The highly anticipated kick-off of the new season of Celebrity Apprentice aired last night, and it was surprisingly tame. Not only is the cast full of some very insane colorful people (LaToya Jackson, David Cassidy, Nene Leakes, Gary Busey, Richard Hatch, Dionne Warwick, Jose Canseco, Niki Taylor, Lisa Rinna, Mark McGrath, Hope Dworaczyk, Marlee Matlin and John Rich) but we’ve been hearing reports for weeks about the enmity between some of the new crop, especially when it comes to Star Jones and Nene Leakes.

However, that was only the first episode, so it was probably more like a warm-up as everyone got acquainted with each other. As per the usual in Celebrity Apprentice, the men and the women were split into teams according to sex.

The men called their team Backbone and the women named their ASAPP, which stands for Artists Singers Authors and Professionals with a Purpose. The first task was to run a pizza shop and, of course, raise the most money by peddling pies for thousands of dollars.
The women, surprisingly, got along (for the most part), and all signs of the rifts that will come weren’t that evident. But the men had some tension. Richard Hatch (from Survivor), who was the men’s project manager, lacked people skills. He was rude, snippy, dismissive and sorta kinda pushed former teen heartthrob David Cassidy, who balked at one of his ideas (instead of being like a normal human being and simply verbalizing that he didn’t agree).

Long story short, the men lost after having raised $54,000. The women crushed them by raising double, $115,000. Star Jones was the women’s project manager, so the money went to her charity, The American Red Cross.

The final boardroom deliberation wasn’t as hilarious as it could have been. Richard Hatch dragged Jose Canseco and David Cassidy in with him (Canseco simply because he didn’t like him and Cassidy because he was weak) and the end result was that Cassidy was fired, but not before Hatch referred to him as “little,” “delicate” and “a whiner” several times (ouch). Cassidy was fired more so because he couldn’t hold his own in the final deliberation. He was overtalked and outargued, and in Trump’s office, gift of gab is everything.

We’ll have to wait for the drama to heat up, but from what we’ve seen from the promos, sit tight because the storm is brewing.

Did you watch last night’s episode? What did you think?

It’s no secret that Nene Leakes probably clashes with everyone on this season’s Celebrity Apprentice, but Star Jones in particular is her primary foe. Let’s watch a piece of this in action:

This whole season is going to be a treat for reality TV viewers since there are so many train wrecks involved. Nene’s issues with the other Black women on the show have been highly publicized, but I wonder how she gets along with fellow cast crazies like Gary Busey.  Most of all, I wonder how she’ll take being fired. You know it’s probably going to be closer toward the end with that mouth—they have to keep her around for drama!

Celebrity Apprentice premieres Sunday night at 9/8c.

Speaking with Essence TV, NeNe Leakes talked about her cast mates on both The Real Housewives of Atlanta and Celebrity Apprentice.

But first, NeNe touched what’s going on between her and her husband, Greg Leakes.

On the status of her marriage:

“I can’t tell you that I’m a 100% through with Greg. Greg does not want a divorce. He wants to work out whatever issues that he has. He just wants to try. I can’t say that I 100% want to try.”

As for on again, off again friend Kim Zolciak:

“There’s no way in hell that I’m going to have a friendship with Kim. That won’t ever happen. I’m actually rooting for her third child by the third man. I’m hoping that she will get it right.”

On Phaedra Parks:

“I still haven’t gotten to know Phaedra and I don’t need to. I’m really good right here.”

On what interactions we can expect to see between her and Star Jones on Celebrity Apprentice:

“She and I are cool coming out the door, but then we get into a place where Star’s not so cool. I’m not really feeling Star. Like I think Star is everything people have said about her. Seriously, I’m for real. “

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Ironically, several contestants on the forthcoming season of Celebrity Apprentice owe the alphabet boys big time in back taxes. The Detroit News compiled a list detailing the tax woes of Apprentice hopefuls and approximately what they owe.

Among them are Lil Jon, Star Jones, LaToya Jackson, Gary Busey, Dionne Warwick and Jose Canseco are also mentioned for owing back taxes in varying amounts. As far as how much each owes, let’s just say the highest was in the millions and the lowest was just under $30,000.

How someone who makes as much money as these people once did falls that behind in taxes is baffling (some of what these people owe is what a lot of people make in a year, WTH) . But hopefully that Apprentice money (not the winnings, but the scale for doing the show) will help them get out of that debt. And hopefully Donald Trump can introduce them to some of his money people so they can handle their business.

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NeNe Leakes and Lil’ Jon have been added to the new cast of Celebrity Apprentice. If this made you perk up then it gets better. The two will be joining Robin Leach, Nikki Taylor, Jose Canseco, Dionne Warwick, Star Jones, LaToya Jackson and more for the 2011 season of Donald Trump’s popular show.

Basically, the new cast is not only the perfect model for what affirmative action in the celeb-reality TV world could look like, but it’s also a potential ratings grabber. Lil’ Jon is a character but I get the feeling that he’s going to be mellow in this situation. I think he’ll play well and be aggressive but he won’t be a pitbull meaning, if he clashes with other contestants he’ll know how to handle himself with finesse as opposed to screaming irrationally.

However, NeNe Leakes, LaToya Jackson and Star Jones at one board room session? That just sounds like a new level of crazy never before seen on the show. Maybe crazy is too weak of a word. How about explosive?  It’s either going to be that those three like each other or hate each other. I hope it’s the latter. Can you imagine Star Jones and NeNe Leakes banding against LaToya Jackson in a board room meeting. Yes! I’m getting ahead of myself but you get the idea.

The show, which will mark season four, began taping on October 14. Usually the celebrities compete to raise money for their favorite charities but this time they will be vying for a $250,000 contract to run one of Donald Trump’s companies.

What do you think? Is this going to be the best season that we’ve seen thus far?

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I have never fallen in line with The Apprentice-loving fold, but I might be tempted to watch when the new edition of Celebrity Apprentice starts airing early next year.

Filming for the Donald Trump-produced reality series is set to begin next week, and EW.com has word on a few of the celebrities that will be joining the cast.

First, there’s that guy Mark McGrath who used to be the lead singer of the band Sugar Ray before becoming a knock-off Ryan Seacrest.

The second named cast member is Star Jones, who’s fallen off the face of the Earth after her controversial exit from The View in 2006.

Okay, now to the name that matters: La Toya Jackson!

Yes, that’s right Toy Toy will be making her return to reality television with a stint on Celebrity Apprentice.
Prayer works…for La Toya’s agent.

Let’s hope she somehow works in a performance on the show, ya’ll.

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Four-time World Series champ Darryl Strawberry made a surprising move on Sunday’s episode of Celebrity Apprentice by quitting the competition. This made him the third person in the show’s history to quit but he didn’t actually say the word “quit,” he volunteered himself to be fired.

Trump isn’t a fan of quitters on his show so when Strawberry made his revelation, The Donald said, “Over nine seasons, I’ve had two people that quit. And those people have never forgotten it, and they’ve really regretted it. And they apologized; I said, you’re a quitter. And they never have lived it down. I mean, they call me, and they write me, doesn’t matter. But they quit.”

It’s petty on Trump’s part to hold a grudge against someone for quitting his show, but Strawberry feels he made the right decision telling TV Guide, “I just hit a point where I was totally exhausted. I was running around and I just had nothing left in the tank.”

In his mind, it wasn’t about quitting, it was more for the team. (And it also sounds like it was for his health).

“Everybody was, you know, kind of throwing each other under the bus from time to time because nobody wants to leave,” he tells TV Guide. “In my case, I figured I’ll be the one to depart and let the team go forth. … It wasn’t about me. It was about the team. So I have no regrets.”

In the end there’s no real bad blood. Strawberry says he’ll be back on the show for the final two and Donald Trump donated $25,000 to his charity, The Darryl Strawberry Foundation.

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Celebrity Apprentice will return to NBC next year for a ninth season. Production is expected to begin this fall, when 16 yet-to-be-named celebrities meet and compete in business-oriented challenges. All but one will eventually hear Trump tell them, “You’re fired!” The objective is for the contestants to raise money for the charity of their individual choice.

Last season we watched Brian McKnight in all his arrogance, Dennis Rodman battled alcoholism, T-Boz was a silent storm who was unfairly fired despite a victory as project manager, winner Joan Rivers was mouth all mighty (especially when it came to her daughter), poker champ Annie Duke was the least favorite—and overall, it was the stuff that ratings are made of.

Some of the new season’s cast (which was leaked last week) includes Bret Michaels, Cyndi Lauper, Darryl Strawberry, Holly Robinson Peete, Sinbad, Bill Goldberg, Sharon Osbourne and Rod Blagojevich, the politician who is  facing federal corruption charges for allegedly scheming to sell President Barack Obama’s former U.S. Senate seat (I guess that’s something a true hustler would do, he might be good for his team).

Between a possible criminal in the middle of investigation and Darryl Strawberry, this should be interesting. Wait. Did I type correctly? Darryl Strawberry? Hmm…I wonder if he’s going to take a page from Rodman’s dictionary-of-reckless-behavior-on-TV.

Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins kept a low profile while on Celebrity Apprentice but she stepped up last week and proved that she was an effective leader by winning the challenge and the subsequent money for her sickle cell charity. Last night’s episode was a different story.

Members of each team were traded, and the task was to write, produce, and edit a viral video for All Small & Mighty 3x concentrated laundry detergent. Coincidentally, both teams chose midgets to interpret the theme.
Athena’s video was funnier and not as weird as KOTU’s, but all execs nixed both ideas and Trump sent both teams to the board room.

Melissa Rivers felt that although no one really messed up, she would be sent home and solicited volunteers to accompany her to the board room. T-Boz stepped forward and it backfired. Trump fired her for volunteering, likening her actions to Bradford, the successful lawyer and Apprentice season two project manager who volunteered himself into the board room, which sealed his fate.

Either way, I think Trump’s decision was wack, for lack of a better word. Plus, the way he rushed her out of the boardroom was rude. He’d never talk to Dennis Rodman in such a snappy, condescending manner. Of course, Rodman has a volatile temper and wouldn’t take it, but in a recent interview with AOL Black voices, T-Boz made a little more sense about why she was so low key.

“I’m one of those people who doesn’t believe in arguing with strangers, so I argue and put energy into people I care about and love,” she says. “I’m not gonna argue with some chick that I don’t know and don’t care about. If I get mad, I’ll take it the whole nine yards, if you know what I mean. They get too personal and this is not your real job so chill out. We’re playing for charity, but they were crying and getting all upset.”

I was still looking for the spunky TLC baritone chanteuse that we know and love, but she definitely made up for it with how honest she was in the Black Voices interview. When asked about working with members of her team, she said the funniest thing about Brian McKnight.

“[He] is a spoiled little brat for real. I like him though, but he’s an a–hole. He has so much talent and he was very nice to me, but he was really trippin’. I asked him if he was gonna talk, and he said that he would talk a little bit. But when we’re off set and in the hallway, it’s okay to say hi.”

Interesting. Either way, what’s done is done, but we’re looking forward to whatever else Miss Watkins has in store.

Claudia, you’re fired!

Last night’s episode of Celebrity Apprentice was the first episode this season, where the women did not come out on top. The teams were each responsible for helping to launch a new line of video phones. KOTU chose Brian McKnight for their project manager and Athena chose Claudia Jordan. The task was to stage an event for 500 of the company’s salespeople and whichever team had the best event would win (The winning PM would get $20,000 for their charity).

Despite conflict on the men’s team with Brian McKnight refusing to let Dennis Rodman participate in the challenge, and Rodman getting confrontational with Clint Black, they managed to pull together with a military-inspired project. They showed a short commercial starring a soldier at West Point Military School talking to a loved one, and then capped it off with a lively performance by Brian McKnight, rife with scantily clad women dancing around with the phones.

The women’s final product was a comedy act by Joan Rivers preceding a commercial featuring a mother showing her husband—away on a business trip—their toddler’s first steps (the husband was live on stage). Athena’s presentation was capped off with a sappy ending as Brandie Roderick went running off screen and into the audience, to hug her “boyfriend” in a second vignette.

Tension arose between Claudia Jordan and Melissa Rivers when Jordan, who wasn’t doing a good job as PM, got offended because she felt that Rivers was trying to bogart her position. This was not the case. Melissa Rivers had experience as a producer and was trying to use her talent to make what was turning out to be chaos, more organized and effective.

I hoped that Claudia Jordan would get to stick around longer than she did but from an objective standpoint, Donald Trump was right in giving her the boot. She didn’t do a good job of delegating tasks and when the pressure mounted, she fell apart (part of that process was to antagonize Melissa Rivers). However, I think the women should have won. The men had a more exciting presentation but the women did a more affective job of selling the product.