Courtland High graduate Adam Gentry makes it to tonight's "Survivor: Cook Islands" finale on CBS; then gets slammed by MSNBC

Date published: 12/17/2006

By MICHAEL ZITZ

Former Courtland High School basketball star Adam Gentry has made it to tonight's "Survivor: Cook Island" finale, but that isn't earning him any respect from one of the top reality-TV bloggers.

MSNBC.com is handicapping the chances of the remaining five castaways. Gentry not only did not fare well, but was kicked around hard.

Andy Dehnart, who writes "Reality Blurred," a daily summary of reality TV news, was brutal to Gentry in predicting the outcome for MSNBC .com.

"He's the next logical person to go," Dehnart writes. "However, he's been the next logical person to go for a few weeks now. The alliance has kept Adam around in large part because he seems incompetent and dumb."

At least Gentry doesn't have to ask Dehnart what he really thinks.

"His greatest strength, it seems, has been flirting with women on his original tribe," Dehnart continues. "That's worked for him and kept him in the game this long."

" But if he keeps performing so poorly and appearing to be such a minimal threat, he could be carried along until it's too late for the others to get rid of him, and that could be the best strategy of all," Dehnart writes.

The hunky Gentry, 28-year-old former Spotsylvanian who now lives in San Diego and works as a model and copier salesman, has become a bit of an Internet sex symbol because of the show.

The Web was abuzz with chatter when Candice Woodcock, a Georgetown University grad student, was voted off the show and gave Gentry a passionate parting kiss.

But Woodcock told TVGuide.com there won't be any relationship between her and Gentry off the island.

"We are very different people and very different personalities," she said. "In the game, you have only a few people to choose from to work with, and we got along, and he trusted me. I don't know why he decided to trust me, but he did, and I knew that, and I knew he wasn't going to turn his back on me, and that's a great thing to have in a game."

Gentry, who headed to Virginia Tech after high school, has lived in San Diego since 2002.

His mother, Beth Gentry, still lives and works locally.

To reach MICHAEL ZITZ: 540/374-5408
Email: mikez@freelancestar.com

WANT TO WATCH? WHAT: "Survivor: Cook Island" finale WHEN: The two-hour special airs at 8 p.m. WHERE: CBS WHAT: 'Survivor: Cook Island' finale WHEN: The two-hour special airs at 8 p.m. WHERE: CBS

Date published: 12/17/2006