RW: New York (1992)

[Stinger97]

The Real World (retrospectively referred to as The Real World: New York, to distinguish it from subsequent installments of the series) is the first season of MTV's reality television series The Real World, which focuses on a group of diverse strangers living together for several months in a different city each season, as cameras follow their lives and interpersonal relationships. It was created by producers Mary-Ellis Bunim and Jonathan Murray. It is the first season of The Real World to be filmed in the Mid-Atlantic States region of the United States, specifically in New York.

 

 

[SPLAIN]

Catch a repeat of NatGeo's The 90's:The Last Great Decade? You can see Julie and Kevin talking about the show that made them well-known. They both appear to discuss the reality show genre as well as the incident where Kevin threatened Julie with a candle stick and had a full blown argument on camera.

Edited July 8, 2014 by SPLAIN

[choclatechip45]

Saw on twitter Norman, Heather and Julie were filming a segment for Oprah Where are they Now?

[Locutus]

I wonder if Eric is still drinking his urine and washing his hair with it?

[Bastet]

This Sunday on OWN, Oprah: Where Are They Now? will include a loft reunion of Heather, Norm and Julie.  Not much of a reunion when those three have continued to see each other for 20+ years, but they're generally fun to listen to.  I've seen this show a few times, and segments are only about five minutes long.

[choclatechip45]

They all have aged pretty well.

[GreatKazu]

Oh shit!! Heather...girl!! That short dress (?) is not suitable for you. Those thigh-high boots....mmmmm mmmmm, no.

 

Norm, Heather and Julie have aged very well. Norm has the gray hair, but other than that, they look great! Except for that outfit Heather wore. Holy Moses!

[Sister Havana]

They do look great. Julie's daughter looks just like her. 

 

They did a separate segment with Eric after the one with Norm, Heather, and Julie. I'm glad he no longer has the long hair and long beard. He's now living in Hawaii, is married, and has a newborn son. 

[AndySmith]

This season is also kind of a nice look back at a pre-gentrified NYC.

[Lantern7]

In case you didn't hear about it, the newly-rebranded MTV Classic will have a RW1 marathon on Sunday afternoon.

[RealityCowgirl]

SO excited for this. Already added to my DVR. One I really hope we'll eventually see is Boston.

[Sister Havana]

I've set my DVR too! I hope they do marathons of other seasons too - would love to see all of the first 9 again. 

[AndySmith]

It would be refreshing to see those earlier seasons, and how both the show and reality TV has changed.

[RealityCowgirl]

I'm so old, I remember thinking Miami was the beginning of the end. :) Now, I get a little wistful and nostalgic over It.

Nothing beats the raw reality of New York 1, though.

Edited August 3, 2016 by RealityCowgirl

[AndySmith]

Quote

Nothing beats the raw reality of New York 1, though.

In many ways, it was probably the most "real" of all the Real Worlds.

[Sister Havana]

On 8/3/2016 at 10:08 AM, RealityCowgirl said:

I'm so old, I remember thinking Miami was the beginning of the end. :) Now, I get a little wistful and nostalgic over It.

I know, right? That season seemed so racy and shocking at the time. It's downright tame in comparison to the more recent seasons!

[Lady Iris]

Omg! Omg! Omg!!! I'm so excited to revisit the original seasons . DVR is set to record the 1st season this weekend. For me it jumped the shark when they went to Las Vegas and it became trash tv personified. Love the first season, San Fran, Los Angeles with Tami and "It wasn't not funny!!!". Gotta see Seattle again. Loved Miami. I can only pray they'll show the original seasons of Road Rules too. I had such a crush on Timmy in the 2nd season.

I wonder though if the original songs that were played on these shows will remain. I thought there was an issue with MTV not showing them because they couldn't get clearance to use the songs.

[AndySmith]

Quote

For me it jumped the shark when they went to Las Vegas and it became trash tv personified

That was the season I think I stopped watching. I will say, I did become less of a fan during New York 2.0 and Chicago, but still watched both seasons. New York 2.0 was very hit or miss, but NYC is my favorite city in the world, so I watched it for that as much as I for the cast. Chicago I never really got into, but still kept watching out either habit or loyalty or both. But once we got to Las Vegas? I checked out half-way through.

[Lantern7]

Looking through MTV Classic's site . . . if you miss any part of the marathon, you can tune in on Tuesday, August 16, starting at 1 p.m.

[snarts]

Love that they're marathoning the earlier Real World seasons.  However, as someone who has watched since the beginining, it's amazing how different it is without the original music.  

When did MTV lose the music rights?  Is it because they sold some of the earlier seasons iinto syndication?

[Lady Iris]

Really too bad about the original music not being there but it sure is fun watching this first season. I wonder why the boys didn't get to go to Jamaica too. Sad how Kevin's anger still seems timely today 20+ years later.

Bittersweet seeing the Twin Towers though. No trashy sex or stupid drunken debauchery. Completely forgot how adorable Norman was, Julie had her pants tucked into her socks, normal high waisted jeans, Champion sweatshirts. Sigh, those were the days.

[Lantern7]

I was busy today. I would have liked to have seen Gouda. Sucks that Great Danes don't live that long. I wonder if Norman still likes that breed.

[Lady Iris]

Sweet Gouda and that little lost bug eyed dog they found were so sweet. I hope they keep these original seasons coming. I really need to see San Fran and Los Angeles.

[BK1978]

I did not watch the show at the time (My first season was Chicago) but holy crap from what I saw of it, it was boring.  I know at the time it was groundbreaking but this season did not age well.  I guess it is maybe because I am used to the crap that Reality TV has turned into and maybe that was why I found it boring.  That being said it was cool to see how different the show is compared to now (Well I have not really watched the current version of the show either.  The last full season I watched was Skeletons.).  Part of me was hoping that they would show the commercials from 1992 like they did when they showed MTV's first hour. 

I hope they show old seasons of the Challenge. 

[GreatKazu]

I so enjoy the original Real World.

Watching Kevin with that huge chip on his shoulder, and knowing now that he was an abuser to the females in his life at that period of time (something he admitted to years later), it was clear Julie was telling the truth about their "incident". Watching Kevin as he made those damn facial smirks, getting in her face and trying to twist it as if it was all Julie's fault for giving him "tone" on the phone, was so typical of what abusers do their victims. I knew it back then that there was something seriously wrong with him.  I had a gut feeling he was an abuser. He reminded me so much of someone I was in a relationship with for a long while.

Kevin turned almost every debate and argument into his own personal stance against the world and his perceptions that he was the victim 100 percent of the time. If he didn't get a job, it was because he was black. If he gets loud and defensive, it was because he is black and emotional since, according to his own words, all black people are emotional. Oh, and the one that made me laugh again during this marathon - black people cannot ever be racists. Only other people can be racist. 

[Lady Iris]

He was found to be a legit abuser? I never heard about that, gotta read up about that. What I always thought was funny about the Kevin/Julie kerfluffle was that nothing was ever played back or shown on cameras. I've never doubted Julie's story and I never understood why he wasn't bounced out on his ass for threatening to hit her. I always loved how Eric was sweet and attentive to her to cheer her up after that incident.

[Bastet]

I always thought Kevin was talking about personal prejudice vs. the institutional system that is racism.  (That argument went on for a very long time and we saw only portions of it, so I don't know, but from the little context we got and from what we had seen of Kevin, that was my sense.)

I remember reading that he admitted to and apologized for having physically abused at least one woman and engaged in other acts of misogyny in the past.  The memory is mostly lost to me know, but I vaguely recall it as honest piece of reflection that I was glad to come across - because there had been plenty to admire in his work and activism, but he was also clearly a raging asshole to and about women, so it was nice to see that he had recognized and was working to rectify that.

Edited August 9, 2016 by Bastet

[sunsheyen]

4 hours ago, Bastet said:

I always thought Kevin was talking about personal prejudice vs. the institutional system that is racism. 

 

Yes, because racism involves a system of power, whether explicitly used or systemic. Institutions do not exist that allow Black people to abuse or use others based on race. Those who do not have power (Black people, in this case) cannot be racist, but they can certainly be prejudiced.

It's good to see that he has continued some activist work. I did not know about his misogynistic and abusive behavior admissions, but I do not find them hard to believe.

Edited August 9, 2016 by sunsheyen

[Ubiquitous]

I caught part of this marathon and wow, that brought back some old memories! Was Julie on this season the Mormon or the original reality show "drama queen"?

 

Am I mistaken in remembering after the fact that Norman was gay?

[sunsheyen]

This is not Julie the Mormon. She was in New Orleans. Yes, Norman is gay.

[Lantern7]

In case you missed it, MTV Classic will be running a RW1 marathon tomorrow. No word as to whether they'll follow that up with three hours of The Grind.

[AndySmith]

I don't think Julie was the "drama queen". She was the original version of the Real World's "conservative comes to the big city and learns lots of stuff" trope, no?

[Decider]

New York Julie wasn't a drama queen.  She was more the country girl goes to the big city, from what I recall.  I don't even remember her being all that conservative.

[Lady Iris]

Real World season 2 in LA is going to be on so my dvr recorder says! Woot woot!

[editorgrrl]

On August 8, 2016 at 3:08 PM, Lady Iris said:

He was found to be a legit abuser? I never heard about that, gotta read up about that.

http://www.kevinpowell.net/men-can-stop-domestic-violence.php

Quote

My 1992 essay, "The Sexist in Me," launched a lifelong journey to "make it end" by addressing the ignorance, hatred and pain at the root of violence, transforming myself and educating others in the process. That piece described my pushing a then-girlfriend into a door in 1991. In later writings, I discussed my childhood of abuse, my adult violence against both males and females, my years of counseling and my conscious decision to change. I laid bare my healing process and took responsibility for my redemption. Though I stumbled on a few occasions into anger-driven beefs with other men in the years since that public confession, I never assaulted a woman again. Nor will I ever. Today I am an activist for women's issues, nonviolent conflict resolution, education and community empowerment.

[Sister Havana]

I just discovered that this season is available for free on Comcast On Demand through August 31! This makes me very happy. (I'm not sure if it's available on demand through other carriers - it might be.)

[Lantern7]

1. Spectrum has several RW1 episodes on demand.

2. I found this Kickstarter from Norman. Just figured you should know.

[snarts]

Available on Directv OnDemand too.

[giaNtsandYankees]

On 8/16/2016 at 12:33 AM, AndySmith said:

I don't think Julie was the "drama queen". She was the original version of the Real World's "conservative comes to the big city and learns lots of stuff" trope, no?

I agree that Julie didn't seem all that conservative. But she seemed to be the first "Young Christian virgin that goes to the city and gains experience" character that Jon (Los Angeles/Season 2), Cori (San Francisco/Season 3) even though we didn't see as much of it with her, Elka (Boston/Season 5) and Julie (New Orleans/Season 9). 

I'm currently re-watching Season One on MTV.com, and she definitely was not a "Drama Queen."

[Sister Havana]

MTV is going to show a mini-marathon of this season tomorrow, from 11am-2:30pm. They’re airing episodes 1-4 and 11-13, and the entire season is available to watch on the MTV website.

[Stinger97]

On 6/25/2020 at 9:45 PM, Sister Havana said:

MTV is going to show a mini-marathon of this season tomorrow, from 11am-2:30pm. They’re airing episodes 1-4 and 11-13, and the entire season is available to watch on the MTV website.

It also airs on one of the MTV channels on PlutoTV from time to time. I binged it one afternoon a couple of weeks ago for the umpteenth time in my life. 

Agreed with those saying that Julie was far from a drama queen. In fact, I don't know if any of them would deserve that moniker. Perhaps Kevin, as he certainly caused the most drama in the house, but his points were always valid and coming from a place of frustration rather than simply stirring shit for the fun of it. 

I recently started following Heather B. on Instagram. I loathe social media, but it's definitely great for keeping tabs on old reality show favorites! 

[Zima]

On 8/8/2016 at 1:58 AM, BK1978 said:

I did not watch the show at the time (My first season was Chicago) but holy crap from what I saw of it, it was boring.  I know at the time it was groundbreaking but this season did not age well.  I guess it is maybe because I am used to the crap that Reality TV has turned into and maybe that was why I found it boring.  That being said it was cool to see how different the show is compared to now (Well I have not really watched the current version of the show either.  The last full season I watched was Skeletons.).  Part of me was hoping that they would show the commercials from 1992 like they did when they showed MTV's first hour. 

I hope they show old seasons of the Challenge. 

I did watch it at the time, but I was like 11 or 12. I rewatched it recently, and while there were some highlights and likeable people, it was definitely boring as hell. Season 2 gets a lot better, and then Season 3 is far and away better. 

I'm sure everybody knows this by now, but you can watch a lot of the old seasons on CBS now, if you have an account.  They do not have every season, unfortunately, but they do have 1-4, and then if jumps to like 20. Lol. 

[ljenkins782]

On 8/16/2016 at 7:00 PM, Decider said:

New York Julie wasn't a drama queen.  She was more the country girl goes to the big city, from what I recall.  I don't even remember her being all that conservative.

Julie was the furthest thing from a drama queen. She (along with Norman) was the glue that kept that cast together, there were a lot of disparate personalities in the original RW house and I don't think they would have gotten along without her and Norman there to bridge the gap. The lack of an amiable person like Julie and Norman in the LA cast contributed to the tension on that season, there was no one that everyone could relate to. 

I'd put NY1 Julie up there with Kelly Clarkson on AI1 as the fortunate finds that launched a dynasty. AI1 had a lot of plastic pageant people and eventually it came down to the girl that Simon Cowell literally couldn't remember who won the public vote. Same with Julie, she was so unassuming and so unconcerned with things like her appearance, but she related to every single person in that house in her own way and it disarmed some of the pricklier personalities in the house who would have probably fought the whole time if people like her and Norman weren't there. As I said before, the LA season really suffered for a lack of such a person and I think if that had come first, RW may not have taken off the way it did. 

She and Kevin did have that fight, but before that and after that, they connected. I did find it creepy that he was so obsessed with her virginity, that was the only cloud over the otherwise hilarious episode where they all switched personalities. 

[Pickles Aplenty]

Well.  The first time this season aired I was ten years old, and I probably shouldn't have been watching TRW, but I did anyway.  Rewatching this season as a 40 year old gave me a wildly different perspective, needless to say.  I still liked everybody, for the most part.  I felt a lot of sympathy for Kevin Powell, even though I know he had his own issues he had to confront and wasn't perfect.  Still, he basically tried to explain systemic racism to a houseful of white people (excluding Heather, of course), and they wouldn't even entertain the fact that it existed.  That had to be have been extremely frustrating for him.  I can see why maybe he needed space and didn't spend as much time in the house.

Random observation, but Bill the director- the guy Becky hooked up with, who lost his job- is/was not appealing to me.  There is just something smarmy about the way he looked that put me off.  IDK, he could be a perfectly nice guy, but I got sleazy vibes from him.

[choclatechip45]

I've been rewatching this season the first six episodes were really slow and around episode 7 the pacing really picks up. 

[moonchild81]

on one of norman's insta stories lars from real world london was in it / he posted a clip on his page too

Edited September 7, 2021 by moonchild81

[cruzinsp8]

Does anyone have recorded copies of season 1?  I would like to get my hands on recorded episodes with the original music, not the DVD/Streaming versions out now with the original music stripped out.  I don't care if it's VHS recordings.  I would pay to get my hands on these.

[LemonSoda]

16 hours ago, cruzinsp8 said:

Does anyone have recorded copies of season 1? I'd love to see those with all of the original music. 

Me too! I keep hoping a skilled fan or fans can do for us RW junkies what Daria fans did with the Restoration project. The music really enhances and made so many moments 

[Hiyo]

The New York 1.0 segment from the 1995 Real World Reunion Special.

 

[Bastet]

@Asp Burger asked in another thread if the early seasons available on Paramount+ (which is NY, LA, SF, and London) have the original music, and I said the answer was yes in the case of London.  Well, now I've started in on NY, and I am sad to report the answer for that season is no.  There is godsawful generic music (no lyrics) instead.  It's distracting, and I'd have rather they gone with no score at all than this crap.  Pony up, people!

I am still enjoying watching, though, so soon after watching their "Homecoming" reunion.  I remember after the show aired, the other cast members pointed out producers chose to disproportionately focus on Julie and Eric, and that is glaringly true in the episodes I have re-watched so far.  It's nice that didn't come up as a point of contention during "Homecoming", since it doesn't seem Julie and Eric asked for it or manipulated in the hopes of getting more of their footage aired; that's the decision producers made.