Evan Starkman

Evan Starkman (born December 18, 1984) is the Founder, CEO and President of The Bait Shoppe. He was named one of the top 500 people in events by BizBash. He is best known as a competitor on the MTV reality game shows Real World/Road Rules Challenge: Fresh Meat, The Duel, The Gauntlet III, The Duel 2, The Ruins, and The Challenge: Rivals. He won The Duel 2 and The Ruins. Unlike many of his competitors, he never appeared on Real World or Road Rules; he was discovered at an open casting call and appeared on Fresh Meat in 2006. He hosted the RW/RR Spring Break Challenge in March 2010 with Paula Meronek.
Before appearing on Fresh Meat, Starkman went to college at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York where he majored in liberal arts and played club hockey. He was born in Perth, Ontario, Canada and moved to the United States to attend college. He auditioned for Fresh Meat during his junior year, and took a break from school to attempt the challenge.
Starkman founded a marketing agency called The Bait Shoppe in 2010.
Television appearances
Fresh Meat
On Fresh Meat, Starkman's was paired with Coral Smith, one of the alumni of the Real World/Road Rules Challenge, and quickly became a fierce competitor who was viewed as a threat to other teams. Until he suffered from a hernia in episode 5 and was later removed from the competition in episode 11. Starkman and Smith won 5 of the 10 challenges they appeared in.
The Duel
The Duel was Starkman's second Challenge. He won 6 out of the 13 challenges he competed in, before being defeated by Chris Tamburello in the Ascender duel during the 13th episode. Starkman won four challenges in a row, from episodes 9-12.
The Gauntlet III
For this season, Starkman was part of the Veterans team, which won 10 of the 16 challenges. At the final challenge, however, Eric Banks, a member of the veteran team, ended up in the hospital before completing the final. The rules of the game forced the Veterans to lose because not all of their players were able to finish.
The Duel II
This season earned Starkman his first Challenge win. He won two of ten individual challenges, and went into the Duel three times, each time eliminating the player he was up against. He won $100,000 after a close race with Brad Fiorenza to the finish line.
The Ruins
This marked Starkman's second win in a row, as a member of the Champions team. The Champions dominated the competition throughout its entirety, winning 9 of the 10 challenges. Starkman himself never appeared in an elimination round and reached the final alongside teammates Derrick Kosinski, Johnny Devenanzio, Kenny Santucci, and Susie Meister. He won a total of $51,293.
Rivals
Starkman appears on The Challenge: Rivals, which began airing in June 2011. In an attempt to send CT and Adam home in the 6th episode, Evan intentionally lost the challenge which automatically qualified him and his partner for the elimination round, where CT and Adam would be voted in to face off against them. Evan's plan was unsuccessful after CT and Adam went on to win The Jungle and send home Evan and Nehemiah in the process.
The Bait Shoppe
Starkman founded The Bait Shoppe in 2010, which he describes as an "everything agency". Its clients include European clothing retailer Primark.
Other work
Starkman started a clothing line with friend and Challenge castmate, Kenny Santucci. The line is called Suck Yeah and debuted in 2009. He also began Branch Out Clothing before Suck Yeah, a clothing company that focuses on sending positive messages into the world - "...When you wear Branch Out apparel you are taking the first step to spreading a positive message. You are joining a movement to change the way people think, the way people feel and the way the world works," and sending most of the profits to charity. The company has featured projects that they promote and donate to regularly.
Sexual assault allegations
In October 2011, Starkman, fellow Challenge castmember Kenny Santucci, MTV, and Bunim/Murray Productions were named in a lawsuit filed by fellow Challenge castmember Tonya Cooley, in which Cooley claimed that she was sexually assaulted with a toothbrush while passed out from heavy drinking during filming in Thailand in 2009. Bunim/Murray Productions said that "after a thorough investigation, we have found Tonya Cooley’s claims to be completely baseless", and Starkman refutes the claims.

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