the amazing race - The Screengrab

"Keep It Together, Dad": Mel and Mike White Come to the End of Their "Amazing Race"

Stunt casting on TV falls between two poles: on the one hand we have Lee Iacocca or Frank Zappa on Miami Vice, staring nervously at the camera before managing to grunt, "Okay, Sonny" and being mustered back into civilian life; on the other, we have David Lee Roth pulling up a chair at a Sopranos-sponsored all-night poker game, making small talk by wistfully recalling the good old days when his accountant let him deduct condoms. The decision to include screenwriter-director-actor Mike White (Year of the Dog, Chuck & Buck) and his 68-year-old pop, Mel, author of Stranger at the Gate: To be Gay and Christian in America, in the current season of CBS's The Amazing Race, the jewel in the crown of network reality-competition shows, definitely fell a lot closer to the Diamond Dave end of the chart. A pair of smart, genial wisecrackers who threw themselves into physical challenges and gave every sign of enjoying each other's company far too much to spoil the fun and the scenery with the kind of stress attacks and hissy fits that are an Amazing Race constant, Mel and Mike bestowed humor and class on the show, right up until their graceful exit last night, in the seventh episode of the season. They were the sixth of the eleven teams to depart, and while everyone was disappointed to see them go, at least they can boast of having made it squarely past the mid-point.

Mike White's Amazing Race

I’ve been a fan of Mike White since his peculiar and memorable performance as a possibly sweet but potentially scary BFF stalker in the peculiar and memorable indie Chuck & Buck. In fact, I remember encountering him in an elevator at the Sunset 5/Virgin Megastore complex in West Hollywood around the time of the film’s release. I didn’t say anything about his awkwardly funny, fidgety performance at the time because I didn’t want to bother him...but Mike, if you’re reading this now, nice job! And good luck on The Amazing Race!

Yes, that’s right...for those of you outside the reality show loop, Mike White, whose acting and/or writing credits include Freaks & Geeks, Year of the Dog and School of Rock (in which he played Sarah Silverman’s pussy-whipped boyfriend, Ned Schneebly), kicked off the first leg of the fourteenth season of the globe-trotting, Emmy-hogging CBS game show last night, partnered with his father Mel.

“Reality Horror Night”: Survivors, Moles and Wack Packers Bite the Dust

Via Defamer comes news of a feature film shooting this month in Long Island. It’s called Reality Horror Night, and the cast includes Destiney Moore, Erik Chopin, Paul Grassi, Billy Garcia, Frenchy and Ty White. Perhaps you don’t recognize any of those names, but you may have at least passing familiarity with some of the TV shows that brought them whatever fame they possess: VH1 Rock of Love, The Biggest Loser, The Mole, Survivor and The Amazing Race.

The premise, according to this press release: the reality stars “are invited to participate in a new TV Show where the prize is $1,000,000. Before the first contestant is voted off, a ‘freakish accident’ happens, and they meet their demise. When the second and third guest ‘bite the dust’ our contestants discover that they are not only playing for $1,000,000 but playing for their lives. This light-comedy, light-horror, suspenseful film ponders the question..."Would you kill for $1,000,000?" Little do our Reality Stars know that this night might be considered a scam, a scam for their lives.”

“Light-horror” suggests these folks won’t meet with especially gruesome ends, which is a shame.