Hello everyone and welcome to another White rice Wednesday. Today I interview fellow Kaoh Rong castaway Neal Gottlieb. We talked about his Survivor experience and all things Survivor.
1. What have you been up to since Survivor Kaoh Rong?
Neal- I continue to live in dandy mode growing my ice cream company, traveling, rabble rousing and generally loving life.
2. You and Aubry had a tight alliance in the game. Do you guys still keep in touch?
Neal- Yes, Aubry is a great person and dear friend. I'm not a huge texter but we do stay in touch and I've been lucky to see her a couple times since our season ended.
3. You were one of the people to be med evaced . What was going through your mind when Jeff said you were being pulled from the game?
Neal- I actually packed up my bag for the individual immunity challenge on Day 19 thinking that I was going to get pulled from the game there. But, when that didn't happen, I thought that I was safe. However, when I saw Jeff on a boat heading to our beach that afternoon, I knew that I was about to be put down like a racehorse with a broken leg. By the time he actually pulled me, while devastated, I was not surprised.
http://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/news/survivor-neal-gets-medically-evacuated/vp-BBrbuVO
4. Michele won an advantage where she got to vote out a jury member. Why do you think she picked you?
Neal- Michele and I had a bit of a rough relationship in the game. She perceived that I was harsh on her relating to her challenge performances and knew that I was tight with Aubs. I believe that she thought that I was going to be a little snarky with my questioning at Final Tribal, so it made sense to dispose of me. And, she was right...
https://youtu.be/gEJoHGLsE8Y
5. What was your game plan had you not been med evaced?
Neal- It's hard to spell out your journey to the end when you don't even make it to the halfway point. But, I had some friends out there, an immunity idol, the ability to win a challenge or two and the smarts to make it to the end. Oh well, maybe next time...
6. Who would you have taken to the end?
Neal- I was committed to taking Aubry to the end and duking it out with her there. I would have also loved to have Debbie or Joe there for an all Brains final tribal.
7.If you were not voted out by Michele what pitch would you have made to the jury in trying to persuade them to vote for your sole survivor pick?
Neal- I'm not entirely sure but it probably would have started with, " You thought that you were a bad ass bitch coming out here..." P.S. she called herself a bad ass bitch both in her application video and out there. I was merely disagreeing with her assessment while exiting. Turns out that she was a bad ass and brought home the win.
8. Who was your seasons Hero and Villain and why?
Neal- I think that Aubry was the greatest hero of the lot, pulling herself together from a really tough start and damn near wining the thing. The villain is neither worth my time writing about nor your time reading.
9. Do you regret anything during your season?
Neal- I regretted not giving the idol to Aubry about five minutes after getting pulled from the game. But, seeing that she definitely did not need it, I now regret previously regretting that decision.
10. Would you ever play again?
Neal- In a second ( if work allows). I still have some winning to do.
11. How's the ice cream business?
Neal- It's great. It keeps on getting bigger and bigger while giving me a life that's filled with fun, challenge and opportunities that I never would have imagined.
12. Are you excited for Survivor Game Changers?
Neal- I am thrilled. Not only do I get to see four of my KR family go at it but at this point I've been lucky to meet most of the other players. I am so excited that I had a new pair of pants made for the season. Jeff Probst is going to either love them or hate them.
Neal thank you so much for the interview . I hope you all tune into CBS 8pm tonight for another episode of Survivor Game Changers.
