Jack Vita Show: Entertainment | Reality TV | Survivor | The Traitors | Big Brother | The Challenge

From May 16, 2023 — Survivor: Guatemala winner Danni Boatwright returns to the Jack Vita Show, two weeks removed from her first appearance.

Last time, Danni answered questions about her time on Survivor: Guatemala and Survivor: Winners at War, discussing her time on reality television and her sports media and hosting career. This time around, Danni and Jack talk sports!

First things first, Danni has some stories from the weekend, as does Jack. Danni had an eventful weekend at her son's youth baseball tournament, including a confrontation with an opposing coach. Jack enjoyed watching friend of the show and Houston Astros starting pitcher JP France pick up his first career victory in his second Major League start, Friday night in Chicago. Danni and Jack exchange stories from the weekend (0:00 - 25:50).

Then, Danni and Jack talk Ben Zobrist, position players pitching, an uptick in injuries to pitchers this season, the NFL Draft, the Draft combine, all-time favorite baseball players, best baseball movies, the Kansas Jayhawks' latest get from the transfer portal, and much more (25:50 - END)!

Follow Danni on Instagram (@danniboatwright) and shop her latest apparel at Sideline Chic.

From May 3, 2023 — Survivor winner, longtime Kansas City sports radio host and NFL wife Danni Boatwright visits the Jack Vita Show for the first time!

Danni is someone that Jack has wanted to have on his show, since before he ever had a podcast! After five years, Jack has finally hunted down the white whale.

In the year 2005, Danni won the 11th season of Survivor, Survivor: Guatemala. She is the first Survivor winner to appear on the Jack Vita Show! Danni defeated our very own Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick in the final two to claim the million dollar prize. 15 years later, Danni appeared on Survivor's 40th season, Survivor: Winners at War.

Danni grew up a huge sports fan and has worked in sports radio for a number of years. She was a sportscaster when she appeared on Survivor for the first time. Less than two years after winning the title of sole Survivor, Danni married her husband, NFL Pro Bowl center Casey Wiegmann. Wiegmann enjoyed a 16-year NFL career, playing for the Indianapolis Colts, New York Jets, Chicago Bears, Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos. While on Survivor: Guatemala, Danni recognized that her tribemate wasn't who he claimed to be. Former NFL quarterback Gary Hogeboom told his fellow castaways that he was Gary Hawkins, a landscaper, withholding that he played 11 years of professional football. Danni recognized her tribemate was actually a former NFL quarterback.

Danni also appeared on The Fantasy Show alongside Ron Jaworsky and Antonio Freeman on ESPN 2, before becoming a host for CelebTV.com, where she interviewed a large collection of celebrities.

In 1996, Danni won the Miss Kansas USA crown. She finished second place in the Miss USA pageant. Sometime after, she began a career in sports radio, as an on-air host for KCSP 610 in Kansas City.

In this episode of the Jack Vita Show, Danni discusses her time on both of her Survivor seasons, providing a peak behind the curtain to her strategy. She also talks about her love for sports, her media career, and her Christian faith.

From February 13, 2023 — Our very own Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick returned to reality television in 2022 on USA Network's Snake in the Grass, after 13 years away from competing! Now, she's out of retirement, and back with her first multi-episode show since Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains. Stephenie competed on Peacock's new hit reality show, The Traitors. Stephenie visits the Jack Vita Show for the SEVENTH time; this time to discuss her experience competing in Scotland on The Traitors.

Stephenie first appeared on reality television in the year 2005, when she competed on Survivor's tenth season, Survivor: Palau. After outlasting her entire Ulong tribe, she quickly became a fan favorite, and was immediately invited back to play again on the show's eleventh season, Survivor: Guatemala. Five years later, she returned for Survivor's 20th season, Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains. Stephenie's husband Kyle Kendrick enjoyed a ten-year Major League Baseball career and pitched for the 2008 World Series champion Philadelphia Phillies.

Stephenie did extremely well on The Traitors, reaching the show's penultimate episode. She was 'murdered' by the traitors, as the traitors feared she was onto them. Stephenie was the final contestant murdered, just as she was the final remaining member of the Ulong tribe on Survivor: Palau.

Stephenie discusses her return to reality television after over a decade away from competing. How did she come to the decision to return to competition shows? Stephenie tells the story of how she came out of retirement, and discusses what it was like playing a new competition show that had never aired in the United States before. Is there anything she could have done differently in order to obtain a victory? We take a deep dive into Stephenie's time on The Traitors, and hear all about the show from her perspective.

You can follow Stephenie on Instagram @steph_lagrossa_kendrick.

From January 11, 2023 — Big Brother legend Rachel Reilly Villegas joins Survivor legend Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick and average podcaster Jack Vita for a fun conversation on the Jack Vita Show, discussing their time on USA's Snake in the Grass, and previewing their latest adventure: The Traitors, airing on Peacock beginning January 12, 2023.

Rachel won Big Brother 13 in the year 2011. She has also won Fear Factor and Snake in the Grass, and competed on The Amazing Race three times, placing third on two separate seasons.

Stephenie became the last remaining member of her Ulong tribe on Survivor's 10th season, Survivor: Palau. She quickly became one of the biggest fan favorites in the show's history, and was brought back to compete on the very next season, Survivor: Guatemala, where she placed second. She later appeared on Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains and Snake in the Grass.

Hear about how Stephenie and Rachel became friends after competing against each other on Snake in the Grass. Will they team up and work together this time? Rachel has a strong track record of winning on reality competition shows. Stephenie doesn't. Will Rachel win her fourth different show? Can Stephenie finally pick up the W this time around? Tune in for a very fun conversation with a pair of reality television icons!

From February 6, 2023 — Survivor legend and longtime Philadelphia sports fan Gervase Peterson visits the Jack Vita Show to preview Super Bowl LVII, talk Philly sports, and reflect on his time on reality television.

Back in 2000, Gervase competed on the first season of Survivor, Survivor: Borneo. It was a national phenomenon. 53 million people tuned in to the show's season finale, where Richard Hatch was awarded the million dollar prize. The show was such a huge success. It laid the groundwork for the franchise to create 42 more seasons, and counting, as Survivor has been on the air for over 22.5 years. Cast members from the first season became household names overnight, rubbing elbows with A-list celebrities at red carpet events. Gervase discusses his time on Survivor and what the ride was like after the show aired. What drew him to Survivor, what was his strategy, and why didn't the Pagong tribe come out on top of Tagi? Gervase shares how he formed an alliance on Pagong, but was unable to get his tribe to vote together after the merge. Gervase also tells the story of how Pagong tried to vote out Jeff Probst at their very first tribal council!

Later, Gervase discusses his Philadelphia sports fandom. The Phillies are coming off their first World Series appearance since 2009, and the Eagles will be playing against the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII on Sunday. It's the first time that both the Eagles and Phillies have played for a championship in the same year since 1980; and only the second time in Philadelphia history. Gervase previews the Super Bowl and talks some NFL. He shares his thoughts on the 2022 Eagles, led by Jalen Hurts and his prediction for the big game. Gervase talks Phillies, 76ers and Flyers, while he's at it.

13 years after competing on Survivor: Borneo, Gervase returned to Survivor, competing on the show's 27th season, Survivor: Blood vs. Water. Gervase finished third on Blood vs. Water, surviving all 39 days, but coming up short of the million dollar prize. Gervase talks about what it was like coming out of retirement and returning to reality television. It's an episode you won't want to miss!

From January 3, 2023 — Former pitcher for the Oakland Athletics, New York Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays and current MLB free agent Ryan Dull visits the Jack Vita Show to discuss his life in baseball, his Christian faith, and his love for the long-running reality television show Survivor.

Ryan pitched for the A's from 2015 to 2019. He set a Major League Baseball record for stranding the most consecutive inherited runners. His jersey is in Cooperstown at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. In 2016, Ryan did not allow a single one of the 36 straight runners he inherited to score. Ryan discusses his time with the A's, and what it was like playing with Barry Zito and Stephen Vogt, and others. Ryan also shares about his Christian faith and what role religion plays in an MLB clubhouse. He talks about having fellowship and community with other Christians on his team.

Ryan pitched for the High Point Rockers of the Atlantic League in 2022. Ryan shares about his time in independent league as he tries to get back to the show.

Ryan's wife, Brittany Baldi Dull, was a contestant on multiple MTV reality competition shows, including The Challenge: Battle of the Exes II and Are You the One? Brittany currently hosts a popular sports lifestyle podcast, called The BosBabes, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and wherever podcasts are found.

Ryan is also a huge fan of Survivor. He has watched every season since he began watching during the show's second season, Survivor: The Australian Outback. Ryan and Jack talk Survivor. What are some of Ryan's favorite seasons, and who are some of his favorite characters? All this, and much more in a very fun conversation!

From November 23, 2022 — Dr. Sean Kenniff is a neurologist and was a castaway on the first season of Survivor, Survivor: Borneo, on which he finished in fifth place.

On the latest episode of the Jack Vita Show, Sean joins Jack to discuss his time on reality television and share what he has been up to in the 22 years since he appeared on Survivor's first season.

The first season of Survivor, which aired in the summer of 2000, was a national phenomenon. 53 million people tuned in to the show's season finale, where Richard Hatch was awarded the million dollar prize. The show was such a huge success, it laid the groundwork for the franchise to create 42 more seasons, and counting, as Survivor has been on the air for over 22.5 years. Cast members from the first season became household names overnight, rubbing elbows with A-list celebrities at red carpet events. Sean shares about his experiences after the show, and how Survivor launched him to a career as a medical reporter at CBS. He also discusses what led him to applying for Survivor, what he hoped to get out of the experience, and how the cameras shaped his on-camera persona and strategy.

Sean dishes on his alphabet voting strategy. Why did he vote alphabetically? Sean explains the genius of the alphabet strategy. Sean also spills secrets about the first season of Survivor. Did production play a factor in the exit of Stacey Stillman? Sean shares his take and his experiences, pertaining to the Stacey Stillman lawsuit. Why didn't anybody outside of the 'Tagi 4' form an alliance? Has Sean been asked to return to Survivor?

Along the way, Sean and Jack talk life, and Sean shares how he became a Christian and why his relationship with Jesus is important to his life.

Sean recently created a new product, 'The Jerk at Work' doll. Sean shares about the creation and invention of his new product that he is rolling out this holiday season. Get your own in time for the holidays: https://thejerkatwork.com

From September 14, 2022 — Three-time Survivor star and wife to World Series champion Kyle Kendrick, Stephenie LaGrossa Kendrick, recently came out of retirement to compete on a new reality competition show called Snake in the Grass on USA Network.

It was her first appearance on reality television in over 12 years.

Stephenie was thrust into the jungle of Costa Rica with fellow Survivor legend Cirie Fields and Big Brother icons Rachel Reilly Villegas and Janelle Pierzina DeSanto. The four women competed in a series of challenges and survived a night in the jungle, while one of the four attempted to sabotage missions as 'the snake.' The other three needed to identify the snake in order to win their share of $100K. If the snake went unidentified, the snake would win $100K.

Two weeks after the airing of the episode featuring the four reality titans, Stephenie visited the Jack Vita Show for an in-depth recap of her experience on her new reality TV venture. She shares everything that was running through her mind during the 36 hours of competition and discusses what it feels like to be back on reality television after all these years. She compares Snake to Survivor and shares what it was like competing on a different show, now as a mother of three! Steph is back, tell a friend!

This conversation includes spoilers for the fifth episode of Snake in the Grass titled 'Survivor vs. Big Brother'. If you have not seen the episode and would not like to be spoiled yet, do not listen to this conversation. Come back later, once you have!

Follow Stephenie on Instagram (@steph_lagrossa_kendrick) and on Twitter (@stephlagrossa38) for more from the Survivor great!

From September 9, 2022 — High Point Rockers emcee and former MTV Challenger (The Challenge: Battle of the Exes II) Brittany Baldi visits the Jack Vita Show to reflect on her time on reality television and discuss a wide variety of topics including how the media and reality television have changed, life as a baseball WAG, how potential rule changes coming to Major League Baseball have functioned while being tested in independent league baseball, and much more!

Brittany made her reality television debut on MTV's Are You the One? in 2014, then appeared on the 26th season of MTV's The Challenge, The Challenge: Battle of the Exes II. Her soon-to-be husband Ryan Dull is a professional baseball player who currently pitches for the High Point Rockers of the Atlantic League, where Brittany currently works as the team's emcee and host. Ryan has pitched five years in MLB with the Oakland Athletics, New York Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays. In addition to serving as the High Point Rockers emcee, Brittany hosts 'The BosBabes' podcast, a lifestyle sports podcast where she interviews a large collection of fascinating guests from the world of sports and entertainment.

Brittany talks about life as a baseball WAG and tells the story of how she and Ryan met. She and Jack exchange thoughts on how the media landscape is changing and how doors are opening up for independent content creators. They discuss the benefits of creating independent content and share stories from their own experiences in content creation. Then they discuss Brittany's time on The Challenge and how they have seen reality television change over the last decade. Later, they dive deep into independent league baseball, discussing what makes the Atlantic League experience special, while taking note of what rule changes could be coming to Major League Baseball from the Atlantic League.

The Atlantic League is not affiliated with MLB, but the two leagues have a partnership in which MLB has been able to test potential rule changes in the Atlantic League. The Atlantic League has been at the forefront of change in the sport. MLB announced Friday, September 9, that it will be adding a pitch clock, putting restrictions on defensive shifts, and increasing the size of its bases from 15-inch bases to 18". All three of these modifications have been tested in the Atlantic League since 2019. The Atlantic League also tested the extra inning tie-breaker that MLB has used since 2020. It's currently testing a rule that would allow baserunners to "steal first", allowing a batter to take off to first base in the middle of an at bat on any passed ball. Find out from Brittany how some of these rules have functioned in the Atlantic League and what could be coming to MLB in the future.

You can follow Brittany on Instagram (@brittanybaldi) and Twitter (@brittany_baldi). Subscribe to her podcast, 'The BosBabes' on Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Spotify, and wherever podcasts are found.

From July 2, 2022 — Minor league baseball wife, former The Real World: Portland cast member, and four-time Challenger (on MTV's The Challenge) Jessica McCain France (@TheMTVJess on Instagram) visits the Jack Vita Show for a very in-depth conversation covering a wide variety of topics.

Jessica's husband, J.P. France, is a AAA pitcher in the Houston Astros' farm system. J.P. was named the Sugar Land Space Cowboys' player of the month for the month of June. Jessica tells the story of how she and J.P. met, and shares about their journey together through the minor league system. She gives a peak behind the curtain of the life of a minor league baseball player and his family and answers the question, "Is Bull Durham an accurate depiction of minor league life?"

At the age of 21, Jessica appeared on The Real World: Portland (2013), spring boarding her to compete on four seasons of The Challenge (The Challenge: Rivals II, The Challenge: Free Agents, The Challenge: Battle of the Exes II and The Challenge: Rivals III). Jessica reflects on her experience on The Real World and The Challenge, telling her casting story of how she wound up on reality television. She also answers a number of questions about what viewers don't see when they tune into both shows.

Since competing on her final season, The Challenge: Rivals III, Jessica has met her husband, gotten married, moved several times, and is now pregnant with her first child. Jessica catches us up on her life and tells the story of her miraculous pregnancy, and how God recently showed up in her time of need. Jessica is a strong Christian, and in this episode of the Jack Vita Show, she boldly shares her faith story and what God is continuously teaching her. She and J.P. had been through a lot over the last two years, but they never lost faith. Throughout their hardships, they've been able to see God's faithfulness and grace, and remain thankful for His sovereignty. It's an episode of the Jack Vita Show that you will NOT want to miss!

The life of a minor league baseball wife (0:00 - 19:55)

The Real World: Portland and The Challenge (19:55 - 1:11:35)

Jessica's pregnancy, testimony and Christian faith (1:11:35 - END)