Survivor: The Australian Outback: Elisabeth Hasselbeck

From the Outback to daytime, the view is nothing but rosy for Elisabeth Hasselbeck. Elisabeth managed to excavate an on-camera television career for herself, out of wide spreading publicity from her role as a contestant on Survivor: The Australian Outback. She lost twenty-pounds and would have killed crew members for a Snickers bar, but her ascent to the final four on Survivor made her an instant star with the audience.

“I get worried sometimes that people are saying ‘why is she on television’ – Is it because of Survivor,” commented Hasselbeck. “That people are saying she got here the easy way. But I have been working hard all these years and I figured I needed to move forward and embrace it, respect it and perfect it. If I didn’t, then everybody would lose.”

Before packing her bags and heading into the Outback, Hasselbeck was a hugely successful shoe designer at Puma, who was also creating her own line of accessories. But, when Mark Burnett and CBS called, she packed up for what was to become the role of her life.

The publicity from Survivor crushed Elisabeth with television and film offers. Most of them did not appeal to her, but one day a letter forwarded by CBS peaked her curiosity.

I got a call sheet for the Style Network and a show called The Look for Less,” explained Hasselbeck. “It was a show about designer looks on a budget, and that was me at the time. So, I slept on it and I called them the next day even though the call time had expired. They asked me if I had an agent. And I said no. Then they asked me if I wanted to audition. I had assumed they had already found someone, but they were like ‘No Elisabeth we haven’t found anyone, come audition.'”

It was an important move for the 1999 Boston College graduate with a fine arts degree. The spot on The Look for Less propelled her into her current seat, as one of the hosts of ABC’s The View.

“My brother called me one day,” said Hasselbeck of how the opportunity to be on The View started. “And said that Lisa Ling was leaving and they were going to audition for new hosts on-air. I called my agent, and she said three words to me ‘I’m on it’. I had a phone interview with Bill Getty and he said he was going to give me a shot. Well, I made round one, and then round two, and then got another four days, and here I am.”

Making the switch from taped television to a live TV show had its own set of hurdles, “I learned the importance of the first ten words that come out of your mouth.”

It’s a big change from shoes to TV, but Elisabeth is thankful to have parlayed her success into a new and blossoming career.

“Footwear was a male dominated industry,” said Hasselbeck. “Here I was young and spunky trying to be taken seriously pitching to stern, older men. I was disrespected in a lot of ways. TV is much more across the board, and there are a lot more women working in TV.

When she’s not working 24/7 on her two day jobs, Elisabeth enjoys walking the streets of Soho and jogging in Central Park.

I love Central Park,” mused Elisabeth. “I feel like I am somewhere else.”

If you run into her, be assured the one thing Elisabeth can’t live without is chewing gum, “Extra peppermint. Multi-pack, has to be the multi-pack. I always have it with me.”

Elisabeth was raised in Providence, Rhode Island and is married to NFL quarterback Tim Hasselbeck. Currently, Elisabeth’s TV plate is full, but she continues to work on a line of greeting cards and paper accessories that has been a dream of hers for six years.