'Survivor: Africa' -- An Interview with Kelly

I had the pleasure of interviewing Kelly Goldsmith, the Boran Wunderkind from Survivor: Africa, recently. One of the most entertaining aspects of the show for me was watching Kelly’s scintillating personality and mental ability at work. She was the master spy for her tribe, sleuthing out the rival Samburu tribe’s weaknesses by infiltrating the kiddy alliance. Her pithy comments about the other players’ quirks and conceits had me howling with laughter. I was so impressed with Kelly’s style that I picked her as one of the final four. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be. Like Snow White, she was so good at her job that she panicked Lex, the self-appointed leader of the Borans, and it was “off with her head,” at the next tribal council. But, there’s a lot more to Kelly than just wit and brainpower. She’s become friends with Lindsey, Kim P., Brandon, and Jessie, and plays hostess when they come to L.A. She’s also a bona fide homebody, who outfitted all of her tribe members with hand-made towels. And, she’s got a lot to say about her stay in the bush and how the castaways in the Marquesas are doing.

What do you think Burnett saw that made him pick you?

In all my interviews I wasn't afraid to speak my mind – I don't think that really makes me different than the 15 other Survivor 3 contestants, but perhaps it made me stand out from some of the 50,000 people that applied. I wasn't afraid to be myself.

I've read that Burnett has certain "types" that he wants on the show. Do you think you were the "brainy college kid type" that he wanted on the show?

I'd be honored to think I was the new "brainy college kid type" – I loved watching Greg Buis on Survivor 1 and I always felt like he was the forerunner of that demographic on Survivor. However, I think Mark Burnett liked me because not only did I have that side to my personality, but I'm also very social and interested in human behavior.

How was Burnett in the meetings/interview you had with him?

To be honest, Mark Burnett was TOTALLY MEAN when I had my first interview with him, but I could tell that he was just doing it as a test. They want to push your buttons and see if you squirm. After all, if you can't keep it together in an interview environment, how could you ever keep it together in tribal council?

I heard that Mark Burnett and Jeff Probst said something derogatory in an interview about the players on S3?

I like Mark Burnett; he does a very good job. I was shocked to hear they were bad-mouthing our people. I think it was a comment on the Rosie O’Donnell show. Jeff Probst didn’t like Africa. He hated it there. We are such a normal group of people, and to say we didn’t make a good survivor cast.

What was the call-back process like?

You submit a tape. They call you and ask you to a satellite interview at one of their designated cities (whichever you choose). They call you and invite you to come to L.A. for a 7-14 day interview. You go to the LONG interview, and undergo a series of group interviews (lots of people picking on you), psych tests and that kind of stuff.

I heard contestants had to pay their own way to the interviews. Is that true?

You have to pay your way to the satellite interview, but you get to pick the city, so most people didn't have to go too far from home.

How are things going for you? You say you’ve been going on a lot of auditions, what are they like?

I have a great agent; I go on tons of auditions for commercials. I get a lot of refusals, I hear “I don’t care,” they want more ethnic, etc. It’s a character builder for me. I got a tiny part in a movie; it opens April 4. I’m trying to get together another tape, besides what I did on Survivor. It’s going really well. I’ve gone to two acting schools. The fact that I’ve got an agent and am going on auditions is amazing. I see so many really talented and good-looking people who don’t get any work. I’m going to apply to graduate school in the fall. Everyone’s here (in L.A.): Silas, Lindsey, Kim P., Brandon, Jessie, and Lex. I feel like we’re all on the same team now. Lex is very proactive. He’s trying to get a gig here.

On the follow-up show where they visited the players at home, we saw that you’re a research analyst. What’s that like?

I was recruited in college for behavioral research analyst. For that job, you’re given a test group for say a disease, you put together a market research packet, which goes into different arenas, you put together a questionnaire and come up with what the test group wants, and they sell lots of drugs. There was a job opening in Philly, but Kim P. told me how bad the weather was there. I came back to L.A. to be close to family and friends. My job I got is Behavioral Research Analyst; it’s an all editing thing, about leadership. CEOs contribute articles they’ve written about leadership and they’re compiled in a book. It’s a work in progress. That stuff was shot in the fall, after Survivor 3 was over. Now I do charity events with my family. I raise money (for charity) and live off my winnings and the entertainment thing. Survivor 3 was an impossible struggle against 1 and 2. After 9/11, people didn’t want to see it (Survivor 3). They wanted to see something fun and upbeat. Survivor 4 is more fun. You have to do it on your own career-wise. I love editing; it’s a good learning experience. I’m not rich at all. I have no money. That was my dad’s car in the shot. My parents are great. I love them. My parents grew up in trailers. They weren’t rich.

What did your friends/family think of your portrayal on the show?

One of the things about me on the show was I was being funny like I am at home. My family totally got what I was doing. Like with Frank and the prescription drugs comment. They were rolling on the floor. But when I watched the show later, I realized that the rest of America didn’t get my sense of humor. They (my family) get my humor. My family was only shocked and appalled at the final episode. My parents were sitting with all the other families in the audience. They didn’t know what was going to happen. They were bummed.

You seem to be a real domestic goddess. You showed off an afghan that you made. Do you cook, too?

I’m a dork; I admit it. I love cooking, but I’m not a good cook. I’ll eat it cause I’m stubborn. As much as I love to talk to people, I’m really an introvert.

Do you think you were portrayed accurately on Survivor?

Yes, I think I was portrayed accurately. It’s all about good TV. It’s the field editor’s job to cut out boring stuff. I love editors. It was fair, as far as I’m concerned. I really enjoyed going undercover for Boran but it led to my downfall. Over at Boran, I was with all older people. I was lonely. I was having the best time with Brandon, Kim, and Lindsey. I was a pig in heaven, while Tom and Lex were suffering. Lindsey stayed with me when she was visiting L.A. I couldn’t ask for a more considerate houseguest. She’s a lot like me. She’s really confrontational. That’s the only real difference between us.

What was your luxury item and what were your other choices?

Crochet hooks and yarn, very practical items. A lot of players chose personal mementos; that’s OK. I made dish towels to wash off with. We had to wear our buffs every day. They stank after awhile. They had animal poop on them and were nasty. We used the towels I made to clean out the pots and pans. I wanted to take a deck of cards and board games.

What do you think about the piercing scandal where Lex’s answer of Lindsey was also correct? Do you think Lex would have made the final two?

All that would’ve happened is it would be a tie. Lex was so sick on that last day, he still would have fallen off the log. Tom wouldn’t have kept him if he won, because there was a lot of animosity there.

Do you think that Lex really apologized to you? I know he said something when he voted you off about how if you weren’t “the rat” then he was sorry, and claims that was an apology.

I guess that is an apology, but he didn’t say that to me. He apologized at the Santa Monica benefit. I don’t think he really feels sorry; he says he doesn’t regret voting me off. I think it’s really bullshit, him saying I was the rat. It was an unfair thing to do to someone who was on his side. I guess I just didn’t follow him like a sheep.

How do you think your intelligence helped/hurt you in the game?

Doing well on the SAT’s and Survivor are two different things. Everyone on the show is smart. Having watched all of the Survivors and being a Behavioral Analyst, I over-analyzed everything. Lex said to me “You think too much, it makes me nervous.” That’s how I am; it made people nervous.

It’s been said that you’ve started rumors about some of the other players and then had to retract them.

I never had to retract anything. I never say anything that I don’t believe to be true. I’m the world’s worst liar. The only thing that would happen is, if I hear a story, I don’t think it’s just a rumor, I just say it.

A lot has been said about your use of the film The Graduate to decide your final vote. Did you intend this to be taken literally towards Ethan and Kim J.?

When you go on Survivor you make a list of your favorite things, including films. There was a copy of The Graduate waiting for me at the lodge. I watched it about 7,000 times while I was on the jury at the set. It was so familiar to me, I thought everyone had watched it. I had to pick a (winning) number. I didn’t have good feelings/bad feelings about it. It was just a light-hearted film kind of thing. Really, at the time, I didn’t care, as long as Lex didn’t win. It was not a negative thing, but it came across as “I was crazy.” When it was Kim and Ethan, I was tickled. In my head, it was all the more humorous the way it played out. I thought it was really tricky and funny. I came across as an idiot. I am 22; I’ve never been on a reality show. When it comes to interacting with people, I regret a lot of things, namely my speech. My speech was three times longer than on the show. I definitely credited them (Kim and Ethan) with things they did right. They cut out the good parts of my speech. I thought that Ethan’s flying under the radar throughout the show would be apparent, and everyone would see it and understand my point of view. Brandon said that if Ethan said three things a day, they all got on TV. We saw Ethan as Nick Brown (from Survivor 2), totally forgettable. Ethan was a shadow. Dynamics-wise, he didn’t play the game. For me, it was all about people building and alliances. Ethan held off, he was very reticent and did not commit when Lex first approached him. I have no ill will against him; maybe that’s what it takes to win. In challenges, Ethan was a phenomenal athlete.

How hard was it for you to wait to confront Kim, Ethan, and Lex?

It was hard for myself and the jury to get back in the same mindset; nobody wants to go back to the same mindset. It was not a pleasant thing. It was sad when the show ended. It was a real bummer; like watching the torch go out.

What do you think of the new tribes?

I have LOVED watching Survivor 4. The decisions they’ve been making are asinine. I don’t know what they’re thinking (Maraamu), voting off the strongest guy. But, I love it. I’m a BIG Hunter fan, since he’s from here. Let me tell you a story about Hunter; this is a true story. A plane went down off Coronado Island. He jumps in and saves the pilot. A hero in real life. He so got screwed. It mirrors what happened at Samburu. When you see someone positioning themselves to win, it’s maddening. But the timing! It’s fascinating that Sarah’s still around. She’s only around because she’s manipulating Rob. Sarah and Rob have been physically intimate since day one. See Hunter’s e-mail. It’s been published on the web where he talks about it. From day one, Clarence and Lex butted heads and Clarence backed down after the bean incident, and when I saw Sean and Hunter, I thought, “Am I seeing the same thing?” I think that it’s (the twist) an individual immunity challenge until the end. Everyone will suck up to that person (the winner). That’s my prediction. Gina and Hunter are still dating. I know this from a friend of Hunter’s I sat next to at a banquet and from Wanda’s preshow on E!.

How has Sarah played the game so far and how long will she last?

Ok, for better or for worse, I feel like no one is discussing Sarah's real strategy: the girl is playing the game... with her boobs. Personally, I think it's great. Everyone on the show has their strengths and weaknesses, and being a beautiful woman is definitely not going to hurt you out there. She's got it. She's flaunting it and she is USING IT TO RULE ROB. His whole pseudo-Machiavellian diatribe about how others "fear him" and how he's really ruling the roost... um... baby, the tail can wag the dog – and I think that is exactly what is going on with him and Sarah. If it weren't for their relationship, she would be playing jacks with Peter right now at the loser lodge. She knows it. She has an angle and she's working it. Sarah is definitely playing the game.

The lovely Miss Gina, who I am personally still rooting for, is the power player in next week's episode. Sure the prevailing notion is that the four of them will stick together and oust her, but really, if the girl is smart (and she doesn't seem dumb) she can definitely play off her status as the wild card. Think about it, Vecepia and Sean both really don't like Sarah. They've said it a million times. Gina could side up to them and the three of them could boot her and all her loveliness. Then again, Rob and Sarah both have GOT to be getting tired of Sean. Rob says he's not that good at the water challenges. If Gina wanted, she could say, "HEY WAKE UP KNUCKLEHEADS WE ARE LOSING EVERYTHING!" and try to play off Sean's inability to swim as a reason to rope Sarah and Rob into voting with her.

Compare this to Survivor 3, when there was a clear divide between the old Boran (Me, Lex, Kim J., Ethan, Tom) and the old Samboohoo (Teresa, Frank, Kim P., Brandon) – personally, I thought I had the power because when Lex made it clear he wanted me gone, I saw myself as having the ability to saddle up to the old Samburu as the key player. Little did I know Brandon had the opposite strategy working, and whoops, I was gone. Point being, whenever there are two even factions and you are the odd man out, it can be extremely powerful, if you play it right. Granted, putting yourself out there as a "player" at all tends to make people nervous and can backfire, but hey, if you've already got one foot out the door – what other choice do you have!?

Who are the villains in Survivor 4?

I love to watch Rotu; they are playing the game. Haven’t seen much of Paschal, Tammy, and Sweet Pea. I’m sure there is shit going on. We’re gonna see them going on. They’re hiding the backstabbing. The villain is the guy or girl who plays the game differently. That’s why you’re there. Like with Sean, all he does is trash talk his teammates. His strategy is working. He’s a jackass, but it’s working for him.

Who do you think will win Survivor 4?

I would love to see Gina pull a miracle, but it’ll be from Rotu. There’s not even a strong good guy yet.

Which Survivor did you like the most, or would have liked to be on?

Which favorite is like asking “do you think your brother is hot?” I liked Survivor 1, I really got into it. I made graphs with my Dad and the whole thing. Four looks like a blast; I’d like to be on it, but I have a huge phobia about the ocean. I got scared in an aquarium in the second grade.

Is there anything else you’d like to say or tell people about yourself?

I hope that people think I’m a normal, nice person; that’s all. Everyone’s a critic. You can’t expect people to act like people. You wouldn’t know what to do either. I haven’t seen anyone with the exception of Richard Hatch play the game out, so give us a break once in a while.

Melinda Smith is a technical illustrator and writer with a background in graphic arts. She and her family live in Cincinnati, Ohio.

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