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Casting directors look to UW for beauties, geeks

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Also by Ken Harris:

Casting directors look to UW for beauties, geeks (December 3, 2007)
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Senate hearing on medical marijuana turns emotional (November 15, 2007)
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Cieslewicz criticizes some city budget amendments (November 1, 2007)

by Ken Harris

Monday, December 3, 2007

Beauties and geeks showed up at the University Bookstore Saturday hoping to earn a spot in season five of Beauty and the Geek, CW's reality television show.

Casting director Barb Wulff and casting associate Piper Goldberg for 3Ball Productions braved the Wisconsin snowstorm to hold a casting call for the popular television show. According to Wulff, the show had received many e-mails from fans of the show in Madison who said there was enough geek power on campus to fuel the show.

"We're determined to get someone on the show this year from Madison," Wulff said.

Goldberg and Wulff said they had already had some success halfway through the afternoon and were going to be calling back some hopefuls for another interview.

"We're looking for smart, intelligent men who are lovable, but perhaps socially inept," Wulff said. "For girls, we're looking for gorgeous, beautiful girls who have possibly gotten by on their looks for most of their life."

Erin Lambert-Conohan, marketing supervisor for the University Bookstore, said no cameras had been allowed into the interview room to document the process.

"They said they'd have to shoot me if I knew the questions," Lambert-Conohan said.

Dan Tinder, an account executive for the CW, said it did not take long for people to show up Saturday. He said an hour before the casting call began, he was accosted by one hopeful who introduced himself as a stunt actor. Tinder described him further as "the dorkiest stunt actor you would ever meet."

"He was a character, and he's the kind of guy who's going to end up on the show, I think," Tinder said. "He could definitely be helped by the whole social experiment part of the Beauty and the Geek process."

UW graduate student Lindsay Rusnak interviewed for a geek role hoping she was geeky enough for the show to cast a geek girl, as had been done in season four of the program. She said she was confident in her chance of making the show after her interview.

"I think I'm a very multifaceted geek," Rusnak said. "So — those people who can solve the Rubik's cubes super fast — I can't do that, but I can do like 10 other equally geeky things equally well."

James Peitzemeier, a junior from Michigan Tech, arrived without a strategy. He said he wanted to be on the show for "the free drinks and a vacation." Peitzemeier added he also thought being on the show would be a good way to gain a different perspective on social life.

Also applying for a geek position was Zach Buehl, a local bartender and host of WSUM's "Nerd-core Round-up." Buehl said he had been approached the night before by Goldberg while bartending, and she asked him to try out. Buehl arrived sporting an old-school Ninja Turtles winter cap and said he did not need a strategy to get the part.

"I'm pretty nerdy in general, anyway," Buehl said. "But I can nerd it up if I have to."

Though in the minority, the beauties also showed up for a chance at fame. Ellie Miller, a local make-up artist said, after her interview, she expected to hear from the casting team soon. She added the questions were pretty personal and they asked what her biggest blonde moment was.

"I have a lot to teach geeks, I feel like, and I need to learn some stuff as well," Miller said.

Wulff and Goldberg said they would be in Madison for a few more days meeting and interviewing as many people as they can.

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Anonymous (December 3, 2007 @ 1:17pm):

"For girls, we're looking for gorgeous, beautiful girls who have possibly gotten by on their looks for most of their life."

I was wondering what all the coasties were doing whoring it up on library mall.

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