New star of ‘The Bachelor’ lost his cool on the very first night

• Reprints

THE BACHELOR - Millions of viewers shared the heartbreak of Ben Flajnik (pronounced Flannick) when his soulful and heartfelt proposal was rejected by Ashley Hebert in the emotional finale of last season's "The Bachelorette." Now Ben is ready to put all the disappointment and hurt behind him in order to move on with his life, his phenomenal success as a businessman and his search for the right woman to be his wife and to start a family with, as he stars in the next edition of ABC's hit romance reality series, "The Bachelor," when it returns to ABC in January 2012. (ABC/CRAIG SJODIN)

Updated: February 3, 2012 8:00AM

On Monday night, Ben Flajnik joins the pantheon of ABC stars who have put their romantic lives on the line —and on public display — as a Bachelor or Bachelorette.

The Sonoma, Calif., winemaker made it down to the final two during “The Bachelorette” last spring but was left heartbroken when Ashley Hebert instead chose competitor J.P. Rosenbaum to be her fiance.

Now, Flajnik is in control, and his journey officially begins at 7 p.m. Monday, when the new season of “The Bachelor” premieres on WLS-Channel 7. He spoke to reporters about the clip showing him skinny-dipping, the sexy senior who emerged from a limo on the first night and his post-“Bachelorette” date with Jennifer Love Hewitt.

On the lessons of “The Bachelorette”: “I had genuine feelings for Ashley. I worked through a lot of stuff on my own. I think my self-discovery was something I didn’t expect. Ashley was there helping me through all that.”

On the first night at the mansion: “Normally I’m very cool, calm and collected. But when that first limo pulled up, sheer panic and terror kind of set in. Your heart’s racing. It’s nerve-racking on both sides.”

On the senior suitor: “Drop-dead gorgeous! A beautiful, stunning older woman. I wasn’t sure what to make of it. She was there the first night. I won’t go into much detail, but she is there for a specific reason.”

On Hewitt: “She reached out and wanted to come up to the winery, which she did. We went out to dinner and just kind of chatted about life and the experience. She’s a nice girl, but I wasn’t — it was right in the middle of the time when I was deciding to be the Bachelor. When this is all said and done, ending up with a Hollywood celebrity is not something I want.”

On baring it all on camera: “So far, America has seen my bare butt, and I have no problem with male nudity! ... When a beautiful woman asks you to go skinny-dipping on the beach, you don’t say no. Granted there are cameras around, but it’s a bare butt. It’s not that big of a deal to me. ... If one [relationship] wanted to move faster than the others, you have to be open.”

Arienne Thompson,
Gannett News Service