Video Beat MAX - Donald Trump Picks APPRENTICE THIS WEEK - AUGUST 2007

James Loving - National Radio Text Service - Sunday August 26, 2007

Will Bigham wins ON THE LOT title - Former Pirate Master Contestant Commits Suicide - Philippines Wendy Valdez TV Show Margarita Gains More Attention - Recommended TV listings

THE APPRENTICE WINNER IS....

The Apprentice winner this week is the reality shows first foreign winner. Though he was chosen last year when the series was originally televised in America it will air in Southeast Asia this Thursday August 30 on the Star World channel.

For a change we will reveal the winner to give viewers a chance to observe what it took to win the title.

Sean Yazbeck 35 from London, England was selected by Donald Trump to oversee development of the 5 star hotel condominium, Trump SoHo, in New York City's SoHo district. Since taking over the project in the summer of 2006 Yazbeck's role has included overseeing negotiations on all acquisitions and purchases for this $500 million project.

For winning the final task he received a starting contract for one year for a yearly salary exceeding $250,000. He is currently their Director of Sales. He was also given an immediate reward for being hired by Trump a new Pontiac G6 Hardtop Convertible.

Yazbeck was unbeaten as Project Manager and was chosen by Donald Trump to be the Apprentice during the show's live finale televised from Los Angeles last year. According to Trump, Sean overwhelmingly won the national vote, the first ever conducted for an Apprentice finale.

Yazbeck went on to appear on season 6 of the The Apprentice (2007) as Boardroom Advisor to Trump. He is currently the national TV and Radio Spokesperson for the Trump Institute and he is also a lecturer at the Trump University.

His mother is Irish and his father is Lebanese. Yazbeck's education included attending the William Ellis School, a comprehensive school for boys in Camden Town, England. He later graduated top of his class at Southampton Solent University, with a first-class honors degree.

The Apprentice champion is also an actor. Yazbeck has acted since he was a child and is a member of the Screen Actors Guild. He made his acting debut he made his acting debut at the age of 14 in 1985 on the BBC soap opera Eastenders. He later played the lead role in the film Night Shift (2002) that won awards at The Made in Miami Film Festival (2002) and The Palm Beach International Film Festival (2002).

His appearance on The Apprentice led to Jeffrey Katzenberg casting Yazbeck in the role of BBQ Barry in the DreamWorks film Over the Hedge. They met during the series when Sean was flown to LA for winning a task on the show.

Since appearing on The Apprentice, Yazbeck has hosted his own show "Reality Trailblazers" on the TV Guide Channel and has appeared on numerous shows such as Miss Universe, MTV Video Music Awards, Live with Regis and Kelly, 1 vs. 100, Soap Talk and Identity.

BIGHAM WINS ON THE LOT TITLE

Selected by viewer voting Will Bigham won the On The Lot best director recognition and title along with the opportunity to work for famed director Stephen Spielberg. As Spielberg pointed out to Bigham when they met in the show's finale that Bigham won over 12,000 entrants.

The win gives Bigham a chance to do what he wants to do and make films. The Texan has been living in Glendale, California not far from the DreamWorks studios and in LA, where traffic is a nightmare that is a win in itself.

Who is Bigham? Read on...

PIRATE MASTER DISASTER

The Pirate Master reality series has been gaining a lot of criticism in the US and the CBS television network pulled it from its regular programming lineup.

The series is airing in Southeast Asia on the AXN network delayed basis. That gives the viewers in the region a chance to make their own decision if they like it or not.

The show finally cut loose Joe Don the former captain the crew loved to hate because he took 50% of the found treasure that a captain is entitled to. The current captain Azmyth and his officers are trying to keep the crew weak so they will be in the position to win the ½ million dollar treasure that only one of the finalists can receive. This sets up a cutthroat situation. The final will be televised in America this week.

On a tragic note one of the former Pirates Cheryl Kosewicz, a 35-year-old deputy district attorney committed suicide after posting a note on MySpace partially blaming the series for the events leading up to her death. Klosewicz was found dead inside her home on July 27, 2007. She was the fourth to be eliminated from the contestant

MARGARITA MAKES NOISE

Philippine actress/singer Wendy Valdez proves that winning isn't everything as she's lost many a battle in life but continues on in her quest to have a successful entertainment career and earn enough money to take care of her family.

She failed to qualify for the top 38 for the Pinoy Dream Academy reality show and that ranks # 1 in our GO FIGURE FILE since she has more talent than the winners.

She was also booted off the Big Brother show but returned to notch a third place finish. She was one of the original housemates to enter the big brother house. The show got interesting when Valdez had a relationship with another contestant Bruce Quebral.

She was evicted on day 70 but returned to the house on Day 78. She was the most hated housemate because of her over-sensitiveness but eventually placed 3rd amid protests against her by people supporting other housemates. Her entrance to the Big 4 has spawned a number of negative feedback

Despite criticism the now 25-year-old has landed on her feet and continues to fight the good fight and overcome obstacles. She's now staring in the TV series Margarita that is gaining a lot of attention Valdez is using the vehicle to display her many talents.

Margarita airs in the Thailand/Cambodia time zone around 8 PM Monday through Friday. We say around because the ABS-CBN network has a problem adhering to a set schedule and being on time.

Some of the talk about the show includes:

* ABS-CBN stated that "Margarita is not an adaptation," assured ABS-CBN executive, Deo Endrinal. "It's an original story. Nagkataon lang na Wendy's role is that of a burlesque queen."

* In the said teaser, showing Wendy in a bikini dancing beside a pole, is apparently the "sexiest" that show would go, said the creators. Viewers will get to see more of Margarita's challenges in life, like becoming the breadwinner in the family since her father left when she was just a little girl. ·

Valdez stated that some of the plot in the story is about her true life but not all of it. ·

The bottom line is Valdez is toughing it out and is finally gaining recognition as a true talent. The one thing she does best that is a strong point for any star IS DRAW ATTENTION. Ask Britney Spears.

TV SCHEDULE

Note: The shows listed are for the Cambodia - Thailand time zone. Check your local listings for time and date in your area.

Repeats of Top Model are flipped around by Channel V for undisclosed reasons.

SUNDAY

10:00 AM - PIRATE MASTER - AXN - reality show - REPEAT

12:00 PM - ASAP - TFC (The Filipino Channel) - Please note that this and ALL TFC SHOWS ARE SUBJECT TO TIME SHIFTS.

3:00 PM - JAY LENO - CNBC

7:00 PM - PIRATE MASTER - AXN - reality show - REPEAT

9:00 PM - JAY LENO - CNBC

11:00 PM - PIRATE MASTER - AXN - reality show - REPEAT

MIDNIGHT - Ultimate Fighter - AXN - Repeat of series 2

MONDAY

11:00 AM - ULTIMATE FIGHTER - AXN - Season 2

1:00 PM - AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL - Channel V - REPEAT

4:00 PM - LARRY KING - CNN - Airs daily @ 4 PM

6:00 PM - AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL - Channel V - NEW EPISODE

TUESDAY

8:00 PM - ON THE LOT - STAR MOVIE channel - reality film making show

12:00 Midnight - ON THE LOT - STAR MOVIE channel - reality film making show

WEDNESDAY

8:00 PM - PIRATE MASTER - AXN - reality show - NEW EPISODE

12 - Midnight - PIRATE MASTER - AXN - reality show - repeat of NEW EPISODE

THURSDAY

11:00 AM - PIRATE MASTER - AXN - reality show - REPEAT

8:00 PM - AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL - Channel V - Cycle 8

9:00 PM - THE APPRENTICE w DONALD TRUMP - Star World Channel

FRIDAY

3:30 PM - THE APPRENTICE - Star World Channel

5:00 PM - AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL - Channel V - repeat of Monday's 6 PM new episode show

SATURDAY

10:00 AM - AMERICA'S NEXT TOP MODEL - Channel V - repeat of Monday's 6 PM new episode show

3:00 PM - JAY LENO - CNBC

4:00 PM - LARRY KING - CNN - Airs daily @ 4 PM

6:30 PM - HIGH NET WORTH - CNBC - Business news magazine show

9:00 PM - JAY LENO - CNBC

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