HISTORY:
The Mole started in Belgium, where it became one of the country’s most popular shows. Stone Stanley Entertainment produced a nine-episode season of the show for ABC, where it became the network’s highest rated entertainment series in the key advertising demographic of ages 18-49. It was renewed for a second season, however, because of low interest in reality after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, The Mole 2: The Next Betrayal received low ratings and was put on hiatus after 3 episodes. It restarted for a summer run in May of 2002, and had a successful run even against stiff competition. ABC recently aired a celebrity edition based in Hawaii that improved upon the second season by over three million viewers. A third civilian season is also very likely for a summer 2003 run.
THE MOLE (2001)
Host: Anderson Cooper
Final Pot: $510,000
Location: Europe
The Mole: Kathryn Price
The Winner: Steven Cowles
The Runner-Up: Jim Morrison
Average Viewers: 12.9 million
Other Contestants: Charlie McGowan (Third), Kate Pahls (Fourth), Jennifer Biondi (Fifth), Henry Wentz (Sixth), Wendi Wendt (Seventh), Afi Ekulona (Eighth), Manuel Herrera (Ninth)
THE MOLE 2: THE NEXT BETRAYAL (2001/2002)
Host: Anderson Cooper
Final Pot: $636,000
Location: Europe
The Mole: Bill McDaniel
The Winner: Dorothy Hui
The Runner-Up: Heather Campbell
Average Viewers 6.9 million
Other Contestants: Al Spielman (Third), Michael 'Bribs' Bribiesca (Fourth), Darwin Connor (Fifth), Katie Mills (Sixth), Elavia Bello (Seventh - by Bribe), Myra Brown (Eighth), Rob Nelson (Ninth), Patrick Guilfoyle (Tenth), Lisa Noller (Eleventh), Ali Gorman (Twelfth), Bob Paulhus (Thirteenth)
CELEBRITY MOLE: HAWAII (2003)
Host: Ahmad Rashad
Final Pot: $233,000
Location: Hawaii
The Mole: Frederique van der Wal
The Winner: Kathy Griffin
The Runner-Up: Erik von Detten
Average Viewers: 11.0 million
Other Contestants: Michael Boatman (Third), Corbin Bernsen (Fourth), Stephen Baldwin (Fifth), Kim Coles (Sixth)
CELEBRITY MOLE: HAWAII
MOLE RATINGS
FAQ
Variety has announced that the Mole will return for a second celebrity edition this summer or fall. Clay Newbill, who served on the first two seasons of The Mole and The Bachelorette will be the showrunner, and it is very likely that Ahmad Rashad will return as host. Casting has immediately begun.
Although ABC has yet to issue a formal announcement, it is likely that The Mole will return for a late summer 2003 run. It will return to Europe and will run for nine episodes, returning to its roots of the first season. In other news, celebrity Mole Frederique van der Wal will appear on the Michael Essany Show on E! on Sunday at 10:30p (EST).
The finale did excellent and was watched by 12.1 million viewers, to bring the season average to 11 million. It scored its highest in the 18-49 demo (5.9/15) and beat Law & Order by 28% in the 18-34 demo. It got a 7.4/12 rating in fast nationals, and 7.7/13 rating in overnights. It ranked 35th in total viewers and 19th in 18-49 in the weekly ratings.
Celebrity Mole Hawaii's finale aired last night, revealing what we have all been waiting for. THE MOLE was Frederique van der Wal, and did such a good job that no one caught on to her until after Michael's execution. THE WINNER was Kathy Griffin, who used her detailed notes and fast quiz-taking skills to make it to the finals and take home the pot of $233,000. THE RUNNER-UP was Erik von Detten, who used his coalition with Kathy and keen observations to get him into where he ended. More on the finale later...
Episode 5 attracted a moderately healthy 7.3/11 in overnight ratings and a 6.7/11 in fast nationals. These are very similar to the premiere episode's ratings.
The penultimate episode of CMH featured two games: Three Questions and It Takes A Thief. During the traditional Three Questions game, the group earned $10,000 out of $30,000 for a total pot of $161,000. Then, during a complicated game called It Takes A Thief, the group earned $72,000 out of $73,000 for a grand total pot of 233,000. The three remaining players, Frederique van der Wal, Kathy Griffin, and Erik von Detten, took the final 20-question quiz.
The fourth episode of Celebrity Mole Hawaii attracted 7.1/11 in overnights and a 6.7/11 in fast nationals. They are near the totals of episode three, and the slightly lower numbers most likely has to do with the smaller Bachelorette lead-in, due to the competition of American Idol 2.
This fourth episode, no money was added to the pot. In the first game, the men had to continuously hula dance for 30 minutes and the women had to surf standing up for at least 5 seconds. Kathy was not able to surf, costing the team $20,000. Erik wasn't able to get the team $10,000 by surfing by himself for 20 seconds. In the second game, the group divided into partners: Kathy and Erik, and Frederique and Michael. These two competed against each other with mind games. Since Kathy and Erik had a better time, they moved on, and were seperately asked ten trivia questions. Erik had the faster time, and had the opportunity for an exemption. He would stay at the mystery restaurant where they were and play a large game of memory. The others were taken, blindfolded, a half mile away. If they could find him before he finished memory, his exemption would be taken and $20,000 would be put in the pot. Erik pulled it off about one minute before Frederique found him. At the execution, lead Mole suspect Michael Boatman was the fourth person executed. The final three is now Erik von Detten, Kathy Griffin, and Frederique van der Wal.
The third episode was slightly down in households but still attracted about 10.6 million viewers.
In the third episode, the players achieved over $100,000 to bring their total up to $151,000. In the first game, Michael, Fred, Kathy, and Corbin worked together on a boat to ride out to retrieve a flag worth $30,000. However, Erik was offered an exemption if he took the flag himself (featuring a special appearance by Stephen Baldwin as a Cabana Boy). Then Erik was offered $60,000 for the pot if he gave back his exemption, which he took. The next game was a trivia/hot pepper game in which they earned $49,000. They also had the opportunity to add on $25,000 but Frederique refused to eat more peppers. At dinner, Ahmad collected page 17 from each player's journals, and read them aloud. Then, at the execution, Corbin Bernsen became the third person to leave the game.
Second episode ratings are in, and the result is directly on par with its premiere episode's household ratings. In overnights, it got a 7.3/11 and in fast nationals it received a 6.8/11. The only big change came in the advertising age demographic 18-49 where it improved .5 to recieve a 5.7 rating.
The second episode aired last night. In the first game, the players won $17,000 out of $24,000, mainly due to Michael's refusal to jump off a cliff. In the second game, which was underwater chrarades game that led to digging up graves of actors who have died onscreen, they failed to bank the $25,000 possible. Thirdly, $25,000 was offered up at dinner as long as the group could pick one person to receive an exemption. Most due to Corbin's stubborn attitude, the group lost $25,000 to bring their total to $42,000. A secret coalition between Erik and Kathy was revealed, and surprisingly enough, Stephen Baldwin was the one who got the red screen and was the second person executed in the game.
Here's a link to an article which articulates the strong premieres of the Bachelorette, Celebrity Mole, and Star Search: Debuts Dream for Reality Trio Also, the money totals and ratings are added for the CMH premiere.
Great news! The premiere episode of Celebrity Mole managed a solid second place 7.3 rating and 11 share in overnight ratings against the highest rated show of the night Law & Order. This is better than every airing of former time slot occupants MDs and the best rating since February 27, 2001 for the Mole. In fast national ratings it placed third in its time slot with a still respectable 6.8/11 and in the 18-49 age group it 5.2 rating average for the hour. It placed eighth over all network shows airing that night, behind Law & Order, The Bachelorette, West Wing, Star Search, My Wife & Kids, 60 Minutes 2, and Ed. If this Mole has the same rating pattern as previous seasons, it will drop off slightly during the middle episodes and then gain more viewers in the last few.
The first episode of Celebrity Mole Hawaii aired last night on ABC. The players competed in two main games: a waterfall water retrieval which earned them $20,000 out of a possible $30,000, and a blackjack game with sheep, where they earned a maximum $30,000. Stephen Baldwin earned an exemption, and unfortunately, Kim Coles was the first executed from the game. Episode ratings will be posted here by 4:30 ET/PM.
Here's an article written by Kevin D. Thompson in West Palm Beach, Florida for Cox News Services: "The Mole" is the Rodney Dangerfield of reality shows. It gets no respect. "Survivor," while not as popular as it once was, still generates considerable water-cooler buzz. Over 18 million viewers watched the first edition of "The Bachelor." MTV's "Real World" has been on the air for, like, 35 years. "Fear Factor" continues to capture a sizable audience, as does "The Amazing Race." No one, it seems, cares about "the Mole" -- not even its own network. ABC yanked it after only two episodes the last time around. ABC's engaging and clever reality series deserves more respect--and viewers. Let's hope it'll get both when "Celebrity Mole Hawaii" debuts tonight. While CBS has kicked around the idea of airing a celebrity "Survivor" installment for months, ABC beat them to it. Six out-of-work, C-list actors (Stephen Baldwin, Corbin Bernsen, Michael Boatman, Kim Coles, Kathy Griffin, Erik von Detten) and one hot supermodel (Frederique) particpate in wacky games (jumping off cliffs, herding sheep) while also trying to figure out who among the The Mole. "The Mole," you see, is a double agent planted by the producers to sabotage the group's efforts to win dough. This time it's up to $250,000. At the end of each episode, the contestants take a 10-question quiz about The Mole's identity. The person who knows the least is "executed." That's network-speak for, "Time to go home, look for another audition." In Wednesday's opener, the acid tongued Griffin ("Suddenly Susan") is a standout and fires hilarious one-liners at will. Bernsen is clearly the Robert Conrad of the bunch. Remember Mr. Macho Man's ultra-competitive nature on those old celebrity "Superstars" specials on ABC? It's a hoot watching the one-time "L.A. Law" stud get visibly annoyed with Coles during a game of sheep blackjack. Don't ask. You have to watch. And it's painfully apparent that Baldwin--the least attractive and talented Baldwin brother--is just tickled to be working. The guy mugs for the cameras at every turn and isn't shy to show that his gut is nearly as big as big bro Alec's. What's missing this time, however, is the droll Anderson Cooper, who's now spending his time with Paula Zahn in the mornings on CNN. The super cool Cooper's icy stares and sly smiles are sorely missed. Stepping in as host is Ahmad Rashad, who never met a butt he didn't love to kiss. Rashad aside, "Celebrity Mole Hawaii" remains fun. Sure, the clues to the mole's identity are more convoluted than the plot in a James Bond movie. But, so what? A reality show that entertains while making you think is certainly worth watching.
Tonight's the big night! In case you miss it, it will be repeated on ABC Family either this Monday or Sunday (two schedules contradict each other). A correct date will be posted here later. Be sure to watch Celebrity Mole Hawaii tonight at 10 ET/PM on ABC. Marc Berman, who writes the Programming Insider for Mediaweek, predicts ABC will win 18-49 and NBC will take total viewers.
Ahmad Rashad was on Live! With Regis and Kelly and Stephen Baldwin was on the Caroline Rhea Show yesterday. Stephen called the Mole the sickest thing ever and said the producers told him that they were in charge of the rules. In other news, Joe Millionaire scored big rating points in its premiere.
The Amazing Race 3, Survivor: Thailand, and The Bachelor 2 have been added to the Ratings Comparison list. High School Reunion scored an impressive 4.3/6 rating last night for the WB, for those of you rooting on Kathryn. Also, PAX premiered Dirty Rotten Cheater tonight (Monday at 8 PM/ET) which is a mix of the Mole and the Weakest Link.
Entertainment Weekly's new issue features yet another article with Kathy Griffin dishing on her castmembers. It is also available online at www.ew.com. Here's the article: Ahh...the glamorous life of a celebrity: jetting to Hawaii, competing among other fabulous stars, and getting strangled by Stephen Baldwin. Kathy Griffin lived that high life as a contestant on ABC's ''Celebrity Mole: Hawaii'' (premieres Jan. 8), and gave EW the dirty dish on this Battle of the Need-Work Stars.
-- Kathy Griffin, as told to Josh Wolk
When I saw our group, I was like, ''Jesus Christ, I've had beer bashes with bigger celebrities.'' And I count myself among that list: I'm a proud member of the D list. Corbin Bernsen said it was great to be on six episodes of prime time. That's like saying, ''I just got a great part in a movie. It's a snuff film, therefore it will be my last film, but it is a movie.''
There was Erik von Detten, the costar of the not-very-popular ''Dinotopia,'' and, well, it's possible that he's retarded. I don't have a doctor's note, but on one of our van rides to a challenge, he would say stuff like ''I just wonder when I'm gonna lose my baby face.'' And everyone else would want to talk about it! All day! Stephen Baldwin, I'm convinced he has killed people. He choked me once! I had sassed back, and what better way to disarm a lady than...to choke her? And later on, Baldwin took Bernsen's journal, and they got in a scuffle. I have to give it up to them both in one respect: Every minute that they're on is really good in a superpsychotic way. And Frederique van der Wal, of course I'm not going to click with her, because she is ''Dutch model.'' There'd be a lot of her talking about the burden of being known just for being beautiful. I don't feel that burden, I don't identify with that burden -- I wouldn't even use the word ''burden.''
I got along really well with Kim Coles and Michael Boatman; I feel like the other people tortured me. But I'm having ''Mole'' parties at my house every week, and will have 12 of my gay friends come over. They're going to give me such s--- behind my back anyway, so I'm going to say, ''You know what, fellas? Just get it over with, say it to my face.'' I know it's going to be complete humiliation, so I'm going to celebrate it.
Season One's Mole Kathryn Price serves as coordinating producer of the WB's hyped new reality show High School Reunion, which airs Sunday at 9 PM/ET. The reality premiere lineup for this week includes: SUNDAY - High School Reunion (WB); MONDAY - Joe Millionaire (FOX); WEDNESDAY - Star Search (CBS), The Bachelorette (ABC), Celebrity Mole: Hawaii (ABC); THURSDAY - Star Search (CBS), High School Reunion (R - WB), Surreal Life (WB). The most likely to be hits of the big premieres this week are High School Reunion for the WB, The Bachelorette for ABC, and Joe Millionaire for FOX.
The Jan. 4-10 TV Guide had some bits on Celebrity Mole Hawaii. The first came in the Insider section, entitled Battle of the No-Work Stars: Regular folks get humiliated and tortured on TV, so why not actors and a supermodel? "I think they made the show tougher for us," says Frederique, the sole model among such actors as Stephen Baldwin, Corbin Bernsen, Kathy Griffin, and Kim Coles competiting in Celebrity Mole (Wednesdays for six weeks, starting January 8 on ABC at 10 P.M./ET). They took part in such games as blackjack with cards attached to the sheep. But playing a version of the reality-mystery game--in which one person is "the Mole" and the others have o guess who it is--can get dicey with celebrities. Michael Boatman (Arliss) relays that Baldwin "stole Corbin's journal and Corbin chased him around the room and took a swing." "There were definitely power trips," Frederique says. "There were real arguments that got ugly. We'd have a great outtake video."
Later, in the listings, there was a Close-Up on the Series Premiere entitled Stars and Snipes. Debut: Seven celebrities play name-the-traitor in this six-week tropical spin on the espionage reality show. But don't expect any star trips. "It isn't a popularity contest," says producer Scott Stone of his cast, who had to rely on "wits and smarts" to win the game. This time, the group--including Kim Coles, Kathy Griffin, Erik von Detten, Steven (MISPELLED) Baldwin, Corbin Bernsen and model Frederique--takes on various mission for a possible quarter-million, while smoking out the saboteur among them. "We picked the one you will specifically think is NOT the Mole," hints Stone's partner, David Stanley. In the opener, the players meet on the Big Island for the first challenge. Ahmad Rashad hosts. (1:00)
Tonight (New Year's Eve) on Entertainment Tonight, Kathy Griffin briefly brought up Celebrity Mole Hawaii while being interviewed about her trip to entertain troops in Afghanistan (which she said was a piece of cake compared to the Mole). She centered on the fist fight between Corbin and Stephen; she described it as surreal. There was some footage from CMH that looked in good condition, however the piece was much overhyped.
Visit Petition Online to sign a petition for the Mole on DVD.
The People magazine full-page advertisement is available for viewing by clicking the Celebrity Mole Hawaii link above. It may take long to load; my scanner software wouldn't let me shrink it too much. Also added are the new cast shots.
Stone Stanley believes that they will be ready for the premiere show since that episode wasn't badly damaged, but they are not sure about the others since they have over 2,500 hard drives and tapes to look at. In other news, the official Celebrity Mole Hawaii website is up and running, which is obviously good news and there is a full-page ad for CMH in this week's People magazine, which will be posted on this site soon.
Bad News: The Stone Stanley offices, where Celebrity Mole was being edited, was badly damaged with a fire - and the water to fight it soaked the Mole tapes. Scott Stone is being optimistic that they can find backup tapes and they will know by probably Dec. 21 if the tapes can be saved. ABC will not pull the show right now and believe the show can be rescued. UPDATE: There was a commercial tonight on ABC during Saturday Night Fever for Celeb Mole, so it is obviously looking good. Also, it is for sure that the premiere episode was not damaged.
Mole will not air on Thursdays as previously reported, but will take hold of the Wednesday 9:00/10:00 EST time slot following the cancellation of the low-rated MDs. This results in the Mole following the Bachelorette. Celebrity Mole will premiere on January 8th, 2003 and will officially be called Celebrity Mole: Hawaii.
The first TV advertisement for Celebrity Mole appeared Sunday on ABC's Holiday special. It featured all of the players except for Kathy Griffin apparently (I did not get the chance to see it). Expect the ABC Mole site to be updated soon and more ads to pop up every now and then. It also looks as though Celeb Mole will go against either the number 1 comedy (Friends) or the number 1 drama (CSI), but ABC has yet to announce a particular time. And because of the recent scheduling shake-up at ABC, don't be surprised if Celebrity Mole is shifted around.
Kathy Griffin paid a visit to the Howard Stern radio show on December 5 and revealed many important details about Celebrity Mole, including its premiere date of Thursday, January 9, 2003. Here's a full recap from a Howard Stern fansite:
Kathy brought up this show ''Celebrity Mole'' that she did for ABC. She said that Stephen Baldwin did it with her and it was really embarrassing to do. She said the show premieres on January 9th. She went on to talk about all of the other so-called ''celebrities'' that are on the show with her. She said it features her, Stephen Baldwin, Kim Coles, Corben Bernsen, Michael Boatman, Frederique and Eric Von Detten. Howard didn't know who most of them were. Kathy went on to complain about how Frederique rambled on and on about herself while they were stuck in a van for a day. Kathy said she doesn't get along with people very well to begin with and it was really tough with some of these people. She complained about Eric Von Detten bitching about how he can't lose his baby face. She also talked about Stephen Baldwin getting into a fist fight with Corben Bernsen. Kathy said she was humiliated on the show and she was pathetic. She fainted at one point but she couldn't give Howard the details because it hasn't aired yet. She said it should be pretty interesting.
Howard took a break and Kathy stuck around to hang out during Robin's news segment.
After the break Howard and Kathy spent a couple more minutes talking about her party. Howard wondered if Brooke Shields is going to be there. Kathy said she might. She talked about the party and some more about the ''Celebrity Mole'' show. Kathy talked about Stephen Baldwin being one of those ''wiggers'' and how he got into the fight with Corben Bernsen. Howard said Kathy filled his head with a bunch of stuff during the commercial break. Howard said all of the celebrities on that show seem to think they're A-list celebs when they're really not. Kathy said that Stephen Baldwin was talking to Amad Rashad like he was a brother.
New Scheduling News: ABC will roll out 10-12 new shows from January to May, including six reality shows. "Miracles" and "Dragnet" will get the Monday slot from NFL's football, and are both set to premiere on January 27. "Lost at Home" and "Regular Joe" are also set to premiere midseason, but do not have a slot or premiere date yet. "The Bachelorette" will air in its opposite-gender predesscor's Wednesday 9 ET slot on Jan. 8. ABC also has other reality shows: the troubled "I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!", "Are You Hot", and "Celebrity Mole". ABC President Susan Lyne says at least one of these reality shows will likely turn up on Thursdays. The best contenders are obviously Survivor-clone "I'm a Celebrity..." and established-hit "Celeb Mole."
Queen Latifah was supposed to compete in "Celebrity Mole," but dropped out a month before shooting to instead spend time with her family. Just a guess, but it's likely that Kim Coles was her replacement.
The celebrity edition of “The Mole” has finished shooting. The final cast is: Michael Boatman (Spin City), Corbin Bernsen (LA Law), Kim Coles (Living Single), Erik von Detten (Dinotopia), Kathy Griffin (Suddenly Susan), Stephen Baldwin (Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas), and supermodel Frederique. Ahmad Rashad hosted two weeks of on-location filming in Hawaii. Each celeb was allowed to bring one family member or friend along, and weren’t sequestered alone like previous installments of the game. Because the game took 10 days, many elements had to be condensed to fit the time frame. The six-episode installment will most likely air January 2003.
Ahmad Rashad will be the replacement for Anderson Cooper for Celebrity Mole. The former NFL wide-receiver and Emmy Award-winning host of NBA’s Inside Stuff and Real TV has signed on for the six-episode run to air early next year. The pot will be for $250,000, and each celebrity will get $25,000 for participating (the real game amounts will go to charity, unlike Celebrity Boot Camp).
Anderson Cooper will not return for any more The Mole’s, after being asked by CNN executives between anchoring and reporting for the all-news cable network or hosting the reality show. Also, former "Suddenly Susan" castmember Kathy Griffin, Stephen Baldwin of "The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas", and Victoria’s Secret model Frederique have been confirmed as three of the seven celebrities competing in the show, which will film in Hawaii as early as November.
ABC has confirmed a six-week Celebrity Mole that will begin airing in January. It will film over 7-10 days by well-known celebrities. Also, a third citizen Mole is also being strongly considered. It is unsure if Anderson Cooper will return.
Links
The Mole Official ABC Site
WHO IS THE MOLE?
KATHRYN PRICE...BILL MCDANIEL...FREDERIQUE VAN DER WAL...Who is next?
Find the Mole
Net Betrayal - The Mole 3
Stone Stanley Website
