For “Survivor 45” winner Dee Valladares, Paley’s exhibit is more than just nostalgic. It’s a reminder of how much the show has changed her life.
“It feels really cool to walk in because not only does it feel like I’m in Fiji, [but] I get to see once again all of the seasons that came before me and the people that paved the way for me,” Valladares tells TVLine. “‘Survivor’ really did change my life, and I know we all say it, but it’s just so true. Just seeing real challenge stuff here — I actually looked at the Get A Grip poll. It’s here. I touched it!”
“It’s absolutely incredible what they’ve done here,” agrees Rick Devens. “I think I’m gonna sound like a broken record, but Tribal Council, when you walk in, I literally got tense, and then I see the fire-making challenge, it’s like, trauma! But it’s so cool.”
For Jenna Lewis-Dougherty, the only “50” cast member who played in the very first season, the exhibit gives her a mix of emotions.
“It does give you a massive sense of throwback, and it actually gives me a little anxiety,” she says. “I remember walking through upstairs in the Tribal Council and legitimately I was like, ‘No, nobody wants to be here!’ But seeing all of this, it makes me feel the gravity of how big ‘Survivor’ is. It’s insane. It really brings me gratitude for being a part of this family from the beginning all the way to ’50.'”
She points to one of the cases, drawing attention to one of the show’s earliest snuffers ever used.
“When Jeff called me to be on ’50,’ he said, ‘Do you remember the snuffer?’ He has a mock one and he goes, ‘We didn’t know what to do. We didn’t know how to end it.’ His now-catchphrase of ‘The Tribe Is Spoken,’ he didn’t know what to say. It was decided two minutes before we came in. The snuffer was put together by the art department just taking half a coconut. They did not know what they were doing and look at what they created.”
See more photos from the exhibit on our Instagram. “Outwit, Outplay, Outlast: Celebrating 50 Seasons of Survivor” runs through Sunday, May 31 at The Paley Museum, 25 W. 52nd St., New York City.