Posted by: Chatterbug 
Filled in: If it were up to me, American Idol wouldn’t have a bottom 3. It would have more than that. But oh well. Based on the fan votes, the bottom 3 of the reality TV talent competition included Karen Rodriguez, Ashton Jones and Haley Reinhart. And they said they wanted a girl to win this season. It’s definitely not a great start for them. After all the fluff and filler moments on the show, it was finally revealed that Ashton’s hopes of making it big as a singer has come to an end. Did you agree with the votes? I know I did.
14
Mar
19
Nov
More changes are on the way for the 10th season of American Idol and the reality TV talent show’s executive producer Nigel Lythgoe is sharing all of the details. He told TV Guide that there are three major changes for the 10th season. The first is that there will no longer be a top 24 round and the show will instead start with the top 12. Theme weeks will no longer center around particular artists or genres but will instead center around decades. Contestants will be able to enlist the help of Interscope chairman Jimmy Iovine, the in-house mentor, for song selection. Also, the aspiring singers will make music videos, promote themselves and work with a band and dancers for a full production, similar to what you would see at an awards show. Are you curious as to how these changes will affect the show?
31
Aug
Reality TV guru Nigel Lythgoe is still dreaming of landing Sir Elton John for American Idol.
The veteran singer has consistently been linked as Simon Cowell’s replacement on the hit talent contest show.
“I must say, I really do love Elton John. He’s a huge favorite of mine,” said Lythgoe, who was recently re-hired as the show’s executive producer, this weekend.
But Nigel admitted that Sir Elton’s busy touring schedule is ‘always the problem’, the New York Post reports.
In addition to Sir Elton, the likes of Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler have been linked to judging roles as the show is revamped ahead of the new season in 2011.
Lythgoe says he expects a decision on the judging panel will be made by the end of next month.
Source: Splash News
19
May
American Idol Lee DeWyze, 2nd song on Top 3, “Hallelujah”,
Lee Dewyze Hallelujah Video:
20
Apr
Once you have a child of your own, there’s just no time left to look after the other kids as well, is there? Since Simon Cowell is planning on starting his own little star factory in America in the form of The X Factor, he’s not only leaving American Idol for good, but also Britain’s Got Talent. This is what Simon Cowell sai on the matter: “I like the show, but it takes a hell of a lot of time and there are moments, I am not going to lie, where you are sitting there looking at these horrific acts and you actually think I genuinely can’t do this any more. But then you watch it back and you think it was all fun.” But business and pleasure should never be mixed, eh? So it’s goodbye Simon Cowell and hello new guy… but at the rate things are going, the American version of The X Factor is going to gain control of the entire star production business.
9
Feb
If you thought that the great music mogul didn’t have a heart… you might have been right, but still, Simon Cowell is trying to show everyone that it’s not like that. It seems he is getting quite serious with make-up artist Mezhgan Hussainy as a source relates: “Simon is ready to let everyone know. Things between them are moving along very nicely indeed. Their relationship has been conducted under a cloak of secrecy but the situation has now changed.” If there’s anybody that’s an expert at secrecy, then it’s Simon Cowell. Just think how long he has been going out with his new love interest. Maybe she’ll get special privileges now, working with him on the American version of the X Factor and so on.
11
Jan
Television mogul Nigel Lythgoe already has plans for Jonathan Ross, who quit his 13-year tenure with the BBC week, amid reported pressure from senior brass there.
Lythgoe, a British TV producer of American Idol who Simon Cowell said made fame and fortune in the US as a “British man bitch”, believes there is work for him stateside.
“I think he’s smart, quick witted and very, very talented. I would have thought he just wants some time out,” Lythgoe said of Ross, 49.
He added:”I would have thought that quite a few stations would want him to go and join them.”
Ross announced the decision to quit following two weeks of careful consideration. His BBC contract will end in July.
Lythgoe admitted he did not know if Ross wanted to cross the Atlantic. “I don’t know if he wants to go and crack new territories.”
15
Sep
Television heavyweight Nigel Lythgoe claims American Idol has stolen Ellen DeGeneres.
Lythgoe, himself a reality TV judge on So You Think You Can Dance, said he will now be forced to “steal” Paula Abdul as a guest judge for his Fox show in the future.
Speaking at the Creative Arts Emmys in Los Angeles, Lythgoe said that while he loved having DeGeneres on the dance show: “I’d prefer Paula. I think it is a great idea to put her on.”
He said of Ellen: “We hope she will still be able to come and help us out from time to time.”
Lythgoe, a former Idol judge, said DeGeneres will be valued at Idol. “What it does is give the public, who are the people who decide in the end who is crowned the victor, a voice on the judges panel and they have never had that before.
“They already have industry experts, musicians and producers and songwriters represented and Ellen will be that judge who comes at it from a fan perspective. She loves music and she will be able to speak about what people will like and what would sound good on the radio. And she’s funny.”
Lythgoe said DeGeneres will be a good counterbalance to Simon Cowell. “I also think she is strong enough to keep Simon in his place, which I am always worried about.”
Source: Splash News
17
Jun
Terri Seymour has been granted a restraining order against a woman who choked her after the final of American Idol.
Seymour, an ex-girlfriend of Idol star judge Simon Cowell, requested a three-year order be imposed on Janice Thibodeaux.
Thibodeaux reportedly pleaded guilty recently to a charge of misdemeanour battery over the incident and was sentenced to three years’ probation. Police also witnessed the woman’s attack on Seymour.
Thibodeaux, who works as a correspondent for the show Extra, reportedly said she choked Seymour in retaliation for Cowell playfully choking fellow judge Paula Abdul on the show a week earlier.
Source: Splash News
29
May
Simon Cowell’s ex-girlfriend Terri Seymour has gone to court – to obtain a restraining order against the 200lb-woman who allegedly attacked her.
Seymour has filed a request for a restraining order against Janice Thibodeaux – who reportedly attacked her as she left the American Idol finale in Los Angeles last week.
In the document, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Terri claims the woman “has sought publicity for her wrongful act and stated… that she does not regret [it]“.
Seymour also says she fears that Thibodeaux “will again assault and further harass” her.
The Extra TV host, who split from Cowell last year, goes on to describe the attack, saying Thibodeaux “attacked [her] from behind, putting her into a headlock, wrenching her neck and choking her with the full force of her 200lb-frame”.
The papers also claim that Seymour could have been injured or killed if Thibodeaux hadn’t been restrained by nearby cops.
Source: Splash News
