POWIP Piece of Work In Progress – Former Abode of Dan Collins

Minor TV Celebrity and Murder

Jamal Trulove was found guilty of murder in a California courtroom yesterday. The witness who fingered him for the crime recognized him as the shooter when she saw him on a VH1 program called "I Love New York 2."

Ryan Jenkins, you'll recall, was a contestant on The Bachelor Megan Wants a Millionaire. He hanged himself after murdering his wife, severing her fingers and pulling her teeth, and stuffing her body into a suitcase, found in a dumpster. Famously, she was identified by the serial numbers on her breast implants. He'd fled to Canada and cops were closing in.

Then there's this guy. At least this guy didn't commit murder, as far as we know. If I felt like it, I could probably dredge up other examples. Feel free to add them in comments.

It's gotten to the point where I am beginning to have induced childhood memories of Ted Bundy asking chicks on stools behind a screen various questions: "Bachelorette Number 2, how do you feel about a little love bite?"

It could be that deviancy and malignant narcissism seek out the limelight, simple as that. Maybe you're not vibrant and quirky enough for a producer unless you're psychotic. Maybe there have always been murderers on TV, but the volume of "reality" programming is serving us up more of them. It could be that people who objectify themselves to productiize themselves in some strange representation that gets tagged 'reality' find it easier to do so to other people. It could be that the high of receiving that kind of attention is like steroidal crack.

I don't know, but ladies, if the dude tells you he's been on a reality-TV show, get the hell out of there.

Dan Collins

Dan Collins is a dude who blogs. He used to blog elsewhere. Now he blogs here.

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