- Scott Alex, age 27 - From Toledo, OH; living in Newport Beach, CA
- Lisa Anderson, age 24 - From Campbellsville, KY; living in Venice, CA
Episode code#1314; Filmed in Los Angeles, CA in late 1989
Background:
I did not audition for this show. My roommate auditioned. She was nervous, so I went with her to the taping. Once there, she went in the back and I found a chair in a waiting area. Later, I heard a flurry of activity. A few people raced by and looked in at me. Eventually, a woman came and sit beside me. She introduced herself (no idea who she was now) and asked if I wanted to be on the show. I said "No". She asked 'Why?'. I told her that I didn't like the show. She asked, 'Why?'.
Love Connection always showed the dates as either a 'love' or 'hate' (or smart/stupid; fun/boring; promiscuous/ prude; etc) connection. I told the woman that I did not want to have to pretend I was gaga over a guy or trash him based on a first date. I thought that was unkind and that wasn't my style.
She left, came back and told me that a girl didn't show up for her taping and they needed a girl to tape right away. She said they were in a bind and asked me to help them out. I said "No".
She left and returned saying that the studio would be open to a compromise, regarding my area of concern, if I happened to be selected. She told me that I probably would not be selected, so this issue would never come up. I mentioned that would not go on a date or be on the show, if they did not honor this agreement. She agreed and wrote it down.
I did the taping with zero preparation. An interviewer asks random questions and selects a snip to air (I have no idea what the guy sees).
I got a call that I was selected about a week or two later (it was very fast). I was only told that the guy who selected me was named Scott and that he would be calling me soon. I mentioned the agreement. The person said they remembered, so I agreed to go on the date.
The date was a mess from the beginning, but since I thought Scott was going to stand me up initially, I had no expectations. It became fun watching him try to recover from all the mistakes and awkwardness. He was, genuinely, a nice fun guy who seemed completely lost in the world of dating.
After the date, Scott knew I had prime mud to sling if I wanted to and seemed disappointed that things didn't go better. We agreed not trash each other on TV.
The studio called to get the details on the date the next day. After they heard my story, they tried to convince me that Scott was a complete goofball or idiot and it would make for a good TV segment. I said 'No'.
I was told that they talked to Scott already and he had plenty to say about me. They gave me an example of something twisted out of context, so I knew they were already scripting the show to be negative. I didn't take the bait.
I was told that this wasn't 'Friend Connection', so I had to either talk love or trash-talk; and since Scott was going to talk trash about me, I needed to defend myself. I said "No" and mentioned that the studio made an agreement with me in this area. When I was told that the studio doesn't make those kinds of agreement. I said 'Goodbye' and hung up.
They called me back later and proposed that I agree to go out on another date with Scott (give him a second chance for a disastrous date). I agreed.
Scott and I became friends. We talked on the phone from time to time and he'd drop by whenever he was in my part of LA.
However - we never went on our second date, so . . . if anyone knows where Scott Alex is today -- tell him he still owes me $75 (he was given $150 for our second date)! haha
(Note: The girl that didn't show up for the original taping was my roommate. She chickened-out and left the studio. I found her waiting in the car after my taping.)