Survivor (TV series)

is commonly considered the mother of reality TV because it was the first highly-rated and profitable reality show on broadcast television. The show even has its own "reality coaster" at Paramount's Great America in the San Francisco Bay Area, called Survivor: The Ride!.

Premise

Except where noted, this text refers to the American version of the show. Small differences may exist between it and other versions. Also, rule changes instituted for one season are discussed below.

Tribes and Immunity

At least 16 strangers (18 or 20 in some seasons) are stranded in a remote location and divided into equally sized teams called "tribes". They compete against each other in competitions called challenges. There are two types of challenges: reward challenges and immunity challenges. Both types consist of endurance, problem solving, teamwork, dexterity, and/or will power. In reward challenges, the contestants compete for luxuries that are not essential for survival but make their lives easier and/or more enjoyable. Examples of rewards have included food, flint, matches, rain gear, and even short vacations. In immunity challenges, the contestants compete for immunity, meaning they get to stay in the game until at least the next immunity challenge. After the immunity challenge the losing tribe must vote to remove one of their own members from the game at the Tribal Council. When there are at most 10 players left in the game (9 in All-Stars and Palau, 8 in Thailand), they "merge" into a single tribe. From this point, challenges are won on an individual basis. Rewards are given to only one player, and sometimes that player has the option of sharing the reward with one or more other players. In some cases, the post-merge reward challenges are won by teams that are randomly selected beforehand.

Tribal Council

The final 7 at tribal council in Survivor Guatemala

Tribal Council is held at the end of each episode. Here, the tribemates vote one person out of their tribe. Jeff Probst, the show's host, questions the players, often provoking revealing details from them of events and interactions since the tribe's previous tribal council. The players then vote in secret and explain their vote at the voting confessional, and the player who receives the most votes must leave the game. That player takes his or her torch to Probst, who extinguishes it, and declares "The tribe has spoken." The player then exits the Tribal Council area and delivers some final words that air at the end of the episode.

In the event of a tie, the following tiebreakers have been used:
*Seasons 2 and 3: After a tied re-vote, whoever had the most prior Tribal Council votes was eliminated.
*Season 4: After a tied non-secret (verbal) re-vote, the players who did not have immunity picked rocks out of a bag. Whoever drew the purple rock (Paschal English) was eliminated.
*Season 10: With only two contestants remaining, they had to vote for each other as per the rules. Therefore, a fire-building challenge was issued where the loser (Bobby Jon Drinkard) was eliminated.
*Season 12: After a tied vote, a fire-building challenge was issued where the loser (Cirie Fields) was eliminated.

Note 1: With the same number of prior votes, the person to lose a sudden death trivia challenge is eliminated.

Note: 2: Previous tie-breaker re-votes do not count as "previous votes" in a future tie

When three contestants are remaining in the game, only the winner of that immunity challenge may vote, as the votes from the other two contestants would cancel each other out.

End of the game

All eliminated players, except the final nine, leave the game altogether. Those who finish in ninth through third place remain to form the "jury". In the final episode of some seasons, the players are given a small amount of food or another luxury to celebrate making the final four. Next, in all seasons, the players compete in an immunity challenge. Immediately following this challenge another person is voted out. The players return to camp and later participate in a memorial activity, which varies from season to season, for the players previously eliminated from the game. After that, the final immunity challenge of the game, which typically emphasizes endurance, is held, and whoever wins this challenge votes the final jury member out, thereby determining which two players go to the final two. The final two return to camp for the last day. At the final Tribal Council, each of the seven jurors vote for who they want to be the winner. Jeff Probst takes the container with the votes, and it is secured until the live finale of the show when the votes are revealed and the million-dollar winner is announced. (The first season was different, as the jury votes were revealed immediately after they were cast, just like any other Tribal Council).

Prizes

Every player receives a stipend for participating on Survivor depending on how long they last in the game. The known prizes for All-Stars are as follows: 2nd = $250,000; 3rd = $125,000; 4th = $100,000. In most seasons, the runner-up receives $100,000, and third place wins $85,000. Sonja Christopher, the first player voted off in Survivor's first season, received $2,500. Senior Women Web Tina Wesson, the first player voted off in Survivor: All-stars, received $25,000. The prizes in seasons with more than sixteen contestants are unknown.

The million-dollar winner also wins an automobile, as does the winner of a specific reward challenge in each season (excluding the first). All players also receive an additional $10,000 for their appearance on the reunion show.

Game rules

(rules may vary in foreign versions of the series)
*Conspiring to split winnings will result in immediate expulsion from the game.
*Except for the occasional challenges which involve wrestling or limited combat, any physical violence between players will result in immediate expulsion from the game.
*At Tribal Council, players are not permitted to vote for themselves, nor can they spoil their ballots or decline to cast a vote. Players must also show who they voted for to the camera inside the voting booth.
*Contestants must abide by U.S., as well as local law.
*Contestants may not skip any tribal councils, nor can they refuse to participate in an immunity or reward challenge, unless the game itself offers them to do so, as in the cases of Survivor: Guatemala and Survivor: Exile Island.
*When one tribe has more players than the other tribe, it must designate players to sit out of tribal challenges so that equal numbers compete. This rule was relaxed only in the Survivor: The Australian Outback season because Jeff Probst felt neither team would be helped or hindered by the numeric disparity. Beginning with Survivor: Africa, the rules specifically stated that any player who sits out a reward challenge cannot sit out the following immunity challenge. In Survivor: Palau episodes 7-8 the Koror tribe had 8 players while Ulong only had 3 (and then 2), which forced the show to allow various Koror players to sit out back-to-back challenges. The only qualification then was that the same 2-3 players could not participate in each concurrent challenge. Katie Gallagher and Janu Tornell, both of the Palau season, tie for the most sit-outs of any players (they each sat out 7 challenges over 8 episodes).
*Tribe members may not raid or visit the campsite of another tribe unless they are doing so as part of an immunity challenge, reward challenge or tribal merger activity with the other tribe. They also cannot visit the TV crew compound. There have been four exceptions to this rule:
**During the 1st Season when Kelly Wiglesworth was invited to the production camp, even though it was disguised as a local bar, as part of a reward.
**During the 2nd season when Michael Skupin was injured he was taken to a production tent to await the arrival of a medevac helicopter.
**During the 7th season the privilege to 'loot' things from the opposing tribe's camp was often included as part of the reward.
**During one episode in Guatemala, members of the Yaxha tribe visited the Nakum tribe and invited them back to their camp for Danni's birthday party. There is no indication as to whether the rule has changed or if this was a one-time event. It's also possible that because neither Yaxha nor Nakum technically entered the opposing tribes camp that this was not a technical violation of this rule.
*Depending on which country the show takes place in, contestants may be barred from killing certain forms of plant or animal life.

Concept history

The creation of the Survivor concept, although credited to Charlie Parsons, was actually conceived by Bob Geldof's Planet 24 television company. It initially failed to attract the attention of any of the major broadcasters in Britain or the United States and was eventually sold to the Swedish television company Strix Television as Expedition Robinson (alluding to Robinson Crusoe). The show was a major hit in Sweden.

The initial series was a huge ratings success in the US in 2000 and, along with ABC's prime-time game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, sparked a reality-television revolution. Suddenly networks pushed sitcoms and conventional drama series to the back burner and rushed their own reality shows into development. Even the Fox Network, which had vowed never to air a reality show again just months earlier following media outrage surrounding its Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire? program, broke its promise and launched several competitors of its own. Survivor's second season, in the winter/spring of 2001, drew even larger audiences. Subsequent US versions have attracted smaller but still substantial audiences. There have also been British and Australian versions of the show in 2001 and 2002 respectively. Both were ratings flops. Indeed in Britain, its failure was a national joke (though ratings for the UK series were considerably lower than ITV had hoped for, it still regularly attracted six to eight million viewers, a decent rather than huge audience, but enough for ITV to commission a second series which appeared a year later). A Japanese version was also produced for four installments which achieved some success TBS Japan. Broadcast rights for the American version have been sold to various broadcasters and is viewed in many countries around the world.

US Survivor seasons

Locations of the different seasons

The United States version is produced by Mark Burnett and hosted by Jeff Probst. It airs Thursdays on CBS.

#Survivor: Borneo (also called Survivor: Pulau Tiga, Survivor 1, or simply Survivor) was set in the South China Sea on the remote Malaysian island of Pulau Tiga. Corporate trainer Richard Hatch was its winner in a 4-3 vote over river raft guide Kelly Wiglesworth. (NOTE: For this season only, it aired on Wednesdays.)#Survivor: The Australian Outback was set in the Australian Outback (though the location was by Australian standards not particularly remote, nor was it arid). Tina Wesson won 4-3 over Colby Donaldson. During this series, Michael Skupin suffered burns and became the first contestant evacuated due to injuries. #Survivor: Africa was set in Kenya's Shaba National Reserve http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,8472,00.html, (previously home to the film Born Free http://www.roveafrica.com/itineraries/survivor_itin.htm). Former USL player Ethan Zohn won, defeating retired teacher Kim Johnson by a vote of 5-2. #Survivor: Marquesas was set on Nuku Hiva, the largest of the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia. For the first time the final two were both women. Vecepia Towery won by a vote of 4-3 over Neleh Dennis. This season was the only time the infamous Purple Rock tie breaker was ever used. However, Jeff Probst later admitted that it was not supposed to be used at the final 4 as it was. The Purple Rock is only the tie breaker up to the final 6. At the final 4, the tie breaker is supposed to be a fire-starting challenge. #Survivor: Thailand was set on the island of Ko Tarutao off the coast of Thailand. For the first time the tribes were not predetermined by producers, but were rather picked by the two oldest players, Jake and Jan. Also, this season was the first to feature a "fake merge" and a delayed merge. Also, two opposing tribes lived together on the same beach. For the first time the final two were both men. Used car salesman Brian Heidik beat restaurant owner Clay Jordan by a vote of 4-3. This season is often considered the worst season among fans due to its unlikable cast and its mean-spirited nature. #Survivor: The Amazon was set in the jungles of the Amazon River region of Brazil. This was the first time the two tribes were divided up by males and females. Student and model Jenna Morasca won by a vote of 6-1 over Matthew Von Ertfelda. #Survivor: Pearl Islands was set in the Pearl Islands off the coast of Panama. Sandra Diaz-Twine defeated Lillian Morris by a vote of 6-1. This season was the first time players who had been voted out were allowed to return to the game as part of the Outcast Tribe. This season is considered a favorite among Survivor fans due to a great cast and a popular winner. #Survivor: All-Stars was also set in the Pearl Islands. The game featured eighteen past Survivor contestants divided into three tribes. Amber Brkich won by a vote of 4-3 over Rob Mariano. Just before the live vote was revealed, Rob and Amber became engaged. Survivor: America's Tribal Council was held four days later, and a second million-dollar prize was awarded to Rupert Boneham for being voted by the viewers as their favorite contestant (making him the only player in the show's history to win a million dollars on the show without actually being the "sole survivor").#Survivor: Vanuatu - Islands of Fire was set on islands in the archipelago nation of Vanuatu, located in the South Pacific Ocean. Chris Daugherty defeated Twila Tanner by a vote of 5-2.#Survivor: Palau was set in the island nation of Palau, located in the Philippine Sea. The season started with 20 contestants, but on Day 3, the number was reduced to 18 in a tribal selection process. The season concluded with firefighter Tom Westman prevailing over Katie Gallagher by a vote of 6-1. #Survivor: Guatemala - The Mayan Empire was set in the Yaxha National Park. 18 Survivors (16 new contestants plus Stephenie LaGrossa and Bobby Jon Drinkard from Survivor: Palau) were stranded amongst the ruins of the Maya civilization. The season concluded with Danni Boatwright defeating Stephenie LaGrossa by a 6-1 vote.#Survivor: Panama - Exile Island was set in the Pearl Islands of Panama, marking the third time this location has been used for Survivor. Bruce Kanegai became the second person in the history of the show to leave due to a medical emergency. The season concluded with Aras Baskauskas defeating Danielle DiLorenzo by a vote of 5-2.#Survivor: Cook Islands will premiere in the autumn of 2006. This thirteenth season will take place on the Cook Islands in the South Pacific Ocean.
*CBS has signed on for at least two more seasons of Survivor, carrying into 2007. Jeff Probst is currently contracted to host until at least the sixteenth edition.
Survivor: Marquesas was not shown in Australia as the network was showing a series of Australian Survivor instead. The latter was not a ratings success, and since then the American edition of Survivor resumed airing.
*Beginning with Survivor: Vanuatu - Islands of Fire, an internet talk show called Survivor Live airs the day after a show on CBS.com.
*In 2005, the US cable Network OLN (formerly known as Outdoor Life Network) began showing reruns of the first ten series.
*Since late 2000/early 2001 the Irish TV station, TG4 has broadcast Survivor. The show is narrated in the Irish Language but all of the contestants' voices, including Jeff and any other person shown, are broadcast in English. The show has developed a huge cult fanbase in Ireland. Since then, TG4 has broadcast every series of Survivor, and at one stage, during the Marquesas season, there was ony a 14 day gap between USA broadcast and Irish broadcast, the closest for any series of Survivor.

Controversies & legal action

Turmoil between players is commonplace for any reality series, but Survivor has had a few instances which went beyond mere intertribal squabbles:
*In February 2001, Borneo player Stacey Stillman filed a lawsuit claiming producers interfered in the process of the game by persuading two members of her team (Sean Kenniff and Dirk Been) to vote her off instead of Rudy Boesch. Been supported her allegations. Mark Burnett countersued Stillman for $5 million. The case was eventually settled out of court.
*At the trivia immunity challenge for Africa's final four players, host Jeff Probst asked which female player in their season had no piercings. Kim Johnson answered Kelly Goldsmith, got the point, and went on to win the challenge, which pushed her to third and ultimately (after another immunity win) second place. Tom Buchanan was eliminated. Months later, the cast and producers (who were preparing for the live finale and reunion) watched the episode backstage. During the rebroadcast of the challenge, Lindsey Richter shouted to the TV that she had no piercings. Lex van den Berghe's answer had been Lindsey, yet the show had not awarded him a point, thus drastically changing the outcome of the game (van den Berghe was eliminated in third place). CBS later paid van den Berghe and Buchanan a settlement Reality News Online.
*In the fifth episode of the All-Star season, a naked Richard Hatch may or may not have come into contact with Sue Hawk after she blocked his path during an immunity challenge. Hatch was voted out that day for other reasons; Hawk quit the game a few days later (episode six). Hawk considered filing a lawsuit against the parties involved, but appeared with Hatch on The Early Show the morning after the sixth episode aired, stating she opted out of legal action because CBS had helped her "deal with the situation".
*In order to be sure to win the Reward Challenge in which the castaways competed to win a visit from their friends/loved ones, Pearl Islands Survivor Johnny Fairplay Dalton conspired beforehand with friend Dan Fields in what has been described by Probst as the greatest lie on Survivor to date. Fields told Dalton that his grandmother, Jean Cooke, had died, in order to win sympathy from his tribemates and subsequently the reward. In reality, Cooke had not died, a fact that only emerged to his tribemates once the episode had aired. When the show staff heard about Cooke's "death," they called Dalton's family to offer condolences, only to have Cooke herself answer the phone. Dalton admitted in confessional after the challenge that his grandmother was alive and probably watching Jerry Springer. On the reunion show, Jeff Probst had a short interview with Cooke, who was not only alive and well, but also much younger and more attractive than many had expected.
*Richard Hatch, the winner of season 1 of Survivor, was charged and found guilty of failing to report his winnings to the IRS to avoid taxes. He has been sentenced to four years, three months in prison.The Smoking Gun. January 18, 2005

Trivia

*In all, there have been 182 different American Survivor contestants over the 12 seasons, 20 of whom were able to compete twice in two different seasons. These 20 were all 18 Survivor: All-Stars players, Stephenie LaGrossa, and Bobby Jon Drinkard. In addition, Lillian Morris and Burton Roberts got to play twice in the same season when they were voted back into Survivor: Pearl Islands.
*Both winners in the British series won the grand prize by a 7-0 vote. No grand prize winner on any of the other series have won by a 7-0 vote. There were, however, four cases in the American version in which a contestant has won by a 6-1 vote. The first was in the Amazon, where Jenna Morasca defeated Matthew Von Ertfelda. The following season, Pearl Islands, Sandra Diaz-Twine beat Lillian Morris. In Survivor Palau, firefighter Tom Westman won over Katie Gallagher. Most recently, in Guatemala, Survivor's eleventh season, the vote was 6-1 when Stephanie Lagrossa was beaten by Danni Boatwright.
* Series host Jeff Probst declared that strategic mastermind Rob Cesternino from Survivor: The Amazon was the "smartest player to never win."
* Tom Buchanan holds the record for most days on Survivor ever, with 73 (37 days on Survivor: Africa and 36 on Survivor: All-Stars). Amber Brkich comes in a close second, with 72 (33 on Survivor: The Australian Outback and 39 on All-Stars). Stephenie LaGrossa is third with 69 days (30 on Survivor: Palau and 39 on Survivor: Guatemala).
* The first twist ever was a swapping of tribe members. This has happened six times in the first twelve seasons. (Survivor: Africa, Survivor: Marquesas, Survivor: The Amazon, Survivor: All-Stars, Survivor: Vanuatu, and Survivor: Guatemala). Guatemala and Africa did this the earliest, on day ten (according to the review-of-season montage in the finale).
* The winner of the car reward challenge has never gone on to win the title of "Sole Survivor". This has become known as the "Car Curse." This was most prevalant in Survivor: Guatemala episode 13, when Cindy Hall was given a chance to give up her car that she had won in a Reward Challenge in exchange for all four of the remaining contestants to receive a car. She reluctantly refused and was promptly voted out at the subsequent tribal council, due to Rafe and Danni deciding that it wasn't fair for Cindy to keep her car, instead of giving it to them after they had lost the challenge.
*All winners of the loved one visit reward have always gone on to lose, but there has been no real reference to this as a "curse."
The Amazing Race host, Phil Keoghan, was considered as a host for Survivor, but was told that being a New Zealander counted against him.

UK Survivor

Survivor (UK) premiered in the United Kingdom in 2001. The format was similar to the US version and was screened on ITV. Sixteen contestants were marooned on the island of Pulau Tiga and were split into two tribes. They completed in challenges and schemed against each other. Charlotte Hobrough won the first series. Despite the hype surrounding the show it did poorly in the ratings and was heavily criticised by the press.

Despite the disappointing performance of the first series, ITV commissioned a second series with some changes. Presenters Mark Austin and John Leslie were replaced by Channel 4 cricket presenter Mark Nicholas. There were twelve contestants instead of sixteen and the show was scheduled in a later time slot. The second series was set in Panama, in the Bocas Del Toro area, not in the Pearl Islands, and Jonny Gibb won. The ratings were still low so ITV cancelled the show.

Survivor: a chronology

DVD releases

Date	Event
1994-1995	British producer Charlie Parsons created the idea for Survivor, but was unable to find a TV company interested in the idea.
1995	Mark Burnett first told about the idea that would become Survivor.
1996	Sweden bought the rights to Survivor.
Summer 1997	Sweden's Expedition Robinson series 1 filmed by Strix.
Fall 1997	Sweden's Expedition Robinson series 1 aired and is a huge hit.
Unknown	John de Mol bought the rights to 'Survivor', but created Big Brother instead.
1998	Mark Burnett bought the United States rights to Survivor.
Summer 1999	Mark Burnett's Survivor was turned down by NBC, ABC, CBS, and UPN. He got another chance at CBS, and Les Moonves bought it.
June 1999	Mark Burnett scouted locations in Borneo for Survivor.
13 March - 20 April 2000	Survivor: Borneo was filmed.
31 May - 23 August 2000	Survivor Borneo aired.
23 August 2000	The Survivor Borneo finale aired, but Mark Burnett was in Borneo preparing for Eco-Challenge.
23 October - November 2000	Survivor: The Australian Outback was filmed in Australia.
28 January - 3 May 2001	Survivor The Australian Outback aired.
July - August 2001	Survivor: Africa was filmed.
October 2001 - January 2002	Survivor: Africa aired.
August - September 2001	Mark Burnett began preparing in Jordan for Survivor Arabia.
11 September 2001	After 9/11, Mark Burnett decided not to hold Survivor 4 in Jordan.
September 2001	Leslie Moonves told Mark Burnett that the start date for Survivor 4 filming would stay the same, so Mark Burnett must find a new location quickly.
15 September 2001	Mark Burnett flew to Tahiti in French Polynesia to scout out a location for Survivor 4.
17 September 2001	Mark Burnett scouted the Marquesas Islands.
20 September 2001	Mark Burnett picked the Marquesas.
4 October 2001 - 17 January 2002	Survivor: Africa aired.
12 November - December 2001	Survivor: Marquesas was filmed in place of Survivor Arabia.
28 February - 13 May 2002	Survivor Marquesas aired.
13 May 2002	The Survivor Marquesas reunion aired outdoors in Wollman Rink.
Summer 2002	Mark Burnett chose Thailand over Vietnam, Cambodia, and Indonesia for Survivor 5.
Summer 2002	Survivor: Thailand was filmed.
19 September - 12 December 2002	Survivor Thailand aired.
Fall 2002	The Philippines was selected as the location for Survivor 6. Because of terror alerts it was moved to the jungles around the Amazon River. [1]- it was later revealed that this was merely a misunderstanding as it was the Japanese version of Survivor that was actually going to film in the Phillippines, The US version was always going to film in the Amazon for its 6th season.
7 November - 15 December 2002	Survivor: Amazon was filmed.
2003	Survivor versus I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here! court case was decided in favor of I'm A Celebrity....
13 February - 11 May 2003	Survivor Amazon aired.
1 May 2003	Survivor Amazon reunion was to be at Wollman Rink, but it was moved indoors to the Ed Sullivan Theater at the last minute due to inclement weather.
The week of 23rd of June 2003	Survivor: Pearl Islands was filmed.
18 September - 14 December 2003	Survivor Pearl Islands aired.
Fall 2003	Survivor: All-Stars was filmed.
1 February - 9 May 2004	Survivor All-Stars aired.
13 May 2004	America's Tribal Council was held, and America voted to give Rupert Boneham a million dollars.
July - 11 August 2004	Survivor: Vanuatu - Islands of Fire was filmed.
16 September - 12 December 2004	US Survivor: Vanuatu aired.
Fall 2004	Survivor: Palau was filmed.
December 2004	Mark Burnett scouted Madagascar as a possible future Survivor location.
17 February - 12 May 2005	Survivor: Palau aired.
Summer 2005	Survivor: Guatemala - The Mayan Empire was filmed.
15 September - 11 December 2005	Survivor: Guatemala - The Mayan Empire aired.
31 October - 8 December 2005	Survivor: Panama - Exile Island was filmed.
2 February - 14 May 2006	Survivor: Panama - Exile Island aired.
26 June - 3 August 2006	Survivor: Cook Islands was filmed.
14 September 2006	Survivor: Cook Islands is scheduled to premiere.

Cover art for the Survivor Australia DVD

>Best of

DVD Name	Release Date
Season One: The Greatest and Most Outrageous Moments	1 January 2001
Season Two: The Greatest and Most Outrageous Moments	25 September 2001

Full seasons

DVD Name	Release Date
The Complete First Season: Borneo	11 May 2004
The Complete Second Season: Australian Outback	26 April 2005
The Complete Seventh Season: Pearl Islands	7 February 2006
The Complete Eighth Season: All-Stars	14 September 2004
The Complete Ninth Season: Vanuatu [2]	TBA
The Complete Tenth Season: Palau [3]	29 August 2006

Complete Seasons on iTunes

Currently Available
Season 9: Vanuatu
Season 10: Palau
Season 11: Guatemala
Season 12: Exile Island

Survivor (TV series): Encyclopedia BETA

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