The Mole 1

The Mole 1 (Courtesy Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

The Mole was the first season of a reality show on ABC in the United States. It is based on The Mole franchise of programs. Anderson Cooper, a former correspondent for ABC News (now the host of CNN's Anderson Cooper 360°), hosted the first season (as well as the second season).

The premier season of The Mole debuted in January 2001 on Tuesdays. The Mole was produced by Stone Stanley Entertainment.

Show details

Air dates

January 9, 2001 - February 28, 2001

Locations

Mojave Desert, USA
France
Monaco
Spain

Casting for the first season of The Mole was held in late August 2000. Filming was done over 28 days in September-October 2000. In late December 2000, ABC announced the contestants. The ten players and 176 crew members traveled to 34 cities in four countries, and stayed at 65 hotels.

Unlike other similair reality shows, contestants on The Mole were treated to lavish multi-course meals and fine wines at dinner, while staying most nights at four and five star hotels in exotic locations. Often travel was done in nice cars, or comfortable trains. It contrasted sharply with other reality shows of the time, such as Survivor, saw players in wilderness locations eating meager meals.

GSN acquired the rights to the program in early 2004. Season 1 was shown in its entirety at varying timeslots. However, after low ratings and changes at the network, it was pulled from the network. In March 2005, the entire season 1 was relased on DVD by Eagle Vision USA. In the summer of 2007, Fox Reality acquired the rights to all four Mole seasons, and showed season one the first week of July. It was aired again as a marathons on January 20, 2008.

Contestants

Player	Full name	Age	Hometown	Occupation
Afi	Afi Ekulona	23	Colorado Springs, Colorado	Medical school applicant
Charlie	Charlie McGowan	63	New York	Retired police detective
Henry	Henry Wentz	23	Florida	Bartender
Jennifer	Jennifer Biondi	35	California	Communications manger, "Jock"
Jim	Jim Morrison	29	Newton, New Jersey	Helicopter pilot, lawyer
Kate	Kate Pahls	55	Cincinnati, Ohio	Real estate investor
Kathryn	Kathryn Price	28	Chicago, Illinois	Law school lecturer
Manuel	Manuel Herrera	42	Oxnard, California	Events coordinator
Steven	Steven Cowles	30	Denver, Colorado	Undercover cop
Wendi	Wendi Wendt	29	Iowa	Visual display artist

Though not officially revealed during the show, contestant Jim was revealed to be gay. It became clear, however, during the run of the show after he and Charlie had disagreements, and after other contestant Jennifer outed herself, and referenced Jim's sexuality.

Elimination Chart
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	9
Steven	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	WIN
Kathryn	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	MOLE
Jim	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	OUT
Charlie	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	OUT
Kate	IN	IN	IN	IN	IN	OUT
Jennifer	IN	IN	IN	IN	OUT
Henry	IN	IN	IN	OUT
Wendi	IN	IN	OUT
Afi	IN	OUT
Manuel	OUT

{{colorbox}} Blue background and WIN means the player won the game.

{{colorbox}} Light Green background and MOLE means the player was the mole.

{{colorbox}} Lime background and IN means the player won an exemption in that episode.

{{colorbox}} White background and IN means the player was safe in that episode.

{{colorbox}} Red background and OUT means the player scored the lowest on the quiz and was executed in that episode.

Episodes

Episode 1: January 9, 2001

Skydiving: All ten players arrived at a remote location in the California Mojave Desert. Two helicopters took them to a landing strip where they boarded a plane to skydive from 10,000 feet. If all ten players agreed to skydive tandem, the group pot would earn $75,000. If any one player chose not to jump, no money would be added to the pot.

Result - Test passed, $75,000 added to the pot (pot total $75,000)

Night out in Paris: The players were flown to Paris, France for their next test. After dinner, the players were allowed to spend the night out in Paris, with a catch - the entire group must stay together, and had to be back to the hotel before midnight (approximately two hours). If the team was not back in time, a $10,000 penalty would be assessed from the pot.

Result - Test passed, $0 removed from the pot (pot total $75,000)

ATM game: The players are shown ten screens which display personal information about their fellow competitors. Two players with the best memories are then chosen from the group. The two have to solve puzzles using the information from the screens to come up with a 4-digit ATM pin number. The pin number is then used to withdraw "?500 at an ATM machine somewhere in the town of Draguigan, France. If the team is successful, $50,000 is added to the pot. The remaining players wait, and are told not to discuss the information from the screens.

Result - Test passed, $50,000 added to the pot (pot total $125,000)
Penalty - Discussed personal information, $10,000 removed from the pot (pot total $115,000)

Execution: Manuel is first player executed.

Episode 2: January 16, 2001

Steven's Prison: The players move on to Monte Carlo, Monaco. One of the players, Steven, is kidnapped from his hotel room in the middle of the night. He is transported to a prison cell and placed in shackels and an iron mask. When the other players arrive for breakfast, they realize he is missing. The other players split into three groups to search for him (by helicopter, boat, and van), and are given clues to his whereabouts. If all eight players find and arrive at his secret location (Cannes, France) in less than 2 hours with three keys, they will add $50,000 to the pot.

Result - Test failed, $0 added to the pot (pot total $115,000)

Good eyes: Three players are selected from the group, those who have "good eyes" (for detail). They are shown two watches, an authentic Cartier, and a fake. They are to determine which is real, and which is the phony, and the phony will be destroyed. If they are correct, $20,000 is added to the pot; if they are wrong, $20,000 is deducted from the pot.

Result - Test passed, $20,000 added to the pot (pot total $135,000)

Cornfield maze: The other six players ("leaders" and "followers") are brought to a cornfield maze late at night. The three "leaders" are to guide three "followers" through the maze, and avoid two maze guards. if all three teams succede, $60,000 is added to the pot.

Result - Test failed, $0 added to the pot (pot total $135,000)

Execution: Afi is the second player executed.

Episode 3: January 23, 2001

Bullfight: The eight players traveled to Seville, Spain. They arrived at a bullring, where the next test involved bullfighting. If all eight players faced a charging bull two times, the group pot would earn $50,000. For each player that performed a tienta (pulling the bull's tail down to the ground), a bonus $5,000 would be added.

Result - Test passed, $50,000 plus $15,00 bonuses added to the pot (pot total $200,000)

Laundry: Three players were chosen to do the contestants' laundry. They were taken to a village where they had to find places to do the wash, but only one load per location. If successfull, $10,000 would be added to the pot.

Result - Test passed, $10,000 added to the pot (pot total $210,000)

Dice game: The five other players each rolled a die. Depending on what was rolled, a rather unsavory task had to be completed by that player (e.g., be drawn naked, shave his/her head, wear a cast on both legs, etc.) If three players completed their task, $40,000 would be added to the pot. The fourth player to roll was offered a special twist. Roll the die four times and complete all four tasks, to earn an additional $40,000, and an exemption for his/her self.

Result - Test passed, $40,000 added when Kate completed all four tasks (pot total $250,000)

Execution: Kate received an exemption in the dice game and could not be executed. Wendi is the third player executed.

Episode 4: January 30, 2001

Laser tag: One player out of the group is selected to "take it easy" (the players select Kate, due to her accomplishments from the previous episode), and the rest are "looking for an adventure." Kate is taken to a church in a small village. They players are equiped with laser tag vests (but no weapons). While avoiding laser shooting snipers, the players must rescue Kate and bring her to the cinema and ring a bell. If successfull, $30,000 is added to the pot. Unbeknownst to the players, Kate is offered an exemption if she shoots all her fellow players, and rings the bell by herself.

Result - Test failed, $0 added to the pot (pot total $250,000)

Brain teasers: The players are taken to the University of Seville. They broke up into two groups. The first group was directed to solve eight brain teaser puzzles. For each correct answer, $15,000 would be added to the pot. Afterwards, the team was taken on a long, rather winding tour of the univeristy campus. They arrived at a classroom where they saw the second team, live on video, solving the same puzzles. For each puzzle they solved, $15,000 would be deducted. The second team was not aware that they were costing money. One "runner" from the first group would then have to find his/her way back to the room, and convince the other team to stop working.

Result - Test passed, $75,000 added to the pot; $15,000 removed (pot total $310,000)

Telephone call: Before the quiz, each player was allowed a five-minute phone call to a family member

Interview test: During routine one-on-one interviews, the production crew purposely left behind a notebook. A hidden camera was left on to record if any player snooped around and peeked in the book. No penalties were at stake, but suspicion arose when Kathryn took the bait.

Execution: Henry is the fourth player executed.

Episode 5: February 6, 2001

Smart/Resourceful/Stupid:

Loved ones:

Execution: Jennifer is the fifth player executed.

Episode 6: February 13, 2001

Capture the flag:

Horse carriage ride:

Execution: Kate is the sixth player executed.

Episode 7: February 20, 2001

Sheep hearing:

Fool the art critic:

Challenging tasks:

Execution: Charlie is the seventh player executed. The final three players are determined: Steven, Jim and Kathryn. Two of the players are the finalists, and one is the mole.

Episode 8: February 27, 2001

3 questions:

Hotel room:

Final quiz: Steven, Jim, and Kathryn took the final quiz. The finalist who scores the highest on the final quiz will win the game

Episode 9: February 28, 2001

The executed players are reunited to see the results of the final quiz. Highlights of the season, including sabatoge, and "moleish" behavior is documented, as well as secret hidden clues. Kathryn is revealed to be the mole, with Steven the winner, and Jim the runner-up.