The Prodigy (TV series)
 | The name of this television game uses a disambiguation style that does not follow WP:NCTV or WP:NCBC and needs attention. |
| The Prodigy | |
|---|---|
| Country of origin | United States |
| Production | |
| Producer | Bryan Ferre |
| Original release | |
| Release | Unaired |
The Prodigy was an alleged proposed American reality TV show in 2007 that promised $1 million in cash and prizes to the ultimate winner, but was actually a recruiting scheme for an alarm sales company.[1][2][3][4]
The show staged casting events at college campuses throughout the country in 2007.[5][6][7][8] The show's creative director and producer Bryan Ferre announced that they were recruiting field camera crew from Collins College (Arizona).[9]
Students were reportedly selected from around the country, perhaps as many as 2000. Many of the students cast in the show later claimed it was an elaborate scam by Utah-based security alarm company Firstline Security. The "show" was produced by "Actuality Entertainment",[7] and producers promised the students it would air on a major network. Many students never saw any cameras, however. No show ever aired.[10][11][2][12] Firstline subsequently went into bankruptcy,[4][13][14] and the state of California launched an investigation of the company's practices which led to its license being revoked.[15][16]
References
[edit]- ^ "Firstline brings security to masses". Business. Deseret News. June 3, 2007. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ a b Rose, Sontaya (February 15, 2008). "False Alarms". KFSN-TV (ABC30 Fresno). Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ Rose, Sontaya (February 26, 2008). "False Alarms and a Dose of Reality". KFSN-TV (ABC30 Fresno). Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ a b Rose, Sontaya (June 3, 2009). "Firstline Security, Bogus Billing". KFSN-TV (ABC30 Fresno). Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ Hermiston, Lee (April 25, 2007). "UI part of 'Prodigy' search". Iowa Today. The Gazette. Cedar Rapids-Iowa City, IA. p. 1B. Retrieved 9 June 2019 – via NewsBank.
- ^ Hermiston, Lee (April 27, 2007). "'Prodigy' auditions fail to draw crowd". Iowa Today. The Gazette. Cedar Rapids-Iowa City, IA. p. 3B. Retrieved 9 June 2019 – via NewsBank.
- ^ a b Gallegos, Rachel (April 27, 2007). "Students prove to be 'prodigies'". Iowa City Press-Citizen. Iowa City, Iowa. p. 3A. Retrieved 9 June 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ McCann, Jessica (March 7, 2007). "TV show recruits at A&M: Almost 100 Aggies apply to be the next big reality stars". The Battalion. Archived from the original on April 13, 2014. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ "The Prodigy, Opportunity Knocks: Reality TV Recruits Film Graduates of Collins College for Camera Crew" (Press release). Business Wire. May 30, 2007. Retrieved 9 June 2019 – via General OneFile.
- ^ Finney, Michael (February 18, 2008). "Reality show contestants duped into selling". KGO-TV (ABC7 San Francisco). Archived from the original on February 18, 2008. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ Hokanson, Chris (January 23, 2008). "Utah based company lures "door-to-door" salesmen". The Battalion. Archived from the original on April 13, 2014. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ Finney, Michael (February 28, 2008). "Reality show producer talks to ABC7". KGO-TV (ABC7 San Francisco). Archived from the original on February 29, 2008. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ Finney, Michael (February 29, 2008). "Consumers get faulty alarm systems". KGO-TV (ABC7 San Francisco). Archived from the original on October 10, 2014. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ "Firstline Security seeks bankruptcy protection". Business. Deseret News. Bloomberg News. January 29, 2008. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ Finney, Michael (March 14, 2008). "State investigating Firstline Security". KGO-TV (ABC7 San Francisco). Archived from the original on August 5, 2011. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
- ^ Finney, Michael (June 19, 2008). "Firstline loses license to operate in CA". KGO-TV (ABC7 San Francisco). Archived from the original on October 10, 2014. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
Further reading
[edit]- Karoli (July 21, 2007). "Pure Bull or Pure Evil?". odd time signatures. Retrieved 9 June 2019. (personal blog of mother writing about the experiences of her son in The Prodigy project)