Bruce Kanegai - Survivor: Panama - Exile Island

Seasons: 1 | Days played: 25 | Wins: 0 | Jury: 1

  • Survivor 12: Panama - Exile Island (2006) - 7th place, 10th out - 3rd juror.
  • Sent to Exile Island two times. Cumulative time: In-game - 21 days; Exile - 4 days.
  • Medically removed in Episode 10, "Medical Emergency (Day 25).

Bruce Kanegai on social media: Instagram

Bruce Kanegai - Career statistics

Challenge stats Tribal council stats Jury stats Overall stats
Season ChW ChA ChW% VFB VAP TCA TC% wTCR JVF TotJ JV% SurvSc SurvAv
S12: Panama 1.58 6.05 0.26 3 2 4 0.56 1.29 - - - 0.82 2.88
Career 1.58 6.05 0.26 3 2 4 0.56 1.29 - - - 0.82 2.88

 

Bruce Kanegai - Performance ranks

Challenges: MPF percentile

1

Tribal: VFB% percentile

59%

Tribal: rVAP percentile

19%

Performance ranks are a quick visual measure of the contestant's season vs. historical data from all prior contestants, in three basic (scorable) categories:

1. Performance in individual challenges (MPF), as a measure of "physical game";

2. Ability to vote people out consistently (VFB%, or VFB/TCA), or "strategic game"; and

3. Ability to avoid being voted against (rVAP, or TCA-VAP) - which scales better than a percentage would - for "social/strategic game."

See also: Full glossary for all these abbreviations.

 

Bruce Kanegai - Challenge record
S12 logo  S12: Panama challenges

Ep1 IC: 4x4

Tribal/team challenge record (6-for-10; 1 2nd; 1 sit-out):

  • Panama Ep. 1 IC: "4x4" - Raises the flag at the end, older men don't lose (2nd/4).
  • Panama Ep. 3 RC: "Cross Fire" - Shooter for Casaya, which loses, 5-4.
  • Panama Ep. 3 IC: "Battle Dig" - Loses one point, but Casaya wins, 3-2.
  • Panama Ep. 4 RC: "Puzzle Paranoia" - Retrieves his piece, and Casaya wins.
  • Panama Ep. 4 IC: "Sea Level Tree Level" - Fetches water with Aras; Casaya wins.
  • Panama Ep. 5 RC: "For Cod's Sake" - Chops the first fish, then swaps out; Casaya wins.
  • Panama Ep. 5 IC: "Buried at Sea" - Sits out with Cirie, as Casaya loses.
  • Panama Ep. 6 RC/IC: "In-Cog-Neato" - Works the puzzle with Cirie, and Casaya wins.
  • Panama Ep. 8 RC: "Rock the Boat" - With Aras and Sally on the winning team (1st/3).
  • Panama Ep. 9 RC: "Get Hooked" - With Terry, Courtney, Sally on the winning team.

 

Ep7 IC: Vampire Bats

Individual challenge record (0-for-4; 1 sit-out): (Mean % finish: 20.2%)

  • Panama Ep. 7 IC: "Vampire Bats" - Third person to drop out (8th/10).
  • Panama Ep. 8 IC: "Ups and Downs" - Eliminated in the first round (tie-7th/9).
  • Panama Ep. 9 IC: "Marine Memory" - Sits out to eat instead (tie-8th/8).
  • Panama Ep. 10 RC: "Voo Doo" - Second person eliminated (6th/7).

 

Record: Bruce's 20.2% Mean % finish is the lowest ever in a single season, among players with at least 4 individual challenge appearances.

 

Hero challenge/ duel record (0-for-0):

  • Panama Ep. 1 RC: "Skull Crush" - Does not participate.
Career totals - challenges
Team/tribal challenges
Wins: 6
2nd place: 1
Played: 10
Win%: 0.65
Sat out: 1
Individual challenges
Wins: 0
Played: 4
Sat out: 1
Win%: 0.00
Mean% Finish: 20.2%
Hero challenges
Wins: 0
Played: 0
Win%: --
Mean% Finish: --
Bruce Kanegai - Tribal Council record
S12 logo  S12: Panama Tribal

Ep5 Tribal Council

Idols held/played (0/0):

  • Panama: None.

 

VFB - Votes for the person booted (3/4):

 

VAP - Votes against (2):

  • Panama, Ep. 5: Two votes, from Aras and Bob Dawg.

 

Jury votes made (0/1):

Career totals - Tribal Council
Hidden idols
Found: 0
Played: --
Votes voided: --
Voting record
VFB: 3
Tribals: 4
VAP: 2
Jury votes
Made: 1
For winners: 0
Received: --
Bruce Kanegai - Pictures
S12 logo  S12: Panama image gallery
  • Bruce Kanegai
    Panama intro shot
  • Bruce Kanegai
    Panama intro shot
  • Bruce Kanegai
    Bonus Panama intro shot
  • Bruce Kanegai
    Full cast arrival at Exile Island, Day 1
  • Bruce Kanegai
    With the "older men" tribe
  • Bruce Kanegai
    Starting line, Ep1 Hero RC
  • Bruce Kanegai
    Terry wins it for the "older men"!
  • Bruce Kanegai
    Pre-challenge lineup, Ep1 IC
  • Bruce Kanegai
    Starting line
  • Bruce Kanegai
    Digging up the instructions
  • Bruce Kanegai
    Tossing the ring to secure second place
Bruce Kanegai - Interviews
S12 logo  S12: Panama interviews

Pre-game interviews

 

Post-game interviews

  • Polly Leider at CBSNews.com (4/20/06): "Bruce Bows Out"
  • Angel Cohn at TVGuide.com (4/27/06): "Bruce Is a True Survivor!"
  • Dalton Ross at EW.com (10/23/20): "Survivor Quarantine Questionnaire: Bruce Kanegai says players have it too easy today"
Bruce Kanegai - Bio
S12 logo  S12: Panama bio

Official CBS.com Survivor: Panama - Exile Island bio page excerpts (1/9/06):

"Bruce Kanegai is a third generation Japanese American who grew up in Los Angeles. During the 1960's, he received the Boy Scout rank of Eagle Scout and the rank of Black Belt from the Shotokan Karate School. Kanegai received his Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University, Northridge. He also received his teaching credentials for the State of California.

For the past 34 years, Kanegai has been teaching art at Simi Valley High School, where he has taught over 10,000 students. He had been awarded "Teacher of the Year" from The International Rotary Club, The Bravo Award from the Los Angeles Music Center, The Amgen Corporation, The Pasadena Art Center College of Design and the Otis/Parsons Art School.

Kanegai is a fifth-degree black belt in karate and has taught more than 7,000 students over about 40 years. In 1967, he was a member of the first US karate team to visit Japan. In 2000, Kanegai was promoted to the highest ranking black belt in the Shotokan Karate of America. In 2004, he was a judge at Shotokan's 40th Anniversary celebration in France. Kanegai is currently in the process of finishing a book on the 50-year history of the Shotokan Karate of America.

...

Kanegai is a member of the California Art Educators Association and Shotokan Karate of America. His hobbies include photography, drawing, hiking, golfing and skiing. He has had several close brushes with death, including being bitten by a large rattlesnake while golfing three years ago.

Kanegai currently lives in Simi Valley, California, with his wife of 27 years, Nancy. They have two children, Alexander and Danielle, and one dog, Chako. His birth date is December 17, 1947."