# Bob Crowley (Survivor contestant)

Robert Crowley (born February 25, 1951) is an American former teacher and reality TV personality, known for winning Survivor: Gabon, the seventeenth season of the American TV series Survivor, in 2008. In addition to his million dollar prize, Crowley also won $100,000 from the "player of the season" poll. As of 2022, he is the oldest winner in the history of US Survivor, triumphing at the age of 57.

## Personal life

At the time of Survivor's airing, Crowley taught physics at Gorham High School in Gorham, Maine, and resided in South Portland. Crowley was the teacher of Survivor: Vanuatu contestant Julie Berry. He retired from teaching in 2009.
In 2009, Crowley published his autobiography, Making Waves: The Stories of Maine's Bob Crowley. In 2013, along with his wife Peggy, Crowley purchased a 100-acre plot of forested land in the town of Durham, Maine, on which he constructed a small campground that includes hiking trails, a pond, and 4 winterized yurts that can be rented out by guests.

## Survivor

On Survivor: Gabon, Crowley was originally placed into the Kota Tribe. Crowley had originally been in an alliance with fellow tribemates Jacquie Berg, Marcus Lehman, Charlie Herschel, and Corinne Kaplan. This alliance is known to many Survivor fans as the "Onion Alliance." The Kota Tribe proved to be strong by winning the first three challenges. In Episode 3, Kota lost the immunity challenge and were forced to face Tribal Council, where Paloma Solo-Castillo was voted out.
In the following episode, there was a tribal swap which ended up taking fellow alliance member Berg to the opposing Fang tribe. When Berg was voted off, Randy Bailey was welcomed into their newly made alliance. The Kota tribe would still stand strong, and the tribe won the next two immunity challenges. In Episode 7, both tribes faced a twist where each tribe would have to enter Tribal Council. The "Onion Alliance" voted out Dan Kay over the weaker Susie Smith in fear that Kay had the Hidden Immunity Idol. This ended up being the vital mistake to Crowley's alliance as Smith would end up switching sides.
In Episode Eight, both tribes assumed that a merge would be coming up but instead they were welcomed with another tribal swap. Crowley and Lehman remained on Kota while Herschel, Bailey, and Kaplan moved to Fang. When Fang won the immunity challenge, Crowley and Lehman went to face Tribal Council where tribemates Smith, Ken Hoang, and Crystal Cox voted out Lehman.
After Lehman was voted out, both tribes merged into the new Nobag Tribe ("Nobag" is Gabon spelled backwards). Herschel ended up getting voted out at the next Tribal Council and it soon appeared that Crowley's alliance would crumble. In the following episode, Crowley was targeted next, but when he got sent to Exile Island, he created a fake Hidden Immunity Idol. He used the fake idol to secure his spot in the game and Bailey, his own alliance member, was blindsided. After Bailey's elimination, Crowley created another Hidden Immunity Idol in an attempt to save himself and Kaplan, his last alliance member. Although it was futile and Kaplan was eliminated, it caused Hoang to betray his own alliance and vote against Matty Whitmore.
Crowley's winning streak continued by winning his fifth challenge in a row. This was something his other tribemates did not expect. In Episode 12, Hoang tried to propose a deal with Crowley and said that if he had won immunity he would give it up to Hoang since he had tricked him at the last Tribal Council. However Jessica "Sugar" Kiper had informed Crowley that it was just a trick to blindside him and Crowley went against the idea. In the following Tribal Councils, Cox and Hoang were both voted out.
In the final immunity challenge, Crowley lost to Smith in a card building challenge. Crowley seemed doomed again but he was able to convince Kiper to go on his side and vote against Whitmore. Knowing that a tie breaker challenge might occur, Crowley also started practising how to build a fire. At Tribal Council, a tie did occur, and as Crowley had expected, a challenge would take place. Whitmore and Crowley were forced to compete in a fire building challenge and once again, Crowley won.
At the Final Tribal Council, Crowley was confronted by Hoang for not giving up his immunity. Crowley was also confronted by Bailey for using the fake Hidden Immunity Idol against him. In the end, the jury voted Crowley as the Sole Survivor in a vote of 4-3-0. Crowley earned the votes of Lehman, Herschel, Bailey, and Kaplan. In addition, Crowley also won the 'Sprint Player of the Season' award, earning the fan's vote over Kiper and Whitmore.

## Works

* Crowley, Robert; Ladd, David (2009). Making waves : the stories of Maine's Bob Crowley. South Portland, Maine: David Ladd Press. ISBN 9780977456321. OCLC 430520615.