American Idol Suicide - Paula Goodspeed

As much as I love the audition process of American Idol, the show does attract a good share of deluded and mentally unstable people. People who are exploited for entertainment value and I'll admit, I have found it to be entertaining. But what happens to these people after we've had our laugh?

Ticking time bombs.

Paula Goodspeed, a former American Idol contestant and obsessed Paula Abdul fan has been found dead in a car yards from Abdul's home, an apparent suicide. News is still coming in regarding the young woman's death. A woman with a history of mental problems who had one of "those" audition on American Idol two years ago:

Simon Cowell - Married to His Job

Simon Cowell and longtime girlfriend Terri Seymour have split, but not because anyone new has come into the picture. Simon just has no interest in being married and raising a family and apparently she'd like to take that path. Although he and Terri have parted, they plan to remain the greatest of friends.

Paris Gives Birth to Egypt

Remember little Paris Bennett? The little girl with the big voice from season five of American Idol gave birth to a daughter, Egypt, on Monday. The baby's Daddy prefers to remain out of the spotlight.

Paris is all of twenty now and has a Christmas CD scheduled to come out on October 14. The album's title is A Royal Christmas, which comprises traditional holiday tunes including;12 Days of Christmas, Little Drummer Boy, Silent Night and Deck the Halls. There is an original song Holla Day Shuffle, written by her mother, Jamecia Bennett, who is a singer/songwriter.

LaKisha Jones Marries

Remember LaKisha? I was less than kind to her during her run on American Idol in 2007, calling her "Mini Mandesa" and being unkind to her face in this post.

Lakisha got married on Sunday to her financial adviser Larry Davis at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. Sanjaya and Melinda were in attendance.

Lakisha has an album coming out in February. We wait with baited breath.

Clay Aiken on the Cover of People Magazine

Yes, I'm Gay - October 6th, 2008 Issue of People Magazine

Kara DioGuardi in Place Just in Case

Kara DioGuardi has been added to the judging panel for America Idol Season 8. Maybe they need another female in place, just in case Paula actually does go off the deep end?

Kara and Paula are friends, or at least they were before the decision was made without consulting Paula. There was no group meeting to see if the chemistry was there. The final call belongs to Simon and perhaps having an extra judge will force Paula to keep her comments to a minimum.

When asked, Paula says she feels that:

"It takes the fun out of all the hard work I do to push those kids through."

Paula has, at times, been a nice balance between Simon and Randy, but there have been way too many rambles like this one:

Idols Past: A.J. Gil

A.J. Gil was number eight from Season One. There's not a whole lot of information on A.J. out there and even his own website still says "New Site and sounds coming soon" and that "A.J. has taken on many new and exciting, please come back soon.

If you have forgotten who A.J. is, here is a clip from Season One of American Idol:

Paula Abdul Can't Sing

We already knew that, didn't we? Paula Abdul was all about the dancing. She had a cute voice and with the aid of electronics and vocally talented back up singers, she could put out an album, put on a show, do some dance videos and be Paula Abdul. It worked, back in the eighties and into the early nineties.

Rumor has it lately that Paula is not committed to her comeback as a singer, rumors fueled by the fact that she has canceled her Today show appearances twice now. Speculation runs that it is from fear that Matt Lauer would ask her, again, if she's ever been drunk or on pills, or that she's afraid of some snafu, like the Ashlee-Simpson-Saturday-Night-Live debacle, since her single Dance Like There's No Tomorrow is so heavily synthesized that she probably wouldn't be performing it live, just like the "live" Superbowl Performance.

Who knows what she sounds like "live" these days, but this is what she sounded like at a live performance back in 1991. Sometimes, it's just better to lip sync:

Seacrest's Fish Tale

Ryan Seacrest claims to have been bitten by a shark this weekend, after a little dip into the ocean on his Mexican Vacation.

He said something swam by him and at first he thought it was a stick. He also said that the shark left a tooth in him, after taking a nibble and that "it was like finding a splinter".

Sometimes a stick and a splinter are just a stick and a splinter.

It's Shark Week on the Discovery Channel so go Shark Yourself.

American Idol Auditions - Season Eight

Auditions for the eighth season of American Idol will kick off right here in smoky Northern California. On Thursday, July 17th the first Idol audition will take place at the Cow Palace in San Francisco.

Here is the information for the San Francisco American Idol Auditions:

WHO: Men and women 16-28 years old as of July 15, 2008, who are eligible to work in the U.S. Some restrictions apply.

WHERE: The Cow Palace

2600 Geneva Ave.

Daly City, CA 94014

WHEN: Thursday, July 17

HOW: Wristbands will be distributed from 7:00 AM on Tuesday, July 15 until 8:00 AM on Thursday, July 17. Auditioners will not be permitted to camp out; therefore, once they obtain their wristbands, they will be asked to return to the Cow Palace on Thursday, July 17.

Check the official American Idol website for more audition information.

Randall Darius Jackson

Randy Jackson was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana way back in 1956.

He is a Grammy Award-winning bassist, singer, record producer, music manager, A&R executive and an Emmy Award-nominated television and radio personality. He has also been a judge on American Idol since the shows debut in 2002.

Jackson has played in Jean-Luc Ponty’s band, played with Aretha Franklin, Bruce Springsteen, George Michael, Blue Oyster Cult, Herbie Hancock, Billy Joel, Bon Jovi, Michael Bolton, Bob Dylan, Carlos Santana and of course Journey, just to name a few.

He’s come into the forefront with American Idol, but the mega-hit show is only one of the many things this dog’s got goin’ on.

Paula Abdul Won't be Dancing with the Stars

....or throwing her panties at Tom Bergeron. Not if Nigel Lythgoe has his way:

"As far as I'm concerned, Paula is 'American Idol' and our judge. It's like asking Simon (Cowell) to sing. Why would I want that?

It's not that Paula wouldn't be good at it. She would be brilliant. But she was a dancer, so why would a dancer go on a dancing show? That doesn't seem fair to me!"

Paula, however, will say only this:

"I'm hypothetically thinking about it".

David Cook's New Reality

David Cook is living a different life than the one he knew pre-idol and he hasn't yet caught up with the fact that he is now a public figure. He admits asking Kimberly Caldwell out for a date on national T.V. was a mistake, one he won’t be repeating.

“I didn’t really think it through or I would’ve realized that everyone would be asking me about it. I can tell you this: I won’t be asking anyone out on TV again. We went on a date. It was nice. We’ll see what happens.”

It was a big day for David Cook on Tuesday. He sang the National Anthem at game three of the NBA finals in front of Jack Nicholson. Kimberly was there for moral support.

Yes, life is definitely different now for David Cook, but at this point he still remains humble:

“It’s hard not to feel like your existence has shifted. I’m just a goof who got lucky.”

Clay Aiken to Become a Father

Clay Aiken and his best friend Jaymes Foster (female) are having a baby via artificial insemination. Ms. Foster has been friends with Aiken since his American Idol days.

You can read more about Clay and Jaymes over at NZ Reality TV.

Idols Past: Kimberly Caldwell

Kimberly Caldwell is currently making news as American Idol David Cook's new squeeze. Actually he's only had one date with her, but since he asked her out on live T.V. it's getting to be quite the buzz.

Kimberly was one of the finalists in American Idol Season Two and finished in seventh place. She was the first American Idol to pose for the men's magazine Maxim in a feature on Reality T.V. Girls, the August 2003 issue.

For more on Kimberly check out:

Kimberly's Website
Kimberly on Wikipedia

What Was Hugh Laurie Thinking?

Taylor Hicks - Teen Angel

Taylor Hicks has a new summer job. He'll be joining the cast of Grease on Broadway, from June until September, playing the part of Teen Angel.

Taylor is said to be excited about joining the cast of one of his favorite musicals and that "the Soul Patrol is gonna invade Broadway".

This is Taylor's debut on Broadway. Grease will be playing at the Brooks Atkinson Theater.

American Idol Finale - What a Night

By now you know that David Cook won the title of American Idol. What a show it was tonight, in between all the commercials.

First of all it was pretty cool that Randy Jackson managed to get his hands on Captain Kangaroo's old duds. It was, after all, a night of bringing out the old, and I say that fondly.

I enjoyed ZZ Top backing up David Cook on one of their hits from the 80's Sharp Dressed Man. David Cook was around the age of one when that song was a hit.

Donna Summer looked a little older than 59, but Graham Nash looked younger than his 66 years.

Lots and lots of commercials and now we know that David Archuleta wears boxers and David Cook wears briefs.

Bryan Adams! I love that guy. He looks pretty damned good for a man in his sixties. Wait, he's forty eight. Never mind.

Who else? Hmmm. Carrie Underwood must have gone to Dolly Parton's dress designer. She wore that half-dressed-bride look that Dolly sported on her American Idol appearance.

Was Ryan Seacrest mixing it up with the dancers from last season's So You Think You Can Dance?

Mike Myers is not funny. It's now out there for everyone to see. He's a one trick pony, plugging his new movie The Love Guru. Same character, different costume. Not funny, not cute.

Syesha and Seal sing together. They shouldn't - their voices don't compliment each other and that was the first time I didn't enjoy hearing Seal sing..... ever.

Amanda Overmeyer looks like she might have celebrated with mass quantities of beers this last month or two. I forgot how good looking Michael Johns is.

Then there were some cute, well dressed boys who had a band. I have no idea who they are - Ryan said they needed no introduction, so he probably didn't know either. But they sounded nice and looked clean. My fourteen year old niece probably knows who they are.

David Archuleta sounded great singing Apologize with One Republic.

More commercials. Itunes featuring Coldplay is my favorite. Moving Art!


There was a video of Gladys Knight and the Pips - the Pips in this video are Ben Stiller, Jack Black and the amazingly cool Robert Downey Jr. It could have been good, but it went on for a little too long and what the hell was with Jack Black and Downey disappearing and Black coming back with his pants around his ankles? If you want to see the video on YouTube, click here.

They also brought back Reynaldo Lupez and sent in the USC marching band to back him, along with cheerleaders. I think just seeing him in the montage of bad auditions was enough for most viewers.

George Michael actually made an appearance. He looked and sounded good. After all this waiting to see the man, Ryan had a brief exchange of words and Mr. Michael said something about having a cold. And then it was back to business. A little bit of a letdown.

The judges all had a little something to say and Simon was very gracious, offering up an apology to David Cook for being borderline disrespectful to him the night before. David Cook is announced as the winner and it all gets really emotional, with his Mom and brother up on the stage. Then David Cook has to sing the winning song, which was better than last year's drivel. Cook keeps hugging his little buddy Archuleta. Cook's brother mouths into the camera "that's my brother". It was a nice ending to a very, very long show.

David Cook Wins American Idol 2008

So much for the judges two cents worth.

Check out my recap here.

American Idol Judges - Should They Call the Winner Before the Show Ends?

The American Idol Judges clearly called a winner last night in David Archuleta. Do you think they should be able to do that, or should the last night of competition be "Judges Shut the F*ck Up Night"? Did a lot of people think that David Archuleta was already the winner and didn't bother to vote for him?

Throughout the season the judges have made comments like "I'm looking at the next American Idol" or "I think you can win this whole competition". My thought on this is that judges should judge and leave the predicting to the psychics and the odd makers.

American Idol - David versus David May 20th

We're still waiting to watch the show out here on the West Coast, but if you want a recap or to find out how tonight went on American Idol, go check out The Baltimore Sun.

Fantasia Barrino Doing the Funky Rooster on American Idol

Good grief, what the hell was that woman doing? With her bright red hair and all that strutting and squawking and shrieking out something called Bore Me, Fantasia Barrino came onstage to show Simon what a grotesque performance actually looked like, and she sure did show him.

The moment worth watching American Idol for tonight? Simon's truly gobsmacked expression while Fantasia did her thing on stage. I so wish we could have heard what he had to say about her performance.

If I didn't know who Fantasia was, I would have thought she was a Tranny.

Here's the video. You decide.

American Idol Results May 14th - Syesha Goes Home

Predictably, Syesha Mercado was eliminated tonight and it's going to be the battle of the Davids next week. We have not yet watched the show on the West Coast, so if you'd like to see a recap of tonight's American Idol you can go here.

American Idol - The Final Three May 13th

Its a strange night on American Idol when Paula Abdul seems to be the only judge that knows what's going on. She was bright eyed, alert and coherent and didn't talk in jerky partial sentences, as she normally does. She had it together until about the last three minutes of the show, when the Coca Cola must have kicked in and the wackiness reappeared.

I don't know what was wrong with Simon and Randy. Perhaps it was just that it was another boring night on American Idol, with no particular stand out performances, at a time when the "Wow Factor" should be fully present.

The contestants were good, if I had to choose one performance as a stand out, it would be David Cook's version of The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face.

And then there's the Chihuahuas again. Simon brought them up this time, by saying that one of the performances was like a Chihuahua trying to be a tiger.

Then there was a song about a "Boo" and a song about penguins and the hour seemed more like three hours. Tomorrow night is results night and maybe David Cook will eliminated, just for shock value.

Jeff Archuleta, David's Father, Banned from Back Stage

Did you happen to notice David's little ad lib to the song Stand by Me on last Tuesday's American Idol? Seems like it was David's dad's idea to add a little something from the song Beautiful Girls. At any rate, Jeff Archuleta has been banned from the back stage business of American Idol. Poor David. he's already super tense, no wonder he lost his voice when he was twelve.

You can read more here: David Archuleta's Dad Loses Backstage pass.

Idol Results Night for May 7th - Jason Castro Goes Home

Hardly a surprise was it? I've never seen a contestant so darned happy about being voted off before. Jason didn't even try to hide the fact that he was thrilled about going home. There were some pretty funny Jason moments tonight, like when he was asked the question "what has been your biggest challenge to overcome" and he answered "Uh..... the brain being dead?" and then when Ryan did a recap of Jason's two songs the previous night, I Shot the Sheriff and Mister Tambourine Man, to which he forgot the lyrics, Jason piped up "somebody told me that I shot the tambourine man yesterday, that was pretty funny".

Other than that, the show was fairly dull, Maroon5 sounded worse than Bo Bice and I am really happy that there's only a couple more weeks of American Idol to go.

American Idol - Jason Castro Wants to go Home - May 6th

Jason Castro strikes me as a man seriously jonesing for some alone time with a bag of weed. Or maybe it's just the dreads and that "hey Dude, how'd I get here?" thing he has going on that puts me in mind of a pot head. It's not much of a stretch, is it? He's been acting like this is all a big joke, which it might actually be, and that he figures he could show up and pass gas and people would still vote for him, which they might actually do. Jason sang I Shot the Sherriff and then botched some of the lyrics to Mister Tambourine Man. Simon advised him to pack his bags.

Syesha was off tonight too. Proud Mary fell short and A Change is Gonna Come was bland. Randy's accurate criticism appeared to bring her to tears and she lost it for a while. Or maybe it was just the pressure of it all and the normally kind Randy being thoroughly unimpressed with her efforts.

David Cook. Hmmm. Not impressed tonight. Was the audio off at the beginning of the show? The band seemed to disappear for a while. I couldn't hear his backing and I think it would have made a difference, especially on Hungry Like the Wolf. And who the hell is Baba O'Riley? I thought that song was called Teenage Wasteland. Where did old Baba fit into that song? Now I have to go and look it up before I go to bed.

David Archuleta was wonderful, but I sure wish he'd done Blue Suede Shoes and had a little fun, rather than tackling one of Elvis's more somber numbers, Love Me Tender. You're seventeen David, loosen up a little bit!

Just two more weeks to go!

Yes Simon, Tara Miller is Still Cute

A picture of Tara Miller! It did go through my mind that thirty seven years and three children later, Tara Miller might not be the cutie of Simon's obviously fond memories, which could have been embarrassing and awkward for all concerned. But, no worry, Tara Smith has indeed "aged well" as she stated during her telephone call on American Idol.

If you'd like to read about Tara and Simon's first kiss and watch the Access Hollywood Interview (and suffer through Nancy O'Dell's juvenile and cringe-worthy questioning of Ms. Miller) just click here.

American Idol - Tara Miller Gives Simon Cowell a Blast From the Past

It was an odd night last night on American Idol, pretty dull for the most part. Paula Abdul had her Chihuahuas tucked safely away last night, opting for a Sunday School outfit. All she needed were the little white gloves and the look would have been complete. One can only assume she was trying for the "sober" look after all the fuss about her peculiar behavior the night before.

During the call-in portion of the show, which I normally don't care for, there was a moment which seemed genuine and unscripted. Tara MacDonald Smith (formerly Tara Miller) called in from Petaluma to ask Simon about the kiss they had shared when they were both nine year olds. It was a moment where Simon almost seemed nice. Below is the video of that phone call on AI and you can click here for a picture of Tara.

American Idol - Brooke White Goes Home April 30th

Paula Hears Double on Neil Diamond Night April 29th

Tonight's show was abysmal. There wasn't one good performance and I can't believe Brooke White slaughtered I'm a Believer, the only song I was looking forward to hearing.

Thank goodness for the oddly perplexed and slightly disheveled Paula Abdul providing a bit of comic relief. It's a pity that her confusion came while she was critiquing Jason Castro, because that poor guy doesn't know what's going on in the first place, so he was probably thinking "whoa, I sang twice already?"

Tom Bergeron and the Perils of Paula's Panties

Watch out Tom Bergeron, there may be a pair of Paula Abdul's panties headed your way. Really, I wouldn't make this up - I hate the word "panties".

Paula Abdul is toying with the idea of becoming a contestant on Dancing With the Stars. The television program is on ABC and American Idol is on Fox television and the two shows share the same Tuesday night time slot, however the studios are close enough that.... well, I'll let Paula say it:

“What are the odds that two of my favorite shows are so close to each other?" Paula asks. "I can throw my panties at Tom Bergeron!"

You can read the rest of OK! Magazine's interview with Paula here.

Carly Smithson Goes Home - American Idol April 23rd

Carly Smithson's number was up tonight. Her performance last night was a good one and her exit from the American Idol stage was done with class.

American Idol Elimination April 23rd - Who Got Voted Off?

Was it Sayesha Mercado, Jason Castro, Brooke White, David Cook, David Archuleta or Carly Smithson? If you really have to know right now you can go check out the results here.

We're still waiting on the west coast, so I'll be updating later.

Andrew Lloyd Webber Night on American Idol April 22nd

Okay, this one was fun! I really enjoyed the show tonight, the highlight for me being Sir Andrew's interaction with Jason Castro. “Originally this song was sung by an ancient glamor puss” Sir Andrew explained to Jason. Andrew Lloyd Webber never imagined he would see a man with dreadlocks singing the song Memory. It gave him a bit of a jolt, he told us in that ever-so-proper British way. Jason said he didn't know the song was sung by a cat. I thought it was hilarious. Jason doesn't do so well with conversation, but he does have a certain something when he sings. It might not have been the best performance, but it was the first time I've enjoyed the song Memory as much and felt touched by the gentle delivery of the number.



Cringeworthy moment of the evening was Brooke White. With full musical backup, she lost the lyric and had to stop and then start again. It's not a first for her. Why do I get the feeling she does it on purpose? Maybe it's hard for me to believe she is really as sweet as she portrays herself or maybe it's how collected she appears to be when it happens. She never seemed to get past that little snafu and the number was disappointing.

I thought Paula seemed a little altered tonight. Can you imagine? She slurred a little and when Simon said that he felt the contestants needed to be memorable, it sounded like she muttered something about them having lots of memories, but I couldn't be sure. She sure does ramble on about things. She told David Cook he had a beautiful instrument and I was really glad her Chihuahuas didn't want to jump on stage and join it – Paula's Chihuahuas were the kiss of death for Michael Johns.

Sayesha Mercado really stood out tonight, but my favorite performance was Carly Smithson. I've just never really been a fan of Carly's, but I kept waiting for someone to do something from Webber's Rock Opera, Jesus Christ - Superstar. She livened the show up and it was, in my opinion, the best thing she's ever done on American Idol.

I'm still waiting for that breakout performance from David Archuleta. I've already forgotten what he sung tonight.

David Cook did the one song I hoped no one would do – Music of the Night. What was he thinking? It was nauseating. He had so many other songs to choose from and this was just not his style. Very disappointing.

Andrew Lloyd Webber himself was a kick. Sometimes I just love the British.

Jordin Sparks Vocal Cords in Trouble

There's all kinds of news out there about Jordin Sparks. She has had to cancel appearances, including the Alicia Keys tour. Some reports say that she has acute vocal cord hemorrhage and will be fine after taking time to heal, some reports say the 18 year old may never sing again.

The poor girl has most likely been singing non-stop since winning the American Idol title almost a year ago and most likely just needs a little rest and relaxation. No news about her condition on her official website as of this writing.

Update 4/29/08 - Jordin says her voice is almost healed. Check out her exclusive interview with MTV

Claudette Yamin - Elliott's Biggest Fan Passes On

One of the better people to come out of American Idol, is Elliott Yamin. The odds had always been stacked against Elliott, and so it was good to see someone other than the throng of self entitled youngsters that crowd the auditions. Elliott seems to be humble and rare. It would appear that his mother raised him right.

Mrs. Yamin was a presence on Season 5 of American Idol where she proudly watched her son make it to the final three. It was always a joy to see the enthusiasm with which she cheered her boy on.

Elliott performed on Wednesday night's American Idol and delivered the sad news that his Mom had passed away on March 31st, 2008 at the age of 65.

For more on Mrs. Yamin and her passing check out the story at MSNBC.

Todd Smithson - The Illustrated Man

Finally, a picture of Todd Smithson, Carly's husband who we never really get a clear view of when they show him in the American Idol audience. He's always in the shadows.

Todd and Carly own Nothing Sacred, a Tattoo parlor in San Diego and are both into the ink.

He looks like a nice looking guy that spent some serious bonding time with the Maori.

For more about Todd's presence and lack of presence in the American Idol audience, check out the National Ledger.

American Idol April 16th - Kristy Lee Cook Goes Home

Finally! I still can't believe she made it into the top ten, but I don't think she can either and I have to give the girl credit for making an impressive exit. Sitting on edge of the judges table, singing directly to Simon Cowell, the man she once vowed to blow out of his socks, she sang the opening to Forever and then completed the song on stage.

Mariah Carey performed one of her drippy, indulgent, all-sound-the-same songs from her new CD which she plugged shamelessly. She must really need the money.

And who is responsible for those dreadful group numbers? I feel for the likes of Carly Smithson and David Cook when they have to participate in something so completely uncool. No one likes the group stuff - well, perhaps fans of the Lawrence Welk show.

For more of a recap of last night's American Idol go here. Here is Kristy Lee Cook's elimination and exit performance:

American Idol April 15th - A Weird Beach Luau

A weird beach Luau where there were no buns for the hamburgers, or perhaps no onions and pickles. Or maybe someone just forgot the condements. So went some of the banter between the judges and Ryan Seacrest on American Idol.

It was Mariah Carey night last night, or in my case, Nails on a Chalkboard night. I just don't like Mariah Carey or her particular style of overindulgent singing or her overexposed cleavage, which is looking rather unnatural these days.

I suppose tonight we'll have to suffer through a Mariah Carey performance, since she is busy promoting her new CD.

You can find a detailed recap of last night's performances over at MTV.

American Idol Elimination April 10th - Michael Johns Goes Home

Even Paula's eager Chihuahuas couldn't save him. And Kristy Lee Cook wasn't even in the bottom three!

Here is Michael's final American Idol performance:

American Idol Gives Back - April 9th

Want a minute by minute recap of the entire show? Go check it out over at It Happened Last Night.

If you want to see a replay of Teri Hatcher singing Before He Cheats, featuring Jesse Spencer on electric violin, click here.

David and Victoria Beckham sure are mean looking people. I guess smiling wouldn't have been appropriate for the topic, but do they ever look happy? And what was with the round bandage under Kobe Bryant's eye?

Favorite line from last night's show, delivered by Ben Stiller: "some of you may be saying, hey, I'm crazy, but isn't that what American Idol is all about? Convincing crazy people that they belong on television?"

The first joke or two about Simon's man boobs was funny, but then it seemed too much, after all it wasn't "American Idol Roasts Simon" night.

Here are the celebrities, etc., who put in appearances on American Idol Gives Back:

Gordon Brown, David Beckham, Kobe Bryant, Eli Manning, Peyton Manning, Victoria Beckham, Maria Shriver, Sarah Silverman, Jim Carrey, Adam Sandler, Jimmy Kimmel, Whoopi Goldberg, David Spade, George Lopez, Eddie Izzard, Rob Schneider, Billy Crystal, Dane Cook, Robin Williams, Brad Pitt, Julianne Moore, The Rock, Cheryl Hines, Felicity Huffman, Kyra Sedgwick, Minnie Driver, Roselyn Sanchez, Selma Blair, Michael Chiklis, Amy Adams, Forest Whitaker, Jennifer Connolly, Kiefer Sutherland, Reese Witherspoon, The Jonas Brothers, Ashley Tisdale, Miley Cyrus, Vanessa Hudgens, Alicia Keys, Kylie Minogue, Toby Keith, Annie Lennox, Bono, Carrie Underwood, Celine Dion, Chris Daughtry, Elliott Yamin, Fantasia, Fergie, Gloria Estefan, Heart, John Legend, Mariah Carey, Maroon 5, Snoop Dogg, Michael Kors, Ricki Lake, Dr. Phil, Jimmy Johnson, Mary Murphy, Sheila E., John Cena, Triple H and Chris Jericho.

Did I leave anybody out?

American Idol - Jesse Spencer on the Electric Violin!

That was one star packed presentation of American Idol Gives Back tonight! A lot more fun, in between the sadness, than I had expected. Teri Hatcher and The Band from TV was entertaining. Did you catch Jesse Spencer (Dr. Chase on House M.D.) on the electric violin? Nice. Very nice. Hugh Laurie was supposed to be part of the band, but I didn't see him there. If you missed the performance or just want to see it again, here it is, right after the little skit with Teri Hatcher, James Denton and Carrie Underwood that segues into the musical number:

Idols Past: Ejay Day

Ejay Day had his lucky break when contestant Delano Cagnolati was disqualified for lying about his age, and Ejay was called back in to replace him. Ejay made it to the top nine of Season One before being eliminated, qualifying him to go on Tour with American Idol following the end of the season.

Since then he has done some songwriting and has entertained on cruise ships. Not much more to report on Ejay at this time. I watched Season One of American Idol and can't remember Ejay.

Ejay's Official Website.

Paula Abdul's Chihuahuas Respond to High Notes

Last night Paula, during her critique of Michael Johns, said "you sound as good as you look and the high notes that you hit, I think my Chihuahuas are going to come join you on stage". They would have had a devil of a time breaking free of that dress she was so tightly packed into. Although, you might remember that last year one of her Chihuahuas caused her to break her nose.

You'll have to fast forward through Michael John's performance on the video below to get to Paula's statement and my posting on the rest of the American Idol hour last night can be found below.

American Idol - No Stellar Performances

Oh, here it comes again, that feeling that I can hardly wade through another episode of American Idol. We're getting into Idol Gives Back week and although I am all for them donating some of the outrageous amount of money generated by the American Idol Machine, I'm not thrilled that they are going to subject us to seeing stars hugging those less fortunate and giving the whole thing, sad, soppy theme music.

Not one performance tonight made me glad I had tuned in, not one. Michael Johns chose Aerosmith's Dream On. Steven Tyler is the only one that can sing and scream his way effectively through that song. There's an eeriness to Steven Tyler's vocals on this number, there was just an awkwardness about Michael John's performance. But hey, he's prettier than Steven Tyler.

Then it was Syesha's turn. She learned nothing from her time on American Idol, taking on the big songs that have already been done by the big stars and her performance of I Believe was..... well, I don't actually know, I spaced out and found myself mentally elsewhere until she had wrapped it up.

Jason Castro chose to sing Somewhere Over the Rainbow, Israel Kamakawiwoʻole style. I can't hear the late Mr. Ole singing that song without the tears flowing. I expected to feel that when Jason sang the song, but, well, it was just alright for me dude.

Kristy Lee Cook. She looks like she should be at the rodeo. My mind wandered through her performance.

I guess David Cook had to break that perfect streak sometime, but I was counting on him for some real music and I don't even know what he sang. The "Give Back" written on his hand was a little bit annoying and I was quite pleased when Simon said his performance was Pompous. What was with the white jacket?

Carly Smithson took on a Freddy Mercury number, The Show Must Go On. It seemed strained, although she was dressed a hell of a lot better this week.

David Archuleta did okay. He was better earlier on, and I just keep hoping for that breakaway performance. Could be the stress and lack of sleep is keeping him down.

I thought Brooke White would do well with a Carole King number, but it was, as Simon said, just pleasant.

I can't think of any performance worth seeing again, so here is Steven Tyler doing Dream On:

Paula Abdul - Straight Up

Another Paula Abdul flashback. This is what she was doing while most of current American Idol Contestants were learning to walk, or waiting to be born:

Dolly, Jesus, Gravity and Buh-Bye Ramiele Mulaby

I'm hard pressed to remember much about American Idol last night, because while I stared, aghast at Dolly Parton, and the peculiar get-up she was wearing my mother said "can you imagine what she looks like naked?". I have to say, before that moment in time, I had never, ever, not once, tried to picture Dolly Parton naked. Mum went on to explain herself "well, she's had those bottom ribs removed and she's got those big breasts over an abnormally small waist - if you took away the wig, the fake eyelashes, the makeup and the clothes and high-heels she'd be a pretty strange looking person". I'm still not over what that has done to my mind's eye, but I had to admit she had a point. I think Dolly Parton is a very sweet person, but she's definitely gone into some strange territory with her looks.

She sang, or rather yelled out, Jesus and Gravity from her new album Backwoods Barbie. The performance was horrible, full of "Jesuses" and followed by some "hallelujahs", which I somehow noticed while trying not to picture her naked:



Oh yes, and then Ramiele was voted off. She has never really delivered a breakaway performance to make her stand out as more than just another talented singer. She cried, of course, but she pulled it together and sung her farewell performance. Next week, I'm hoping it will finally be Kristy Lee Cook who gets the boot.

American Idol - Dolly Parton Week

Dolly looks good, in a scary way.

Simon has a problem with songs named after birds. He takes them a little too literally. First he was disturbed by Carly's performance of Blackbird Singing and picturing all the contestants as broken birds, now he's complimenting David Cook for making a song about a sparrow interesting. You know, Simon, the songs are not really about birds.

Simon says Carly needs to have a word with whoever is dressing her. I couldn't agree more. She's dressed like a sack of potatoes week after week. She's got this tattooed bod and wears what looks like home-sewn-frump-wear. Part housewife, part rock goth chick. Actually, looking at this picture of Carly in the audition process, she was dressing like a sack of potatoes before she was on Idol. Even with that great voice or hers, the star quality just is not there.

Ramiele Mulaby needs to go. Shes extremely dull and dresses like a school girl.

Jason Castro didn't pick the best song and so he didn't shine this week.

Everyone else did okay. I don't know why Syesha took on a song that was done and retired by Whitney Houston, but she did anyway and should not have been surprised by Simon telling her it paled by comparison.

Is it over yet? Yawn. I wish they were booting them off four at a time. We'd be done by now. I felt the show was really lacking without Chikezie.

Paula Abdul Flashback - Cold Hearted Snake

Remember Paula Abdul in this hot little number?



It was inspired by Bob Fosse's even hotter number from the movie All That Jazz.

Idols Past: Jim Verraros

Jim Verraros was contestant number ten in season one of American Idol. After the American Idol tour, Verraros came out in an article in The Advocate.

He released an independent CD Unsaid and Understood in 2003 and in 2005 he went mainstream with Rollercoaster.

After American Idol, Jim Verraros was said to be living the gay teenager's dream.

Verraros went on to star in Eating Out and Eating Out 2: Sloppy Seconds, both gay themed comedy movies. He has roles in two movies, in production, Pizza on Sunset and Copacabana, of Love and Shadows, the latter a movie with an angry drag queen set to stir things up. Both of these movies are also romantic comedies.

Now twenty five, he does a weekly show called Idol Chat with Jim and Penny. Here is a sampling:




American Idol opens some interesting doors.

Official Jim Verraros Website.

Chikezie Eze Goes Home

Chikezie leaves American Idol, but mediocre Kristy Lee Cook is still in the competition. Who is voting for Kristy? She shouldn't be encouraged.

Chikezie warmed my heart with his dulcet Luther Vandross tones, but he never repeated his breakaway performance and opted to stick with the ballad type numbers, which he preferred. I think he should have ridden the crowd pleasing wave a bit longer, as he'll have plenty of time to do exactly what he wants down the line. He'll be on the tour, so life is still good for Chikezie.

Shame on Simon for calling him cheesy last night.

Talking of cheesy, Lee Greenwood called to say how much he liked Kristy singing his schmaltzy song.

It was extremely long hour tonight. I don't know why I watch this show.

Full recap at MTV: Chikezie Goes Down Easy

David Cook Does it Again

David Cook has not been my favorite in this competition, but that's changing. The guy has pulled magic out of the hat twice now, first with an original arrangement of Lionel Ritchie's Hello and now with a somewhat dark arrangement of Billie Jean. It was refreshing after sitting through some disappointing performances and then suffering through Kristy Lee Cook's performance of that sickly, sappy, gooey, nauseating Lee Greenwood song, God Bless the U.S.A.

The only noteworthy performance of the evening, in my opinion:





You can read Jim Cantiello's full and interesting take on Tuesday's American Idol show over at MTV.

Amanda Overmyer is Outta There!

She is safe...from having to do any more of those dreadful, drippy group opening numbers on American Idol and having to schlep around the country on the American Idol Tour. Too square for Amanda. She knows what she wants to do and the show has given her her start. The tour will be boring without her, but she has better things to do. She makes American Idol look like the Mickey Mouse Club.

Kristy Lee Cook will be on the tour though. Why is that, I wonder? At least she'll be able to buy her horse back. She sold her horse to get a plane ticket to the American audition in Philadelphia. Allegedly. There's some question about her Oregon, log cabin, horse riding idealistic life before American Idol came along. The girl's a pro and was once signed to Arista, Nashville.

The best thing about American Idol last night was the Ford Commercial, and that's not saying much:



You can read the full recap over at MTV.

American Idol - Did Kristy Lee Cook Save Herself?

I'm with Simon on this contestant. She's forgettable. She's a pretty girl, has a great voice, but she's yet to reach the stage where she'd got that certain something that reaches out and grabs the audience.

Last night she made sure Simon would not forget her by telling him if she stayed with the show she would "blow him out of his socks" and followed up with "and you know it". Paula, the good cheerleader that she is, encouraged her to aim for blowing him out of his socks. The grin on Simon's face indicated, that although he might forget her performance, she'll no doubt be on his mind and undoubtedly in his fantasies.



Go here for MTV's Recap of Tuesday's show.

American Idol - David Hernandez Goes Home

....but it should have been Kristy Lee Cook or better still, Simon Cowell. I miss the Simon Cowell from the earlier Idol seasons. He has run his course with American Idol and it shows. He has been quoted as saying he finds the show quite dull this year and it appears he can hardly bother to participate at this point. Apparently his contract said nothing about being professional.

And then there was Jim Carrey sitting in the audience dressed in bits of an elephant costume, helping (or hindering) in promoting the crap out of Horton Hears a Who. Carrey does the voice for Horton, the elephant. But no one wants to see this:



Oh, that's just so wrong for so many reasons!

MTV has a full recap of Wednesday night's one hour show.

Chikeze's Break-Away Performance on American Idol

Wow! Now that's entertainment! American Idol seems more and more like a regular talent search and most often the performances are dreary and there is no entertainment value, but not last night. At least not while Chikeze was on the stage. He reminded everybody what it was all about. He did one hell of a job with the unique arrangement of the Lennon-McCartney song "She's a Woman". Here is his performance, including pre chatter with Ryan and the judges comments after his his performance. It's worth watching to the end, when Ryan Seacrest joins him on stage and goes a little crazy.



Sadly, my favorite, David Archuleta was having a rough time of it on Tuesday night. He stumbled through the song, sometimes forgetting the lyrics. Hopefully he'll be back next week and be back on form.




Ramiel Mulubay delivered the most boring performance of the evening, one boring enough to make the commercial break seem very entertaining. Kristy Lee Cook tried to countrify "Eight Days a Week" and it didn't work. David Cook "Eddie Veddered" his way through Eleanor Rigby and I didn't much care for it, but the judges did. I can't warm up to Carly Smithson.

If you would like a full recap of last night's performances, you can check it out over at MTV.

Idol Eliminations Night

Danny Noriega was voted off. Hallelujah! The kid is talented and maybe when he grows up a bit and drops the bad girl attitude, he won't be so painful to watch. When he was subdued and teary eyed for his farewell performance, he seemed a lot more "true to himself" than the rest of his time on stage.

Luke Menard was not entirely a surprise, but I think he'll go on to bigger and better things than American Idol. He's a class act.

Kady Malloy's number was up tonight. She never quite cemented herself into the competition.

Asia'h Epperson came this far while grieving the loss of her father. Her Dad would be proud.

Here is what I consider Danny's best performance:

American Idol - David Cook

David Archuleta is still my favorite. Danny Noriega was more annoying, if that's possible, last night than ever before. But the person who delivered the breakaway performance of the night was David Cook, with a rather haunting arrangement of a Lionel Ritchie song, Hello. Here is the noteworthy performance of Tuesday night:

Taylor Hicks - Caroline Lyders Mystery

If Taylor Hicks had a regular girlfriend, there would be lots of pictures by now, not just a few beach photos from the summer of 2007. But it seems to have become an obsession, to the point that a forensics expert was brought into the mix to try and solve the mystery of who was frolicking on the beach with Taylor and where or if Caroline Lyders figured anywhere into the mix.

It's still being discussed over at 10086 Sunset Boulevard and here are a couple of links that try to shed some light on the situation:

Caroline Lyders TV News Fake Girlfriend for Hire

Who is Taylor Hicks Mystery Lady Friend?


I just hope this silliness is not going to outlast his music career.

American Idol - the Forgetable Season

I don't know their names this year. American Idol seems like Star Search now. Simon is only there because his contract says he has to be - for the next two years. Sure, these kids are talented, but it's background talent, with the exception of David Archuleta, there are no front runners, not at this stage of the game.

This week Robbie Carrico, Jason Yeager, Alaina Whitaker and Alexandrea Lushington got the boot. Alaina Whitaker took it hard and was embarrassed because she "balled on television". Ryan and Paula were very kind to her and reminded her this was just the beggining, not the end. Paula tells that to all of the contestants who receive the boot, but I wonder, the beginning of what? Auditions and agents and frustrations and more let downs?

Most annoying this year is Danny Noriega and I will be so happy when the little punk gets his walking papers. Somehow, annoying seems popular in this culture, so I'm sure we won't see the last of him once his Idol journey is finished. If you have not yet reached the gagging point with Little Miss Priss, maybe this will push you over the edge:

American Idol - the Winner is.....

David Archuleta. No matter the outcome, this is the kid with the star quality. He's going to be like Frank Sinatra. A true crooner, from the heart. Will the voting go that way? I'm not sure.

I believe that if someone behaves like a little bitch, they are setting themselves up for a good bitch slapping. The bitch in question here is Danny Noriega. Enough with the flaming, you're gay, we get it. Hopefully no one is buying the bad girl attitude.

And what's with Simon? He is at this point, sick of spoiled American children, with their sense of entitlement. Picked the wrong job then, didn't he?

Here is this week's Idol Video for you - of my favorite, David Archuleta. Make sure to watch all the way through so that you can hear Paula's critique. She wanted to do what with his head? Dangle it from her rear view mirror? Shades of Hannibal Lecter.

Paula Abdul - Dance Like There's No Tomorrow

This week, on American Idol, Simon was in a pissy mood, perhaps because he was being pressured into having to pretend he was supportive of Paula's comeback video that seemed to be what last night's show was about. He did a pretty good job of appearing supportive, when you think that they're running a singing contest and Paula can't sing. If you missed American Idol last night (and who doesn't wish they did?) here is the what the show was about, which was letting the losers know, hey, it's alright, it doesn't matter if you can sing or not! Paula looks good in the video and has plenty of costume changes to try and compensate for the monotony of the song. Oh, and Amy Davis, Joanne Borgella, Garrett Haley, and Colton Berry were all eliminated.

American Idol Final 24

Alexandrea Lushington, Robbie Carrico, Jason Castro, Danny Noriega, Brooke White, Amanda Overmyer, Michael Johns, David Cook, Luke Menard, Carly Smithson, Chikezie Eze, Colton Berry, Asia'H Epperson, Kady Malloy, Joanne Borgella, Ramiele Malubay, David Hernandez, Amy Davis, Alaina Whitaker, Syesha Mercado, Jason Yeager, David Archuleta, Garrett Haley and Kristy Lee Cook.

American Idol in Hollywood

Well, the Hollywood phase wasn't quite as annoying as I thought it would be, at least not yet. Saying that they had made changes because the "talent was so strong" and that there would be some of the "most vicious cutting" was annoying. It's still very much the same old same old, nothing new and improved about the show.

Brooke White is still in, that's good. Leo Marlowe - is he in or out? We saw a clip of Simon telling him that he went from memorable to forgettable.

I don't recall seeing David Hernandez before. He sand "Love the One You're With" and it was good to listen to, so much different than all the copy cat renditions of songs that have been sung to death,

Josiah Leming seemed very much the young, tired, desperate runaway kid last night. There's something about him and the cry in his voice. I hope he makes it.

I was sorry to see Suzanne Toon go. Did you even recognize her? She was pretty and natural in the audition phase, and blond and cookie cutter in the Hollywood phase.

Kristy Lee Cook is in.

My favorite so far, is David Archuleta. He was about 9 years old when American Idol began, but he was already out there trying to become famous. He lost his voice at some point. Here is David then and David now:





Kyle Ensley is still in, just to give the show a human side and remind us that Nerds are people too.

Michael Johns did Bohemian Rhapsody and he did it well. Not an easy song for anyone to tackle.

Brooke Helvie, the annoying beauty Queen, is out, because she annoyed a great big "NO" from Paula. I think Paula would have said yes, if she hadn't pissed her off so much. Here is Brooke, annoying herself right out of the competition:



Tonight we'll find out who the final 24 are and how they will stretch this show out for a couple more months.

The Last of the American Idol Auditions

The best part of American Idol, the auditions, are now over with and it's on to Hollywood. There is not one single contestant that we have seen so far that I care about and don't know that I'll be able to watch another minute of this show.

Wednesday's audition show was the best and the worst of the auditions, which didn't seem particularly different from any of the other audition segments.

Ashley Lawton was doing twins, as in twin brothers, and offered to do Simon too if he put her through to Hollywood. The twin brothers were annoying and after failing miserably at their audition, they waited in the wings for Ashley, saying they had encouraged her to audition for American Idol, because they knew she didn't have the talent to win. Obviously her talents lie elsewhere:




For a complete recap of Wednesday's auditions check out MTV.

American Idol Atlanta Audition

Oh God, this is agony. I don't know whether one hour is too much, or not enough. Something is lacking. Talent? Even the goofballs are just goofy enough to be annoying, not entertaining.

I so wanted Brooke Helvie to have a bad audition, but damn, the shallow little pageant princess could sing.

You can find a full recap of the Atlanta Auditions at MTV. Click here to go there.

Here is the silliest audition from Eva "this is not no joke" Miller:

Flashback to the 80's - Paula Abdul at the Super Bowl

This is Paula's new song, but it all seems a little like recycled goods, rather than a new and improved Paula Abdul:

Idol Bitch Slap

You know, those judges really don't like Prima Donnas.

I think they mistook Shannon McGough for one, and seemed overly harsh on her. They do like building these contestants up, just to bitch slap them down for entertainment value. Maybe they were just offended by her clothing or expected her to be a better singer, having won so many competitions.

Nellie Oleson lives on in the form of Precious Prima Donna Julie Dubela, and yes, I admit, I enjoyed the little reality check they dished out to her. Once rejected, her response was "don't audition for American Idol, don't watch the show". Just like Nellie!



Lovely ladies Corliss and Britney were tons of fun. I didn't expect these girls to go through, but they can sing and they had delightful personalities. I don't know how Ryan survived without being crushed.



You can check out Buddy TV for a complete recap.

Paul Abdul Hiccups

That's all that I can remember about American Idol last night - oh wait, and Leo Marlowe. He got the gay issue out of the way immediately, just so there will be no speculation. He's likable and he can sing.

The freaks in Omaha are not worth a mention. If you'd like a more detailed recap of last night's show, check out MTV's coverage.

But back to Paula and the hiccup that prompted Simon to call her a "disgusting little pig".