"Idol" Wednesday
Posted January 25th, 2007 by Rich Heldenfels
Update: You can catch the latest podcast with me and Malcolm Abram on www.ohio.com by clicking here for the MP3 file. Or, subscribe to the podcast.
Things the audience learned from "Idol":
– It's OK to mislead your parents, skip school and travel to New York City, because you may get a trip to Hollywood out of it. If there's a surge in teen runaways during the next round of "Idol" auditions, blame 19-year-old Sarah Burgess of East Palestine, Ohio, whose tearful tale got plenty of "Idol" air time — and a trip to Hollywood — without so much as a "Kids, don't try this at home."
– You don't need to know how to talk to go on "Idol." Tuesday night gave us the word "confidentiality" as a synonym for "confidence." On Wednesday, we heard about a song being "interpretated."
– Don't do a second song unless it is absolutely clear that the judges want it — and you have a good, prepared second song. Nakia Claiborne of Scottsburg, Va., looked like a lock for Hollywood after her spirited "Dancing in the Street." Paula and guest judge Carole Bayer Sager were interested in hearing her bring it down on another song, but it's not clear on my recording of the show that they wanted her to sing again on the spot. Still, Claiborne did and it was a disaster for her. No Hollywood. As Sager pointed out, Claiborne was flawed on "Dancing" but you could overlook them; not so on the slow song.
– Don't overreach generally. The Jersey Girls (Amanda Coluccio and Antonella Barba, both 19) didn't win any friends with their attempt at a duet, but they went through to Hollywood on solo turns. I'm not convinced they were all that good, but the show is clearly relishing the soap-opera potential in their competing against each other — potential demonstrated when Antonella didn't tell Amanda EVERYTHING the judges said.
– The spirit of Monti Rock III is being carried forward by Ian "I AM a superstar" Benardo, crossover from "So You Think You Can Dance." But that spirit also meant that someone either didn't make it to the judges, or was denied air time, just so Benardo could throw attitude.
– Also taking up unnecessary air: a 47-year-old contestant evoking Sinatra. He's too freakin' old for the show. Why was he even on?
– Rachel Zevita, 18, of New York City, is not only going to Hollywood; she's already annoying me.
– Life begins and ends with "American Idol" for way too many singers. I am thinking of Claiborne's tears, the training regimen for Porcelana Patino of Elmhurst, N.Y. (who did get to Hollywood), the recidivist contestants, the arguments and the begging.
– Jenry Benjarano, 16, of Rotterdam, N.Y. (part of my old stomping grounds), may go a long way based on Paula's sense that he is "easy on the eyes."
– Others getting tickets to Hollywood: Jory Steinberg, 25, of Santa Monica and Canada; Hollywood dropout Nicholas Pedro, 25, of Taunton, Mass., and Kia Thornton, 27, of Englewood, N.J.
January 25th, 2007 at 11:27 am
American Idol –
Am sure you're written about this before, possibly during past Cleveland Idol auditions. Might want to use percentages for below.
(1) Of the thousands who show up for auditions, how many actually audition? How are they "weeded out?"
(2) Who presides/judges for these preliminary auditions?
(3) How many times might a contestant audition before moving to the televised Jackson, Abdula, Cowell judging?
(4) How many actually make it to the aforementioned judging panel?
(5) Of those who audition, how many are purposely chosen as "embarrassing, non-talent" for televised appearances before Jackson, Abdula, Cowell?
TV Schedule –
Is it my imagine or are most popular weekly show listings no longer, or seldom, carrying (N) designations?
Would be interesting to know how much viewership Top Chef lost with its long hiatus before last night's semi-finals in Hawaii. Drove me up a wall to have to check reruns, reruns, reruns, reruns before finally figuring out when two finals would finally run.
January 25th, 2007 at 11:53 am
I'm not so sure of Sarah's sob story. It seemed very well-rehearsed and timed to me, up to and including the phone call to her dad. I wouldn't be surprised if her dad was sitting next to Jonny Fairplay from Survivor's grandmother.
I also have to wonder how many more arguments there would have been over several of the contestants who made it through had Simon been there for all of the second day of auditions. And when did Carole Bayer Sager turn into Joan Collins?
January 25th, 2007 at 2:27 pm
Nancy, here's how it worked in Cleveland: Between 8,000 and 10,000 people showed up for auditions at Browns Stadium. They sang in small groups for producers and other "judges" from the show. From that lot, 400 to 500 were brought back for a second audition (this one indoors) with the producers. About 100 were then chosen to audition for Simon, Randy and Paula (as well as LL Cool J, a guest judge in Cleveland). I don't have a number on how many are brought in to be abused but, as you can tell, a fair number are let through.
I don't have an answer for the listings question. Will see what I can find out.
Gus, I am sure there would have been other arguments, not that we needed them. And Malcolm Abram also noted Sager's Joan Collins-y look in our podcast.