Top 10 Surprising Facts About the Jersey Shore Cast
#10: Snooki’s Audition Was Crazy
Outrageous, outspoken and totally unpredictable! It was clear from the earliest episodes of “Jersey Shore” that Nicole “Snooki” LaValle was one of the show’s more brazen cast members. However, it turns out that the legend of Snooki goes back even further. According to producers, she turned up to her audition drunk and proceeded to win them over by doing cartwheels and flips. But that’s not all. Snooki also showed up wearing so much bronzer that it rubbed off on her application. "Her application was smudged with fingerprints from her bronzer to the point that I was like, 'What happened to her application? What spilled on it?'" remarked the casting director. Talk about making an impression!
#9: Pauly D Has His Own Tanning Booth
Snooki isn’t the only “Jersey Shore” cast member to have landed a role on the show in an interesting way. During their search for the perfect guidos and guidettes, the producers of “Jersey Shore” came across an application for one Pauly D. Apparently, they loved his look and sent a film crew to follow him around for a day. However, they became sold on Pauly D when they noticed that he had his very own tanning bed at home. Already smitten with Pauly’s lifestyle and personality, the discovery of the tanning bed put him over the top and made him a “must have”.
#8: Two Cast Members Aren’t Italian
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“Jersey Shore” stirred up its fair share of controversy over the years due to its depiction of Italian-Americans, as well as for its liberal use of the terms guido and guidette – which some people regard as derogatory. Ironically, two of the show’s cast members aren’t even Italian! Like, not even a little bit. Snooki was born in Chile and after taking a DNA test discovered that she was part South Asian, East Asian and Middle Eastern – none of which are remotely Italian. Then there’s JWoww, aka Jennifer Farley, who revealed in 2010 that she’s Spanish and Irish. Kind of ruins the illusion.
#7: Vinny Wanted to Quit the Show
Being a reality TV star seems like a pretty easy gig. All you have to do is show up and be yourself, right? Well, according to fan favorite Vinny Guadagnino, it wasn’t as easy as it looks, at least not in the beginning. Apparently, Vinny had trouble adjusting to the constant filming of his every move. It affected him so much that he often considered quitting the show during season one. He decided to stick it out but considered ditching the show again between seasons four and five, as he found the non-stop shooting schedule to be too much of a burden. Thankfully for fans he decided to stay.
#6: The Cast Did Season 1 for Free
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Despite their flashy lifestyle and constant partying, season one of “Jersey Shore” was less about the glamour of GTL and more about scraping by with little to no money. It turns out that the only money the cast made in season one came from their time at Danny’s Shore Store selling t-shirts. According to Vinny, he and Ronnie almost left the show because they were totally broke. It got so bad that Ronnie was using the famous on-set duck phone to make business phone calls in his spare time. Things picked up in season two, with the cast making $10,000 per episode, but things definitely weren’t easy in season one.
#5: Snooki Claims the Show Was Incredibly Strict Behind the Scenes
Having no money and being filmed all the time for the amusement of others is bad enough, but imagine you weren’t allowed to watch TV, listen to music or have a cel lphone too! Such was the case for the cast of “Jersey Shore.” According to Snooki, being on the show was “kind of like being in jail for two months.” While that’s clearly hyperbole, it couldn’t have been easy. Snooki went on to say that the reason they drank so much was because there was no other way to pass the time! Fair enough!
#4: JWoww Pursued a Career in Animation
Despite their reputation as vapid reality TV stars, more than one of the “Jersey Shore” cast attended college. Leading the way is JWoww, who has two degrees under her belt. She currently holds a degree in graphic design from the New York Institute of Technology as well as a second degree in computer programming. In fact, JWoww originally wanted to work as an animator for Disney. She even landed an internship with the prestigious company when she was in college but decided to go down a different career path once she realized how time consuming and difficult being an animator really is. We’d say she’s done just fine so far!
#3: Vinny Almost Went to Law School
Speaking of pursuing a higher education, it turns out that Vinny Guadagnino is much more than just another pretty New Jersey face. He graduated from the College of Staten Island with a degree in political science, finishing his academic career with a 3.9 GPA. In fact, in an interview with US Weekly he said that if his GPA had been higher, he would have considered attending Yale or Harvard. When that didn’t pan out, he considered going to law school. However, while he was studying for his LSAT’s he was approached about starring in a new show for MTV and the rest, as they say, is history.
#2: The Cast Were Under Constant Surveillance
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The cast of “Jersey Shore” were constantly being watched by creator SallyAnn Salsano. And we don’t just mean that she would pop in on them from time to time. Salsano lived in an apartment above the Jersey Shore house that was equipped with a 14-camera feed in her living room, enabling her to keep tabs on the housemates whenever she pleased. So, she could literally watch them 24/7. Additionally, Salsano had a feed in her bedroom; just in case she wanted to check in on the gang before getting some shut eye. We don’t know whether to call her dedicated or creepy. Before we unveil our top pick, here are some honorable mentions: Deena Got Arrested The Cast Often Got Bored On Set Snooki Studied to Become a Veterinarian Ronnie Wrestled Professionally Snooki Had Her Own Separate House
#1: Abercrombie & Fitch Offered The Situation Money to Not Wear Their Clothes
We’ve failed to mention Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino so far, but that’s only because we were saving the best for last! The Sitch’s affinity for wearing Abercrombie & Fitch was well documented during his time on “Jersey Shore.” However, due to his wild antics (as well as those of the rest of the cast), the brand felt it was in their best interests to offer him $10,000 to stop wearing their clothes. Apparently, they didn’t want to be associated with the show any longer, something The Situation was not interested in discussing. He countersued, lost, and ultimately received nothing when Abercrombie pulled their offer. Oh well, at least he can still wear his favourite brand!
