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2012 'Survivor' Hall of Famer Rob Cesternino (CBS)

NOTE: XFINITY TV is the place to go for “Survivor: San Juan del Sur” coverage with “all the fixin’s.” We’ll have Power Rankings with “Cagayan” fave Spencer Bledsoe, every Wednesday evening we’ll bring you a recap of the most recent episode, and every Thursday you’ll be able to watch the previous night’s episode and read an interview with the eliminated contestant. Be sure to follow me on Twitter (@gordonholmes) for immediate updates.

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The “Survivor” Hall of Fame is proud to have 2012 inductee Rob Cesternino as a part of the Executive Voting Committee. As a member of this exclusive committee, Rob (along with Host Jeff Probst, Challenge Producer John Kirhoffer, and other “Survivor” luminaries) will nominate his three favorite Tribal Councils.

Then, from Monday, December 8, 2014 at 10 am ET through Friday December 12, 2014 at 5 pm ET, the top three Tribal Councils will be chosen by a fan vote.

Editor’s Note: If you are missing out on Rob Cesternino’s “Rob Has a Podcast,” you are missing out on the best non-wrestling podcast on the Internet.

Rob Cesternino’s “Survivor” Hall of Fame Nominations…

It’s once again an honor to be included in this year’s proceedings for the “Survivor” Hall of Fame.  While there have been a plethora of amazing Tribal Councils in the storied history of “Survivor” – I’m going to focus exclusively on moments from the first couple of seasons.  I suspect you’ll get plenty of coverage from the recent seasons but I want to make sure that classic “Survivor” is well represented in the Hall of Fame.

“Survivor: Borneo” – Final Tribal Council (Snakes & Rats)

“But if I would ever pass you along in life and you are laying there, dying of thirst, I would not give you a drink of water.  I would let the vultures take you and do whatever they want with you with no ill regrets”

Sue Hawk’s speech at the final Tribal Council is a transcendent moment not only in the history of “Survivor” but also in the history of television.  It’s a moment where tens of millions of people could tell you where they were at the exact moment that she said it.  It’s amazing, it’s insane and it’s everything that we love about “Survivor.”

When I was in college, we forgot to pay the cable bill and our TV service was shut off.  I had a VHS tape of the finale of the first “Survivor” and we watched it over and over.  At one point, I had Sue’s whole speech committed to memory.  I got to play with Sue Hawk on “Survivor: All-Stars” and asked her about it every chance I got.  In a related story, she voted me off the first chance she got, but I’d like to think she’d still give me a drink of water if I was lying on the road, dying of thirst with vultures circling.

“Survivor: The Australian Outback” – Episode 7 Tribal Council (Jeff Varner Gets Screwed)

Back in 2001, people wondered if “Survivor” could do it again when the show launched its second season “Survivor: The Australian Outback.”  This time around, the players had seen the game before and both the Kucha and Okagor tribes knew they had to come in to the merge with numbers.  After Mike Skupin got burned in the fire, Kucha and Okagor came in to the merge with five members each.  Following an all-day immunity challenge, the merged tribe went to Tribal Council completely divided.

Each original tribe voted in unison with Kucha putting all their votes on Colby and the former Okagor members voting for Jeff Varner.  At this time in “Survivor,” a tie was broken based on previous votes and Jeff had a vote cast against him at the first Tribal Council by Debb Eaton.  Smartly, Tina Wesson asked Kucha member, Kimmi Kappenberg, about who Debb voted for and Kimmi revealed it was Jeff.  Tina filed that piece of information in her pocket and targeted Varner for the first vote after the merge.

After the tribes got to a stalemate at five votes a piece, Jeff Probst asked Colby and Varner to reveal their previous votes.  Colby had none and Jeff had one (that he knew of).  It was enough and Jeff Varner became the first player voted out after the merge.  This one vote sealed the game for Okagor as they controlled the numbers and picked off the rest of the Kucha tribe over the course of the season.  Props to Tina, Colby, and the rest of the Okagors but it was a great loss to lose Jeff Varner, who I think is one of the great underrated players.

“Survivor: Marquesas” – Episode 13 Final Four Tribal Council (The Purple Rock)

All through “Survivor: The Australian Outback” and “Survivor: Africa,” the prospect of a tie vote loomed over the game.  After this one Tribal Council, “Survivor” players would never think of tie votes in the same way.  In “Survivor: Marquesas,” they were down to only four players by Day 37 with Neleh and Paschal joined as a tight two, Kathy as the third member of their alliance and Vecepia on the outside looking in.  After Vecepia won immunity at Final 4, Neleh and Paschal realized the vote should be for Kathy and Kathy did too.

Kathy asked the now immune Vecepia to vote with her.  With nothing to lose, Vecepia agreed to work with her.  For Kathy, the strategy makes all the sense in the world.  Since Vee has immunity, and Paschal and Neleh won’t vote for one another, Kathy will be voted out of the tribe.  Kathy is willing to join Vee and risk her 100% chance of being voted out of the game in exchange for a 66.66% percent chance of STAYING in the game by picking a yellow rock.

For Paschal and Neleh, either of them could have guaranteed their own safety in the game by offering to join Vee and Kathy in voting the other one out.  Obviously, Neleh or Paschal don’t want to do that because of their friendship so instead they will gamble on the 33% chance that Kathy pulls the purple rock out of the bag.  Furthermore, if their gamble is correct and Kathy pulls the yellow rock, they’ll control the votes heading in to a final 3 vs. Vecepia.

Jeff instructed the three rock-pullers to take a rock out of the bag one at a time without looking at it.  He would have them all open their palm simultaneously for the results.  Neleh went first, then Kathy and finally Paschal.  “That feels like Purple, Jeff”, Paschal joked as he took his rock out of the bag.  However, Paschal soon found out that the purple rock was not a joke.  After 37 days, Paschal was voted out by picking the wrong colored rock.

The purple rock was a transformative moment in the game that would change the way players play going forward.  Sure, we’ll still have ties at the final four in a few seasons but other than the 2-2 stalemate, no vote will go to rocks again for another 23 seasons!  Ultimately, the fear of getting Paschal’ed (with all due respect to Katie Collins) will usually get one of the players to flip and avoid the purple rock scenario entirely.  It’s because of this, I think this Tribal Council deserves a place in the “Survivor” Hall of Fame.

Follow the “Survivor” Hall of Fame on Twitter and Facebook for up-to-the-minute updates and Tribal Council nominations.

Any Questions? Drop me a line on Twitter at @gordonholmes.

2012 "Survivor" Hall of Fame Inductee Rob Cesternino (CBS)

UPDATE: Voting for the “Survivor” Hall of Fame Class of 2013 has ended. Please come back Wednesday, December 11, 2013 to meet the first inductee. And, follow @survivorhall on Twitter for up-to-the-minute updates.

The “Survivor” Hall of Fame is proud to have 2012 inductee Rob Cesternino as a member of the Executive Voting Committee. As a member of this exclusive committee, Rob (along with Host Jeff Probst and other “Survivor” luminaries) has accepted an awesome responsibility. The committee’s votes will make up 50% of the final tally for entry into the prestigious Class of 2013. The other 50% will come from “Survivor” fans like you.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: If you’re not listening to Rob’s “Rob Has a Podcast,” you should be.

Rob Cesternino’s 2013 Hall of Fame Ballot

As a member of 2012 “Survivor” Hall of Fame class, I take my job here very seriously.  I actually found this task to be incredibly difficult, but with the help of a magic 8-ball, I’ve arrived at my top three picks.

Kim Spradlin – (“Survivor – One World”) In my opinion, Kim is the most dominant female player in the history of the show.  Taking nothing away from Parvati and Sandra Diaz-Twine, but Kim’s game is totally different.  Kim controlled an alliance of five from early in the game, adapted to get through a tribe swap, and then systematically eliminated any of the threats in her way after the merge.  All of the players in the game who mattered thought she was on their side, until she slit their throats.

Kim Spradlin was so brilliant; she made her season boring because you knew nobody else had a chance to beat her.  She ended up winning four immunities, finding the hidden immunity idol, and getting seven of the nine jury votes to win.   I feel like Kim has not gotten the credit she deserves and I hope that gets corrected with her induction in to the “Survivor” Hall of Fame.  Here’s to you, Dynamic Kim!

Jonny Fairplay – (“Survivor: Pearl Islands” and “Survivor: Micronesia – Fans vs. Favorites”) Jonny Fairplay is the first person in the history of the genre who showed up on “Survivor” WANTING to be the villain.  Fairplay had a vision of how he wanted to be portrayed and played the part perfectly.  The grandmother lie is still one of the craziest hoaxes to ever be attempted considering he was risking a chance to win a million dollars if it got screwed up.

I’m nominating Jonny Fairplay not just because he wanted to be a villain… he actually had game too.  He had everybody fooled about him for much of the game (maybe not Sandra), he single-handedly took down Rupert and shifted alliances to get himself to the final three before losing the final immunity challenge.  Why does that last challenge have to be so tricky???

I know some people will reject Fairplay for induction to the Hall because many remember him “quitting” “Survivor Fans vs. Favorites”… but I urge you to go back and watch the tape.  Jonny Fairplay is in fact the first person voted out from the game.  He gets nine votes and Jeff Probst even snuffs his torch!  Can Osten, Purple Kelly, Naonka or Colton claim the same?

Whether you loved him or whether you hated him, he kept things interesting and he changed “Survivor” and Reality TV forever.

Brian Heidik  – (“Survivor: Thailand”) I know many of you won’t agree with this one… but I think Brian Heidik is one of the great “Survivor” players of all-time.  In “Survivor: Thailand,” Brian built on the strategy that Richard Hatch established in the first “Survivor” season and played one of the most lethal games in the history of the show.  He said “Survivor” was just a business trip for him and he systematically made alliances with everybody in the game.  On top of his excellent strategic and social game, he also won five immunity challenges.  He was a used car salesman who left everybody feeling ripped off, but not until after he won the million dollars.

I realize that there is almost no chance that Brian Heidik gets in to the “Survivor” Hall of Fame this year (or any other year for that matter).  After his win in “Survivor: Thailand,” he somehow made himself a persona non grata around “Survivor”-land and that’s a shame.  Brian should have been in the first all-stars but the show decided that he wasn’t likable enough to come back (many would agree).  Brian Heidik will probably never play “Survivor” again but I will always have tons of respect for the “Ice Man” and in my book, he’s a Hall of Famer.

Other Ballots:

‘Survivor’ Executive Producer and Host Jeff Probst

‘Survivor’ Producer Jesse Jensen

‘Survivor’ Challenge Producer John Kirhoffer

2010 Hall of Fame Inductee Parvati Shallow

2010 Hall of Fame Inductee Russell Hantz

2011 Hall of Fame Inductee Cirie Fields

Voting for the “Survivor” Hall of Fame Class of 2013 has ended. Please come back Wednesday, December 11, 2013 to meet the first inductee. And, follow @survivorhall on Twitter for up-to-the-minute updates.

'Survivor' Hall of Fame 2012 Inductee Rob Cesternino

Fifty percent of the voting for the ‘Survivor’ Hall of Fame was based on the ballots of the Executive Voting Committee. This blue-ribbon panel consists of “Survivor” luminaries such as Host and Executive Producer Jeff Probst, Challenge Producer John Kirhoffer, Executive Producer David Burris, Producer Jesse Jensen, the current members of the “Survivor” Hall of Fame, the “Survivor” press corps, and XFINITY TV’s “Survivor” Guy Gordon Holmes. The other fifty percent came from “Survivor” fans like you.

Follow the “Survivor” Hall of Fame on Facebook or Twitter for updates.

The Class of 2010 included Parvati Shallow, Russell Hantz, Rob Mariano, Richard Hatch, and Sandra Diaz-Twine…

The Class of 2011 included Cirie Fields, Ozzy Lusth, and Tom Westman…

This past Monday, Amanda Kimmel was inducted as the first member of the Class of 2012…

And now, the “Survivor” Hall of Fame is proud to induct Rob Cesternino into the Class of 2012. Rob received the most fan votes out of any nominee.

We had a chance to speak with the newly crowned Hall of Famer to get his thoughts on this honor…

Gordon Holmes: Congratulations, Rob. How does it feel to be honored by a vote made up of your “Survivor” peers, the ‘Survivor’ production crew, the press, and the fans?
Rob Cesternino: Being inducted into the “Survivor” Hall Of Fame is an honor that I cannot begin to describe.  As many people know, I was a “Survivor” junkie going back to the first season.  It was my dream come true to get on the show in the first place and I’ve always been so grateful for that.  I cannot tell you how ridiculously flattered I was when I saw that I was on Jeff Probst’s ballot last month.  I also owe a huge debt of gratitude to the “Survivor” fans who have always been so amazing to me.  If you’re reading this and you helped to make this happen, I want to personally thank you.  If you didn’t and you voted for somebody else, I hope you did not become physically ill when you heard I was selected.  Also, I know that this honor would’ve meant a great deal to my Dad, as well, who passed away around this time last year.  He always got such a thrill out of the fact that I had actually made it on the show.

This month has also been exactly 10 years from when we played the game in the Amazon, so I’ve been thinking a lot lately about that experience.  I don’t believe that I’m the greatest “Survivor” player but I do believe that there was something about my game that contributed something to the overall collective thinking of future “Survivor” players.  Up until that time, people played “Survivor” in voting blocks.  You’d make an alliance and if that didn’t get you to the end, that was it and you’d go down with the ship.  It is my belief that “Survivor” players should always put their own self-interests first and vote with whatever players give them the best chance to get further in the game – whether they’re in your alliance or not.  Unfortunately, a majority of players still don’t think this way, but when it happens it’s a beautiful thing to see.

Holmes: What’ve you been up to since we saw you in “All-Stars”?
Cesternino: A few months after the end of “Survivor: All-Stars,” I moved to Los Angeles and began working in online content creation.  I’ve developed a number of web series on Youtube and I was co-executive producer of the first original web series on MySpace.TV.  In 2010, I married my amazing wife, Nicole whom I first started dating during the time “Survivor: The Amazon” was airing.  Around the time of the 10-year anniversary of “Survivor” and the premiere of “Heroes vs. Villains” I was overwhelmed with the desire to start posting my thoughts on the show again.  In February of 2010, I built a website and started up “Rob Has a Podcast.”.  The idea was to start doing interviews with former “Survivor” players to get their insights in to the current season.  Over the years, the show has continued to grow and grow and take on a life of its own.  I think the biggest reason for our success has been that there are so many people out there who love this show and there are not a lot of places to find intelligent conversation about it.  Maybe none of your friends watch “Survivor” or the people in your office aren’t fans but we’ve built a place to have these discussions.  Also, a lot of people scoff if you tell them that you’re a “Survivor” fan and what most people don’t realize is that it’s a very smart show and there’s a lot to be analyzed in every episode.  There’s also a lot of crazy stuff that happens in each episode, but that’s part of the fun too.  Having this community around the show has made “Survivor” as much fun for me as it’s ever been.

Holmes: Is it going to be hard to maintain your image as someone “Who Sucks” now that you’re in the Hall of Fame?
Cesternino: For any of your readers who don’t get the reference, as a Survivor named “Rob” I am often mistaken for my fellow “Survivor” Hall-of-Famer, “Boston Rob” Mariano.  When I was writing the “Survivor” blog on CBS.com during “Survivor: Nicaragua” some readers were confused and thought “Boston Rob” had written the articles and were leaving him comments.  One reader took it upon himself to correct the other commenters by telling them “This isn’t Boston Rob, this is the Rob that sucks”.  I thought this was hilarious and I’ve embraced it ever since.

Now, I don’t think this necessarily means that I am a person that sucks, but I do think that if you were to compare my “Survivor” resume to that of Rob Mariano, you would probably say that mine was the more “suckier” of the two.  That being said, I don’t think this is anything to be ashamed of.  In my opinion, Boston Rob is the greatest player to ever play the game.  I recently had him on the podcast and he has seen it all in this game.  We went head to head in the All-Stars and he got me and I never saw it coming.  To paraphrase Pedro Martinez, I have to tip my cap and call myself “the Rob that sucks”.

Holmes: How’s “Survivor: Philippines” holding up for you? Liking it?
Cesternino: I’ve really enjoyed the Philippines.  With all due respect to Kim Spradlin, who I thought was amazing last season, “One World” felt like it was a coronation.  We watched each week to see if Kim could pull it off and eventually she did.  I believe the simple recipe for compelling “Survivor” consists of two ingredients: great characters and unpredictability.  This season has had both of those things so it’s been a lot of fun.  I was very sad to see Penner go two weeks ago, especially because I thought it was the wrong strategic decision, but with only five people left it’s really anybody’s game – except for Abi-Maria.  What more could you want with the finale coming up this week?  I may be in the minority on this but I think the future of “Survivor” is a bright one.  I think the changes that were made this season really helped the show and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

What the fans said about Rob…

“He changed the game for better and…had a bigger effect on the game than anyone except Richard Hatch. No longer was the gamer or the strategist the bad guy.” – Jamie

“The man constantly shifted his strategy and changed up the game, proving to be a savvy, adaptable player. Completely revolutionized the game.” – Alex

“Cleverly found out his place in his alliance and made sure he wasn’t at the bottom. Dominated Amazon and should have won.” – Sue

What the Executive Voting Committee said about Rob…

“His first appearance was a milestone.  “Survivor” had never before had someone who combined such an amazing knowledge of the game with a very clever wit and ability to tell a funny story at any time about any other player.” – Jeff Probst

“He was an aggressive strategic player who didn’t believe in loyalty. He was effective at switching alliances to keep himself in the game, and always had several deals on the table. He went with whatever benefited him and kept him alive in the game.” – Sandra Diaz-Twine

“He made gamers appreciate that getting to the final four with your alliance is not enough. That anyone on the bottom of an alliance who isn’t making moves to get to the top of a different alliance is setting themselves up for failure. Simply put; Rob made “Survivor” better.” – XFINITY TV’s Gordon Holmes

Be sure to check back Friday to meet the final member of the “Survivor” Hall of Fame Class of 2012.

Any Questions? Drop me a line on Twitter: @gordonholmes

Watch the ‘Survivor: Philippines’ Finale this Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.