People: After 16 seasons, he’s the real survivor

After all this time, you don’t associate Jeff Probst with traffic gridlock, yowling sirens or office towers crowding the sky.

It’s not that Probst seems out of place in a city like New York. It’s just that, after hosting 16 seasons of CBS’ “Survivor,” he’s more readily identified with wildernesses half-a-world away.

Yet here he is in Manhattan, big as life (including those dimples) and eager to talk about “Survivor: Micronesia.” The two-hour finale airs tonight at 8 from Broadway’s Ed Sullivan Theater.

“This has been a season of blindsides and dumb moves,” Probst zestily sums up.

“We’ve had a really strong women’s alliance for the first time. We’ve had people out with injuries. A woman lost her mind.”

Or, at least, her will to continue: On Day 19 of the 39-day ordeal, contestant Kathleen begged tearfully to be sent home.

After tonight’s winner is crowned (and awarded a cool $1 million), the process starts over again, with Probst presiding at the next, yet-to-be-announced exotic site as “Survivor” No. 17 goes into production in July.

“It was a show I was certain would be over after three (seasons),” he declares, recalling his prediction that Season One “would be good, Two would be better, Three would fail but we’d still get paid.”

From the very first episode, on May 31, 2000, Probst nailed his compound role as master of ceremonies, counselor, ringmaster and provocateur.

Just a few weeks later, he was taking on another role: directing an indie film from his own script. “Finder’s Fee,” an edgy drama that begins with someone finding a wallet that contains a winning lottery ticket, was released in 2001.

“It was a small, little movie – we just had a million dollars – but I got to make the movie I wanted to make,” Probst says.

“The script was good enough to get James Earl Jones to sign on for $500 a week. He said, ‘I’ll take it – and a treadmill in my dressing room.’

“I’m not sure how well it holds up now,” Probst adds. “I’d be a much better director today. I’ve learned a ton about storytelling from ‘Survivor.’ I’d love to make another movie.”

Whatever he does, the 46-year-old Probst wants to do something as innovative as “Survivor” – which is easier said than done.

“I go out on these meetings and I talk to people, and it’s like, ‘You’re kidding me. That’s what you’re going to do?’ It sounds so derivative!” he says.

Probst does have a TV project at an early stage, though he’s mum on details.

And in any event, he feels no pressure to expand his portfolio.

“I don’t have aspirations to conquer the world,” he says. “Maybe a little side job would be OK.

“But I like hanging out with my friends. I like being at home (in Los Angeles). I don’t want to work and work and work. I’ve got a great job!”

The birthday bunch

Comedian Mort Sahl is 81. Singer Eric Burdon is 67. Former MTV VJ Martha Quinn is 49. Actress Natasha Richardson is 45. Actor Coby Bell (“Third Watch”) is 33. Actor Jonathan Jackson (“Tuck Everlasting”) is 26.