Big Brother 8 (American season)

Template:Spoiler-blankTemplate:Future television episode Template:Big Brother housemates Big Brother 8 is the eighth season of the US version of the reality TV-show Big Brother on CBS. The season was announced on February 1, 2007.^[1] Julie Chen returned for this season as host. Allison Grodner and Rich Meehan were announced as executive producers. Arnold Shapiro stepped down as producer following last season's All-Stars edition, but serves as executive consultant on the show. Casting calls ran until May 5, 2007. A preview was shown on the The Early Show on July 5, 2007, the day of the premiere. The show airs three times a week; Sundays at 8 p.m. (EDT), Tuesdays at 9 p.m., and Thursdays, which is broadcast live, at 8 p.m.

CBS' cable/satellite premium network Showtime Too is carrying a spin-off of the series called Big Brother: After Dark, which airs nightly live from 9 p.m.—12 a.m. (PDT). This program features house activity happening between those times, and is edited only for slanderous statements and music copyrights.^[2]

Former HouseGuest and presenter of the online talk show, House Calls, Marcellas Reynolds, did not return to host the daytime chat show after CBS announced budget cuts, although his co-presenter, Gretchen Massey, continues as host of the program. The program broadcasts live at CBS.com every weekday at 1 p.m. (EDT), where viewers call-in with questions and discussion about the show. On Fridays, the evicted HouseGuest will appear on the show.

Chronology

Each week in the Big Brother House is summarized in the table on the main page. A typical week begins with the Head of Household competition during the live Thursday episode and ends with the eviction of a houseguest during the following Thursday's episode. The next "week" immediately starts after the eviction with the next Head of Household competition. Evictions, competitions, and other noteworthy events for a particular week are noted. Some of the events listed may not be in order of sequence.

Note: Please see America's Player section for the list of Eric's tasks.

HouseGuests

The twist this year is "Biggest Nemesis", as six of the HouseGuests have moved into the house with their enemies, and have been revealed as Joe/Dustin (ex-boyfriends), Daniele/Dick (estranged daughter/father), and Carol/Jessica (ex-best friends). The other twist is HouseGuest Eric as "America's Player".

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Amber

Amber M. Tomcavage (born March 17, 1980) (maiden name Siyavus) is a 27-year-old cocktail waitress at Caesar's Palace casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. She is a divorced mother (she said she was married April 11, 2000 and divorced after four years of marriage), and says her ex-husband is one of her best friends. She is also known to be very emotional, most notably crying at situations and in-house events such as after most nomination ceremonies, veto competitions, veto ceremonies, and evictions, sometimes for seemingly no reason at all, even if she did not really like the person. At one point even referred to herself as "ridiculous" for all the crying she does, and realizes that she needs to be less emotional or it could cost her the game.

Carol

Carol M. Journey (born March 3, 1986) is a 21-year-old student from Lawrence, Kansas, born and raised in Haysville, Kansas. Carol attends the University of Kansas and is part of their dance team.^[3] She is the daughter of Kansas State Senator Phil Journey.^[4] Jessica and Carol were best friends as young teens, but had a falling out and went their separate ways. She was the first HouseGuest evicted in a 10-1 vote in favor of Amber.

Daniele

Daniele Donato (born August 20, 1986) is a 20-year-old Hooters waitress from Huntington Beach, California. Dick is her estranged father, with whom she hadn't spoken for two years before entering the House. Daniele's budding relationship with HouseGuest Nick was not well received by her father Dick.^[5] Daniele lied by telling the HouseGuests she was 21-years-old on Day 1, while she will not actually turn 21 until August 20. She has two star tattoos, each one on the front of her hips.

Dick

Richard Louis "Evel Dick" Donato (born June 24, 1963) is a 44-year-old bar manager from Los Angeles, California. Daniele is his estranged daughter. Dick is an acquaintance with numerous famous celebrities, one in particular being Cher, with whom he claims to have had dinner. He is also friends with Dilana from the reality show Rock Star: Supernova. He has stated that he has dated Jerri Manthey of Survivor fame, and although he broke up with her, he says they remain friends. He has also stated he played Keith Richards' body double in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. He has claimed to be an Atheist, and that his mother is an ordained minister. Dick has been quite abrasive to the other HouseGuests, and has taunted some of them about their religious beliefs and sexual preferences. Dick was also a finalist in the selection process for Seasons 5 and 6. Dick and Daniele have started to mend their relationship, and Daniele has told him she loves him. Dick has said he will do anything in the game to protect Daniele and keep her in the house. An example of this when they were both nominated on Day 42. After Dick won the Power of Veto, he used it to save Daniele rather than himself.

Dustin

Dustin Simon Erikstrup (born January 21, 1985) is a 22-year-old shoe salesman from Chicago, Illinois. Dustin and Joe used to be a couple, and had a bitter breakup. Dustin was the fourth Head of Household for the season. His actions during that week's Power of Veto competition drew criticism from Amber and Jameka who called his taking of $5,000 and a holiday to Barbados selfish.^[6] Dustin has made an appearance on Elimidate. ^{[citation needed]}

Eric

Eric Scott Stein (born January 25, 1980) is a 27-year-old talent management assistant from New York, New York. He grew up in Yorktown Heights, New York and attended Boston University. He is "America's Player". In weeks 3 and 4, Eric's orders from the viewers to vote to evict Kail caused the HouseGuests to constantly wonder who the extra votes were from. His previous television appearance include the gameshow Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? (game show) which he was a contestant on, and lost in the first round when he only bet 20 crimebucks instead of 50.

Jameka

Jameka Linette Cameron (born July 20, 1978) is a 29-year-old school counselor from Waldorf, Maryland and attended Elizabeth City State University. Fellow HouseGuest, Dick, wrote in his Head of Household blog that he felt Jameka was smart and trusting.^[7] Jameka has consistently been seen as deeply religious, believing that God wanted her to play for the person who drew her name for the Veto competition, regardless of who it was.^[8] During the Power of Veto competition on Day 36, Jameka chose to forfeit five HoH competitions.^[9]

Jen

Jennifer Marie Johnson (born April 25, 1984) is a 23-year-old nanny and bikini model from Beverly Hills, California. She currently works for Vanna White. ^{[citation needed]} Her previous television appearances include playing for the NY Euphoria in the 2006 Lingerie Bowl, and has said she appeared on an episode of Wheel of Fortune before being employed by Vanna White. While in the House she has been criticized for being very vain and only thinking of herself. She also took down the only picture of her mother from the wall in her HoH room because Jen thought that she (herself) looked bad in it. Jen became the second Head of Household of the season, stunning the other HouseGuests.^[10]^[11] Jen's family and friends have told producers and the public that Jen is "playing dumb" in the House and is quite different in real life than she acts in the Big Brother House.^[12] Jen was a double major in Architecture and Early Childhood Development. During the veto competition on Day 36, Jen agreed to wear a rabbit costume for five days, eat slop for 30 days, and give up half of her prize money should she make it to the end of the game. This means that Jen is only eligible to win $250,000 if she wins Big Brother.^[9]

Jessica

Jessica Gwen Hughbanks (born December 22, 1985) is a 21-year-old Wichita State University student, Wichita Wild Indoor Football and Wichita Thunder dance team member from Haysville, Kansas. Jessica also is a Maxim (magazine) Hometown Hottie and appeared on Maxim's website. Jessica and Carol were best friends as young teens, but had a falling out and went their separate ways. Jessica won the Head of Household competition on Day 41, beating Jen in the final round of the "Let's Make a Duel" HoH competition.

Joe

Joseph Barber II (born September 28, 1983) is a 23-year-old receptionist from Chicago, Illinois. Joe and Dustin were a couple but had a bitter breakup. He was the second HouseGuest evicted by a vote of 9-1. Joe once made an appearance on Elimidate.^{[citation needed]}

Kail

Kail Lucille Harbick (born October 5, 1969) is a 37-year-old business owner from McKenzie Bridge, Oregon who works as a real estate agent for Prudential Financial.^[13] In addition to her estate business, she and her husband own several businesses in Blue River, Oregon: a grocery store, a motel,^[14] a restaurant, and a resort.^[15] A devout fan of Big Brother, Kail had previously applied for Big Brother 5 and Big Brother 6. On Day 34, she stated in the Diary Room that she wanted to leave the House and walk; however, she was talked out of it by the show's producers. During the veto competition on Day 36, Kail agreed to sit out the HoH competition for the next five weeks,^[9] however it had no effect on her game as Kail was evicted by a 4 to 3 vote on Day 41.

Mike

Michael S. Dutz (born August 20, 1980) is a 26-year-old painting contractor from Three Lakes, Wisconsin, and is a model with BMG Model & Talent Agency. He has appeared on the Lifetime show Gay, Straight or Taken?. He was the straight and available one. Mike was known in the Big Brother House for being quiet and not connecting with the other houseguests. Mike was nominated alongside Kail by Dick. Very quiet inside the House, fellow HouseGuest Dustin said, "Mike, I'm sorry, you've been in the house for three weeks, and I know four things about you: You're from Wisconsin, you like planes, you're a model, and you eat a lot of meat." Mike was evicted by a vote of 7-2 on Day 27.

Nick

Nicholas Anton Starcevic (born March 5, 1982) is a 25-year-old former college American football player from Kimball, Minnesota and was once crowned MTV's "Spring Break King" while on vacation in Cancún. Nick has worn t-shirts of his former teammate and Eastern Washington University Eagle Jake Young, having last played for EWU's Big Sky Conference championship teams in 2004 and 2005. He played American football for the University of Minnesota, Crookston for the 04-05 season. He spent time playing football for a Finnish team Seinäjoki Crocodiles in a European Federation of American Football (EFAF). Nick was nominated alongside Kail on Day 31 in place of Jen, being evicted on Day 34 by a six to two vote. Before moving into the house, Nick lived in Shepparton, Australia to teach physical education.^{[citation needed]}

Zach

Zachary Joseph Swerdzewski (born April 17, 1977) is a 30-year-old graphic designer from Tallahassee, Florida. Zach graduated from Florida State University, where he was a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity. He owns a company called Dolphin Crash. On the show, he has been seen wearing shirts with the company's name and logo, and sports the logo as a tattoo on his upper-left shoulder on his back. Zach once made an appearance on an episode of E!'s Style Court.^[16].

Big Brother House

The houseplan of the Big Brother 8 house.

House pictures were released on June 27, 2007. The house has an Alice in Wonderland theme and contains an oversized bedroom and a small bedroom. The small bedroom features a very small doorway and five beds which are only five feet long, while the oversized bedroom features shoulder-height beds and enormous drawers which need a ladder to reach. The walkway to the Head of Household room is a modernist inspired enchanted forest.^[17] The backyard contains animal shaped topiaries, flowers, a swimming pool and a spinning teacup. The lavish blue bathroom has a shower which features a lion-shaped water spout.^[18]

Interactive options

This year, there are two options for viewers of Big Brother to become more involved with the game. They are CBS' "America's Player" and Canadian broadcaster Global TV's "Big Brother interactive." It is unknown whether "America's Choice" used in previous seasons will continue this year.

America's Player

At the end of each show (starting July 8), Eric is asked to complete a task that America specifies by voting on CBS.com or by text messaging. For every five tasks Eric completes, he is rewarded with US$10,000.^[19] Viewers are able to vote on tasks from the end of an episode until midnight Pacific Time. The Thursday task involves pitching nominees to the Head of Household (HoH), the Sunday task is something interesting that might not affect the strategic game play, and the Tuesday task swaying the HouseGuests' opinion on who to evict (unless he is nominated himself). Once Eric receives the task, he must make a meaningful effort to complete the task. However, he can decide how to complete the task. In addition, Eric must cast his eviction vote for whom America chose to evict.^[20] If Eric is a jury member jury on finale night, the viewers will vote on who should receive Eric's vote to win the game.

Despite the title "America's Player", Canadians are still allowed to vote online. Allison Grodner, the executive producer, chuckled while telling Global TV "We are certainly not trying to exclude any of our viewers so we will call this...the 'Canadian-American Player'."^[21] or as Canadian fans say, the "Viewer's Player".

Task #	Date given	Description	Options	America's selection	Result
1	Sun, July 8	Eric is going to show his soft side. Decide which HouseGuest Eric must tell a made up lie of a sorrowful story about his past life to.	All other HouseGuests	Kail	Completed
2	Tue, July 10	Which one of the two nominees should Eric vote to evict?	Amber, Carol	Carol	Completed
3	Thu, July 12	Decide which of the HouseGuests Eric must persuade Jen to put up for eviction.	All other HouseGuests	Jessica	Failed A1
4	Sun, July 15	As every HouseGuest has their quirks, Eric will now have his own. America must decide which house guest's bed Eric will sleepwalk to.	All other HouseGuests	Joe	Failed A2
5	Tue, July 17	Which one of the two nominees should Eric get evicted?	Dick, Joe	Joe	Completed
6	Thu, July 19	Even though Eric is not HoH, decide a HouseGuest Eric must try to persuade Dick to put up.	All other HouseGuests	Jen	Completed
7	Sun, July 22	It's time for Eric to cause a little drama in the house. Decide which HouseGuest Eric must target (their property).	All other HouseGuests	Jen	Completed A3
8	Tue, July 24	Which one of the two nominees should Eric get evicted?	Mike, Kail	Kail	Failed A4
9	Thu, July 26	Who should Eric convince Dustin to nominate for eviction?	All other HouseGuests	Jen	Completed
10	Sun, July 29	Eric must now start up a catch-phrase inside the house. Which catch-phrase should Eric start in the house?	"Sweet Chicken" "Booyakah" "I'd do that for a dollar!"	"I'd do that for a dollar!"	Completed A5
11	Tue, July 31	Which one of the two nominees should get evicted?	Kail, Nick	Kail	Failed A4
12	Thu, August 2	Who should Eric get Daniele to nominate for eviction?	All other HouseGuests	Jen	Completed
13	Sun, August 5	Which HouseGuest should Eric promise to go to the final two with?	All other HouseGuests	Jessica	Completed
14	Tue, August 7	Which HouseGuest should Eric flatter incessantly in order to ensure his safety?	All other HouseGuests (except Kail and Daniele)A6	Dick	Failed A7
15	Thu, August 9	Who should Eric convince Jessica to nominate for eviction?	All other HouseGuests	Dustin	Completed A8
16	Sun, August 12	To which HouseGuest should Eric give the silent treatment?	All other HouseGuests	Jessica	Failed A9
17	Tue, August 14	Which one of the two nominees should Eric get evicted?	Dick, Dustin	-	Pending

Template:FnbThe Head of Household nominated different HouseGuests, whether during nomination or after the Veto ceremony.

Template:FnbEric did "sleepwalk" into Joe's bed, but chose to leave rather than wait for Joe to kick him out.

Template:FnbEric squirted mustard on a shirt Jen was using as a pillowcase.

Template:FnbAlthough Eric voted this way, the house did not, so he failed in this task.

Template:FnbEric had one week to get three people to repeat the phrase on five separate days.

Template:FnbAmerica cannot vote for Kail or Daniele because they are nominated and HoH, respectively, and have no vote.

Template:FnbEric failed to flatter Dick into voting to keep him; and the results of the vote were not aired.

Template:FnbJessica nominated Dustin as a replacement nominee when Dick used the PoV on Daniele.

Template:FnbEric failed to give Jessica the silent treatment after she came to talk and he lied saying he'd visited the medic who said he should stay in bed and avoid people.

Big Brother interactive

This year Canadian Broadcast network, Global TV, will be introducing an interactive Two-Screen Solutions game on their website, Big Brother 'In The House',^[22] using NanoGaming technology. Viewers will be able to make real-time predictions as well as answer trivia and instant recall questions while watching the show. The Big Brother fan with the most points each week will win a TV, and the fan with the most points throughout the season will win tickets to the wrap party.

Ratings

Big Brother 8 will air episodes three times a week, with shows airing Sundays at 8 p.m. (EDT), Tuesdays 9 p.m., and Thursday 8 p.m. The first episode premiered on July 5, 2007 with 7.401 million viewers (4.8/9 viewing audience), down from last year's 5.2/9 launch.^[23] However, the following show on Sunday did much worse in the ratings, scoring a 3.9/7 viewing figure, losing nearly 1 million viewers since the previous episode.^[24] The first Tuesday's show, however, was more successful with viewers, managing a 4.5/7 rating.^[25] The following Tuesday's show had the same rating.^[26] Tuesday shows are typically the highest rated among the three episodes every week, with Thursday in second and Sunday, a competitive night in television, in last among all three recap shows. Sunday, 5 August's episode, became the first edition of the season that rated higher than the launch show and the first of the season to receive a 5.0 in preliminary ratings points.^[27] Thursday, 9 August's eviction episode, and Sunday, August 12's nomination episode, became the highest rated episodes of the season.^[28]^[29] As with the previous seasons, live streaming video feeds are available for purchase through RealNetworks. All ratings are from Nielsen Media Research and Zap2it.

	Week 0 (Launch)	Week 1	Week 2	Week 3	Week 4	Week 5	Week 6
Sunday	no show	6.05m 3.9/7	6.51m 4.2/8	6.51m 4.2/8	6.36m 4.1/8	7.519m 4.7/9	8.03m 5.2/9
Tuesday	no show	6.98m 4.5/7	6.98m 4.5/7	6.98m 4.5/8	7.121m 4.7/9	7.29m 4.7/8	7.66m 5.0/8
Thursday	7.401m 4.8/9	6.51m 4.2/8	7.29m 4.7/9	7.076m 4.5/9	7.091m 4.6/9	7.798m 5.1/9

Weekly average	7.401m 4.8/9	6.51m 4.2/7	6.93m 4.4/8	6.86m 4.4/8	6.857m 4.5/9	7.613m 4.8/9	7.85m 5.1/9
Running average	7.401m 4.8/9	7.180m 4.6/8	7.055m 4.4/8	6.958m 4.4/8	6.908m 4.4/9	7.261m 4.6/9	7.646m 5.0/9
Season average	7.646m 5.0/9

Voting history