• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, October 29, 2010

So you're getting an audition on NBC's "America's Got Talent." You fly into L.A, and you prepare the night before. What do you do next?

Some Ecstasy, of course -- as well as misplacing your wife. You perhaps think she's dead. But you go to your audition anyway. No, this is not an episode of "CSI" or "Castle" or "The Closer". This is what happened to Joe Finley and his now-departed wife -- at least, according to TMZ.com.

After doing the drug and falling asleep in his hotel, The Millennium Biltmore, earlier this month, the next thing Finley knew, his wife had gotten up in the middle of the night -- 2 a.m. -- for some ice. Or so he said.

The next day, Finley decided to go  to his audition -- which was in the same hotel -- even though he couldn't find his wife, even though the police stopped him and questioned him on his way to the audition, even though he believed his wife might be dead.

Maybe she would have wanted it this way. TV stardom waits for no one.

Crime and death have surrounded a number of other reality shows -- usually from contestants who have already made their 15-seconds-of-fame appearances.

The lure of stardom is too great for most of us. TMZ reported the story, but one bit of information wasn't revealed -- the level of talent Finley displayed at his audition. (Make up your own unfortunate joke here.)

Finley's wife, Laura, was found dead in a stairwell. (Fallen down the stairs looking for the ice machine, one might assume?) Finley told police, according to reports, it looked to have been a homicide -- that it was no accident. Sounds like a crime procedural drama he might have seen on a number of prime-time shows.

Soon real-life celebrities will be disguised to play regular everyday people -- your Starbucks barrista, your Wal-Mart checkout person, your Home Depot sales assistant in the electrical department. Kind of a spin on CBS's "Undercover Boss."

The more interesting reality always seems to occur off-screen. ABC's "The Bachelor" always seems to break up with his intended away from the cameras, for example. Joe Finley and "America's Got Talent" unfortunately continues the trend. Some might believe there is opportunity here: "The Real, Real Life of Reality Stars," for example. Then again, Fox Reality Channel couldn't make a go of that idea.

This won't be the last time real-life crime is connected to a reality show -- all while the on-air content of reality shows continues not to be terribly real.