TV.com

In a statement yesterday, VH1 revealed the names of the six lucky stars who will participate in the sixth season of hit reality show The Surreal Life.

The series takes the premise of shows like The Real World one step in a weirder direction by selecting a cast of starlets and has-beens rather than unknown college-age kids. The chosen six--described as "pop culture icons"--have already left their dubious thumbprints on the collective unconscious through their efforts in film, music, sports, and television. The Surreal Life chronicles a two-week period in which the participants must leave behind their homes, cell phones, and personal assistants for a crash course in communal living, followed every step of the way by an unrelenting camera crew.

Forced to share living quarters, chores, and meals--not to mention the creative "special challenges" cooked up by producers--the housemates show the sweet and not-so-sweet sides of themselves that are usually kept hidden from public view. Viewers are treated to an insider's look at the new conflicts, struggles, and friendships that are encountered by The Surreal Life's cast, bringing them one step closer to the celebrities that are, at heart, so similar to the rest of us.

According to VH1, the sixth season will feature "the man whose band made Shrek rock, Steve Harwell of Smashmouth; the actor who made George Jefferson more famous than that other Jefferson, Sherman Hemsley; the original video vixen, Tawny Kitaen; the wildest rock and roll axeman ever, C.C. DeVille from Poison; Playboy TV's covergirl, Andrea Lowell; and the XX and XY of the Arquette family, Alexis Arquette."

The housemates will not be altogether without comfort, however, as special guest star Florence Henderson (The Brady Bunch) will act as their "full-time and on-call therapist/advisor." The Brady mom will, among other things, offer "sex therapy" to any cast members who become confused during their tenure at The Surreal Life mansion, according to VH1.

The new Surreal Life cast will undertake endeavors such as the commandeering of a small market TV newscast, the shooting of a music video, the creation of a hair metal band, and the selection of an extra cast member from a group of "reality hunks."

The Surreal Life's sixth season will premiere sometime in January 2006. An exact date has not yet been set.