By Marilyn Beck and Stacy Jenel Smith Tyson Beckford is enjoying the fact that so far, "the men are doing way better than the women" on Bravo's "Make Me a Supermodel" reality show, which Beckford cohosts with
Niki Taylor.
"When we first started the show, I thought, OK, the men aren't going to last,' just because modeling is such a predominantly women's business. Women are in control of this business." However, "The men have been winning the challenges. … I've been instructing them on what to do, while Niki's been working with the women. Give me the men," he says.
So, what's a modeling-minded male to do? Well, to hear the drop-dead-gorgeous model-cum-TV host-cum-movie actor tell it, "The guy that wins this, or the girl that wins this, has to be able to multitask -- to be able to represent a product line to the fullest, to be able to host a show, to be able to do a movie. This generation will take it even further than the last, and I think eventually it's all going to merge into one -- and the people who succeed will be able to model clothes, do commercials, act in films, have a video on MTV, everything."
Beckford makes the point that he's "always been kind of involved" on the production end of his work as well as on camera. "I always want to know what the clients are looking for, what the objective is. I always have done research so I would know what I was doing, whether it was modeling, acting, riding motocross or skateboarding. Some kids have the idea they want to become actors, and they say, OK, I'm going to go to an audition.' You can't just do that. You have to study, to know what the art is. The kids who are still on the show are the ones who understand that."
UNION OF THE STATE: Tom Lennon, who created "Reno: 911!" with longtime friends
Ben Garant and
Kerri Kenney-Silver, tells us they are in the process of working together again with their former sketch comedy group the State. "There is actually talk of a State movie in the works. Up until the strike, there was about half of the script, and at some point we will get back on it," says Lennon of the group that was an MTV staple for three years.
It won't be the first time the 10 members have been together since professionally going their separate ways. "We keep in touch all the time. It's like going back to Thanksgiving at your dysfunctional family's house," says Lennon with a laugh.
Just don't expect them to be getting back together for good. "It was like being in a rock group. There were 10 of us, and we were constantly driving around in a little van, bickering with each other. Certainly that's why our old group broke up."
After the split, Lennon went on to work with Kerri and Ben, while members
Michael Ian Black, David Wain and
Michael Showalter created the group Stella. The actor admits he never expected to be working with his friends for so long. "I met Kerri at theater camp when I was, like, 16. It certainly didn't occur to me, 'Hey, I'm going to spend every day with you for the next 20 years!' I've spent much more time with them than my actual family."
To Lennon's appreciation, things with the "Reno: 911!" collaborators seem as good as ever. "Kerri, Ben and I seldom fight about anything because it's counterproductive," he adds. "For us, we find it's faster to shoot it and see if it works rather than talk about it. It's so much cheaper that way, and it saves your sanity."
WHEN THE MOON HITS YOUR EYE: MTV's latest reality star
Domenico Nesci, the stand out from
Tila Tequila's show "A Shot at Love," says he's been taking his own quest at love very seriously. While most people use television as a means to further their careers, the Italian-born Nesci claims that was the furthest thing from his mind. "I realized that you can send good messages to people even through reality shows. My show is a clear message of love," he says about filming "That's Amore," premiering March 2, in which 15 women get the chance to compete for his heart. "It's not the trash TV like people say. It's very deep because you're going through a lot of emotional things 24 hours a day."
In fact, Nesci, who was often seen as the life of the party on Tequila's show, thinks fans will be surprised to see just how many emotions were involved in his journey. "I'm always really hyperactive and funny, but I found myself a little bit more serious this time. You know, when you go for love, it's a deep, serious thing, so I took it as an important thing to do," he notes. "I was so emotionally connected with that show that still now every time I see the trailer on TV, I cry. I swear. I cry because it was an emotional experience, and I don't like to hold my feelings inside." Now that's amore!
ALL GROWN UP: "I started off my career being the bad boyfriend running around with the gun, and now I'm officially old enough to play a 17-year-old's father," observes
Billy Burke, recently seen in the thriller "Untraceable" -- and now, just beginning work as
Kristen Stewart's pere in the adaptation of
Stephenie Meyers' young adult novel, "Twilight." "It's about a young girl who comes to live with her dad and falls for a vampire -- sort of a vampire Romeo and Juliet." At the helm is
Catherine Hardwicke, "one of my favorite up-and-coming directors -- who did 'Thirteen' and 'Lords of Dogtown.' "
With reports by Stephanie DuBois and Emily Feimster.
Photos of Tyson Beckford by Bryan Bedder, Kerri Kenney-Silver and Tom Lennon by Kevin Winter, both from Getty Images.
