Doug Goodale, seen taking his first look at his new log house on Oct. 4, had a compelling life story for the "Extreme Makeover" reality TV show. Some people knew that his story included a conviction for armed robbery in 1982.
Posted on 10/21/2005 5:39:09 PM PDT by Cagey
WELLS — Doug Goodale's story was custom built for television. A Maine lobsterman who cut off his right arm in a freak fishing accident, Goodale made a perfect candidate for "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," the hit reality TV show that each week creates a lavish new dwelling for a needy family with a compelling story.
This fall the show enlisted more than 1,000 volunteers and replaced Goodale's double-wide mobile home with a $500,000 log home.
But in the weeks since Goodale, his wife and their two children moved into their new home, the story of the 40-year-old lobsterman has become more complicated, raising questions about the show's screening process for recipients of its home makeovers.
Goodale has a criminal record, starting with a conviction for armed robbery as a teenager, for which he served 60 days in the York County jail. He also has a misdemeanor conviction for assault and two convictions for drunken driving.
A spokeswoman for "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" would not discuss the specifics of Goodale's criminal history, most of which precedes his fishing accident in 1997. Melissa Armstrong, a Los Angeles-based publicist who works for the production company that supplies the show to ABC, said the show is looking into his record.
Goodale said he and his family have an agreement with "Extreme Makeover" not to speak to the media before their episode airs. He referred all calls to the show's producers, who declined to comment.
Since its debut in December 2003, "Extreme Makeover" has built homes for more than 40 families. It gets 2,000 applications a week. Last season, the show averaged 15 million viewers a week, according to ABC's Web site.
The show's online application form asks candidates whether they ever have been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor and whether they have been the defendant in a lawsuit.
Neither the show nor Goodale will say whether his application form included the information, or whether a criminal record would have disqualified him from participating in the program.
Goodale's life does make for a dramatic story. While lobstering alone on Sept. 30, 1997, he got his right shirt sleeve caught in a winch, which grabbed his arm and crushed all of the bones.
To free himself, Goodale later told reporters, he cut away what was left of the arm and steered his boat back into Wells Harbor.
His story reached the producers of "Extreme Makeover" after a family member applied to the show. Goodale was emblematic of Maine and the region, Paul DiMeo, one of the show's star designers, told the Portland ABC affiliate that airs "Extreme Makeover."
"New England is its own place - its own place - and the people are very proud and they work so hard, so hard," DiMeo said, according to the WMTW-TV Web site. "And to be able to see what a lobsterman's life is like and to get this opportunity. . . . If you can learn something at the end of every day, then you are in good shape."
DiMeo said the Goodale house is the biggest and best home the show has built, according to WMTW-TV. Volunteers helped replace his family's mobile home with a big L-shaped building that features overhanging gables, a wrap-around porch and a copper-topped gazebo.
READERS RAISED QUESTIONS
Officials with Katahdin Cedar Log Homes, the Aroostook County-based company that supplied the materials to build the home, estimated its value at $500,000. The company also sent 25 workers, who stained the house inside and out during the last two days of the project.
David Gordon, the company's president, said it did not bother him to learn that Goodale had been in trouble with the law. "Absolutely not, as long as he paid his debt to society," Gordon said.
Goodale's criminal record became an issue for some people after stories about his good fortune made front pages and newscasts across the state. The Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram received a telephone tip about Goodale's armed-robbery conviction from a man who wouldn't identify himself. A reporter confirmed the information using public records available online through the State Bureau of Identification.
The newspaper also received an unsigned letter from "citizens of Wells" asking whether the show did a thorough background check on Goodale. And readers posted comments on the newspaper's Web site, www.MaineToday.com, referring to Goodale's criminal history.
Goodale and a 17-year-old friend were arrested and charged with armed robbery on Jan. 29, 1982, according to court records and a story in the Press Herald/Telegram archives.
The day before, a man wearing a Halloween mask had walked into a Burger King on Route 1 in Kennebunk, pointed a revolver at five employees, locked them in a walk-in cooler and stolen $300 in cash.
A grand jury indicted Goodale on a single count of armed robbery, a felony. He pleaded guilty on July 15, 1982, court records show. He was sentenced to one year in prison with all but 60 days suspended. He served his sentence in the York County Jail. He also was ordered to pay $666 in restitution. His 17-year-old friend, who was not identified, was prosecuted as a juvenile.
On Aug. 14, 1997, Goodale was charged with assault by police in Sanford. Court records do not reveal the circumstances of the incident. The records show that he was released on bail and prevented from contacting his second, and current, wife, Rebecca Goodale, and from going near the family's home on Day Hill Road in Wells.
Goodale eventually pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault, and was sentenced to 90 days in jail, all suspended. He was ordered to get an evaluation for domestic abuse and use of alcohol.
On Dec. 13, 1997, soon after his fishing accident, Goodale became one of 31 people caught in a sting operation in Salem, N.H., by state and federal law enforcement officials. Told he had won a free TV, Goodale drove to Salem to collect his prize. Instead, he was arrested because he was wanted on charges of driving while intoxicated, second offense, according to a story by The Associated Press.
His Maine driving record, which is separate from his criminal record, shows that his license was suspended twice, for drunken driving in 1985 and 1995.
One reason "Extreme Makeover" may not have known about Goodale's conviction for armed robbery is a mix-up over his birthday. A spokeswoman for the show said it was told that Goodale was born on Jan. 3, 1965. But all of his court records up until 1997 list his birthday as Jan. 3, 1964. That would have made him 18 and an adult at the time of his arrest and conviction for armed robbery.
Goodale's non-criminal record of driving offenses lists his birthday as Jan. 3, 1965. So does his Maine driver's license and his birth certificate, which is on file at Wells Town Hall. If he was in fact 17 at the time of the robbery, he could have been charged as a juvenile or as an adult, depending on the crime.
Goodale said his confidentiality agreement with "Extreme Makeover" prevents him from explaining the confusion. The lawyer who represented him in the armed-robbery case has since died.
But the mix-up means that anybody doing a computerized criminal record search using Goodale's 1965 birth date would not find his criminal record.
REALITY SHOW CELEBRITIES
The fact that Goodale has a record raises questions about the process used by "Extreme Makeover" to screen recipients for its largesse, which for Goodale also included a family trip to Disney World and a boat, according to the WMTW-TV Web site.
Nationally, contestants on reality TV shows have become public figures. The arrest records of recent performers on "American Idol" have become news stories. Web sites such as www.thesmokinggun.com specialize in posting online court records involving celebrities, the rich and powerful.
Goodale's ex-wife - who contacted the newspaper after reading the story of her ex-husband getting the house - said his past is relevant and questioned the "reality" of Doug Goodale that the show may present.
"He's had a hard life, but he brought it all on himself," said Becky Sellers, who was married to Goodale from 1985 until 1992.
SHOW ISN'T A CHARITY
Goodale would not comment and attempts to reach other family members for comment for this story were unsuccessful. But one of the show's many loyal viewers who flocked to Wells to participate in the construction of Goodale's new home said his record doesn't matter.
Kathy Tice of South Paris said she doesn't expect the recipients of "Extreme Makeover" houses to be perfect. She is moved by the way the show can transform people's lives.
"I watch it every Sunday night, and the joy and relief on people's faces, it gives them hope," Tice said. "I just feel that God takes care of the people who were picked, and these people were picked for some reason that we may never understand."
The show is not a charity, said Robert Thompson, a professor of television popular culture at Syracuse University. It is an entertainment program, and things like Goodale's criminal history could pose problems for the show if the recipients appear to be less than sympathetic.
"It's like the 'Queen For a Day' format, where we all feel like we contributed to help somebody even though we were just watching," Thompson said. "The whole value of the show is its feel-good presence. If they don't do a good job screening people, they will cut into the heart of what the show is all about."
Unlike a real charity, people who contribute products to "Extreme Makeover" receive valuable exposure on a popular national television show.
And unlike a reality show, groups that quietly provide help for the needy try to spread their resources broadly.
Stephen Bolton, executive director of Habitat for Humanity of Greater Portland, said his organization could house six families with what "Extreme Makeover" spent on the Goodales.
A criminal record would not automatically disqualify a Habitat applicant, Bolton said, but Goodale would not have qualified for a new home based on his life story alone. A Habitat applicant must volunteer 100 hours of work building other people's houses and complete home maintenance and budgeting courses.
Still, Bolton was not willing to criticize the show, which he said donates money to Habitat for Humanity programs. "We're less extreme," he said. "Our goal is to eliminate substandard housing. We don't build any porches or decks."
ABC has not announced when Goodale's episode is set to air. A network spokesman said this month that the show could air in December or January.
Thompson said the response of the public and sponsors will be interesting now that Goodale's story appears more complicated.
Doug Goodale, seen taking his first look at his new log house on Oct. 4, had a compelling life story for the "Extreme Makeover" reality TV show. Some people knew that his story included a conviction for armed robbery in 1982.
Big deal about nothing.
So he got in a scrape 30+ years ago.
Apparently he has lived a clean life since.
Besides, ABC ETAL can spend their money anyway they want.
Agreed. Sometimes there are benefits to living anonymously in more populated areas instead of a Peyton Place.
Good thing he had that knife within reach ~ they don't let our kids carry knives in school ~ whole country is gettin out of practice these days. Won't be long until even a guy with a crushed arm won't be able to cut himself free.
Sporks just won't do the job!
Speaking of Extreme.
That is without a doubt my favorite program.
Anyone hear about the widow with 2 kids in Louisiana made out during the storms??
Also, a new program on NBC that is a low budget similiar:
"3 Wishes"
Watched it a few times and it is enjoyable.
Some people can't stand other people's happiness.
Goodale's ex-wife - who contacted the newspaper after reading the story of her ex-husband getting the house - said his past is relevant and questioned the "reality" of Doug Goodale that the show may present.
----That more or less explains it. Jealous exwife.
The equivalent of a United States Senator winning the lottery, wouldn't you say. Equally deserving and both with suspect backgrounds.
Right, never let people start over, dog them forever with long ago mistakes. That's the American way. /s/
I'm underwhelmed by the seriousness of these offenses.
You took the words right off of my keyboard. No one is perfect, and I enjoy seeing regular people actually get something good in life.
Me? I don't even have so much as a parking ticket(knock on wood) , but you should see the lies my ex has submitted to court in a custody suit. I couldn't imagine what he'd do if I won the lottery, or a house.
Not enough money in the world for me to be a family court judge :(
"Sometimes there are benefits to living anonymously in more populated areas instead of a Peyton Place."
all the time, baby, all the time.
New York is where I'd rather stay!
Thank *GOD* I'm not being judged by the things I did at 18!!
Hell, this judge rides the circuit. He's done criminal and probate, as well as family law. No one has much good to say about him. I have a court appearance on tuesday, and haven't even met my lawyer yet. The paralegal took my picture so he would know who to look for. 3500.00 for this?
Gonna have to catch a lot of fish to pay the taxes on that house.
As long as the busty blond carpentrix in pink is in the show, who cares? The IRS?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.