Mad Mad House
Encyclopedia
Mad Mad House is a 2004 reality television
series about a group of ten contestants competing for $100,000. The contestants live together in a house inhabited by another group of people known as the alts (for their alternative lifestyle
s). The alts voted the contestants off by judging them on their ability to perform "trials" which were based loosely on the practices of each alt's lifestyle, and their behavior and attitude with the other guests. The show aired on the Sci Fi Channel
in the United States
and on Space in Canada
. Reruns have also been aired on Fox Reality Channel
.
and Forever Eden
, Bianculli pronounced Mad Mad House to be "their worst work yet". He mocked the contestants and berated the alts as "losers". Virginia Heffernan of The New York Times
found the series "unsettling" and "ghoulish" but wondered whether it might lead middle America to examine the casualness of its religious beliefs. The premiere episode drew a rating
of 1.35 and 1.57 million viewers.
In February 2004, the National African Religion Congress
sued the producers of Mad Mad House saying that it falsely represented Ta'Shia Asanti as a voodoo priestess. The group claimed that her dress identified her as a priestess of Yemoja
of the Ifá
tradition of the Yoruba people
. The suit sought a court order requiring that the program not identify Asanti as a priestess of voodoo. The group dropped the suit two months later after the network agreed to add a disclaimer to its website.
Reality television
Reality television is a genre of television programming that presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations, documents actual events, and usually features ordinary people instead of professional actors, sometimes in a contest or other situation where a prize is awarded...
series about a group of ten contestants competing for $100,000. The contestants live together in a house inhabited by another group of people known as the alts (for their alternative lifestyle
Alternative lifestyle
An alternative lifestyle is a lifestyle generally perceived to be outside the cultural norm. Usually, but not always, it implies an affinity or identification within some matching subculture...
s). The alts voted the contestants off by judging them on their ability to perform "trials" which were based loosely on the practices of each alt's lifestyle, and their behavior and attitude with the other guests. The show aired on the Sci Fi Channel
Syfy
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and on Space in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Reruns have also been aired on Fox Reality Channel
Fox Reality Channel
Fox Reality Channel was an all reality television channel available on cable and satellite television in the United States. It was launched on May 24, 2005 and was owned by the Fox Entertainment Group. It featured many shows that were previously on the Fox network...
.
Alts
- Fiona HorneFiona HorneFiona Horne is an Australian singer, rock musician, radio and television personality, actress and author. She is famous for her public promotion of Witchcraft and as the singer in Australian band Def FX...
(The WitchWiccaWicca , is a modern Pagan religious movement. Developing in England in the first half of the 20th century, Wicca was popularised in the 1950s and early 1960s by a Wiccan High Priest named Gerald Gardner, who at the time called it the "witch cult" and "witchcraft," and its adherents "the Wica."...
) - David "Avocado" Wolfe (The NaturistNaturismNaturism or nudism is a cultural and political movement practising, advocating and defending social nudity in private and in public. It may also refer to a lifestyle based on personal, family and/or social nudism....
) - Art Aguirre (The Modern PrimitiveModern primitiveModern primitives or urban primitives are people in developed nations who engage in body modification rituals and practices while making reference or homage to the rite of passage practices in "primitive cultures" These practices may include body piercing, tattooing, play piercing, flesh hook...
) - Don HenrieDon HenrieDon Henrie, also known as "The Vampire Don" is best known for his role in the Sci-fi Channel reality show Mad Mad House, which first aired March 4, 2004. Prior to this, he worked nights as a micro electronics engineer in San Diego....
(The VampireVampire lifestyleThe vampire lifestyle or vampire subculture is an alternative lifestyle, based on the modern perception of vampires in popular fiction. The vampire subculture has stemmed largely from the goth subculture, but also incorporates some elements of the sadomasochism subculture...
) - "Iya" Ta'Shia Asanti (The VoodooIfáIfá refers to the system of divination and the verses of the literary corpus known as the Odú Ifá. Yoruba religion identifies Orunmila as the Grand Priest; as that which revealed Oracle divinity to the world...
Priestess)
Guests
- Bonnie Dobkin – Book editor
- Brent Ellis – Student
- Nichole Ferrera – Actress
- Loana Huynh – Media researcher from ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
- Jamie – Single mother and former exotic dancer
- Kelly Keefe – Political campaigner from New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
- Eric Lindquist – Assistant sports agent from North Andover, MassachusettsNorth Andover, MassachusettsNorth Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. North Andover is the home of Merrimack College, a private, Catholic four-year institution ....
- Tim McGhee – Horse rancher
- Hamin Phillips – Factory technician from Racine, WisconsinRacine, WisconsinRacine is a city in and the county seat of Racine County, Wisconsin, United States. According to 2008 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the city had a population of 82,196...
- Noel Shenkel – Janitor
Episode list
| Number | Title | Air date | Showcase | Trial | Eliminated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Let the Madness Begin" | March 4, 2004 | Ta'shia performs a voodoo rite. Several of the guests refuse to participate. | Vampire: The guests must retrieve objects associated with vampire myths (crosses, garlic and toy bats) from a "bloodbath" and place them in the chalice of the guest they want to lose the challenge. At the end of the trial, Brent has the fewest objects in his chalice and wins the challenge. | Hamin. Brent as the trial winner broke a tie between Hamin and Loana. |
| 2 | "Kelly's Barking Mad" | March 11, 2004 | Fiona leads a ritual in which the guests are challenged to confront and release their fears. | Naturist: "Nude Concentration." Twenty of Avocado's naturist friends are wearing loin cloths which conceal pictures of raw foods. The guests seek matching pairs of pictures. Nichole wins the trial in a tie-breaker with Tim. | Kelly |
| 3 | "We Are Goddesses, Damn It!" | March 18, 2004 | There is no showcase, but Fiona conducts a "Goddess ritual" with the female guests. | Voodoo: Ta'shia places the guests in pits and covers them in substances important in voodoo rituals, including animal organs, honey and feathers. The guests must find five sacred items and place them on Ta'shia's altar. The winner is Bonnie. | Brent |
| 4 | "The Alts Get Even" | March 25, 2004 | Avocado takes the guests on a nature walk, where they locate and eat a variety of edible wild plants. | Modern Primitive: The guests see a tower of cages, each smaller than the one below. The guests are confined together in the first cage until one guest asks to be released. As each guest leaves, the remaining guests are moved to the next higher and smaller cage. Tim wins the challenge. | Bonnie |
| 5 | "Hanging Around" | April 1, 2004 | Art demonstrates a suspension ritual, suspending himself from hooks through the flesh of his back. | Witch: Evoking cord magic Witch's ladder A witch's ladder is a fetish, in folk magic or witchcraft that is made from knotted cord or hair, that normally constitutes a spell. Charms are knotted or braided with specific magical intention into the cords... , the guests must work in pairs to untie a series of knots, retrieve an athame Athame An Athame or Athamé is a ceremonial dagger, with a double-edged blade and usually a black handle. It is the main ritual implement or magical tool among several used in the religion of Wicca, and is also used in various other neopagan witchcraft traditions. It is variously pronounced or... and place it on Fiona's altar. However, only one guest of the winning pair can win so the team has to decide the winner. Eric and Loana win and Loana is safe. |
Tim |
| 6 | "Don Drinks and Drains" | April 8, 2004 | Don performs a blood-drinking ritual and drains energy from Noel. | Naturist: Each guest is given four articles of clothing. Avocado shows them four species of plants and the guests must search the grounds for them. With each plant they bring back they must remove an article of clothing. Nichole wins the challenge. | No one. The alts have the guests give each other necklaces. Noel receives the most but the alts announce that only they may eliminate anyone so he is safe. |
| 7 | "Blood Guzzlers" | April 15, 2004 | There is no showcase, but the alts take the guests shopping for new clothes for Don's trial. | Vampire: the guests assign each other glasses of blood they must drink. The first to drink all of their blood wins. Loana is the winner. Because no one was eliminated in the last episode, Nichole remains safe from elimination. | Noel |
| 8 | "Thee Shall Hang!" | April 22, 2004 | Avocado provides a showcase on raw food in a picnic setting. | Witch: Fiona asks the guests trivia questions about former guests. Three wrong answers and the contestant is "hanged" (dropped into the pool with a noose around their necks). Nichole wins the challenge. | Loana |
| 9 | "Mad Mad Finale"(part 1) | April 29, 2004 | None. The alts and guests go bowling and Don wins. | Modern Primitive: The guests must stand on hooks suspended from chains for as long as they can. As the challenge continues weights are attached to the guests. Jamie wins the challenge. | Eric |
| 10 | "Mad Mad Finale" (part 2) | April 29, 2004 | None. The remaining guests are instead subjected to a "rite of passage" by each alt. | None. | Nichole. Jamie wins the $100,000 prize. |
Critical response
David Bianculli of the Daily News called Mad Mad House a "bad bad show" (a bon mot that other reviewers would also make). Comparing the series to previous ones produced by Smith and Weed, including Paradise HotelParadise Hotel
The first season of Paradise Hotel aired on Fox from June 18, 2003 to October 1, 2003 with thirty episodes and was hosted by Amanda Byram. A similar show called Forever Eden was produced the following year...
and Forever Eden
Forever Eden
Forever Eden is a Fox reality show that shared many similarities with FOX's 2003 summer television show Paradise Hotel, including the show's producers. Unlike Paradise Hotel, the contestants could live in a resort not for weeks or months, but for years. It was hosted by Ruth England. In the end,...
, Bianculli pronounced Mad Mad House to be "their worst work yet". He mocked the contestants and berated the alts as "losers". Virginia Heffernan of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
found the series "unsettling" and "ghoulish" but wondered whether it might lead middle America to examine the casualness of its religious beliefs. The premiere episode drew a rating
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
of 1.35 and 1.57 million viewers.
In February 2004, the National African Religion Congress
National African Religion Congress
The National African Religion Congress is an organization, formed by Gro Mambo Angela Novanyon Idizol in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1998, which aims to seek tolerance for African religions, as well as creating credentialing standards for priests and priestesses and working on legal issues of...
sued the producers of Mad Mad House saying that it falsely represented Ta'Shia Asanti as a voodoo priestess. The group claimed that her dress identified her as a priestess of Yemoja
Yemaja
Yemanja is an orisha, originally of the Yoruba religion, who has become prominent in many Afro-American religions. Africans from what is now called Yorubaland brought Yemaya/Yemoja and a host of other deities/energy forces in nature with them when they were brought to the shores of the Americas as...
of the Ifá
Ifá
Ifá refers to the system of divination and the verses of the literary corpus known as the Odú Ifá. Yoruba religion identifies Orunmila as the Grand Priest; as that which revealed Oracle divinity to the world...
tradition of the Yoruba people
Yoruba people
The Yoruba people are one of the largest ethnic groups in West Africa. The majority of the Yoruba speak the Yoruba language...
. The suit sought a court order requiring that the program not identify Asanti as a priestess of voodoo. The group dropped the suit two months later after the network agreed to add a disclaimer to its website.