Man Oh Man, Two New Series Make May Man-Tastic on Vh1  5/18/05

Man Oh Man! Two New Series Premieres Make May 'Man-Tastic' on VH1 'Kept' Starring Jerry Hall and 'Strip Search' Premiere on VH1 Sunday May 29 @ 9PM* and 10PM*

NEW YORK, May 18 /PRNewswire/ -- From turning slobs into gentleman and regular guys into the greatest dancers, VH1 has two new series that will separate the men from the boys.

First up is "Kept" with Jerry Hall. Jerry is no mere "bachelorette" looking for random reality television love. This wealthy, self-confident jet-setting supermodel from Texas is searching for an ideal younger man to be the perfect accessory to her life of luxury. Ms. Hall will play "Pygmalion" as she creates the model of a "kept" man suitable to a woman of her stature. The lucky paramour who ultimately fills the mold and is chosen by Jerry will be a "kept" man for a year. He will enjoy the trappings of Jerry's good life: including a six-figure allowance.

Premiering Sunday, May 29 at 9:00 p.m., a group of 12, diverse, unformed, mounds of "man-clay" are shipped to London and dropped in the middle of Jerry Hall's lush life. Jerry will run the men through the rigors of her glittering, whirlwind existence with the goal of molding the perfect "kept" man. Moving from London to Paris, Jerry's bevy of "A" list family and friends will be on hand each week to help her narrow the playing field from twelve to the "one." Amidst the fierce competition, viewers will have an exclusive glimpse inside the inner world of "the rock and the wealthy" that is Jerry Hall's life.

*all times ET/PT

Then at 10:00 p.m., the "Strip Search" begins. 15 men from all walks of life are throwing off the shackles of the typical workday with the hopes of winning one of seven spots in a male revue dance troupe in Las Vegas. With the help of Billy Cross, creator/producer of the internationally acclaimed male dance troupe "The Thunder from Down Under," along with VH1's Rachel Perry, these men are stripped of their awkwardness and rebuilt into hunky, lovable dance machines.

Billy and Rachel first scour the nation to find the 15 most wholesome, light-hearted, boy-next-door types who put the "gent" in genteel but at the same time can turn up the heat once on stage. All 15 men are brought together to live in a house in Los Angeles where they train, diet, groom and most importantly rehearse their smooth moves. One by one these men are eliminated by Billy based on how quickly and easily they learn the choreography, how they fare during various challenges, how they work as a team, and whether they have that 'je ne sais quoi' that Billy thinks can wow a crowd night after night. As tensions run high in the house, viewers will see that competing for a spot in a male revue requires more then just washboard abs and killer moves. The competition proves harder than the men expected as only 7 will achieve the success they've always dreamed of with a lucrative contract to appear on the Vegas stage.

After the May 29th premiere, both "Kept" and "Strip Search" will move into their regular weekly timeslots beginning on Thursday, June 2nd with "Kept" at 9:00 p.m. and "Strip Search at 10:00 p.m.

Viewers can log on to VH1.com for more on "Kept" and "Strip Search:"

"Kept"

http://www.vh1.com/shows/dyn/kept/series.jhtml

"Strip Search"

http://www.vh1.com/shows/dyn/strip_search/series.jhtml

"Kept" is executive produced for VH1 by Michael Hirschorn, Kim Rozenfeld, Brandon Riegg, and Sam Korkis, Julio Kollerbohm, Mark Ganshirt, Debbie Adler Myers.

"Strip Search" is a production of VH1 in conjunction with Pilgrim Films and Television, Screentime Pty Ltd and Distraction Formats. Craig Piligian serves as executive producer, Andrea Richter serves as co-executive producer and Sandi Johnson serves as Supervising Producer for Pilgrim Films, Des Monaghan serves as consultant for Screentime. Matt Hanna, Michael Hirschorn and Jim Ackerman are executive producers for VH1. SOURCE VH1

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