The Bachelor (American TV series)

For the 1999 movie The Bachelor starring Chris O'Donnell, see The Bachelor (film).

The Bachelor
Created by	Mike Fleiss
Starring	Chris Harrison (host) Alex Michel Aaron Buerge Andrew Firestone Bob Guiney Jesse Palmer Byron Velvick Charlie O'Connell Dr. Travis Lane Stork Prince Lorenzo Borghese Andy Baldwin Brad Womack Matt Grant Jason Mesnick
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	90 (As of September 2007)
Production
Executive producers	Mike Fleiss Lisa Levenson
Running time	60 minutes (including commercials)
Original release
Network	ABC
Release	March 25, 2002 – Present

The Bachelor is an American reality television dating game show debuting in 2002 on ABC. The series has been renewed through spring 2008. Chris Harrison has hosted all of the show's seasons. The show airs on Mondays at 10pm eastern/9pm central. Reruns are currently airing on VH1.

About the Show

The series revolves around a bachelor courted by 25 women. The show follows the bachelor as he goes on a series of dates with the women, some of them group dates, some one-on-one dates. On each episode women are eliminated, generally during the rose ceremony at the end of the episode, but sometimes on the dates (during what are called "elimination dates"). The process culminates towards the end of the season with a few of the women going on overnight dates and meetings between the bachelor, the women, and their respective families. At the end of the show, the bachelor is to pick one woman with whom he would like to continue a relationship. Sometimes he proposes marriage and sometimes other levels of commitment. The runner-up from the first season, Trista Rehn, later starred in The Bachelorette, a spin-off program in which the format was gender-reversed. In light of the fact many of the couples formed during previous seasons later ended their relationships, the premise of finding true love has proven difficult to sustain. To maintain interest, producers added an assortment of "twists" to the format. The fourth season featured Bob Guiney, popular comic relief from the first season of The Bachelorette. The fifth season featured NFL player Jesse Palmer. The sixth season had yet another new twist, as the women of the house were forced to choose between two eligible bachelors. They chose fisherman Byron Velvick; he ultimately ended up with none of the original women, as season four contestant Mary Delgado returned to the show and became his final choice. The show has been heavily criticized for not having a Bachelor who is a minority in its twelve seasons and thirteen potential Bachelors, and for having an extremely limited amount of minority women, especially African-Americans, in its pool of potential Bachlorettes. Only one African-American woman has made it past the third rose ceremony, (Marshana in season 12 made it to week 5) and only one Latina, Mary Delgado, has ever been to the final rose ceremony (which she won).

The Elimination Process

According to the summary on ABC.com, each new Bachelor episode contains a rose ceremony where one or more contestants are eliminated. Eliminations are based upon date performance, which is how the ladies relate to the bachelor on the dates. The bachelor must follow a process of elimination where his bachelorettes are narrowed down week to week by presenting the women he wishes to keep with a single rose. The catch to the show is that at any point during the process if a woman decides she is no longer interested in the bachelor, although he may still be interested in her, she may leave. A few have actually done so over the course of the show. It is typical for each of the final four women to have the chance to bring the bachelor on a visit to her hometown to meet her family, though this is not always the case. It is also typical for each of the final two women to visit the bachelor's hometown and meet his family. In the end, the bachelor selects one lady and gives her the final rose. He may or may not propose to her at this final rose ceremony.

Ratings

Solid ratings throughout the eighth completed editions have resulted in an average audience of nearly 10 million viewers, with some decline in the series' more recent seasons. While much of the series has aired on Wednesday nights, its ratings slide reversed somewhat with a move to Mondays in January 2006.

Season 5

The season featured professional football player Jesse Palmer, formerly a back-up quarterback with the Giants. During the first rose ceremony, Jesse forgot a woman's name. He meant to give his final rose to Karen but accidentally called the name of another bachelorette, Katie. Jesse had to reveal his mistake to the group, but both Katie and Karen were allowed to stay on, as the producers allowed Jesse to give an extra rose. During this season, one of Jesse's best friends (Jenny) acted as a spy and posed as one of the bachelorettes. Jenny met with Jesse secretly throughout the season to provide him with information about the other bachelorettes. At the end of the season, Jesse gave his final rose to Jessica Bowlin. He did not propose to her. They are no longer a couple.

Season 6

This season featured a new twist. The ladies chose between Jay Overbye, a real estate agent from New York City, and Byron Velvick, a pro fisherman from Nevada. They eventually chose Byron Velvick as the new bachelor. In addition, Byron also lived in the Ladies villa. The show did not allow group dates and Byron got to pick the ladies for the dates. Byron chose Mary Delgado, who was arrested in November 2007 on a charge of domestic battery for punching him in the face. They still plan to wed November 2008.

Season 7

Season 7 featured Charlie O'Connell, brother to actor Jerry O'Connell. The final rose was given on a live season finale, allowing Charlie to get to know the final two ladies between the taping and airing of the show. The rose, as well as a promise ring, were given to Sarah Brice, but the couple ultimately split.

Season 8

The show was renewed for an eighth season and first ran on January 9, 2006. The season was set in Paris, France, and featured bachelor Dr. Travis Lane Stork, a 33-year-old emergency medicine resident from Nashville, Tennessee and a graduate of Duke University and University of Virginia. In the final episode that aired on February 27, 2006, Stork gave the final rose to fellow Nashvillian and kindergarten teacher Sarah Stone, a 26-year-old University of Tennessee alumna. Just more than a week after the airing of the finale, and nearly four months after the eighth season wrapped, Stork and Stone announced they were no longer a couple in a joint interview with Nashville's daily newspaper, The Tennessean. Both cited contractual post-production obligations to remain apart as a major reason the relationship failed. In a season fairly free of wild behavior, one of the more memorable moments of the show involved bachelorette and fellow doctor Allie Garcia-Serra, who angrily confronted Travis after she was not given a rose in the first episode .

Dr. Travis Stork appeared on Dr. Phil on 1/14/08.

Season 9

The Bachelor: Rome, the official title of The Bachelor's ninth season, began airing on October 3, 2006. This season was set in Rome, Italy, and featured the bachelor "prince" Lorenzo Borghese, a 34 year-old pet cosmetic entrepreneur who was born in Milan but has resided in Manhattan since 1987. The show had a new twist this season: two beautiful Italian women, Agnese and Cosetta, were suddenly added to the cast of twenty-five, adding new tensions. Agnese stayed on the show until after the group dates, when Lorenzo eliminated her because of their communication barrier. Lorenzo picked Jennifer at the final rose ceremony on November 27, 2006, leaving Sadie with a broken heart. On January 17, 2007, it was reported that Lorenzo and Jennifer were no longer seeing each other. He and Sadie went on a few dates when she moved to New York, but a relationship reportedly did not blossom.

As of the recent Bachelor special "Where Are They Now?" He was named America's least favorite Bachelor.

Season 10

The Bachelor: Officer and a Gentleman, the official title of The Bachelor's tenth edition, premiered Monday, April 2, 2007. The season starred Andy Baldwin, a triathlete and U.S. Navy doctor who graduated from Duke University, and ended with Baldwin proposing to his final bachelorette in the last episode which aired May 21, 2007.

On May 9, 2007, the New York Post correctly reported in advance of the finale that Tessa was the final rose recipient, but incorrectly reported that she had declined his marriage proposal.

According to an article published on August 16, 2007 on TMZ.com, Andy Baldwin and Tessa Horst have called off their engagement. Baldwin tells In Touch, "When the fantasy wore off and the reality set in, we both realized that we weren't ready to be engaged. We're very much in love and are hopeful for the future."

Recent reports have indicated that Andy and Tessa are no longer together.

As of the Bachelor special "Where are they now?" He was named America's Favorite Bachelor.

Season 11

The Bachelor 11 premiered on September 24, 2007. The Bachelor was Brad Womack, 34, a successful, self-made entrepreneur. Womack lives in Austin, Texas and co-owns four bars (two of which, The Chuggin Monkey and The Dizzy Rooster were popular with the Real World: Austin cast members) with his brothers, both of whom are married.. During the course of the series, Brad stated, "The ultimate outcome is me at the end, getting on a knee and giving her a ring and moving back to this beautiful city and having fun." With the two remaining finalists, Deanna and Jenni, awaiting Brad's decision, the season finale, which aired on November 19, 2007, revealed that Brad could not commit to either of them and in doing so made history in the TV series by becoming the first bachelor not to choose either of the two remaining finalists. The Bachelor 11's finale broadcast concluded with Brad sitting on the edge of the final Rose Ceremony altar and staring at the unused engagement ring he had selected earlier that day.

Despite having her heart broken, Deanna reported believing in the concept of meeting Mr. Right and agreed to become the new Bachelorette, which premiered May 26, 2008.

Jenni is now engaged.

Season 12

The Bachelor: London Calling, the official title of The Bachelor's twelfth edition, premiered on March 17, 2008. The identity of the season's bachelor was revealed on Dance War: Bruno vs. Carrie Ann on Monday, February 4. His name is Matt Grant, a global financier, from London. In the concluding episode, Matt picked Shayne Lamas (daughter of actor Lorenzo Lamas) over Chelsea. He proposed on the island of Barbados. Matt moved into Shayne's condo briefly after the show aired, but recently moved out into his own condo in the LA area. He stated that he needed to establish himself in LA and build his own group of friends, but the couple remained together at that point. However, the two broke up in July 2008.

Season 13

Jason Mesnick, the runner-up of Season 4 of The Bachelorette, will be the Bachelor for this season. The season will premiere in January 2009.

The Bachelors

Season	Bachelor	Occupation	Winner	Proposal	Status of Relationship
1	Alex Michel	management consultant	Amanda Marsh	No	Broke up after several months
2	Aaron Buerge	Vice President of a chain of family-owned banks	Helene Eksterowicz	Yes	Broke up after several months
3	Andrew Firestone	sales manager of Firestone Family estates	Jen Schefft	Yes	Broke up in December 2003. Now married to American model & actress Ivana Bozilovic.
4	Bob Guiney	created a mortgage company	Estella Gardinier	No	Broke up after the show aired. He is now married to soap opera star Rebecca Budig.
5	Jesse Palmer	football player	Jessica Bowlin	No	Broke up after several months
6	Byron Velvick	professional bass fisherman	Mary Delgado	Yes	Currently engaged; wedding reportedly planned for 2008.
7	Charlie O'Connell	actor	Sarah Brice	No	Broke up as of September 2007.
8	Travis Lane Stork	ER doctor	Sarah Stone	No	Broke up after the show aired.
9	Prince Lorenzo Borghese	cosmetics entrepreneur	Jennifer Wilson	No	Broke up in January 2007.
10	Andy Baldwin	doctor, triathlete & Naval officer	Tessa Horst	Yes	Called off the engagement one month after the finale, but continued their romantic relationship. Broke up in September 2007.
11	Brad Womack	bar owner	none	No	Rejected all women at the end.
12	Matt Grant	global financier	Shayne Lamas	Yes	Broke up in July 2008.
13	Jason Mesnick	account executive	TBA	TBA	TBA

See also

• The Bachelorette

External links

• Official Site
• The Bachelor at IMDb
• "The Bachelor" at Yahoo! TV
• "The Bachelor" at VH1.com
• Template:Tv.com show
• The Bachelor: London Calling on Seat42f