‘Biggest Loser’ making casting stop in Alabama; show has Wiregrass ties

A reality show changed Roger Shultz’s life.

The Enterprise resident appeared on season five of the NBC weight-loss show “The Biggest Loser.” He didn’t win the $250,000 prize, but Shultz feels he walked away a winner nonetheless.

“It changed my life because I got my health back, and that’s the most important thing,” Shultz said. “... I got my life back. I’m healthy.”

But Shultz is not the show’s only tie to the Wiregrass.

Holland Striplin grew up in the small Geneva County town of Hartford. She graduated from Geneva County High School in 1997 before going to Auburn University to major in communications.

She wanted to do something in the entertainment industry. She thought she wanted to act. She even worked as an extra on the WB show “Dawson’s Creek,” driving up to Wilmington, N.C., for the show.

The experience taught her something — she didn’t really want to be an actor; but she wanted work with them. So, she did an internship in Wilmington with a small casting company and remained there after her college graduation. Striplin moved through the ranks and eventually moved to Los Angeles three years ago.

“It is a lot busier than small-town Alabama,” she said. “It’s great because there’s always something to do — tons of people to meet every day. My one complaint is there is no sweet tea. Anywhere you go, if you ask for sweet tea, they look at you like you’re crazy.”

She is currently the casting director for “The Biggest Loser,” and she’s hoping to find more Alabama residents like Shultz to compete on the popular reality show.

“It’s my favorite show to do by far,” 30-year-old Striplin said. “This is the one I always love to come back to. People just love the show, and it’s so rewarding to see the people I carried through come to the end result.”

The show will hold a casting call in Mobile on Saturday, July 11 — the first held in Alabama. Casting teams have been traveling around the country looking for teams of two family members to compete in season nine, which will tape for 16 weeks in late September and likely air in January. Participants temporarily move to a ranch near Malibu, Calif. The show is looking for married couples, parent and child teams, siblings, cousins or even in-laws.

Striplin said the important thing is that people have outgoing personalities, a strong bond with family and want to lose weight. However, people are encouraged to come to the casting call even if they don’t have a partner.

“When you’re dealing with real people, especially with ‘Biggest loser,’ you are possibly changing these people’s lives,” Striplin said. “You never hear anyone audition for the show talk about the prize money. They’re number one concern is getting healthy.”

To date, Roger Shultz has been the only contestant from Alabama. Shultz auditioned three times.

There was a time he weighed 383 pounds. He was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. He dropped 20 pounds on his own before making the cut for “The Biggest Loser.” During the filming of the show, Shultz dropped 164 pounds. The former University of Alabama football player even lost his job with Jacksonville State University because of his absence while he participated in the show.

But today Shultz says he has clearer path of what he wants to do with his life because of the show. He’s working on the creation of a nonprofit organization to raise national awareness about childhood obesity.

“We feel like we’ve got to go to the family unit,” Shultz said. “Because usually when you look at an obese child one of the parents is obese.”
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“The Biggest Loser” casting call
Where: Veets Bar and Grill, 66 S. Royal St., Mobile
When: Saturday, July 11, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
Who: Family member teams of two who each have at least 100 pounds to lose; individuals can also audition. Those unable to attend a casting call can apply by visiting http://www.nbc.com/casting and http://www.thebiggestlosercasting.com.
Other: Attendees are asked not to line up more than three hours before the open call starts. Casting teams will try to see the first 500 people in line.