From Survivor to Children's Books: A Hollywood Insider's Second Act : The Rusty Allen Story

<p>In this episode, host JR Sparrow sits down with Rusty Austin — a Hollywood veteran with nearly 40 years in the entertainment industry — to talk about reality TV, life after Hollywood, and his unexpected pivot to children&#39;s books.</p><p><strong>About the Guest</strong></p><p>Rusty Austin attended UCLA Film School, graduating in 1990 right as the reality TV boom was beginning. He went on to work on landmark productions including:</p><ul><li><strong>Survivor</strong> (Season 1) — one of the first and most iconic reality shows</li><li><strong>Hell&#39;s Kitchen</strong> — as a producer for multiple seasons</li><li><strong>Big Brother</strong></li><li><strong>Cops</strong></li><li><strong>Nanny 911</strong></li><li><strong>Terminator 2</strong>, <strong>Sister Act</strong>, and <strong>Lorenzo&#39;s Oil</strong> (as an electrician/grip)</li></ul><p>He is now a self-published children&#39;s book author based in the Palm Springs area.</p><p><strong>What We Talked About</strong></p><ul><li>How reality TV is actually made — and why &quot;reality&quot; isn&#39;t as real as viewers think</li><li>The 400:1 shooting ratio on Hell&#39;s Kitchen (400 hours of footage for every 1 hour of TV)</li><li>The brutal race to get Nanny 911 on air before ABC&#39;s Supernanny</li><li>Why Survivor became a worldwide sensation — and how nobody saw it coming</li><li>What Cops taught Rusty about human nature (hint: 7+ hours of a shift is just coffee and staring out a window)</li><li>The parallels between reality TV and professional wrestling</li><li>How retirement led Rusty to write animal poetry books for kids</li><li>Collaborating with middle school students as illustrators for <em>An Awesome Bird, the Pelican</em></li><li>The self-publishing process using Blurb, Amazon, Barnes &amp; Noble, and IngramSpark</li><li>Why self-publishing pays far more per book than traditional publishing</li><li>Advice for anyone starting a meaningful second act in life</li></ul><p><strong>Books by Rusty Austin</strong></p><ul><li><em>Beware the Grizzly Bear</em></li><li><em>The Unicorn Has One Horn</em></li><li><em>An Awesome Bird, the Pelican</em> (illustrated by middle school students)</li><li><em>Dave and Me</em> (memoir/short stories)</li></ul><p>All books feature a <strong>Do It Yourself</strong> section where kids can write their own poems and draw their own pictures.</p><p><strong>Connect with Rusty Austin</strong></p><ul><li>Website: <a href="https://rustyaustin.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer">rustyaustin.com</a></li><li>Amazon: search &quot;Rusty Austin&quot;</li><li>Barnes &amp; Noble: search &quot;Rusty Austin&quot;</li></ul><p><strong>Key Takeaway</strong></p><p><em>&quot;You still have a lot of life left to live — so why not live it?&quot;</em> Whether you&#39;re 40, 60, or beyond, your first act doesn&#39;t have to be your only act. Find what you love and keep after it.</p><p><em>WV Uncommon Place Conversations</em> — hosted by JR Sparrow.</p><p><br></p>