Get ready for six months of shrieks and giggles as seven youngsters enter Biosphere, a giant sealed glass structure that features its own big-screen TV, pool table, and ocean. This is going to be the realest Real World yet! Say "hi" to the gang:
Chip: St. Louis, Missouri
A cheery towhead with a 4.2 GPA, Chip won last year's Sober Driver of the Year, Rich and Popular Athlete of the Year, and Most Effective Denier of Naughty Urges. Chip loves to bone up on Constitutional Law in his free time, and he admits to the occasional caffeinated soft drink. He's also a cautious consumer, so he checks SafeShopping.Org for trusted advice about online shopping. He's looking forward to spending six months in a glass container with other like-minded Americans.
Eddie: Humboldt County, California
What weighs over 450 pounds, smells vaguely of wet cat, and has a weakness for straight-to-video erotic thrillers? Everyone's favorite self-medicating couch potato, Eddie. When he's not eating Pop Tarts or staring intently at his hands, Eddie likes to peruse Transistor Radios, an impressive online shrine featuring over 150 pages of graphics, blurbs, and geeky details. Ed's looking forward to spending some quality time in "the biggest hydroponic set-up in the world, man."
Claudia: Milan, Italy
When 22-year-old fashion model Claudia jauntily strolls through the airlock, she'll have her roommates' heads spinning. She is stunningly beautiful, speaks five languages, and cooks in the bedroom. You'll hear ecstatic screams of "Mangiare Bene!" as she flaunts her culinary skills for one and all. Using only the biosphere's simple home-grown produce, a Bunsen burner, and her trusty online collection of gourmet Italian recipes, Claudia is sure to whet everyone's appetite. So, stop being polite and pass the Parmesan cheese!
Larry: Mobile, Alabama
Shy and reserved, Larry's southern charm and affinity for all watersports, especially barefoot water-skiing, make him a hit with the ladies. During college, Larry parlayed his love of arachnids into a semi-permanent job on Good Morning America as a Spider Wrangler. In his spare time, Larry thinks about how cool it would be to collect vintage guitars if only he had the money. You might find Larry on the artificial beach skimming the latest Sue Grafton novel and sipping white Zinfandel.
Charisma: Eugene, Oregon
Raised by Steve Miller Band roadies, Charisma's life changed at the age of 16 when her Hollywood Tarot card reader told her to "drop the drama, mama." Charisma immediately trashed her butterfly barrettes and taffeta dresses and became a devout student of the divinatory arts. Recently, Charisma has also become involved in the fight for healthier school lunches. She's looking forward to reading her roommates' tarot cards and judging them unfairly.
Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.: Cambridge, Massachusetts
Dr. Gates, the W.E.B. Du Bois Professor of the Humanities at Harvard, comes to The Real World straight from the taping of an extraordinary PBS series entitled Wonders of the African World. He brings to the house not only an encyclopedic knowledge of history and literature, but also exciting first-hand accounts of his travels in Africa, from the Nile to Timbuktu. Despite the fact that he hasn't had roommates since he was an undergrad at Yale (in 1970), Gates says he's looking forward to being on The Real World. "Kids today celebrate diversity," he says, "I just hope I don't have to share a bathroom with a wacko like Puck. That would bite."
Maryanthe: Mykonos, Greece
A last-minute addition after it was learned that one of the original cast members wasn't actually a person but a Calico cat, Maria was cast after a producer inadvertently came across her stunning work on Icon Magazine. A strong-willed baggage handler, Maryanthe's hobbies include rearranging furniture, writing about her homeland, and watching roller derby. She may hook up with Larry. But who knows? Tune in to see the sparks fly.