So a bridesmaid again she is.
Rory Schepisi, who finished second in CMT’s “Popularity Contest,” finished runner-up in
yet another reality television show, this time “The Next Food Network Star,” on Sunday night.
The loss had to be a bitter pill to swallow. Amy Finley, who ended up as champion, was eliminated earlier but brought back when another semifinalist, Jag, quit after being confronted for fabricating portions of his background.
Given the circumstances, many viewers probably thought Schepisi had the title wrapped up, but online and cell-phone voters apparently decided otherwise (or many potential voters didn’t participate because Schepisi was the obvious favorite).
Schepisi may have lost, but her new restaurant, Boot Hill Saloon & Grill in Vega, Texas, is a big winner, and so is Route 66. As of 10:30 p.m. CST on Sunday night, the Route 66 News post about her opening a restaurant on the Mother Road had gained more than 900 page views since 6 p.m. That’s a heck of a lot of publicity for her, her restaurant and Route 66.
UPDATE: As of 11:30 a.m. July 23, there have been more than 2,700 page views on Route 66 News of Rory Schepisi-related items in less than 18 hours.
The boost in traffic also has broken the Route 66 News record of most page views in one day. It’s now at 4,400 page views, with more than six hours remaining in the 24-hour period.
Thanks for stopping by, everyone.
Rory was robbed!! It appears that the price was steep for Amy (no wedding ring or mention of a husband at the time of the final taping.) One thing is true of this San Diego viewer – I’ll make a special trip to visit the Boot Hill Saloon & Grill!
Yes Kathleen is right you were robbed!! I am so disappointed in the Food Network. You did a great job and I wish you nothing but the best in your future. I too hope to make a trip to Vega and your Boot Hill Saloon & Grill!
I agree Kathleen
Rory may not have been my favorite but once JAG quit she should have won by default, Miss Priss(Amy) was already booted and shouldn’t have been asked back.
Funny how Amy cried about missing the hubby and kids during the challenge, then they were noticibly missing on her home interview and final taping.
What total BS. Rory got screwed plain and simple. She should have been given title outright after JAGs disqualification. To not get a single thing after Amy got top votes is the ultimate in Food Networks utter stupidity in how to run a series like this. She should have gotten at minimum the car. What Bs. She should sue anyways because Amy got back in after being told she was out and got a second chance…Rory had no second chance and got the shaft–
BIGTIME ..thats my opinion. FOOD Network really screwed Rory over.
omg. i loved both of them, but i thought rory was gonna win. i am gonna file a complaint to food network and The Next Food Network Star. what losers the judges r……
I feel bad for Rory more for the rude things people are saying about her in various blogs than for the fact she lost (though I find the cracks about Amy’s apparent failed marriage here to be just as low as those comments). I was surprised she made it to the final two, and considering that this is just about the only blog I’ve found where she made a positive impression on viewers I have a hard time believing that people didn’t vote for her because she was the “obvious favorite.” I’m sure she’s a very nice person, and she was definitely one of the better of this season’s group, but of the final three she’s the only one whose show I would have been unlikely to watch.
In the end, you have to realize that this show is not a competition so much as it is a series of very public auditions that Food Network uses to indentify somebody its viewers will watch. There’s no way they were going to choose a winner by default after JAG withdrew, as that would deprive the network of its big finale and the poll of viewers that the final vote represented. As for Rory suing them over it, forget it — you can bet this situation is covered in the contract she signed to participate in the show in the first place, and that she knew the finale would come down to a vote between two people no matter how those two people got there. If she didn’t like those rules, she shouldn’t have played the game.
Rory wasn’t robbed. Amy was obviously more personable, less pretentious, had the most substance, and was not so full of herself. It’s obvious that Rory is just someone who is privileged, is used to getting her way, and when it doesn’t, she’s petulant. Her behavior at the end of the finale was horrible, where she went from one participant to another, crying and carrying on. Her back was to the audience after Amy was crowned the Next Food Network Star. Not gracious at all. People can relate to Amy much more to Ms. “I had a restauarant in NJ and now one in TX with a hunky cowboy”. The publicity backlash can only help her, not hurt her. So let’s not worry about poor Rory.
I’m sure she’ll find another contest to enter in. Give her your hanky, Klay, and drinks are on Rory at her second (did I second? yes, I did) successful venture.
I hope somehow Rory gets a show on Food Network or somewhere else anyway. IMHO she got screwed when JAG “resigned.”
If I were Rory, the first thing I’d do is write a cookbook. Her recipe made the cover of Bon Appetit, giving her national exposure that’ll run past the end of the series. IMHO if she plays her cards right she has the potential to be a big star.
As for placing second, two words: Clay Aiken. Need I say more?
Personally, I feel here may have been a backlash against Rory’s rather brazen and unseemly online marketing for votes. Some may have felt that launching a paid online marketing and advertising push could have been a bit out of the spirit of the competition. Also, the fact that she seems to be a serial reality show participant made her come off as a bit of a publicity hog, and may have been more interested in the fame winning could have brought her rather than being motivated by a true love of spreading her vision of cuisine through the airwaves. I admit this may not be true, but i believe she opens herself up to these questions through her actions and that may have had an influence on the result.
That said, I also feel there was no ‘real’ star this season. Best of luck to Rory and her new restaurant venture. I’m sure she’ll be a success.
Did Amy win one challenge? Where was her husband & children on Sunday night? Rory, you were robbed.
I would not be surprised to hear that in six months or so Amy can no longer be part of the FNW because she misses her family.
When Rory lost, I felt physically ill and sad. I was sooooo looking forward to her show, the style of food she prepares, and her vibrant personality. I think Amy is sweet and genuine, but none of her food impressed me and for me I can’t see myself preparing it. It is just not my style. For someone who wanted to drop out of the competition, her victory is a bitter pill for me to swallow. When my TV is on, 90% of the time it is on Food Network and I think they needed a “Rory” or should I say “The Rory” and her style of cuisine. She is someone I could kick back with. Guy was a hit and I think Amy will be a miss. I will check out Amy’s show but with a heavy heart. I really think Food Network lost a STAR. Rory would have been a very
refreshing addition to The Food Network. I’m so sad. You go Rory! I hope to visit you restaurant. Keep your chin up it’s their loss.
I would have liked to have seen Rory win, partly for her sake, but mostly for the road’s — she had indicated that she was planning to emphasize Texas and Route 66 cuisine on the show, which could have given a major boost to a lot of great mom-and-pop businesses and small towns along 66.
In any case, the publicity has obviously increased interest in Rory’s new business, and I’m not too worried about how she’ll handle the disappointment of coming in second on another “reality” show. She strikes me as a tough, irrepressible little chick who has sense enough to roll when she hits the ground.
She finished “Popularity Contest” with a new restaurant, a cute boyfriend, and a new home in a lovely area full of beautiful sunsets, stunning rainbows, fast horses, and miles and miles of space to stretch out and be comfortable. Finishing second in this show just ensures that she’ll have time to enjoy the ride without the stress of juggling a new restaurant and a new show simultaneously.
Rain City Girl – If you’re looking for “grilling” check out Bobby Flay. He’s ten times better than Rory. If you like the “down home cookin” try Paula Deen. She rocks at it. I honestly felt Rory didn’t know what her niche was. Amy was always the gourmet next door and I really liked her in the clip “cooking with her sister”. Her helpful, fun nature, is what she needs to portray on Food Network.
I honestly don’t believe she really wanted to leave. Everybody gets homesick. By then, she’d been away from her kids for weeks. Who can blame her for missing them? I’m glad Amy one. There is just something I disliked about Rory…maybe it was the begging online and spamming people for votes thing.
Kathleen – Her kids were in her home interview. Her son, Indiana helped her with cooking and she spoke very highly of him. Her daughter, Scarlett was also with her at the beach. Maybe her hubby is camera shy. I know if my fiancee was up for Food Network Star, I’d decline being on camera, but that’s just me.
Dominick~
I stand corrected, I forgot about her son helping her in the kitchen etc.
Thanks
Rory,
I know that it’s been over a week, but I still feel so bad! I watch FN almost every day and imagine how YOUR show would line up against the others, and am really disappointed that you won’t be there in the Fall. However, learning about you has encouraged friends here in San Antonio to go see you and sample some of your down-home Texas cooking in Vega. Hope to see you soon at the Boot Hill.
I am realy glad that Amy won. I thought Rory was rude, disrespectful of both the other contestants and Food Network Stars and did not take responsibility for her mistakes. She also presented herself as a really sore loser and seemed to think she was entitled to win. Why she even made it to the finals is beyond me. I think the Food Network has a thing for showing boobs.
Too bad sore sport. I how you enjoy Amy’s show and maybe you could learn a thing or two about manners and being gracious from her.
Rory ~ you were robbed!! No question about it. Amy was a whiney snotty little brat that should have quit when she was crying about missing her family and spared viewers. I’d eat anything you cook any day whereas I wouldn’t give Amy’s food to my cats. I certainly won’t be wasting my time on a show that is being hosted by someone who was a loser and only one by default. Good luck to Rory in everything she does.