Moolah Beach
Encyclopedia
Moolah Beach was a reality show in the vein of Survivor
but with teenagers competing in competitions in order to not be exiled from the beach and ultimately win $25,000. It aired on Fox
(as part of its Fox Kids
lineup) as a 30-minute show and Fox Family (later shown on ABC Family
) as an extended 60-minute show in the summer/fall of 2001 for 13 episodes and is the predecessor of the current show Endurance
on Discovery Kids
.
The show was filmed on Pilaa beach near Hanalei
on the island of Kauai
's North Shore.
. Inside one of the idols was the $25,000 grand prize.
Once the bribe was accepted or both teams refused, J.D. revealed the answers to the four idol clues, then began to reveal the other idols that did not have the $25,000. When one idol was left in play for each team, they went to the Great Kahuna for the keys to the two remaining idols. The two idols were opened at the same time, and the team that owned the idol that hid the $25,000 won the money.
The bribe that was accepted in the only season of Moolah Beach was accepted by the Green Team of Kyle and Shari. The prizes in the bribe were the following:
The Purple Team of Summer Borden and Clark Harrison, who owned a majority of the idols, refused this bribe. Kyle and Shari were offered the bribe with the additional prize of an ATV. It was at this point that they accepted the bribe. Kyle and Shari each received all the prizes in the bribe.
Kyle and Shari never had possession of the winning idol, which was Hula. Summer and Clark received the winning idol due to Clark's friendship with Drew. When the Red Team of Nancy Diaz and Drew Luna were eliminated, Drew chose to give the Hula idol to Clark. When Summer and Clark were asked which idols would they have given up if they had taken the bribe (Purple would have had to give Green three of the idols to accept), none were Hula.
Being host/producer of the series, J.D. Roth knew from the beginning which idol hid the money.
Survivor (TV series)
Survivor is a reality television game show format produced in many countries throughout the world. In the show, contestants are isolated in the wilderness and compete for cash and other prizes. The show uses a system of progressive elimination, allowing the contestants to vote off other tribe...
but with teenagers competing in competitions in order to not be exiled from the beach and ultimately win $25,000. It aired on Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
(as part of its Fox Kids
Fox Kids
Fox Kids was the Fox Broadcasting Company's American children's programming division and brand name from September 8, 1990 until September 7, 2002. It was owned by Fox Television Entertainment airing programming on Monday–Friday afternoons and Saturday mornings.Depending on the show, the...
lineup) as a 30-minute show and Fox Family (later shown on ABC Family
ABC Family
ABC Family, stylized as abc family, is an American television network, owned by ABC Family Worldwide Inc., a subsidiary of the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company...
) as an extended 60-minute show in the summer/fall of 2001 for 13 episodes and is the predecessor of the current show Endurance
Endurance (TV series)
Endurance is an American reality television children's program, currently shown on the Discovery Kids cable network in the United States and also on networks in other countries. The show's format is somewhat similar to the CBS television series Survivor, though with a teenaged cast...
on Discovery Kids
Discovery Kids
Discovery Kids is an American website owned by Discovery Communications, Inc. created for children. Until October 10, 2010, it was an American digital cable specialty channel, owned by Discovery Communications with television programming for education of children. It was launched in October 1996...
.
The show was filmed on Pilaa beach near Hanalei
Hanalei
Hanalei means "lei making" in Hawaiian. The term may refer to a number of features on northern part of the Hawaiian island of Kauai:* Hanalei, Hawaii — a village * Hanalei River —- an American Heritage River* Hanalei Bay...
on the island of Kauai
Kauai
Kauai or Kauai, known as Tauai in the ancient Kaua'i dialect, is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of , it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago, and the 21st largest island in the United States. Known also as the "Garden Isle",...
's North Shore.
Contestants
The 12 contestants were divided up into the following 6 teams:| Team | Boy | Hometown | Girl | Hometown | Eliminated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | Xavier Yepez | Westchester, IL | Chasati Allen | Dolton, IL | 6th |
| Orange | Jacob Capito | Fort Wayne, IN | Chloë Levenson | New York, NY | 5th |
| Yellow | A.J. Johnson | Winter Haven, FL | Brittany Harris | Cocoa Beach, FL | 4th |
| Red | Drew Luna | Lake Mary, FL | Nancy Diaz | Ocala, FL | 3rd |
| Green | Kyle Searles Kyle Searles Kyle Evan Searles is an American actor best known for his recurring roles on 7th Heaven, The George Lopez Show and Dawson's Creek. Other guest appearances include an episode of Veronica Mars and Malcolm in the Middle. Searles also appeared as a contestant on the reality show Moolah Beach, in the... |
Frisco, TX | Shari Lee | Bowie, MD | 2nd |
| Purple | Clark Harrison | Schaumburg, IL | Summer Borden | Rowlett, TX | Winners |
Beginning
At the beginning of the game, the 12 kids were paired off into six teams of 2 (each composed of one male and one female), determined by a challenge in which the winner got the partner of their choice. At this point, J.D. presented the "Idol Village" which was composed of 13 idols, each one representing one of the gods of HawaiiHawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
. Inside one of the idols was the $25,000 grand prize.
Missions
Like on Endurance, there were two type of challenges: Makahiki Missions, and Kahuna Missions.Makahiki Missions
Makahiki Missions were usually based on physical strength/endurance. The team that won the challenges won the right to claim 2 of the idols in the game that had not yet been chosen. In addition, they also gained a clue that hints at an idol that did NOT have the grand prize. There were 4 clues in all.Kahuna Missions
In Kahuna Missions, the six teams competed in a game of skill to win offerings (colored markers) that help keep them on the beach. The first team to finish this game earned 10 offerings to the Great Kahuna, the second-place team earned 5, and each team after that received one fewer.Great Kahuna
The night after a Kahuna Mission, the teams visited The Great Kahuna and brought the offerings they won. Once the offerings were given to The Great Kahuna, the offerings were shuffled and one was drawn. If a team's offering was drawn, that team remained in the game, and their remaining offerings were removed from the Great Kahuna. This process was repeated until one team remained, and they were eliminated from the game. If the eliminated team owned any of the 13 idols in the village, they chose which team would inherit their idols.Finale
Once the 13 idols were split between the final two teams, J.D. offered the team that owned the majority of the idols a bribe to give up some of their idols to the other team. He added more prizes to the bribe until either 5 prizes were offered or the leading team accepted. If the leading team flat out refused, the trailing team was given the same offer of the prizes the leading team turned down, possibly adding even more prizes to the bribe, and having to give up fewer idols, since that team were trailing. The team that accepted the bribe kept the prizes even if they did not win the $25,000, and the prizes in the bribe were more expensive as more prizes were added.Once the bribe was accepted or both teams refused, J.D. revealed the answers to the four idol clues, then began to reveal the other idols that did not have the $25,000. When one idol was left in play for each team, they went to the Great Kahuna for the keys to the two remaining idols. The two idols were opened at the same time, and the team that owned the idol that hid the $25,000 won the money.
The bribe that was accepted in the only season of Moolah Beach was accepted by the Green Team of Kyle and Shari. The prizes in the bribe were the following:
| Bribe Prizes |
|---|
| A PlayStation 2 game console and a collection of games |
| Skiing, skateboarding, and snowboarding equipment |
| Free McDonald's food for 1 year |
| A trip to watch the Daytona 500 Daytona 500 The Daytona 500 is a -long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is one of four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule.... and meet the drivers |
| A waverunner |
The Purple Team of Summer Borden and Clark Harrison, who owned a majority of the idols, refused this bribe. Kyle and Shari were offered the bribe with the additional prize of an ATV. It was at this point that they accepted the bribe. Kyle and Shari each received all the prizes in the bribe.
Kyle and Shari never had possession of the winning idol, which was Hula. Summer and Clark received the winning idol due to Clark's friendship with Drew. When the Red Team of Nancy Diaz and Drew Luna were eliminated, Drew chose to give the Hula idol to Clark. When Summer and Clark were asked which idols would they have given up if they had taken the bribe (Purple would have had to give Green three of the idols to accept), none were Hula.
Being host/producer of the series, J.D. Roth knew from the beginning which idol hid the money.
Episode 1
During the Pakana Ball mission, Xavier was the first person to grab the idol off the pakana ball and chose Chasati as his partner and chose blue as their color. Drew was the second person to grab the idol and chose Nancy as his partner and chose red as their color. A.J. was the third person to grab the idol and chose Brittany as his partner and chose yellow as their color. Summer was the fourth person (and only girl) to grab the idol and chose Clark as her partner and chose purple as their color. Kyle was the fifth and final person to grab the idol and chose Shari as his partner and chose green as their color, which meant that Jacob and Chloe became partners by default and also became the orange team.Episode 2
In the Makahiki mission, one player of each team held on to a pole that rolled around while the other member of the team basted with water. Except for the orange team, each boy held on while the girls did the basting. The green team won the mission and each chose an idol. Shari chose Warrior while Kyle chose Strength.Idols
| Idol | Description |
|---|---|
| Koa | Warrior |
| Lua pele | Volcano |
| Papi'o | Fish |
| Makani pahili | Hurricane |
| Ikaika | Strength |
| Moana | Ocean |
| Kahakai | Beach |
| La'a' | Sun |
| Hekili | Thunder |
| Mano | Shark |
| Mea wa'a | Canoe Building |
| Ahi | Fire |
| Hula* | Dance |
- The Hula idol contained the $25,000 grand prize.
Where are they now?
- Clark Harrison (Purple) was the guitarist for the now defunct band October FallOctober Fall-Trivia:*Guitarist Clark Harrison was a winning contestant on Fox Kids' Moolah Beach*Jack Marin, original bassist, played bass in Cute Is What We Aim For for a short time after parting ways with October Fall....
. - Drew Luna (Red) is currently a Deputy Sheriff with the Orange County Sheriff's Office in Florida.
- Nancy Diaz (Red) lives in Santa Monica, CA and works in television for The Style Network.
- A.J.(Andrew) Johnson (Yellow) is married and currently serving in the United States Navy in Jacksonville, Florida.
- Kyle SearlesKyle SearlesKyle Evan Searles is an American actor best known for his recurring roles on 7th Heaven, The George Lopez Show and Dawson's Creek. Other guest appearances include an episode of Veronica Mars and Malcolm in the Middle. Searles also appeared as a contestant on the reality show Moolah Beach, in the...
(Green) has had several acting jobs, including appearances on American DreamsAmerican DreamsAmerican Dreams is an American television comedy-drama program broadcast on the NBC television network, produced by Once A Frog and Dick Clark Productions in association with Universal Network Television and NBC Studios...
, Dawson's CreekDawson's CreekDawson's Creek is an American teen drama television series which debuted on January 20, 1998, on The WB Television Network and was produced by Sony Pictures Television. The show is set in the fictional seaside town of Capeside, Massachusetts, and in Boston, Massachusetts, during the later seasons...
, George LopezGeorge LopezGeorge Lopez is an American comedian, actor, and talk show host. He is mostly known for starring in his self-produced ABC sitcom George Lopez. His stand-up comedy examines race and ethnic relations, including the Mexican American culture...
, Veronica MarsVeronica MarsVeronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
, SwingtownSwingtownSwingtown was an American television series created by Mike Kelley as a summer replacement series for CBS. The show was a period and relationship drama about the impact of sexual and social liberation in 1970s American suburban households, with story arcs involving open marriages and key...
, and 7th Heaven7th Heaven7th Heaven is an American family drama television series, created and produced by Brenda Hampton. The series premiered on August 26, 1996, on the WB, the first time that the network aired Monday night programming, and was originally broadcast from August 26, 1996 to May 13, 2007...
. - Jacob Capito (Orange) plays soccer for Butler UniversityButler UniversityButler University is a private university located in Indianapolis, Indiana. Founded in 1855 and named after founder Ovid Butler, the university offers 60 degree programs to 4,400 students through six colleges: business, communication, education, liberal Arts and sciences, pharmacy and health...
in Indiana. - Shari Lee (Green) was nominated by Rep. Steny Hoyer and Senator Barbara Mikulski. She graduated in 2007 from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy. Among her accomplishments were Drill Instructor of the Year (2004), Battalion Adjutant (2006), and Company Commander (2007). She is now working for the Military Sealift Command.
Sources
- http://www.pazsaz.com/moolah.html
- http://archives.starbulletin.com/2001/07/23/features/story2.html