Survivor

Call me old (my kids do all the time, the little punks), but I still love the show Survivor, which hasn't been culturally relevant since about 2003. I've always been intrigued by its "social game" -- people figuring out how to present themselves to others, how to align themselves with others for their best advantage, and how to keep from pissing other people off. It's fascinating. I've never missed a season.

And the upcoming season looks like it will be a good one. It will feature 18 contestants, fifteen newbies, plus 3 alumni who couldn't finish their previous games for medical reasons. There will be, naturally, the young beauties, both male and female, and the surprisingly competent older folks. There will no doubt be a wild card, who might snap at any moment, or who might insult everyone, but who will last long because it's always good to have someone crazy and hated going up against you at the end.

But there are some intriguing types, too, in the form of two celebrities. One is Lisa Whelchel, who played Blair on Facts of Life so many years ago. ("When the boys you use to hate, you date, I guess you best investigate the facts of life.") It will be interesting to see how she uses her celebrity, or doesn't, and how the older folks distinguish between her TV persona and her real self.

The other celebrity is Jeff Kent, former major league second baseman. He won the National League MVP in 2000, narrowly beating out teammate Barry Bonds, who, in turn, barely beat Kent at being the biggest jerk on the team. So it will be interesting to see how he deals with others. Again, the older contestants will be key here, because the youngsters will likely have no idea who the hell he is.

But the contestant I will be pushing for is a guy named Artis. As his intro video explains, Artis is a longtime fan of Survivor, but more importantly, is an actual cancer survivor. If he can keep that quiet for a while, he'll do great, because he seems like he understand Survivor history, and he knows he needs to present a particular persona. (Why hide the fact that he had cancer? Because other contestants will be afraid that it will win him sympathy in the end. That kills most people early on.)

As far as I can remember, this is the first time a cancer survivor has been a contestant (though a winner, Ethan Zohn, was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma after he played).

Can't wait for the premiere in a few weeks. Go Artis!