July 29, 2002 – WE: WOMEN'S ENTERTAINMENT has greenlighted production on 65 episodes of SPEND IT FAST, it was announced today by Martin von Ruden, Executive Vice President and General Manager at WE: WOMEN'S ENTERTAINMENT. The network teamed with Telepictures Productions for the series, which sends randomly chosen women on the shopping spree of their dreams. SPEND IT FAST will be stripped weekdays beginning September 30, 2002. Hosted by New York personality and WB 11 Morning News host Larry Hoff, episodes of SPEND IT FAST will be taped on location in New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Atlanta, San Diego, Las Vegas and Phoenix.
SPEND IT FAST is produced for WE: WOMEN'S ENTERTAINMENT by Atlas Media Corp, where Bruce David Klein serves as President and Executive Producer. Jeff Eisenberg is Vice President and Executive Producer of the series for WE: WOMEN'S ENTERTAINMENT.
"When the elements of surprise, spending and speed come together, the result is sure to be an entertaining and fast-paced series which viewers will want to return to every day," commented von Ruden. "We are excited to be working with Telepictures Productions on SPEND IT FAST, particularly with their proven track record producing some of the most compelling reality programming on television."
"We are excited about working with WE and Atlas Media Corp. on 'Spend It Fast,' a fresh and voyeuristic reality-game show hybrid that we think is really going to connect with viewers," said Hilary Estey McLoughlin, Executive Vice President & General Manager, Telepictures Productions. "This series also represents a great opportunity for Telepictures to continue to expand our core first-run business into cable."
Throughout August and September, the SPEND IT FAST stretch limo will tour the chosen cities, randomly selecting and surprising people at their homes. The contestant is then challenged to spend thousands of dollars in an exact amount of time at a randomly chosen retail outlet. Unexpected challenges and obstacles along the way keep the game fresh and exciting. If the contestant grabs all she can in the allotted amount of time and stays within the monetary limit, she can keep it all, but if not, she goes home empty-handed. Current store sponsors include Bloomingdale's and Linens N' Things.
"I like to think we've bottled all the surprising, unexpected elements of reality television with the 'feel good' atmosphere of the traditional game show," says Bruce David Klein, President of Atlas Media. "Producing this is a dream come true – WE: WOMEN'S ENTERTAINMENT and Telepictures have been incredibly supportive."
Larry Hoff, host of SPEND IT FAST, has been entertaining, engaging and connecting with audiences for over two decades. He has been a fixture on morning television in the New York area, on FOX and currently on the WB 11 Morning News. Following six years in Tucson, Arizona, Larry moved to WCMH, the NBC affiliate in Columbus, Ohio. Three years later, he moved to New York where he served as a field producer for FOX's "Good Day New York." In 1999, Hoff was named field host for the WB11 Morning News.
For the 2002-03 season, Telepictures Productions will produce the next installments of the midseason hit, "The Bachelor," for ABC, including two additional "Bachelor" series as well as "The Bachelorette." In first-run syndication, the company will produce the freshman seasons of "The Caroline Rhea Show," which will showcase a segment of "Spend It Fast" prior to it's premiere on WE: WOMEN'S ENTERTAINMENT, and "Celebrity Justice," the second season of "ElimiDate," the third season of "Street Smarts," the fourth season of "Judge Mathis," the fifth season of "Change of Heart," the ninth season of "Extra," and the twelfth season of "Jenny Jones"-28