A lot can change in 10 years. From stylistic trends to TV sentiments, popular tastes can undergo many dramatic changes. The fact that most East students do not instantly recognize the term MTV—or its relevance to their school—reflects such tectonic cultural shifts.
In 2011, back when reality TV was still newly mesmerizing, East was in fact the lucky school out of a dozen from across the U.S. chosen to host MTV’s popular show “MADE.” In each episode, viewers laughed and cringed as one awkward high schooler was transformed into a cooler version of themselves in just two weeks. In the episode filmed at East, then sophomore Jake Rohde was “made” into a “ladies’ man.”
Now a graduate student, he looks back fondly on his episode.
“You know, ladies’ man is such a classic motif; those are such memorable episodes,” Rohde said.
With East’s transformation into a TV set, the typical school day also underwent unbelievable changes. In addition to students, East’s hallways were jam-packed with bulky apparatus straight out of Hollywood: camera equipment and crews, all in pursuit of one student’s mission to get a date.
“It was pretty fun having a cameraman follow me everywhere,” Rohde said. “People would definitely stare and make room for it.”
Lauren Katz, the it-girl with whom Rohde was trying to land a date, also remembers what it was like around the school.
“It was really cool because it brought our whole school together; all the grades were kind of participating,” said Lauren Katz, who was also a sophomore at the time and is now an attorney in New York City. “When the cameraman would come around, suddenly everyone would be in the halls.”
However, when students discovered that MTV’s “MADE” might be coming to East, many believed it was nothing more than a rumor.
“I remember that there were all these flyers around the school saying that MTV’s ‘MADE’ is coming, and everyone thought the seniors were pulling a prank,” Katz said.
Open auditions were held for everyone in the school, and when Rohde auditioned, he originally said his preferred role was a comedian. Once production reviewed his audition, though, the role of ladies’ man was suggested for him, and the name “Ladies’ Man Jake” was born.
During the episode, Rohde had celebrity coach Sundai Love, who placed fifth on season 13 of America’s Next Top Model, help him prepare for the grand finale at Top of the Hill, where he hosted a school-wide party and invited Lauren as his special guest.
“It was a huge deal,” Katz said. “I don’t want to give any spoilers, but let’s just say big things happen.”
In recent years, Rohde has not kept in touch with any of his East classmates, but he says that he does show his episode to his graduate school classmates.
“It’s a unique opportunity for people to get to know me as I was 10 years ago,” Rohde said. “Everyone can relate to being awkward and having a difficult time in high school—mine is just a bit more vivid.”
Unfortunately, MTV has removed this episode from its website, but it is still available via YouTube.
Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
