The Real World: Hawaii

The Real World: Hawaii
File:RWHawaiiCast.jpg The cast of The Real World: Hawaii.
Created by	Jonathan Murray Mary-Ellis Bunim
Starring	Amaya Brecher Colin Mortensen Justin Deabler Kaia Beck Matt Simon Ruthie Alcaide Tecumseh Holmes, III
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of episodes	23
Production
Running time	30 minutes
Original release
Network	MTV Syndication
Release	1999 – 1999

The Real World: Hawaii is the eighth season of MTV's reality television series The Real World, which focuses on a group of diverse strangers living together for several months in a different city each season, as cameras follow their lives and interpersonal relationships. First airing in 1999, the cast lived in a modern beach house in Honolulu, Hawaii. This was the second of five seasons to be filmed outside of the continental United States (The Real World: London in 1995, The Real World: Paris in 2003, The Real World: Sydney in 2007, and The Real World: Cancun in 2009), the only season not named after a city, and the first season set in the United States to be filmed outside of the mainland United States.

The residence

The cast resided in a 4,095-square-foot (380.4 m²), single story, three bedroom, four bathroom house at 3169 Diamond Head Road in Diamond Head, Hawaii. The property's two-story guest house housed the Control Room and production offices during the filming. At the time of the filming of the series, the Diamond Head House rented for $10,000.00 USD a month, and was listed for sale for $7,500,000 in 2006. By March 2008, both houses were torn down, and new building permits were issued in February 2008.

Assignment

Almost every season of The Real World, beginning with its fifth season, has included the assignment of a season-long group job or task to the housemates. The seven housemates worked at the Waikiki Location of Local Motion, a clothing and surf apparel store. They were responsible for booking in-store entertainment under a company they christened "7 Strangers Productions."

Cast

Cast Member	Age	Hometown	Stats
Colin Mortensen	19	Thousand Oaks, California	Hailing from Thousand Oaks, California, Colin's good looks and sincere, open manner could easily earn him pin-up status on any teenager's bedroom wall. Colin's parents divorced when he was very young, forcing him to split time between two households. The effects of that divorce extend to his relationships as a 19-year-old adult. Originally, he was one of the people who just missed making the cast, and was chosen instead to host an hour long look at the casting process. In the last segment of the casting special, he met with the show's producers. There, they informed him that he was the final housemate, much to his surprise. Despite initially returning Amaya's affections, he eventually came to feel, along with Kaia and Matt, that Amaya was needy. He was also upset that she flirted with friends of his when they came to visit. Other cast members also disliked how Colin treated Amaya and how he talked to her.
Amaya Brecher	21	Oakland, California	At 21, Amaya claims that she's at a crossroads in her life. Now that she has graduated from UCLA, she is struggling over revealing her true self to the world. Her closest friends know her as a sassy, sarcastic and sexual young woman with an appetite for parties. Much of what she calls her "darker" side has not yet been revealed to her parents or even sorority sisters. A native of Oakland, California, Amaya is both smart and beautiful, but like many young women, she suffers from a poor body image and struggled with bulimia in her early college years. She became attracted to Colin, with whom she had an on-off relationship. Near the end of the season, the bulk of her roommates began to turn on her, citing her insecure nature and speaking ill of them outside of their presence
Matt Simon	22	Del Mar, California	Matt is an outspoken writer with a self-deprecating wit. During high school, he interned at a radio station, where he performed so well that he was given his own show. At 22, Matt is enrolled at UCLA where he's studying political science and sociology, although his dream is to write for the silver screen. A native of Del Mar, California, Matt's formative experiences tend to focus on women, although he's admittedly shy about approaching the opposite sex. He sees himself as a loyal friend who goes out of his way to help others. He became close with Ruthie's twin sister, particularly during the discussions he, she and her other sister had over Ruthie's drinking problem. He wrote to her when the cast visited India.
Justin Deabler	21	Kingwood, Texas	A child prodigy, Justin found it tough to socialize with his peers in his hometown of Houston, Texas. His frustrations with the intolerance of his schoolmates and a lack of academic challenges led him to Simon's Rock College at age 15. Now twenty-one, he's a second-year law student and teaching fellow at Harvard University. A politically active gay man, Justin involves himself in such social issues as HIV/AIDS education, gay youth rights and same-sex marriage. Although he has excelled in academics, he tends to be quite provocative in social circles as of late. And though he's on the verge of a promising career, he feels that he's missed out on a lot of the fun of being a kid. He does not develop a rapport with the others. He takes exception to Teck directly asking him if he's gay in the first episode, and is highly critical of almost all of his fellow housemates, the details of which he goes into during the group trip to India. He refers to Kaia as "ineffectual" and says that "Teck's schtick is so tired it's comatose." He tries to sabotage Amaya and Colin's relationship during the India vacation, but after the trip, he leaves the house, leaving partly due to his frustration with the other housemates, but citing as his primary reason a family emergency at home.
Margaret Emily "Kaia" Beck	22	Chicago, Illinois	Twenty-two-year-old Kaia changed her name from Margaret after living in Tanzania. Her adopted name means "stability" in Swahili. A native of Chicago, Illinois, she now majors in African-American studies at UC Berkeley. MTV.com describes her as a strong woman in every sense of the word. Extremely conscious of her body, she maintains a strict diet and exercise routine. She is an excellent debater and is likely to challenge any idea with which she does not agree. She was comfortable walking around topless on-camera.
Ruthie Alcaide	21	Honolulu, Hawaii	One of triplets and the only native born Hawaiian in the cast, Ruthie was raised in a foster home by a strict, Filipino family. According to Ruthie, her foster parents favored their biological children and discouraged Ruthie from educating herself. During high school, she enrolled in an "Upward Bound" program that boosted her self-esteem. After high school, she left her foster family and did not contact them again until she enrolled at Rutgers University. Ruthie's goal is to run her own magazine. She has won awards for her freestyle rapping and performs spoken word poetry. She is bisexual and has a girlfriend, Jess, who lives near Honolulu. She has a penchant for over drinking, which often results in her passing out at bars, and inappropriate behavior like giving a table dance for her boss' wife. During another binge at the house, she takes a drinking glass and throws it, shattering it. During the first episode, she loses consciousness, and her house mates call the paramedics. Her housemates, along with Ruthie's two sisters, explore the possibility of sending her to a rehab center, but cannot do so without her consent. After Ruthie drives home from a bar intoxicated, her housemates have a meeting with her and tell her she must go to rehab or be evicted from the house. Ruthie feels betrayed, but goes to rehab, eventually returning when her stint is completed. Explaining her dislike of labels pertaining to her sexual orientation, she has stated that she does not like being called "straight", "gay" or "bisexual", saying, "Just call me Ruthie".
Tecumseh "Teck" Holmes III	23	Peoria, Illinois	..The son of a minister, Teck has a contagious energy and humor. Twenty-two years old, MTV.com describes him as a ladies man in--what some would say--a charming way. Hailing from Peoria, Illinois, his goal in life is to become an entertainer and segue into politics, where he hopes to be a positive black role model. He is currently producing, financing and starring in a low-budget film set in Atlanta. Although he can be a party animal, Teck's alter ego proves him to be an extremely smart and responsible young man. He and Ruthie strip naked as soon as they arrive at the house in the season premiere, and jump into the pool.

After filming

Teck Holmes went on to pursue an acting career, appearing in films such as National Lampoon's Van Wilder and Jerseyboy Hero, and on television series such as Friends and NCIS. He has also been a TV host, as on the Cartoon Network game show Hole in the Wall. Amaya Brecher co-hosts Stargazing and Sign of the Times, two programs on Karma Air, with astrologer Cortney Litwin. Ruthie Alcaide is a singer in a band, and lectures on college campuses about her experiences. Alcaide has also appeared in alcohol awareness commercials on the Armed Forces Network (AFN).

Real World/Road Rules Challenges

Cast Member	RW/RR Challenges	Challenges Won
Colin Mortensen	Battle of the Sexes	Battle of the Sexes
Amaya Brecher	Challenge 2000, Battle of the Sexes	None
Matt Simon	-	-
Justin Deabler	-	-
Margaret Emily "Kaia" Beck	-	-
Ruthie Alcaide	Battle of the Sexes*, Battle of the Sexes 2, The Gauntlet 2, The Duel 2	None
Tecumseh "Teck" Holmes III	Challenge 2000	None

^{^*} The contestant was a finalist on the Challenge, but lost in the Final Race.

External links

• The Real World: Hawaii at mtv.com