Cody Assenmacher shares story behind Survivor ass tattoo
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While the other cast members of Survivor 43 are simply out there playin', one contestant is out there doing something completely different. He's LIVIN'!!
Cody Assenmacher is determined to live life to the fullest, and that mantra even extends to his choice in tattoos. The 35-year-old elevator salesman from Honolulu proudly put the ass in Assenmacher when he displayed a right butt cheek tattoo on the show — a tattoo that simply read "Livin!!" complete with two exclamation points and a smiley face. But what is the story behind the permanent marking on his buttock? When and why did he get it?
We asked Cody exactly that, and the salesman who is wary of other salespeople gave us the full story. And as Survivor 43 finishes the multi-tribe portion of the game with players fighting to get into the merge on tonight's episode, we paused for the cause to also ask Cody about his experience on the island so far, including his best and worst moments. The wild card reveals that he was not a fan of helping another tribe in the challenge. Read on to keep LIVIN!!, and also make sure to watch an exclusive deleted scene above and check out the entire cast revealing their choices for merged tribe name possibilities.
Robert Voets/CBS Cody Assenmacher on 'Survivor' 43
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: First off, what is it like to make it past the three-tribe portion of the game, on the precipice of the merge?
CODY ASSENMACHER: Hallelujah…. Vesi may have gotten messy had we gone to another Tribal Council.
Vesi went from losing all the challenges to winning all the challenges. What happened?
We found our grit!
What's something interesting that happened in the pre-merge portion of the game that never made it to TV?
Beach Babies. We had these endangered birds living on our island. At night, they would make the sounds of crying babies and frequently walk overtop of us as we attempted to sleep.
Robert Voets/CBS Cody Assenmacher on 'Survivor 43'
What was your impression of the Coco tribe when you went over and pretended like you were going to take their machete as a negotiating tactic to get more out of them than just the fishing gear?
They seemed overzealous, acting as if they had been castaways for days! It was fun planting seeds and interacting with another tribe for the first time.
Where did you stand on the decision to help Baka in the immunity challenge puzzle, sending Coco to their first Tribal Council?
I stood away. I wanted no part of this conduct. Seemed like a battle we did not need to be a part of.
What was the favorite moment you experienced this season leading up to the merge?
Blistering through the blocks like an MLB pitcher :)
Robert Voets/CBS Cody Assenmacher on 'Survivor' 43
What was your lowest moment leading up to the merge?
The night after the Nneka vote off......I felt gutted.
Finally, tell us everything about the "Livin!!" tattoo and the where, when, and why you got it, especially the chosen location for the tat?
It's a perspective and lifestyle. The tattoo idea occurred as my college friends and I talked stories at the pub we frequented in our college town the day after graduation. One beer/story led to another, and a comment turned into a draft on a napkin. Bartender bribery ensued, and we were off to make our parents proud!! Our right butt cheek was a unanimous decision. The tattoo artist was far from thrilled to put LIVIN!! on multiple grown men's asses… but hey, 50 bucks is 50 bucks.
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