Throughout its history, Hollywood has seen its share of great leading men, from Humphrey Bogart to Marlon Brando to Denzel Washington. Spencer Pratt, however, was not one of them. But the notorious tabloid personality managed to capture America’s attention by shamelessly promoting his personal life and commercial exploits with girlfriend-fiancé-protégé Heidi Montag, to whom he proposed marriage in May 2007 on her reality show “The Hills” (MTV, 2006- ). Despite insisting that their “candid” photos in magazines like US Weekly and In Touch or turbulent relationship on “The Hills” was real, no one in their right minds really bought it. Then again, because of their ubiquitous presence throughout the media landscape, both he and Montag carved out lucrative careers without accomplishing much of anything.Born Aug. 14, 1983, the son of a Los Angeles-based dentist and raised in Malibu, CA, Pratt studied business at the University of Southern California before he weaseled his way to becoming a series regular on “The Hills,” MTV’s docudrama that centered around former Teen Vogue magazine intern and aspiring fashion designer, Lauren Conrad, and her friends. Almost from the start, the show was criticized in all quarters for being faked, despite its pretentions to being an unscripted reality series. Some critics even pointed out that both Montag and Conrad only shot scenes at their places of employment without doing any actual work when the cameras were gone. Meanwhile, Pratt and Montag were caught filming a departure scene at Los Angeles International Airport, only to film the subsequent arrival home only an hour later. Throughout its run, Pratt and his fellow “Hills” castmates were routinely forced to defend the reality myth.
As ubiquitous a presence online as he was on television and at the checkout stand, Pratt boasted in his “About Me” section on his MySpace.com profile that he created and executive-produced “The Princes of Malibu” (Fox, 2005- ), a short-lived reality series that starred notorious Hollywood playboy Brody Jenner. Pratt and Jenner were inseparable best friends and business partners, until the bitter feud between Montag and “Hills” queen bee Conrad took its toll on their friendship. The main cause of the friction was a rumor reportedly started by Pratt and Montag about a sex tape that featured Conrad. Jenner went on to befriend and later date Conrad, ending his friendship with Pratt. It was also reported that Pratt made rude comments about Nicole Richie, another one of Jenner’s girlfriends, in a Details magazine article.
But darker days loomed on the horizon. The third season of “The Hills” saw the “Speidi” – a nickname given to the couple – beginning to see their relationship suffer. They broke off their engagement, yet managed to stay an item. In 2007, Pratt and Montag – who apparently discovered she could sing – began work on her debut album. After premiering their first song, “Body Language,” on Ryan Seacrest’s radio show – which featured Pratt trying to rap – Montag’s first single, “Higher,” was released on Top 40 radio to a lukewarm reaction. Pratt shot the accompanying music video, which consisted of Montag frolicking on a beach wearing nothing but a neon pink bikini. Bloggers criticized the bargain bin quality of the video, calling the pair desperate for attention. Montag released a second single titled “No More” in 2008 that was available on iTunes, which was also produced by Pratt.