Bear Grylls
Recently, I’ve read in the newspaper about the fabrication of some of the effects of this popular show, Man vs. Wild. Honestly, the sensationalism is a little overdone, considering fallacy is what makes television worth watching. If we were interested in reality we wouldn’t have to create scandal on every reality-based show just to make it more interesting to watch. We want our lives to seem more interesting, watching an ordinary man do ordinary things taught to every common boy scout isn’t nearly as interesting as watching Mr. Grylls create a raft out of twigs and mud, and a shelter out of leaves. So what if he needed a little help?! Wouldn’t every other American cringe at the idea of spending even 20 minutes outside a climate controlled environment? I know I have no intention of ever being in the position that I might have to use any of the techniques used on the show, but it is definitely fun to watch. Apparently Americans and Brits alike, agree as I’ve not seen media coverage on anything in recent weeks that even compares to the articles written about Mr. Grylls.
I think most times people are blissfully ignorant of all the help their favorite TV personalities have in creating the wonder that is television, and unfortunately, Mr. Grylls was just unlucky enough to be caught.
Think about it… Houdini’s props recently sold at auction for hundreds of thousands of dollars because people wanted to know how he created his masterpieces. It never occurred to anyone who ever had the opportunity to see Houdini that what they were watching was anything more than an elaborate ruse, but until the day he died he was lucky enough to keep the mystery in his show, to keep the audience guessing how it was done. Mr. Grylls just lost his mystery, which in some ways seems more important then talent these days.