>
> But the first big difference between Deadliest Catch and TAR is that
> _Catch_ is one of (if  not THE) jewel in Discovery's crown. Neither
> Survivor not TAR holds that kind of position with CBS. Survivor is closer
> to it than TAR is, but neither one is a flagship program.  
>
> The other big difference is that _Catch_ has much smaller production
> expenses in general. They can dump money on cameras that they know won't
> survive the season, because they've got fewer cameramen, lots fewer PAs
> and assistants, they don't have to pay for travel and lots of location
> permits and rentals like TAR or set construction and clean-up like
> Survivor. They don't have to have a doctor on site for the participants,
> they don't need to have "rules lawyers" along. I recall an interview with
> Bertram Van Muenster where he said that by the end of a Race, they've
> used something like 2000 people, some only for a few days, true -- local
> guides, PAs, the greeters, drivers, boat captains, charter pilots, local
> color, animal handlers and such.
>
> Just in season 12, episode 1:
> *rental of 11 "vintage cars" to bring the teams to the starting line,
> *rental for the Playboy Mansion
> *The cash each team was given
> *rental of 11 cars for the drive to LAX
> *44 tickets from LA to Shannon Ireland just for the teams and their
> camera and sound guys -- probably close to a dozen more for Race staff.
> Lowball the staff estimate to only 6 and that's 50 tickets at between
> $400 and $600 a ticket -- $20,000 minimum just to get them to Ireland,
> and $25,000 is more realistic.
>
> OK, they're in Ireland:
> *11 sets of ferry tickets (for four again)
> *Lodgings at a B&B the first night
> *11 more rental cars, plus gas.
> *rental on 11 tandem bikes
> *hire cost on the high-wire bikes and crews
> *hire cost of 11 donkeys and the handlers.
> *cost of the peat -- it may have been rented or it may have been
> purchased outright.
> *rental of the Connemara Heritage Center
> *salary for the greeter
> *trip for the first finishers -- probably at least another $7000, since
> it included airfare for two and that hotel's "best rate" for a double
> room is $500 a night.
>
> Plus the cost of flying Ari and Staella back to sequesterville in
> Portugal
> Plus the cost of the villa there that they used.
>
> I'd be astonished if the first leg alone cost less than $50,000 not
> counting paychecks.
>
> While the cost of each successive leg drops in the team-related expenses
> (since there are fewer teams,) the other expenses don't necessarily drop
> with them; I expect that all the legs cost about the same. I figure it's
> around a million or so total, at least, without the prize money. that
> adds another million+.
>
> Deadliest Catch doesn't cost anywhere near that to make.