Once a Survivor, Always a Survivor
Neleh Dennis is not a journalist. The spunky, second-place finisher from “Survivor” Marquesas does have a regular gig as an entertainment reporter on Channel 2’s morning news program, though.
“I love it,” Dennis said of the job she landed after being on the reality TV show. “It is real exciting. I get to try something new every day. I love the people I meet.”
The Layton resident and Weber State University student has had the opportunity to do things most people her age only dream about. She has done live spots for the program, which included learning to drive a stock car, fighting fires and participating in plays and musicals.
Dennis said the point of her job is to show people the events going on in the area and that there are actually entertaining things to do in Utah.
Fellow Marquesas castaway and Georgian judge, Pascal English feels Dennis is the perfect match for the job. Recently in Salt Lake City, English had the chance to follow Dennis around during one of her shoots.
“She is just so comfortable in front of the cameras,” he said. “I think she is doing a tremendous job.”
Others are not so quick to agree, though.
Although KUTV Assignment Editor Angelic Pollard said the station has received positive feedback, it has also received negative remarks.
“They think she’s too young and obnoxious,” Pollard said.
Pollard said the people who call in with positive things to say often comment on Dennis’ positive attitude and energy.
A prime example of her upbeat mindset: She doesn’t despise her critics.
“You can’t please everybody and I’m not even going to try to,” she said. “God made us all different for a reason and I’m really good at just letting stuff roll off my
shoulder.”
Dennis said if she could take the treatment she received during the final tribal council on Marquesas, everything else is just a walk in the park.
Despite not winning the grand prize on “Survivor”, Dennis said she has never second-guessed her decision to go on the TV show.
“I left the same way I went there and I have no regrets,” she said. “To me, that means more than the million dollars.”
One of the most lasting effects of being on the show is her friendship with English.
Dennis said she views English as a father figure, and part of the reason their relationship blossomed was because the two were out there for the same reason – to take in the experience and see if they could actually survive.
“We weren’t there to get involved in all of the drama and backstabbing,” she said. “We kind of just helped each other through the entire thing. He’s just a really fun guy. He’s tough. People underestimated him. They underestimated both of us.”
English said, “I think we both saw in each other a comfort level, an extension of home – [she was] my daughter on the island, [I was] her father. It was one of those relationships that was and is so natural.”
Since being on the show, English said he has spent time back in the courtroom as well as fulfilling his obligations to the network.
He has been doing motivational speeches and commercials, both activities English said he finds rewarding because he is interacting with people he would not have met if it were not for his appearance on “Survivor.”
English is not the only castmate Dennis keeps in contact with.
She said she also keeps in touch with Gabe Cade and Robert DeCanio (the General) on almost a daily basis.
No matter the fights that took place on the island or the harsh words said during tribal council, the group has an irreplaceable bond.
“Nobody will ever understand the experience we went through,” Dennis said. “It’s neat to be able to get together and talk about it with people who kind of know what you went through.”
And Dennis went through a lot.
After losing 28 pounds on her venture, she weighed a mere 95 pounds when she returned home from the island 280 miles off the coast of Tahiti.
The first thing she ate once she got back to the U.S.? A No. 2 Chick-Fil-A combo meal (a chicken sandwich, fries and a lemonade) and a Cinnabon at the LAX airport.
“I dreamed about that every night,” Dennis said. “I was so hungry [on the island]. We would just talk about food every night and then we would have dreams about it. You’re definitely starving out there.”
Despite the hardships, Dennis wouldn’t give it a second thought to participate in a “Survivor” show again. She said she knows there is a “Survivor” All-stars in the works but she isn’t sure who will be able to apply for the show.
Even with her busy schedule and early mornings on the news, Dennis has found time to check out the current “Survivor” Thailand.
“They have a lot to eat and they eat a ton for challenges,” she said. “I think “Survivor” learned their lesson by making us starve to death.”
English said, “I haven’t been impressed with the cast. It seems they are being petty and confrontational. Plus, they are getting way too much food given to them.”
Because of the surplus of food the Thailand cast has received, they may miss out on the biggest lesson Dennis learned from her reality show experience.
Dennis said since being home from Marquesas, she refuses to look at things the same as she did before she left.
“The most valuable thing [I gained from the show] is to know there is so much I take for granted and just how important my family and friends are to me,” she said.
English said, “I refuse to take things for granted anymore. It is important to let people know how much they mean to me.”
-juag@cc.usu.edu
Pascal English and Neleh Dennis are seen together at Fashion Place Mall in Murray. (Photos by Julie Ann Grosshans)