about what a bad competitor he was. He didn't do very well in a few of the competitions and he showed to not be that great. From my point of view, if you're really good at things and you win a lot of things, people generally want you out.


Going off of your speech before the votes were cast last night, it seemed to be pretty much all inside jokes I'm guessing with everyone else in the house. I'm wondering if you can explain any of those. Particularly, I'm very interested in Porno Password.

We had been playing a game. You know the game Password? We had been playing that game, only we decided to put a twist on it and call it Porno Password. I don't know how much you got to see on the show, but there's definitely a generational gap as far as Jerry and the rest of the house. One of the first times we tried to play Porno Password. You know, the idea is to choose some sort of naughty word or some sort of porno style of word to use, and his idea was "derriere." And we all just cracked up about it. Everybody in the house just could not stop laughing at the fact that his idea of a porno word is derriere. And when we actually just tried to play the game out, nobody could even guess derriere because it was so far from what anybody thought would be the word.


That it is. Finally, I just have some quick questions, just about your thoughts on the other houseguests. First, who do you think is the smartest houseguest left in the house?

The smartest houseguest, I would say, is Angie.


And who would be the dumbest?

Uh, Jessie.


Is he really? Because he tried, in last night's episode, to say that he's not that dumb. But is that the consensus, that he really is the stereotypical, what you'd expect from him?

It's really hard to say. I mean, when it comes to bodybuilding, he's very intelligent. He knows a lot about your body and how to work out. But he's only 22, and when you spend a lot of time with him, it really shows. His age, his maturity level, his intelligence really shows that he has a lot of growing up to do.


Who do you think has the best chance to win the entire game?

I actually discussed this with several houseguests and we were in agreement that we think Memphis has a very good chance of winning. It's early, so it's hard to get a real accurate forecast, but Memphis is a smart guy and he's playing things right.


That's exactly what Brian said as well last week, so there seems to be a consensus from at least everyone coming out of the house and, I guess, in the house too.

Yes, absolutely. And wha'ts funny is that he seems to be sliding under the radar, and I'm not quite sure if it's because he was targeted so early that people feel sorry for, and the fact that they like him, and he's smart and playing his cards well. I don't know. Maybe a combination of all of those.


And then, with Keesha being the new HoH, who do you think is most in danger of being nominated and who do you think is going to be the target of elimination this week?

I had a discussion with Keesha right before the eviction ceremony, and I told her that she had to win HoH and that she had to put up two of the big three, either Libra, April or Ollie, because those three, in my opinion, are controlling the house right now. Although Keesha was playing both sides of it - she was their friend and my friend - she's definitely a target. They want her out. And she would be very wise to break those three up.

We chatted with Steven, the second Big Brother houseguest to be eliminated from Big Brother 10 and found out how he became interested in trying out and who he wasn't so fond of from season 8.

Q. Mark, RealityWanted.com: Steve, how's it going?

A. Steven, Big brother 10: The day just started, but I am having a great time.

Q. Mark, RealityWanted.com: Have you done press deals like this in the past?

A. Steven, Big Brother 10: I have done some for the gay rodeo. I used to get pulled aside by the media often.

Q. Mark, RealityWanted.com: Absorb as much as you can because it will leave just as fast as it shows up. I know many rabid Big Brother fans know your background but for those that don't, tell us where you are from?

A. Steven, Big Brother 10: I live in Dallas TX and grew up in Houston but I am originally from Louisiana. Right now I work as a GIS analyst.

Q. Mark, RealityWanted.com: That brings me to a question many people ask about those who appear on Reality shows. You said you work, will you have a job when you get home?

A. Steven, Big Brother 10: I am very lucky, my boss let me have a 3months leave of absence, so I will have a job when I get home.

Mark, RealityWanted.com: Really, that's very cool of him.

A. Steven, Big Brother 10: I was lucky since some of the houseguests you see on the show now had to quit work in order to be on the show.

Q. Mark, RealityWanted.com: You're a lucky man, at least outside of the Big Brother house. Did you watch the show prior to being on it?

A. Steven, Big Brother 10: I had seen bits and pieces in the past, but really sunk my teeth into it during season 8. I also got hooked on Showtime After dark. I wasn't a fan of Evel Dick and Daniele and skipped watching season 9.

Q. Mark, RealityWanted.com: I have to ask, why didn't you like Evel Dick and his daughter?

A. Steven, Big Brother 10: I didn't like his personal attacks on the other cast. I also think the two of them plotted before they entered the house. I do give them respect for winning the game, but I wasn't a fan.

Q. Mark, RealityWanted.com: Well you will get to see Dick soon on Housecalls, I am sure you two will have fun. Talk with me about how you got on the show.

A. Steven, Big Brother 10: I thought about applying for season 9, but I was too busy with other things in my life. When I saw the ad for season 10 I decided to send in a tape and here I am.

Q. Mark, RealityWanted.com: As some know I got to spend 12 hours locked up in the house and I went stir crazy. I can't imagine being there several days, weeks, or months with no TV, radio, books, internet, or a phone. Can you tell people what it was like to be locked up in the Big Brother house?

A. Steven, Big Brother 10: It is really hard to put into words. Being in that house is a total upheaval of everything you know. You lose all control over your life and you almost revert back to a child since you are told what to do and where to be. You can't imagine what it is like to sit in a house for 24 hours a day and be told what to do, we also don't sleep much.

Q. Mark, RealityWanted.com: What about the eviction, do you feel you were unfairly targeted for being close to Brian?

A. Steven, Big Brother 10: I made the mistake of spending time with Brian and socializing with him after he was targeted, but I think it was a combination of a grudged vote and a strategic vote that got me evicted since I think I was perceived as a threat.

Q. Mark, RealityWanted.com: Will you watch the show when you get home?

A. Steven, Big Brother 10: 100%

We appreciate your time and hope to see you at the finale.

Big Brother 10: Midseasonreplacements Interviews Steven

MSR: Our first question is one I'm sure you're getting a lot, what went wrong and what would you do differently?

Steven:[laughs] Oh my god, that's such a broad question. I would say basically I probably should have been a little wiser with how I handles Brian. I should have backed down and gone with the house a little more…

MSR: Backed down in terms of…?

Steven:I sort of put a stigma on myself by agreeing to go with him in everything. Not that I necessarily regret my decisions, I just did not choose wisely.

MSR:But you and Dan were sort of in the same boat. You both supported Brian. What really turned it for you to go out instead of him?

Steven:Basically from my point of view, and this is what other house guests told me, is that I was much more of a competitor than Dan. Not only in competitions, but just in the house and talking with people. They saw me as way more of a threat than Dan.

MSR: Do you think you could have swung it if you had another chance in terms of strategy?

Steven:I think once the POV meeting was over and Michelle decided not to use POV, it was pretty much impossible. I knew from that moment on I was going home. I did not roll over, I had numerous tricks up my sleeve that I was running around the house trying. [laughs] At the last minute I went around asking people one-by-one if they would just give me one vote so I wouldn't go out with zero, you know, a unanimous decision. I thought if I could get enough people to offer me one vote, then I could get enough to stay. But it didn't work. I respect people's decisions. They were looking out for their back. Now it's a mob mentality and basically if you did not vote to evict me, your head was on the chopping block.

MSR:Your plan to get Libra up on the block was a really good one, and it almost seemed to work. What was it you think that kept Michelle from going with the play, she seemed…

Steven:Um…I almost feel like an outsider because you see a lot more than I see. In my opinion, Michelle knows she's sort of on the fringes. It doesn't seem to me that she has any strong alliances. And so by sticking her neck out there and offering Libra up as a sacrifice, basically, she felt like she was putting a nail in the coffin to send her home the next week. But I tried to convince her. I'm not sure how much you saw of that. I tried to convince her…I told her..She asked me straight up, "What happens if I go on the block.." You know, if she went on the block next week would I take her off the block? And I told her I would. I promised her, I said all you have to do is give me one more week in this house and I'll prove my loyalty to you. But in the end she decided not to.

MSR: And with Keesha as HOH now, you could have been in a very strong position

Steven: I could have been in a great position. Had Dan gone out and Keesha won, it would have changed everything in that house. I would have hoped that me and Keesha could have worked together and put a plan out to get some key people out of the house.

MSR: Do you think your rodeo skills were an advantage or a disadvantage?

Steven:I definitely think as far as actual like physical challenges…I don't know if you noticed but after the first- the car- challenge, I had bruises and scrapes all up and down my whole body. When it comes down to competing, I don't think about pain or hurting myself, all I think about is winning. And that's something that definitely comes from rodeoing. When you're on that bull you get hurt or you're hurt, whatever, you don't stop until its over.

MSR: How long would it take for you to rope Jessie?

Steven:[laughs] You know, I don't know what's up with Jessie. He's a strange one. He's young, he's immature, he's got a lot of growing up to do, but actually is a nice guy.

MSR: Well, we were all inspired by his goodbye message to you. So what lessons did he teach you about improving your physique?

Steven:He's an incredible body builder. That's what he does for a living- he works out. So we spent a lot of time working out together. I worked out before I came into the show, but it was really nice to work out with him. He showed me new tricks and tips. He taught me a lot while I was in the house with him and irregardless of him putting me up on the block, we actually were friends in the house and we actually did…I don't know how much of us working out you saw but we spent a lot of time together.

MSR: You also spent a lot of time with Dan. You seem to be his first gay friend ever. How was that?

Steven:I was really glad for that opportunity. If nothing else comes good of this show other than the fact that I got to spend time with someone who's never been friends with a gay man and show him that I'm just a normal guy who…We actually became pretty good friends together. I would be happy if that's all that came from that. I think Dan is a really nice guy. I think he's a little sheltered and a little naïve to the world. I hope I taught him a good lesson that gay men are just like anybody else. That gays, and lesbians or whatever, we're just people too.

MSR: Who's you're prediction for the winner of Big Brother?

Steven: My guess at this point is Memphis.

MSR: Really? Same as Brian?

Steven:He's flying under the radar, man. He is like…he's doing a great job, and I really have a strong suspicion that he's gonna keep making it week after week after week. Everyone really likes him, he hasn't pissed anybody off, he's physically strong, mentally he's strong. I think he's gonna do well.

MSR: But he's not that far under the radar if the two evictees have picked him as the winner.

STEVEN: Yeah…but…It's weird. It's literally like you step into an alternate universe when you are inside those doors.

MSR: I believe that.

Steven:It's different in there. It's hard to explain, but it is different. When you're in there, everyone just doesn't seem to be catching on quite yet what a good competitor he is. I mean, they all overturned Brian's wanting to evict him, and that was a great opportunity right there to get a great competitor out, and they didn't do it.

MSR: Who do you think is the next out?

Steven:If it goes my way… I had a conversation with Keesha, and I told Keesha she had to win HOH, which she did, and I told her she has to break up the big three by getting one of them out- Libra Ollie or April. That's who I would really like to see leave is one of those three. I think it's gonna shake the house up, turn things upside down, and kind of, sort of make it anybody's game.

MSR: Is there anything else you'd like to add?

Steven: I just want to let you know that if any of my fans when they want to see me, I'm gonna start hitting the gay rodeo circuit again. And I would love for people to come out, and I would love to meet some of my fans, and meet people, and anyone who would like to see me ride bulls. I'd love to have them come out. They can get the rodeo schedule at igra.com. Just let everybody know that I'd love to meet them.