The Real World: San Francisco

The Real World: San Francisco is the third season of MTV's reality television series The Real World, which focuses on a group of diverse strangers living together for several months in a different city each season, as cameras follow their lives and interpersonal relationships. It is the second season of The Real World to be filmed in the Pacific States region of the United States, specifically in California after The Real World: Los Angeles.

The season featured a total of eight cast members over the course of the season, as one cast member was evicted and replaced. This is the first season to be filmed in San Francisco, a location later used in the twenty-ninth season, Real World: Ex-Plosion.

The Real World: San Francisco is noteworthy for the depiction of Pedro Zamora's struggle with AIDS, and his and other cast members' confrontations with David "Puck" Rainey, which led to Rainey's eviction. These conflicts provided what Entertainment Weekly called emotional high points for the season,<ref name=EW>Fretts, Bruce. (July 21, 1995). "The British Invasion The Real World returns for fourth season — The MTV hit invades London" Template:Webarchive. Entertainment Weekly. Page 1 of 4</ref> and are credited with making The Real World a hit. It was ranked #7 on Time magazine's list of 32 Epic Moments in Reality-TV History.<ref>Webley, Kayla. "32 Epic Moments in Reality-TV History: 7. The Real World: Puck vs. Pedro". Time magazine. Retrieved April 9, 2011.</ref> The season is also notable for featuring the first-ever same-sex commitment ceremony on TV, between Zamora and his partner, Sean Sasser.<ref name=CNN>Duke, Alan; Carter, Chelsea, J. (August 8, 2013). "Sean Sasser, whose ceremony with partner on 'Real World' was TV first, dies". CNN.</ref>

Casting

This season was the first to feature a castmember, Pedro Zamora, dealing with a life-threatening illness. Future seasons would feature castmembers dealing with other illnesses, such as Lyme disease and cystic fibrosis. This is also the first season to feature an Asian American, Pam Ling, and two Hispanic Americans, Pedro Zamora and Rachel Campos.

Singer Jewel stated in a 2017 interview that she was offered an opportunity to be a cast member but declined, fearing it would be the wrong path for her career.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Casting was completed by January 1994, by which time the cast was informed that one of their housemates would be HIV-positive, though they did not learn which one it was until the day they moved into their Russian Hill house, on February 12, 1994. The cast was filmed until they moved out on June 19.<ref>Winick, Judd (2000). Pedro and Me: Friendship, Loss and What I Learned. Henry Holt. pp. 61, 63–67 and 119.</ref> The season premiered on June 30 of that year and consisted of 20 episodes.<ref>The Real World: San Francisco: Full Episode Synopses and Recaps. MTV. Retrieved December 1, 2011.</ref>

The residence

The cast lived in a house at 949<ref>Although sources such as Real World Houses give the door number as 953, castmate Cory Murphy notes the door number as 949 when first arriving there with Pedro Zamora in the season premiere. This page at Real World Houses explains that one entrance to the house that leads to the second floor bears the number 949, and an adjacent door, the one facing the street, which leads to the third and fourth floors, bears the numbers 951 and 953.</ref> Lombard Street in San Francisco, California from February 12 to June 19, 1994.<ref>Winick (2000). Pages 61 and 119.</ref> The house is located between Leavenworth Street and Jones Street, one block east of the eight sharp turns that have earned the street the distinction of being "the crookedest street in the United States". Production renovated the third and fourth floors of the building for filming. A June 8, 2000 fire caused approximately $2 million in damage to the house.<ref name=SFCronicle9.6.00>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=RWHouses>"Lombard Street House". Real World Houses. Retrieved December 1, 2011.</ref> Several years after the fire, the building was completely renovated, and bears only a slight resemblance to its appearance in 1994.<ref name=RWHouses/> The renovations include a second garage on the east side of the house, atop of which sits a patio.<ref>"Lombard Street House Front". Real World Houses. Retrieved December 1, 2011.</ref><ref>"Lombard Street House East Patio". Real World Houses. Retrieved December 1, 2011.</ref> It went up for sale as a three-unit triplex at a price of $7 million in 2017.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Clear

Cast

Cast member	AgeTemplate:Efn	Hometown
Cory Murphy	20<ref name=CoryBio>Cory: The Real World: San Francisco. MTV. 1993. Retrieved November 30, 2011.</ref>	Fresno, California<ref>Winick (2000). Page 111.</ref>
Cory is a junior at the University of California, San Diego, and the most important issue facing her is what she will do after graduation. She works as a hostess at an Italian restaurant, and enjoys the outdoors and photography.<ref name=CoryBio/> The longest relationship she's ever been in lasted a year and a half, though she says she doesn't think she's ever been in love.<ref name=Episode1>Template:Cite episode</ref> She struggles with adapting to life in the city,<ref name=Episode3>Template:Cite episode</ref><ref name=Episode6>Template:Cite episode</ref> and though she grows close to Rachel, she feels excluded when Rachel becomes close with Jo.<ref name=Episode18>Template:Cite episode</ref>
Judd Winick	24<ref name=JuddBio>Judd: The Real World: San Francisco. MTV. 1993. Retrieved November 30, 2011.</ref>	Dix Hills, New York<ref name=Episode1/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Judd is a struggling animator and cartoonist. A cum laude graduate of the University of Michigan, he had a deal with Universal Press Syndicate, but it was cancelled six months into development. He does freelance cartoon work for greeting cards, flyers and T-shirts.<ref name=JuddBio/> A recurring theme throughout the season is his unsuccessful search for love.<ref name=Episode6/><ref name=Episode4>Template:Cite episode</ref><ref name=Episode15>Template:Cite episode</ref>
Mohammed Bilal<ref name=Episode1/>	24<ref name=MohammedBio>Mohammed: The Real World: San Francisco. MTV. 1993. Retrieved November 30, 2011.</ref>	San Francisco, California
Mohammed is the lead singer and songwriter for Midnight Voices, a band well known throughout the San Francisco Bay area, though he supports himself doing makeovers at The Body Shop and working at his father's dance club, The Upper Room, where he occasionally reads poetry.<ref name=MohammedBio/> He also tries to balance this with his schoolwork, and his girlfriend of six months, a ballerina named Stephanie.<ref>Stephanie first appears in Episode 3. Her occupation, the duration of their relationship, and his schoolwork is established in Episode 16.</ref> Mohammed, whom MTV describes as "a mellow, spiritual guy",<ref name=MohammedBio/> is a practicing Muslim.<ref>The Real World Diaries. Pocket Books. 1996. Pages 129 and 133.</ref>
Pam Ling	26<ref name=PamBio>Pam: The Real World: San Francisco. MTV. 1993. Retrieved November 30, 2011.</ref>	Los Angeles, California<ref name=PamBio/>
Pam is a third-year medical student at the University of California, San Francisco. She was her high school's valedictorian and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Harvard College/Radcliffe. Pam claims that she has never failed at anything in her life and is an extremely motivated perfectionist. She hopes to be a physician who will relate to people's social and spiritual needs as well as their physical ones.<ref name=PamBio/> She provides health care for the homeless as part of her studies.<ref name=Episode7>Template:Cite episode</ref>
Pedro Zamora	22<ref name=PedroBio>Pedro: The Real World: San Francisco. MTV. 1993. Retrieved November 30, 2011.</ref>	Miami, Florida<ref name=PedroBio/>
Pedro is an openly gay, HIV-positive AIDS educator who lectures publicly on safe sex. He was born in Havana, Cuba, and came to the United States in 1980 at age 8 with the Mariel boat lift. Leaving his family behind to move to San Francisco was extremely difficult, but he chose to do so on the insistence of his best friend and roommate, Alex Escarno, who felt he could more easily communicate his message.<ref>Winick (2000). Pages 58 and 59.</ref> He is close to his sister Mily.<ref name=Episode13>Template:Cite episode</ref>
David "Puck" Rainey<ref name=Episode1/><ref>His first name is given in Act 1 of Episode 14 and Act 3 of Episode 19.</ref>	25<ref name=PuckBio>Puck: The Real World: San Francisco. MTV. 1993. Retrieved November 30, 2011.</ref>	San Francisco, California<ref name=PuckBio/>
Puck is a bicycle messenger who frequently gets into vehicular accidents on his bike. His hobby is racing soap boxes.<ref name=PuckBio/> He is perceived as the rebellious "bad boy" in the cast.<ref name=Episode6/><ref name=Episode2>Template:Cite episode</ref> He has a sister, and is close to his mother and grandparents.<ref>His relationship to his mother and grandmother were depicted in Episode 8. His sister and grandfather visited the house in Episode 9, and the latter shows up in Episode 10 as well.</ref> Because of his contentious relationship with the rest of the cast (People magazine called him "obnoxious"<ref name=People>Gliatto, Tom. "Brave New World: Mtv's Real World Cameras Feast on An International House of Flatmates". People. Vol. 44. No. 2. July 10, 1995</ref>), he is evicted from the house in Episode 11, though he briefly reappears in subsequent episodes.
Rachel Campos	23<ref name=RachelBio>Rachel: The Real World: San Francisco. MTV. 1993. Retrieved November 30, 2011.</ref>	Tempe, Arizona<ref>Rachel Campos. Mooviees.com. Retrieved December 1, 2011</ref>
Rachel graduated from Arizona State University in December 1993 with a degree in International Relations and a Woodrow Wilson Graduate Fellowship. She plans to attend graduate school in the fall, and hopes to be a college professor, she expresses indecision on where she will attend during the season. She is a passionate Republican<ref name=RachelBio/> whose heroes include Jack Kemp,<ref name=Episode18/> and though raised a strict Catholic, she is rebellious, as she claims to enjoy upsetting her parents.<ref name=Episode12>Template:Cite episode</ref> She concedes that she is sometimes a bad judge of character initially, and trusts too easily.<ref name=RachelBio/> She has two brothers<ref name=Episode2/> and a sister<ref name=Episode12/> named Julie.<ref>Campos-Duffy, Rachel. Stay Home, Stay Happy: 10 Secrets to Loving At-Home Motherhood. Celebra Trade. 2009. Acknowledgements. Template:ISBN</ref> Judd observes that Rachel likes "bad boys", rather than nice guys, a point that Rachel concedes. It is for this reason that Judd feels Rachel is attracted to Puck.<ref name=Episode2/> After Puck is evicted, Rachel becomes best friends with Jo, who moves in as Puck's replacement.<ref name=Episode18/><ref name=Episode14>Template:Cite episode</ref><ref name=Episode17>Template:Cite episode</ref> Judd refers to them as the "high maintenance twins".<ref name=Episode17/>
Jo Rhodes<ref>Her full first name is mentioned at the end of Act 1 of Episode 18.</ref>	22<ref>She mentions this at the end of Episode 18.</ref>	London, England<ref name=JoBio>Jo: The Real World: San Francisco. MTV. 1993. Retrieved November 30, 2011.</ref>
Jo moves in after Puck is evicted. She was living in Lake Tahoe prior to joining the cast. She loves the outdoors and extreme sports such as rock climbing. A lifelong independent person, she married in June 1993, but soon divorced because of her husband's abuse. She filed a restraining order against him, which he challenged in court and lost. She is now starting over, trying to make it through school on her own, and does not wish any conflict in her life. Her former roommate Steve has helped her through her difficult times,<ref name=JoBio/><ref>The restraining order, date of her marriage, Steve, and comments about conflict and independence are established in Episode 15.</ref> but Jo does not reciprocate Steve's desire to move beyond friendship.<ref name=Episode18/> She is a strict vegan,<ref>She revels she is a vegetarian when she first appears in Episode 14, but in Episode 17, says she does not eat dairy products, and is referred to as a vegan.</ref> and induces vomiting in one episode after learning that food she ate contained pork.<ref name=Episode17/>

Duration of cast

Template:Nowrap	Episodes
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20
Cory	colspan="20" Template:CMain
Judd	colspan="20" Template:CMain
Mohammed	colspan="20" Template:CMain
Pam	colspan="20" Template:CMain
Pedro	colspan="20" Template:CMain
Rachel	colspan="20" Template:CMain
Jo														Template:CAlso starringTemplate:Efn	colspan="6" Template:CMain
Puck	colspan="10" Template:CMain	Template:CRemovedTemplate:Efn		colspan="2" Template:UsuallyTemplate:Efn					colspan="2" Template:UsuallyTemplate:Efn

• Puck was kicked out of the house in episode 11 after all of his cast members voted him out of the house.
• Jo replaced Puck in episode 14.
• Puck makes appearances in episodes 13, 14, 19 and 20.

After filming

File:AlexEscarnoandReal WorldSF1994Nov11.jpg

Alex Escarno with Pam, Judd, Rachel and Cory at Mercy Hospital in Miami on November 11, 1994, a few hours before Pedro died.

Pedro Zamora fell ill and was hospitalized in New York in October 1994. He was eventually flown to Miami, and was diagnosed with progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, or PML. He received a phone call from President Bill Clinton, who thanked him for his work, and helped facilitate emigration of his older brothers, who were flown to Miami from Cuba, reuniting them for the first time in 14 years.<ref name=Reuters>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=People11.28.94>Israel, Betsy (November 28, 1994). "HIV, And Positive, Pedro Zamora of MTV's Real World Lived His Too-Brief Life To Its Limit" Template:Webarchive. People. Vol. 42, No. 22</ref><ref>Winick (2000). p. 145.</ref><ref name=Tribute>A Tribute to Pedro Zamora MTV. Broadcast in November 1994.</ref> A benefit was held to pay for his medical expenses, at which President Clinton praised Pedro.<ref>The Real World Diaries. 1996. Page 172</ref> MTV began a trust in order to pay for Zamora's medical costs, as he had no medical insurance.<ref name=People11.28.94/><ref name=Tribute/> Zamora died on November 11, 1994, hours after the debut airing of the season finale. The money from the benefit was used to form the Pedro Zamora Memorial Fund. His best friend and roommate, Judd Winick, began to lecture on HIV/AIDS and safe sex for him,<ref name=People11.28.94/><ref name=MiamiHerald>Rothaus, Steve (March 22, 2009). "Years After his Death, A Young AIDS Activist's Life is Celebrated on Film: Remembering Pedro". The Miami Herald. p. 1E.</ref><ref>Winick (2000). pp. 162–173.</ref> and did so for three years.<ref>Mentioned at the end of the 2008 film Pedro.</ref>

The 1995 reunion show, The Real World Reunion, which assembled the casts from the first four seasons of The Real World, was marked by antagonism between Puck and his former castmates. Though some members of the audience and the other seasons' casts expressed interest or fascination with Puck and his antics, his confrontation with his former roommate, Mohammed, resulted in Puck's distancing himself from Mohammed physically, and harsh words from others on the stage, such as second season cast member Irene Berrera-Kearns, led to him temporarily leaving the studio.<ref>The Real World: Reunion. MTV. 1995</ref>

During the course of his career writing and illustrating comics, Judd Winick<ref name=SFCronicle9.6.00/> has explored LGBT issues, including storylines involving gay bashing, HIV and AIDS, in books such as Green Lantern and Green Arrow.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=YES187>Template:Citation</ref> He chronicled his friendship with Zamora in his 2000 autobiographical graphic novel, Pedro and Me: Friendship, Loss and What I Learned.<ref name=SFCronicle9.6.00/> He created the animated TV series The Life & Times of Juniper Lee in 2005.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Pam Ling went onto a career in medicine and education. As of 2024 she was a Professor of Medicine at the University of California San Francisco. She and Judd fell in love during the vigil they kept over Pedro, married in 2001, and had two children.<ref name=SFCronicle9.6.00/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=HuffingtonPost>"'The Real World' Stars: Where Are They Now?" Template:Webarchive HuffPost/AOL TV. March 4, 2008.</ref><ref>This was also mentioned at the end of the 2008 film Pedro.</ref> Their wedding marked the first time two cast members of The Real World married.<ref name=SFCronicle9.6.00/><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Rachel Campos appeared on Road Rules: All Stars, where she met Sean Duffy of The Real World: Boston. They eventually married, and as of May 2016, have eight children.<ref>Mizoguchi, Karen (June 3, 2016). "Sean and Rachel Campos-Duffy Welcome Son Patrick Miguel" Template:Webarchive. People.</ref> They live in Ashland, Wisconsin,<ref name="weddingvideomovie">"The Cast". The Wedding Video. 2002. Retrieved December 1, 2011.</ref> where Sean was a District Attorney of Ashland County<ref>Real Worlds Awards BashTemplate:Dead linkTemplate:Cbignore. MTV. Retrieved December 1, 2011.</ref> before being elected to Congress in 2010.<ref>Associated Press. "Wisconsin's Duffy says he's ready to get to work" Template:Webarchive. Chicago Tribune. November 3, 2010</ref><ref>Ryan Pienciaki, Elaine Aradillas and Paul Chi. "The Real World: Where Are They Now?". People. Vol. 70. No. 7. August 18, 2008</ref> She welcomed her ninth child, a daughter, Valentina StellaMaris on October 1, 2019.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Campos also appeared in The Wedding Video, a 2002 spoof of The Real World written and directed by The Real World: New York alumnus Norman Korpi, which starred ten alumni of various Real World seasons.<ref name="weddingvideomovie"/> Rachel works at Fox News as the co-host of Fox & Friends Weekend.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Puck Rainey served as the host for Road Rules: All Stars, and competed on Battle of the Sexes, during which he came into conflict with David Edwards of The Real World: Los Angeles, and married on camera Betty, his fiancée and mother of his two sons, Bogart and Rocco.<ref name=HuffingtonPost/> As of 2008, he was working as a truck driver.<ref name=People/> As of 2009, the family lives in Alabama,<ref name=HuffingtonPost/><ref name=VH1AllAccess>All Access Presents: Where Are They Now?: Reality Stars. VH1. Viewed January 7, 2009</ref> where Rainey makes a living through public appearances and miscellaneous jobs. In his spare time, he enjoys gardening and photography, though he prefers to model, whereas his partner works behind the camera.<ref name=VH1AllAccess/> Spanky Ham, one of the main characters on the animated reality television spoof Drawn Together has been compared by that show's creators to Rainey.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

At the 2008 The Real World Awards Bash, Pedro and Sean received a nomination for "Favorite Love Story", Pedro also received a nomination for "Best Fight" with Puck, the latter was in the running for the "Roommate You Love to Hate" award, and in the "Gone Baby Gone" category.<ref name=BashNominees>"The Real World Awards Bash: Nominees" Template:Webarchive. MTV. 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2013.</ref><ref name=BashWinners>"The Real World Awards Bash: Winners" Template:Webarchive. MTV. 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2008.</ref>

As of 2023, Cory Murphy is a teacher of middle-school Spanish and language arts in Southern California, and a mother of two.<ref name=Cinemaholic>Template:Cite web</ref>

As of 2023, Mohammed Bilal is a director of diversity initiatives at Stanford University Human Resources, and a father of two.<ref name=Cinemaholic/>

A 2008 film by Nick Oceano, Pedro, chronicles Zamora's life.

A 2021 documentary by William T. Horner, Keep the Cameras Rolling: The Pedro Zamora Way is a chronicle of Pedro's journey with AIDS and reality television.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Pedro's widower, Sean Sasser, continued his activism for LGBT issues, and his work as an HIV educator. In 1995, he spoke at the inaugural White House AIDS conference, and was appointed by President Bill Clinton to the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS.<ref name=WashingtonPost>McGonough, Megan (August 13, 2013). " Sean Sasser, part of one of TV’s first gay romances, dies at 44". The Washington Post.</ref> He moved to Atlanta in late 1995, in order to be with his boyfriend, and hoped to open a café.<ref name=POZ>Jones, Anderson (June 1997). "Nowhere Else to Go". POZ.</ref> He was later a pastry chef at Ritz-Carlton hotel properties and head pastry chef at a luxury hotel in Portland before settling in Washington DC in 2012, where, as a pastry chef at a restaurant called RIS,<ref name=WashingtonPost/> he was praised by the Washington Blade for his work there.<ref>Howard, Jonathan (May 16, 2013). "Sasser's sweet tooth". Washington Blade.</ref> In June 2013 Sasser married Michael Kaplan,<ref name=WashingtonPost/><ref name=CBSNews>"Sean Sasser, 'Real World' star, dies at 44". CBS News. August 8, 2013.</ref><ref name=People8.8.13>Gosgrove Baylis, Sheila (August 8, 2013). "Sean Sasser, of The Real World, Dies at 44". People.</ref><ref name=USAToday>Oldenburg, Ann (August 8, 2013). "'Real World' star Sean Sasser dies at 44". USA Today.</ref> whom he had dated off and on since the 1990s, and with whom he had moved in six months prior.<ref name=CNN/> While in Washington, Sasser served as a board member of the AIDS Alliance for Children, Youth and Families. He was active in youth and mentoring organizations, and he and Kaplan served as foster parents to a 4-year-old girl.<ref name=WashingtonPost/> In July 2013, Sasser, who had also been HIV positive for 25 years, was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a rare cancer of the lungs.<ref name=CNN/> He died at his home on August 7, 2013, at the age of 44.<ref name=CNN/><ref name=WashingtonPost/><ref name=CBSNews/><ref name=People8.8.13/><ref name=USAToday/> He is survived by his mother, Patricia Sasser of Detroit, and a younger sister.<ref name=WashingtonPost/><ref name=POZ/>

The Challenge

Template:Nowrap	Template:Nowrap
Cory Murphy	Template:N/a
David "Puck" Rainey	Battle of the Sexes
Judd Winick	Template:N/a
Mohammed Bilal	Template:N/a
Pam Ling	Template:N/a
Pedro Zamora	Template:N/a
Rachel Campos	Road Rules: All Stars
Joanna "Jo" Rhodes	The Gauntlet 2

David "Puck" Rainey served as a host on the first season of The Challenge

External links

• Template:Official website at MTV.com
• The Real World: San Francisco: Meet the Cast. MTV.com