Byline: ERIC DEGGANS

She didn't win the $1-million prize.

But it turns out Jan Gentry's third-place showing in CBS's reality TV hit Survivor: Thailand on Thursday won the Tampa first-grade teacher some fans among people who would understand best: those who have played the game before.

"She's got a heart and she's brave when she doesn't want to be,'' said Susan Hawk, the tough-talking Wisconsin truck driver whose emotional outburst during the first Survivor's finale - she compared the two finalists in that game to a rat and a snake - won her a spot in TV history.

"No matter how hard the game gets, Jan keeps trying,'' added Hawk, who was brought to town Thursday to help CBS publicize the conclusion of the fifth Survivor installment at a huge viewing party in the network's Television City studios. "She's wonderful.''

But Gentry, 54, wasn't strong enough to reach the game's final two spots, unable to last in a competition requiring contestants to squat under a wooden frame holding several coins in each hand.

Instead, California used car salesman (and onetime soft-core porn movie actor) Brian Heidik, 34, won the $1-million grand prize, capping a game in which he seemed to manipulate his teammates almost from the start. CBS said Gentry took home about $85,000, while finalist Clay Jordan won $100,000.

"Daily affirmations helped a lot,'' said Heidik (who beat crusty Louisiana restauranteur Jordan by just one vote), during an hourlong, live reunion special that followed the two-hour finale. "Every day, I had to wake up and remind myself, "This is a game.' ''

Far from being disappointed over her third-place finish, Gentry seemed proud and happy she had survived so long in a game typically dominated by younger, more athletic competitors.

"My experience has been totally surreal,'' she told the camera moments after her ejection,...