Last week, I was notified that ABC had made a final selection for next season's The Bachelor (Gorgeous Austinite, Brad Womack). The on-going dating show phenom, now currently in it's 11th season, continues the quest to match the love-lorn.
Which once again proves a point - PEOPLE LOVE DATING SHOWS! Although my business partners believe there is not an interest in dating shows, I continue to maintain a strong interest in dating game shows and millions of faithful viewers are in agreement.
A Date With a Dating Show
Quite frankly, the interest in dating shows began way back when I was in grade school. Each day after school, I would watch Love Connection (Eric Lieber Productions).Each day I would get out of school at 3:35 and the show aired at 3:30 (very inconvenient) and with such a tight schedule, there was no time for hanging-out after school lollygagging, I had an important show to watch so time was of the essence (yeah, even back then).
With departure, travel time, and traffic I would be lucky to catch the last 5 minutes of the show and when my after school schedule became too demanding, I began programming the VCR (All by myself -remember those things? TIVO did not exist back in the 80's!).
Never Out of Style
I would like to believe that I am always in touch, on time, on subject, and in-step with the pulse of the popular community 'in the know'. For the most part, I have been able to visualize and profit on social trends before they become well known (Starbucks, Monster.com, Amazon and Netflix to name a few), largely due to my diversified interests in everyone and everything.
Even though clothes, hairstyles, social behavior and trends may change with each generation, one thing for certain is that dating will never go out of style.
The Newlywed Game, Dating Game, Love Connection, Change of Heart...In fact, there have been so many dating game shows on the air that this blog would need to be several pages and posts too long.
Remarkably, dating game shows continue to evolve with the culture as a social re-invention and you will always see the current style and social attitude reflected on a dating show.
Welcome to Reality Dating
In modern dating, it's all about finding your love on a nationally televised reality show (?!). In other words, what you could not accomplish in real life, you can accomplish on a TV show (insert sarcasm here) - that's the pitch
By today's standard of human matchmaking we have reality shows to thank (or blame, depending on whom you ask) for such a superficial and robust interest in the competitive style of 'elimination' dating.
Rather than have everything all wrapped up neatly in 30 minutes with the happy couple off to Copenhagen (or some other out of the mainstream destination), current TV dating fare more commonly involves one choosing from a group of opposites.
What would normally take the average person, a single date to determine the 'likability' of someone, reality dating takes us through sometimes a suspenseful and seemingly endless process of one-by-one elimination over the course of 13 weeks.
Of course, all of the suspense and drama is for your benefit and you will begin to recognize the same format through most recent shows:
- Who Wants To Marry a Multi-Millionaire? (FOX), Joe Millionaire (FOX), Mr. Personality (FOX), Age of Love (ABC), The Bachelor (ABC), The Bachelorette (ABC), Average Joe (NBC), For Love or Money (NBC), Temptation Island (CBS), Boy Meets Boy (BRAVO), Flavor of Love (1,2,3) (VH1), I Love New York (1,2) (VH1), Rock of Love (VH1)
Related: Blind Date (Syndication), 5th Wheel (Syndication), Next (MTV), Can't Get A Date (VH1), Confessions of a Matchmaker (A&E)
You Too Can Become Famous
Did you know that back in the early days of TV dating show history a few now well known celebrities (Tom Selleck, Brad Pitt, Harrison Ford, Goldie Hawn, Kurt Russell) had once appeared as dating show contestants?
A-ha, but how many contestants from today's style of 13 -week dating game elimination and skulduggery competitions are going to continue on into a successful career? For this remains to be seen...
What Love?
Does anyone really expect to find true genuine love on a reality dating show? More importantly, does anyone expect the reality relationship to last?
Alas, the sum of the equation has been revealed...In today's reality dating, it's all about 'persona' and the chance to be on TV - not so much about the end result as dating shows of the past.
Perhaps these contestants realize that it's nothing more than a glorified talent competition and they are in full cognition of the twistful possibility: The last person not chosen, is in a good position to receive the spin-off show and the chance to choose their own suitor.
So win or lose, it does not matter and at the very least, just appearing on a reality dating show can launch one into an additional 15 minutes of fame...
The Random Daily is an extension of Val St. John's News Blog, StJohnDaily.com. 
