Kara DioGuardi: Should we give her a clean slate to start her second season of ‘American Idol’?
Kara-Dioguardi_lThe sound of Kara DioGuardi’s speaking voice and the sound of my soul howling in agony created constant cacophony in my living room during American Idol’s eighth season. Week after week after infuriating week, the ‘fourth-judge’ deflated the high expectations I had initially held for her, dubbing ‘Cryin” an ‘early Aerosmith’ track, mislabeling the legendary Studio 54 as ‘Studio 57, ‘ and worst of all, sticking to the judges’ table party line and yammering on about ‘package artists’ as if she wasn’t a respected songwriter and a one-time major-label artist with a credible point of view and an understanding of the injustices of the modern-day record business. (Excuse that long-winded sentence; it needs to go see a therapist about its rage issues.)
Bucket of cold water
ONE former ‘American Idol’ finalist has some harsh advice for the finalists who ended their 50-city tour last week: Welcome to the end of the road.
In a long and remarkably frank blog posted over the weekend, Chris Sligh ‘†the chubby, curlyhaired country singer from Season 6 ‘†tells the ‘Idol’ singers what to expect.
And it is not pretty.
More Idol Headlines after the JUMP…
Kelly Clarkson: ‘I’m a Big Fan of My Butt’
The original ‘American Idol’ knows she’s got a substantial tush, and she’s more than okay with it. Kelly Clarkson admits to Now magazine, “I’m a fan of my butt.” The ‘I Do Not Hook Up’ singer says, “I totally have no chest, I’m all butt. Ever since I was a kid I’ve had a bubble butt – I get it from my mama. Guys are usually like, ‘Oh my gosh, look at that butt!” In a good way!'”
Former ‘American Idol’ judge Paula Abdul not laughing at Kathy Griffin’s jokes at ‘VH1 Divas’
Paula Abdul just can’t take a joke.
After a barrage of insults from Kathy Griffin, the former “American Idol” star nearly refused to co-present with the comedian at Thursday night’s VH1 Divas concert.
“Paula had to be coaxed onstage to present with Kathy, ” an insider reveals. “Kathy has made fun of her A LOT in the past, and she’s still pretty offended. She was leery about what Kathy might say about her in public.”
The flame-haired funnygirl continually roasts Abdul for her alleged penchant for popping pills, calling her a “junkie” with a “Vicodin problem.” She’s even mentioned in Griffin’s new release, “Official Book Club Selection.”
Kara DioGuardi Thinks It’s ‘Genius’ to Add Ellen
Ellen DeGeneres already has her first fan as an American Idol judge ‘ Kara DioGuardi.
“I think it’s a genius decision, ” DioGuardi, the judge who joined the top-rated FOX show last season, said at the Entertainment Tonight/PEOPLE Emmy after-party. “I wish I had thought of it.”
Mostly, DioGuardi said she’s looking forward to the new dynamic on the show now that DeGeneres is replacing the recently departed Paula Abdul as the show’s “nice” judge.
“I know a little bit about Ellen from watching her show and I would say she would probably be somebody who would be fair in her criticism and will try to be as supportive as she possibly could, ” said DioGuardi, 38. “I think it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
The Emmys are a rerun!
During Sunday night’s 61st Emmy Awards broadcast, the only thing lambasted more than Kanye West was television itself.
But Lady Emmy shouldn’t be so down on TV! After all, millions of people at home were watching TV on Sunday night — namely, they were watching the no-time-remaining, game-winning field goal at the end of the Cowboys-Giants game. (The Giants won.) Oh yeah, and millions tuned in to watch AMC’s “Mad Men, ” too.
I would’ve been watching “Mad Men, ” in fact, had I not been asked to cover the Emmys. Apparently something really shocking happened on “Mad Men, ” and I missed it.
The 61st Annual Primetime Emmy Awards: From the Nokia Theater
The battle over the Emmy Eight, and whether those trophies would be presented on-air, underlined the delicate balance between a kudocast’s two mandates: honoring contenders and entertaining TV viewers. From inside L.A.’s Nokia Theater, it was clear there’s an added question: Are attendees there to support colleagues, to schmooze (See old friends! Make new ones!) or to basically be seat-fillers at a TV taping? In truth, it’s all three, and the show onstage was almost an afterthought compared to the pre-show hoopla and the commercial-break action.
For much of the evening, the in-theater aud had the same viewing experience as those watching the CBS broadcast, as Nokia folk tended to ignore the action onstage and instead watched two jumbo screens. (It’s like a home-viewing party, but with 7, 100 guests.) However, a laundry list of thank-you’s and awkward patter by presenters are equally boring whether seen onstage or onscreen.
The 61st Annual Primetime Emmy Awards: From Your Couch
Neil Patrick Harris might be the human bailout package for fatigued awards shows. After acing the Tonys in June with an effortlessly in-charge turn at the mic, the star of CBS’ “How I Met Your Mother” went one better for the network as host of this year’s Emmys. After two years of flavor-free kudocasts piloted by reality-show recruits, it was a relief to have someone at the podium whose own sly enjoyment proved infectious. Outside of Christina Hendricks emceeing in-character as “Mad Men’s” Joan Holloway and performing musical interludes on her accordion, it’s hard to imagine a cooler breath of fresh air enlivening these proceedings.
Doubling as a producer on the show, the host brought along one of his “Mother” scribes, Joe Kelly, as head writer, and gave prominent placement to a riff from “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, ” the Joss Whedon Web comedy in which Harris plays the title role. The bumbling evildoer hijacked the broadcast during the Ernst and Young spiel explaining vote tabulation, landing some funny digs at the shifting landscape between TV and Internet viewing.
The real Lord of the Dance speaketh: Nigel Lythgoe on SYTYCD
Nigel Lythgoe – Nigel Lythgoe is part of a small fraternity of uber-successful British men who dreamt, came and conquered America, reclaiming the Olde English colony as their personal piggy bank filled with great accomplishment in entertainment.
Hard work and the right background afforded the reality TV producer a welcome platform to take ideas of presenting dance on a large scale for a viewing audience, hungry for more technical details and variety.
FOX reality dance competition “So You Think You Can Dance” was born from Lythgoe’s own choreography knowledge and producing savvy, honed for years in his native England.
ABC is dancing with these stars
The stars, their steps and stumbles are spotlighted as ABC’s Dancing With the Stars starts Season 9 Monday (8 ET/PT)., USA TODAY talks with the latest celebs:
Aaron Carter Won’t Get Brother Nick’s Vote On ‘Dancing With The Stars’
Aaron Carter is ready for the latest season of “Dancing With the Stars, ” premiering Monday (September 21) on ABC. He will be competing against the likes of Macy Gray, Kelly Osbourne, Tom Delay and Mya, but thinks that his toughest competition will be the guy in the mirror.
“Honestly, the biggest competition I feel is myself. The reason why I feel like my biggest competition is probably me, ” he told MTV News while rehearsing with partner Karina Smirnoff. “It’s all about how much we rehearse and how much we take advantage of [those rehearsals]. I’m all about how much I push myself.”
