Host Ryan Seacrest starts tonight's American Idol by coming out on stage wearing a wig styled like Sanjaya's strange hairdo from last night. Sanjaya is dying laughing in the audience, and the judges look horrified.

We'll skip the montage from last night and the "music video" aka commercial.

Blake Lewis is safe.

LaKisha Jones is safe.

Phil Stacey is in the bottom three.

Melinda Doolittle is safe. She and Chris Richardson have a cute moment after that.

Chris Richardson is safe after being in the bottom three last week.

Sanjaya Malakar is safe. WHAT? Sigh.

Haley Scarnato is in the bottom three.

Jordin Sparks is safe.

Chris Sligh and Gina Glocksen have to wait a while to find out whether they are safe. Of course.

Besides the break, they also have to wait through Gwen Stefani and Akon's performance of "The Sweet Escape." I think Gwen forgot her pants! And Akon's are falling off! But otherwise fun, of course. Gwen announces that her tour will be starting April 21.

Gina Glocksen is safe.

Chris Sligh is in the bottom three.

Ryan reveals that Phil is safe after faking out Haley. Simon says he thinks Chris is out, and the other two won't give their opinion.

And going home is: Chris Sligh. Aww, sad, he's witty! As he's singing out and hugs the other contestants, he tells Phil Stacey: "You owe me 50 bucks!" Heh, funny till the end. Bye, Chris!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants
        

Annnnnd the first out of this season of Dancing With the Stars -- after a ridiculous amount of filler -- is Paulina Porizkova. Too bad. She wasn't a great dancer, but I found her to be very relatable and witty. I was hoping she'd get another week to get better. Oh well!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Dancing With the Stars
        

Here we go -- the Top 10 perform on American Idol, and we'll see whether Sanjaya will last yet another week.

Tonight's theme is No Doubt songs and songs by artists who inspired the band. This means that Gwen Stefani is the mentor of the week. Not too shabby! She says many of the artists who inspired her aren't known for their big voices, but for their personalities, performances and styles. Could mean trouble for some of the bigger voices this season, but perhaps not. She tells the contestants she can't imagine how nerve-wracking it must be to have gotten this far because she's nervous just being involved.

First to meet one-on-one with Gwen is LaKisha Jones. She's going to sing Donna Summer's "Last Dance." Gwen says she was amazing: "I should be asking her for advice." She's working the stage way more than usual and showing some personality. Huzzah! Randy says it was good to see her rock it and calls her a "true fly diva." Paula says she did Donna Summer proud. Simon loves the boot: "Great, LaKisha, because now you're 30 years younger this week. And I agree with Randy, it's nice to see you doing an up-tempo song, loved the big note at the end, and it's the LaKisha I loved three or four weeks ago coming back here and putting your mark back on the competition. ... And a great vocal." Her friends "from the bank" -- I can only assume that means the Fort Meade bank. Oh yeah, Marylanders are representing tonight!

Chris Sligh is second, and he has to take a viewer question. (Hello, filler!) She asks how he spends his down time. He says he crochets, knits and plays bongo drums in his boxer shorts. Heh. (That's a Matthew McConaughey reference, in case you missed it.) He says in actuality he sleeps as much as possible to avoid getting sick. He's going to sing the Police's "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic." Gwen says he has a great voice but needs to work on his tempo. This is a good choice for his voice, I think, and he sounds good, though I'm not sure he solved all his tempo issues. He does look more nervous than usual. Randy says it was a good song choice, but the biggest issue was the tempo. He says he'd never sung it before, and it was like "a master class in theory for me" and that he did the best that he could. Randy says the rhythm was a trainwreck. Paula jumps on the tempo train. Simon says it was a mess -- he says it was all over the place, and "it didn't feel right." The music interrupts him before he is done, and he says, "It's not the Oscars!"

Gina Glocksen is a wreck because she loves Gwen Stefani. She's singing "I'll Stand by You." Gwen says it was nice to see her just stand and sing, and I agree. She gets a little shouty in the middle, but otherwise, it's one of her strongest performances. She looks pretty proud of herself. Randy likes her boots, and he says it was one of her best performances ever. He tells her to believe in her voice and choose wise songs. Paula says she's improving each week and picked the right song and that it was the best performance so far. Simon says it wasn't one of her best performances, "It was YOUR BEST performance." He says the transformation from a few weeks ago to this week is "literally chalk vs. cheese." She cries.

Sanjaya Malakar is going to sing "Bathwater" by No Doubt. Gwen says he got nervous and forgot some of the words. She says it's going to be really hard for him because it's a tough song, but he chose it, so "good luck." Ow. Also, I really like this song and don't really want to see it slaughtered here. What is up with the hair? "I know I'm diving into my destruction." Yes, yes, this is true. Randy says he's speechless. He says the hair is interesting, but that he can actually sing, as he showed at the very end of the song, but he needs to show that all the time. Paula agrees, that the silliness of the look isn't matched by the performance, and it's a little weird. She says he can do it. Simon: "I presume there was no mirror in your dressing room." He says he doesn't think it matters what they say anymore, he's in his own universe, and people like him, so good luck.

Haley Scarnato is going to sing "True Colors," even though Brandon Rogers had issues with Cyndi Lauper songs earlier. Gwen says she messed with the song at the end, and she should just sing it straight. Randy says it was "a'ight." Paula says it's a beautiful song that requires nothing more than singing the melody, and she made it "adult contemporary." Simon asks how she thinks she did. He says it was "sweet but forgettable." Agreed.

Phil Stacey has to take a viewer question. It's boring. He's going to sing the Police's "Every Breath You Take." She says she's pleasantly surprised, and tells him she didn't expect it to be that good. Ow. Actually, I'm going to have to agree. He did much better with the song than I anticipated, too. Randy says it was a solid performance, and he "actually kind of liked it." Paula says there he "lives in the chorus" and that is where his magic is, and that he should be built more character in the verses. Simon: "This may surprise you, Phil, but I actually thought that was very good. Great choice of song."

Melinda Doolittle does Donna Summer's "Heaven Knows." Gwen tells her: "I would say good luck, but I don't think you need it." As usual, she nails it. The run at the end gives everyone at my house goose bumps. Randy says a pro singer does what she just did: interpreting and singing, living the words. "That was the bomb again." Paula says she tells a story from the very first word. Simon says he doesn't think it was the performance they'll remember, but it was good as usual, and he hates her outfit.

Blake Lewis is going to sing "Love Song" by the Cure. Gwen says she hopes he picks the right times to do the beatboxing breaks. He goes with no beatboxing, but his vocals are nice. Randy says he made the most of it and kept it tender. Paula says she loved it, and he's taking risks, and he's the dark horse, and she'd love to see him in the finale. Simon says he is definitely the strongest guy in the competition. He says he needs to be careful of the "Chris Daughtry zone" where he is doing his own thing and possibly being too indulgent, but for sure he is the front-runner guy.

Jordin Sparks is going to sing "Hey Baby." Gwen says she made the song more musical than she realized it even was. She has fun with it, but it's kind of a repetitive song. Randy says it's hard to sing such stylized songs, but that she can sing anything she wants, "you'd be a great recording artist, and that was brilliant." Paula calls her adorable, hip and young. Simon says she is the most improved contestant over the past few weeks, and his only problem is that it was a little copycat.

Chris Richardson is going to close the show with "Don't Speak." Gwen says she hopes he sticks to the melody instead of his usual "vocal Olympics." He seems to mostly follow that advice. Randy says he liked the interpretation and that he shouldn't be afraid of his R&B side. Paula says he's good and it was good. Simon says this was a better choice of song, but he wasn't crazy about the vocal and that he struggled in the middle. Ryan asks him what he thinks about Blake being the front-runner, and really, what is he supposed to say? "Now I plan to kill him in his sleep"? Come on!

I think Haley and Sanjaya are in trouble, but you know, I've thought that for a long time.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants
        

The dancers get a second chance to dance before someone gets kicked off tomorrow on Dancing With the Stars. Last week, Joey Fatone, Ian Ziering, Apolo Anton Ohno and Laila Ali were standouts. We'll see how they all do tonight.

In the intro, Shandi kind of looks like she is wearing her bathing suit. Tonight, the women will do the mambo, and the men will dance the quickstep.

First up is Apolo Anton Ohno. His partner Julianne annoys me, but one can only hope she is a good teacher. They dance the quickstep to "Two Hearts," and they sure appear to have nailed it. They definitely had the syncopated footwork the judges are supposed to be looking for. Len Goodman says he is going to "stay for weeks and weeks." Bruno Tonioli: He said it was a "dancing tonic" and that he's an inspiration. Carrie Ann Inaba: "It's so not expected for you to be this good." She also tells him to watch the sliding. Scores: 8, 9 and 9, for a 26/30. Nice score for the second week. Two week total: 47/60

Next is Shandi Finnessey with her and Brian's mambo. I don't really have anything to say about it, so let's go to the judges. Carrie Ann says she looks good, but "there wasn't anything special about it." I guess that's why I didn't have anything to say. Len says their footwork was good, good movement, but that she didn't really sell it. Bruno says she should "forget about Barbie and turn into a brat." (I'm not translating Bruno this evening.) Scores: 6,7 and 7, for a 20/30, and a two-week total of 39/60.

Clyde Drexler was told last week to use his size for big moves. He and Elena quick step. They definitely had some fast footwork, but it still looked a little clunky. Bruno: "It's David and Goliath rewriting history and making music." My dad says, "It was a fight, dude, and somebody died at the end." Bruno says he moved better, but he is moving in the right direction. Carrie Ann says he traveled across the space better than anyone she's seen. Len says it was a case of "We Shall Overcome," and at my house, we go, "Huh?" But he means overcoming Clyde's height and working with it. Scores: 6, 6 and 6, for an 18/30, and a two-week total of 34/60.

It's Leeza Gibbons' 50th birthday. Can I just say that she is the perfect cheesy person to cast on this cheesy show? She and Tony mambo to Destiny Child's "Independent Women." In the middle, she tries to shimmy, but it just doesn't happen. They are having fun, but she's still pretty stiff. Len says he hopes he looks like her when he's 50. He says it was precise and exact, but just a tad careful. Bruno says she danced like a "debutante on her first date ... let your tramp out." Carrie Ann says it was very good. Scores: 7, 7 and 7, for a 21/30 and a two-week total 36/60. Someone gives Leeza a bouquet of flowers bigger than Samantha. Tom says: If 50 is the new 30, then 30 is the new 10." Ew. If that's true, I shouldn't be up this late.

Ian Ziering is next. They quick step to "Don't Get Me Wrong." They are pretty much outstanding. Carrie Ann says he looked more relaxed, and that he has so much more potential. Len says it was a good all-around performance, but he needs to work on his frame and not be so skippy and hoppy. Bruno says his elbow was low, and he was hopping around like a hare. Scores: 7, 8 and 7, for a 22/30 and a two-week total of 43/60.

Paulina Porizkova says she didn't expect the critiques to sting quite so much. Paulina says she knows Alec won't drop her; cut to Alec saying he has dropped people. They mambo to "La Bamba." Paulina has a better week this time, I think. After they finish, the cameras cut to Brian Austin Green in the audience, who looks pretty bored. Bruno says it was a "mambo on Fifth Avenue." He tells her to let go more. Carrie Ann says her extension is good, but it's clear that this is not natural for her body. Len says it was a little "stiff and starchy" and could have been a little more "raunchy." My dad predicts all sevens. Scores: 7, 7 and 7, for a 21/30 and a 40/60 for both weeks.

Billy Ray Cyrus is having confidence issues after last week. He and Karina quick step to "Ring of Fire." (WHAT?) It's a million times better than last week, but not exactly in sync. He looks pretty pleased with himself. Len says it started out crazy, but the rest was very good. Bruno says, "Forget about the bear, you are a Southern gentleman." Carrie Ann says he is most improved of the week. Scores: 7, 7 and 7, for a 21/30, and a 34/60.

Heather Mills is next. In rehearsals, it looks like she can shimmy pretty well. This proves true in the performance, too. She was really good! Carrie Ann is speechless. She says the level of difficulty was the highest of the evening. Len says he was worried, but she was absolutely great. Bruno says she was on "warp drive ... red hot Heather ... I cannot believe what you did tonight." Scores: 8, 8 and 8, for a 24/30 and a two-week total of 42/60.

John Ratzenberger says he was excited about all the hopping. He and Edyta quick step. Again, he's better than you might expect from Cliffy Claven. Bruno says there is life in the old wolf, and he sold it. Carrie Ann says he seemed out of sorts at the beginning, and in the end, he pulled it together. Len says it was a great performance. Scores: 7, 7 and 7, for a 21/30, and a 38/60.

Laila Ali's parter Maksim says he needs to bulk up to look better next to her. So she kills him in the gym. They do their mambo, starting at the top of th stairs, and they are amazing. She definitely works the whole floor, and gets the technique. My dad predicts eights across the board, or two eights and a nine. Len: "It had rhythm, it had great moves ... It was the best mambo of the night." Bruno calls her "the mistress of the art of seduction." Carrie Ann: "That was hot. Hot, hot, hot!" She says Laila worked it and "worked him." They get three nines, a 27/30 and a two-week total of 50/60. Samantha has her first totally non-scripted moment when she tells Maksim he was "crying earlier" about his arms hurting after the workout with Laila. Hee!

Joey Fatone and Kym are going to close the show, with a quick step to "Tell Her About It." It's fast, in step, and even incorporates some of the silly aspects of Joey. Carrie Ann says she expects the complete package from him, and that he did it again. Len says it was a light, bright and fast-moving; "well done." Bruno says he was worried at first, when he started with the "George Michael dance," but that it was great. Scores: 8, 8 and 8, for a 24/30, and a two-week total of 48/60.

Here's the leader board: Laila / Joey / Apolo / Ian / Heather / Paulina / Shandi / John / Leeza / Clyde / Billy Ray. I can't really argue too much with that. How do you think everyone did?

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 12:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: Dancing With the Stars
        

Just FYI, I am on vacation and will posting a little more sporadically than usual. But I will be keeping up with American Idol and Dancing With the Stars, so keep checking in!

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Grease: You're the One That I Want voters, don't forget to check out Sun theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck's story previewing tonight's finale. In addition to an analysis of the show, there's also a number of experts giving their picks, plus a recap of the Sun reader survey. Enjoy. Along with the experts in the story and the readers who voted, I'm predicting Max and Laura will win it.

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I finally got to catch up with Survivor: Fiji last night, and what an interesting episode it was. The tribes got shuffled, and only one ended up getting the good camp. Plus, since there was an odd number of people left, the last person (Lisi) ended up having to go to Exile Island. Some things that struck me:

• I really like Earl, but he sure seemed to think he was running things this week. It was positively Machiavellian, and that always bites contestants in the end. (And before anyone points out Richard Hatch, let me remind you where he is right now: prison.)
• Ravu ended up being all men -- Rocky, Christopher, Dreamz, Edgardo, Alex and Mookie. And poor Christopher, who called himself a geek, did not feel comfortable among the musclebound masses.
• Next time Rocky feels like lecturing someone about their social skills, he should take a long, hard look at himself. What a jerk.
• Lisi certainly painted a huge target on herself when, upon learning she was still in the game but going to Exile Island, acted like she would rather be going straight home. What a player! Ick.
• Speaking of both of them, Rocky's going to be just thrilled to have Lisi joining his team, I can already tell.
• I'm still a fan of Yau-Man. I was so glad to see him get to eat (and have the strength to carry the flag, hence the episode title).
• That immunity challenged looked like it was going to end in some broken bones, but I guess everyone made it through all right.

It was a good time for a mixup -- the tedium of Ravu losing constantly is finally over, and things have to change. I'm ready for that!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 5:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Grease: You're the one That I Want, Survivor
        

According to this story in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, MTV's The Real World wants to get back to its roots -- casting people who have real career goals and aren't "emulating behavior they've seen on the show." Here's hoping it works out -- I'm exhausted and bored by the vapidity and sad behavior seen lately on the show. Almost anything would be better than guessing which permutation of roommates is going to get drunk and hook up on any given episode.

Get this, though: MTV is currently casting the 20th season of the show. Yes, 20th! That sure makes me feel ancient. The 18th season is the one airing now (Denver), and the 19th is filming in Sydney, Australia.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: The Real World
        

Tonight on American Idol, it will be down to the Top 10, aka the ones who made the cut to go on the national tour.

Ryan introduces a montage of footage from last night. I already wrote about that, so we'll skip it.

Peter Noone comes out to sing "There's a Kind of a Hush," followed by another goofy commercial from the contestants, this one to "Another Saturday Night."

Brad Garrett is randomly sitting with the contestants, in case you forgot that his show is on next. Ryan kicks him out, and he does a nice impression of the stunned departure that always happens on this show. Ryan goes, "How are we going to fit this show in?" My response: CUT THE FILLER!

Phil Stacey, Melinda Doolittle and Blake Lewis are asked to stand. Ryan says they aren't the bottom three. Chris Sligh, LaKisha Jones and Jordin Sparks are asked to stand. They are also not the bottom three. (LaKisha looks relieved.) Sanjaya Malakar, Haley Scarnato and Gina Glocksen are asked to stand. They are also not the bottom three. So, they've told nine people they aren't "the bottom three," but only two contestants remain. So, the mind games begin. Chris Richardson and Stephanie Edwards are the bottom two. Ohh, I see. Tricky, tricky producers.

Speaking of tricky, here's another ridiculously easy trivia question for this week's AI contest: Which of these three contestants was recently chose to star in The Color Purple on Broadway -- Fantasia, Paris Bennett or Vonzelle Solomon? Seeing as this was announced on the show a couple of weeks ago, not the toughest thing ever.

Ryan reminds everyone about the AI charity program, with more details about the fund-raising. April 24, each vote will raise money for the effort.

Lulu comes out to sing next, leaving Chris and Stephanie waiting in the wings, literally.

Back to the results: After 30 million votes, Ryan says, Chris is staying, and Stephanie Edwards is out. She cries and gets a montage.

Bye, Stephanie! I'm actually fairly surprised she's out. And that final two was a shocker! Perhaps the Howard Stern and Vote for the Worst followers really did make a difference this time. (They were trying to keep Sanjaya in.)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants
        

Since there seemed to be a lot of buzz about Ashley, the girl in the audience who was in hysterical (but in the good way) tears for most of last night's American Idol, I checked in with Fox to see if there was a deeper story. Was she a plant? A Beatlemania re-enactor? A contest winner? Per Fox's PR folks: "Ashley is just a fan of the show."

OK, good to know. But that's a little boring compared with all the theories people had come up with.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 1:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: American Idol
        

Here we go again: The Top 11 are performing tonight on American Idol. As they get paraded out, some things occur to me: Who has dressed Haley Scarnato in tiny shorts? When did Gina and Melinda get their hair bobbed? Are they trying to make Phil Stacey look bad by having him sing between LaKisha Jones and Jordin Sparks?

Ryan asks Randy if there is any excuse for forgotten lyrics at this stage of the game. Short answer: No. Paula is asked about how to deal with nerves, and she says to "shake it out" and to picture Simon naked, and "laugh it off." Simon of course then asks Paula if that's what she thinks about when she is nervous.

The evening's theme is the British Invasion. Beatles, Rolling Stones, the Who, the Kinks and more. This could be a good one. Peter Noone and Lulu will be the mentors of the evening.

Haley Scarnato is going to sing "Tell Him." She says her goal is to be more aggressive, not so sweet, which cuts directly to her singing sweetly for Lulu. She tells her to shorten her phrasing and take it more staccato. She also tells her that it's not only about "big voices," that there is a place in the competition for everyone. (Well, almost everyone.) She looks pretty fearless out there, working the whole stage, dancing and singing. It's good, but definitely still on the sweet side. Randy says, "It was the perfect song for you, and America, Haley's back in the competition." He says it's her best performance to date. Paula, crying, says it was the perfect song, and it worked well with her girlish side. Simon: "You naughty little thing. ... It was fun, young, a bit shrieky in the middle. I think people are going to be talking about a lot more than your singing tonight." I think he means her legs. Right? Ryan asks her about negotiating the stairs in her high heels, just opening himself up to more comments from Simon. That doesn't happen, however.

Ryan stops to talk to a girl in the audience who's crying, but he doesn't identify her. Weird.

Chris Richardson will sing "Don't Let the Sun Catch You Crying." This seems like it could work really well with his voice. Peter Noone says Chris looks like a star, but he hasn't heard much from his voice, "because he keeps singing those songs that are ... [unintelligible breathy noise]," making this face:

Peter Noone tells him to keep an eye on the vibrato and not to mess with the melody. In the interview, he says Chris wasn't showing off the melody very well. Chris is on the stage with an acoustic guitarist, and a few more instruments come in later. Parts of it seem kind of flat to me, but after he gets warmed up, it's pretty good. Randy says it was another great performance, one that showed a different side to him. He said since he wasn't pushing it, every note was in tune. Paula says it's all about being smart with his choices, and that all of it was sexy and charming. Simon says that was his best performance so far, that he made it sound modern and not old-fashioned (but a bit nasally, which he needs to watch out for). Chris tells Ryan it was tough to do because he wants to just run all over the stage, but he thinks it went well.

Stephanie Edwards takes a fan question. (Yawn.) The question is, what is the hardest part of preparing for each week. Stephanie, who clearly has already heard the question, say choosing a song. She says the vibe backstage is a little more focused. She will be singing "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me" by Dusty Springfield. Lulu says she is grounded and amazing and reminds her of Beyonce. I start to wonder if she is trying to sing more like Beyonce because of Lulu's comment -- her enunciation seems a little more affected than it did during her performance for Lulu. Ooh, also, bad last note. Randy says it was a great song choice, "it wasn't my best performance for you for me." (NO! The return of my least favorite phrasing ever. Just say: "I don't think it was your best performance." Sheesh!) He says it was a little pitchy and that singing a ballad after singing so many up-tempo songs might be harder because the notes are longer. Paula says: "Great news first, I love what you're wearing." She said the song choice was right, "minus a little bit of some notes that fell off." She wants her to have more fun. Simon asks how she thinks she did, she says, "well." He says she is losing her edge, and that it was a little nightclubby.

Blake Lewis vs. Zombies after the break. (Mmmm, brains. Oh wait, not those Zombies.) He's going to sing "Time of the Season." Peter Noone says he likes Blake and how current he is, but that he needs to make sure "the business" doesn't get in the way of the song. In an interview, Peter says all the youngsters will vote for him, and if he sings like he did with the piano, "all the oldsters will," too. This performance I can get behind. He sings it well, and the beatboxing isn't that jarring, since most of it comes out of the sound effects in the song. Randy says he's a huge Blake fan, and this performance was "vibey, cool, massive 'yo factor' version of the song. ... That was brilliant." Paula says he's raised the bar and that she felt like she was at a concert. Simon says it was "a million times better than last week." He says he made the song contemporary without messing with the melody. He adds that it was his "strongest performance so far." Frighteningly, Ryan dances and sings for a moment. Witness:

Now, it's LaKisha Jones. She says her history in British music is "absolutely nothing." She says they narrowed it to "Diamonds Are Forever" or "You're My World." Lulu thinks the latter will be better. Ryan says if we want a hint about which she chose, "She's wearing about a million dollars worth of diamonds right now." She's also wearing a super-flattering green dress. She's still great, as usual, though some of the lower notes in the song seem to be giving her a little trouble. But she closes very strongly, with an amazing last note. Randy says it was a good choice, but that he didn't "feel enough LaKisha in it." Paula says she made the right choice, and "You're a very, very smart girl" because any time you are going to sing about diamonds, they will let you wear the real ones. Simon: "LaKisha, we know, and it's evident that you are a fantastic singer, however, this was LaKisha in 50 years time, in my opinion." He says everything -- "the hair, the dress, the mannerisms, the choice of song" -- was too old. He is on crack about the dress. Ryan asks if she is surprised about the feedback, and she says, "You take the good with the bad with the ugly." She adds, "If I sound like 45 years from now, I think I look good." Ryan asks what he doesn't like about the dress, and Simon goes: "Your subject!" Uh, dude, you brought the dress into it. Randy says she looks fantastic, but she needs to put a little more of herself in the song.

Phil Stacey is going to sing "Tobacco Road." Peter says the song is "right in his pocket" and that the song was believable. He performs it with the band rocking out behind him. He definitely seems to be having more fun than he's had in past weeks. It gets a little weird when he goes super-low in a couple of parts, but he's better than he's been in a few weeks -- no bad start finally. Randy says he had a good time, that he had some pitchy parts, but "it was pretty good for me actually." Paula says it was "a real good choice of song." She says he showed off his range. Simon says he wasn't crazy about it, but it was "a third-division bar band performance" and that he didn't find it believable because he doesn't have any grit in his voice. He says he has a problem because he doesn't know what advice to give him, and that he's being outsung and might be in trouble tomorrow. He tells Ryan he did his best and had a lot of fun.

Jordin Sparks is subjected to another viewer question. "Name a song that describes you best." She says, "I'm So Excited," because she says it all the time. She's going to sing "I Who Have Nothing." Lulu says she loves the song because it has so much pleading. Lulu works with her with her timing and her delivery. And boy does it work, because she absolutely kills it. Randy says it was a very tall order, but that it was very controlled and probably one of the best performances they're going to see tonight. Paula says it showed off how great her range is and what an amazing performer she is. Simon says she sang it beautifully, but "I feel like jumping off a bridge because it was sooooo gloooomy." Remember all the hyperbole last week from the judges about how she was so amazing and great and had the chops to take on LaKisha and Melinda? I didn't buy it then, but I might now.

Ryan says that after the break, they are going to "unleash the wild side of Sanjaya." Jordin doesn't look like she buys that one.

Sanjaya does:

Hey, David Ian from Grease: You're the One That I Want is sitting behind Peter Noone.

Sanjaya Malakar says that when he found out it was British Invasion week, he didn't know what he was going to do. He is split between "You Really Got Me" and "Something Good." He says he doesn't think he is the best singer in the competition. He goes with the former and starts growling his way through it. The cameras cut to the crying girl Ryan was talking to in the audience earlier, as she starts crying once again. I wonder whether they'll give us the story on that one. He sings to Paula and the crying girl, who cries some more. At least, he's finally singing more loudly, though he's kind of wrecking his lovely tone that got him this far in the first place. Randy says he shocked him tonight. "Dude, you came out of your shell tonight. This was your best performance to date." Paula says he went for it and it was fun. Simon says, "The little girl's face says it all." Here she is:

Ryan says the girl liked it. And she says yes, and she's a fan, and Sanjaya goes out into the audience to hug her. Her name is Ashley, but we still don't get the story about why she is getting so much camera time.

Next, Gina Glocksen is going to take on the Stones. First, she has to talk to Ryan and take a fan question. They want to know if it's made her stronger. Short answer: Yes. Ryan asks if they pay attention to what the media is saying. Short answer: I try not to. She is going to sing "Paint It Black." Lulu isn't sure it's the right key and asks her to try taking it up half a step, and also tells her to ramp up the drama. I think that was some good advice because lower would probably have been in less flattering place for her voice. But she rocks it out. Randy says she is the resident rocker, but it wasn't his favorite vocal, maybe a little pitchy. Paula says it was miles better than last week, and she'll continue to have more fun in coming weeks. Simon says there were moments of complete torture in that performance, but it was "just not very good." "That, for me, was style over content. ... Vocally, not good enough, sweetheart."

Chris Sligh is up after the break. (And have you heard all this controversy about whether he is too religious or not religious enough? Weird.) He says he's a huge British Invasion fan, and he's going to sing "She's Not There" by the Zombies. In front of Peter, he seems to be singing it pretty darned high. Once he starts singing it on the show, it doesn't seem as high. He sings the first third or so walking through the audience. He has some good notes, but part of it is a little shouty. (Hee -- one of his friends has a "Bringing Chubby Back" sign in the audience.) Randy says he performed well. He says it was a little rough when he started, but he ended it well. Paula says he should be more personable with audience, and that his vocals were good. Simon says he did his thing, and though it wasn't the best vocal of the night, he did really well. Ryan asks Chris if Simon really did try to take the mike stand away from him or something, and manages to make an inappropriate gesture (sorry, no pictures of that one), but he seems pretty oblivious about it. The judges, on the other hand, seem a little scandalized but don't want to talk about it.

Last is Melinda Doolittle. She is going to sing "As Long as She Needs Me." She says this song is the most out of her comfort zone that she has been thus far. She says working with Lulu was amazing. She sings, and she doesn't seem uncomfortable at all. They cut to the crying girl in the audience again. Did she win a contest or something? I'm so confused. Randy says, "We probably saved the best vocal for last." He says she has great relative pitch and takes her time, and she's a pro. Paula says she's in her own league, and she tells a story, and it's not forced, it just is, and it's beautiful. Simon wants to know if she really is as nice as she seems. He says when it started, it was boring, but she turned it into an amazing performance and impeccable vocal.

I forgot to mention it at the time that it happened, but at one point, Ryan stops to talk to Peter Noone in the audience, and he says it's a voting competition, not a singing competition, and Simon looks really sour when they cut to him. Later, Simon reiterates that it IS a singing competition and continues to look sour. So I guess there isn't any love lost between those two.

Best of the night? I'm going with Jordin, Blake and Melinda.

Worst? Sanjaya and Phil.

At the end, Ashley (the crying girl) gets to come up on stage and hug everyone. Does anyone know the story?

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants
        

We're taking a survey to see which of the finalists viewers are most interested in seeing as the final Sandy and Danny in Grease: You're the One That I Want! The show ends this Sunday. To read more and to cast your (informal) vote, go here.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 12:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Grease: You're the one That I Want
        

Dancing With the Stars kicks off its fourth season tonight with a bunch of not-exactly-A-list celebs learning some moves and competing for votes. Let's see how it goes.

The show starts out letting the pros show off their moves without the limitations of amateurs, to the tune of "Ballroom Blitz." There are some familiar faces and some new ones among the dancers. We'll get to know them well soon enough. Here are the pairings:

• Ian Ziering and Cheryl Burke.
• Paulina Porizkova and Alec Mazo.
• Billy Ray Cyrus and Karina Smirnoff.
• Leeza Gibbons and Tony Dovolani.
• Joey Fatone and Kym Johnson.
• Laila Ali and Maksim Chmerkovskiy.
• John Ratzenberger and Edyta Sliwinska.
• Shandi Finnessey and Brian Fortuna.
• Clyde Drexler and Elena Grinenko.
• Heather Mills and Jonathan Roberts.
• Apolo Anton Ohno and Julianne Hough.

Some first impressions: Clyde Drexler looks vaguely terrified, and Heather Mills looks like her costume designer had superheroes on the brain.

This season, the contestants only had four weeks to train, but they get to perform for two weeks before there is a results show to worry about. That's not a bad trade-off. This evening, the women will perform the foxtrot, and the guys will do the cha cha cha.

Ian and Cheryl are up first. Ian says he is doing the show to make his parents proud. He is described as an actor and Broadway star, so he should have some dancing chops to start with, right? They cha cha cha to "Mony Mony." Cheryl is wearing one of the tiniest dresses in this show's history, which is saying something. They seem to do pretty well, as far as I can tell. Ian looks pleased, and Cheryl gives him a huge hug. Len Goodman says he wants to see fun, hip action, interplay -- and he tells Cheryl she's lucky because she keeps getting really good partners. Bruno Tonioli says they got "the cherry on the cake." He tells Ian to get more down with his hips, "go see a Chippendale's show or something." Carrie Ann Inaba says she didn't think the beginning was going to be good, "but you proved me wrong." The scores (in Carrie-Len-Bruno order) are: 7, 7 and 7, for 21/30.

Paulina and Alec are next. She says she is known for being a 1980s supermodel, but that she is very clumsy. At their first meeting, Alec tells her, "My dad has a lot of pinups of you." Well, way to start off on the right foot there, dude. "Does your grandfather have some, too?" They do the foxtrot to "Too Darn Hot." She doesn't look clumsy at all, and her flowy dress looks gorgeous. Len says she has "musical arms," but her posture wasn't quite right. Carrie Ann says she has great potential, but they had a little awkwardness. Bruno says she has "class oozing from every pore. ... You look like you have breakfast, lunch and dinner at Tiffany." (Oh, Bruno! How we've missed you!) The scores: 6, 6 and 7 for a 19/30.

Billy Ray and Karina seem like an interesting pairing. He calls himself a "left-footed hillbilly from Kentucky." Karina says he's very insecure. He says he's very shy except when he's singing, and he hopes "that guy" shows up on the dance floor. They cha cha cha to "I Want My Mullet Back." Karina breaks out her first wig. He's a little flaily. At the end, it looks like he was supposed to rip off her wig, but it's attached to her head. Yeowch. Carrie Ann says she doesn't know where to begin. She says it was rock and roll, but NOT the cha cha cha. Bruno says, "You were like a crazy bear lost in a swamp." Oh, good one. That is far more evocative than "flaily." He says there isn't anything to critique because it wasn't a cha cha. Len says it was a hoedown, not a cha cha cha. (Miley doesn't look too happy in the audience.) The scores: 5, 4 and 4, for a 13/30.

Leeza and Tony are next. Leeza is the oldest woman on the show this season. She is the perfect match for this cheesy show. They foxtrot to "Strangers in the Night." She looks a little stiff, but otherwise it's pretty good. Bruno tells her to relax, that she danced the foxtrot like "it was the edge of the Grand Canyon." Len says technically it was very good, that her footwork and elegance were lovely, but that she needs to relax. Carrie Ann tells her she brought the character of the dance to life. The scores: 5, 5, and 5, for a 15/30.

Joey and Kym are next. Awww, Kym gets a partner who can dance this time! He is hoping to lose some of the weight he's put on since the N'SYNC days, though. They cha cha cha to "You Should be Dancing" by the Bee Gees and have a great time, though I wonder if it follows all the cha cha rules. I get distracted for a bit when something is flying around Joey -- turns out it's his microphone pack come loose. Carrie Ann says she thinks the competition just began. Len says, "The path to glory starts here, and you've just taken an enormous step forward." (Not to overstate the importance of the competition, of course.) "That was really, really good." Bruno says this is what it was all about. (Is it just me, or in the footage of the contestants backstage leading into the break, does it seem like no one wants to talk to Heather Mills?) The scores: 8, 8 and 8 for a 24/30.

Laila and Maksim are up. Maksim says his job is to turn her into a ladylike woman. They foxtrot to "How Sweet It Is." She looks pretty graceful out there for someone who was worried about that. Bruno says the foxtrot was "oozing sex appeal and allure." He says she had ease of movement. Carrie Ann says she has a lot of fluidity and strength. Len says, "Float like a butterfly, glide like a swan." The scores: 7, 8 and 8, for a 23/30.

John and Edyta are next on the floor. He says he's doing this for all the Boomers. They had only two weeks to train together because Vincent Pastore dropped out of the competition. They cha cha cha to "Chain of Fools." He starts out a little stompy, but soon he's moving his feet much faster than I thought he would. Carrie Ann says it was a surprisingly good, that he had great musicality, was light on his feet and was very charismatic. Len says he was dreading it, but that it was a good job for two weeks' training. Bruno says he started out with some hesitation, but he kicked in soon and did a very good job. The scores: 6, 5 and 6, for a 17/30. John: "Two of those numbers are upside-down."

Shandi and Brian are introduced to us next. She calls herself a geek, and says she feels gangly a lot of the time. They foxtrot to "Power of Love." She doesn't look too gangly at all. Bruno: "It's Barbie and Ken live in your living room!" He says it was a good effort, but she needs to watch her extensions. Carrie Ann said her upper body was great, but her lower half needed a lot of work. Len agrees that they sold it, but it was a little bit aggressive, but it was a good job. The scores: 6, 6 and 7, for a 19/30.

Clyde and Elena have the distinct challenge of his 6-foot-7 height, but the plus is he is "Clyde the Glide." (I have to admit up front my fondness for Clyde since he played for Houston and Portland, both of my hometowns.) They cha cha cha to "I Was Made to Love Her." His footwork retains some of the glide, but he seems pretty nervous. Carrie Ann says he was smooth on his feet, but that he should use his height, and own it, that he was "dancing a little small." Len says it was a charming performance that gave him so much pleasure. Bruno says he could charm the pants off America, but that he didn't do enough, and that he has the talent to use the floor and sell it. The scores: 6, 5 and 6, for a 17/30.

Heather and Jonathan meet next. She says she has no dance background. She also says she hopes to inspire other people who are missing limbs to show them what they can accomplish. They foxtrot to "Cheek to Cheek." Her dress looks better on the floor than it did backstage, which I guess is what it was designed for. In case you had placed a bet, no, her prosthetic leg does not come off during the performance. Len says there was far more right about the performance than there was wrong. Bruno says she has more guts than Rambo. He tells her to watch her hands and her frame in the hold. Carrie Ann says she needs to show less tension in her shoulders when she starts to worry about her leg. The scores: 6, 6 and 6, for an 18/30.

Apolo and Julianne are up. Apolo says he is used to competing. Julianne is 18 and the youngest professional ever on the show. Apolo had to take some time off for some skating competitions, which left them with less training time than the others. He says he is going to do his best to not look like a disaster, followed by a clip of Julianne slamming him in the face with an elbow during a turn. Ow. They cha cha cha to "Let's Hear It for the Boy." No, he is not a disaster, at all. And they both look like they are having a fabulous time. Bruno says he is a joy to watch: "It's like watching Happy Feet all over again." He says he has the highest potential of everyone thus far, despite some technical mistakes. Carrie Ann says for a minute she thought he was the boy-band guy. Len says his concern is the quick step next week because his posture isn't great, but that the cha cha cha was great. The scores: 7, 7 and 7, for a 21/30.

Addendum, since I am getting some emails about this: If you are trying to vote online, the link is here.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

With Rob and Amber out on The Amazing Race All-Stars, who's going to step up to dominate the rest of the race? I wonder how they felt when they realize they basically lost because they couldn't spell "Philippines" during the challenge.

(An aside: Anyone else just watch Simon Cowell on 60 Minutes? He claimed that they don't televise the people who sing bad on purpose to get on TV. Gonna have to disagree with that one. This season alone, I can think of at least eight people who just wanted screen time -- yellow-dress lady and "teach me to sing" girl spring to mind. But generally he came across as he usually does: a big old know-it-all.)

The teams start out in Argentina and head to a glacier, where they will have to find a buried clue. Brrr! They soon find the chair lift doesn't open until 8 a.m., so the teams all end up there at the same time. Dustin and Kandice fail to get their gear, so they have to go back to to the base to get it before they can search. Joe and Bill and Uchenna, Uchenna and Joyce and Eric and Danielle make pretty quick work of it. Oswald and Danny get cranky with each other.

Once they find the buried beacon, they head to Maputo, Mozambique. In a twist, they have been provided with tickets on the last flight to make sure everyone gets a flight. But if they can find a better flight, they can take that instead.

Charla and Mirna and Dustin and Kandice find beacons, but Oswald and Danny seem to be getting stick in the "needle in a haystack" situation and can't find one. Finally, they do, and they head out.

The other teams are having mixed luck at travel agencies -- one woman tells a team there aren't any flights to Maputo. Finally, it starts working out, and everyone gets on a flight arriving at 9:40 a.m. instead of 3 p.m. Joe and Bill go to the duty-free shop and spray themselves with cologne. I am thrilled to not be near them, because that would seriously kill me.

At the airport, they find marked cars with drivers and get to a park, but it's not open yet. While waiting, the Guidos and Eric and Danielle get into an altercation about nothing. The Road Block asks, "Who smells a rat?" Team members have to use a trained rat to find a(nother) buried marker, after which they will get their clue. Ian's rat is named Tupac!

Then they head back into Maputo to find a fancy building, where their next clue is. (No Tivo going, so I didn't get the name.)

Charla and Mirna are in last place, and golly gee, they have such positive attitudes about it!

Oh, no! They're casting Big Brother 8! I always end up addicted even though I don't want to.

There are two ways to Maputo, which is confusing the teams. Meanwhile, Charla and Mirna find their clue. Joe and Bill are still in first, and get to the Detour first: Pamper or Porter. In Pamper, the teams have to convince enough people to let them give them manicures. Porter they have to gather bags of charcoal, sew them shut and carry one for a while.

Charla and Mirna continue their tradition of speaking English with accents when they are talking to non-Americans. SO ANNOYING. You would think after hearing themselves doing this last time they were on TV that they would avoid it now. But, they finish the manicure task before anyone and head toward the pit stop. They arrive in first place and win a trip to Aruba.

The teams doing the charcoal task are not faring so well. Dustin and Kandice rock their way through the manicure task and head toward the pit stop, where they come in second. Teri and Ian end up at the manicure task by accident, but Ian is not excited. They stumble upon a couple of girls, who let them do their nails, and finish it quickly.

Eric and Danielle and Uchenna and Joyce finish up the coal task, and Eric and Danielle get some help finding the delivery address from some local kids, so they pass Uchenna and Joyce.

Teri and Ian end up team No. 3, which wouldn't have happened if they had tried the coal task. Lucky ducks. Oswald and Danny arrive at the pit stop and chase Phil to try to hug him with their coal-covered selves. They are fourth.

Eric and Danielle end up in a foot race with the Guidos. They Guidos win, and Eric yells at Danielle, but the Guidos are fifth, Eric and Danielle sixth. Uchenna and Joyce arrive and find out they are last -- but it's nonelimination. They are marked for elimination, which means they have to arrive first next leg or get a 30-minute penalty.

Next week looks interesting: Among other things, Eric and Danielle get pulled off of a plane.

Oh, and don't forget: Survivor is on Wednesday, not Thursday, this week. It's madness! (Of the March variety.)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: The Amazing Race
        

American Idol judge Simon Cowell will be on 60 Minutes on Sunday. One can only hope he will be asked some tough questions, since he isn't shy with his own commentary. So now you know, in the event you haven't had enough AI action this week.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: American Idol
        

Here we go! Tonight, the first official finalist will be kicked off of American Idol 6. It's results night, which means there will be performances (including from Diana Ross) and a whole lotta filler.

First, we revisit the biffed lyrics, then the other performances. Then, my favorite (that was sarcasm), the group sing, this one a tribute to Ms. Ross. It's the usual cheesetastic ball of choreographed snapping and walking, and it's just plain medley-riffic. Everyone sounds pretty good, though. (Is it just me, though, or is the Coke slogan "Thanks for drinking" a little weird?)

Now the kids have to do the commercial for a car company. They sing to Modest Mouse's "Float On." Most of note is Chris Sligh's giant fro.

LaKisha Jones is safe. Gina Glocksen is safe. Brandon Rogers is in the bottom three. Jordin Sparks is safe. Chris Richardson is safe. Melinda Doolittle is safe. Phil Stacey is in the bottom three. Chris Sligh is safe.  Stephanie Edwards is safe. Blake Lewis is safe.

Sanjaya Malakar and Haley Scarnato have to wait until after the break. ... And after Diana Ross performs. Do you think they will tell her she's a little pitchy? I'm just saying! She runs over to let the finalists sing with her (and leaves her giant train behind, probably a good choice). So sweet. She tells Ryan that this show is such an inspiration, and that she is so happy to be there. Ryan asks her who is going home. She says, "Me!" Good answer. (Bad question, Ryan.)

Back to the results: Haley is safe. Sanjaya is in the bottom three. Phil is safe.

So it's down to Sanjaya and Brandon. "After nearly 28 million votes," Sanjaya is safe and Brandon Rogers is going home. He says he has no hard feelings and kind of expected it since he forgot the lyrics. Annnd he doesn't get his sing-out (where he could prove he knows the words now) because time is up. Oops.

Bye-bye, Brandon! Nice guy, but not the most memorable. (Still, wish it had been Sanjaya the most.)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants
        

At long, long last, American Idol is down to its Top 12 finalists. The women and men will all be competing together, and one can only hope that more of the chaff gets voted off quickly.

The show starts out with a big self-congratulatory montage about how awesome it is to have found Grammy winner Kelly Clarkson, double-platinum rocker Chris Daughtry, CMA and Grammy winner Carrie Underwood, Broadway star Fantasia Barrino and Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson. (Missing from that? Winners Taylor Hicks and Ruben Studdard. Interesting.)

The audience sure is psyched to be there. Hope they quiet down enough to let us hear the singers (well, in most cases, anyway). The theme this evening is the music of Diana Ross, and she will be "mentoring" the contestants. They do a bit about her history. In case there is someone out there who doesn't know who Diana Ross is. She meets with the contestants and tells them she is not a critic, but a helpful voice and a supportive voice for them.

Brandon Rogers is up first. He says he has been exposed to a bunch of celebrities in his career as a backup singer, but that Ms. Ross is in a whole other league. He sings "Can't Hurry Love," and she tells him it's "real good." She says when he gets nervous to go back "to [his] center." Now he sings it for the audience. You know, he has a pleasant voice (the one broken note in the middle notwithstanding), but the performance isn't that engaging. I think part of it is that he is playing heavily to the audience and not much to the cameras. Oh, no! He takes a second for a little dance move and then totally spaces on the lyrics for a couple of beats. Yikes. But he gets them back and manages to finish fairly strongly. Randy says he came out like he had "reverted back to a background singer ... but the last two notes of the song, you sounded like you wanted to be out front." Paula says it's not easy to do what he's doing, but that they don't need to tell him what he did wrong. (Um, you're a JUDGE, Paula.) Simon says it was "a complete letdown, a very predictable version, predictable arrangement, the dancing was terrible, you forgot the words, you came over as a background singer for a background singer. ... Absolutely not good enough. Sorry." He tells Ryan he thought it was going his way until he forgot the words.

Melinda Doolittle sings next. But first, Ryan talks to her on the interview stools. A viewer wants to know what the hardest part of the competition is. She says the high heels and the dresses, that she misses her tennis shoes and sweatpants. Ryan asks Simon if he has any advice, and Simon tells him he should know. (Ryan: "Stay out of my closet!" Simon: "Come out!") OK, I have some advice. Ryan and Simon's whole "You're gay," "No, you are!" thing is: stupid, lame, played out and offensive. No one cares! Knock it off! Let's let Melinda sing! Speaking of which, she says she is a Motown girl at heart and tells Diana she is a big fan. Diana tells her she has heard so much about her. Ooh, no pressure! But can you imagine? Then Diana says she gave her goosebumps. Melinda comes out to sing "Home." She knocks another one out of the park. She's about to cry, Paula already is. Randy says it wasn't his favorite performance of hers, but she still did an amazing job. "I give the girls 1, the boys 0," he adds. Paula says, through tears, she is one big goosebump. Simon asks her why she's crying, and she says because she hasn't heard anything like that (the crowd, I assume?) before. Simon says she made a very boring song fantastic. He says she reminds him of a Gladys Knight. Ryan asks her what it was like in front of all these people, and she says she doesn't remember. So ... call me crazy, but I think she's going to be safe.

Chris Sligh talks to Diana about how they have similar hair. He tells her he is going to sing "Endless Love" with some of the chords rearranged. She tells him to find the hook of the song, and he will be fine. I'm not sure about this rearrangement -- I'm not sure he took the advice about the hook. There really doesn't seem to be one. It's like Coldplay's "Clocks" crossed with "Endless Love," and even though he sings the heck out of it after a wobbly beginning, it's ... weird. I think voters relate to the songs more when they are recognizable. Randy and I are kind of on the same wavelength -- he compares it to Coldplay's "Speed of Sound." He tells him to not worry about the style and just sing his heart out. Paula says it is such a recognizable song (hey, more same-wavelengthing), that he is trying too hard to be hip and cool. Simon says he "murdered the arrangement. ... It was unemotional and uninspiring, and I would keep your glasses on, it's you." He says he liked his arrangement, and that the judges seemed to have more of an issue with the arrangement than the vocals, so he hopes to be back next week.   

Gina Glocksen is so excited to meet Diana Ross and tells her that her parents have a video of her singing "Lovechild" when she was about 4 years old. That I would like to see. Diana tells her she needs to "pronunciate" every single word. She's a legend! She can make up words! Gina seems to be heeding the advice (though I can't help but wonder whether her tongue ring is getting in the way). She has fun with the song and definitely entertains the (giant) crowd. Randy says it wasn't his favorite performance from her, but that he didn't feel any excitement from her. Paula says it's a "feel-good" song and it makes you want to get up. That latter, sure. The former? Not so much. Anyway, she says she is better than she did tonight, and that at times she was shouting. Simon says it was OK, and it's one of those performances you can't say much about it. That it was a "middle-pack performance." Gina tells Ryan she felt good, at home on the stage.

Sanjaya Malakar is up next. Diana says he "is love -- I mean, you care about him." He sings "Ain't No Mountain High Enough." He starts right in with no intro, and she is concerned that he isn't on point or on beat. She tells him to get his "soul in there," and asks him if he can dance. He can hula dance! (Oh, wouldn't that be frightening on this big stage to this song.) Today, his hair appears to have been spiral-permed. In three weeks, he's had more hairstyles than Madonna had in three years! As usual, he sings so quietly, except for like four notes. He just doesn't have enough presence to work this stage or this venue. He seems like a nice kid, but he is out of his element at this point in the competition. Randy giggles and says he doesn't know what to say. Finally, "Dude, it wasn't very good." It really seems like this season, Randy has finally figured out how to deliver criticism when it's warranted. He still has to waffle for a while while he finds the words, but he has been finding them of late. "You know, thank God for the backup singers. That song was almost unlistenable for me; it was really weak." But ... "Hair Idol, you got it jumping off." Which is apparently the equivalent of Paula's "You can't sing, but you sure are pretty." Speaking of Paula, she says his smile warms people's hearts. She says he wasn't off pitch, he just needs to "jump out with reckless abandon and go." Oh, and she throws in, "You look adorable, though." Simon says, "When you hear a wail in Beverly Hills, that was Diana Ross watching this show." Everyone looks confused, and if they could hear me, I would be telling them, "That was W-A-I-L." Simon tells him he is very brave. Sanjaya tells Ryan he didn't even understand what Simon meant with the wail thing, and Simon clarifies.

Haley Scarnato is up next. (Or, as Simon would say, "Who?") She gets another viewer question. She is asked where is the craziest place she's ever sung. She says "here" and explains how crazy it is on this stage. She sings "Missing You" for Diana Ross, who says Haley has a "studio recording voice," and that she needs to project more. She says she recorded the song after Marvin Gaye's death. Haley says her goal is to sing and mean every word. Well, she might mean every word, but she doesn't sing them all -- she loses the lyrics in the middle, and I think she might be singing more quietly than ever before. She starts projecting more after she realizes she needs to recover from the missing lyrics. Randy says she already knows what he's going to say. He says forgetting the lyrics is bad and that her pitch was off. Paula predictably tells her she looks beautiful (and she does, but what is with the cinched hem of the dress?), but that that probably isn't what she wants to hear. She also mentions the lyrics and the pitch. Simon says he doesn't think it wasn't that bad (and she starts crying). He says people will remember her and she had presence and if she can hold it together, she will do better than he thought. She tells Ryan she "feels like a schmuck" for forgetting her lyrics and tells Simon how much it meant to her to get a nice review from him.

Phil Stacey brings back memories of dueting with Marvin Gaye to Diana Ross. He says he has had an issue with "gathering himself" before going on stage. She tells him to really look at the audience to connect with people. He says he's going "to start a lot differently and a lot more confident." Here's hoping! He sings "I'm Going to Make You Love Me." He starts a little better than usual, and gets much better after he gets warmed up. Randy asks how he thinks he did. He says "pretty good." Randy says the performance was boring, but he had the best male vocals of the night. Paula says it would have been better up-tempo. Simon says it shouldn't be up-tempo. He says it was OK, but that he needs to not shout his big notes. He says it wasn't outstanding or awful, but better than last week.

LaKisha Jones meets Diana. She asks her what her mom calls her. She says Kiki. She is singing "God Bless the Child" and says she's never sung it before. Diana gives her fashion advice and discusses whether to use a mike stand. She wears a long dress, just as Ms. Ross suggested. It wasn't as amazing as "And I'm Telling You," but she's still among the strongest performances of the night so far for me. She's comfortable on stage and doesn't look unnerved by the audience -- and you didn't have one second's fear that she might forget the words. Randy says it was the perfect song choice, great outfit and an unbelievable vocal, especially because she didn't overdo it. "That was sensational," he finishes. Paula says she is a beautiful performer and a beautiful girl and her heart comes through when she sings. "And that's the most important thing you can possess as an artist." The crowd pauses, as if they're wondering whether Paula's done. She is. Simon says you either have it or you don't don't, and she does. He goes on to say that she and Melinda "are in a different league. ... It was a very, very controlled performance, but you didn't look intimidated by this big stage, or the big orchestra; you were very much in control, performed like a star, outstanding." She tells Ryan she felt nervous on the inside, especially because she is so used to singing so big and so loud, but she wanted to tone it down a bit. It definitely worked in her favor.

Blake Lewis takes a viewer question: What kind of music do you listen to in your spare time? He says underground hip-hop, electronic music ... He says his favorite artist of all time is "MJ ... Michael Jackson" and Prince. He says to prepare for the performance, he took the song and slowed it down and added beats. I would think it takes guts to beatbox a Diana Ross song in front of Diana Ross. She looks perplexed, but she says he was bringing the song into the present. He hopes she will like it. He sings "You Keep Me Hanging On." I don't know whether I loved the interpretation (wow, I sound like Randy), but he can definitely sing and perform. That is not in question. Randy says he's a big fan, that there were some good parts, but that he doesn't have to "Blake-ize" every single song. He says he can sing better than that, and that sometimes you can let the classics be the classics. Paula says there is a difference between what Blake did and what Chris Sligh did. Well, that's true -- you could still tell what song it was. Simon says he didn't get it at all. He says if Blake had heard that in isolation on the radio without all the context, he wouldn't have liked it. But he tells him he will be fine.

Back from the break, Ryan is with the judges and Simon puts something in his pocket. I can't tell what it is, though. (Intrepid readers point out it was lipgloss. My friends snicker at the idea that I couldn't identify it. And clearly, I need HDTV.)

Stephanie Edwards is going to sing "Love Hangover," and she says she is so excited because she is in love with Diana Ross. Diana tells her she needs to deliver it with a more sexy vibe. This girl is 19? She is fearless on this giant stage with a big old band and orchestra. Randy says she forgot a few words (which this time, I totally didn't notice). He says it wasn't her best vocal, but it was good, and a strong finish. Paula asks why she didn't do the up-tempo part. She says there wasn't enough time. Paula says, "That's what arranging is for." Simon says it was a strange arrangement, that she teased everyone for the good part of the song and then didn't deliver, so she basically sang an "intro." He says she was outsung by LaKisha and Melinda, and it wasn't her best performance. Hmmm ... I didn't think she was that bad.

Chris Richardson sings "The Boss" for Diana Ross. She tells him not to be nervous around her: "I'm not any different than you except I'm older." That is a remarkably down-to-Earth thing for a celebrity to say. She says he needs to find the hook and work the audience. She tells him this is a "work the audience" kind of song. He takes the advice and gets on the part of the stage behind the judges, giving the camera a little grin on his way over. He does a good job. I don't always like when guy singers flip up into the higher range and back down, but it takes skill, and he definitely managed that well. He still looks kind of scared to me when he's singing. When he smiles when it's over, he looks totally comfortable -- I wish he showed more of that comfort during the performance. Randy says, again, that it wasn't his best performance but that he liked it. He does say he oversang the runs a little bit. I can see that. Paula says he nailed the blend of contemporary and classic (she didn't finish the thought, but that is where she was going). Simon says he thought the vocals were dreadful, with the personality and charm out of the equation.

Jordin Sparks sings "If We Hold on Together." Diana says Jordin is gorgeous and that you have to be able to project a song and tell the audience the story. Diana says she has an "inner light." The song is from The Land Before Time, which is possibly the cheesiest choice of the evening. She is a little heavy on the vibrato for my tastes. Randy says he is impressed with her at age 17, but that with that, she just made it a three-girl race. Paula says, "You are a natural gift." She says she drew her in right away. Simon says, "It was a little bit gooey, but having said that, I ... thought it was a very, very good vocal and absolutely you have put yourself in with a shot of being in the finals of this competition." Really? I mean, for 17, she was good and comfortable on the stage, but in my opinion, still nowhere in Melinda and LaKisha's league. (I just relistened to this song, and she still sounds shaky to me.)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants
        

OK, I sure didn't expect the team that would take Rob and Amber out of The Amazing Race All-Stars to be Towson's Charla and Mirna. Never in a million years. But maybe the karma of lying to Charla and Mirna while trying to find a clue did them in.

This is why this show is good, though: You never know what's going to happen! It's sad when one bad leg is the undoing of a good (and entertaining) team, but them's the breaks.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Maryland reality contestants, The Amazing Race
        

I'm about a year late to the party on this one, but I stumbled across this page today. Pre-pixelated clothes for all those reality TV people who can't seem to remember to leave their logo-marked clothing at home. Too funny!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

I still haven't seen last week's episode of Survivor: Fiji, but I went ahead and watched last night's anyway. So let me get this straight. Moto has been undefeated in the game and reveling in the luxury camp. They lost Gary to illness, won the immunity challenge and were given a bottle containing a choice: Keep your camp or go to tribal council. So these morons choose to keep their camp and vote someone off, leaving them with seven people, the same as the other tribe? What were they thinking?

Anyway, so this week, Ravu had the will to win, but not the strength. They lost the reward challenge -- wherein contestants faced off one against another atop a wooden platform armed with giant pads. Moto won every faceoff, except when Yau Man beat Stacy. Then in the immunity challenge (basically a giant game of Memory), Ravu lost after getting mixed up a couple of times, and they were devastated.

Finally, I got a glimpse into camp life at Moto (since I didn't see last week), and it wasn't pretty. Alex, Edgardo, Stacy, Lisi and Boo have an "unspoken alliance," but some of them are dealing with this alliance by being total jerks to the two other tribemates, Dreamz and Cassandra. That's just rude and unnecessary. Alex was already upset about the rude behavior, and then he finally did some math and discovered that even if Moto wins the rest of the immunity challenges and trims Ravu to three, if the tribes merged at 10, and Cassandra and Dreamz flipped over to the other side, it would be back to a five vs. five situation. Sadly, only Edgardo seemed to understand this, and the other three were content to continue the rudeness.

At Ravu, everyone was pretty bummed about the loss. It seemed pretty obvious that they would boot Anthony, since he had gotten a number of votes the last time. But when Rocky tried to talk to the team about how bad it was during the challenge when they were all talking over one another, Rita talked over him about five times. That -- and some earlier endless talk with Michelle about lipgloss --  sealed her fate right there.

I forgot to mention, but earlier, Yau Man and Earl, the only ones to have been to Exile Island, joined forces to try to find the hidden immunity idol. Earl took the rest of the tribe on an outing to look for food, so Yau Man could dig, but he didn't find it. After the reward challenge, Earl got sent to Exile Island and got another clue that didn't add anything to the previous ones. (In fact, upon reading the clue to the camera, Earl hilariously spat, "But I already know that!) I wasn't expecting to see that level of cooperation, but it was nice to see some trust between a couple of thus-far levelheaded players.

So at tribal council, Rita was voted out rather unceremoniously. Yau Man had the best response ever to Jeff's ubiquitous question about whether he trusts his tribe. He said he lives his life by this credo:  "Love many, trust few, do wrong to none." That might be the best dodge ever! Also, not too bad of a philosophy, though that last part will probably be tough to maintain in this particular game.

Next week, it looks like the tribes get shuffled, and it's random which one gets the luxe camp. I can't wait to see some of the Mototypes have to see what Survivor is really about. They'll be sitting pretty no more! And some of them might have to start talking to people they don't like. The horror!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (1)
Categories: Survivor
        

Here we go. The Top 12 are going to be revealed on American Idol tonight. They kick off immediately with a group sing of "Stuck in the Middle With You." Phil Stacey proves he's OK when he starts high. Everyone else does right by the song, but a group song can't not be cheesy.

Ryan says "almost 37 million votes" were cast by phone and text message. Then he recaps the two nights' performances that we already saw.

All 16 are in the hot seat. Lakisha Jones  and Blake Lewis are both in. (Not shocking in the least.) Chris Sligh gets called forward and gets one of those "after the break" fakeouts. He is in. (Duh.) Jordin Sparks comes forward, and she is in. Phil Stacey is in, too. He is shocked.

Jared Cotter is out. Ryan manages to not make the "America does not love you" joke. Simon says it was about his vocals, and Randy says he should work on his originality. He has to sing "If You Really Love Me" again. (The lyrics are killing me. Apparently, people didn't let him know. And he won't be hanging around.) He does have a nice voice, though. Antonella Barba bawls in the audience.

Ryan reads a trivia question for a contest. And it's the easiest question ever. This is dumb and bears no further comment.

Melinda Doolittle and Brandon Rogers are called to the stage -- the two backup singers. They are both in, and they are both happy.

Gina Glocksen and Chris Richardson come forward. Ryan says they are both through.

With six people left and only three spots remaining, this seems like a great time to revisit Carrie Underwood's entire career. She comes out to sing "Wasted." Yep, she can still sing. I'm sure the contestants who are still waiting to hear their fates really enjoyed the performance, though.

Antonella Barba and Stephanie Edwards  are called forward. Antonella is on the verge of crying again. Antonella is out. (Yay!) Stephanie is in. Oh, now I feel bad because she is bawling. Ryan makes Stephanie stop comforting Antonella and get off the stage. She gets it together and sings, totally wrecking the lyrics at some point, but she laughs at herself, so it's OK.

Haley Scarnato and Sabrina Sloan are called forward. Haley is in, and Sabrina is out. Wow. Really? They both cry. Randy says Sabrina should be in the Top 12. Sabrina sings "Don't Let Go." Sundance and Sanjaya are in the background looking like they just want it to be over so they can stop being in suspense.

Ryan makes them wait a little longer and talks about the "Idol Gives Back" campaign. Ryan and Simon are shown in Africa meeting some of the kids they will be helping. The main goal is to help end poverty in Africa and in the United States. Randy and Paula are going to spend some time in Louisiana, as well as the Mississippi area and beyond. April 24-25, the theme will be inspirational songs, and votes will be cast as usual. Sponsors will give money, voters can give money, and there will be special guests such as Borat, Pink and Gwen Stefani. More info is at americanidol.com.

Oh, right, Sanjaya Malakar and Sundance Head are still waiting. But first, another commercial. Sundance is out, Sanjaya is in. That is ridiculous. The judges are flabbergasted. Sundance says he needs a job. But first, he is going to sing "Jeremy" again.

So, are you kidding me? Haley and Sanjaya are still in this?

Now it's the montage of kicked-out contestants.

Tuesday will celebrate the music of Diana Ross. I don't know if that means that everyone will be singing Diana songs. Anyway, that's all she wrote!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants
        

We're back for another installment of American Idol. Tonight, the Top 8 women will perform. (And around here, we'll be seeing whether Fort Meade's Lakisha Jones took the style advice offered in this story today.)

Ryan says the drama is about to begin -- and then notes that Paula is missing. Maybe she's recording more bits for TV news morning shows with garbled connections! Looks like she made it.

Jordin Sparks says football is a huge part of her life. She sings Pat Benatar's "Heartbreaker." She rocks it out -- but as usual, I think it would be better without the backup singers. Randy says it's weird because "it's like a different show when the girls come out." He says it wasn't even her best performance but that it was still a million times better than any of the guys' attempts last night. Paula says she brought a ton of energy and she's "exploding coming in to your own artistry [sic]." Simon says he isn't as enthusiastic, that it was a little manic, a little shrieky, but she's done well and shown personality, though it wasn't her strongest performance.

Ryan interviews Gina and Sabrina in the red room, and Gina's outfit looks like it was attacked by wolves before the show.

Sabrina Sloan says she wanted to be Katie Couric when she was in high school, but she much prefers singing. Speaking of which, she sings "Don't Let Go," by En Vogue, but it's a little ... sharp, maybe? She does end with a killer long note. Randy says it was another solid performance even though he didn't love it. Paula says she's consistent and her voice soars and "pierces through." Simon says she's a great singer, but that it was lacking the emotion in "your main competitors, which are Lakisha, Melinda, Stephanie." He compares it to a "hotel resort performance." People must burst into song whenever Simon is around. Or else I don't go to the right hotels, resorts, weddings or parties.

Antonella Barba says her secret talent is that she plays the violin. (I will abstain from commenting about her current Internet-photo controversy because the joke is just too easy.) She sings Corinne Bailey Rae's "Girl, Put Your Records On." She has Phil Stacey syndrome, wherein her lower register just isn't quite right. But she is still better than her previous two performances. Randy says that was a good song choice, and a good ending, but pitchy in the middle, and that she doesn't seem to quite believe in herself. He says she is a better singer than she has shown. Paula says it was the right song for her, but she needs to watch out for the bottom notes. Simon says, "You've gone as far as you can go. ... You are surrounded by some pretty amazing girl singers, and I don't know how much more you can do, to be honest with you. ... I feel for you because you have taken a lot of stick in the media, and you've handled yourself well throughout. ... But I'm not going to patronize you here. It wasn't your worst. ... I just wish you could sing better." Wow. Ryan asks her if she thinks she deserves a place in the final 12. She says she just has a different style than the other women. It's more than that, though. Simon says, "No one's being critical for the sake of being critical!"

Haley Scarnato says she was a gymnast until her body started to give out. Dislocated shoulders do not sound fun. She sings "If My Heart Had Wings" by Faith Hill. I don't particularly like the song, but the performance is about a million times better than last week's "Queen of the Night." Randy says it was an interesting song choice at this point in the competition. He says it was in tune and everything, but had no "pizazz," but it didn't make him go "yo." Paula says she sang it well. Simon says it was like some "ghastly high school musical performance," and that -- I kid you not -- halfway through the performance, he realized he didn't know her name. Ouch. That's about as negative as it gets. Seriously. He made her cry last week, and he doesn't even remember her name? He says he doesn't think she's made enough of an impression and that this performance didn't help. Ryan asks how hard it is to sing that song live and then hear something like that, and that you probably take it personally. She says she has gotten bad comments every week, at least that Simon doesn't like her. He says he does like her, he just doesn't think she showed herself off enough.

Stephanie Edwards says she would sing in front of her parents only, but she used to be really, really shy. She sings "Sweet Thing" by Rufus and Chaka Khan. She has a couple of shrieky moments, but generally, it is great. Randy gives her an 'A' for "valiant effort," but that he was hearing Chaka in his head and you have to be careful of songs like that. So, what are they supposed to do? Not pick songs by people who are good? But then, others get in trouble for going too obscure! You can't win! Anyway, Paula says she was "darn near flawless." Simon says she is one of the best they have, but that she has a tendency to go a little copycat, but adds that she has definitely done enough to be in the Top 12.

Lakisha Jones is next. She tells Ryan she is ready to bring it. Before she goes downstairs, she asks him for a hug. Awww. In her tape, she says she is terrified of all animals. She's singing some WHITNEY, and I bet she is going to knock it out of the park. She delivers an excellent performance of "I Have Nothing." Randy says it wasn't her best performance, but it was, "another great performance from the great Lakisha." Paula: "You've already made us love you, you don't have to run anywhere, you're going to stay right here, and you're going to work on being the next Idol." (In the audience, you can her her aunt yelling, "That's my niece! That's my niece!") Simon: "What we haven't seen tonight, but you brought: Passion, talent, believability" -- Randy: "Yo" -- "and of course the yo factor, and just picking up on what I mentioned about the outfit, Lakisha. Tonight, you look beautiful." She says thank you. Ryan says her auntie and momma need their own show. "Oh, my God, I told them, 'Don't act up.'"

Poor Gina Glocksen has to follow. She says her lucky charms are a troll and a stuffed pickle, and a pillow from her niece and nephew. She sings Evanescence's "Call Me When You're Sober." Halfway through, she starts growling unnecessarily. Randy says, "Finally, finally, the real Gina comes out." He says there were some pitch problems, but she should keep the edge alive. Paula says that this was "more or less who I expected you to be." She also tells her to be careful of oversinging. Simon says, "You enjoyed that, didn't you?" He says it's the first time she appeared to be comfortable on the stage. He says she screamed part of the song, but he still hopes she gets through to the next round because she is a "breath of fresh air."

Melinda Doolittle will be closing the show. She says she has some quirky, OCD habits -- but it's all about equality. She sings "I'm a Woman." She interacts with the backup singers for a minute -- nice since she used to be one. And she doesn't have a second's trouble harmonizing with them, for the record. The crowd goes wild! Randy says she was the "hottest one of the night. ... You're ready to go in the studio and make a record right now." Paula asks her if she ever thought that she would be on this stage getting this adoration. She says she can't ever wait to see what's next. Simon: "You little tiger. I thought we had a pussycat. I loved that!" He says it's nice to see that she is enjoying every single minute of it.

My predictions: Haley and Antonella out. Maybe Gina. We'll see tomorrow!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants
        

I was thinking about last night's American Idol performances -- how totally boring most of the guys were. I was looking for the standouts, like last season's Chris Daughtry, Taylor Hicks and Elliott Yamin, who even at this point in the show last season had started to make an impression.

I went back to the Top 8 guys performances last year, and it seems like it was a rough week that time around, too. Beyond Chris, Elliott and Taylor, there were others who were making their mark. Ace Young was garnering the hottie vote, and Bucky Covington had the Southern rocker thing going on (sort of, but at least memorably). And I still remember the performances by Kevin Covais, Will Makar and Gedeon McKinney, which is almost more than I can say for some of last night's.

At least by this time last season, some of the voices were starting to make an impression. I'm interested to see more from Chris Sligh, Blake Lewis and Sundance Head -- maybe Chris Richardson, since the judges have stated he's not living up to his potential yet. The other four I'm not invested in at all. I'm hoping the women do a better job this evening, and that the voters don't kick out some of the better people.

Incidentally, we all know what's going on with Daughtry and Taylor Hicks, but not so much about Elliott Yamin. According to his MySpace page, he has a new album out March 20. There are a couple of clips on the page, too, which are a nice reminder of his rich vocal performances on AI last season. I'm hoping some of these guys start to step it up pretty soon. 

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 2:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: American Idol
        

We're back for more semifinal performances on American Idol. The Top 8 guys are performing tonight.

My first thought as the camera scans across them: WHAT have they done to Sanjaya's hair? Step away from the flatiron, stylists! This week, they've asked all the contestants to reveal something we don't know about them already. (Better than last week's dedications that led to awkwardness -- a la Jared dedicating "Let's Get It On" to his parents -- and cheesiness -- e.g., Brandon's performance of "True Colors.)

Blake Lewis is up first. He loves improv, acting and Halloween. He pretends to be a character named "Jimmy Walker Blue." He's singing 311's "All Mixed Up." It's fun, but to my ear, a tad flat here and there. He incorporates a little beatboxing here and there, which works with the song. Randy loved it because it was so current. He also says he didn't recognize the song at all, which explains why he thought this 1995 song was so "current." Paula says she didn't know the song either, but that she was interested. Simon says he didn't understand a word he sang, but that he stands out in the crowd and he is "making it current" and "will 100 percent be here next week." Blake tells Ryan he picked the song because 311 is his favorite band.

Sanjaya Malakar is up next. Ryan says he's going to do some John Mayer. If he is singing "Your Body Is a Wonderland," I am telling you now that I will be fast-forwarding through the entire thing. He tells Ryan he was shocked to be there. His big secret is that he knows how to hula dance. And oh, thank heavens, he is singing "Waiting on the World to Change." This is much better than the past two weeks, although he is still too quiet, and a little off-pitch here and there, especially at the end. Randy says, "To say it was a little bit better than last week is really funny because ..." He says a lot incomprehensibly in the middle and then eventually says that they saw something special at his initial audition that they really haven't seen since then. Paula says the older guys are pushing him to do better and to keep trying and that he should raise his game. Simon says it wasn't as ghastly as last week, but that it wasn't very good. (He does manage to call it "Paula hair" in the middle.)

Sundance Head says the surprising thing about him is that he is thin in real life and just wears the fat suit on TV so he can not be recognized in his regular life. I thought Chris Sligh was the comedian! He is, improbably, singing "Jeremy" by Pearl Jam. Perhaps he is trying to position himself as the rocker or show his versatility? I don't know. It's not a bad performance, but the song choice just seems so out of nowhere. Randy says he had some pitchy spots, but that he liked that he put his Southern rock feel on the Pearl Jam song. Paula says that halfway through, "You really kicked in to your Sundance groove, and that's your unique quality." He is a special, special snowflake. "You did really, really well." Simon says he lost his charm and went from being really good to "generic bar singer." He also calls the choice "indulgent" and that he was shouting the entire time.

Chris Richardson is next. But first, Travis Tritt is in the audience. (Ryan shockingly does not say "in the house.") They talk about how Randy is producing his new album. OK, then. Chris says America would be surprised to know he used to play football and was 40 pounds heavier. He sings "Tonight I Wanna Cry" by Keith Urban. I know a lot of people love this guy, but he still sounds really generic to me -- I don't think I will remember this performance after the next person sings. Randy says "every week you put the boys on blast" and "this kid is in it to win it." Paula says it was a good choice because his intonation adapted well to the song. Simon says it was good, but cutesy, and his voice was a little nasally, a little timid and safe, but that he thinks they still haven't seen what he is capable of. Ryan asks Chris how he lost the weight, and Simon and Randy admonish him to stick to questions about singing. Chris says he just ate better.

Jared Cotter is going to sing some Stevie. First, he tells us he played Division II college basketball. He sings "If You Really Love Me." He sounds pretty good during the parts when he's belting, but the chorus parts of "If you really love me," when he has to harmonize, aren't fantastic. Randy says his usual thing about how he was nervous about him tackling a Stevie Wonder song, but that he did a good job. Paula says he needs to work on "coloring up the way you sing." Simon ... Simon looks like this:

She goes on about wanting to see more emotions in his performance. Despite the face he made, Simon says he actually kind of understands what she is saying, that it wasn't very original, that they have heard a lot of performances like this. He says he is slightly disappointed because they haven't really hard the wow factor this evening. The three judges, upon being questioned by Ryan, say Jared deserves to be in the Top 8 guys, but that he needs to raise his game.

Brandon Rogers is a classical piano player and has been playing since he was 9. He sings "I Just Want to Celebrate." I think this might be a message to the voters about how happy he is to still be in the competition. Randy says it was a good song, but he got a little messed up at the end during the run, but it was a solid performance. Paula says it was pretty phenomenal and proved himself. Simon says he hasn't represented himself well so far in the competition and that he should have picked more of a memorable song, and that he is nervous for him because it lacked a hook. Brandon says he had a great time and that he hopes people at home had fun with him.

Phil Stacey says it might be surprising that he hasn't always been bald. (Har-dee-har.) He calls himself "the bald guy on American Idol," but I think that title is going to go to Daughtry, Chris Daughtry, for a while. He sings LeAnn Rimes' "I Need You" and starts out sounding like he is doing an impression or something. But as usual, after a couple of bars, he is past the weirdness (though he screams some of the high notes oddly). Randy says it was an "interesting" song choice. He says he reminds him of Steve Perry of Journey, but that his lower register is weird. (Yes, exactly.) Paula says it's "chancy" when he starts but improves, but the song choice was "odd." Simon says he didn't get it, with the hat and "the big eyes" and the whole thing. Simon says it has been a disappointing evening, and "that wasn't good enough, sorry."

Chris Sligh tells us that he shaved his head bald in May 2005 and then grew out his hair to see what it was like, and discovered his "lush curls." He sings DC Talk's "Wanna Be Loved." He brings it in his performance, though I can't help but think he is picking his songs to make a slight joke -- "Typical" in the first week, which that definitely wasn't; and who among the finalists doesn't want to be loved? Randy says he's not sure that was his favorite song choice, but "the good thing for me tonight for you," bringing back his trademarked, much-hated-by-me "for me for you" phrasing, is that he gets the vocal prize for the night. Paula says it wasn't her favorite performance and that he needs to keep rising above and that this was middle of the road. Chris asks if vocally it was better than last week, because he is trying to build and get better. She says she liked last week more. Simon says the beginning was really good, but then he shouted and struggled in the middle, but that it's not a great, "hooky" song, but that he is popular enough to not have to worry. Chris says it's one of his favorite songs, and he thinks the sentiment is universal and he apologizes for "not bringing it like I should have," which amuses me since I actually said he did "bring it." Shows what I know!

Ryan asks how many guys really deserve to be in the Top 12. Randy and Paula say four, Simon goes with "three and a half." In the recap of all the performances, it really was clear how boring of an evening it was. Sorry, guys.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: American Idol
        

Comedian Josh Blue, winner of the last season of Last Comic Standing, performs March 30 at Goucher College’s Kraushaar Auditorium. More info is available at missiontix.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 2:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Last Comic Standing, Local appearances
        

Finally, I am caught back up with The Amazing Race All-Stars. I just watched last week's and this week's back-to-back. I can't believe Rob and Amber have come in first place three legs in a row. They annoy me, but I do have to hand it to them: They seem to get the job done while all the other teams are fixating on one another.

In last week's episode, Kevin and Drew were out after a rough few days for Drew. He took a hard fall in the first episode, followed by a bout of altitude sickness. He seemed so angry to be in last place, but I'm pretty sure he thought that the other teams hadn't been following the 40 kph rule and thus should have been disqualified. But back in reality, he had misread the clue (the 40 kph rule pertained only to the drive in the Valley of the Moon.

Then tonight, despite a bunch of teams making huge mistakes (Kandice and Dustin failing to pick up a clue and going straight to one of the Detours; one of the Guidos failing to write down the whole clue at the bottom of the fish tank; major failures in sign reading all across the board), David and Mary ended up in last and headed home.

Here's my take on the remaining teams thus far:

Danny and Oswald seem to have a great relationship and are handling most of the stress with a minimum of drama. Plus, they're funny, which always helps.

Uchenna and Joyce are racing strongly, but in the stressful moments (like when Joyce was having trouble with the "eye for details" task last week), Uchenna seems like he gets really frustrated really quickly, and then he isn't as supportive of his partner.

Charla and Mirna are driving me insane, just as they did in their initial go-round on the show. They talk in interviews about how important it is to be pure of heart and declare incredulously about people being rude or out of control when they are usually the ones who start the yelling or escalate a situation into "out-of-control" land. But when they talk about it, it's always someone else's fault.

Rob and Amber: See above.

Teri and Ian are racing strongly. I'm still getting a handle on them, having not watched their original season. It cracked me up when Ian bellowed "Security!" in the middle of a tussle with Mirna. He's a police officer! He should know better than to call for help when it's not warranted.

Eric and Danielle have me a little worried. I feel like maybe this was too early in their relationship for them to be racing together. She seems worried she's going to disappoint him, and he keeps making inapproriate (and marginally disrespectful) comments toward her. They are doing a decent job in the race, though. But I can't see this relationship lasting forever.

Joe and Bill (aka "Team Guido") are a weird mix of tearful, supportive, hard-core, overdramatic. I think sometimes their dramatics get in the way of the racing. If they keep their focus, though, they will do pretty well.

Dustin and Kandice are racing just like last season -- as hard as they can and without any interest in making long-term friends. (However, they did team up with Teri and Ian for a while tonight, so maybe they did learn something last time.)

I'm glad to be caught up. Speaking of which, I had a Tivo malfunction (OK, it was user error) last week, so I haven't seen Survivor yet, but as soon as I do, I'll get caught up here!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: The Amazing Race
        

ABC announced today that Vincent Pastore's replacement on Dancing With the Stars will be John Ratzenberger.

Cliff Claven dancing? Oh, my gosh, I love it! I know Cliff was just a character, but can't you just imagine him offering obscure facts to his partner at inopportune moments?

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 1:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Dancing With the Stars
        

Four more will be trimmed on tonight's American Idol. I can think of at least that many who deserve to go.

Ryan says more than 32 million votes were cast. Now we're revisiting all the performances. Which we've already seen.

Group sing time: "Joy to the World." Did you know Jeremiah was a bullfrog? Same choreographed snapping as last week. This is just so cheesy. There's no escape.

Cutting time. Phil Stacey is safe. Chris Sligh is safe. Sundance Head is safe. Blake Lewis is safe. Jared Cotter is safe.

Nick Pedro is going home. Randy says he should stick with his genre and he should "keep on keeping on." Simon says it was lack of charisma and he didn't stand out in the crowd. Paula says she's glad he didn't opt out like last season in Hollywood. He sings his Valentine performance of "Fever" to his girlfriend again. They don't cut to the drummer 65 times like they did last night. He completely loses his lyrics at the end of the song, but it's OK.

Now the women are up. Stephanie Edwards is safe. Gina Glocksen is safe. (Also, I finally figure out who she reminds me of: the woman from The Pretender.) Sabrina Sloan is safe. Melinda Doolittle is safe. (Duh.) Alaina Alexander is going home. (Duh.)

She tells her fellow contestants to sing their butts off, and she starts crying. She is crying so hard that she can't really sing. (It was bound to happen at some point.) The backup singers pick it up while she hugs everyone. (Another one with bad lyrics for this moment: "It's a sad, sad story." ) Paula says something, but the audio on my TV cuts out for just long enough to keep me from hearing any of it.

Now it's time for a trivia break. I'm sure there are plenty of details on the AI Web site.

Kellie Pickler is out to perform. She chats with Ryan for a bit. At one point, he asks her if she has spent her money on anything since leaving the show. She says, "Shoes." He says, archly, "Just shoes?" Maybe it's just me, but he seems to be suggesting that she might have had some "work" done. She sings "I Wonder," "which she co-wrote," Ryan says. She's Pickler-esque, her usual self, although the song is pretty sleep-inducing.

The guys are up again. Chris Richardson is safe. Brandon Rogers is safe. Sanjaya Malakar and AJ Talbado are last. AJ is going home. Sanjaya says he "very much so" thought he was going home. Paula says this is a singing competition, and she doesn't think this result reflects that. Randy says he is shocked. AJ sings "Feeling Good" again. He sings it like it's an act of revenge, proving that he is a good singing. I don't think he would have won it all, but I'm shocked he's out this soon.

Now it's the women again. Lakisha Jones is safe. (Another duh.) Haley Scarnato is safe (and shocked). Antonella Barba, Leslie Hunt and Jordin Sparks are asked to join Ryan on the stage. Antonella is safe. Leslie is going home. (Gina is bawling her head off.) Simon says the right people are "not necessarily" getting voted out. Now Leslie has to sing "Feeling Good" even though AJ just sang it. (How sad is it that 20 minutes into the show, I can't remember which guy was voted out?)

Next week, same as this: Guys sing Tuesday, women sing Wednesday, results on Thursday. See you there!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants
        

You can see some former American Idol contestants in person in the area, if you are so inclined.

• First up, starting March 7, Jennifer Fuentes can be seen as the storyteller and ringmaster in the Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey "Circus of Dreams" at 1st Mariner Arena. See more in LIVE (second item).
• On May 13, runner-up Bo Bice will be at Rams Head Tavern.
• As already noted, Paris Bennett will be at the Chesapeake Arts Center this Saturday. She will also be at the Weinberg Center in Frederick on March 16.
• Rock n roller Daughtry is only getting as close as Philly's Theatre of the Living Arts.
• Taylor Hicks is at Baltimore's Rams Head Live April 17, but the show is sold out. His two shows at the Birchmere April 15 are also sold out.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 2:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: American Idol, Local appearances
        

I actually didn't get a chance to watch Sunday's episode of Grease: You're the One That I Want because of the Oscars, but I just saw that Kevin and Kate were voted off. Which vaguely amuses me because in the paper last week, I wrote:

Sometimes you just have to wonder what people are thinking. On Sunday’s Grease: You’re the One That I Want! two competitors said in interviews that they weren’t there to make friends. This kind of declaration works if you are in a game that requires making alliances (Survivor, Big Brother) — but not in the kind of show that asks the public to vote for you.

People won’t support a “Danny” or “Sandy” who isn’t friendly.

So Kate and Kevin, next time someone asks you about your fellow competitors, just smile and say something nice.

Despite having written that, I'm surprised they're out -- or at least that Kate is, because she has a great voice. It does make me feel like my intuition about this stuff is getting a little better. But watch me now be totally wrong on all my American Idol predictions!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 8:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Grease: You're the one That I Want