S31: Terry Deitz

[Skeeter22]

The Gary "I'm not Gary Hogeboom" Hogeboom saga is my favorite Survivor subplot. When he admits that he went to Central Michigan, also Gary Hogeboom's alma mater, but still denies being the former quarterback, it starts to feel more like an absurdist comedy than real life. I wish he'd gotten a second chance.

[fishcakes]

What really made that storyline for me was the confessional he gave about how he could lie and scheme and it wouldn't matter because once the game was over, they'd never find him because they'd be looking for Gary Hawkins, Landscaper. It seemed to genuinely never occur to him that the game was being televised or that the other players might possibly watch it.

[LadyChatts]

I had forgotten about that!  I do remember that look on his face when Danni outed him during that challenge (I don't believe she knew that he was keeping his identity a secret, but I can't remember).  One thing about Guatemala, despite being the first season to introduce the HII, I seriously always forget about it.  It seemed to gain more relevance for me once it was hidden on EI for those next few seasons.

[KimberStormer]

I liked Gary for being a celebrity stuntcast who came to play, like Lisa and Jeff Kent from Philippines.

 

The reason his HII was forgettable was because it sucked and was almost useless.  It had to be played before the votes, and acted like having the immunity necklace for one tribal.  No surprise was possible, all it did was buy him one more week.

[ByaNose]

Terry seems very happy with his new tribe especially with Joey Amazing (who coined that name?) and, has a new lease on life. With Terry and Joe as the muscle the tribe might be able to make it to the merge. Of course, Kelley has a immunity Idol and seems ready to throw Terry under a speeding train at a given moment which might derail his plans of being the sole Survivor. Things could get really interesting in the next few episodes.

[KimberStormer]

Thought we were headed for a Terry boot today what with all his confident talk about how he can't lose.  Oh well, a girl can dream. 

[LadyChatts]

Terry seems very happy with his new tribe especially with Joey Amazing (who coined that name?) and, has a new lease on life. With Terry and Joe as the muscle the tribe might be able to make it to the merge. Of course, Kelley has a immunity Idol and seems ready to throw Terry under a speeding train at a given moment which might derail his plans of being the sole Survivor. Things could get really interesting in the next few episodes.

 

The first time I heard it was last season in a Max post boot interview.  He said he was looking ahead at one target and that target was someone he called "Joey Amazing".  Then I noticed it popping up in other interviews when Joe got booted, and it seemed to stick.

 

Tonight reminded me of why I never liked Terry in the first place.  Of course he'd wind up with the best tribe after the swap.

[seasick]

This says it was Gary Hogeboom (NFL player and landscaper, among other things listed there).  

 

http://survivor.wikia.com/wiki/Hidden_Immunity_Idol

 

It tells when he finds it and plays it, if it'll save you some rewatching, seasick.

Thanks Winston!

[ByaNose]

Good win by Terry. He didn't get too much airtime since they won the Hero Challenge & the Immunity Challenge. He looked awesome during the Hero Challenge and really looked the Terry of old but was younger. LOL!!!

[ProfCrash]

From Jeff's interview: http://my.xfinity.com/blogs/tv/2015/10/15/survivor-castaway-jeff-andrew-and-tasha-were-the-rats/

 

 

"Holmes: You were buddies with Kelley Wentworth before the game, but we never saw the two of you together. Could you have pulled her into that first vote to keep the numbers and boot Spencer?
Varner: She wasn’t having it. Terry’s social game was so bad those first three days. He pissed off all the women. Terry was in trouble. Shirin was targeting Terry first. Wentworth and I were talking a lot. We had everything together. Had she and I lasted longer we would have been really dangerous together. Kelley was that person on the side that we decided as a foursome to go get. She didn’t know about my foursome and I didn’t tell them about her. I was keeping it close to my vest.
Holmes: What was Terry doing to upset the women?
Varner: There was one time Abi was reading the first immunity challenge clue and her English is a little broken. So, she was struggling and jumping and Terry grabbed the paper and said, “Let somebody who speaks English read it.” And all of the sudden all of the eyes swing around to Terry. And Shirin is pissed and Wentworth is pissed. Then Terry goes to Peih-Gee and says, “You can be our number seven.” He offered her this really horrible deal. Things that you’d think a seasoned “Survivor” player wouldn’t do, Terry did."

Yeah, so Terry is playing a great social game. ummhmmmm

[kikaha]

I don't quite trust everything Varner says in the interview.  He says how much he loves Terry, but is happy to dish on his foibles and miscues.  Tasha is a "bitch" (Varner's words, more than once), but he loves her too. 

 

I feel he IS bitter.  Somehow those two outsiders (Tasha and Savage) -- who should have been easy marks after the shuffle -- flipped the switch on the power scale, and put him on the bottom. 

 

I also think Jeff ended up playing a pretty shitty game.  He got booted 4th, and was fortunate not to get booted 3rd.  He created his own problems, painting himself into more than one corner, by not being subtle enough... getting caught redhanded strategizing with people outside his tribe... and apparently bad-mouthing a goodly portion of his alliance when Tasha and the others busted him. 

 

For sure he was entertaining.  I thought he showed promise the first episode.  He quickly blew it after that, though, and like PG, pretty much got himself tossed.  Based on this season (I have no memory of him from his first), he looks to me like a deeply flawed player. 

[ProfCrash]

So Shirin, Peih Gee and Jeff saying the same thing is not evidence of Terry making some really dumb statements and moves?

 

I think that Jeff is one of the straight shooters with no filter who says what he thinks. He does not like how Tasha uses God to explain everything happening in her life and does not take ownership of her own short comings. He was pretty specific as to what his real problem with Tasha is. He gave some specific examples of how Terry was screwing up his social game at the beginning of the season but he says it in a laughing manner. The ton of his criticism for Tasha and Terry is different. He points to Terry's poor social play as to why he couldn't form an early alliance with Kelley and that is all. And his examples are exactly what we have heard from Shirin and Peih Gee.

 

It is possible for someone who was booted early to point to some of the ridiculous stuff someone else did. Jeff allied with Terry for a reason and seems to like him. He can still point to his social blunders. The same social blunders that Terry made in the past.

From what others have said, his comments about Tasha mirror what people from Cagayan have said about Tasha in the past.

[Skeeter22]

I think Jeff's comments on Terry highlight Jeff's honesty. He clearly loves Terry, but has no problem acknowledging Terry's flaws. I think the only person who held a grudge against Terry was Shirin. I'm not sure why she was surprised he didn't want to work with her. She was gunning for him pre-game.

[ljenkins782]

I don't quite trust everything Varner says in the interview.  He says how much he loves Terry, but is happy to dish on his foibles and miscues.

 

So Shirin, Peih Gee and Jeff saying the same thing is not evidence of Terry making some really dumb statements and moves?

 

I think that Jeff is one of the straight shooters with no filter who says what he thinks. He does not like how Tasha uses God to explain everything happening in her life and does not take ownership of her own short comings. He was pretty specific as to what his real problem with Tasha is. He gave some specific examples of how Terry was screwing up his social game at the beginning of the season but he says it in a laughing manner. The ton of his criticism for Tasha and Terry is different. He points to Terry's poor social play as to why he couldn't form an early alliance with Kelley and that is all. And his examples are exactly what we have heard from Shirin and Peih Gee.

 

It is possible for someone who was booted early to point to some of the ridiculous stuff someone else did. Jeff allied with Terry for a reason and seems to like him. He can still point to his social blunders. The same social blunders that Terry made in the past.

From what others have said, his comments about Tasha mirror what people from Cagayan have said about Tasha in the past.

I can believe that Terry did all of those things, it sounds very much like the ham-fisted social approach he had his last time out where we got to watch him for almost the entire game. 

 

His excitement at having a "social game" when he managed to catch the right side of Abi's mood tells me that he's not all that comfortable with the social element. 

 

I know some of them are actively trying to improve their social games, but for those who don't have a ton of natural social skills, it doesn't always work out. And Terry doesn't seem all that gifted in the social arena. 

[ProfCrash]

It sounds like Terry's initial interactions were pretty close to how Shirin thought he had been portrayed in his first season. He can be added to the growing list of people who really have not changed their game from their first season to this season. It sounds like Kelley and Peih Gee approached him to work with him and he wrote them off, which ties back into how he played his first season.

[kikaha]

I recall Varner tweeting a few weeks ago that treemailgate was much ado (on the internet) about nothing.  Now his story has changed.  I just find it hard to believe a lot of what he is saying.  It's too self-contradictory.  Like Shirin, who he apparently adores, and with whom he spent a fair amount of time after getting booted, I think he's doing a lot CYA/historical revisionism. 

[ProfCrash]

Jeff tweeted that it happened. He was the first person to confirm it. Abi appears to get along well with Terry and so I don't think there was bad blood from the treemail. His later tweet on it is more likely a reference to the fact that it didn't end up offending Abi.

[ByaNose]

http://s3.amazonaws.com/img.goldderby.com/images/1443032464_survivor-Terry-Deitz-now-then.jpg

I saw this picture and was fascinated by it. Terry really is Dorian Gray. He hasn't aged. I'll drink whatever water he's drinking.

[LadyChatts]

Next to Monica's blindside, my second favorite moment of the episode was Terry feeling on top of the world thanks to Ta'Keo's winning streak, and skipping off to the "grocery store" for fish-leaving his tribe behind to form a 5 person alliance that doesn't include him.  I wonder if he's doing as good a job at throwing Kelley under the bus as she is him.  

[pennben]

That's so Terry, though!!  Terry tells us he's on top of the world, we see that Terry is wrong, we get befuddled/angry/sad-faced Terry at tribal.....we were only missing the last bit here!

Edited October 23, 2015 by pennben

[ProfCrash]

Rob Has a Podcast has an interesting conversation about Terry and his position in the game. It is about minute 24 in the T-Bird podcast.

 

I think that they are ignoring that Terry told Kelley and Peih Gee that they would be sixth in his alliance at different times. There was no reason to work with him.

[NutMeg]

That's so Terry, though!!  Terry tells us he's on top of the world, we see that Terry is wrong, we get befuddled/angry/sad-faced Terry at tribal.....we were only missing the last bit here!

This made me think that if you replace "Terry" by "Wile E. Coyote" and "at tribal" by "30 seconds later", it still works!

[ByaNose]

I felt sad and happy for Terry all at once. I'm sad he had to leave game because he's such a competitor and I wanted to see how he would do in the challenges. And, I'm happy for Terry that he could get home to be with his wife and son. He seems like such a cool guy with awesome family and life. I can't say it enough. He's an airplane pilot. So cool. LOL!!!!

[LanceM]

Here is an update on Terry's son.

 

 

[LadyChatts]

I don't like Terry, and I don't care to see him return again (if that's an option).  But I really felt for him.  Like I said in the episode thread, I can't begin to imagine the feeling and being half way around the world from your home with that news, I would have a hard time keeping it together.  I am glad Danny is doing well and hope he continues the road to recovery.  

[kikaha]

If Terry had not gotten pulled, how would he have done the rest of the game?  Pretty sure he makes merge.  He didn't look to have a strong alliance, which would normally make him vulnerable.  But unlike his first season there are lots of other targets out there, and with the shuffles the alliance picture is pretty muddied.

 

He could not strategize his way to the end.  I wonder if he could float/win his way there, though.  Or would he get booted the moment he didn't hold an idol in his hand? 

[phlebas]

Terry and his son look identical except for the age difference.  It's like they were twins and one got hit by an accidental Mitt Romney ray.

 

Good luck to the Dietzen. I never got any full-on hate for Terry, since most of that was absorbed by Shane in their season.  I was amused this time around that he (and Spencer) both had to keep consciously reminding themselves to feign interest in the nearby illogical meatbags.

[Jersey Guy 87]

I thought Terry's update at the end of the show was done very well.  I know he wanted to compete in his "second chance" but he knew what he had to do and didn't hesitate at all.  I'm guessing he's done with Survivor at this point.

[Daisy]

If Terry had not gotten pulled, how would he have done the rest of the game?  Pretty sure he makes merge.  He didn't look to have a strong alliance, which would normally make him vulnerable.  But unlike his first season there are lots of other targets out there, and with the shuffles the alliance picture is pretty muddied.

 

He could not strategize his way to the end.  I wonder if he could float/win his way there, though.  Or would he get booted the moment he didn't hold an idol in his hand? 

 

 

I fully believe had Terry not been pulled out - he's gone. (had TaKeo gone to tribal council). 

 

I'm glad his son is okay

[ProfCrash]

I see people suggesting that Terry and Danny play in a blood vs water season. Yeah, no. The drugs that Danny will be taking for the rest of his life will probably prevent him from ever playing Survivor. The risk of rejection is pretty damn high even years after the transplant. Terry has an interview with Gordon Holmes that discusses Danny's future.

 

http://my.xfinity.com/blogs/tv/2015/10/29/survivor-castaway-terry-dannys-heart-is-pumping-like-a-champ/

 

"Deitz: Yeah, but the way things are with research and development…the type of rejection drugs that are not only good for his heart, but good for his system are right around the corner. Twenty five, thirty, forty years down the line when he needs another transplant, it’s probably going to be a mechanical heart where there is no rejection. Or they build a new heart out of his own stem cells.
Holmes: So, he’ll need another heart transplant in the future?
Deitz: Yes. It all comes down to the match and how well the body gets along with the new heart. And a lot of them can get along for a long time."

[Skeeter22]

Terry's interviews are really fascinating. I know production, especially Jeff, gets a lot of well-deserved criticism, but it's nice to hear how they stepped up to help Terry and his family.

[Jersey Guy 87]

Terry's interviews are really fascinating. I know production, especially Jeff, gets a lot of well-deserved criticism, but it's nice to hear how they stepped up to help Terry and his family.

 

I've only read the Gordon Holmes interview (linked above) but yeah, Survivor really stepped up for Terry here.  Excellent job making sure he got back to his family as quickly as possible.  And Terry's perspective on everything still seems to be right on.

[ljenkins782]

 

Terry and his son look identical except for the age difference.  It's like they were twins and one got hit by an accidental Mitt Romney ray.

Lol, that made me laugh. Perfect description. That is one good-looking kid, that shot of him in a hospital bed looked like a modeling shot. 

 

Have they said whether this was a previously unknown condition? I know heart conditions can be undetected for years and years, what an extra terrible thing if this happened completely without warning while Terry was halfway around the world. 

[Guest]

It sounds like they knew about the condition but only since spring.

http://www.courant.com/community/simsbury/hc-danny-deitz-simsbury-heart-transplant-0911-20150910-story.html

 

Or not.  Terry says not in that Holmes interview.  I guess 'spring' means right after the spring season finale.  

 

Gordon Holmes: You guys took us on a roller coaster last night. Did you know Danny had any issues before you took off for Cambodia?
Terry Deitz: Not at all. The day before we were out on the astroturf throwing bombs and he was like, “I’m a little short of breath.” I’m like, “Don’t worry about it. You’re probably out of shape from lacrosse or whatever.” Two days after I left, everything in his system started breaking down. He was throwing up. Cold, they thought he had bronchitis. The last thing she got him was an echocardiogram. It’s like an ultrasound for the heart. From that they can tell what your ejection fraction is. That’s the percentage of blood coming out of your heart. We walk around with a 50-65. He had an ejection fraction of eight. The doctor comes running back into the room. He says, “Mrs. Deitz, you’re not going on vacation. I just called 911. An ambulance is coming to take your son.” He went to Hartford Hospital, they wanted him to see a specialist. They put him in an ambulance immediately and took him to Boston Children’s Hospital. They’re the best children’s hospital in the world. And thank God they did. He shouldn’t have been walking. They had doctors coming in the room just to look at him. “There’s the kid with the EF eight.” There are athletes who have enlarged hearts and fall down on the field and never get up. Fortunately my wife got him a bunch of checkups because nobody was catching it. And all of this is going on while I’m doing challenges in Cambodia.

 

Edited October 29, 2015 by Guest

[fishcakes]

Lol, that made me laugh. Perfect description. That is one good-looking kid, that shot of him in a hospital bed looked like a modeling shot. 

 

Have they said whether this was a previously unknown condition? I know heart conditions can be undetected for years and years, what an extra terrible thing if this happened completely without warning while Terry was halfway around the world. 

 

I think Danny looks like a model too. He's got great bone structure in his face and when his hair is longer, he's kind of working a young Johnny Depp thing (21 Jump Street era Depp, not giant pile of homemade knitted scarves Depp).

 

Jeff tweeted this video this morning that talks about how Danny and his family found out about his condition. It seems they've known he was sick for a few months, but didn't know exactly what or how serious it was at first.

 

[Artsda]

Really glad Terry's son is doing well and got his transplant.

 

That is one good-looking kid, that shot of him in a hospital bed looked like a modeling shot.

 

I can see why Boston Childrens used Danny for that commerical spot. He's young handsome all american football kid.

Edited October 29, 2015 by Artsda

[legaleagle53]

Boy, watching that last video brought back memories of my own heart problems over the past few years and what it took to fix them (two pacemakers, a defibrillator, and a stent).  Danny is one lucky kid, and I'm glad to see that he's doing OK.

[phlebas]

My impression from the scene where Jeff pulls Terry from the game is that Terry knew what was up.  And when Terry told everyone else his son was in the hospital, no one said "for what?"  Made me think Terry had talked about his son previously. (If so, that would have been a more interesting thing to share than the bit about how Savage loves his hot wife.)

 

I know the details could have been edited out, but that was my impression based on what we saw.

[pennben]

Your impression is wrong.  See this interview from Gordon Holmes (ETA: whoops, same one as Winston9 posted above, apologies Winston) for a more detailed timeline and fuller story of all that happened.  In pertinent part:

 

 

Q:  Did you know Danny had any issues before you took off for Cambodia?

 

Not at all.  The day before ]we were out on the astroturf throwing bombs and he was like, “I’m a little short of breath.” I’m like, “Don’t worry about it. You’re probably out of shape from lacrosse or whatever.” Two days after I left, everything in his system started breaking down. He was throwing up. Cold, they thought he had bronchitis. The last thing she got him was an echocardiogram. It’s like an ultrasound for the heart. From that they can tell what your ejection fraction is. That’s the percentage of blood coming out of your heart. We walk around with a 50-65. He had an ejection fraction of eight. The doctor comes running back into the room. He says, “Mrs. Deitz, you’re not going on vacation. I just called 911. An ambulance is coming to take your son.” He went to Hartford Hospital, they wanted him to see a specialist. They put him in an ambulance immediately and took him to Boston Children’s Hospital. They’re the best children’s hospital in the world. And thank God they did. He shouldn’t have been walking. They had doctors coming in the room just to look at him. “There’s the kid with the EF eight.” There are athletes who have enlarged hearts and fall down on the field and never get up. Fortunately my wife got him a bunch of checkups because nobody was catching it. And all of this is going on while I’m doing challenges in Cambodia.

 

From other interviews I've read, his son didn't end up in the hospital until several weeks after he left.  In other words, as Terry has indicated in interviews, he was notified almost as soon as his son was admitted with a previously unknown heart condition that could have killed him.

Edited October 30, 2015 by pennben

[ProfCrash]

http://robhasawebsite.com/survivor-2015-cambodia-exit-interview-terry-deitz-voted-yung-woo-hwang-out-podcast-cbs/

 

Rob Has a Podcast has a full interview with Terry. It is the only one I have seen/heard that actually discusses the game and not just Danny.

 

On Danny: Terry said that Danny was initially diagnosed with bronchitis and given a Z pack and an inhaler because he had crap in his lungs. The bronchitis like symptoms never cleared, he was having trouble walking up stairs and started having stomach issues. Trish, Terry's wife, took him back to the pediatrician and they saw the enlarged heart on the x-ray to check the lungs.

 

Terry said that the fact that Trish would not allow Danny to play lacrosse when he was sick saved his life.

 

Terry did not get the details on what was up until he was on the boat and they had cut filming. All he knew was it was Danny and that his wife and the Doctors were saying that Terry had to go home and had to go home now. What he told the players is what he knew at that time.

 

And to be frank, in that moment there are not a lot of questions to ask. Just say good bye and let the dude go to take care of his family.

 

Terry's description of how Production handled this is pretty great. They sent the lead Psychiatrist that is out there to support people home with him. She went all the way to the hospital with him so that he had support the entire trip home. They made sure that there was a car waiting for him to take him to the hospital so that no one in his family had to worry about anything.

Edited October 30, 2015 by ProfCrash

[phlebas]

Your impression is wrong. 

Fair enough. I was just going on what we saw on TV.

[pennben]

Fair enough. I was just going on what we saw on TV.

 

Sorry, I was harsh with that and you didn't deserve it.  I've just seen someone in another thread taking Terry to task and saying he had no business going on the show when his son was waiting for a heart transplant, and others had thoughts to that effect.  I was reacting more to that, and put it on you. That was wrong of me. I apologize.

Edited October 30, 2015 by pennben

[phlebas]

No worries!  It's true I did absolutely no research into any of the backstory :) I had a brother-in-law who was on the wait list for a heart-lung transplant and had been for more than a year.  Everyone pretty much got on with their lives as usual, knowing in the backs of their minds that they could get The Call any second.  I assumed it was a similar thing with Danny, so it would make sense for Terry to just live his life and just coincidentally happened to be in Cambodia at the wrong time.

[Stinamaia]

My impression from the scene where Jeff pulls Terry from the game is that Terry knew what was up.  And when Terry told everyone else his son was in the hospital, no one said "for what?"  Made me think Terry had talked about his son previously. (If so, that would have been a more interesting thing to share than the bit about how Savage loves his hot wife.)

 

I know the details could have been edited out, but that was my impression based on what we saw.

I think the lack his questioning might have been due to his pilot training. During an emergency pilots are taught to cut any chatter and deal only with the immediate -- salient information only. For Terry, the salient information was both his wife and he doctor said come home. Other information could be relayed later. Probably knowing his son had been feeling under the weather was enough. Think how many times you've heard pilots sound calm and composed under intense pressure. It's a learned response to emergency. That is how I took Terry's demeanor during his leave taking.

[ProfCrash]

Agreed. Probst actually comments that Terry's military training kicked in and their was no question what to do and lets get on with it.

[phlebas]

Sure, but I think Kass' and Keith's military training was less intense :)

 

I suppose they were just too surprised by Jeff being there in the middle of the night to ask WTF was up. Or maybe I'm just unbearably rude in these situations and can't stop myself from asking. Not sure which is more likely :)

[Guest]

I wonder too if they're all pre-coached on "Whenever Jeff is on scene, you only speak when directly asked a question by him."  There is very little free talking anytime they're filming with Jeff.  

[SunDevil28]

I read that Terry said there was a limit as to how much they could say while cameras were rolling because of HIPAA laws.  Not sure if it was because Danny's doctor couldn't tell Jeff much because of HIPAA, and therefore Jeff didn't have any details for Terry, or if Jeff did know, but they couldn't talk about it on camera without Danny's or Terry's written permission.

[ProfCrash]

Sun Devil, yup that is my guess. I don't know that Probst was told much. It is possible that he did not talk to Trish and was simply the messenger. I seriously doubt that the Doctors talked to anyone involved with Production. All that Production needed to hear was that there was a serious medical crisis and Terry needed to leave. I do think that they did not show any of Terry's conversations with Trish because of privacy reasons.

 

I don't know how HIPPA works but I am assuming it restricts information sharing by your medical professionals and not what Terry could say to his tribe mates.

[Stinamaia]

Definitely true about HIPPA.   

 

There's no reason to distrust Terry's explanation that he did not know what was wrong until he was able to talk to his wife.   Whether production or Probst knew more details is primarily speculation.  Even if Probst knew it was a heart problem,  at the time he spoke to Terry, he did not know what the outcome would be so in that case discretion is the best for the family, and second, he should not have risked given garbled information to Terry.  It was better that Terry spoke with his wife because whatever Probst said, Terry could not be satisfied until he spoke directly with his wife.  I thought Probst did a good job considering the circumstance.