Today Idol headlines after the jump ¦
Today in history – Oct. 28
….Today’s Birthdays: Jazz singer Cleo Laine is 80. Actress Joan Plowright is 78. Musician-songwriter Charlie Daniels is 71. Actress Jane Alexander is 68. Singer Curtis Lee is 66. Actor Dennis Franz is 63. Pop singer Wayne Fontana is 62. Actress Telma Hopkins is 59. Olympic track and field gold medalist Bruce Jenner is 58. Actress Annie Potts is 55. Microsoft chairman Bill Gates is 52. Rock musician Stephen Morris (New Order) is 50. Country singer-musician Ron Hemby (The Buffalo Club) is 49. Rock singer-musician William Reid (The Jesus & Mary Chain) is 49. Actor Mark Derwin is 47. Actress Daphne Zuniga is 45. Actress Lauren Holly is 44. Olympic silver medal figure skater Paul Wylie is 43. Actress Jami Gertz is 42. Actor-comedian Andy Richter is 41. Actress Julia Roberts is 40. Country singer-musician Caitlin Cary is 39. Actor Jeremy Davies is 38. Singer Ben Harper is 38. Country singer Brad Paisley is 35. Actor Joaquin Phoenix is 33. Singer Justin Guarini (“American Idol”) is 29.
Thought for Today: “Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense.” — Gertrude Stein, American author (1874-1946).
Model behavior gets the job
Local woman takes on fashion industry in style
…Then, while at a casting for the “It’s Good to be Us” video by Bucky Covington of American Idol fame, she said Covington picked her out of a crowd.
“I was over here kidding around like ‘Look at me! I’m Vince Young.’ And throwing a football and doing the Heisman pose, ” she said as she demonstrated the moves that, along with her looks, landed her the part. “And he was like, ‘I want her.'”
The video debuted Wednesday. And as for the final cut of the Bucky Covington video, both Nicole and her boyfriend John Polk said that they were satisfied with the outcome….
MORE HISTORY = LESS MYSTERY: Rock stars lose their mystique
As we’re buried in backstage footage, blog entries, MySpace pages and unreleased tracks, we lose interest
… handy benchmark will show up in stores Nov. 6. The Beatles’ 1965 film “Help!” is at last getting its proper release on DVD, latest in the band’s ongoing digital updating of its catalog. The disc is a welcome treat for Beatles fans, its gorgeous restored color and surround-sound mixes providing snazzy new thrills.
But look close, and you’ll notice something about the package’s bonus features: There aren’t a whole lot of them. We’ve grown accustomed to extras with our DVDs — deleted scenes, outtakes, on-set interviews. But with “Help!” there simply wasn’t a choice. In 1965, surplus Beatles footage wasn’t just left on the cutting room floor, it was swept into a trash bin.
That scenario isn’t unusual. The Beatles phenomenon was as well-chronicled and publicized as any big news event of its time. But pop music itself was regarded as temporary, even disposable. Unimaginable as it seems by today’s standards, few people of the era thought in terms of preserving every move for posterity. There was no rock press to speak of. Young fans accessed their artists via records, radio play and the occasional television gig.
“There was no thought given to recording behind-the-scenes stuff, ” says Howard Kramer, curatorial director for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland. “It just wasn’t done. I don’t think someone would have even proposed that back then. ‘Shoot behind the scenes? What do we need that for?’ ”
In other words, there’s probably more backstage footage of the typical “American Idol” contestant than there is from the Beatles’ entire career. Or contrast “Help!” with “Popmart, ” the latest concert DVD from U2. Released last month, it’s a typical modern music release with a typical grab bag of extras: nine previously unreleased live songs, four documentary features with interviews and backstage footage, a batch of audio-visual goodies for home computers…….
“Idol” donations help combat AIDS in Africa
“American Idol” viewers will never see this particular performance of anti-AIDS songs and dances in a modest community hall, but they helped pay for it.
After a star-studded “American Idol” extravaganza in April raised more than $75 million, the money is trickling down to charities in the United States and Africa. Five charities working in Africa each received $6 million, including an anti-AIDS peer-education program where students fuse “What a Wonderful World” with African opera and break-dancing with traditional rhythms.
The campaign called “Idol Gives Back” is the latest in a long line of high-profile efforts to raise funds for Africa……
Concert promoters get reality check
It started off so promisingly.
On May 11, a full-color, full-page ad in The Denver Post announced Kelly Clarkson’s national tour in support of her album “My December, ” which hadn’t even been released. The jaunt would take Clarkson to the Pepsi Center, a venue that seats up to 18, 000 for concerts, depending on stage setup.
What a difference a month made.
Quickly realizing the lack of ticket demand, Clarkson’s team canceled her tour in June and regrouped. In September, promoter Live Nation announced a scaled-down Clarkson show Nov. 5 at the Paramount Theatre – with 1, 870 seats, about a tenth of the Pepsi Center’s capacity.
Ticket prices were also slashed from an upper end of $69.50 to $41 across the board.
The lesson? Clarkson’s management grossly overcalculated the 2002 “American Idol” winner’s appeal and ended up having to retract its pronouncements, to the chagrin of the entire music industry…….
Lugo flashes the leather in Boston’s 10-5 Series win over Colorado
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NO BEEF: It had the makings of a chilly meeting. Or maybe make that a “meat-ing.”
Country star Carrie Underwood, a two-time winner of PETA’s “World’s Sexiest Vegetarian” singing the national anthem at Coors Field, home of the Rockies — who are owned by the Monfort family, once one of the world’s largest exporters of beef.
“There are no concerns at all, ” Charlie Monfort, chairman and CEO of the Colorado Rockies, said before Underwood performed Saturday night. “I don’t blame people for being vegetarian, that’s their choice.”
Underwood frequently does concerts wearing a “V is for Vegetarian” shirt. The former “American Idol” winner told PETA after her 2007 win that she quit eating beef at age 13.
“I do it because I really love animals and it just makes me sad” she said in PETA’s publicity materials. “I don’t like to watch commercials where they have meat. It weirds me out.”
Underwood declined all interview requests before Game 3, Major League Baseball spokeswoman Paige Novack said.
Monfort said he and Underwood met once, when she was in Colorado for a concert.
Monfort co-founded the team with trucking company owner Jerry McMorris. Charlie Monfort and his brother, Dick, bought out McMorris’ interest in 2005.
The Monfort family has a decades-long history of raising cattle and owning and operating meatpacking in northern Colorado. Charlie Monfort grew up in his families business and was once president of Monfort International Sales.
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Ride a little too smooth
Every moment on Carnival Ride is big, bright and shiny ‘ starting with Carrie Underwood’s majestic voice.
The American Idol winner is a terrific singer, and this slick sophomore outing is an overall better effort than Some Hearts, which padded its killer country singles with woefully forgettable filler like Lessons Learned and I Just Can’t Live a Lie.
But like Underwood’s own superstar hair extensions, Carnival Ride would have benefited from some shearing and a few nuanced colors. Despite the musical growth, she’s still searching for a unique interpretive voice.
Underwood is best when she’s showcasing a youthful, winsome charm…..
Commentary: Can life exist without an Idol?
Of all the broadcast networks, Fox has the most to do in stabilizing itself
Hypothetical situations don’t help illustrate much because they didn’t happen. And yet, they are also pretty handy in maximizing the impact of failure analysis. So ponder this:
What if Fox didn’t have American Idol? Take a long moment. Think about the most popular and powerful show on television. It arrives in January, coming to the rescue of a network that founders much of the first half of the season.
American Idol is the equivalent of a Hail Mary pass that gets caught. But what if it was never thrown? Well, for starters, Fox would be in the gutter, trying to keep the CW at bay. But the network would also be more proactive in fixing its problems. Of all five broadcast networks, Fox may have the most work to do in stabilizing itself. It is also, arguably, the one network most defensive about its deficiencies. And that brings us to the first way Fox can start fixing itself:
Former ‘Idol’ winner sings Game 3 National Anthem
Although Ace Young is one of the most well-known American Idol competitors to hail from Denver, he wasn’t the one singing the National Anthem before Game 3 of the World Series.
Checotah, Okla., native Carrie Underwood became the first person to sing the Star Spangled Banner prior to a World Series game in Colorado on Saturday night.
The country music star won American Idol in May of 2005 and launched her debut album in November 2005.
Underwood has since won two Grammys
Stars-crossed antics at the Series
…Rockies officials said they were not consulted about the anthem talent.
…Major League Baseball told us who the singers would be, Rockies spokesguy Jay Alves told the Rocky Mountain News.
Of course, Fox is televising the World Series and is supplying some of the celebs.Besides Underwood, fellow …American Idol Taylor Hicks has been tapped to do the Star Spangled honors for Game 5. (Trish Yearwood has the microphone tonight along with Lonestar, which will do …God Bless America.)…
Minor talent taints Clarkson major voice
Kelly Clarkson career to date has been a prolonged attempt to undo the damage American Idol did to her.
Clarkson has been the guinea pig for the glorified karaoke show, as it moved from someone big idea into a major cash-cow.
She is the first, and most memorable, Idol to cut and run. She played nice, at first, with a pair of records that went platinum based on her television profile. Neither suggested that Clarkson was anything other than a young woman with a big voice and a whole crew of well-paid image consultants telling her what to do.
This didnt seem to upset anyone but Clarkson, who, time has told us, was beginning to feel like a fast-food burger with a voice…….
‘Dirty Idol’ Jamie Foxx
Jamie Foxx wants “dirty up” ‘American Idol’.
The Oscar-winning star is obsessed with the singing talent contest, but he would like to appear on the TV show and make it less “clean”.
Jamie said: “I absolutely love ‘American Idol’. If I was on it, I’d do 50 Cent’s ‘In Da Club’, because I’d love to see that crowd rock. Normally it’s so clean with all that ‘Love Lifts Us Up Where We Belong’ stuff. I want to dirty it up.”……
Idol host hospitalised
AUSTRALIAN Idol host Ian “Dicko” Dickson ended up in hospital while in LA during the week filming his new reality talent search Next Great American Band.
Dicko was treated for dehydration and a stomach bug at a hospital near the studios where he was rehearsing for the second episode of Band.
Dicko became unwell during the rehearsal show on Tuesday and was sent to seek medical attention by the in-studio doctor.
He spent two hours on a drip before being sent back to his hotel to rest………
CBS, NBC Is the ‘Deal’ for Friday
….”Deal or No Deal” started the eight o’clock hour strong for NBC with a 6.6/12 rating. CBS’ “Ghost Whisperer” followed close behind with a 6.2/11. ABC took third with a 3.1/6 for a “Grey’s Anatomy” rerun, while The CW’s “Friday Night Smackdown!” nabbed a 2.4/4. FOX trailed with a 1.7/3 for the second outing of “The Next Great American Band, ” down from its premiere.
ABC jockeyed and won first at 9 p.m. for “Women’s Murder Club, ” 6.1/11, easily edging past CBS’ vampire drama “Moonlight, ” 5.4/10. “Friday Night Lights, ” 3.9/7, took third for NBC, “Smackdown!, ” 2.7/5, kept The CW in fourth, while “American Band” took a 1.8/3….
Elliott Yamin gets in a holiday mood
Richmond’s own “American Idol” star Elliott Yamin puts a soulful spin on Christmas favorites on a new holiday CD.
“NBC Sounds of the Season – The Elliott Yamin Holiday Collection” is now available from Target stores.
Priced at $6.99, it includes “This Christmas, ” “Little Drummer Boy, ” “Merry Christmas, Baby, ” “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire), ” “Jingle Bells, ” and three original songs recorded exclusively for the album, “A Very Merry Xmas, ” “Let’s Be Naughty (And Save Santa The Trip), ” and “Warm Me Up.”
