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Celebrity Apprentice recap, Michaels' enthusiasm for the task cinches the win

By April MacIntyre May 3, 2010, 14:54 GMT

Bret Michaels (Far right) on Celebrity Apprentice, courtesy of NBC

NBC has a mini-windfall on their hands with reality series "The Celebrity Apprentice," as one of the lead contestants (who probably will win the series) Poison frontman and "Rock of Love" star Bret Michaels is ailing in a hospital still after a series of medical emergencies and near death from a hard-to-find brain aneurysm.

His team mate Sharon Osbourne was unusually quiet, never taking her sunglasses off at the recent NBC summer press day, where she normally would have been cracking wise with Piers, Nick and now Howie Mandel, Hasselhoff's replacement of America's Got Talent.  Instead she answered all the questions about Michaels with a real sense of worry for her friend.

Michaels has affably hung on during "The Celebrity Apprentice," and I cannot remember one person really saying anything negative about him (except for the 'he's late again' rocker cliche cracks). Everyone gets on with him. The Donald loves the working class kid with manners from a hardscrabble town in Pennsylvania who made something of himself, despite the odds.

Last night's "The Celebrity Apprentice" also revealed more of Holly Robinson Peete's personal side, we met her four children, including her eldest son, an autistic child who she champions for. Her remarks about the diagnosis of autism bringing her and husband Rodney Peete to their knees rang true. What we didn't need to know was the information she shared during the plumbing spot about her husband clogging up their pipes.

The funniest part of the episode was the stiff-straight humorless executives entertaining the pitches of the RockSolid team, and Tenacity's Cyndi Lauper who went off in her patented tangents about Benjamin Franklin's love of bathing in France...with the ladies.  She watched John Adams" on HBO, so she knew what she was talking about.

Michaels' just couldn't resist the obvious "crack" line regarding the plumber jingle voice over for his team, and despite the "stay conservative" warnings from Osbourne and Maria K, they charmed the Clockwork executives and won the overall challenge.

Which brings us to Curtis Stone and his team, headed by Summer Sanders. The flat in personality Olympian got the boot, but not without the spotlight being thrown on Stone for a moment as Sharon and Maria threw some acid his way, saying he was smug and that they didn't like him.  Poor Curtis! He was blindsided by their words.

So now, with Bret Michaels still in an Arizona hospital, we are getting close to the end of the NBC reality series that most likely will crown him Apprentice.

At the NBC press day, Sharon Osbourne told us all she was battling Swine flu and bronchitis and she seemed still off last night. Cyndi Lauper's going to go out in flames, that we can be sure of, and Donald Trump's son Eric is 100% more charming than Donald Trump Jr. who has been sitting in as advisor.

It is unclear if Michaels will be available for the live finale on May 23, it's impossible to count him out.  "The Celebrity Apprentice" has revealed he is not just a reality TV Rock of Love joke, but he has heart and real tenacity.

You're Fired!

Project manager Summer Sanders is sent packing in week 8 of the competition.

Summer's Exit Interview Summer says goodbye to the competition and talks about what might have gone wrong in the task.