The Apprentice: Season 8
  • Network: NBC
  • Series Premiere Date: Jan 8, 2004
  • Season #: 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13
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  • Summary: The Apprentice is the ultimate job interview, where sixteen Americans (eighteen in seasons two through six, fourteen in seasons seven and nine) compete in a series of rigorous business tasks, many of which include prominent Fortune 500 companies and require street smarts and intelligence to conquer, in order to show Donald Trump, the boss, that they are the best candidate for his companies. In each episode, the losing team is sent to the boardroom, where Trump and his associates, Carolyn Kepcher and George Ross, and later, his children, Donald Trump, Jr., and Ivanka Trump, judge the job applicants on their performance in the task. One person is fired and sent home. Who will succeed? Who will fail? And who will be The Apprentice? The ninth season of The Apprentice is the third celebrity edition. Fourteen celebrities will compete for the title of the third Celebrity Apprentice and the grand prize of $250,000 for the charity of the choice. The season is already rife with big personalities and lots of drama, and though it's early, many tough competitors have emerged. The eighth season of The Apprentice was yet another celebrity edition. Sixteen celebrities competed for the title of the second Celebrity Apprentice and the grand prize of $250,000 for the charity of their choice. The cast was more interesting than the previous batch of celebrities, and the drama was a lot more intense. However, Trump started making less credible decisions in his firings, and the episodes were soon more about the drama among the celebrities than it was about the actual tasks. In the end, comedienne Joan Rivers faced off against professional poker player Annie Duke in the show's second all-female final two, and despite the majority opinion that Duke's performance throughout the season had been better overall, Trump ended the season on a sour note with the controversial decision to name Rivers as the second Celebrity Apprentice. The seventh season of The Apprentice saw the show returning to New York City. And this time, instead of real people being the candidates, celebrities were. Fourteen celebrities vied for the title of the first-ever Celebrity Apprentice, including a returning Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth from the first season. Among the changes were both teams facing the boardroom following the task to hear what each team did right and wrong, in case that team ended up in the boardroom. The season certainly wasn't without its share of drama, and it showed some pretty smart celebrity candidates. In the end, America's Got Talent judge Piers Morgan and country singer Trace Adkins faced off in the final two, and Morgan took the title of first-ever Celebrity Apprentice, taking $250,000 for the charity of his choice along with him. The sixth season of The Apprentice saw the show leave New York City and move to an all-new location: Los Angeles, California! Here, Carolyn Kepcher and George Ross were gone and replaced as viceroys by Donald Trump's children, Donald, Jr., and Ivanka. While the candidates, among whom were the show's first Asian-American man, the first Jamaican woman, a cervical cancer survivor, and not one, but two openly gay men, were interesting, the season pulled the show's lowest ratings ever, with too much focus on Trump and his brands, as well as Los Angeles pop culture, and not enough on the candidates and the tasks. Also, Trump's logic behind his firing decisions made less and less sense. In the end, Stefani Schaeffer, James Sun, Nicole D'Ambrosio, and Frank Lombardi all faced off in the show's first-ever final four finale that saw Stefani and James ending up as the final two, and Stefani walking away as the sixth Apprentice (and the second female Apprentice, to boot). The fifth season of The Apprentice started with something new: the first Project Managers were chosen by Trump, and they got to pick their own teams. Also, exemptions were wiped clean from the rules. The season started out with promise, with four international candidates from Canada, Cuba, Great Britain, and Russia, but lost steam as the more interesting, colorful candidates, including three of the four international ones, quickly bit the dust and were fired earlier than the blander, less interesting ones. The show ended up with what's been considered to be its worst final two ever, and in the end, the final international candidate, Sean Yazbeck, claimed victory over Lee Bienstock, the youngest candidate to ever make it to the final two, and won the title of the fifth Apprentice, as well as the honor of being the first winner to not be a native-born American. The fourth season of The Apprentice returned to the basics -- the same men vs. women format and winning Project Managers winning exemption -- but this time, with a twist. The winning Project Managers would only receive exemption from Trump if the team cast a majority vote to okay it. The season, which featured the first-ever openly gay contestant and first-ever Russian immigrant, easily shaped up to be one of the best seasons of the show, with an interesting cast, exciting tasks, and even the show's first-ever quadruple-firing! In the end, Dr. Randal Pinkett faced off with Rebecca Jarvis in the final two and won his rightful title as the fourth Apprentice and the first African-American winner. However, the finale was marred by his refusing Trump's offer to hire Rebecca, as well, in what would've been the show's first double-hiring. The third season of The Apprentice included a new twist: there are already two preset teams, "Book Smarts" and "Street Smarts" (Magna Corporation and Net Worth Corporation, respectively). They went head-to-head to see which team was smarter. In the end, the question was answered in the showdown of the century -- Kendra Todd, a college graduate, faced off against Tana Goertz, a high school graduate, in the show's first all-female final two. While in the end, the Book Smarts won the battle, as Kendra was given the grand prize and the title of the third Apprentice (and the first female Apprentice, to boot), the experiment of season three showed that both groups of people can be very successful. The second season of The Apprentice pitted men and women against each other again, but with several changes. The winning Project Manager, or team leader, received an exemption the next week should his or her team lose the task. The tasks became tougher, the judging became harder, and the contestants became fiercer. By the end of the season, Kelly Perdew, though met with tough competition by Jennifer Massey, took his place with Trump on the other side of the boardroom table as the second Apprentice. The first, and now classic, season of The Apprentice asked the age-old question: which gender is smarter? Packed with memorable contestants and mesmerizing moments, the first season was an enormous hit, garnering some of NBC's best ratings in years. By season's end, Bill Rancic was told, "You're hired!" and named the first and original Apprentice over Kwame Jackson, and all of the cast members became instant celebrities, with Donald Trump, as always, at the head of the pack. NBC Broadcast History January 8 & 15, 2004-- Thursday 8:30pm January 14 & 28, 2004 through April 14, 2004 -- Wednesday 8:00pm (Repeats) January 21, 2004 -- Wednesday 8:00pm (First Run Episode) January 29, 2004 - Present Day -- Thursday 9:00pm September 11, 2004 - September 25, 2004 -- Saturday 8:00pm October 2, 2004 - October 23, 2004 -- Saturday 9:00pm (Repeats) Special Presentations February 5 & 12, 2004 -- Thursday 8:42pm (Special Supersized Episodes) April 17, 2004 -- Saturday 9:00pm (2 Hour Rebroadcast Season 1 Finalé) September 9, 2004; January 20, 2005 -- Thursday 8:30pm (1 1/2 Hour Season Premieres) September 16, 2004 -- Thursday 9:20pm (Special Supersized Episode 1 Hour & 40 Minutes) September 29, 2004 -- Wednesday 9:00pm (Day Early) December 1, 2004 -- Wednesday 8:00pm (Recap Special, Day Early) January 27, 2005 -- Thursday 8:30pm (Special Supersized Episode) March 24, 2005 -- Thursday 8:30pm (Special Time) CNBC also airs episodes of The Apprentice on a rotating schedule (when the season is current) Global Broadcast History (Canada) January 8 & 15, 2004 -- Thursday 8:30pm January 14 & 28, 2004 -- Wednesday 8:00pm (Repeats) January 21, 2004 -- Wednesday 8:00pm (First Run Episode) January 29, 2004 - Present Day -- Thursday 9:00pm October 2, 2004 - October 23, 2004 -- Saturday 9:00pm (Repeats Special Presentations in Canada April 18, 2004 -- Sunday 1:06am (2 Hour Rebroadcast Season 1 Finalé) September 9, 2004 -- Thursday 8:30pm (1 1/2 Hour Season 2 Premiere) September 16, 2004 -- Thursday 9:20pm (Special Supersized Episode 1 Hour & 40 Minutes) September 29, 2004 -- Wednesday 9:00pm (Day Early) December 1, 2004 -- Wednesday 8:00pm (Recap Special, Day Early) January 20, 2005 -- Thursday 8:30pm (1 1/2 Hour Season 3 Premiere) January 27, 2005 -- Thursday 8:30pm (Special Supersized Episode) March 24, 2005 -- Thursday 8:30pm (Special Time) The Apprentice (US Version)in Other Countries: New Zealand: 8:35 PM on TV2 Hong Kong: 8.35 PM Saturdays on TVB Pearl Latin America:9PM Wednesdays on People+Arts (a BBC-Discovery Channel) Turkey: 9PM Thursdays on CNN Turk Sweden: 10:30 PM Sundays on Kanal 5 United Kingdom: 6 PM Weekdays on BBC-2 Brazil: 9PM Wednesdays on People+Arts (a BBC-Discovery Channel). A Brazilian version, O Aprendiz airs Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8 PM on People+Arts and at 10:15 PM on Rede Record The Apprentice Theme Song is "For the Love of Money" by The O'Jays. The Apprentice is created by Mark Burnett, the mind behind series like Survivor, The Contender, and The Restaurant. The Apprentice has been instantly successful, garning Emmy ratings, spinoffs (the upcoming The Apprentice: Martha Stewart), copycat series, spoofs, DVD sets, and books. While only premeiring a year ago, it is regarded as a shining classic in a genre filled with junk.… Collapse
  • Genre(s): Reality, Game Show

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  1. chughead
    10
    EGOS with clout...but iconic strategist who know how to think like entrepreneurs and pulled it off on reality tv. Plenty comedians keep you entertained and Joan Rivers stills the show as usual. Celeb tension! KABOOM!… Expand

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