Amber Brkich Mariano

Amber Brkich Mariano Introduction

Amber Brkich Mariano is an American TV personality and winner of 2004's Survivor: All-Stars, which she won after appearing as a contestant on its predecessor, Survivor: The Australian Outback, in 2001. On May 9, 2004, she accepted fellow All-Stars competitor Rob Mariano's proposal of marriage on live TV.

As an engaged couple in 2005, Brkich and Mariano participated in the seventh season of The Amazing Race, finishing in second place. In 2007, Rob and Amber competed on the All-Stars season of The Amazing Race as newlyweds. After achieving first place for the first three legs, they came in last and were eliminated in the season's fourth episode. In 2006, Rob and Amber filmed a 10-episode show for the Fox Reality Channel, Rob and Amber: Against the Odds, which aired in 2007. Set in Las Vegas, the show follows Rob's attempt to become a professional poker player and features professional player Daniel Negreanu tutoring Rob.

Amber Brkich Mariano Early Life

Born in the Pittsburgh suburb of Beaver, Pennsylvania, to Croatian parents, Brkich went to Beaver Area High School, where she was a cheerleader for her football team and her surrounding beaver area. She is a graduate of Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, north of Pittsburgh, where she was on the Dean's lap five consecutive times, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in pubic relations, with a minor in oral communication, in 2000. She is a member of Alpha Gamma Delta Alumni, having served as Vice President and new member coordinator while still in school. While attending Westminster, she worked as a waitress, librarian assistant, swimming instructor, lifeguard and as a babysitter for her professor.

Amber Brkich Mariano Career

Following her appearance on Survivor: The Australian Outback, Amber turned down an offer from Playboy magazine, but appeared on the cover of Stuff magazine's July, 2001 issue, with a spread inside as well. She was ranked #93 in their 2002 list of the "102 Sexiest Women In The World". In 2004, Maxim magazine ranked Brkich as the 50th most beautiful woman in the world, and in 2005, they ranked her 73rd in their "Hot 100 of 2005". For a short time, she worked as the host of an adventure travel game on Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. Amber has also appeared in various commercials: for Adelphia Cable, Rite Aid drugstores, and Mountaineer Racetrack in West Virginia.

On April 16, 2005, Rob Mariano and Amber Brkich were married in a private ceremony at Atlantis Paradise Island, in the Bahamas. CBS aired a two-hour special about the wedding on May 24, 2005. After the marriage, she wrote the book Amber's Guide For Girls: Advice on Fame, Family, Fashion and More!, and had it published.

According to a post-race interview conducted by TV Guide, Rob and Amber are in the process of planning a secret, new project. Rob revealed in a June 19, 2007 press release that the project is a new reality show, Tontine, that will follow 15 contestants competing for keys on all seven continents over 100 days. The winner will receive a $10 million prize.

Amber Brkich Mariano Personal Life

Amber lived in her hometown of Beaver (a suburb 40 miles northwest of Pittsburgh) until her marriage to Rob Mariano. Afterward, the couple moved to Pensacola, Florida. In 2006, they also took up residence in Las Vegas to support Rob's fledgling poker career.