by Jill Bongiorni, News Staff
Southie pride is something most Boston residents are familiar with: the “swagger” and easily recognizable accent that come with being born and raised on the chunk of land between Castle Island and Dorchester Avenue. However, a recent announcement could give the term new meaning.
“Southie Pride” will be the title of a new reality series chronicling the lives of five South Boston women and their families, according to a statement from cable network TLC released Tuesday. The reality show is set to premiere this fall on the channel.
The network has signed on for at least eight episodes with 495 Productions, producers of “Jersey Shore,” which has been a national hit since its MTV debut in 2009. However, the show will not be a South Boston version of “Jersey Shore,” but rather a profile of the women’s daily lives in Southie.
Representatives from 495 Productions declined requests for comment.
“Spend some time with the women of South Boston and you quickly learn that pride runs deep, family comes first, and that their friendships and rivalries are forever,” SallyAnne Salsano, president of 495 Productions, said in the release. “And, their accents are wicked awesome.”
The production company already shot scenes in South Boston this weekend in the midst of a devastating New England Patriots Super Bowl loss, according to the press release.
“I think it will be hilarious because Boston is such a pride-based city and also very blunt and known for its no BS attitude,” said middler physical therapy major Kristin Dunn, who grew up in Westford, about 25 miles northwest of Boston. “Southie is known for its ‘no BS’ attitude the most. Add money into that and it’s a party.”
This is not the first time Massachusetts has been threatened with a “Jersey Shore”-like reality show. A casting call was posted April of 2010 on placed-based Doron Ofir’s Casting website looking for “quintessential and iconic Massachusetts types, from long-time dock workers to fisherman [sic], beer guzzlers to chowder lovers, Fenway fanatics to the men and women in blue, cabbies to yachtsman, cheerleaders to Brookline babes.” The show never came to fruition.
Some Massachusetts residents don’t think a reality show will do the town justice.
“I don’t think that Southie is a good place for a reality show. Shows like this are based on entertainment and it’s more entertaining to show conflicts and the negative things people do, which could give Southie a bad name,” said sophomore psychology major Ashley Hallman, who grew up on Cape Cod in South Yarmouth. “This show won’t be about pride, it will focus on the troubles of Southie rather than the triumphs.”
The women of South Boston seem to be a hit already, as the YouTube spoof “The Real Housewives of South Boston” has picked up more than 800,000 hits in its three months. The fake reality series features five crude South Boston women who drink, curse, argue and of course, watch Boston sports, which unites them despite their constant differences.
While these videos are a parody, another real series on South Boston may be in the works to compete with “Southie Pride.” Another casting announcement was posted on Doron Ofir’s Casting website a month ago for a similar show called “Southies,” which would also document the lives of South Boston women.
“I’ve had cousins who have lived [in South Boston] forever, and it’s a community that people live and die for,” Dunn said. “A lot of people are born in Southie, raise families in Southie and die in Southie. It’s a tight-knit community and I’m surprised they’re letting cameras in because coming from a huge Irish family myself, you don’t really air your dirty laundry around.”
