This is the true story of two people picked to live in a house with five others and have their lives taped. Find out what happens after they leave the show and speak at ETSU about what happened to them when people stopped being polite and started getting “real.”
On Wednesday evening in the Martha Street Culp Auditorium, Mike and Coral from the “Real World 10: Back to New York” season, spoke about their experiences on the show, and in dealing with conflict and diversity in the house. They also conducted a question and answer session in which audience members picked their brains for over an hour.
In the season’s initial episodes, Mike and Coral often would butt heads and fight constantly. Since they left the show, however, they’ve become the best of chums.
When asked how they slowly became such good friends, Coral said that as she got to spend more time with Mike she began to get to know him better which made her grow to love him.
Other than in appearing on the “Real World” together, the two have hosted various MTV shows and also represented the rest of the “Back to New York” cast when they appeared on MTV’s “Real World/Road Rules Challenge.”
Knowing that there is much more to a person than what is made of them for a show such as the “Real World,” it is interesting to examine how Mike and Coral were described on the show’s web site.
Mike’s bio from the “Real World” site on MTV.com describes him as “a fireball of energy” and “the quintessential all-American boy” who found a “sense of family in his college fraternity” and has a “deep need to be loved.”
Self described as “seven layers of bitch,” Coral’s bio described her as “intelligent and witty as she is beautiful” with “no qualms about speaking her mind.”
Before the show, the two walked into the Firehouse Restaurant looking anxious and disenchanted. Shivering from the cold, rainy weather outside, Coral stumbled into the restaurant equipped with some ready-for-anything flared jeans and pageboy hat.
Mike apprehensively entered the new and strange Tennessee surroundings with a shaggy yet playful hairdo and a crisp pressed shirt. One could see that these two were still trying to get over the shock of being in Tennessee after having lived in L.A.
As opposed to Coral, who repeatedly complained about it being too cold and wondered how we could stand living in Johnson City when there was nothing at all to do, Mike was an outgoing bundle of energy and consequently ended up being the life of the small gathering at the Firehouse.
The two talked about where they were from originally, how long it took them to get used to cameras following them around 24 hours a day, and about how much more expensive their L.A. rent was, as compared to the cost of living here in Johnson City.
After all the conversation at dinner, Mike and Coral hurriedly gobbled up their delectable barbecued meat and headed off to answer questions from the likes of many curious audience members.
During the lecture and Q and A session, the two told the audience what they have been doing since they left the show.
Mike, better known to some by his alter ego “The Miz,” attended wrestling school and has been involved in other wrestling activities in and around the Los Angeles area.
With her love of entertainment, Coral has become more involved in the entertainment industry, which she said she “really likes.”
The whole phenomenon of the “Real World,” the first reality TV show, partly lies in the fact that its former cast members often become instant celebrities after their departure from the show.
They oftentimes pursue careers in the performing arts, music or entertainment industries. They choose these careers because, as Mike so aptly put it, “MTV might not make you rich, but it will make you famous.”
The more one thought about it, the more the situation seemed all too strange.
A slew of onlookers packed into a small auditorium and sat down to hear two regular people speak. But wait a minute, they weren’t just regular people. They were regular old people that had been on MTV.
“It surprised me how there were so many in awe of these two people that have done nothing. The only thing they’ve done is do what we aren’t supposed to,” said Silaja Cheruvu, a premed student. “They quit school to have fun and party on a TV show, and now they’re getting paid thousands of dollars to talk about it.

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