Originally posted Wednesday, February 13, 2019 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog
R&B singer and reality star Tamar Braxton won "Celebrity Big Brother" season two Wednesday in a clean sweep, only the second time in "Big Brother" history that has ever happened.
“Thank you guys for being my lifelong friends,” Braxton said after she won the $250,000, while hugging her son Logan for the first time in a month.
NFL player Ricky Williams was the runner-up and took home $50,000. Comic Tom Green was America's favorite houseguest and nabbed $25,000.
You could tell that Ricky was not only perturbed he lost but also because he didn’t get a single vote, which was surprising to me. He seemed to play an effective, low-key stealth-level game and won Head of Household twice at the end in a way that controlled his destiny. On paper, he deserved at least a few votes.
If he had picked Dina Lohan (which he should have), he would have won because Dina barely made any moves. She was the ultimate "floater." I am not sure if he had been able to beat Lolo Jones, who played hard and played with heart like Tamar.
Tamar, whose personal life has been in major turmoil, probably needed this win more than Ricky. Plus, she is a true super fan of the show and while she admitted she let her emotions get to her - especially early on - she managed to keep the eye on the prize and avoid pitfalls that would have made her a target.
She made multiple alliances without giving herself away and won Head of Household at a strategic moment, enabling her to get rid of Kato Kaelin, a major threat. She also won Power of Veto at the right time and ensured Tom Green's departure as well.
Tamar kissed and made up with Kandi Burruss after getting past some personal non-"Big Brother" issues. She successfully hid her "publicist" advantage, which she ultimately never had to use either.
And bottom line: she was a super fan and her enthusiasm for being in the house was infectious.
Kandi, the Atlanta reality star and R&B singer/songwriter, finished fifth. Ricky got rid of her tonight over Dina, correctly perceiving her as a bigger threat.
Overall, Kandi played a solid game. She kept her head down and held secrets well. She was a fine combination of level headed, honest and competitive. She smartly made a final-two alliance with Tamar.
But she did not win a single Head of Household or Power of Veto competition so she was never able to make decisions that could have ensured her survival - especially at the end. She landed on the block four times, which was a badge of honor in one sense but she was clearly seen as a pawn at times.
Among the final five, the only person Kandi could have realistically beaten in a final two was Dina. But she did do far better than I expected going into the show three weeks ago. I thought her general hatred for BS would have hurt her but it didn’t.
"I have no regrets," Kandi told host Julie Chen Moonves after she was eliminated. "I didn't think I'd make it this far. I was just trying not to get kicked off the first week."
“I made some great friends and I plan to stay in touch with everybody,” she added.
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