The Real World: New York
| The Real World: New York | |
|---|---|
| Created by | Jonathan Murray Mary-Ellis Bunim |
| Starring | Eric Nies Heather Gardner Julie Gentry Kevin Powell Norman Korpi Becky Blasband Andre Comeau |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Production | |
| Running time | 30 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | MTV Syndication |
| Release | 1992 – 1992 |
The Real World (retrospectively referred to as The Real World: New York, to distinguish it from subsequent installments of the series) is the first season of MTV's groundbreaking reality television series The Real World, which focuses on seven diverse strangers from across the United States living together in a loft in Manhattan's SoHo district for several months, as the cameras follow their lives and their interpersonal relationships. It made its television debut in 1992 and was produced by Mary-Ellis Bunim and Jonathan Murray. This was the first of three seasons to be filmed in New York City. In 2001 the show made a repeat visit with The Real World: Back to New York, and in 2008, set its twenty-first season, The Real World: Brooklyn,[1] in the borough of Brooklyn, making New York City the only city to be used for the setting of more than one season.
Cast
- Becky Blasband
- Andre Comeau
- Heather Gardner
- Julie Gentry
- Norman Korpi
- Eric Nies
- Kevin Powell
Episode summaries
Episode 1: The episode begins with southern girl Julie and her family in Birmingham. Her family is nervous about her living in New York City, but 19-year-old Julie is excited about spending three months in the big city. The seven strangers arrive at the luxurious loft that they'll call home for the next three months. Julie is the last to arrive and joins the group gathered around the dining table. After Heather's pager sounds, Julie inquires, "Do you sell drugs? Why do you have a beeper?" Several of the roommates wonder if Julie is racist. After introducing themselves, they explore the house and find a book on love and sex. As the sex discussion begins, it is revealed that Julie is a virgin. At dinner, Kevin, Julie and Heather discuss prejudice and racism. Kevin is impressed with Julie's open attitude, considering where she grew up.
Episode 2: Julie and Eric begin a flirtatious relationship. The loft learns that prior to the show Eric appeared in a Jōvan Musk commercial and on the television show "A Closer Look" to discuss "sexy ads." After playing a clip of the show for the loft, the group discusses nudity, pornography and whether or not Eric is simply selling himself and his good looks to the highest bidder. Heather invites Julie and Eric to visit the studio where she is recording a song for her upcoming album, The System Sucks. It's clear from Heather's hard work and her producer's aggressiveness that the recording business is rough. Eric joins Heather on the mic for some freestyle. The sexual tension between Julie and Eric continues as Julie makes her interest more obvious: harassing Eric on the phone, being overtly jealous when Eric talks about his girlfriend Missy, and, as Eric says, showing up in his bed one morning to talk about "pancakes." Eric reciprocates the interest, and shows off for Julie at her hip-hop dance class. Julie is excited by Eric's efforts and his willingness to take a chance. Eric later gets upset when Becky talks about setting Julie up on a blind date.
Episode 3: Julie gets lost on her way to Broadway Dance Center because she can't follow the directions that Eric gives her. While she is getting critiqued on her performance, Eric is working on a magazine shoot with a topless female model. When Eric and the model, Taryn, begin flirting, the photographer encourages them and the two begin kissing. After the shoot, Taryn and Eric begin dating. But Eric is confused by the relationship, as their dates only consist of strange things like trying on leather "rocker clothes". Eric doesn't really understand what she sees in him. Andre's band, Reigndance, is practicing for an upcoming show when the police show up and shut their basement rehearsal down. The band performs on Staten Island, and at Julie's urging, several of the roommates watch the show. Grateful for their support, Andre dedicates the song "Redspot" to his housemates.
Episode 4: Becky is in the studio recording her song, "Mr. Sunshine." She cuddles with friend/producer Adam. Becky later dresses up for a party at the Limelight and imitates Madonna by putting Dixie cups in her bra. Heather is unnerved by Becky's overt sexual behavior, especially as Becky becomes less restrained as the party rages on. A house meeting is called after Heather and Becky wake up Kevin by jumping in his bed after the party. Heather suggests he either live with it or go to a hotel. After the meeting, Kevin writes Eric a long letter about their relationship and the current conflicts. The roomies pass around and discuss the letter. Eric gets angrier about the letter as he waits for Kevin to return home. When Kevin does arrive, Eric verbally attacks him for being so passive-aggressive.
Episode 5: Kevin and Eric go outside to discuss their issues. The argument dies down as the two talk about stereotypes and their inherent differences. They shake hands at the conclusion of the conversation. Kevin takes Morris, a teenage boy he is mentoring, to dinner and an art exhibit and talks to Morris about having a commitment to help others. Eric is also doing some community service as a probation requirement: He works in a basketball program for troubled kids. But he's got other things on his mind as he anxiously awaits Missy's arrival at the loft. Kevin and Eric become closer as they discuss Missy and Eric's relationship with her. Eric then cements the deal when he invites Kevin to a Knicks game, where the two meet Isiah Thomas. Kevin gets a chance to peek into Eric's private life as he watches him interact with his dad, an NBA referee.
Episode 6: Julie and Kevin's brother/sister dynamic continues as they discuss sex, expectations and fantasies. After Kevin fails to show up for a group dinner that he suggested, the roommates are upset by Kevin spending increasingly more time away from the loft and decide to play a prank on him. They place descriptions of various personas in a hat, and after they each pick one blind, they take on the characters, hoping to fool Kevin into thinking that things have changed while he has been away. Everyone gets into the game, especially Julie, who announces, "I get to be a whooore!" Kevin returns to the loft, and overwhelmed by what he sees, rushes out of the house. Several hours after Kevin fails to return to the loft, his frightened roomies wonder if he's ever coming back. A worried Eric explains "he probably killed himself."
Episode 7: The cast is worried about Kevin because no one knows where he went. Once he returns, they show him the video they made of the joke they played on him and he eventually forgives them. Later, Kevin confesses he considered quitting the show because he thought his roommates were so weird. Meanwhile, Heather constantly professes her love for Hornets basketball player Larry Johnson and says she plans to grab his rear end if she meets him. Julie and Heather actually attend the Knicks-Hornets game, and Heather flirts incessantly with Larry Johnson afterwards. Julie slips Heather's phone number to Larry Johnson. A package arrives, informing the ladies of the house that they will spend a week in Jamaica. Becky has a heated argument with Kevin about racism in America.
Episode 8: The girls head off to Jamaica, but are disappointed that the men they see at the nude beach they frequent are not attractive. While in the water topless, a man asks Julie if he can touch her breasts, and Julie angrily refuses. The men are left at the loft in New York and bond with each other. Back at home, Andre and Kevin head off to a night on the town and talk for the first time. They find that they're not as different from each other as they originally thought. Norman also is far from bored as he develops a relationship with Charles Perez, who he thinks may be the man of his dreams. Julie and Heather leave Jamaica disappointed by the available men. Becky, however, returns to NY with a new boyfriend in tow, Bill "Corky" Richmond, one of the directors from the loft's control room.[2]
Episode 9: As the housemates prepares for their trip to the pro-choice rally in Washington D.C., Norman is falling in love with Charles, though Charles is not ready to make the same commitment. As Julie, Norman, and Heather travel by car to the rally, Norman gets pulled over for speeding. Within fifteen minutes of the group's arrival in Washington, Norman spots Charles in the crowd and the two spend some of the day together. Back at home, while out for a walk with Norman and his dog Gouda, Julie meets and makes a connection with Darlene, a young woman living in a "Reagan-Ville" filled with homeless people. Julie later stays the night in the makeshift community. The situation affects Julie deeply and the rest of the loftmates are impressed with Julie's openness to the situation.
Episode 10: The cast finds a white dog on the street and name him Yoda. They want to keep the dog but decide to search for its owner and take the dog for a walk to Washington Square Park in the hopes that someone will recognize the dog. Becky and Andre say that the dog is just so ugly it's cute. The dog's owner is eventually found. Julie's mother comes for a visit and Julie plans to "tire her out" by doing the whole tourist scene in New York. Although Julie doesn't yet know her way around New York City, she remarks that she knew "we were going to get someplace and there would be something there to see." Julie tells Andre that she doesn't feel a connection with her mother and that the two just don't have anything to talk about. Julie and her mother later get into a dispute about their relationship and debate on whether or not it is a good one. Andre's mother also comes for a visit and watches him play with his band. Andre remarks that he feels a close connection with his mom.
Episode 11: Norman and Eric arrive home, where Julie, crying and very upset explains that she and Kevin had a fight about a phone call and that Kevin threw a candleholder at her. She is scared of Kevin, and never wants to be alone with him again. Kevin denies brandishing the candleholder and says that the fight wasn't his fault, because Julie was rude to him on the phone and may have cost him a job. Eric states that he is really pulling for Julie, because he observes that Kevin behaves the way he did when he was in trouble as a teen. Kevin, feeling that he needs some space, goes back to Jersey City and walks through his old neighborhood with his girlfriend where the two visit his mother. After some time, he decides to return to the house to deal with the situation with Julie. The two go outside and continue to argue about the fight and differences. After much yelling and harsh words, they calm down and apologize to each other. Kevin and Eric throw a big birthday party, during which a female guest claims to have been assaulted by Heather, which results in Heather being questioned by the police.
Episode 12: Heather is arrested and is questioned about her fight. Heather decides not to press charges against the guest after she learns that the guest did not press charges against her. The police let her go and even ask her for an autograph. Heather and Eric, whose personality conflicts regularly lead to fights, end up wrestling through the loft like it's a WWF battle royal.
Episode 13: During the cast's last few days in the loft, they take over the production room in the loft. They find out how it feels to be on the other side of the cameras. Becky expresses how the Real World is as real as it gets. Andre feels he has had some great experiences. Kevin confesses how cynical he was in the beginning and how much he's learned from the other members of the cast. Norman confesses that he is not afraid anymore to express his sexuality. The whole cast says their last good-byes to the Big Apple.