CAROL ALT LAUNCHES NEW PRODUCT ON HOME SHOPPING NETWORK

Carol’s new skin care product Line is called Raw Essentials. Her skin care line ingredients include things you don’t recognize. Don’t worry, all ingredients are from nature and nothing is cooked or heated, just like the food Carol eats. Carol believes raw is the future.

She’ll have 11 products out by the end of January which will be selling on Home Shopping Network, and at Organic Avenue.

Relevant Home Shopping Network links where you can learn more about the products:

» The road to raw
» Beauty’s newest essential from Carol Alt

The Authors On Air interview on 8/26

Carol Alt was on AuthorsOnAir.com on August 26, talking with bestselling author Michael Tonello (”Bringing Home the Birkin”).

RAW ESSENTIALS – CAROL ALT’S NEW SKINCARE LINE BECOMES AVAILABLE ON HSN DECEMBER 12TH!

Knowing what we all do about Carol Alt’s devotion to the benefits of raw foods, is it any surprise that she has found a way to care for her outer self in the same manner? After many false starts and near hits over several years, Carol is launching a line of skincare products called RAW ESSENTIALS, made entirely from – you guessed it! – 100% raw active, natural and completely synthetic-free ingredients. That means no parabens, P.E.G.s, or lauryl sulfates. In fact, RAW ESSENTIALS is the only product line sold in the United States that is certified raw. Carol explains:

“I had been eating raw and was feeling so amazing, with such incredible results, that I realized I wanted to continue that thread throughout my life. I knew that I could feel better and better if I could cut more “bad” things out of my life. I had already “chemical-proofed” my immediate surroundings, with water filters, air filters, ozone machines, etc., for my home and office. Then I thought, ‘What about the things I put on my body?”

“The pharmaceutical companies and skincare companies try to tell us that skin acts as a barrier that will keep all the bad things from entering our systems, but that simply isn’t the truth. Skin does allow certain things to pass through it and into the blood stream. When I was battling cancer, the last thing I wanted was anything chemical or unhealthy passing through my skin, especially since I was being so careful about what I ate, and drank, and breathed. So, I became a label sleuth, reading the ingredients of every product I bought or already had on my shelves. From there, I began studying skincare and the various processes that were involved in making these products.

“I found some very troubling things. For example, the F.D.A. does not regulate skincare. That alone scared me, since it meant that manufacturers could legally put just about anything at all into my lipstick, or my mascara, or my hand lotion and who or what was there in place to protect me?

“So, I began making my own products at home, using nothing but raw ingredients. I tried out all types of herbs and liquids, in various combinations, until I hit on something that worked. Well, my skin started looking better than it had in years, which of course, was a great by-product of my quest for better health.”

Carol began sharing her discovery with her friends and family. One of her sisters had suffered for years from rosacea, but once she changed over to Carol’s homemade moisturizer, the rosacea became a thing of the past.

There was another consideration driving Carol’s quest for her own line of raw products:

“At the time I published my first book on eating raw, I realized I had a dilemma. Many people were looking to me as an expert on pure and clean, whether it was food, or skincare, or any other health-related entity. It became clear that I could not put my name on just any skincare line unless it was in keeping with my personal philosophy and principles. It was that philosophy that led me to create this line of skincare products, since nobody else could live up to the ideals I had set for my own skin. If I wasn’t using something myself, how could I possibly recommend that other people use it?!

“Sticking to my principles has, unfortunately, cost me a great deal of money over the years. In one instance, I had to fight to be released from a long-term contract as the spokeswoman for a cosmetics line after less than half of the term had elapsed. What a financial hit that was! But my values had changed dramatically and I have to live with myself. Since that time, I have turned down literally millions of dollars from advertisers of various skincare lines, because I cannot, in good conscience, promote those particular products.

“Since the raw movement is relatively new, it was virtually impossible to find a cosmetics company with a truly pure line that I, myself, would feel safe using. My guidelines and demands on this subject are so stringent, and I am not willing to compromise on them, that it made it very difficult for any company to be able to afford to work with me. You have to understand that it is very expensive to use raw ingredients in anything. When I say ‘raw’, I mean as found in nature – unadulterated, unheated ingredients. That is basically why I had to create my own products, which has taken me quite a while to accomplish. What I kept running into when trying to work with manufacturers was that, unfortunately, people tend to, shall we say, fib – telling you (meaning me!) what they think you want to hear. Time after time, I would discover that a so-called raw process or ingredient actually had been cooked, thus defeating completely the raw mandate.

“For example, one company had come up with a banana fragrance and a mango fragrance for my tropical line. Those two fruits do not produce a useable scent for this type of thing. Banana fragrance (mango, too) can only be produced by combining two other ingredients found in nature and fusing them together by cooking them, thus chemically altering them. The resulting banana-like fragrance may be a natural “aroma”, but it is not a raw, natural “ingredient”. That was totally unacceptable.

“By relying on these people who were assuring me that they were doing everything in a raw and natural manner, when they weren’t, it was delaying my ability to launch this line that I so firmly believed in. On more than one occasion, with more than one manufacturer, we had gotten all the way to the end of the process and were about to launch my line, when someone would say something offhandedly and I’d say, ‘What?!’ and discover that one item or another had been adulterated, either by heating it or chemically altering it from its natural state. Well, that, of course, put a screeching halt to that particular venture and it was on to the next manufacturer!

“One of the last guys I tried this with finally showed me that he simply didn’t get it. We happened to be in his office one day and I asked him to add a certain raw ingredient to one of the products. (The entire product line, by the way, was nearly complete at this point!) He said “I’ll be right back”. When he returned a few minutes later, he proudly handed me a beaker with the new formula in it (containing that ingredient) to inspect. ‘Wait! This stuff is hot!’, I said. ‘It’s not that hot’, he told me. ‘How hot is it?’, I asked. ‘Only about 97 degrees’, he replied. What he failed to mention was that he was talking about Celsius degrees, not Fahrenheit. That’s about 135 degrees Fahrenheit! ‘Are you kidding me?!’, I asked. ‘You’ve now denatured the vitamins and minerals and enzymes!’ In the raw food world, that is not raw, natural or unadulterated. I suddenly realized that this man had no idea that heating (cooking!) any ingredient was so wrong in terms of raw. I also knew that if he did it right in front of me, so to speak, he had probably been heating other ingredients along the way.” Needless to say, Carol ended that partnership.

Carol points out that there is ample scientific evidence identifying a number of ingredients in traditional cosmetics as culprits in certain common cancers, particularly breast cancer. She has no intention of permitting such ingredients to impact her life and health, and the fact that RAW ESSENTIALS can assist others in avoiding the consequences of those nasty chemicals (such as parabens) that are found in other cosmetics, has been paramount in giving her a great sense of satisfaction.

“You know…I simply cannot imagine that putting something synthetic on your skin can possibly improve it. All you have to do is look around. No matter how much expensive goop people put on their faces, are they looking younger? No! Not at all. If all of the synthetic products really worked, would we need botox and plastic surgery to the degree they’re now being used? Think about it…!”

“RAW ESSENTIALS will be sold exclusively on HSN (Home Shopping Network), beginning December 12th and 13th with a “soft launch”. At that time, there will be 4 products available containing raw active ingredients that go beyond “natural and organic”: A day moisturizer; an eye cream; a body wash and a face wash. Then, toward the end of January, we will present a “hard launch” and offer additional products, including a night cream; a bath salt; a toner; a facial scrub and two masques (one detoxifying, one nourishing).

“This is one of the most exciting projects I’ve ever been involved with”, Carol concludes. “There are so many benefits to be had from changing your lifestyle, even if it’s only little by little. As I’ve said before, if I can just touch one person’s life and change it for the better, it’ll be worth it.”

IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO VOTE! DEADLINE IS 12/11/08

We have chosen 4 terrific finalists in our search for the new cover model for the jacket of my new novel and we need your help!

Please go to http://www.harpercollins.com/Imprints/Avon/CommunityFeatures.aspx and vote for the young lady you feel has what it takes to become our next cover girl.

I want to thank everyone who was kind enough to send me suggestions for the title of this upcoming sequel to “This Year’s Model”. We have settled on “Model Incorporated”. It’s very apropos.

I love having your help and participation in this project. It’s a great way for us to be both proactive and interactive!

- Carol

HELP CAROL NAME HER NEXT NOVEL

“This Year’s Model“, Carol Alt’s first novel, has garnered much praise since its publication this summer. In fact, one of the nation’s largest retail chains has chosen it as one of their 2009 important books-of-the-year, which is quite an honor. (We’ll let you know which store once the book hits their shelves. They don’t want us to spoil the surprise!)

“I try to invest any project with which I’m associated with a certain amount of social responsibility. In the case of “This Year’s Model”, my goal was to give young girls (and their families) a more realistic picture of what really goes on behind the scenes in a model’s life.

“It seems as if the image that’s being promoted by certain TV shows nowadays is that fashion models are constantly at each other’s throats. Some new girls who are just starting out may end up sharing apartments or hotel rooms, to save money. But seriously, can you imagine if a half dozen girls were thrown together and spent their entire day fighting with their roommates, or thinking and talking about nothing but sabotaging each other’s careers?! That may make for entertaining television, but it surely isn’t real life.

“In reality, if a modeling agency represents several girls who have arrived from out of town and have no place to stay, the agency will arrange for them to share a place. Knowing full well that these girls are in close proximity, the agency certainly isn’t going to send two or three of them to the same “go-see” (audition, in modeling jargon) at or near the same time. That really would be a recipe for disaster. Most of the time, the girls have no idea what the others are going up for. But if you believe what you see on TV, they’re all watching each others’ moves, just waiting to pounce and thriving on jealous rages. It’s ridiculous!

“Now, what probably will surprise most people is how things work for girls who have been scouted by an agency. Let’s say a potential model is discovered in Russia, for example. The agency will front the money to fly her to New York, put her up in a hotel, and also give her an advance so she can get set up – phone, food, clothes, etc. Well, guess what: The agency isn’t doing that out of the goodness of its heart. Not only will they expect to be repaid for the “loan” (which is what it is), but they’ll find very clever ways to add fees on top of the actual costs. If and when the Russian girl books her first jobs, the agency will pay itself back out of her earnings. It can amount to several thousand dollars, especially in the beginning of a career. That can come as quite a shock sometimes. What is an even bigger shock is if a girl does not book any jobs, she will still owe that money to the agency…!

“Then there are the photos for the model’s portfolio. Let’s just say, I find them useless. A professional modeling agent can size up a girl’s potential in the blink of an eye. That’s what he or she is trained to do,” says Carol. But, let’s say he sees a girl who he thinks is on the cusp – not quite perfect, but a ‘possibility’. The agent will set up a shoot to get some photos for the girl’s portfolio. He will send her to a studio with a photographer, hair and makeup. The session may cost $2-3000 but in reality, the photographer might only be charging a couple of hundred dollars and let’s say the makeup artist and hair stylist total up to another couple of hundred—but the girl is paying $2-3000! Where does the rest of the money go? Kickbacks!!! If the agency hired them on your behalf, they will get half of this upfront money for their “trouble” – and in the end, they may not even take this girl!! That kind of thing has always existed in the modeling industry. And yes, it’s underhanded and sneaky. Of course, as in any industry, there are the ethical professionals and these other types.

“Now, this naive girl thinks she has a professional portfolio – one everybody will respect – so she starts shopping herself around (armed with those very expensive photos) to other agencies. Another agency may decide to give her a try, but they will want to use their own photographer who shoots all of their girls. So now this poor kid has to decide whether or not to take the risk and spend another couple of thousand dollars just to please this new agency!

“This brings up another point I’d like to make: Modeling success or failure does not rest on a woman’s beauty. There are so many other factors that go into creating a successful model – height, bone structure, a certain look, an attitude – and all are necessary commodities, yes. But there are loads of absolutely beautiful women who never made it as models, while lots of offbeat looks have soared to the top of the heap. That’s why a modeling agent with a good eye for talent can look past perceived faults and find the gem that lies beneath – again, even without photos.”

But we digress. Or…do we?

“In my book”, Carol continues, “Melody Ann Croft (the heroine) works in Manhattan, but commutes to her home in the suburbs every night. She works, she goes home. This is closer to a normal scenario for a working model.

“I tried to show a more realistic picture of what really goes on, so that young girls and their families can understand what they’re up against. I really feel that any girl who thinks that she may want to model (and her parents, too) should read this book and not rely on the modeling shows on TV for their information.”

Carol is already well on her way to completing the second book in what is intended to be a trilogy, featuring the main character she created as the “star” of “This Year’s Model”, Melody Ann Croft.

“I need a title for this next novel. If anyone out there has a good idea, by all means I’d love to see it. You can send it to me via the comment box below this article. Obviously”, Carol laughs, “I can’t give you much help in terms of inspiration, since I don’t want to give any plot points away, so use your imaginations.”

ALSO…..

Another exciting event is taking place right now in conjunction with the publishing of this book. Carol says, “We are searching for the model who will appear on the cover jacket of my new book – even someone who might not have the opportunity to come to New York or L.A. can try out. Backed by Lord & Taylor and Avon Books, a search is being initiated in an effort to help out a novice model. It’s all being done via the internet.

“Send in your photos (make sure your face is clearly seen and that they are not too ‘model-y’. We need a clear shot of the face!) It doesn’t matter where you live. We expect to have our cover girl by mid-November.”

GO TO WWW.HARPERCOLLINS.COM, ‘SEARCH’ DETAILS ARE THERE…..

Carol Alt Seeks America’s Next “Cover Girl”

NEXT YEAR’S MODEL SEARCH SWEEPSTAKES

Supermodel Pairs with Publisher and Lord & Taylor

To Seek Fresh New Face to Launch Cover of 2009 Novel

NEW YORK, NY; August 4, 2008 — Avon A/an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers is launching a interactive online contest, along with supermodel Carol Alt (author of This Year’s Model) and Lord & Taylor, to help discover the fresh new face who will grace the cover of Alt’s 2009 novel in the NEXT YEAR’S MODEL Search Online Sweepstakes.   The contest will launch on August 26, 2008, the date This Year’s Model goes on-sale.  From August 26 to November 20, potential cover girls from 16 to 25 years of age can submit photos to the contest feature page at www.harpercollins.com/nextyearsmodel.  (Meanwhile, a distinguished panel of judges will select finalists, with new finalist pictures posting weekly at http://www.flickr.com/groups/nextyearsmodel/.)  On November 21, the judges, led by Alt, will announce the 4 top Next Year’s Model entrants, launching all participants into an exciting fan-based voting contest at www.harpercollins.com/nextyearsmodel.  On December 11, 2008, NEXT YEAR’S MODEL will be announced, and arrangements will be made for the winner and a guest to be flown to New York City.  The grand prize winner will be awarded a professional photo shoot, a meet-and-greet with a top modeling agency, and a wardrobe prize from Lord & Taylor!  Avon A intends to feature the winner on the cover of Alt’s upcoming book, Next Year’s Model, in stores in 2009.

Alt, a savvy and innovative marketer whose creative skills were recently featured when she became a top-2 runner up on Celebrity Apprentice, concepted this contest as a way to help a young woman break into the competitive world of professional modeling.  In her debut novel, This Year’s Model (in-stores August 26), Alt  introduces readers to the high-stakes world of modeling – and gives valuable life lessons to all young women looking to break into the field.

“(Modeling) is one of the only businesses where a woman makes more money than a man,” says Alt, “and in which a young girl can achieve financial stability, meet great people, and travel the world – all while becoming famous and securing her future.”  Widely regarded as one of the world’s most recognizable faces after launching the supermodel industry, Alt believes that modeling can be a healthy and empowering career for a young woman — and wanted to offer a hand in helping a new talent into the industry with the NEXT YEAR’S MODEL online search.

Contest Description:

August 26 – November 20, 2008: Contestants, aged 16-25, can enter the contest at www.harpercollins.com/nextyearsmodel and send a photo for consideration.  New finalists will be posted daily at Avon’s contest feature page at http://www.flickr.com/groups/nextyearsmodel/. (Please note: entrants can also send a photograph of themselvesf together with a 5X8 index card with their name, address, telephone number and date of birth to Next Year’s Model Contest, c/o Avon Books/HarperCollins Publishers, 10 East 53^rd Street, NY, NY  10022.  Photographs must depict the entrant only, and photographs including other people will be disqualified.) About the photo submissions, Alt recommends contestants “do not waste money and valuable time, on a portfolio,” when selecting photos to showcase their looks on the NEXT YEAR’S MODEL contest website.  Alt continues, “My agents took one look at me, at my face, and made the decision right there that I had ‘it.’”  She recommends unposed, natural snapshots, pictures from family vacations and other settings where a young woman’s natural beauty and spirit shine through.

November 21: Carol Alt, with a panel of distinguished judges, will review all photo submissions, and select the Top 4 NEXT YEAR’S MODEL contest entrants, which will be posted online at www.harpercollins.com/nextyearsmodel!

November 21 – December 10, 2008: www.harpercollins.com/nextyearsmodel will host an interactive voting platform, where fans, friends and anyone interested in the glamorous world of modeling can enter into an interactive voting platform, selecting their favorite photos of contest contestants.  Poll results will be viewable!

December 10, 2008: Voting closes. A grand prize winner is determined by popular vote (in case of a tie-breaker, Carol Alt and the panel of judges will select a grand prize winner).

December 11, 2008: Grand prize winner announcement on www.harpercollins.com/nextyearsmodel!

Prize Package:

Avon A/an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers will fly the NEXT YEAR’S MODEL grand prize contest winner and a guest or chaperone to New York City, where they will receive two nights hotel stay in a four-star establishment.  The grand prize winner will also receive a professional photo shoot; HarperCollins will consider the image for the cover of Carol Alt’s next book.  The prize also includes a Lord & Taylor wardrobe gift valued at $500.  (Total prize package valued at $6000.)

25 Runners-up will receive a signed copy of Carol Alt’s This Year’s Model.  (Runner-up prize valued at $13.95.)

Panel of Judges:

Carol Alt - Carol Alt’s face has appeared on the cover of more than seven hundred magazines. Her calendars, posters, and exercise videos have all sold millions of copies.

LaVelle Olexa, Lord & Taylor – LaVelle Olexa is Lord & Taylor’s Senior Vice President of Public. As such, she is responsible for Publicity, Special Events, and the creative direction for the flagship’s Fifth Avenue windows. A consummate professional, LaVelle started her career modeling and has held a variety of positions in the fashion industry, including the marketing and fashion direction of Lord & Taylor.

Mumtaz Mustafa, Art Director, Avon A/an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers – Mumtaz started at HarperCollins as an assistant designer 6 years ago and is now the art director for Avon and Rayo.

About Carol Alt:

Carol Alt’s face has appeared on the cover of more than 700 magazines. Her calendars, posters, and exercise videos have all sold millions of copies. She was a recent contestant on The Celebrity Apprentice, is the bestselling author of Eating in the Raw and The Raw 50, is a frequent guest on talk shows, and has acted on stage, television, and in more than 65 movies. This Year’s Model is her first novel.

About This Year’s Model (on-sale 8/26/08):

Supermodel Carol Alt takes on the world of up and coming models in This Year’s Model, her biting, witty, and insightful debut novel.  Melody Ann Croft had a lot of plans for her life. Being a model was not one of them. Discovered while working in restaurant, whisked off to New York, and christened “Mac,” she soon learns that plans have a way of…changing. Stepping into her new life is easier than Mac expected. But once you’re on top of the world, all it takes is one wrong step to bring it all tumbling down. In the cutthroat world of fashion, it all comes down to who you can trust. And it won’t be long before Max learns that hanging on to her self will be the toughest battle she’s ever fought.

More information about the NEXT YEARS MODEL contest available at: www.harpercollins.com/nextyearsmodel.

About HarperCollins Publishers

HarperCollins, one of the largest English-language publishers in the world, is a subsidiary of News Corporation (NYSE: NWS, NWS.A; ASX: NWS, NWSLV). Headquartered in New York, HarperCollins has publishing groups around the world including the HarperCollins General Books Group, HarperCollins Children’s Books Group, Zondervan, HarperCollins UK, HarperCollins Canada, HarperCollins Australia/New Zealand and HarperCollins India. HarperCollins is a broad-based publisher with strengths in literary and commercial fiction, business books, children’s books, cookbooks, mystery, romance, reference, religious and spiritual books. With nearly 200 years of history HarperCollins has published some of the world’s foremost authors and has won numerous awards including the Nobel Prize, the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award, the Newbery Medal and the Caldecott. Consistently at the forefront of innovation and technological advancement HarperCollins is the first publisher to digitize its content and create a global digital warehouse to protect the rights of its authors, meet consumer demand and generate additional business opportunities. You can visit HarperCollins Publishers on the Internet at http://www.harpercollins.com.

CAROL’S FIRST NOVEL, “THIS YEAR’S MODEL”, HITS THE SHELVES IN AUGUST, 2008

Carol Alt, already a successful author (”Eating In The Raw”, “The Raw 50″), has now turned her considerable writing skills to fiction.  Her debut novel, “This Year’s Model” (Avon A, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, ISBN 97800611366246), goes on sale August 26, 2008.

Loosely based upon Carol’s own brilliant and unparalleled career in the world of high fashion modeling, “This Year’s Model” follows the exploits, both professional and personal, of a beautiful young woman as she enters and conquers the intriguing world of agencies, photographers, runways and romance.

This novel is a “must read” for anyone interested in pursuing a career in the fashion industry, as well as for their families, or for anyone who’s just plain curious about this very glamorous – and to most people, mysterious – life.

Attached you’ll find the press release from publisher, Avon A, which offers more information on this fascinating novel, as well as some tips from Carol on how to safely navigate a budding career as a model.

Here’s what the L.A. Times had to say:

http://www.latimes.com/features/lifestyle/la-ig-books.0810-pg,0,1413205.photogallery?index=2

“This Year’s Model” can be ordered now at Amazon.com:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=this+year%27s+model%2C+carol+alt&x=0&y=0

Or at Barnes & Noble:

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/This-Years-Model/Carol-Alt/e/9780061366246

THE PLAYBOY SPREAD GETS THE CONVERSATION GOING

Hundreds of readers have responded to the news about Carol Alt doing a nude layout in Playboy by applauding her willingness to do something so adventurous “at this age”and in particular, her underlying reasons for even considering it in the first place:  To get the message across that healthy living and eating “raw” can help anyone and everyone.

Of course, as with any slightly new or controversial idea, a tiny handful of writers simply didn’t get it and in fact strongly opposed it, which elicited a few very interesting thoughts and comments from Carol.

“I’ve never been comfortable with my body,” Carol says.  “When I had to pose for Sports Illustrated in a bathing suit at the age of 20, it was some of the most difficult work I ever did.  I was always a heavy kid; my sister is a plus-size model; and it’s not like I come from a long line of stick figures!  I continuously battled with my weight!  I always felt uncomfortable with my body – was very shy and really, rather conservative.

“Just to be thinking of doing something that is this radical, in a sense, but in such celebration of the female form, is really because I believe that this is the best way to reach people and get conversation going.  I need to put my fears and nervousness aside, and get this message out there.  This certainly wasn’t the last alternative, nor was it the first alternative.  It is just “an” alternative way to get people talking.”

Carol reiterated that she believes that Playboy is without question the finest, most artistic magazine she could have chosen for her leap of faith.  “The celebrity photos are not at all like the centerfold layouts, but no matter what, all of the photos I see in Playboy are beautiful and very tastefully shot.

“In reality, at my age, to know that I have come to such a point, where I am comfortable enough with my own body after 12 years of eating raw – that I actually feel better about my body at 47 than I did at 20 – is an amazing miracle in itself.  I want to enlighten other people to the fact that as they age, they don’t have to start feeling worse about themselves – getting tired, getting moody, getting fat and becoming ill.  There is an alternative, but the only way for people to find it is to educate themselves.  One way to get them to do that is to start them talking about it.  The only way I know of to encourage that kind of discussion is to do something a little…controversial.  And yes – this is somewhat controversial.

“I’ve done a lot of soul-searching about this and have spoken extensively with Playboy about it.  They have been amazing to work with and are embracing this message that I want to get across, which is eat healthy, look healthy and be healthy.  It doesn’t matter what age you are.  You can look sexy and feel great, and that doesn’t have to be a gift only for the young.  It can be a gift for any age, even the old (whatever that is nowadays).”

Carol is well aware that whenever she talks to people about the raw life, they tend to become nervous and even a little defensive, because they worry that it will be too difficult, or that they won’t be able to give it 100% – any excuse at all for not even trying it.  They defend their own way of eating, despite the fact that for most, that’s becoming an obsolete way of doing things.  “It’s very hard to get people to embrace something ‘new’ or ‘different’, Carol reminds us.  “But in this case, raw is not ‘new’ or ‘different’ at all.  It’s the way food has been handled since the beginning of time.  It’s only for the last couple of generations that we are processing foods and genetically altering them.  Look at almonds, as just one example:  We now pasteurize them, but still call them ‘raw’!  Once you cook, or pasteurize, or homogenize anything, it’s no longer raw.  So, we are now getting nothing like our grandparents got and nearly nothing like our parents got – our food is being genetically modified and chemically altered, one way or another.

“When I approach people about this concept, it freaks them out and they often just shut down.  So I thought, let’s try a less aggressive approach and the Playboy shoot seemed ideal.  Yes, it’s controversial, but if that’s what it takes, I’m OK with that.  If someone thinks that I have anything but altruistic reasons for doing this, they’d better think again.  Seriously.”

NATIONAL LAMPOON’S HOMO ERECTUS” fka “THE CAVEMAN COMEDY”

“I’m a tall woman”, Carol says, “But I always managed to avoid playing Amazons throughout my career…that is, until the script for the independent comedy, ‘Homo Erectus’ landed in my lap. This script was so funny, I was laughing out loud as I read it. That’s what finally won me over!”

The movie, written and directed by it’s prolific star, Adam Rifkin, is, as Carol puts it, an “A” movie takeoff of a “B” caveman movie (was there ever any other kind?). It co-stars Ali Larter (”Heroes”), David Carradine, Talia Shire and Gary Busey. If that eclectic combination of talent doesn’t give you a hint that there’s something funny going on here, Carol’s decision to finally portray an Amazon (the literal, not figurative, kind) based upon the script alone should be enough to send her fans in droves to theaters when it opens across the country. Her cameo role still has her in stitches…although there weren’t many of those in her costume…!

As any good Amazon scholar surely knows, 5′10″ still isn’t tall enough, so Carol had to wear high heels throughout the shoot.

“We shot in a rock quarry, which was scary enough, but they had me running around in these high-heeled boots and I had to keep up with everyone else who was running in sneakers. By the end of the day, I had sore muscles everywhere!” The fact that she was wearing only a fur bikini and those high-heeled fur boots obviously did nothing to lessen the physical exertion – dodging rocks, sweltering in the heat, all the while trying to keep up with Ali Larter, who was running in flats. Still, she had a wonderful time working on this crazy comedy.

“In post-production, I had to go into the studio and record some new lines, because when National Lampoon bought it, they wanted to expand my role. Well, while I was looping my lines, the recording engineer and ADR director were sitting in the booth laughing their heads off. And they were only watching my scenes at the time. I thought then that if these pros were laughing that much, this film was going to be a huge hit.”

“National Lampoon’s Homo Erectus” had its world premiere at Slamdance in 2007. It’s currently scheduled to open in various cities in the summer of 2008. Everyone knows that National Lampoon doesn’t add its name to anything that isn’t funny and, since their branding generally assures the “golden touch”, Carol (and of course, everyone else involved in the project) is anticipating a summer hit!

CELEBRITY APPRENTICE

“Firing me (from ‘Celebrity Apprentice’) was the best thing Donald (Trump) could ever have done for me”, says Carol Alt. “People were so incensed – the one thing everybody says to me is ‘You should have won!’. And of course, no one will ever know if I would have or not (had she gone toe-to-toe with Piers Morgan, the ultimate winner), which keeps the conversation going and that’s always a good thing.”

Carol was shocked by the firing at first, because she had helped raise a lot of money for charity (close to $100,000) and had never lost a task. But, as everyone knows, Donald is a businessman extraordinaire and obviously must have had his reasons, mysterious as they may have been.

Something else that Carol was not completely prepared for was the fierce (and often vicious) competition among the women. She caught on to that quickly, though, and was able to use it to her advantage as the weeks went by. Surprisingly enough, the worst of it did not come from the “usual suspect”. She won’t name names, but it is safe to say that danger is often hidden in velvet-wrapped packages.

There was a list of nearly 200 celebrities who were interested in being a part of this wildly entertaining fund-raising event. Apparently, one who had already been chosen went into a mild state of panic shortly before shooting was supposed to begin and decided to bow out. Carol reports, “Donald and I have known each other for years. He’s always liked me and suggested calling to ask me if I would step in. I was just finishing a film and, since this was only two weeks before ‘Celebrity Apprentice” was set to start, I really didn’t have time to freak out. So I said I’d do it!” Carol saw this as a wonderful opportunity to raise money for TAMFI, the Tony Alt Memorial Fund, in honor of her late brother (www.TAMFI.com).

The shooting schedule was intense, to say the least. The average day lasted 20 or 21 hours, leaving them only 3 or 4 hours to sleep. “We often didn’t even have time to eat and I lost 12 pounds within the first 10 days”, Carol says. “I should write another book: ‘The Celebrity Apprentice Diet’!”

Lack of sleep and food aside, the stress level was horrendous. It was during the boardroom meeting following the first task that Carol says she “got it” – meaning, it became crystal clear to her that the other women had, shall we say, their own agendas and bringing Carol Alt down seemed to be a priority for most of them. There was obviously some kind of game being played and once Carol understood the “rules”, her competitive nature took over. She still doesn’t agree with the tactics that were being employed by the other women, but the old expression, “what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger” seemed to apply and certainly worked in her favor.

Carol’s business acumen was in high gear throughout the often grueling competition. Unfortunately, not everyone had the same savvy way of handling the various tasks, nor did they always agree on the best approach. Take the hot dog task, for example. “Basically, the leader (in this case, Omorossa) didn’t identify our assets. In her mind, we were. . .selling hot dogs. Period. Tiffany Fallon pointed out that we were not just ‘selling hot dogs’. We were seven beautiful women selling hot dogs and a thousand guys on the street that day would have bought anything from us, probably at any price. Well, Omorossa disagreed and insisted that we were just selling hot dogs, based solely upon their own merits, like anyone else would have done. The guys, on the other hand, recognized that they were seven celebrities selling hot dogs and behaved accordingly – they sold one hot dog for $10,000! – while we sold 1,000 hot dogs for $2.50 each. We did not identify our assets properly and that’s just a basic business strategy. So, we failed.”

In fact, Carol says that with each task, at least one common business point was overlooked or ignored by the women. One by one, each of the other female celebs was eliminated in the Boardroom until it was just Carol and the two final guys: Trace Adkins and Piers Morgan. That’s when Donald pulled the shocker and gave Carol the axe, which in retrospect, as she says, is the best thing he could have done for her. So, once again, Carol thanks Donald for yet another good turn.

In case you missed any of Carol’s episodes, or just want to re-visit them, click on the following link.

http://www.nbc.com/The_Celebrity_Apprentice/

« Previous Page — Next Page »