The Apprentice 7: A Preview – “He’s Ba-ack!!”

Tiffany Fallon is Playboy's Playmate of the Year for 2005 and is married to one of the members of the popular band Rascal Flatts. These days she’s making some inroads as a talking head on the Spike and ESPN channels, among others.

Jennie Finch parlayed a successful career with the U. S. Olympic softball team to break through as the first female host of the popular TV program This Week In Baseball. Anyone familiar with (quotes mine) “pitching in an underhanded manner” surely has an unfair advantage on this show!

Nely Galán is best known to us from the reality TV show The Swan, where she was both the show’s creator and a life coach for contestants who were struggling with the process. Her current efforts include a new wellness-oriented show for NBC called “The New You,” coincidentally slated for NBC’s 2008 season. Nely is a boundless source of energy, and I don’t expect her to stand for sloth from her teammates.

Marilu Henner is the popular red-headed actress from Taxi who was nominated five times for a Golden Globe (no wins)… and twice for a Razzie (no wins here, either). Currently she is a prolific author in the lifestyle field, and claims to be hyperthymesiac.

Lennox Lewis is a three-time heavyweight-boxing champion. Although born in Britain, I remember his gold medal for Canada in the 1988 Olympics. He is only the third man to retire as heavyweight champion and not return to the ring, though he has remained active in promoting the sport.

Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth first crossed our screens in the inaugural season of this very show. She’s best remembered for getting laid low by falling plaster dust and being a volatile personality who does not work well with others. Since then she has been on many talk shows and the well-named Surreal Life. To her credit, she now works with disadvantaged youth… probably ones who don’t have access to the Season 1 DVDs. Expect Omarosa to be in the forefront of much of the action.

Piers Morgan is known to most Americans as the grumpy judge on NBC’s hit show America's Got Talent. That is not his first brush with TV, as IMDB shows 40-plus entries for him. He has also had some success as an author.

Tito Ortiz has overcome a tough early life to become a big name in the world of ultimate fighting, where he is known as “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy.” He’s also trying to break into action movies and push his clothing line. Probably no one will want to assign a task to Tito.

Vincent Pastore hit the big time in the role of “Big Pussy” on the Emmy-award winning show The Sopranos, but your kids might better know him from his voiceover work in “Shark Tale.” His most recent brush with fame is as a last-minute dropout from last season’s Dancing With The Stars.

Gene Simmons is best known for being a tongue-waggling icon in the seventies glam-band KISS. He has used his fame to develop numerous business ventures, including the production of movies, books, and music for both himself and for others. To the best of my knowledge, he is the only cast member who is also on a U.S. postage stamp! These days he can be seen on the reality show Gene Simmons Family Jewels, where his overt lifestyle befuddles us all.

So there you have it. Depending on your definition, there are some true celebrity contestants, and some, not so much. I didn’t see a lot of folks with MBAs or even minor business experience in their bios, which as the person committed to recapping the episodes, worries me a lot.

What’s Ahead?

We’ll see if this “celebrity” format can possibly work. Personally, although I’m glad to see the L.A. rule changes abandoned, I’m not yet convinced “celebrity anything” has a place in reality TV.

The first episode airs on Thursday, January 3rd at 9:00 PM ET/PT. Join me here for a recap of all the action sprinkled with my own reactions and opinions. I’ll try to be as fair as I can, but you should expect a low breaking point. Do let me know what you think about it all at the eAddress below!

Brian lives in Toronto. He spent a couple of decades working in middle management at The Prudential, primarily hiding behind the coffee machines in generally unsuccessful attempts to avoid his pointy-haired bosses. He can be reached at uncle_bto@rogers.com. He’d like to hear your opinions and promises to respond to all serious email.