mimblr.com

The final “American Idol” show of the season is always a shell game: Thirty seconds of information must be stretched to two hours of viewer engagement. The night’s rumored appearances by Britney Spears, Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney soon yielded to the reality of Bette Midler. (We love her, but, you know.)
Here’s a look inside the Nokia on finale night.
And so it begins: The judges make their grand entrance to the Paula-Randy tune, “Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow.” Some 7,000 people bark for Randy Jackson and scream for Paula Abdul. Of course, Simon Cowell.
Then the two Davids, dressed in white, bound onto the stage — and here we go!
With Ryan Seacrest’s announcement at the top of the show that one David received 56% of the vote, Dialidol.com watchers wondered whether they now knew who won.
The Nokia is about 100,000 times better for live performance than “Idol’s” former finale home. During breaks at the Kodak, the room would die.
Receptions: It’s hard to tell how Bryan Adams was greeted in the room since we were already standing for the top six men. It seemed like a muted greeting here in the loge. But in the special guest applause-o-meter, the collective gush over Seal is still No. 1.
Jordin Sparks, last year’s queen of “Idol,” took the stage and, awkwardly, did not get a standing ovation. Her effort to excite the crowd worked better toward the song’s end, when she appealed directly to the Jonas Brothers squealers. Carrie Underwood, on the other hand, commanded everyone’s attention instantly.
Bedlam: The top six boys are positioning themselves among the tweens in the pit. Insanity reigned for a moment. But back to normal now.
We will leave it to scholars to debate whether George Michael is in fact the most famous person in the world, or whatever the hype promised. But children did scream, “We love you, George!” as he left the stage.

latimes.com

Never mind the numbers: American Idol has got its groove back.
This year’s singers are better, the show itself is more entertaining and American Idol’s Canadian ratings have recovered in recent weeks after a muted performance at the start.
TV’s most-watched regularly scheduled program has regained some of its cultural cachet, after an off-key year last season in which many of the contestants seemed more tone-deaf than pitch-perfect.
“It wasn’t one of our better seasons,” Idol judge Simon Cowell acknowledged in a conference call at this season’s outset.
While Idol has slipped slightly in the U.S. ratings charts — down seven per cent from last season — most music experts say this is a very good season indeed. The reason is two standout singers, both male performers, who could not be more different.
If, as most Idol prognosticators — Cowell included — predict, the May 21 finale will come down to David vs. David: David Archuleta from Murray, Utah and 25-year-old Blue Springs, Mo. native David Cook.
If that happens, the seven-year-old reality-TV competition that has shaped Grammy winners, country stars and even an Academy Award winner could be poised for its most compelling and unpredictable finish yet.
“We found more interesting people, more interesting artists,” Cowell said. “They have a certain quirkiness, an individual style. In past years, we used to get a ton of school kids who were just talented puppets, for want of a better word. These singers look more current; they sound more current.”
A DEFINING MOMENT
Every season has its defining moment. And for Idol this year, that moment came on April 9, when Australian-born rocker Michael Johns was sent home in a shock result that rocked the charts in online chatrooms, including the one at Canada.com, where fans weighed in with invective that ranged from, “So much for talent; America’s speed-dialers have spoken again,” to, “I’m disgusted and will not watch again.”

canada.com

May 7 (Bloomberg) — News Corp., the media company controlled by Rupert Murdoch, may report higher third-quarter sales today on increased advertising revenue from Fox Broadcasting's “American Idol'' and February's Super Bowl.
Sales probably rose 14 percent to $8.61 billion, the average of 15 analysts' estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Net income may have gained 2.2 percent to $890.5 million, or 33 cents a share, based on the average projection of 10 analysts.
Fox television sales probably climbed 17 percent in the quarter ended March 31, UBS AG analyst Michael Morris said. The Super Bowl broadcast drew a record audience while “Idol,'' TV's most-watched show, capitalized on a 100-day writers strike to obtain record ad prices. The live singing competition doesn't rely on scripts in the same way as sitcoms and dramas.
“Where most broadcast networks had less inventory, News Corp., with strong new programming, was better positioned for growth,'' said Morris, who is based in New York and has recommended buying the stock since becoming UBS's lead analyst on News Corp. last April.
News Corp. plans to release the results at 4 p.m. New York time and hold a 4:30 p.m. conference call. Morris wants Murdoch, News Corp.'s chairman and chief executive officer, to discuss his strategy for Fox Interactive Media, owner of the MySpace social-networking unit, and for satellite broadcaster Sky Italia.
“We're looking for insight on what's going on at those businesses and why we should be optimistic about growth going forward,'' Morris said.
News Corp. spokeswoman Teri Everett declined to comment.
News Corp.'s earnings growth was probably dragged down by a 35 percent drop in profit at the film unit and losses at British Sky Broadcasting Group Plc, in which News Corp. has a 39 percent stake, according to Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. analyst Michael Nathanson in New York.

bloomberg.com

It’s elimination night for American idol and it is a big one. We are down to the final eleven so whoever gets dumped tonight doesn’t quite get to crack the top ten. Is this finally it for Kristy Lee Cook, the adorable little country themed singer that made a Kellie Pickler like statement last night when she told Simon Cowell, “I can blow you out of your socks and you know it.” I think she meant blow his socks off with her singing, but I’m not going to touch that one.
Kristy needs to stay just for entertainment value so let’s examine who might also be on the bubble. I love the rocker nurse Amanda Overmyer but her time is just about up. Last night she sang “Back in the USSR” and it wasn’t awful but that’s the best I can say about it.
One of my other favorites may be on the bubble as well. Chikezie sang “I’ve Just Seen a Face” and even pulled out a harmonica which I kind of liked but it really annoyed Simon Cowell. He hammered him with this comment, ‘It started off okay and then you played the harmonica which was, literally atrocious, and then it turned into “Achy Breaky Heart” at the end … It was like a lot of different artists. I actually thought it was … gimmicky.” Nothing wrong with getting in a shot at Billy Ray Cyrus.
It might also be time to close down the shop on Ramiele Malubay, as she tried, “I Should Have Known Better”. I could say something cute like she should have known better than to sing that song, but I really like her. I’m just not certain she has the talent. She is adorable tough. My guess for the bottom three are all girls this week. Ramiele Malubay, Kristy Lee Cook and Amanda Overmyer.

nationalledger.com

Law Prof. Vikramaditya Khanna is the youngest University professor with full tenure. Khanna, who began teaching at the University in 2004, is 36 years old. (SAID ALSALAH/Daily)
The next time you’re at office hours, try starting a conversation with your professor about the latest American Idol reject or your favorite 50 Cent song.
For Law School students taking a class with Professor Vikramaditya Khanna, this type of exchange is commonplace. Khanna, the soft-spoken corporate and security relations law professor who considers himself a pop-culture junkie, is the University’s youngest full-time professor.
At 36, Khanna has already accomplished what many academics dream of. He and his family moved to the U.S. from India when he was 4 and then relocated to New Zealand when he was 14. After moving there, Khanna tested out of three grades, but only skipped two because his parents were uneasy about him adjusting socially with older students.
Khanna began his college career at Victoria University of Wellington at age 16, finishing with bachelor-level law and business degrees by age 21.
He then attended Harvard University, where he earned a graduate law degree at 25. After finishing at Harvard, Khanna took his first teaching position at Boston University’s School of Law, where he would stay for six years.
The University of Michigan Law School offered Khanna a full-tenure position in 2004, when he was just 32.
Khanna said he doesn’t think about his age in relation to other faculty that often and it doesn’t deter him from socializing.
Khanna said when he first began teaching at 25, many of his students were his age or older. He said he didn’t mind the experience of being the same age or younger as many students because it “helps keep me constantly plugged in and stimulated.”
Like many students, Khanna’s favorite show to watch is Law & Order. Like many teenagers, the professor criticizes MTV for not playing enough music. He said the Indiana Jones and the Blade Trilogy movies were among his favorites.

michigandaily.com

The striking 21-year-old singer, dancer and actress grew up performing in the Sarasota area before moving to Miami for college. She’s been singing since she was a toddler in a musical family that included three sisters and mother Zelda, a former Motown backup singer.
As a child, Syesha — it’s pronounced “sigh-EE-sha” — sang in church and grew accustomed to performing in public — she once sang the national anthem at a Pittsburgh Pirates baseball game. Her turns in musicals such as
Seussical: The Musical at a Sarasota arts high school drew raves. She’s acted in commercials, sang in a band, won a car in a statewide singing contest and even appeared briefly on a reality TV show.
So nobody back home is surprised that she’s standing among the final 11 on the Fox TV show that has the potential to make her a household name. And, they say, it couldn’t happen to a nicer person.
“When she was going to high school, she was aspiring to do that kind of thing. I remember she and her friends talking about it,” said Johnnie Mnich, theater director in the elite performing arts program at Booker High School. “I think it was a matter of time before it happened. She knows what she wants, and she knows what she’s good at.”
Mnich recalls marveling at Mercado’s talent when the she won the lead in the musical
Once on This Island as a sophomore.
“I was just blown away,” he said. “I was amazed at the level of expertise and strength and training.”
Bruce Merkle, 20, spent all four years in the Booker arts program acting and singing with Mercado. They shared their first stage kiss in
Once on This Island.
“She’s sounded like that since she was 14, as long as I can remember,” said Merkle, now a stage actor and still close friends with Mercado. “She’s the real deal. And she’s genuinely a nice person. She’s very grounded and knows what she wants.”

sun-sentinel.com

A Chinese TV station has said it plans to make a Chinese version of the hit series Ugly Betty.
Invincible Ugly Woman, as it will be called in China, will be made and screened on Hunan Satellite TV.
The station said it was planning 400 episodes of the show over five seasons, with shooting to start next month.
Ugly Betty, about an ordinary woman who tries to fit in at a fashion design company, has been a major ratings success in the US.
Hunan Satellite TV said that a woman with no prior acting experience had been cast as the female lead, while the lead male had not been decided.
The station is best-known for the success of its Super Girls talent show - the Chinese version of American Idol.
Ugly Betty was inspired by the Colombian telenovela, a Latin American soap drama, Yo Soy Betty, La Fea, which translates as I Am Betty, the Ugly One.
It was adapted to an American setting by former Oscar nominee Salma Hayek.
Actress America Ferrera became an overnight sensation in the leading role when it first aired in 2006 and went on to win a Golden Globe for best TV comedy actress in 2007.

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