http://www.calendarlive.com/tv/cl-en-reality12sep12,0,2257810.story?coll=cl-tv-f...

By Denise Martin, Special to The Times

NO one is searching for pirate's booty or competing with a dozen other women
for Mr. Right. There are no aspiring karaoke superstars and no one gets
fired.

In fact, since the inception of the Emmy Award for top reality competition
series four years ago, only one show has ever won -- for being more of a
National Geographic travelogue than today's typical cutthroat elimination
show.

CBS' 11-seasons-old "Amazing Race" sends its contestants globe-trotting in
hopes of winning a cool $1 million. Teams of two fly to faraway locales to
follow clues, complete stamina-testing and sometimes stomach-churning
challenges, and overcome roadblocks while attempting to be first to arrive
at the final destination. The series' most recent season sent competitors to
places ranging from Mozambique, where they had to set trained rats loose on
a hunt for land mines, to Hong Kong, where some had to duck out of the way
of real kung fu fighting.

"Race" is impressive not only on the technical production front -- the show
has landed trophies for picture editing and cinematography as well -- but
also as great drama, in which the journeys of winning and losing teams are
both immensely relatable and always surprising.

Those handicapping the category agree that the series will be tough to beat,
even while it is up for a fifth trophy. "It'll probably be the same old
thing," says David Lyle, chief operating officer for Fox Reality, a channel
devoted to airing reality shows from various networks all over the world. "I
can't see that it will change. I suspect 'Amazing Race' will win it again."

Of course, "Race" creator-executive producer Bertram van Munster agrees
wholeheartedly. "I think voters in the Academy [of Television Arts and
Sciences] recognize that this is a complicated and probably the most
ambitious reality show ever created in terms of locations and logistics
alone," he says. "We're always trying to set the standard."

This year, "Race" will face off against other popular series, "Dancing With
the Stars," "Project Runway," "Top Chef" and the ratings behemoth "American
Idol."

Magical Elves, the production team behind the Bravo hits "Runway" and
"Chef," was surprised by the nominations for both series, each of which is
watched by a fraction of the audience that watches the other three
contenders. "We definitely feel like the little engine that could," says
executive producer Jane Lipsitz.

While "Race" boasts the resources necessary to conduct a jet-setting global
competition, "Runway" and "Chef," with a mix of amateurs and professionals
competing in tests of ability, have had to be a bit more creative with their
limited funds, a challenge that has worked out for the best.

"We didn't have the money to build a studio to shoot 'Runway,' so, out of
necessity, we hit up design schools. We wound up finding the elements that
made the show: Parsons the New School for Design and Tim Gunn," Lipsitz says
of the school's former chair of fashion design. He is now the chief creative
officer for Liz Claiborne.

Despite the smaller audience, it's easy to see why "Runway" and "Chef" are
in the running. Both series emphasize craft -- casting colorful folks with
real skills -- while giving viewers the razzle-dazzle of a high-stakes
competition. The prizes coincide with that mission: "Runway" finalists all
land shows during New York Fashion Week, while the "Top Chef" gets featured
in the prestigious magazine Food and Wine, in addition to winning cash to
help launch a restaurant.

"What we wanted to do was create competitions that were true to the world of
fashion and food," says Magical Elves executive producer Dan Cutforth. "The
most important thing is for the shows to be authentic and credible. If that
wasn't the case, it would be making TV to make TV. We want these shows to
have a purpose."

The same can be said for nominees "Idol" and "Dancing," which barely show
the contestants offstage, save for minutes of rehearsal footage. "Idol"
winners get a lucrative recording contract, and several have gone on to
Grammys and multiplatinum albums, while the winning B-list celebrities (who
are paired with ballroom dancing pros) get bragging rights and, at least
temporarily, resuscitated careers. In a sense, the shows are the purest form
of reality competition -- the contest element stands alone. But that's not
to say that casting isn't as crucial as it is on any other prime-time
series.

Van Munster says the show does its best to get a balance of interesting
teams with real desire. "But then we turn them loose and we have no idea how
they will behave," he says. "Our heart rates go up with the start of each
season."

Cutforth adds he and Lipsitz learned early on that "the story will happen
without us having to manipulate it. Audiences can tell when something is
cooked up. And usually the truth is much better than the fake drama any
day."

The producers of "Dancing With the Stars" submitted an episode toward the
end of the season, when Mario Lopez and Emmitt Smith were breaking away as
the front-runners. Conrad Green, executive producer of "Dancing," says the
later episodes best reflect the reason the show is a massive ratings hit:
"You've got preconceptions about these celebrities and they can be confirmed
or shattered, but ultimately they're pretty inspirational."

Lyle calls the series "the one show that might and could knock 'Amazing
Race' off," adding, "They've got good ratings, name recognition within the
industry, and most importantly they appeal to older audiences." The latter
is crucial when it comes to getting the attention of voters, a constituency
comprised of older academy members.

Green says that an inspirational theme is the common thread connecting all
the nominees, adding that he's an avid watcher of each contender. In fact,
the special "Idol Gives Back" episode of the singing competition, which
provided millions of dollars in aid to children in poverty, will receive
this year's Governor's Award.

Says Green: "The really twisted reality series, the eating worms and such,
went out of vogue a while ago. Now it's almost about nostalgia. None of
these nominated shows are mean or nasty. They're about real people trying to
achieve something."

Lyle is perplexed by the lack of recognition for "Idol," a show that
outperforms every other one in the ratings but is always shut out. "There
are very few shows that change the landscape of TV," Lyle says. " 'Idol' is
one of them and yet they've never won."

For his part, "Idol" and Emmys host Ryan Seacrest thinks this may be their
year. "The show is still on top, still doing well," he says. "And we are
coming off a hugely successful charity program with 'Idol Gives Back' and,
who knows, that's something the academy members may respond to."

Times staff writer Martin Miller contributed to this report