Meet the newest female Gladiator for Season 2, Jennifer Widerstrom who is known as ‘Phoenix’.  Other than looking smoking hot not much is known about Phoenix except she is 5′6″ tall, weighs 155 pounds, sports pink hair and is/was a NPC Figure competitor.  Looks like Crush has some competition for the sexiest female Gladiator.  For more information on Phoenix visit her biography page here, also check out her Gladiator photos after the jump…

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I came across this video on the NBC site along with the other video I posted in the previous post. This video features Hellga, Crush, Toa, Titan, Justice, Militia and Wolf. The video is good for a few laughs. Check it out above.

The days are getting numbered to the Season 2 premiere on May 12th of American Gladiators. Just the other day NBC came out with the Season 2 promo video or commercial as some like to call it. The whole theme of the promo was bigger and much bigger with the Gladiators being larger than life figures roaming around different cities. From the promo we can see that Titan, Crush, Wolf, Venom, and Justice return for Season 2. Events like Hang Tough, Joust, Hit & Run and the Gauntlet will be back as well. We will just have to wait a little while longer for all the news to come out about season 2 so check back often and soon for all the updates.

The countdown to Season 2 has us just a little over a month away from the premiere on May 12th so why not post up some of the info I have gathered in the off-season.  The first thing I should mention is American Gladiators has moved the show to another much larger facility other than the Sony Studios where Season 1 was filmed.  Taping for Season 2 has been moved to the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena located at 3939 Figueroa St. close to the University of Southern California (USC).  The arena has around 13,000 seats and all events are said to be spread out so there will be no need to re-arrange the layout during the show.  Instead each event will have it’s own space on the arena floor. 

For Season 2 we will also see new events such as Depth, Sway Poles, Side Swipe and maybe a few others.  No word on exactly what these events entail but expect them to be big.  Season 2 begins taping today April 8th at the arena and will last all month long and maybe into the early part of May when the finals will be filmed.  The two-hour premiere episode will be May 12th with episodes there after being 90 minutes in length.  (more…)

Toshiba Imaging has launched the world’s smallest HD camera head, measuring just 1.6 inches and weighing only 2.3 oz. It is envisaged that the mini IK-HD1 will be used for scientific imaging and diagnostics, specialty broadcasting, homeland security, and industrial video and inspection applications.

The ultra-compact control unit makes the IK-HD1 ideal for broadcasting and other imaging tasks where space is limited as it is no much bigger than an ice cube. The camera has 1080i output and Toshiba’s HD 3CCD prism block technology helps deliver sharp, clear, true color imagery. High-definition 1920 (H) x 1080 (V) resolution at 30 frames per second means the camera is an attractive option for reality TV and sports broadcasters and it has already been used for filming on New American Gladiators.

The camera comes standard with a C-mount lens flange and RS232C serial interface and multiple outputs for HD-SDI (SMPTE 292M), analog RGB, or Y/Pb/Pr. Accessories for the HDTV camera system includes a 4mm or 15mm lens and camera cables in 3-, 6-, 10- or 30-meter lengths.

Full specs available at the Toshiba site.

Jakks Pacific has inked an exclusive worldwide master toy licence with MGM Consumer Products for the new American Gladiators, which is airing on NBC.  The plan is to launch a line of toys and related products in the spring of 2009 that are based on the characters and challenges you see on the show.

The deal was brokered by agent JTMG and includes action figures, accessories, outdoor sports and seasonal products, plus role-play toys all base on the live action series and the classic TV series.

“American Gladiators has all the qualities to make an exciting action figure and sports activity product line,” enthused Jennifer Richmond, senior VP of licensing and media at Jakks. (more…)

Are you ready for more American Gladiators this Summer, well get ready because NBC has announced Seaon 2 will premiere with a two-hour event on Monday May 12th at 7p.m. central time. Normal Monday night episodes will be 90-minutes long this year starting May 19th on NBC. And yes there will be new second season events and new Gladiators that will be announced in the coming weeks. One of the new Gladiators has already been confirmed, Matt Morgan from TNA wrestling will join the cast.  No word yet on who will be leaving if any. Check back often and soon for updates.

TNA wrestling star Matt Morgan has been confirmed as a new American Gladiator for Season 2 according to TNAwrestling.com. 

“To say I’m excited is a huge understatement,” Morgan told TNAWrestling.com. “Wrestling is in my blood and TNA will always be my home - and the chance to appear on both TNA and American Gladiators is a major personal accomplishment.”

TNA has also noted on their official site that Matt Morgan will remain a full-time wrestler with TNA while filming Season 2 of Americna Gladiators.  Each season of American Gladiators can usually be filmed within 2-3 weeks.  NBC will begin filming in April.

Congratulations to Evan Dollard and Monica Carlson for winning Season 1 of American Gladiators. Both contenders out dueled 22 other hopefulls to each win $100K prize money, a Toyota Sequoia and the opportunity to be American Gladiators in Season 2.

The finals pretty much went as I thought with Evan taking control throughout the events giving him a 30-11 lead over Alex Rai and a 9 1/2 second headstart in the Eliminator. Alex gave it all he had but was just overmatched by Evan and his abilities. In the Eliminator Evan broke his own record by 4 seconds to take the title.

Monica and Shanay battled back and forth throughout the events and it came down to the Eliminator when both competitors were neck and neck to the travelator. Monica made it up the travelator on her first attempt and took home the title beating Shanay by a few seconds.

Season 1 was full of some great excitement and dissapointments for some but overall the show lived up to the hype. Lets hope Season 2 is just as action packed as this one. Check back often and soon for all the latest on Season 2 of American Gladiators.

It’s the two-hour season finale of your favorite tv show American Gladiators tonight on NBC at 6 p.m. central time. Out of the 24 contenders who started this competition we are down to just 4, two male and two female contenders who will be playing for $100k, a new Toyota Sequoia and the right to be an American Gladiator next season.

On the mens side we have Evan Dollard, a 25-year-old retail manager from Chicago, Illinois going up against Alex Rai, a 25-year-old high school history teacher and wrestling coach. The clear front runner and overall favorite has to be Evan. If Evan has a sizable lead in the Eliminator then Alex can forget about it because he does not have the speed and quickness to keep up. I see Evan winning pretty easily unless he injures himself.

On the females side we have Monica Carlson, a 32-year-old mother of 8-year-old twins and a former Portland Trailblazer dancer going up against Shanay Norvell, a 31-year-old life wellness trainer. Monica has been so dominant in all her matches beating her opponents by such wide margins I have to give the edge to her although Shanay is probably the best contender to give her a run for her money. It should be close but Monica will pull it out in the end.

Make sure to tune in to the show tonight at the special time of 6 p.m. central on NBC to watch the special two-hour season finale.