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'Extreme Makeover'? Try 'People's Court'

Heartwarming reality-TV episode ends in orphans' bitter lawsuit

By Max Brallier,  Newser User

Posted May 13, 2007 2:13 PM CDT

(Newser) – It was supposed to be a great story: ABC's hit reality show "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" transformed the home of Phil and Loki Leomiti and their five adopted children into a nine-bedroom dream house. Today the children, who moved out within weeks of the show's broadcast, are locked in a legal battle with the couple and the network.

The Higgins children, now in their mid-teens to early 20s, alleged fraud and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The LA Times looks at the legal battle and the questions it raises about reality television and the motivations behind shows like "Extreme Makeover," which has generated more than half a billion dollars in ad revenue over the past two years.

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Ty Pennington, host of ABC's Extreme Makeover
Ty Pennington, host of ABC's "Extreme Makeover   (Associated Press)
FILE PHOTO: Ty Pennington Arrested
FILE PHOTO: Ty Pennington Arrested   (Getty Images (by Event))
Ty Pennington
Ty Pennington   (Getty Images)
A promotion for the television show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition is shown on television screens at a Sears store in Mesquite, Texas, on April 26, 2004.
A promotion for the television show "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" is shown on television screens at a Sears store in Mesquite, Texas, on April 26, 2004.   (KRT Photos)
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