I want my MTV

MTV interviews for 'The Real World,' 'Road Rules'

ANDI MAIO/Daily Students wait in line for the chance to audition for the popular MTV shows "The Real World" and "Road Rules." The shows held casting calls at the North Campus Diag yesterday.

By Daniel Weiss
Daily Staff Writer

They were looking for a few good men and women. A very few.

On the fifth stop of a 24-date tour, MTV unloaded its Campus Invasion upon the University yesterday, bringing with it casting officials looking for new stars for the TV shows "The Real World" and "Road Rules."

About 400 students stood in drizzle, filling out forms and waiting for their 60 seconds in front of the camera to say their name, address and whatever else they thought might make them seem especially interesting.

Caroline McCarty, casting associate for Bunim-Murray Productions, which produces "The Real World" and "Road Rules" for MTV, said the best way to get on the show was to be yourself.

"There's no shoes to fill," she said.

Wade Penhorwood, an LSA first-year student, already was standing in line to audition as the tent opened. He came to North Campus just to audition for "The Real World." Wearing a black leather jacket and with carefully groomed hair, Penhorwood said, "I'm just going to be myself."

Although upwards of 15,000 people audition nationwide for the shows' 13 spots, Penhorwood said he was not discouraged by the odds. "I'm a positive person," he said.

After the audition, Penhorwood was upbeat. He said he took advantage of the upcoming series' location - Hawaii - by depicting himself there. "Me in a hulu skirt - it works," he recalled saying to the camera.

Roger Marine, a first-year Engineering student, also auditioned. But Marine got a surprise after his 60 seconds on camera. A woman whispered in his ear to follow her outside to the back of the tent. She handed him a thick packet of papers and told him he'd made the first cut for Road Rules.

Marine said he talked about the most embarassing moment of his life, which he said was when his extended family went out to dinner on Christmas and came back unexpectedly while he and his girlfriend were in the basement. "You can guess what happened," Marine said.

The upcoming Road Rules will follow six people as they cruise around the world, stopping in such places as Vietnam, Cuba, Kenya and South Africa. Cameras will film virtually everything, and film editors will take on the arduous task of editing immediately.

Real World, which was the first of the MTV shows, will scrutinize the lives of seven people as they live in Hawaii for six months.

But auditioning for a TV show was not the only attraction yesterday. Five tents, each sponsored by a different corporation, offered amusing things to do and see.

Lifebeat, a music industry organization, had a tent that promoted AIDS awareness by distributing pamphlets and free condoms.

Bruce McDonald, program manager, said the condoms have been popular on campuses, but he noted that students at some schools take many more condoms than others. He didn't guess how many Michigan students would take.

Old Navy's tent featured popcorn and a game challenging people to guess the number of jeans stockpiled in a large bin, offering a $1,000 gift certificate to the winner.

And in Intel's tent, a futuristic musical instrument that looked like a drumset, played musical notes determined by the movement of people's hands.

After Michigan, the tour cuts across country to Auburn University, Alabama. Fourteen crew members are on board for the tour.

10-29-98