Did "Survivor" Lunch Lady Lie to Swipe $50K?

Posted Dec 18th 2007 12:57PM by TMZ Staff

The "Survivor: China" lunch lady who said she'd been demoted to "cleaning toilets" by her school, and got $50,000 of sympathy cash from the show because of her story, is having her tale flushed out -- by the school.

As EW.com reported yesterday, Douglas, Mass. School Superintendent Nancy T. Lane said in a statement that Denise Martin actually got promoted from "cafeteria employee" to "custodian" -- at a higher salary and with better benefits before she appeared on "Survivor." Lane says, "I watched my own jaw drop when [Martin] said that, because it's absolutely not true."

Today, Martin appeared with Lane on CBS' "The Early Show," and apologized profusely for what she said, though she stopped short of admitting that she'd lied to get the money, and won't give back the $50K. Mark Burnett Productions didn't return a call for comment, though CBS said yesterday, "If these statements were misleading or false, we hope that she will take immediate and public steps to clarify her remarks."

Now, how about a nice big helping of that tasty Sloppy Joe?!



Filed under: TV, Wacky & Weird, Reality TV


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1. UGLY

Posted at 12:27PM on Dec 18th 2007 by NADIA

2. funny!!

Posted at 12:27PM on Dec 18th 2007 by okay

3. What a b*tch. I actually believed her. They should fire her mullet a**

Posted at 12:28PM on Dec 18th 2007 by sheesh

4. What a liar! I am sick of people being so money hungry. LOSER!

Posted at 12:31PM on Dec 18th 2007 by Sister Golden Hair

5. The Lunch Lady was wrong but Superintendent Nancy T. Lane was beyond tacky to write her letter. This should have been handled out of the public.

Posted at 12:33PM on Dec 18th 2007 by Mary

6. Why is this b#tch getting her job back after lying like that? She should be canned and all that money she got should be paid back by the end of January. If she doesn't get it back FAST, she should be charged with grand theft. This b#tch is getting way too many advantages. Why are lies and grand theft being REWARDED? What does this teach the kids at that school, that a person can break the law and lie and be rewarded for all that bad behavior anyway? Nice lesson for all those kids to learn, Superintendent Lane. Yep, you just taught all those kids in your district that CRIME PAYS! Way to go, moron, no accountability for wrong-doings, great lesson you are teaching all those kids.

Posted at 12:48PM on Dec 18th 2007 by Harrod

7. I don't quite believe the school either. The truth is somewhere in the middle but really who cares. Denise deserves that additional $50k, and I am sure that the Nancy T.'s in management were rude to her, told her she was distracting and put her on the night shift.

Posted at 12:55PM on Dec 18th 2007 by Lysette

8. Damn, I felt bad for her all season b/c ppl. were so mean behind her back! She was one of the 3 most popular on this season....she's as big a disgrace as Richard Hatch.....how embarrassing for her daughter.

Posted at 12:55PM on Dec 18th 2007 by woot!

9. It's not like she didn't get something for 4th place. She probably already got $50K. As for school superintendent Lane sticking up for what they did, she had every right to do that! Denise lied to gain sympathy and made the school look bad. She whined about it in the game to Amanda also. The skinny blonde was right, she sucks at life - too bad.

Posted at 1:01PM on Dec 18th 2007 by sheesh

10. And to lie so easily on national live tv. She must have had practice!

Posted at 1:04PM on Dec 18th 2007 by sheesh

11. You know everyone has difficulties in life. What makes this so sad is that she had to lie and distort the facts. I thought this was very sad. I hope she gives the money back to Mark Burnett. Now that would be the right thing to do LUNCH LADY or Custodian or what ever

Posted at 1:06PM on Dec 18th 2007 by renee

12. I would much rather work in the Cafeteria than scub toilets and clean up puke!!! I do not see how they consider that a promotion!!!

Posted at 1:24PM on Dec 18th 2007 by Andrea

13. I got sick of hearing her whine about practically everything and then she gets $50,000?!!? What a pathetic loser.

Posted at 1:25PM on Dec 18th 2007 by sophetta jackson

14. I felt she used her position in life to gain sympathy near the end of the show. Up until that time I believed she was "keeping it real" . I think the temptation of money breeds greed and can start a chain reaction to get at it no matter the personal cost. One she already had the adventure of a lifetime. She also lost a considerable amount of weight, which she probably would not have done on her own. She tried tears and lies at the end to tell Amanda, you have blah blah and Courtney has blah blah, I have nothing to go back to. I have no job. Hey people try this "hard work" to get what you need in life. There ain't no freebies in life.

Posted at 1:25PM on Dec 18th 2007 by jk

15. Found this interesting:

Janitor was promotion from lunch lady, admits reality show contestant
12/18/07

By Andrew Ryan, Globe Staff

Denise Martin, the former lunch lady who claimed she had been demoted to janitor after appearing on “Survivor: China,” acknowledged today that the hard-luck story she told in the reality show finale was not true.

Martin, who works in an elementary school in Douglas, Mass., appeared on the CBS "Early Show'' in a split screen with Schools Superintendent Nancy T. Lane in a segment dubbed "Survivor Scandal." As her voice cracked, Martin confirmed what Lane told the Globe on Monday -- that she had been promoted to a janitorial position before trying out for the show, a job that came with a $10-an-hour pay raise.

"It was not my intention to be misleading," Martin said from studio in Los Angeles. "Nancy has been outstanding to me. She has done everything possible. She has given me the leave of absences to be on the show."

"I'm sorry," Martin continued, sounding as though she was near tears. "And I apologize to everybody. Believe me, I wish none of this had happened. I couldn't say I’m sorry enough."

During the live broadcast of the show's finale Sunday, Martin told viewers she had been demoted from her $7-an-hour job as a lunch lady because she had become too popular at Douglas Intermediate Elementary School.

"They didn't give me my job back," said Martin, 40, who finished fourth in the reality show and missed the $1 million grand prize. "I'm a janitor now. I clean toilets. I wash the floors in the bathroom. I vacuum the kids' rugs."

The producer of "Survivor" responded on live television by surprising Martin with $50,000 to help "get her life back." The story sparked an avalanche of e-mails to Lane and the Douglas public schools, as thousands of viewers blasted the superintendent for being a "Scrooge" and ruining the country. The superintendent said today she was glad Martin acknowledged the truth.

"What I really what to do is make sure the community has a chance to realize that Denise is sorry," said Lane, who appeared from a television studio in New York City. "It really cast a negative light on the whole experience for the entire community. I feel badly for them."

Then the segment's moderator, Julie Chen, asked another question. "Denise, what about the $50,000 you got for what appeared to be a sob story?"

Martin stammered, but didn’t answer. "It was not in my intention," Martin said. "I had no idea I was going to be awarded that."

With eight seconds left in the segment, Chen pushed harder, asking whether she was going to keep the money. Martin shook her head from side to side but never said yes or no.

"I love my town," Martin said. "I love my community. Nancy does a great job."

http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2007/12/janitor_was_pro.html

Posted at 1:26PM on Dec 18th 2007 by JENSPAL

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