Slog - Comments on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition's Creepy Wish List http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1 As anyone who's seen an episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition can tell you, the show--hosted by charmless he-harpie Ty Pennington--is a no-holds-barred heartwarmer, with Pennington & Co descending upon the homes of down-on-their-luck families to deliver the "extreme makeover" promised by the title. It's all terribly sweet, and I confess to misting up a little the couple times I've seen it. (Let's see you remain unmoved when a recently widowed father of eight is given a brand new home with bedrooms for each of the kids, a basketball court in the basement, and a shrine to the dead-from-six-types-of-cancer mother... Copyright 2007 Wed, 29 Mar 2006 09:39:16 -0800 Thu, 30 Mar 2006 06:59:21 -0800 http://www.movabletype.org/?v=3.34 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Comment by Jolie Actually, anhidrosis isn't the "congenital inability to feel pain" -- it's simply a failure of the sweat glands (inability to sweat). They were after people with CIPA -- the combination of those two things (congenital insensitivity to pain WITH anhidrosis).

Incidentally, my reaction to this STAGGERING revelation about the show is a big fat "duh!"

]]> Jolie http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059120 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059120 Arts Wed, 29 Mar 2006 10:05:52 -0800 Comment by Eli "He-Harpie" made me laugh so hard that orange juice came out of my nose. It really hurt. Expect a letter from my laywer within the next two weeks.

]]> Eli http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059153 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059153 Arts Wed, 29 Mar 2006 10:19:20 -0800 Comment by Sandy I'm with you Jolie. I mean, how did people think they found all these down trodden families with 8 kids? Regardless of how they find them, the cancer ridden children still get new homes.

]]> Sandy http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059156 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059156 Arts Wed, 29 Mar 2006 10:20:04 -0800 Comment by David Schmader Jolie: I didn't call the email either "a revelation" or "staggering," just creepy. But you're right, I effed up on characterizing the affliction; I'll fix it.

Sandy: Agreed. The end result is
beneficial, and in many ways, this email calling for various diseased folk is no more or less offensive than any other audition notice; all of 'em traffic in superficialities and stereotypes. But still, creepy to see it in writing, with occasional exclamation points...

]]> David Schmader http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059172 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059172 Arts Wed, 29 Mar 2006 10:29:19 -0800 Comment by westy This isn't the least bit surprising. That used to be a great show, and I used to look forward to the inevitible mist-up at the end, but the phoney, gooey, transparent behavior of the cast makes me want to barf.

It's always nice to watch someone get something they deserve, but the exploitative and manipulative nature of the show (think Steel Magnolias multiplied by a hundred and covered in a thick, sad frosting) makes my skin crawl.

]]> westy http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059215 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059215 Arts Wed, 29 Mar 2006 10:56:55 -0800 Comment by mikeoutwest I'm with Eli. "Charmless he-harpy" is one of the best phrases of the century. As one who witnessed the EXTREME MAKEOVER of the Los Angeles Free Clinic and got to witness first-hand C.H.H. Pennington dirvirshly whirling around set, it is a strikingly accurate description.

That said, I still would have jumped his bones back on "Trading Spaces"

I also love in the email how they try to soften their sick pandering by calling the kids "amazing." Wait, actually they only call the kid with MS and the Mom/Dad with melanoma "amazing." WTF?

]]> mikeoutwest http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059268 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059268 Arts Wed, 29 Mar 2006 11:23:09 -0800 Comment by Jolie David, I wasn't criticizing YOU, dude -- you were just pointing us to where you saw the original info about it. My comment was intended for whoever at the Smoking Gun thought that was shocking enough to be worthy of attention!

I only saw one episode of that show and found it pretty disgusting, personally. The amount of money they waste on a SINGLE family just blows my mind.

]]> Jolie http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059296 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059296 Arts Wed, 29 Mar 2006 11:49:49 -0800 Comment by David Schmader I only saw one episode of that show and found it pretty disgusting, personally. The amount of money they waste on a SINGLE family just blows my mind.

True. What's interesting is that even with the money they throw at each week's family, I imagine that the show is still cheaper to produce than a scripted-and-acted program.

Maybe Ty Pennington envisions himself as some sort of TV-land Robin Hood, taking money from TV's rich actors and writers and giving it to poor people with crappy houses and Nielsen-pumping afflictions...

]]> David Schmader http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059374 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059374 Arts Wed, 29 Mar 2006 12:27:13 -0800 Comment by keshmeshi They're really taking money from the advertisers, keeping most of it for themselves, and using the rest to build the house. You gotta love capitalism.

]]> keshmeshi http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059393 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059393 Arts Wed, 29 Mar 2006 12:56:07 -0800 Comment by Jolie Hah, good point, David. The only problem with your analogy to Robin Hood is that picturing Ty Pennington in Errol Flynn's green tights is making me queasy. ;)

]]> Jolie http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059652 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059652 Arts Wed, 29 Mar 2006 15:27:27 -0800 Comment by fnarf There's a kid up in Darrington with progeria: Seth Cook. I'd like to see them do something up our way instead of down in the Red States.

]]> fnarf http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059706 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c059706 Arts Wed, 29 Mar 2006 15:46:07 -0800 Comment by Angel Think you'll ever see a family with gay parents on there?

]]> Angel http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c060753 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c060753 Arts Thu, 30 Mar 2006 06:12:04 -0800 Comment by Jake In the right mood - I like the show.

The studied cynics at the Stranger would of course, find it silly, low class and artless.

I love it when families get a prize worth a half a million. I think they are really happy.

This program is cheap to produce. All those brands pay them - remember when the people at that shitty sitcom, Friends, were getting a million per person per episode.

Prime time TV is big money.

As reality TV goes, I like it better than eating slime. Howevr, I have always yearned for grilled stallion testicles.
Or dog penis being eaten by university coeds.

TV is setting new standards.

Back to Home Makeover - there is not a kid in America that is not green with envy over the bedrooms. Wow.

]]> Jake http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c060810 http://slog.thestranger.com/2006/03/extreme_makeove_1#c060810 Arts Thu, 30 Mar 2006 06:59:21 -0800