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A new reality TV show on the History Channel is about life in Maine, which talks about a handful of men who make a few extra bucks. However, the casts aren’t from there. The show, “Down East Dickering,” are about people who regularly who has weekly Uncle Henry’s Swap or Sell It Guide and use it to find some bargains — castoffs they can easily sell and make money from.
The show is watched by more than 1.9 million viewers and that grows each week, as stated by o Susan Levoli, publicist for the History Channel. It is shown every Wednesday 10-11 p.m. time slot and is an instant hit among men ages 25-54. The show has eight episodes and there aren’t any talks about extending it yet.
Bearded, long-haired Tony Bennett, 48, of Bethel is the narrator for the show and is also one of the main casts. In the first episode, Bennett and his sidekick, Chris “Codfish” Codwell, who also lives in Bethel, bought a used snowmobile for $150 and a bucket of collectibles for $50. Later he sells the item included in the bucket for $400. He then used the money to buy a buy some old signs and a Coca-Cola vending machine.
Bennett claimed that there was a time when he bought a four-bedroom mobile home for $1 complete with a deck, porch, sheds, doghouse and swing set. He then sold the mobile home for $3,500 and got a used Jeep Cherokee valued at about $2,000 in the deal.
Based on the publicity information by The History Channel, Bennett doesn’t work for a living. The truth is that he does odd jobs for a living such as snow and ice removal work. As long as the job is honest, they will do it.
The show’s title is somewhat misleading since none of the cast members lives in Down East Maine. Besides Bennett and Codwell, three people live in the vicinity of Dover-Foxcroft, and two live in the Lewiston area. The other three comes from Vermont.
“We’ve been getting a lot of crap about that,” said Bennett, as he refers to the show’s name and lack of Down East representation. “I didn’t care for the name myself, either.”
The cast members have a group in the show - team Clint and team Yummy. Team Clint comprised of Clint of Sangerville, Bruce of Willimantic, and Nate of Monson. Team Yummy includes Roland “Yummy” Raubeson of Minot and his son, Mitch, 23, of Auburn.
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