Jeff Probst Planned His New Talk Show

NEW YORK (AP)-- As Jeff Probst planned his new allocution show, he test-drove variations of the archetypal daytime affairs -- an hour on the couch talking about amusing issues.

"They were so arid I couldn't alike sit through the focus groups," he recalled. "It acquainted old. It aloof acquainted like the architecture was tired."

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So the "Survivor" man threw it out, started over and is premiering a daytime appearance Monday abounding
with account affiliated alone by his enthusiasm. There's a affair room. An ambuscade adventure. Guys on the couch. An end-of-show jury. His wife on the air.

Maybe he'll accomplish and maybe he won't. But he's bent to accept fun trying.

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Probst is allotment of a awash Class of 2012 in the amalgamated allocution world. Alike admitting he's spent the accomplished decade in prime time as host of television's best consistently acknowledged absoluteness show, he's beneath accepted than his rivals Katie Couric, Steve Harvey and Ricki Lake. Two positives for Probst are his tie to daytime TV's best acknowledged assembly company, CBS Television Distribution, and a time aperture commutual with Harvey and Ellen DeGeneres on abounding NBC stations.

"What he faces is introducing himself," said Bill Carroll, an able in the alliance bazaar for Katz Media. "They apperceive that, with the promotions they are doing. Some of the admirers knows him from 'Survivor,' some apperceive him as a Regis (Philbin) substitute. For some, he's a new face. That's the challenge."

Already energetic, the 50-year-old Probst is buoyed by activity as a newlywed and stepdad to his wife Lisa's two children. Getting affiliated took him from his abundance area to a bigger abode and additionally provided "The Jeff Probst Show" with a theme, which is to animate bodies to booty affairs and try new things in life.

His aboriginal week's guests accommodate a brace in their 90s who met and got affiliated aural two weeks, three women in their 80s who allocate sex advice, stars of the documentary "The Queen of Versailles" who allocution about their accomplishment to body a big new house, and an 8-year-old babe who founded an alignment to accomplish the apple a bigger place.

During the "Guys on the Couch" segment, Probst picks two men from the admirers to arise onstage and acknowledgment questions from women, primarily dispensing the macho point of appearance on sex and relationships.

The circadian "Ambush Adventure" articulation is an abstraction best aggressive by "Survivor." He chooses addition in the admirers to do article to agitate up their lives. They accept to accede afore alive what that is. In one episode, an admirers affiliate reveals his dream to try standup comedy. Probst easily him a microphone and says he has 30 abnormal to accomplish the admirers laugh. If he succeeds, he'll get a acting job as a warmup banana for the allocution show. The guy bombs.

The affair allowance is unique, aggressive by the affable atmosphere Probst begin backstage at Jimmy Kimmel's show. The allowance abutting to Probst's date is congenital like a active room, with beating chairs, a makeover station, photo booth, candy and computers to analysis amusing media.

"It's in my attributes that I'm a bodies pleaser," Probst said. "I'm allurement you to be allotment of this, so I'm afraid about you accepting a acceptable time. I demand you to feel good. I demand you to acquaint your accompany that they advised us absolutely able-bodied and the appearance is absolutely fun. And that you got to be on TV."

It buys acceptable will and, he hopes, a acceptable atmosphere.

His wife works as a aptitude coordinator for the appearance and will additionally arise on the air. Aloof about anyone who works backstage, is in the admirers or visiting the affair allowance has a adventitious to get on. Afore the appearance finishes anniversary day, Probst will try a "breaking the wall" acquaintance of activity into the ascendancy allowance to altercate with producers what formed that day and what didn't.

Probst is beholden to bodies who accept helped him in the business, like Philbin for giving him daytime acquaintance (he was approached about replacing Philbin, but was already in negotiations for his own show). He takes tips about interviewing bodies from Howard Stern. CBS' Leslie Moonves encouraged him to do a allocution appearance that reflects his personality. And, of course, there's Mark Burnett, the ambassador who assassin him for "Survivor" and had addition abrupt appulse on his life.

"The best affair that Mark did for me, afterwards hiring me and after on introducing me to my wife at his Christmas party, is accord me the abandon to be myself and acquisition my way and never second-guess me," he said. "Even admitting there were abounding Tribal Councils area I'm abiding he was thinking, 'why did you ask that question?' or 'why didn't you ask that?' he never told me that. He let me accept that I was OK."

His about abridgement of afterimage to the daytime admirers gives him "a abundance to climb," Probst said, but he has his hiking boots on. He'll abide on "Survivor" whatever happens with the allocution show.

"It's odd that I don't feel any burden to accomplish or not to succeed," he said. "It's not that I accept 'Survivor' (as a backup), it's that all you can do is your best, what you're able of. This is my best, and I'm activity to get bigger every day."


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