By Evan Benn

The line between reality and fantasy is officially and forever blurred. It used to be easy to distinguish, especially when The Real World was the only reality show on television. That world – of living with total strangers in a posh house, hooking up with them, then spewing hatred at them on the confession cam – was a perfect combination of the two. We all fantasized about living in that reality world – some secretly, and some so proactively that we sent audition tapes to MTV.

But, alas, they didn’t pick us. And today, reality TV just isn’t as glamourous because it’s all around us.

Reality programming went from nothing to ubiquity right before our eyes. First was the voyeur phase of watching people all day, every day, a la Real World, Big Brother and The Osbournes. Then came the bizarre-competition-for-money phase, as in Fear Factor, Survivor and The Amazing Race. And now we’re in the makeover phase – Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, Extreme Makeover and What Not to Wear.

Remember how excited you got when MTV announced the next Real World season would be filmed in your city? Now, you’d be hard-pressed to find an attractive 20-something, let alone a U.S. city, who hasn’t been featured on a reality TV show.

Problem is, even though every reality show from Survivor to Joe Millionaire thrives thanks to the college-age demographic, relatively few offer to give college kids those 15 minutes we so desperately desire.

So, NUcomment.com decided to change that. If Elimidate or The Bachelor won’t bring us to them, then why don’t we bring reality TV here?

In the spirit of the latest trend, NUcomment.com scoured the Evanston campus in search of one freshman guy willing to put his pride aside and get a makeover from six senior girls.

We found him in Creighton Hofeditz, a Communication freshman from Colorado and a self-proclaimed “unmetrosexual.”

Creighton is a true NU bachelor. Six feet tall, caramel blond hair, brown eyes and a fair complexion that turns pinkish in the nippy Lake Michigan breeze. Between joining the sailing club and slaving backstage for hours on end as part of his theater-major requirements, Creighton’s first quarter at NU has barely left him enough time to sleep, let alone find himself a lovely college companion.

Our panel of senior girls – Teri Bomzer, Danielle Broude, Julia Holczer, Rachel Lande, Naomi Pilosof and Jenny Rozbruch – were determined to make Creighton irresistible. The ladies, whose majors reflect their expertise in everything from fine art to fine industrial engineering, are a powerhouse of fashion, style and grooming know-how.

On a recent Sunday evening, Creighton ventured over to the girls’ house, dressed as he would for class and ready for anything – good or bad – his critics would throw his way.

And such, Cool Eye for the Frosh Guy was born.

Sunday, Nov. 2

Creighton walked in the door and the girls quickly sized him up.

“You stand here,” Julia said, placing Creighton in front of two couches where the makeover artists sat.

We asked the panelists to rate Creighton in five categories: Hair, clothes, footwear, accessories and date etiquette (based on his responses to questions). Whenever a criticism came up, the ladies offered Creighton tips for improvement.

Hair.

Creighton’s messy, over-the-ears hair – especially frizzy on this humid night – got targeted first.

Julia: “I can’t even see your eyes.”

Teri: “You need to trim it up around your ears.”

Jenny: “You need some frizz control. Have you ever tried wax? Or maybe you should try mousse, for a softer look.”

Dan: “I’m a fan as-is. It’s not too curly, not too straight. And I like the length.”

The verdict: The majority decided Creighton’s locks needed some scaling back. A trim would do, the girls said, and a little product wouldn’t hurt on nights when he wanted to impress.

Clothes.

Creighton scored big points with his dark faded jeans and his red-plaid button-down shirt. His style, though, needed some tweaking.

Dan: “Jeans like that should be a huge staple of any guy’s wardrobe.”

Teri: “I love the button-down.”

Rachel: “Yeah, and solid black, blue or white are great, too.”

Jenny: “You should roll up your sleeves.”

Creighton attempted to roll up his right sleeve, but was doing more crumpling than rolling. Jenny got up to offer some assistance.

Jenny: “Here, just roll them at cuff, then flatten it out.”

Rachel: “And definitely keep it untucked. That looks good.”

Naomi: “He’s so cute!”

Creighton blushed, let out a relieved sigh and shifted his weight. This was a pretty intimidating position to be in, he admitted later, but he was starting to feel more comfortable. The girls were on his team.

The verdict: His duds were his strongest point, the girls said. The dark jeans and untucked, button-down shirt definitely stay. And the sleeve roll-up is a must.

Footwear.

Note to every guy who sports tennis shoes with his jeans: Girls thought that look was spiffy in high school, but now they expect you to do better.

Creighton’s gray tennis sneaks with reflective strips all over them received a series of frowns from the panelists.

Dan: “Well, you need a pair of black shoes for when you go out.”

Julia: “But for what you’re wearing now, I’d say some new sneakers. Something trendy, you know, old school. Not like ‘I’m going to SPAC.’ I’m definitely attracted more to a guy in trendy sneakers.”

Creighton: “Like, gray? I mean, what color?”

Jenny: “Yeah, gray, brown, dark green – they’ll match anything.”

Creighton: “OK, so, sneakers? I mean, I’m not the type of guy who wears nice shoes to a frat party.”

Teri: “Right, just a pair of retro sneakers. Like Campers or New Balance or something.”

The verdict: Finding the right pair of “cool” sneakers is more of an exact science than any guy ever thought. Take the easy route by going shopping with a girl, and let her pick out the latest trend for your feet. Or, follow Creighton’s example, and just borrow a pair from a friend.

Accessories.

Creighton’s no-piercings, no-jewelry style left the panelists searching for ways to better accessorize their project.

The girls told him to toss out his brown, braided belt.

Rachel: “That’s too Native American.”

Naomi: “You need something a little thicker, more manly.”

Dan: “You should have a black belt and a brown one. They’ll go with anything – dressy, casual, whatever.”

They liked his Swiss Army watch and its black wristband.

Jenny: “I like that. It’s simple and not flashy.”

Teri: “See, the black watch would go perfectly with a black belt.”

The verdict: Ditch the braided belt, keep the watch.

Date etiquette.

Creighton admitted he needed a lot of help in this area. Being busy with backstage theater work, coupled with the fact that he has no ID to get him into bars, has given Creighton few opportunities to meet college women.

Creighton: “I’m just not good at pick-up lines. Like, I’m not that comfortable going up to a random girl at a bar and asking her if she needs a drink.”

Julia: “Don’t worry about that. Pick-up lines are usually terrible no matter what you say. It’s more important to just talk to someone, have a conversation with them.

Naomi: “OK. So what do you say to a girl if you’re having a really good time and you want to continue the night back at your place?”

Creighton: “Um, ‘Do you want to go see the posters in my room?’ No, that’s pretty bad. How about, ‘Can I walk you home?’”

The girls broke out in applause.

Teri: “That’s perfect. That’s the best thing you can say. Any girl will take you up on that.”

And once the walk is over?

Naomi: “If you’re at her place, you gotta wait for the invite to go inside. If you’re not feeling the vibe, then just go home, and call her the next day.”

Rachel: “Yeah, don’t be like, ‘So are you just gonna go to bed?’”

Naomi: “And definitely call her. Tell her you had a good time and you’d like to see her again. Just because she didn’t invite you in doesn’t mean she’s not into you. Guys are so stupid about that.”

Teri: “And you can’t go wrong with a kiss on the cheek. That’s always nice.”

Dan: “Plus, if you leave her with a kiss on the cheek and say you’ll call her the next day, it’s sort of like playing hard-to-get.”

Julia: “It’s kinda better if a guy plays hard-to-get.”

Dan: “Yeah, definitely better than hooking up with someone you barely know and having it be really awkward the next day.”

Jenny: “Right, you don’t want to be pushy. A goodnight hug or kiss or whatever isn’t pushy.”

Dan: “Being pushy is like, ‘Hey, I wanna come in. Is your roommate asleep?’”

The verdict: Creighton has the good looks, style and charm it takes to wow a hottie, the girls said. He just needs to get out there and practice his newfound skills.

Friday, Nov. 14

We caught up with post-makeover Creighton walking around South Campus. He had clearly heeded the girls’ advice.

He sported a solid-blue button-down shirt, with sleeves expertly rolled to about mid-forearm. The perfect length to showcase that handsome watch of his.

His trimmed his hair, cleaning things up around his ears and keeping hair from hanging over his eyes. No product on this day, though. No gel, mousse or wax would have withstood the wind.

He borrowed a pair of blue New Balance kicks from his dormmate. Paired with the dark jeans and the button-down, the shoes looked pretty spiffy.

But Creighton didn’t just look good. Applying the girls’ suggestions made him feel good, too, he said.

And what did the makeover artists think of the new-look Creighton?

Dan: “I love the New Balances. I think he’s set to get some ass.”

Teri: “Love the shoes. So stylin’ for class or for going out. The haircut is perfect – still a little shaggy, but more groomed at the same time. I want to go find him a date right now.”

Julia: “As a huge proponent of the old-school sneaker, I think he is more up with the fashion in those shoes without seeming too trendy or fashion-conscious. The blue collared shirt works great with his eyes, and I am digging the new ’do. He’s ready to take home the ladies.”

Jenny: “He took our advice, and it paid off. The old-school sneakers are absolutely perfect. Dark
blue can go with lots of different outfits, and the yellow gives them some punch. He did a very
good job rolling the sleeves. They look very neat and clean – good length just above the wrists. I like that color shirt with his hair, too – the light blue provides a nice contrast against his blond locks. All in all, he looks good to me. He’s a cool kid, too, so that definitely helps, no matter what shirt or shoes he’s wearing.”

Evan Benn, who finds it strange to write about himself in the third person like this, can be contacted at e-benn@northwestern.edu