Spring Break
Local man looks to realize dream in new presidential reality show
Michael LaForgia
Issue date: 4/2/04 Section: News
- Page 1 of 2 next >
Maxwell Highsmith says reality television is his ticket to becoming the next leader of the free world.
Highsmith, 39, of Columbia, has applied to appear on "American Candidate," Showtime's American Idol-style political reality show in which viewers vote on potential presidential candidates.
"The revolution will be televised," the show's Web site boasts.
Among the series' advisers is Henry Gates, a Harvard professor who will appear at USC April 13 to speak at the Robert Smalls Lecture.
Highsmith already has his own section on the "American Candidate" Web site.
The reality show got about 200 applications from across the country. The pool will be narrowed to 12 cast members, and Highsmith hopes to be among the finalists. According to the Web site, the winner receives $200,000 and a chance to address the nation at a televised media appearance.
Highsmith is confident he'll make the cut.
"I know that one day I will be president of this country. If not today, then when I'm 60," he said.
He has been tracking the show's development since September 2002, when he first read rumors about the concept on the Drake Report.
Anyone 18 or older can compete on the show.
Highsmith said it took him about a month to complete his application, which he mailed in November.
The application process is a lengthy one, including 27 pages of forms and a five-minute video tape.
"It's not an application for the faint-hearted," he said.
He expects a decision by April 11. The application deadline is April 9. The series' final episode will be aired July 4, when the two remaining candidates will square off for a debate in front of Mount Rushmore in South Dakota.
Highsmith calls himself an independent. He voted for Clinton twice and for Bush in the last election. He is, however, a card-carrying Democrat.
"I try to vote on what I think is good for the country and what is good for me," he said. "I'm not a party-liner at all."
Highsmith, 39, of Columbia, has applied to appear on "American Candidate," Showtime's American Idol-style political reality show in which viewers vote on potential presidential candidates.
"The revolution will be televised," the show's Web site boasts.
Among the series' advisers is Henry Gates, a Harvard professor who will appear at USC April 13 to speak at the Robert Smalls Lecture.
Highsmith already has his own section on the "American Candidate" Web site.
The reality show got about 200 applications from across the country. The pool will be narrowed to 12 cast members, and Highsmith hopes to be among the finalists. According to the Web site, the winner receives $200,000 and a chance to address the nation at a televised media appearance.
Highsmith is confident he'll make the cut.
"I know that one day I will be president of this country. If not today, then when I'm 60," he said.
He has been tracking the show's development since September 2002, when he first read rumors about the concept on the Drake Report.
Anyone 18 or older can compete on the show.
Highsmith said it took him about a month to complete his application, which he mailed in November.
The application process is a lengthy one, including 27 pages of forms and a five-minute video tape.
"It's not an application for the faint-hearted," he said.
He expects a decision by April 11. The application deadline is April 9. The series' final episode will be aired July 4, when the two remaining candidates will square off for a debate in front of Mount Rushmore in South Dakota.
Highsmith calls himself an independent. He voted for Clinton twice and for Bush in the last election. He is, however, a card-carrying Democrat.
"I try to vote on what I think is good for the country and what is good for me," he said. "I'm not a party-liner at all."
Be the first to comment on this story