The Celebrity Apprentice 5 (also known as The Apprentice 12) is the fifth installment of the reality game show The Celebrity Apprentice. On May 15, 2011, NBC announced that the show would be returning for a fifth season in 2012. The following day, at NBC's annual upfront presentations to advertisers, Donald Trump confirmed that he would be hosting the fifth season. On January 4, 2012, Trump officially announced the cast on Today and NBC issued a press release with more details. On January 13, 2012, NBC announced the fifth season would premiere February 19, 2012, and would be the first season to air each week's finale live. The network announced that it would air a one-hour version of the previous week's episode prior to the airing of new episodes on February 26 and March 4 at 8 p.m.
Candidates Celebrity Background Original team Age Hometown Charity Result RaisedComedian, actor & talk show hostUnanimous 55Warrensville Heights, OhioMagic Johnson Foundation15 (5–20–2012)$522,100Singer-songwriter & activistUnanimous 33Raleigh, North CarolinaNational Inclusion Project14 Fired in the season finale(5–20–2012)$361,500Danity Kane singer & actressForte 27La Quinta, CaliforniaGay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network14 Fired in task 14(5–13–2012)$50,000ComedianForte 50Trumbull, ConnecticutGay Men's Health Crisis14 Fired in task 14(5–13–2012)$130,000The Real Housewives of New Jersey starForte 39Paterson, New JerseyThe NephCure Foundation13 Fired in task 13(5–06–2012)$70,000Miss Universe 2008Forte 25Caracas, VenezuelaLatino Commission on AIDS12 Fired in task 12(4–29–2012)$30,000MagicianUnanimous 56Greenfield, MassachusettsOpportunity Village11 Fired in task 11(4–22–2012)$50,000American Chopper starUnanimous 62Pearl River, New YorkMake-A-Wish Foundation10 Fired in task 10(4–15–2012)$494,082Actor & retired professional bodybuilderUnanimous 60Brooklyn, New YorkMuscular Dystrophy Association09 Fired in task 9(4–08–2012)$50,000Twisted Sister singerUnanimous 56Baldwin, New YorkMarch of Dimes08 Fired in task 8(4–01–2012)$326,000Singer-songwriter & actressForte 41Merrick, New YorkChildren International07 Fired in task 7(4–01–2012)$50,000Model, actress & philanthropistForte 40Maracaibo, VenezuelaThe Wayuu Taya Foundation06 Fired in task 6(3–25–2012)Actress, singer & modelForte 45Honolulu, HawaiiAfter-School All-Stars05 Fired in task 5(3–18–2012)05Andretti replaced his son Marco as a result of the investigation into the IZOD IndyCar World Championship tragedy that happened days before taping began.IZOD IndyCar Series team ownerUnanimous 49Bethlehem, PennsylvaniaRacing for Cancer04 Fired in task 4(3–11–2012)04Comedian, actor & podcasterUnanimous 47Studio City, CaliforniaCatholic Big Brothers Big Sisters03 Fired in task 4(3–11–2012)03Former Star Trek actorUnanimous 74Los Angeles, CaliforniaJapanese American National Museum02 Fired in task 3(3–04–2012)Reality television star & authorForte 48Howard Beach, New YorkAssociation to Benefit Children01 Fired in task 2(2–26–2012)01SupermodelForte 64Alhambra, CaliforniaThe Farrah Fawcett Foundation 00 Fired in task 1(2–19–2012)00
Weekly results
Candidate Original team Task 8 team Task 10 team Final Task team Application result Record as project managerArsenio HallUnanimousUnanimousUnanimousUnanimousThe Celebrity Apprentice2–0 (win in tasks 8 & 12)Clay AikenUnanimousUnanimousForteForteFired in the season finale1–1 (win in task 6, loss in task 11)Aubrey O'DayForteUnanimousUnanimousForteFired in task 141–1 (win in task 11, loss in task 6)Lisa LampanelliForteForteForteUnanimousFired in task 142–1 (win in tasks 10 & 13, loss in task 2)Teresa GiudiceForteUnanimousUnanimousUnanimousFired in task 131–2 (win in task 9, loss in tasks 7 & 13)Dayana MendozaForteForteForte Fired in task 121–2 (win in task 3, loss in tasks 9 & 12)Penn JilletteUnanimousForteForteForte Fired in task 111–0 (win in task 2)Paul Teutul Sr.UnanimousUnanimousUnanimousUnanimous Fired in task 101–1 (win in task 1, loss in task 10)Lou FerrignoUnanimousForte Fired in task 91–1 (win in task 5, loss in task 8)Dee SniderUnanimousForteForte Fired in task 81–0 (win in task 7)Debbie GibsonForteForte Fired in task 71–0 (win in task 4)Patricia VelásquezForte Fired in task 60–1 (loss in task 1)Tia CarrereForte Fired in task 50–1 (loss in task 5)Michael AndrettiUnanimous Fired in task 4Adam CarollaUnanimousUnanimous Fired in task 40–1 (loss in task 4)George TakeiUnanimous Fired in task 30–1 (loss in task 3)Victoria GottiForte Fired in task 2Cheryl TiegsForte Fired in task 1 Elimination chartNo.Candidate1234567891011121314151ArsenioININ BR BRINININ WININ ININ WIN ININ CA 2ClayININ IN BRINWINININININ LOSE INININ FIRED3Aubrey IN INININ IN LOSE INININ BR WININ IN FIRED4Lisa IN LOSEININ IN IN IN IN BR WIN IN IN WIN FIRED5Teresa IN INININ IN IN LOSEIN WIN BRININ FIRED6Dayana IN BR WININ IN BR BR BR LOSEIN BR FIRED7PennIN WIN IN BRINININ IN ININ FIRED8Paul WININ IN BRINININININ FIRED9LouININ BR BR WINININ LOSE FIRED10DeeININ IN BRININ WIN FIRED11Debbie IN ININ WIN IN IN FIRED12Patricia LOSE INININ IN FIRED13Tia IN INININ FIRED14MichaelININ IN FIRED15AdamIN IN IN FIRED16GeorgeININ FIRED17Victoria BR FIRED18Cheryl FIRED
The candidate was on the losing team. The candidate won the competition and was named the Celebrity Apprentice. The candidate won as project manager on his/her team. The candidate lost as project manager on his/her team. The candidate was on the losing team and brought to the final boardroom. The candidate was fired. The candidate lost as project manager and was fired. The candidate did not participate in the task.
Episodes
Episode 1: Hero Worship Task 1 Airdate: February 19, 2012 Task sponsor: CafeMetro Task scope: Teams must run a delicatessen and sell sandwiches for as much money as possible. Unanimous project manager: Paul Teutul Sr. Forte project manager: Patricia Velásquez Judges: Donald Trump; Ivanka Trump; Donald Trump Jr. Results: The men of Unanimous went with a theme to highlight project manager Paul Teutul Sr.'s television show, American Chopper. They used Penn Jillette as a carnival barker to attract customers and gain profit. While the men struggled to funnel people into their deli and didn't have a significant amount of large donations, Clay Aiken was able to upsell their sandwiches and make more money. The women of Forte put on a celebrity lounge/red carpet theme at their deli and Patricia Velásquez called in multiple people to bring in money for her charity. They utilized Debbie Gibson's singing talents to attract customers while Teresa Giudice and Aubrey O'Day also brought in people to donate money. In particular, Dayana Mendoza was able to get top-dollar donations from some of her contacts. Dramatic tension: Victoria Gotti seemed too detached from the task in the very beginning, making personal phone calls to her children and not bringing in donors. She was also an hour late into the opening day, but cited that she had a torn cornea. Cheryl Tiegs seemed to be working at the slowest pace, which also irritated her teammates. George Takei was also working at a slower pace than his team was, which caused friction between him and Paul Teutul Sr. The men's team hesitantly held out on their contacts, figuring that they could use them for their own benefit and believing that Paul would follow through on his outrageous claim of pulling in half a million dollars. While he did not meet his initial goal, Paul had a donor who wrote a check that was more than double of what the women even made. Winning team: Unanimous Reasons for win: Paul pulled in $305,000 from an unknown contact. They also received a bonus check of $35,000 after Rachael Ray judged the teams' sandwiches and she preferred their sandwich over Forte's. Altogether, they made a total profit of $367,120. Losing team: Forte Reasons for loss: Despite having a number of high-profile contacts follow through with multiple donations varying in thousands of dollars, the women were all outmatched by Paul's single donor. They only made $126,962. Sent to boardroom: Patricia Velásquez, Cheryl Tiegs, Victoria Gotti Fired: Cheryl Tiegs – for her insignificant contributions and admitting that she did not fit into the environment of The Apprentice. In addition to her questionable desire to continue on the show, Cheryl also acknowledged that she held out on her contacts so that she could use them for her own purposes. While Victoria Gotti also admitted that she held out on her contacts and was called out by her teammates for her lackluster performance, it was concluded that Victoria would be a stronger resource for the women if she was more focused and attentive in the tasks. Notes: Paul Teutul Sr. won $494,082 for his charity. This broke the record for the most money earned during the first task in a Celebrity Apprentice season. Cameo appearances by Carol Alt, Wyclef Jean, Rachael Ray, Andy Cohen, Russell Simmons, David Vanacore Marco Andretti, INDYCAR driver for Andretti Autosport, withdrew from the competition as a result of the death of Dan Wheldon at the 2011 IZOD IndyCar World Championship at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, which was earlier in the week that taping commenced, and a death on his mother's side of the family. His father Michael was the replacement, and joined midway through the task. Paul's donor accounted for over 80% of the men's revenue. Without it, and the bonus check from Rachael Ray, the team made just $27,120. Despite the loss, Patricia Velásquez was universally praised by the women for being a superb project manager and not one of them said that she deserved to be fired. When brought back to the boardroom, even both Cheryl Tiegs and Victoria Gotti admitted they would not fire Patricia. Aubrey O'Day asked Trump if he could allow Patricia to keep her earnings, given that Patricia brought a majority of Forte's money, but Trump refused. When discussing her performance in the initial boardroom, Tia Carrere told Patricia that it would be "OK" if she brought her back to the boardroom if they lost, which perturbed Trump. When confronted about her comment after the results were revealed, Tia explained that she made the remark because she knew she could defend herself in the boardroom. Unfortunately, Trump felt it was a very foolish thing to say and Ivanka deemed it flippant. After being dismissed from the boardroom, Victoria argued with Trump over her being a hard worker.
Episode 2: Getting Medieval Task 2 Airdate: February 26, 2012 Task sponsor: Medieval Times Task scope: The celebrities must create an original 12–15 minute show for Medieval Times that would be performed in front of a live audience in Lyndhurst, New Jersey. Teams will be judged by an audience vote based on entertainment value, creativity, and overall presentation. Teams will be riding horses for the performance. Unanimous project manager: Penn Jillette Forte project manager: Lisa Lampanelli Judges: Donald Trump; James Lipton; Donald Trump Jr. Results: Unanimous made a show that incorporated each team member's profession. Penn Jillette and Arsenio Hall served as hosts while George Takei was the narrator. Lou Ferrigno played a leading role and Paul Teutul Sr. played his opponent. Dee Snider dressed in drag as the princess, while Clay Aiken played his troubadour. Forte created a show that was centered on a spoof of The Real Housewives of New Jersey, with Teresa Giudice recreating the moment from the show where she angrily flipped over a table. The women also incorporated a parody of Snooki from the Jersey Shore into their show. With Lisa Lampanelli portraying Sir Donald of Trump, the remaining women portrayed "real housewives" who were fighting for his affection.