Reality TV

Alex Michael had the accent; Andrew Firestone had the money; and Jason Mesnick had the abdominal muscles.

But as the latest star of a reality dating series, Luke Conley possesses something the aforementioned Bachelors lacked: a beer belly.

Conley, a former college football star and current real estate investor, will star in Fox's upcoming More to Love. The show follows the same rules and goals of The Bachelor, with one very noticeable twist: all involved could crush Mischa Barton with their pinky toes.

Indeed, Conley stands 6'3" and weighs over 300 pounds. All 20 of his suitors make the newly-rotund Kevin Federline look tiny.

According to a Fox press release, Conley is in the market for a woman who is "intelligent, passionate, down-to-earth, full-figured and comfortable in her own skin."

As past results indicate, he's sure to find that on reality TV.

Will you be tuning in for More to Love? Or do you think fat people don't deserve a chance to pretend to fall in love in front of countless television cameras?

Confirming a previous report, Jessica Simpson will headline a new reality show called The Price of Beauty, in which the singer will travels around the world in search of the kinds of things people find beautiful and why, VH1 announced.

Asked to do a show about true beauty, Simpson - who endured some solid bullying in January for performing live after letting herself go / squeezing that a$$ into a pair of unflattering mom jeans - said she was "immediately intrigued."

"I have always believed that beauty comes from within and confidence will always make a woman beautiful, but I know how much pressure some women put on themselves to look perfect," Joe Simpson's cash cow said in a statement.

"I am looking forward to discovering how beauty is perceived in different cultures and participating in the crazy things people do to feel beautiful. I know we will all learn so much on this journey and I am so excited that VH1 is coming along."

Jessica Simpson and her girls are headed back to TV.

Added Jeff Olde, EVP, VH1 Original Programming & Production: "Perhaps more than any other pop culture figure on the radar today, Jessica Simpson has been the target of our obsession with beauty on both sides of the equation."

"She is a woman who can set trends and create firestorms with a single photo. We could not be more thrilled that Jessica gets to take control of that conversation and take a look at the idea of beauty through her unique, unfiltered lens."

We're excited to listen to her read cue cards and perform stupid stunts, too. Gosh, this sounds like a slam-dunk. Way to go, VH1 production department!

Shooting begins in mid-July, with the show airing sometime next year. The singer and her pimp, father Joe Simpson, will serve as executive producers.

Ryan Seacrest and Lindsay Lohan were spotted together Thursday night.

Our imaginations ran wild with that run-in, but it turns out their meeting was strictly business - Ryan wants to create a Lindsay Lohan reality show.

"Met with Lindsay last night about a show idea I have for her ... it helps people and gives others a second shot!" Ryan wrote on his Twitter page.

"Still putting it all together."

The American Idol host is no stranger to producing. In addition to his radio hosting gig, the star has lent his TV production talents to E!'s Keeping Up with the Kardashians, Denise Richards' It's Complicated and Brody Jenner's Bromance.

Ryan Seacrest's eyes are on this future reality TV firecrotch prize.

Lindsay Lohan - who in the past week alone was investigated in a $400K jewel heist, was dumped for good by Samantha Ronson, posted topless pictures of herself online and had her Twitter account "hacked," also mentioned details of the project.

"Working on a really great project for television - I am excited!" she Twatted. "Something meaningful like Extreme Home Makeover on ABC ... :)"

The premise of the series is that real people who are on the wrong track and looking for a second chance are given $1 million to make it happen.

Lohan would serve on a panel of judges who hear contestants' stories.

Because that's the kind of "panelist" who needs to oversee people and their problems: A coked-up, slutty, Twitter-obsessed, wannabe lesbian attention whore who can't hold down a job to save her life. Sounds like a winner, Ryan!

This just in: the following developments are signs that you might have a drug or alcohol problem....

• ... carrying on an affair, as a 15-year old, with a married, steroid-using professional baseball player.
• ... making a living as a Hollywood madam.
• ... dating Cisco Adler.

Unsurprisingly, therefore, Mindy McCready, Heidi Fleiss and Lisa D’Amato (all pictured below) are among the cast members for VH1's third season of Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew.

Congratulations, Spencer Pratt. You're no longer the biggest loser on reality TV.

After weeks of rumors - and fears from a scared nation -  Nadya Suleman has officially landed a reality show.

The disgraceful human being's attorney, Jeff Czech, confirmed to Us Weekly that his client signed a deal this week to exploit her brood of 14 children for the world to see.

"[Nadya and the producers] are hoping to have an arrangement whereby several events in the children's lives would be filmed in a documentary series," Czech said. “One of the events in the children's lives might be their first birthday.”

We can hardly wait!

As for that other reality series that focuses on several children and has led to rumors of infidelity, marriage contracts and child labor law violations: Come on, Czech says, why would anyone think Octomom was anything like Jon and Kate Gosselin?!?

“Her television program will not be like the Jon and Kate Plus 8 show,” said Czech. "[Nadya] is looking forward to providing her side of the story."

Are you looking forward to watching it? Will you tune in to the Octomom reality show?

Look out, Michelle Obama.

A handful of new, spoiled, Real Housewives are coming your way.

Bravo has selected the next locale for its ratings giant of a franchise... and life in the nation's capital may never be the same!

“We’re tapping personalities who are among Washington D.C.’s influential players, cultural connoisseurs, fashion sophisticates and philanthropic leaders – the people who rub elbows with the most prominent people in the country and easily move in the city’s diverse political and social circles,” said Frances Berwick, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Bravo Media.

Might Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor be part of the cast? No. Of course not.

Will you watch The Real Housewives of Washington, D.C.?

Bachelor creator Mike Fleiss is getting ready to give Shayne Lamas and her "good-looking" family the Kim Kardashian treatment - reality TV show style.

"Not that the Kardashians aren't good looking, but the Lamas  family is a very good looking family," Fleiss said.

"You see Shayne, her sister Dakota and [their brother, former Lindsay Lohan boy toy] A.J. Lamas and obviously [her father] Lorenzo anchoring it with his rugged handsomeness. They're wild, crazy characters, but also very good looking."

Fleiss said the E! reality series starring last season's The Bachelor winner and her family and friends is currently in pre-production - and E! is excited.

"It's very strong. [E! programming executive] Lisa Berger is very happy with it," Fleiss said. "We think it has a chance to be a real hit for them."

Shayne Lamas received the final rose and a marriage proposal from The Bachelor star Matt Grant on the season finale last May. They lasted a few weeks at least.

The couple called off their engagement in July after a report surfaced that she had traveled to Las Vegas and cheated on him with media mogul Justin Wenerger.

Shayne Lamas denied she cheated on Matt Grant and claimed that although the couple hadn't announced it at the time, their relationship was over long before.

In addition, Shayne attributed Grant's inability to handle her hard-partying Hollywood lifestyle as the reason they spilt. She's a class act, through and through.

We can't wait for the new reality show, that's for sure. Talk about made-for-TV. Click to enlarge more classic pictures of ditzy, skanky Shayne Lamas ...

Guess which wildly overhyped CW show about the scandalous lives of Manhattan's young and elite is now supposedly getting the obligatory reality TV treatment?

Bravo is in production on a real-life Gossip Girl - a reality series about private school kids in N.Y. City. The folks behind Tim Gunn's Guide to Style will produce it.

Comparisons have already been made to Laguna Beach, MTV's hit which spawned The Hills and starred Lauren Conrad and her beautiful party-crazed SoCal pals.

The series is scheduled to premiere later this year.

It's become a hit with younger viewers and is the subject of great online rumors and gossip. But is Gossip Girl something you'd want to watch on reality TV?

Major Gossip Girl spoiler alert: the show is entertaining because of its witty quotes and outlandish characters, and because it's so over the top and UNrealistic.

How could a reality show possibly compare? If you're looking for a boring "reality" show about (slightly older) rich kids living in New York, there's The City.

VH1 understands the concept of reality shows.

Why pretend these programs are anything but platforms for insane, insecure people to garner attention in any (mostly scripted) way possible?

With that in mind, the network has handed a starring role in its shows to Tiffany Pollard, Bret Michaels and, now, Daisy de la Hoya.

We couldn't be more excited for Daisy of Love, a dating series set to premiere this spring. In it, we can only pray that the cousin of boxer Oscar de la Hoya finds true love. It's worked so well for Pollard, Tila Tequila and other lonely reality TV stars.

What guy wouldn't sign up for a chance to hit this?

Here's the official VH1 press release announcing the debut of Daisy of Love:

Millions tuned in to see Rock Of Love 2 runner-up Daisy De La Hoya get her all-access pass to Bret Michaels’ heart denied. Now... Daisy, is determined to find her one man who will rock her world.

Daisy is on a quest for true love and this time she is giving her fans the chance to vie for her love and vote to help determine which contestant makes the cut for VH1’s Daisy of Love Premiering Spring 2009.

Move over, Jason Mesnick.

Our man Ray J has landed his own Bachelor-type dating show.

Yes, the man best known for filming himself having sex with Kim Kardashian will appear on VH1's latest skank-fest in 2009. Here's what the network said about the upcoming reality series:

He may be one of the most infamous playboys in hip-hop, but he still hopes to find that special woman he can settle down with … and VH1 is going to help! The “Sexy Can I” singer is getting his own dating show in 2009, and producers are already looking for smart, attractive women over 21 who think they can handle the drama of celebrity life.

Ray J is looking for love!