Survivor (USA)

From The TV IV

Survivor

Premiere	May 31, 2000
Finale
Airs	On hiatus
Creator	Charlie Parsons (concept) Mark Burnett (domestic)
Host	Jeff Probst
Network	CBS
Style	60-minute competitive reality
Company	Mark Burnett Productions Survivor Entertainment Group (SEG) CBS Productions (seasons 1–12) CBS Paramount Network Television (seasons 13—18) CBS Television Studios (seasons 19—)
Episodes	278 (through season 18)
Seasons	19
Status	Currently airing season 19 Renewed through season 20 (spring 2010)
Origin	USA

The tribe has spoken.

Survivor (2000–) is known as the show that started the reality television phenomenon. The show centers around a group of people that have been stranded on a desert island and are left to fend for themselves by building their own shelter and catching their own food. Every few days, they compete in challenges for rewards and, more important, immunity from leaving the game. The team who loses the Immunity Challenge is forced to go to tribal council where the tribe has to vote one of its members off the island. During the midpoint of the game, which lasts 39 days, the two tribes merge into one. The final nine members of that single tribe form a jury, seven of which vote who they want of the remaining two tribemembers to win the game.

Premiering in the summer of 2000 with very little fanfare, the show started to attract critical acclaim and attention, culminating in a season finale that garnered 50 million viewers, the highest ever for a reality television show. As a result, season two of the show was highly hyped, and debuted directly after the Super Bowl with 45 million viewers, eventually going on to become the most-watched series of the 2001 season. Although season two was as highly watched as the first season, ratings died down starting with the third. Although ratings have decreased, the show still attracts anywhere between 10 and 15 million viewers every week and is a mainstay for CBS, normally ranking in the Top 20 in ratings for the year.

For information on the Survivor and Expedition Robinson franchise, please refer to the Survivor franchise page.

1 Seasons
2 In-Depth
3 DVD Releases
4 External Sites

[edit] Seasons

Season	Premiere	Finale	#
CBS
Season One Borneo	May 30, 2000	August 23, 2000	14
Season Two The Australian Outback	January 28, 2001	May 10, 2001	17
Season Three Africa	October 11, 2001	January 17, 2002	17
Season Four Marquesas	February, 28, 2002	May 19, 2002	15
Season Five Thailand	September 19, 2002	December 19, 2002	15
Season Six The Amazon	February 13, 2003	May 11, 2003	15
Season Seven Pearl Islands	September 18, 2003	December 14, 2003	15
Season Eight All-Stars	February 1, 2004	May 13, 2004	18
Season Nine Vanuatu - Islands of Fire	September 16, 2004	December 12, 2004	15
Season Ten Palau	February 17, 2005	May 15, 2005	15
Season Eleven Guatemala - The Maya Empire	September 15, 2005	December 11, 2005	15
Season Twelve Panama - Exile Island	February 2, 2006	May 14, 2006	16
Season Thirteen Cook Islands	September 14, 2006	December 17, 2006	16
Season Fourteen Fiji	February 8, 2007	May 13, 2007	15
Season Fifteen China	September 20, 2007	December 16, 2007	15
Season Sixteen Micronesia - Fans vs. Favorites	February 7, 2008	May 11, 2008	15
Season Seventeen Gabon - Earth's Last Eden	September 25, 2008	December 14, 2008	15
Season Eighteen Tocantins - The Brazilian Highlands	February 12, 2009	May 17, 2009	15
Season Nineteen Samoa	September 17, 2009	—	—
Season Twenty All-Stars 2: Heroes vs. Villains	February 2010	May 2010	15

[edit] In-Depth

At a Glance: Additional information about the series

[edit] DVD Releases

Title	Release Date	#
Season Sets
The Complete First Season (Borneo)	May 11, 2004	5	purchase
The Complete Second Season (The Australian Outback)	April 26, 2005	9	purchase
The Complete Seventh Season (Pearl Islands)	February 7, 2006	5	purchase
Survivor Vanuatu (Season Nine)	December 5, 2006	4	purchase
Survivor Palau (Season Ten)	August 29, 2006	4	purchase