The Golden Bachelor‘s Terri Alani has learned that everyone has a view about reality TV.
When the Texas dentist had the opportunity to meet Mel Owens for the first time during the ABC show’s infamous limo entrances, she decided to play a ventriloquist.
Although Mel, 66, was impressed, some of the ladies on The View were not.
“I’m navigating through social media and all of a sudden, I see this segment and it’s Whoopi Goldberg on The View calling me out on national TV about my puppet not only being creepy, but she called me the muppet woman,” Terri, 71, exclusively shared with Us Weekly at The Golden Bachelor Gal’s Brunch in Los Angeles on Thursday, October 16. “I mean, ‘the muppet woman’? That’s a whole new profession for me, because I’m a dentist.”
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In Whoopi’s defense, it was actually cohost Sara Haines who referred to Terri as the muppet woman. Nonetheless, the Oscar winner wasn’t entirely impressed with Terri’s grand entrance.
“I saw her lips moving,” Whoopi, 69, explained during the September 25 episode of The View. “With ventriloquists, the ventriloquist’s lips should not be moving.”
Sunny Hostin added, “I thought it was creepy.”
@theviewabc #TheView co-hosts weigh in on the premiere of #TheGoldenBachelor where contestants were not shy about confronting the show’s star, MelOwens.
In response to being a Hot Topic on The View, Terri revealed she wasn’t bothered by all the chatter.
“Honestly, I was more upset about my lips moving, which she called me out on as well, but I didn’t feel so bad because she couldn’t even say the word ventriloquist,” Terri told Us. “So Whoopi, take that!”
Although Terri was eliminated in week three of the competition, she has continued to watch her friends compete for Mel’s final rose.
With Peg Munson, Debbie Siebers and Cindy Angelcyk Cullers preparing for hometown dates as the final three competitors, Terri said she truly has no idea who Mel will pick as his winner.
“I am friends with all of them so for me, whoever he picks, I’ll be good with. But it’s really interesting because Peg and Cindy are opposite,” she told Us. “You’ve got Peg, who’s ballsy, super outgoing. You have Cindy who’s a little bit more sophisticated in a certain way. … and then you’ve got Debbie, who is a mix. If Cindy and Peg had a daughter, it’d be Debbie.”
One contestant who made quite the splash on season 2 of The Golden Bachelor was Nicolle Kate Briscoe.
The yoga instructor from Miami Beach, Florida, ruffled some feathers when she made out with Mel in front of others. Her sassy confessional interviews also grabbed the attention of viewers at home.
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Ultimately, Nicolle, 64, and Terri are in a good place and have been able to move forward from any past drama.
“She and I actually cleared it up, but I was very surprised at her shenanigans off camera because in the house, she was amazing. She was so sweet,” Terri explained. “I didn’t know what her intentionality was with the interviews — maybe to catch more screen time — but Nicolle’s not a bad chick.”
The Golden Bachelor airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.
