It’s always tragic when someone loses their life.

AdelaideNow by FIONA CONNOLLY

A WOMAN who appeared on a Channel Ten reality show has died in an apparent suicide and posted a note a MySpace website blaming the series for her death.

American Cheryl Kosewicz, a 35-year-old deputy district attorney was found dead in her Nevada home from an apparent suicide last week after being the fourth eliminated contestant on the CBS series Pirate Master.

The show, hosted by Australian actor Cameron Daddo, was axed by CBS in the US last week and while it has proved a fizzer for Channel Ten, the network is still airing the treasure-finding reality show in the graveyard slot of Sunday afternoons.

Kosewiczs death occurred less than two months after her boyfriend, 26-year-old heavy machinery operator Ryan ONeil also took his own life.

According to her My Space posting, being part of the Pirate Master series caused problems in their relationship.

“Truthfully, I’ve lost the strong Cheryl and Im just floating around lost,” she wrote in a June 28 comment on the My Space account of fellow contestant Nessa Nemir.

“And this frik’n show doesn’t help because it was such a contention between Ryan and I and plus its not getting good reviews.”

Kosewicz was the fourth contestant to be eliminated in the show, filmed in Dominica earlier this year, which pits 16 contestants against each other in an attempt to find hidden treasure.

It is the second suicide involving a production by Mark Burnett, the creator of Survivor, following the 2005 death of American boxer Najai Nitro Turpin who fatally shot himself after an episode in which he starred in the boxing reality show The Contender aired.

Here’s more info in the Forum.

Pirate Master has been canceled, according to the CBS.com website. The 5 remaining unaired episodes will be show each week on the website and not on TV. It’s being replaced tonight by 48 Hours Mystery.

I wonder who will win? Oh, wait. I don’t care.

Very interesting article in the LA Times about Mark Burnett. Is his career starting to fade or is the genre starting to fade? What will TV look like in a couple years?

Mark Burnett is still reality TVs real deal - Newsday.com BY SCOTT COLLINS Los Angeles Times

Despite recent woes, reality TV super producer Mark Burnett is a Hollywood survivor who remains at the top of his game

Here’s a good example of Hollywood power. Just as we were getting ready to chat with reality TV super producer Mark Burnett about the ratings woes for recent efforts such as “Pirate Master” and “On the Lot,” the phone rang with an unexpected call. It was Ben Silverman, the newly tapped co-chairman of NBC Entertainment, who wanted to make sure we knew that he thought Burnett was a “phenomenal” producer.

In fact, Silverman added, he’d even made it a priority to revive Burnett’s “The Apprentice,” the once-phenomenal Donald Trump show that as recently as last month looked destined to bite the dust at NBC.

Don’t you wish your friends had your back like this? More… »

These are the things we know so far. From various sources and posted in the forum.

Survivor China Cast - Reality TV Forums at Survivor.com

16 players
Immunity Idol
No exile Island

Mike Zernow, 20 years old
Stunt performer
Chicago
__________________

Sherea Lloyd–Stone Mt. Georgia
school teacher, 26 years old
__________________

Aaron Reisberger 34 years old, chicago
Ohio St. Grad
__________________

Leslie Nease–2001 Miss United States contestant, Christian radio host, 38 years old
Peih-Gee Law–29 years old, University of California Grad, in sales

Fiming started June 25th
Filming ends August 2nd

Tribe names:
Zhau Hu-Fighting Tigers
Fei Loung-Flying Dragons
__________________

Jean-Robert Bellande–Pro poker player ( like on ESPN and other channels)
Ashley Marie Massaro-WWE Diva

CBS.com says:

The reality show that started it all continues to raise the bar with it’s exotic locations and high risk challenges with SURVIVOR: CHINA. The new competition unleashes an eclectic group of castaways on the ancient south central province of Jiang Xi, where they are prepared for adventure, danger, and surprises, in the hope s of winning $1 million and becoming the ultimate survivor.

Variety.com - Emmy snubs Survivor, Showtime by JOSEF ADALIAN

Survivor
Survivor got the cold shoulder from Emmy voters this year.
“Survivor” has been voted off of Emmy island — and it’s not the only show that’s not feeling the love this year.

For the first time since the TV Academy launched a reality competition category in 2003, Mark Burnett’s CBS skein has not been nominated in the category. Voters appeared to have subbed in Bravo’s “Top Chef,” which is making its first appearance in the competion.

Despite being credited with launching the reality competition boom in 2000, “Survivor” has never won the Emmy for reality competition. Another CBS skein — “The Amazing Race” — has snagged the statuette each of the past four years. More… »

“Survivor” Champ Spits Venom at Snake Eater - TMZ.com by TMZ Staff

Jenna Morasca — the winner of “Survivor: Amazon” — is biting the CBS hand that fed her, after a wannabe contestant skinned and bit into a live snake during auditions for the next “Survivor. ” Jenna screamed for cops to throw the snake-chomper in the slammer

Morasca, through The Humane Society, thrashed “Survivor,” saying that its “billed as a reality show, but sadly, cruelty to animals is a reality that occurs every day. I hope local authorities fully investigate this case, and I hope the man who did this gets to experience the reality of jail time.”

The Bakersfield Californian first reported that a man from Tehachapi skinned and ate a live snake for his audition, and gave his name only as Rusty Shackleford, a common pseudonym used on “King of the Hill.”

“Survivor” has been littered with live animals killed and eaten, including a live chicken in “Survivor: Vanuatu,” and a wild pig hunted and killed in the “Australian Outback” edition.

StarNewsOnline.com | Star-News | Wilmington, NC By Ken Little

Woman who claims she lived with Herd seeks child support, medical expenses

Survivor contestant Andria “Dre” Herd spent weeks baking in the Fiji sun, overcoming dehydration, depravation and the relentless plotting of opponents.

The Wilmington native came in second on the show, winning $100,000 and, after a controversial deal with another contestant, a pickup truck valued at $60,000. But back home, the 25-year-old was soon slapped with a paternity lawsuit by a former member of his Wilmington tribe who gave birth to a baby boy Nov. 30. More… »

Ahh… Rosie…

Usmagazine.com

Rosie ODonnell pokes fun at Elizabeth Hasselbeck during a cruise ship performance on July 8, 2007.

Looks like Rosie O’Donnell has some issues about her premature departure from The View.

The comedian, 45, laid into Elisabeth Hasselbeck — her former friend and cohost — in front of a 1,500-person audience on her cruise from NYC to a private island in the Bahamas for gay and lesbian families.

A witness tells Us that O’Donnell trotted out a giant photo of Hasselbeck doctored up as the devil, made a “crazy” gesture at the poster and said, “Her only f–king credit was Survivor. Come on”

And O’Donnell implied that the pair’s famous last battle wasn’t held on an even playing field.

“I can’t fight with pregnant people. Just go have your baby and have a nice life.”

O’Donnell also told the crowd that when you do a show with a group of gals, “before you know it, you’ve got a Jimmy Choo in your back”

Finally, she targeted Donald Trump.

Recalls the witness, “Rosie said she’d love to break into his apartment and rub her belly all over him.”

Hasselbeck’s rep had no comment. Trump’s rep could not be reached.

Info is rolling on on the China season.

Reality TV Forums at Survivor.com

3 more players

Dave Cruser–38 years old, into water polo–not a lot of info on him yet
Leslie Nease–2001 Miss United States contestant, Christian radio host
Peih-Gee Law–29 years old, University of California Grad,sales

Fiming started June 25th
Filming ends August 2nd

Tribe names:
Zhau Hu-Fighting Tigers
Fei Loung-Flying Dragons

www.buddytv.com

Rumors concerning Survivor are everywhere these days. Its hard to separate the fact from the fiction, mostly because theres just so much noise out there. Some outlets are reporting that Survivor: All-Stars II has been confirmed, although CBS has had nothing to say on that subject. I found one rumor stating that CBS was filming back-to-back seasons of Survivor while in China, and that the second would be an All-Star edition. Unfortunately, that doesn’t make much sense. Casting calls are going on right now across the country. But, what exactly do these casting calls mean? Could something diabolical be going on?

This is what we know for sure about the next two seasons of Survivor: More… »