Tonight Stephanie Izard of Chicago, won the elimination challenge on Bravo TV’s“Top Chef,” secured her place in the finals of the reality TV cooking show. Cooking her fanny off, Stephanie won tonight’s challenge at Rick Tramonto’s Tramonto Steak and Seafood. Tramonto called her efforts the most well-rounded of the night. Stephanie Izard and the rest of the final four compete in two more episodes that were filmed in Puerto Rico.

But you have to wonder, a reality tv show about cooking…really? What is the big draw of reality tv anyway? remember when survivor popped up on CBS for the first time? I do. You couldn’t go anywhere without hearing about survivor this and survivor that. The first season or two was even interesting. Today, there are literally dozens of reality shows that promise to transform the everyday contestants into chefs, actors, singers, brides, grooms, and any of a plethora of other possibilities.

The really weird thing about reality tv is that almost everybody you talk to derides it as tripe and useless mind fodder…and then they run home to watch or tivo their favorites reality shows. Oh, and don’t forget Cops…it was even before Survivor! What is it that brings us delight in watching other peoples train wreck lives?

What ever it is it is enough to entice people like Stephanie Izard into the kitchen at Tramonto’s Steak and Seafood. In fact, Stephanie Izard had her own restaurant and closed it so she could compete on the show! Wow!

Contentants on these reality tv shows are appealing to the masses because they come from all walks of life, educational and financial backgrounds…men or women, straight or gay, black or white, its easy to find a contestant to relate to and, just for a moment, play the game vicariously through them.

Then there’s always that secret thought…I could do that. That’s what brought Stephanie Izard into Tramonto’s kitchen tonight. She saw the show and knew she could do that.

Another big draw of reality tv is the suspense. just like Dallas, Falcon’s Crest and other evening soaps of the 70’s and 80’s, reality tv gives us a serial show to follow, relating to the lives of the people, like Stephanie Izard, who participate in the show. We suffer with our favs and find great delight in the downfall of our hated enemies.

There is something special too about the unscripted (sometimes that is) nature of these reality shows and that is a big draw over the scripted soaps mentioned before. the real life fights, backstabbing and scheming draws huge crowds.

"We've never experienced this degree of traffic growth," she says. Grocery CouponsCoupons are designed to get you to buy something you weren't planning to buy. That's the company that publishes RedPlum, one of the coupon inserts that

After deliberating for less than two hours, a Wayne Circuit Court jury today found a former Plymouth Christian Academy teacher guilty of having a sexual affair with a former student. Stein, the mother of two young children, was found

According to her, Vince was to reveal himself as the father of her baby; when she said no, he pushed for Shane to be the father, but she turned that idea down as well. "The cancellation of the giveaway