I’m not going to pretend that I was the only person that had my September ruined by the cancellation of VH1’s “Megan Wants a Millionaire.” As a corollary, I’m not going to pretend to be the only person who has ever been duped by a so-called smooth operator.

In the event that you’ve been preoccupied with the seemingly perpetual melodrama of “Real Chance at Love 2,” allow me to summarize. Megan Hauserman, the blond, buxom reality retread/accountant that we’ve come to know and love from her on-screen time with Bret Michaels and Sharon Osbourne, was granted her own show that allowed her to choose from a bevy of well-heeled bachelors who could provide the lavish lifestyle of which she dreamed. Recently, one of Hauserman’s suitors, Ryan Jenkins, became the target of an international manhunt after his ex-wife, the model Jasmine Fiore, was found mutilated and dead near Los Angeles. Not long after Canadian authorities issued a plea to Jenkins to surrender, he was discovered hanging from a belt in a seedy motel closet in British Columbia.

The deaths of Ryan “Smooth Operator” Jenkins and Jasmine Fiore are, on their face, senseless and avoidable tragedies. But, speaking from the perspective of a reality television consumer, my outrage is directed at the living. VH1’s reluctance to take responsibility for allowing Jenkins to appear on “Megan” (as well as the now-officially canceled “I Love Money 3”) despite his criminal record of violence toward women is appalling. 51 Minds, the independent production company for “Megan” and other VH1 programming, claimed in a press release that Jenkins did not provide “a full picture of his background” — as if other wife-beaters had plainly listed their tendencies in their résumé.

Just what sort of background check wouldn’t detect battery? Am I to believe that Michael Vick could contend for the narrator’s job on Mutual of Omaha’s “Wild Kingdom” or that Bernie Madoff is teaming up with Jim Cramer to scream financial advice to the masses on “Mad Money”? Get real.

Because it is widely circulated that Jenkins finished in second place on “Megan,” we the viewers should take solace that at least our titular heroine has a more rigorous vetting process than either of the corporate entities behind the show.

Still, second place? For a known batterer? I guess being a smooth operator is easier when you’re surrounded by competition with a texture more akin to sandpaper. Who could have outed Jenkins?

There was the movie producer, who, judging from his guise, made his last television appearance guest-hosting “Tales from the Crypt” when the crypt keeper was holding out for a bigger trailer. Or it could have been Matt, who suggested that Hauserman abandon her lucrative television career in order to work as a valet on the minor-league professional wrestling circuit. Maybe it is no surprise that Jenkins’ true colors went undetected.

There is, as always, a silver lining. Without the climactic broadcast fans can look forward to the inevitable second season: “Megan Wants a Millionaire 2: Megan Wants a Billionaire” and the promise of even more eccentric sugar daddies and even more camera time for Lilly the Chihuahua.

Until then, I’ll be busy shooting the pilot for my own VH1 mega-hit, “Patrick Wants a Sandwich.”