The Jersey Shore Brings Heat To The Windy City

By Veronica Murtagh in Arts & Entertainment on Jan 6, 2010 6:40PM

Amidst public outcry from both angered Italian Americans and rabid anti-fans of reality television, MTV's Jersey Shore continues to fistpump along, winning hearts and keeping our Thursday nights booked for the foreseeable future. Now they're on a publicity tour which includes a stop right here in Chicago but for the uninitiated, who are these kids? Under inches of hair gel, the dark tans and enough Ed Hardy to open a flagship store, lie a group of individuals not that different from us and those we call our families and friends.

Ronnie told us to, "never fall in love on the Jersey Shore", but love is unpredictable and he ate his own words, gentle under his hulk-like physique, head over heels for Sammi Sweetheart, who is, indeed, every bit "the sweetest bitch you'll ever meet". Snooki's developing character reminds us all to put our judgments aside and get to know the individual under the bump-it. First impressions aren't everything, and a bad night out has the power to bring people together. Every group of friends has that one person whom you stick by, but time and again tries patience to its breaking point. Luckily for the Jersey Shore cast, theirs comes with abs of steel and adds a little asshole charm to every Situation. It's only human to feel inner conflict and J-WOWW is the queen of personal drama. She has a boyfriend, whom she truly loves, but craves the wild single life badly and pushes the boundaries weekly. J-WOWW consistently feels on the verge of losing it all, unstable and unsure, yet has become Snooki's source of stability on the Shore. Vinny is the calm and collected voice of the house. He shares the same vices, but possesses a maturity far beyond his 21 years. And then there's Pauly D, all gleaming white teeth, ridiculous corporate brand logo tattoos and the king of the blowout. He's charming, he's gregarious and he's the life of every party...because he's the DJ.

Jersey Shore plays the dual role of being both a novelty and an identifiable portrait of the human condition, so it's no surprise that the show has caught on in a big way. Pauly D recently taught us, via NY Daily News, the steps to a proper blowout and the cast gave actor Michael Cera a much-needed makeover for People Magazine. Snooki is one of our favorite new follows on twitter and J-WOWW endorses her choice plastic surgeon and plugs her graphic design business on her website.

The cast has begun to make many media and nightlife appearances and we're ecstatic to hear that The Situation and J-WOWW will be hitting Chicago on February 19, turning Joe's into a full on, fistpumping house battle, with who else providing the beats but DJ PAULY D! A Chicagoist field trip, complete with some good ol' fashioned Jersey Shore bonding over SHOTS SHOTS SHOTS is in the works.

...but what we really want to know is, you got any Chicago House requests for Pauly D?

Jersey Shore at Joe's, Friday, February 19, at Joe's Bar, 940 W Weed, 9 p.m., $20, 21+, dressing up Jersey Shore style highly recommended!