(Photo by Monty Brinton/CBS)

Today, the paper had a brief chat with Louie Frase, the Marylander who's competing on CBS's Pirate Masters, which starts now and is about people living like pirates. How long will it take before we hear 1) "Arrrr!" 2) "The pirate's life for me!" or 3) "Shiver me timbers!"? Let's see ...

The contestants row up to a ship and are welcomed by their host, who assures them it won't be "a pleasure cruise," instructs people to hold certain ropes, and they pull up a treasure chest and get going.

Louie gets the first interview of the season, in which he declares how amazing it was to see the treasure: "You know what? [Cackle.] I think I want me some of that!"

The host says this is the "Chest of Zanzibar, which confirms the legend of Capt. Henry Steel." It's a long story-time, kids, but the jist of it is, the treasure has been divided into 14 equal parts and buried, and there are two maps to each location.

Contestant Jay says he's kind of a pirate every day because he's "in sales." Way to give your profession a good name, dude.

Host goes on to say the combined treasure is worth $1 million, and that people find is theirs to keep when their "journey" ends. Which brings him to the part where they will be voting people off.

The contestants, who have been trained to sail (whew), get going and start getting to know one another. We meet Christian, an ex-linebacker; John, who is doing a bad impression of Johnny Depp in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies and whose caption says "Scientist/Exotic Dancer"; and deputy district attorney Cheryl, who is opting to keep her profession secret.

Louie wakes everyone the next morning to start their sail.

Bartender Sean says he grew up on boats and near the ocean, so he's ready.

Receptionist Joy, on the other hand, is having seasickness issues, which some of the other contestants aren't too sympathetic about.

Firefighter Joe Don was in the Navy, so he thinks he's ready to lead.

The host opens the first compartment, which has the first two maps, and the contestants draw to find out how they will be divide into two teams.

The teams' first task is to paddle up the Indian River, then find on land three keys to unlock yet another map. The Red Crew goes awry pretty quickly, forgetting about its boat's rudder. Thus, the Black Crew hits land first, but Ben loses his shoe in the muck, and it's tied up again. John (Black Crew) figures out the three-part lock. The new map directs them to keep heading up river, and they learn they can sabotage the other team (tricksy!) by releasing an obstacle.

Black Crew gets to the sabotage point first and makes it to Croc's Lair, where the treasure is. Red Crew hits the obstacle and can see the other team, but they make it through and catch up, where Black Crew is still trying to get the treasure.

Then it's just a free for all, but John (the scientist/exotic dancer/Deppian dude) finds the treasure and Black Crew wins. The treasure chest is full of gold pieces and crabs. They count the gold, and it's $40,000. The host tells them to elect a captain. They pick Joe Don (a.k.a. J.D.), but you can tell John is not amused. In an interview, he calls his teammates lemmings. After the captain is chosen, the host tells them the captain is entitled to half the treasure and can gift it, make deals with or keep it. Joe Don is told to pick two officers, and he chooses Cheryl and Ben, who split half of the remainder ($5,000 apiece). The rest split the rest ($2,000 apiece). Then, they are told that they are demoted, that the Black Crew no longer exists and that they are to obey Joe Don's orders. (So this is where the "mutiny" aspect might come in to play.)

The captain and officers are given their uniforms and shown to the captain's quarters. This elicits the same "Oh my God" exclamations as you hear on every reality show in which there is a place for people to live.

Louie on the new situation: "Once he put on that captain hat, Joe Don went into another world, and he thinks he is the boss and he likes that 50 percent pay."

Joe Don decides to institute some order on the ship. Cheryl tells the rest of the ship that people will have tasks that they have to perform or else.

Louie: "Joe Don cannot [unintelligible ... hire maybe?] me by making me do any chore on that ship because I do whatever needs to be done; I don't care what needs to be done. I got news for him: His days are definitely numbered if I have any say in it." He talks trash on deck of the ship about how he's going to "get him" one day. Back in the interview: "Any day of the week, I would rather stand with the crew than the captain, and if he thinks he's going to get 50 percent of the treasure every time we go on a treasure hunt, he's got another thing coming."

I think our local pirate might want to keep this stuff out of the ears of the officers since someone is getting sent home, and we don't yet know how that is decided.

Hey, here's the host to tell us how. The captain will mark three of the crew for "pirate's court," at which point those so marked will have a chance to defend themselves, and one of those three will be "cut adrift." But if all the crew and the two officers "rise up against" the captain, he will be cut adrift instead.

"Very well," says Joe Don, who is taking this realllllly seriously.

He interviews that he wants John out. He also picks Louie, and Ben tells Joe Don he heard him talking mutiny on deck. (See?) They also choose Joy as the "sheep," who they hope won't get sent home. But their major target is John.

(By the way: Someone has brought eyeliner, and is sharing it.)

Louie interviews about getting chosen, about how he and Joe Don don't get along, so he's not surprised. And, he adds: "I think it wise not to bad-mouth the captain anymore."

Joy is very emotional about being chosen.

John takes a different tack and steals both the compasses so he will have control over navigation and persuade everyone to mutiny. Sneaky. He's creepy, but that is sneaky.

At pirate's court, Louie is up first. "The crew, my sisters at sea, you know I love you, and I know you love me. If you cut me adrift, I'll miss you as much as you miss me. As a worthy seaman, I don't mind being a swab, a swab is a strong man. All I want is pay for a job well done."

Joy says she is not ready to go and that they aren't ready for her to go, either.

John says he knows he is on the block because he didn't vote for Joe Don for captain. He tells them they should keep him because he has the compasses. "If I go, they go." He says they should take aim at Joe Don, who took $20,000 and gave everyone more responsibility but "zero dollars."

Joe Don references the North Star at night and checking a shadow in the day time to see which direction to go. "I don't need your compasses, and I don't need you." John: "J.D., which way is north?" He can't figure it out, but says in the day time it's a piece of cake. Not so convincing.

Joy is told to rejoin the crew. Louie, too. The host says the vote was unanimous, and John looks awfully proud of himself. Not so much so when he learns he's voted off. Whoops.

Bye, John.

I can't close this entry without noting our man Louie's resemblance to former Survivor fan favorite Rupert Boneham:

(CBS photo)

Am I right, or what? Looks like Louie will be sticking around for a while. Not sure what I think about the show. It's awfully self-important and doesn't really have the charm or wit of, say, Pirates of the Caribbean, whose popularity probably spawned this show. It seems like some of the people are having fun, but we mostly got screenfuls of blather. No "Shiver me timbers," though.

(And wow, in retrospect, this is an awfully long entry. I don't think I'll always be covering this in so much detail, but I wanted to cover Louie's debut pretty thoroughly.)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Pirate Master
        

Last night on So You Think You Dance, I got to watch live for the first time this season, and it reminded me how much I really adore this show. As with most of the talent-related series, I prefer it once we get past the humiliating auditions portion and in to the part with the people who really wow you. But this show doesn't fixate too much on the bad auditions, so it's not unbearable.

Here are the highlights:

• Judge Wade Robeson told one male contestant in the L.A. auditions: "You dance like a girl ... who can't dance." (Nigel Lythgoe also stirred up some emotions when he told the guy he was getting applause from his fellow contestants "because you're fat ... it's patronizing." But the contestant himself didn't seem to take it badly.)
• A guy named Colin waxed rhapsodic about genes and DNA and then said he was auditioning in memory of Anna Nicole Smith, who once hugged him at his birthday party and "still talks to me." He does not make the cut, but he does almost lose his pants.
• A woman named Olivia auditioned because her mother made her after discovering that she might have cancer. Olivia made the cut, but no word as of yet on her mother's condition.
• "Gold Inferno" proved to be comedy, well, gold. He said he was the "American Jump-Style Champion." He explained to the judges after his bizarre performance that "jump style" is from Belgium and he and his friend saw it on the Internet and got really into it. Best of all, he admitted: "It's actually a self-declared title." (And I am officially declaring myself the American Jump-Style Blogging Champion, just because I can, apparently.)
• Nigel Lythgoe to one contestant who claimed to be a dance teacher: "Find something really useful to do with your life."
• One ballroom couple -- a woman with a chronic winking problem and the guy who'd been battling hiccups for more than seven years -- got the quirky treatment, meaning, no way would they be going to Vegas for the semifinals, but it turned out they could really move, so they made the cut. And the hiccups led to judge Mary Murphy's first hysterical cackling breakdown of the season. I'm sure there will be more.
  
• A contestant named Chuy got to the Vegas round last year and then got cut. He made it through last night and said his goal was to show the Latin community that it should be more supportive of dance.
• Remember Hok from two seasons ago, whom the judges loved, but had to send home after he failed to mention he didn't have a work visa? He has one now, and he made it to semis after a wacky, charming performance.
• Reigning champ Benji Schwimmer showed up to partner with his little sister Lacey for her audition. The moves run in the family, and she makes the cut with no problems at all.
• In Chicago, Phillip Chbeeb of Houston freaked judge Shane Sparks out completely with his amazing pop-and-lock routine. He said it was one of the best popping displays he'd seen in years.
• Shane also pulled this quote on one contestant: "There's unique, and then there's wack."
• Nigel asked one guy of his performance: "It's a bit of crumping and a bit of tapping -- is it called crapping?" He does not make it.
• His sister, Yesenia Gomez, however, does. She is a larger girl, but she can really perform. Shane loved her. The other judges weren't as enamored, but after the choreography round, they changed their minds.
• Charleston (the style, not the city) dancers Evita and Mike want everyone to know, especially her boyfriend back in New York, that they are NOT a couple. No, really. They aren't. Nope. Nuh-uh. No way. But they are going to Vegas.
• A woman named Janet Bombard gave an engaging lyrical performance, after which the judges said they were astounded to read on her bio that she has a prosthetic arm, that they wouldn't have known if they hadn't seen it on the paper. She is headed to Vegas and is thrilled.
• Last to audition is Quincy, who had auditioned with a breakdancing routine in the first season of the show, but in the interim lost his leg in a motorcycle accident. He seemed to be experiencing the music rather than giving a performance, but he looked so joyful. He explained to the judges that to even be walking, much less appearing on the stage in front of them, was amazing to him. The judges let him stick around for choreography for the experience, but his ankle was in too much pain to participate. Still, he reveled in the entire day's events, you could tell.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 7:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: So You Think You Can Dance
        

Back from vacation, I'm getting my first look at Fox's On the Lot tonight. I missed last night's show, in which the filmmakers presented their one-minute comedies. Sounds like it was a mixed bag, which will have three people going home this evening.

First, though, could the theme song have a little more bombast? It's so John Williams-esque, which is pretty over-the-top for a reality show. Also, the host, Adrianna Costa, is really annoying and not very smooth. She's stumbled over names, gotten caught staring off camera for her cue repeatedly and just very unnatural and smarmy in the Samantha Harris of Dancing With the Stars mold.

The top three of the evening were:

Zach Lipovsky's film is "Danger Zone," and it's pretty funny -- a chain reaction of chaos in a safety lab.

Will Bigham's "Lucky Penny" is also about a chain reaction, one of bad luck after a guy finds a not so lucky penny.

Last of the top three was Jason Epperson's "Getta Rhoom," which had caused some controversy as some of the judges and viewers thought the main character was disabled. He said he was meant to just be a nerd. Upon rewatching the film (and learning that it was one of the top three), judge Carrie Fisher said she had changed her mind and thought it was great.

Going home are Carolina, Claudia and Phil, with Claudia saying she and Carolina plan to work on a film together after this.

I'll have to see a regular show to see whether I'll stick with this, since results shows are always pretty padded and boring, but I'm not that excited about this one.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

I'm back from vacation trying to get caught up on everything and wondering how I will spend all my free time now that American Idol and Dancing With the Stars, with their on-multiple-times-a-week-ness, have closed out their seasons. Never fear, there is always something happening on the reality TV front.

Many thanks to guest blogger Tim Swift, who handily filled in while I was gone last week (and spruced things up a bit, too). Let's see if I can keep up the pace with posts and pictures.

(Dustin Diamond photo courtesy VH1)

So now that I'm back, let's talk about a show I'm sure everyone has just been desperate to discuss: Celebrity Fit Club. OK, no, it's no ratings-grabber, but it's been full of drama this season. Unfortunately, most of it has been manufactured by Dustin Diamond, best known as Screech from Saved by the Bell. Like many child stars, Diamond has a ton of barely repressed rage, which is probably magnified by playing such a completely geeky character for so long.

He's clearly gone on the show just to try to build his celebrity (he's pulled stunts like selling shirts to try to pay his mortgage and has a "sex tape" that he claims was accidentally released, but he sure seems happy about it). He acts wounded at every suggestion he has done anything wrong, even while tearing down his teammates in interviews and insisting that he will lose weight eating whatever he wants. He's exhausting to watch, and it's really hampered my enjoyment of the show since his drama eats up so much time of every episode. For me, the only upside to Diamond's time on the show was a heated exchange that led Marine Corps Drill Instructor Harvey Walden (one of the contestants' coaches) to scream at him: "Don't you ever in your [expletive] cartoon life threaten me!" It was an amusing mix of the typical DI attempt to not swearing (subbing in "cartoon" for some other two-syllable word) and being so upset that he swore, too. But I digress.

Diamond keeps threatening to leave the show, and I wish he just would, so we can get back to the experiences of the other contestants, who actually want to be there. (Including fellow child star Maureen "Marcia Brady" McCormick, who manages to be chipper and positive even while dealing with a lot of personal issues.) But based on the preview for next week, it doesn't appear that's going to happen. Pity.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

UPDATE! Last night, I mentioned a successful contestant, Heather Zampier, who said she was from Solomons Island, Md. But later the on-screen info said something about Massachusetts. Well, we've solved the mystery with the help of Heather's mom, Kathy Heil.

She says Heather is Maryland through and through and the producers goofed with the on-screen banner. Zampier is a student at Towson and was born in Salisbury.

Posted by Tim Swift 

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 6:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: So You Think You Can Dance
        

Taking questions from reporters yesterday, energetic American Idol winner Jordin Sparks was finally showing some signs of strain after a whirlwind season of the talent competition. Her voice was hoarse and she even yawned a few times. But she has good reason to be sluggish: Sparks said she was only able to get two hours of sleep since the Idol finale on Wednesday night.

During the call she talked about her plans for the future. Her album is likely to be a mixed bag of pop, country and R&B, she said. And she doesn't expect to change -- physical or mentally -- now that she's famous. "Oh that super thin stuff, Hollywood needs to get over it," she said.

Asked what she was going to do when she returned home to Arizona, Sparks blurted out with no hesitation: "Sleep in my own bed."

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 12:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: American Idol
        

So later today, I'll get to talk with American Idol finalists Blake Lewis and Jordin Sparks. OMG! JORDIN! BLAKE! Whoooo!

OK, OK, it's not as impressive as it seems. I'll be sharing interview time with reporters from across the country and I only get two questions and two questions only. I have some questions ready, but I was curious what would you guys, the fans, wanna ask Lewis and Sparks.

Tell us in our comments section.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 7:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: American Idol
        

Well, they are very clear in the opening minutes that this is all about America’s "favorite" dancer — not America’s best dancer. And that is mostly the strength of the show, now in its third season, it doesn’t take itself too seriously. The modest hit for Fox (with average of 10 million viewers, it’s the summer’s most lucrative reality series), kicked off last night with its New York auditions.

Here are some the highlights:

-- Judge Nigel Lythgoe, also American Idol’s executive producer, makes a mantra out of "I’m not going to be mean this year." And for a day of auditions it works. Although he holds his tongue, he also needs to work on his poker face. By day two after a flood of fatties and freaks (one woman did a bizarre routine in the role of Jesus), Lythgoe broke down and unleashed the zingers. He tells one poor portly girl: "It was the dancing version of Ugly Betty."

-- Speaking of freaks, the show opened with an over-eager "Dancing" Derrick. He’s an odd one, but made for good TV. Some of selected quotes: "Yo! Yo! What it be. Dancing D in town" and "I’m kinda of a historic landmark." He exploded on the audition stage, but not in a good way. He spazzed out so much that they had to administer oxygen. The shot of him dejected and rejected with an airbag strapped to his face wasn’t as funny as I thought it would be. It was sort of heartbreaking.

-- One (possibly) local girl surfaced and did well, moving on to the Las Vegas round. Heather Zampier, 25, says in her initial appearance that she’s from Solomons Island, Md. Yet, later her on-screen ID says Massachusetts. Maybe she’s a reverse LaKisha. After suffering from bone spurs and other hip-related conditions, doctors told Zampier that dancing wasn’t an option. But the rebellious tiger-tattooed woman wasn’t listening. It was her first audition since her surgeries and the judges loved her. "They said dancing was out," she said. "And I decided that I was going to prove them wrong. I have been trying my hardest, and I did it today."

-- The show wasn’t all train wrecks. Two ballroom dancers, Pasha Kovalev and Anya Garins were perfectly in sync and smoking. And Hanna Lee, a charming girl who was victim of a bombing in Israel, wins over the judges after getting some pointers on choreography from the producers. In all, 32 dancers moved on to the next round.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: So You Think You Can Dance
        

The folks at Extreme Makeover: Home Edition e-mailed us today, looking for people from Maryland to put on the show.

Do you have a sob story and need your kitchen remodeled? Do you get really really excited to the point where you fall over and cry? Will you promise not get Ty Pennington liquored up before drives the bus around?

Well this show's for you ...

OK, OK, I'm being mean. Sorry Ty! The inspirational ABC show means well and does make people happy , so I'm happy to pass this along:

"We are looking for inspirational families that America can really root for," says Casting Director, Quintin Strack. "This makeover will be the answer to their prayers…the solution to their current problems."

Starting with their 4th season premiere in Alaska, the show is on a mission to hit each of the 50 states once over the next 2 years. Now, they want to drive that infamous bus to the great state of Maryland.

"What does it take to be picked for an Extreme Makeover?" Strack says, "we are in search of real heroes…people that have amazing strength and who have put their own needs aside to help someone else." In addition to heroics, the producers are looking for families whose homes are in dire need of help. "We don’t want to tear down a nice looking house. We want to see houses that look like they might fall down on their own!"

To be eligible, a family must own their own single family home and be able to show producers how a makeover will make a huge difference in their lives and the lives of others. Interested families should e-mail a short description of their family story to: ExtremeMaryland@yahoo.com.

Nominations must include the names and ages of each member of the household along with a description of the major challenges within the home.

The deadline for Maryland nominations is June 4, 2007.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 3:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Last night's early ratings numbers may have bolstered the argument that American Idol is finally losing its luster. Nielsen says only about 29.5 viewers tuned in to see Jordin Sparks win the title. That's down 19 percent from last year, when 36.4 million watched as Taylor Hicks beat out Katharine McPhee.

The Associated Press reports that the estimate probably will be adjusted in the coming days because "The preliminary numbers only measured Fox’s telecast from 8 to 10 p.m. EDT — and Sparks wasn’t announced as the winner until 10:03 p.m." But surely they won't be able to count the jilted DVR users in the those new numbers.

At least one reader of the Reality Check blog, Maurice, thinks it's time for change. He suggests that Idol viewers be able to vote off the contestant they like least. What do you think?

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 2:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: American Idol
        

I watched the show live, but my friends with Tivo and Comcast DVR were in for a surprise as the finale ended for them way before Jordin Sparks was crowned the winner. Delayed by bizarre bits of the finale (did they really need to give Carrie Underwood a giant poster of herself?), Sparks sang her final song of the Idol season about 10:05 -- several minutes after most recorders had stopped. Doh.

At first I thought West Coast viewers were spared. But my West Coast readers (I have West Coast readers!) have filled me on their pain as well. Apparently the three-hour time delay wasn't enough to encourage Fox to slim the show down to a proper size.

I'm checking with Fox and Comcast to see if they have any plans to  replay the finale or even post it online. I'll update this space later when I get some answers.

But since the cat's out of the bag, the replay might not be enough. Did anyone prepare for the worst last night? Share you DVR tactics in our comments section.

UPDATE: And case you missed it YouTube has the minutes you may have missed.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: American Idol
        

Blake Lewis is really taking his loss of last night's American Idol in stride. The final show was sort of designed for him not to win, but the beat boxer is staying humble and good-natured — unusual behavior for a reality TV star.

An AP reporter caught up with him after the finale at the Kodak Theater last night:

Lewis said backstage that he didn’t mind coming in second.
“I picked Jordin Sparks at the top 24 as the American Idol winner,” he said proudly. “I was actually going to try to wear a ‘Vote for Jordin Sparks’ T-shirt last night but they wouldn’t let me do it.”
Lewis compared his sound to Michael Jackson and Jamiroquai and said his forthcoming album will be “like electro pop, very danceable.”
Sparks won a recording contract as part of her Idol prize, but Lewis hasn’t yet secured a deal.

Let's hope he gets a deal. He's too nice to be reduced to hosting Idol-themed shows on the TV Guide channel (i.e. Justin Guarini, Kimberly Caldwell) or even a stint on Celebrity Fit Club (Kimberley Locke).

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 8:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: American Idol
        

So Jordin Sparks has been named the new American Idol, which like the finale itself wasn’t much of a surprise. Click here to read how Sparks won.

It seems as if last month’s charity extravaganza, Idol Gives Back, took too much away from Season 6’s big finish. Most of the guests either performed on the charity bash (Kelly Clarkson) or popped up during the season (Gwen Stefani and Tony Bennett).

Toward the end, new Idol acts like Green Day and Bette Midler changed things up, but the bulk of the show had a serious déjà vu feel.

What the night lacked in originality and class it made up for in camp. Sanjaya Malakar entered Elvis-style and sang a duet to "You Really Got Me Now" (but again done before on the show) with Aerosmith’s Joe Perry.

The freaks from the auditions got invites and brought some serious crazy with them. Margaret "The Chicken Lady" Flower picked up an award for best presentation and proceeded to make out with Ryan Seacrest. The tiny host was bowled over by the whole lot of woman. (See, that’s how it’s done, Teri Hatcher). This season’s odd couple: Kenneth "the bush baby guy" and his sidekick, Jonathan, were good sports and returned for laughs at their expense.

The good news was that throughout the night the Idols sounded great. Melinda Doolittle and LaKisha Jones (our quasi-Maryland Idol) may have hogged the group sing with Gladys Knight, but did we really need to hear Haley Scarnato again?

For the big surprise, former winners Clarkson, Taylor Hicks, Carrie Underwood and Ruben Studdard along with the current finalists closed out the show with a medley of Beatles songs, which for years were strictly banned from the show. As far as stunts go, that’s pretty weak.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: American Idol
        

In last night’s landslide of reality TV, I had to pick my battles. Idol and Dancing got the live treatment, but On The Lot was relegated to Tivo limbo. Judging by last night’s ratings (On The Lot’s numbers were half that of its lead-in American Idol) — many people either taped it or more likely tuned out altogether.

And more worrisome for Fox, the people who did stick around for the show — billed as the search for the next big filmmaker — started to abandon ship midway through. I know why. It was pretty to look at, but, boy, was it boring.

So here’s the concept: 50 filmmakers were chosen from thousands of entries (each director submitted a film). Each week, directors will be judged on a series of challenges and films (including their original submission). The winner receives a one-million dollar development deal with Dreamworks Studio.

Much like other reality shows, On The Lot has three judges from the industry. Actress and screenwriter Carrie Fisher (Star Wars), comedy director Gary Marshall (Laverne and Shirley, Georgia Rule), and action director Brett Ratner (X-Men: The Last Stand, Rush Hour) serve as the opening show's arbiters.

While judges lack the zingers of American Idol, they were the best part of the first show. The interactions between Fisher and Marshall are endearing and Ratner (whom I usually loathe) brings a wide-eyed enthusiasm and respect for the contestants that’s refreshing.

The judges introduce the first challenge: The pitch. The directors are randomly assigned one of five pre-fab plot lines that they will have to convince the judges to make a movie around:

1. A slacker applies to the CIA and is accepted.

2. A man watches TV and discovers he’s a wanted or missing man.

3. A mouse is abducted by a drug company and must plot an escape.

4. A priest meets the woman of his dream just before he is to be ordained.

5. A crate from a military base is delivered to a house in suburbia.

Evoking Project Runway’s manic deadlines, the directors are given 12 hours to flesh out the idea. And here’s where the show started circling the bowl. The contestants are — how do I say this? — personality challenged. Maybe the editing process hid the super-interesting ones, but come on, throw us a bone here. When they finally make the pitch there’s a lot of nervousness, screw-ups and even some man tears. Yet little in the way of inspired nuttiness or genuine creative spark.

One highlight was a crazed pitch by Jeremy Corray. He really got into it — looking like the villain from The Incredibles and screaming things like “ninja star to the head!” At one point as he started fiddling with his belt, Fisher was worried he was going to drop his pants. After the pitch, Corray admits he may have gotten carried away but he just wanted to “unleash the thunder.” Trust me, dude, it’s never a good idea to “unleash the thunder” in front of Princess Leia. He’s snicker-worthy and quasi-entertaining, so of course he’s one of 14 contestant to be sent packing in the first round.

After the bloodletting, the judges waste no time and hurl the survivors into the next challenge, which involves teams. Yippee! (I cross my fingers, hoping for some serious cat fights and hair pulling.) Alas, the bickering falls short of my lofty expectations. Mostly, some ugly fat guy named Jeff is being bossy and evil to some little leprechaun of a man, aptly named Marty Martin.

And this is where the Tivo tells me it’s over. And for once, I’m not cross with Tivo for cutting off the end.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 1:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

So it looks like Jordin Sparks has season six of American Idol in the bag. But that hasn't stopped the staff of Blake Lewis' hometown newspaper, The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, from making the case for their native son. Here's their top 10 list put out this week:

1. To keep things in equilibrium. Women won Seasons 1, 3 and 4 of “American Idol”; men won Seasons 2 and 5. In the interest of maintaining some sort of karmic balance, it’s the guy’s turn to win.

2. Because Blake’s hometown of Bothell rhymes with brothel. Don’t discount a strong vote from snickering adolescents across the United States.

3. America likes a good gimmick — and Blake has one.

4. “Blake Lewis“ is an anagram for “Sew Likable.” Get it?

5. He’s unique. No other finalist on “American Idol” has sounded like a human beatbox. Be honest. You can’t wait till Blake releases his album of Sinatra covers. Working title: “New (buh-bum) York, New (buh-bum) York.”

6. He’s got a fan club that calls itself the Blaker Girls. How cool is that?

7. Unlike Sanjaya Malakar — the other “Idol” wannabe from the Seattle area — Blake can carry a tune. Not too far, it’s true. But most top-40 songs are sprints, not marathons.

8. The tuxedo T-shirt deserves a comeback.

9. This competition isn’t about pure singers. If it were, Melinda Doolittle still would be in the running.

10. A performer who goes by the name BShorty deserves a chance to stand tall. 

Convinced? Neither I am. Sparks should continue to practice winning the show in the mirror all day today.

P.S. The Arizona Republic -- Sparks' hometown paper -- also has a top 10 list. Their version is a tad more believable.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 8:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: American Idol
        

Olympic speed skater Apolo Anton Ohno and his professional dance partner, Julianne Hough, took home the giant disco ball trophy last night, winning season four of Dancing With the Stars.

Ohno and Hough came into the final night in first place and maintained their dominance (with the judges at least), garnering a perfect score dancing the paso doble.

Ohno and Hough had drawn cheers Monday with a hip-hop, breakdance-inspired performance that essentially sealed their victory.

Former NSYNC star Joey Fatone and his partner, Kym Johnson, placed second with strong freestyle dancing Monday. The two revisited a Star Wars-themed tango with ultra-geek panache last night (light saber and a cloak were used as props). Earlier in the season the audience ate up the staging, but technique left the judges unimpressed. Last night, the quality of the dancing finally started to match the fun of the staging.

The big surprise of the week was professional boxer Laila Ali. The fan favorite was an early front-runner, and many thought she would be become the second woman to win the seasonal dance-off (Kelly Monaco won season one). While Ali and her partner, Maksim Chmerkovskiy, shined revisiting the mambo, it wasn’t enough to make up for Monday’s disastrous freestyle.

  A fierce competitor, Ali didn’t leave the Dancing stage quietly. While she graciously thanked the crew, saying she was grateful for the experience, she added: "Of course, I’m pissed I didn’t win."

As for the rest of the show, whoa, and I thought the Idol people dragged things out. While I was off in Idol land, my dear friend Anne Tallent — The Sun’s deputy arts editor — valiantly watched the first half of the bloated finale.

Some of her observations: "Billy Ray Cyrus looks like one of the Geico cavemen." He was rocking a mullet and track pants. And "Ian Ziering is a sad, sad Elvis."

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: Dancing With the Stars
        

Performance night opens with a jubilant Ryan Seacrest in a three-piece suit, dramatically lit — just the way he likes it. From there, we get to trip down Idol memory lane. The producers — never passing up a chance to roll the freak reel — tell us that Blake Lewis and Jordin Sparks both auditioned in Seattle. We get the back stories: A friend coaxed Lewis to audition, and Sparks missed her driver’s license exam.

The judges get their perfunctory introductions. But this time it’s actually interesting because we’re eager to see how screwed up Paula Abdul is after news this week that she took a tumble over her fat dog.

Randy Jackson is shown first; sporting military fringe, he looks as though he went into another Jackson’s closet to get dressed tonight. Abdul is very swollen but, sadly for us, is not so heavily medicated that she’s lost touch with reality. Cowell desperately wants America to see his chest hair and does his best to rile up Abdul.

The coin toss for the performance order is held. Lewis wins and decides to go first. Seacrest explains that the contestants will sing three songs: one they have already performed, a new song of their choosing and the final song — the dreaded pre-fab Idol shlock number. This time around, it was the product of a contest.

Lewis opens with "You Give Love a Bad Name," which made a huge splash during Bon Jovi week. Blake — his black mop now evolved into serious skunk hair — doesn’t veer much from the original Idol performance. "If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it" is the rationale. The two judges — I won’t really bother to recap Abdul — are nonplussed by the singing but dig the performance.

For Sparks’ new song choice, she selects Christina Aguilera’s "Fighter." Eschewing the prom-tent apparel of weeks past, she looks good but struggles to break through the production elements of the song. The song choice is a perilous one; though it has power, range and a great chorus (all Idol essentials), the studio antics of the original make a live version seem less than. Abdul’s up on her feet and all aboard the praise train, but the sane ones aren’t impressed. Cowell calls round one to Lewis.

Seated on the sensitivity stool, Lewis launches into his second song — his new one for the night — Maroon 5’s "She Will Be Loved." He looks comfortable and strolls the catwalk/audience pit like a pro. He makes a smart, if obvious, choice with the song selection: maximum performance payoff with minimum singing difficulty. Lewis’ devious plan works like a charm on Jackson and Abdul, but Cowell isn’t drinking the Kool-Aid. He correctly observes that it was safe choice.

Next it’s Sparks’ turn to dive into the recycling bin with Martina McBride’s "A Broken Wing." She nailed that song during country week and repeats the slam dunk here. With the show moving like a freight train and running low on time, the judges roundly agree it was great but don’t elaborate.

Seacrest drags out Scott Krippayne and Jeff Peabody, the winners of the songwriting contest. They’re from Seattle, too — must be something in the coffee. The Los Angeles Times has more on the duo.

Back to the show. Lewis is in the Idol monitor! (Can he do that?) He’s wearing gold shoes and gold argyle! He means business. Too bad this song doesn’t. It’s better than the other wretched pre-fab Idol songs. But if he’s going head-to-head against Sparks with this inspirational fluff, he’s done for. He gives it the good try, but he knows the deck is stacked against him. The judges are lukewarm. Cowell at least points out the raw deal Lewis got and decides he’ll judge him on the first two songs alone. Lewis better hope America does the same.

OK. It’s all over now. Sparks is on stage, and she looks great. The cheesy song fits her like a glove, and she knows it. She starts slow but hits it out of the park at the end. As the song winds down, she chokes up on cue. Camera pans to loving family. And the title crown is all but a formality.

"You just wiped the floor with Blake on that song," Cowell says in closing.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: American Idol
        

As Idol ratings have dipped slightly this season, packs of chicken-littles have emerged claiming the end is near for the hit show.

Come to think of it, this season has the perfect four horsemen of the apocalypse lineup: Pestilence (Antonella Barba), Slaughter (Gina Glocksen), Desolation (Sanjaya Malakar) and Death (Phil Stacey).

Seriously though, while most just say Idol is over, one TV critic is actually thinking constructively. Eric Deggans of The St. Petersburg Times has five ways to shore up Idol. From his column that was published today:

1. Actively recruit contestants.

When CBS’s Survivor found that open casting calls kept attracting the same kind of people, they recruited a more diverse group that helped revitalize the program. Idol expands its open casting calls every year, yet culls increasingly blander lineups. Sparks was even rejected from the Los Angeles auditions (she won a contest that flew her to Seattle for another try), and Doolittle only auditioned because she was accompanying a friend. Time to take the initiative and find new voices.

2. Upgrade the celebrity coaches.

Every celebrity mentor who performed on Idol this year sounded markedly worse than the contestants themselves. And some say, balding, paunchy disco icon Barry Gibb have little connection to the current pop scene. It’s time for coaches who are better performers and teachers. Who wouldn’t tune in to see Prince really put these kids through some changes?

3. Combine judges’ votes with the public’s.

One of the biggest post-Idol problems for winners such as Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino and Taylor Hicks is that their musical styles are not the most popular genres, limiting their chances to live up to the Idol title. More guidance is needed from the presumed industry experts.

4. Get Paula back on the crazy train, or get her gone.

It sounds awful to say, but since Paula Abdul has toned down her nonsensical asides and oddball behavior, she has become a platitude-spouting bore.

5. Stop padding the shows.

The trade magazine Variety noted last week that ratings for Wednesday Idol editions are far higher than for Tuesday; nearly a third of last Wednesday’s audience just tuned in for the ejection episode and hadn’t watched the competition on Tuesday. Time to stop filling out episodes. Cut the results show back to a half-hour and don’t even think about interrupting the competition for a week of charity fundraising.

Click here for the full column. What do you think Idol can do differently next season?  Or does it even have to change. Share your thoughts in our comments section.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 3:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: American Idol
        

and

My apologies, I posted in error earlier today. My TV info is apparently out of date, and ABC has changed its plans. American Idol and Dancing With the Stars are on tonight, but they won't overlap. Maybe someone at ABC was playing chicken and veered away from the Idol semi at the last minute.

Let's try this again, shall we? The first part of the American Idol finale airs from 8 to 9 p.m. on Fox (WBFF, Channel 45). Then Dancing with the Stars holds its final dance-off and names its winning couple in a two-hour special from 9 to 11 p.m. on ABC (WMAR, Channel 2). Will you watch all that TV? Or is something getting skipped? Tell us your viewing strategies for the big night in our comments section.

Check back here later tonight (or tomorrow morning if you're normal) for recaps of American Idol and Dancing to brush up on what you may have missed.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 12:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: American Idol, Dancing With the Stars
        

Everyone's favorite loopy American Idol judge, Paula Abdul, took a tumble over the weekend after she tripped over her chubby chihuahua, Tulip. But Idol fans shouldn't worry -- she'll be on Idol tonight.

The Associated Press reports: Paula Abdul broke her nose over the weekend after she fell while trying to avoid stepping on her Chihuahua, her publicist said late Monday. Abdul was recovering from the mishap and will appear on American Idol Tuesday and its season finale Wednesday, publicist David Brokaw said. “She’s a little sore, but is doing fine,” he said.

No word on whether she'll sport some crazy head gear. I'm personally hoping her doctor prescribed plenty of pain meds and she wears one those doggy cones around her neck. That would be ratings gold.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 8:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: American Idol
        

Last night, ABC wrapped up its military-themed Bachelor: Officer and a Gentleman with predictable results. Naval Academy grad Lt. Andy Baldwin proposed to the final bachelorette in a full-on cheese landslide. In keeping with other 'Bachelor' bondings, I have a feeling that they may not last beyond today's network-mandated Good Morning America appearance.

SPOILER ALERT: (Don't say I didn't warn you.) Yeah, so the prim-and-proper brunnette chick (Tess, the social worker) got the ring and the feisty blonde (Bevin) was sent packing. Blondes have more fun, but they sure don't win romance-themed reality shows. Read more here: Zap2it's recap of 'The Bachelor' finale.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 7:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Bachelor/Bachelorette
        

Tim Swift again. So, full disclosure: I’m not a huge fan of the show, and I mock it often. So here’s my bitter take on the first part of the extended finale of Dancing with the Stars:

Laila Ali and Maksim Chmerkovskiy

In the judges’ choice round, Ali said she was a big girl who wasn’t getting thrown around — but she still liked the frilly dress. While not as flashy as the performances of the other couples, the pair showed structure, discipline and adherence to the theme. Ali capped it all off with a mock punch sending the corny judges into a tailspin of praise. They earned 29 of 30 possible points.

In the freestyle round, it was a whole lot of sparkles and booty shaking to Michael Jackson’s "Shake Your Body (To the Ground)." To my untrained eye, it was a hot mess that reminded me of Striptease (yes, I’m thinking Demi Moore, not Ving Rhames). Speaking of a striptease, things got fake-steamy at the end when Ali ripped Chmerkovskiy’s shirt off. Carrie Ann Inaba, my favorite judge (well, the one I could understand), summed it up perfectly, saying it lacked sophistication. The other whack jobs hated it, too, and the couple earned a disappointing 26 of 30 points.

Status: In third place, scoring 55 of 60 possible points.

   Apolo Anton Ohno and Julianne Hough

Dancing to "Midnight Train to Georgia," Ohno and Hough took on the rumba in their best noir-period gear: him in suspenders, her in a skimpy nightie. The results were uneven. While the performance was energetic, the theme of the dance was lost in their decision to quicken the pace. At points, Hough looked too much like a piece of furniture being lugged around the stage. The ever-manic judge Bruno Tonioli said they were "a joy to watch" and insisted, "They made love on the dance floor." But the calmer Len Goodman correctly observed that the dancing lacked romance. They scored 28 of 30 points.

In the interview clip, Ohno said he really wanted to breakdance in the freestyle round. And breakdance he did. Evoking showtune-friendly Crips (they even had gang-style bandannas to shimmy across their butts!), Ohno and Hough broke it down to "Bust a Move" with some impressive spins and fancy footwork. The judges — flummoxed by what just transpired — had no choice but to love it. "So original" Tonioli screamed. Dude, have you seen a movie from the ’80s? In the end it earned them a perfect score.

Status: In first place, scoring 58 of possible 60 points.

Joey Fatone and Kym Johnson

The opening clip foreshadowed trouble, telling us that Fatone’s fat and tired, and his shoulder hurts. Johnson is clearly over it. The judges selected the cha-cha for them. And the pair whole-heartedly ignored them. Stealing a routine from his NSYNC glory days, Fatone held Johnson as she mimed as a puppet on a string; then they did a quick change into a spastic outpouring of aerobics/jazzercises. The judges weren’t amused that Fatone and Johnson didn’t actually dance what they asked them to do. Tonioli said it was cheeky and entertaining but correctly noted that it was "Just a cha."

In the freestyle, the pair started slow and formal. But it was all a sneaky trick. The body of "Last Dance" kicked into gear, and the couple burst out of their prom wear into gold pleather! What is with this show and tear-away clothes? Weird. Fatone geeked out, and this time the judges actually liked it. Inaba was happy that Fatone incorporated all of his training into one of his final dances. Goodman was pleased that finally (after five dances), a woman got picked up and thrown about the stage. "I wish we had more than a 10 to give," he said.

Status: In second place, scoring 56 of 60 possible points.

Coming tomorrow: There is one more dance to be danced — even though the audience votes tonight and the winner is named tomorrow. Confused? Yeah, me too. I have just convinced myself that they use the Da Vinci Code to determine the winner, and the votes and scores are meaningless.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Dancing With the Stars
        

Tomorrow in The Sun to celebrate the end of yet another season of "American Idol," I'm giving out "awards" for the best and worst moments of year six. But I'm surely not the only one with opinions about Idol. Tell us about who you think should win in the comments section.

The categories are:

1. Best performance

2. Worst performance

3. Most improved judge

4. Least original judge

5. Best celebrity guest

6. Worst celebrity guest

7. Best freak (from the auditions)

8. Best fallen idol

Good Luck

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 1:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: American Idol
        

Sarah may be on vacation, but reality TV and the Reality Check blog goes on. I'm Tim Swift, the deputy Today editor at The Sun, and I'll be your guest blogger as the spring season peaks and the summer cycle (the prime breeding ground for new hits) just gets started.

This week marks the end of reality heavyweights "Dancing With the Stars" and "American Idol." But a new crop of reality shows is on the way. Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance" resurfaces Thursday paired with the new movie-themed show, "On The Lot." And ABC's "National Bingo Night" already debuted this past Friday. Sadly after Friday's ratings (the camp fest only garnering a teeny three million viewers) the network will likely be yelling "NO BINGO!," pretty soon.

As for American Idol, speculation about the winner is heating up as Wednesday's bloated spectacle nears. With no clear favorite, many fans are saying this is actually going to be an exciting finale for once. Even Judge Simon Cowell, who usually thinks he knows everything, is stumped.

"I can't call it at this stage," Cowell told reporters last week on a conference call. "For Blake, he's a brilliant entertainer, but the negative is he's not a fantastic singer. The advantage for Jordin is she is a great singer and the negative is she hasn't done one performance yet which I can remember as a 'wow.'"

I agree. Do you?

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: American Idol
        

Just an FYI ... I'll be out of the country for a few days and not able to post here. (I know! Clearly, I did not check the calendar too carefully when booking this trip, since I'm missing the finales of Dancing With the Stars and American Idol and the premieres of On the Lot -- which, with Spielberg as a producer sounds interesting -- and So You Think You Can Dance -- a personal favorite).

Keep an eye out for some guest blog entries here and there, and we'll catch up when I get back.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

This weekend, I saw the promo show for the Real World Las Vegas Reunion that starts in a couple of weeks. First, I can't believe it's been five years since all the drama from that season (the pregnancy scare! the pseudo-threesome! the fork-throwing! the go-go dancing! the wrestling! the relationships! Trishelle!). Second, if had to guess who from the season who would be married with two kids, I would have gone with Frank, not Brynn, but hey, that would explain why she's the only one who hasn't been on one of the challenge shows.

So here's the deal with everyone:

Brynn, as mentioned is married with two kids. Not only that, but she's actually married to Austin, the guy she met right before leaving for the show who came to visit her during the season.

Frank has returned to school and is determined to have fun and not care whether he makes a fool out of himself. So business as usual, except he might not be turning down lap dances like he was in 2002.

Steven is back in school and working as a personal trainer.

Trishelle is trying to make it as an actress and is super-blonde.

Irulan, who, as you might recall, dated Alton for three years after they were on the show together, is in New York working as a photographer and dating someone else.

Alton is starting a business and has a new girlfriend.

Arissa is a painter and trying to be centered.

But there is bound to be all kinds of drama -- everyone seems to have kept in touch with one another, except for Arissa. And this is supposedly the first time Irulan and Alton have seen each other since the breakup. So, while I might have complained about it when I first heard about this show, I think I'll be checking it out.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: The Real World
        

Tonight on American Idol, somebody's going home, and that will reveal our final two.

The show starts with an intro from host Homer Simpson, who jokes whether it's too late to vote for Fantasia.

Melinda is wearing a top that says Death Cheater. I don't know what's up with that. Tonight's filler includes performances from former contestant Elliott Yamin and Maroon 5, both of which I am unduly excited about.

My TiVo cut off last night before Ryan made the judges call the final two. (For the record, Randy said Melinda and Jordin, Paula wouldn't answer, and Simon says he wants to see Melinda in the final.)

Next, we get a glance of Jordin's visit home of Glendale, Ariz. Then Ryan goes over the judges' comments from last night and then fakes her out and says she will find out whether she's safe later. Then Blake's visit home gets some screen time (and we learn that Blake and Sir Mix-a-lot have actually done some shows together before). Then he stands on the stage (with his adorable dad) with Ryan, who goes over the judges' comments. But, still no results.

Last year's third-place finisher Elliott Yamin comes out to perform. Seriously, I don't think any of the guys' voices this season are in the same league as his. He just has great tone, and I love to listen to him sing. But his appearance on the show is reminding me how polarizing last season was -- people adored or were indifferent toward Elliott and loved or were bored by Katherine McPhee and loved or hated Taylor Hicks. I don't think any of this season's finalists inspire that intense of feelings. It's a pretty pleasant final three, but not that dramatic. After the performance, Randy says it's good to have him back, Paula says she's speechless, and Simon says it was great. He mentions that his tour starts tomorrow in Alexandria (that's the Birchmere if you are wondering, but also, it's sold out).

When we're back, it's the car commercial with the contestants. Then Ryan talks to Melinda and shows clips of her visit home. He goes over her judges' comments, too. But ... still no results.

First, Maroon 5 performs its new single "Makes Me Wonder." In the audience, there is a guy doing the white-dude side-to-side, and I'm pretty sure it's executive producer Nigel Lythgoe (also a judge on So You Think You Can Dance). I'll have to see if I can get a screen shot because it cracked me up.

OK, results time, for real this time. Ryan says almost 60 million votes were cast and that Jordin Sparks is through to the finale. He calls Melinda Doolittle forward and tells her she is out. So Blake Lewis is safe.

Wow, that is unexpected. I'm pretty flabbergasted. I really thought Melinda's consistency would take her to the finale. But I guess that's not engaging enough for voters? Who knows.

Anyway, next week's finale: Jordin vs. Blake! Forget what I said earlier about no drama.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)
Categories: American Idol
        

Tonight on American Idol, the Top 3 will perform three songs. One was picked by a judge, the producers have picked a song, and the contestants each get to choose a song, too.

Jordin Sparks is up first. Simon Cowell chose her song, "Wishing on a Star." She starts out a little slow, but as the song gets faster, she gets warmer and closes really strongly. Randy says she evoked Beyonce and that the runs at the end were great. Paula said it was a great way to start the show. Simon says she sang it brilliantly, but he wishes they hadn't done "a weird jazz arrangement."

Blake Lewis is next. Paula Abdul chose his song, and she went with "Roxanne" by the Police. He changes up the notes a little bit, so as to avoid sounding like he's copying Sting exactly, I assume. It works pretty well (at least he doesn't sound like he's about to go "Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahx-aaaaane" like people do when it's on in their cars -- surely that's not just my entire family and group of friends)? It is a little ... I don't know, tinny? His voice just doesn't have a lot of depth to my ear, and this song kind of reveals that. But, as usual, he performs the heck out of it, and the audience likes crazy. Randy says it was a great performance and a "pretty good vocal," and overall, an A. Paula says he did her proud, and it was fantastic. Simon says it wasn't earth-shattering, but that you are always forced to "do an impersonation of Sting" with that song, "and it wasn't as good as the original. It was good; it wasn't great." See, while I wasn't blown away, I think he did what he could to avoid exactly that criticism (at least, without making the song unrecognizable).

Melinda Doolittle is assigned Whitney Houston's "I Believe in You and Me" by Randy Jackson. So they are definitely pushing her, given that they usually try to keep the contestants away from the big, well-known voices like that. She gives another strong, professional performance (marred by a bit of a shriek in the middle), but also ends solidly. Randy says he wanted to throw some difficulty at her, and that it was hot, and she "blew it out the box." Paula says she was fantastic and amazing and that this was one of her best performances. Simon says it was a very, very difficult song, and that this was her best performance of the past four weeks. "Round one goes to Melinda," he closes.

Jordin is forced to take a viewer question about her favorite song of all time. She says "MMMmmBop" by Hansen always puts a smile on her face. Her producers' choice is "She Works Hard for the Money." She has a blast dancing all over the stage, keeps up with the tempo the whole way through the song, and gives it another big finish. Randy says she is working it out no matter what song it is. Paula: "Jordin, you worked hard for the money tonight; I thought that was fantastic." Did she just call Jordin a prostitute? Simon says it was a great performance, but that arrangement was a little off, but it was good. He's cracking up over Paula's comment and can't seem to get it together, adding, "I thought the money note at the end was very good." *cough*

Blake also has a viewer question, this one about what the movie of his life should be called and who should play him. He says Jim Carrey and it would be called Organized Chaos. His song from the producers is "This Love" by Maroon 5. He breaks it down a little going out of the chorus. Also, given that they usually steer clear of some of the racier allusions, I'm shocked that the shortened version includes the line about fingertips. But I'll leave it at that. (Of course, Jordin did just sing "She Works Hard for the Money," so maybe I am just confused.) Randy says when he makes a record that "that's the kind of record you should make." Paula says, "I was hoping you would do that. You are totally in your element." Simon says he preferred this to the first song because he sounded very comfortable and not copycat at all.

Melinda is asked who her idol is and why. She says her mom. She's going to sing Ike and Tina Turner's "Nutbush City Limits," as per the producers. She works the rock and soul vibes of the song, and it's definitely her most engaging and entertaining performance in a while. They wanted excitement from her, and I think she brought it. Randy brings out the record line again and says she needs to use that kind of music in her first album. Paula says she looks like she had fun and says they love her. Simon says he "loved that side of you, and actually, again, another brilliant performance." When Ryan forces them to score the round, Simon calls it a tie.

Jordin's song choice is "I Who Have Nothing." It's a huge song, and she delivers. Randy says it was her best performance of the night and that she had great control. Paula says it "sat well with your voice" and it was a good choice. Simon says she sang it really, really well, but part of her hates that a 17-year-old was singing a 60-year-old song, and he wishes she'd sung something else.

Blake is going to sing Robin Thicke's "When I Get You Alone." First, they show him in Seattle beatboxing while Sir-Mix-a-Lot (also from Seattle) sings "Baby Got Back." Hee! I'm not super-familiar with the song, but the vocals seem to suit his voice more than the first option did. Randy says he sees why he chose that, that it was "cool," though he sounds unconvinced. Paula says he had three great songs. Simon says he really liked it. He says he takes risks and looks like he is having fun and that's what he likes about him.

Melinda closes the show with her choice, "I'm a Woman." She works the song over, and even has a little interlude with the backup singers, cute since she used to be one. Randy says he is seeing "the range of Melinda Doolittle." Paula says she is "stepping out into the spotlight." And something about her journey. Simon says he loved the "little striptease" at the beginning (when she lost her jacket). He adds: "If I'm going to award a place in the final to the person who's consistently delivered week after week, it's you."

Everyone worked pretty hard this week, and it was a blast to watch. But I'm with Simon. If you're voting on consistency, it's all about Melinda. And while she's been dinged for not being super-interesting, I think she stepped it up on the performance front this evening. But everyone was entertaining. What do you think?

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)
Categories: American Idol
        

Want to see Fort Meade's LaKisha Jones perform in person? Or, for that matter, any of the other Top 10 finalists from this season of American Idol? Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday (May 19) at Ticketmaster for the tour, which stops at D.C.'s Verizon Center on Sept. 9 and Baltimore's 1st Mariner Arena on Sept. 19.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 5:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: American Idol
        

I missed last night's Dancing With the Stars (though it's waiting for me on the VCR), but I just read this little tidbit of gossip about last season. Looks like Mario Lopez and his dance partner from the show, Karina Smirnoff, are moving in together, according to People magazine.

Also, who would have thought that The New York Times would take on VH1's Charm School (which is hosted by Baltimore comedian Mo'Nique)? But it did, and found a lot to talk about.

And don't forget ... it's the final three on tonight's American Idol. They will be singing three songs -- their choice, the judges' choice and Clive Davis' choice. Could be interesting. I hope it is!

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 8:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: American Idol, Dancing With the Stars
        

So now that we have the first unanimous winner in Survivor history (Earl Cole), then who of the rest of the final three gets the $100,000 second-place prize?

Jeff says Earl got only two days' notice that he was going to be on the show, and Earl adds he hadn't seen much of the show. Jeff asks him when his alliance with Yau-Man formed. He says the first day, they bonded, especially when he noticed Yau was "like the professor of Gilligan's Island." Jeff asks if they had an agreement to a certain point. Earl says to the end, but that among all the alliances, they always said at final four and final five, it was every man for himself. Yau says Earl worked very, very hard in their hard Ravu conditions and was kind to him. Earl says the key moment of the game was when he had to write Yau-Man's name down after Dreamz went back on the deal. He admits that at that moment, he thought he had won a million dollars when he looked at the jury and the other folks in the final two.

If it's a Yau Man-Earl final, the jury says six of them would have gone for Yau. So yeah, I guess Earl made the right decision.

They agree they will be friends for life and shake on it. Awww ...

Dreamz is asked for some perspective on his background and how it changes how he comes into the game. Dreamz says he never had a thought about the conditions because they weren't that bad, that he thought more about being "in or out of humanity." Jeff says he was worried about him being "socially overwhelmed." Dreamz says the first day, he talked to Earl and they wanted to be in the final five together. Dreamz says he was never in charge of anything, just slithering his way through. Jeff asks him if he knew from Day 1 what his plan was. Jeff instead asks Cassandra whether Dreamz was flying by the seat of his pants or playing the part of a guy who was flying by the seat of his pants. Cassandra says he was playing the part.

Jeff recaps the events of the truck deal. They show the deal, they show him interviewing and saying he will keep his word, then they show him going back on his word. The audience boos. (Boo jokes like they are cheering for him.) Jeff asks Dreamz whether, when he made the deal, he intended to keep his word or was he playing him from the start. He says after accepting the deal, he wanted to get Yau-Man out and didn't, so he had to renege. Dreamz said he never intended to keep his word because it's part of the game. Jeff asks whether he thought about giving back the truck. He says he would think about it, and then go back into game mode.

Jeff asks Earl about Dreamz, when he told Yau-Man he thought Dreamz would keep his word, did he mean it. Earl says he totally thought Dreamz would keep his word.

Next, Jeff turns his attention to fan favorite Yau-Man. Yau says he thought Dreamz would keep his word, but that he was impressed by his decision. He says Dreamz is a smart guy, but a totally undisciplined thinker. He has flashes of genius but doesn't know what to do with them and that with more education, he can do anything he wants to. Jeff asks why he didn't try to persuade Dreamz to live up to his word. He says it was his stubborn streak, because he couldn't admit he might have been wrong about Dreamz. Yau goes on to add that getting recognized on the street has been an adjustment since most people who call his name know him since he has a rare name.

I am tired of typing the words "keep his word."

Rocky is next under the spotlight. Jeff calls him the "go-to guy" for quotes and drama. Jeff adds that Rocky and Anthony didn't get along too well, and conveniently they are sitting next to each other. Anthony says it was part of his strategy to be non-confrontational.

Jeff asks Alex why anyone trusted Dreamz. Alex doesn't really answer, but says they were stuck with either him or Lisi, and Lisi wanted to go home.

Lisi says she isn't capable of holding her emotions in, which is why she was so crazy on the show.

Jeff talks to Boo about his injury, and he says he does indeed have a torn ACL.

Jeff then calls out Michelle for being one of the first people on the show ever to actually start a fire without help. She says her attitude was more important than age in the game.

Edgardo says he got homesick after getting blindsided, which was apparently somehow unexpected.

Jeff is going to a break and says that "Survivor takes a bigger ... awww, nice comment, I got it." Something happened off-mike, but I sure didn't hear it. Anybody else catch it?

Jeff mentions that this finale was their 200th episode of the show. He asks Gary about whether it's really that hard. He says he was done in by fire-ant bites and shows off his giant Survivor tattoo.

It's that time of the reunion show when Jeff realizes there are a whole lot of people he hasn't talked to yet, so he makes a quick run through the remainder.

Mookie says the hardest thing for him was being at almost every single tribal council.

Jeff asks Stacy about the challenge when she took a bunch of personal hits. She says it grounded her and she learned a lot about herself.

Liliana gained 20 pounds before the show to get some reserves, thinking she was going to be in it for a while.

Rita says her kids are very proud and learned to stick to their dreams.

Sylvia says a house she designed is going to be on a show on HDTV.

Erica says she was frustrated to not get to play for very long.

Jessica says she got to know everyone and made some great friends after everyone else got voted out.

The next Survivor setting is revealed: China. Not so tropical, that one!

Earl wishes his mother Happy Mother's Day and gives her half his winnings. Speaking of winnings, who is getting second place? Maybe they will say on The Early Show.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Survivor
        

The Survivor: Fiji finale continues, and we're down to a semi-shocking final three of Earl, Cassandra and Dreamz.

Back at camp, Dreamz apologizes for breaking his word. He's apologizing to the wrong person. Earl rightly notes that the jury is going to rip him up for turning on Yau.

The final three get a clue that says gifts are going to fall from the sky. A plane drops a box, but it lands kind of far out in the water. Earl heads out to get it, and it's food, I assume so they can be coherent in the final tribal council.

They set fire to the camp, getting rid of all the old palm fronds and so on that is littering the camp, before setting out to face the jury.

Jeff makes his usual speech about the power shifting to the jury. As usual, the final folks will make opening statements and then take questions.

• Earl says he tried to make the right moves and avoid the "rats and snakes" part of the game. Yau doesn't look real thrilled about that. He says he wants the respect vote, not the sympathy vote or underdog vote.
• Cassandra says she started out really slow, but she wanted to make sure she made everyone feel comfortable at camp, and she stayed with her alliance the whole game.
• Dreamz says he knows everyone knows his life story because he's talked to everyone about it. He says he hopes everyone's vote helps him and "helps my life," because CLEARLY, as he said before, he is NOT going for the sympathy vote.

Now, it's the jury's turn.

• Michelle starts, asking what the biggest hardship or obstacle each person faced in the game. Dreamz says starving wasn't anything new, but the thirst was new. Cassandra says overcoming her inability to swim. Michelle asks if her fear of water earns her a million dollars. She says that forming an alliance was an obstacle for her, too, and she succeeded at that. Earl says the original Ravu knows about suffering, and that the addition of his multiple times at Exile Island, he thinks he suffered more than anyone in the game.
• Edgardo asks Earl how he found out who had the immunity idol in the other alliance. Earl truthfully says that Dreamz told him.
• Mookie is next, and he congratulates them all. Mookie, having not cooperated with Edgardo, asks Dreamz whether he told anyone about who had the immunity idol. Dreamz says he told Earl, and Mookie asks whether he considers that betrayal, and Dreamz says he thinks it is just "lying." "Telling the biggest secret of the alliance isn't betrayal?" Dreamz says maybe to him.
• Alex the attorney asks Cassandra to describe a moment in which she grappled the most with maintaining her integrity. She says when she wandered into a conversation between Alex and Boo about whether she should be eliminated and she had to struggle with whether to stay and listen. Alex, doing his best audition for Law & Order, says either she is lying now, or that she didn't care at all about Stacy. When she tries to say that he misunderstood the situation, he berates her to stop and says it's his turn to talk. He asks Dreamz about his goals to help kids and then he lied and betrayed. Dreamz says this is a game, not the real world, and he did what he had to do within the game. Alex is definitely the sanctimonious jerk of the jury thus far. Yeesh. Feels like mock trial up in here.
• Lisi says, "Eenie meenie miney mo, catch a liar by its toe," and then asks Cassandra about her water shoes. Lisi says they are the ugliest water shoes she's ever seen and it shows she was completely unprepared for the game. Cassandra says since she's still IN the game, she disagrees. Lisi says she must still be in the game because of greed. Cassandra says she isn't surprised to hear that from Lisi. So Lisi asks what did propel her, "your love of the outdoors?" She says of course, like everyone, winning the million, and Lisi tells her to shut up. Lisi asks Dreamz how many zeroes are in a million. He says six. She says good, and he asks if she thinks he's stupid. She asks Earl about his "show for the jury" during the vote off of Yau. Earl says he was shocked that Dreamz kept immunity, and he was shocked that they are in that part of the game. I hope the holier-than-thou attitudes chill out shortly.
• Stacy says the only difference she sees between Earl and Dreamz is that Earl is a "little more sophisticated." She says this could change Dreamz's life, and whether she should vote based on need. Earl says they all need a million dollars, and is he supposed to feel bad because he has a job and a car? He says they have all been through stuff in their lives.
• Rocky wants to know how they "manipulated" the best. Cassandra says she listened to someone who needed to be listened to. He interrupts her, and she doesn't answer to his liking, so he moves on. Dreamz says he manipulated his way off the chopping block every time his name came up. He also says he manipulated Yau to stay in the game. Earl says he manipulated everyone in the game because none of them thought he was even playing.
• Boo tells them to lose the smiles. Boo says Yau was the greatest player in the game. He asks Dreamz if, as a Christian, whether he was playing Yau when he made the deal or afterward. Dreamz says he sat in the chair and thought about whatever everyone else would have done. Boo lectures him about being an "immature Christian" and says he believes in him.
• Yau-Man says what went down the day before was "entirely my fault." He tells Dreamz to enjoy the truck and not feel guilty about it. He asks if he "has the gonads" to stand up and say why he changed his mind. Dreamz says he didn't change his mind. Yau asks if he was playing him when he accepted the truck in the first place. Yau asks whether he will admit he changed his mind. He says he didn't. He asks Earl why he didn't bring him along. Earl says "because I would not win" because Yau has played the best game.

Jeff reminds the jury that their votes are now being cast for a winner. (And apparently, the final three don't get closing statements.)

The votes are cast, and we don't see a single one this time. Jeff leaves with the votes, and we regroup in New York City, live.

The final three are sitting in the same order, but look cleaned up and happy.

The votes are: Earl, Earl, Earl, Earl and Earl. So it's looking unanimous -- and it is, Jeff reveals later.

And there it is: Earl Cole of Kansas City, Kan., is the winner of Survivor: Fiji.

Live reunion is up next.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: Survivor
        

And the live-blogging of Survivor: Fiji continues again, some more.

I was really thrown off by the Ameriprise commercial that starts with Dennis Hopper calling Dreamz "a delicate little flower." Oh, wait, he was talking about "dreams" in the generic sense, but coming immediately after Dreamz winning immunity, it perplexed me for a minute.

Back at camp, it becomes clear that everyone is going to vote for Dreamz. Yau-Man says, "If you change your mind, can you at least not vote me?" He admits he is totally nervous.

Dreamz says he will stick with his word because he wants to stay honorable and make his son proud. But he also says he is torn and doesn't know what he will do until it is time.

At tribal council, Jeff gets right to the topic of the immunity idol. Basically, everyone talks in circles. (Edgardo gets a good eye-roll in when Dreamz says he is a man of his word.) Dreamz says what makes it more complicated is knowing that the final three will go before the jury. Yau is asked if he has final words for Dreamz, and he says he hopes he will live up to his word.

Dreamz covers his face and decides to keep immunity.

Yau doesn't look too happy about this development. Neither does Dreamz, who cries. A lot. I hope people at least vote for Cassandra and not Yau, but yikes, who knows?

Votes: Cassandra, Yau-Man, Yau-Man and Yau-Man, so Yau is out.

(And he doesn't have a truck! Doh!)

In his exit interview, Yau expresses disappointment that Dreamz didn't live up to his end of the bargain and surprise that Earl voted against him. Not Yau's best day in the game.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Survivor
        

The live-blogging of the Survivor: Fiji finale continues some more ...

Dreamz says he will be sticking with his word if he wins the immunity challenge.

Next, it's time for the "honor the memories of your fallen comrades" part of the finale. Which is also known as the part when you realize how little you remember the first few people on the show. Lilliana? Jessica? And all I remember about Rita is that she talked about lip gloss. (Also along the way, we get treated to a clip of Rocky wearing someone's bikini top.) Dreamz calls Alex his "brother for life," but I find it hard to believe that Alex reciprocates those feelings. Then they burn the boat full of the other teammates' torches. Are you full of wistful, introspective feelings now? You are supposed to be, lest there be any doubt.

For the final immunity challenge, the contestants will lie on a plank on their backs holding onto a wooden handle. Every five minutes, Jeff will turn a crank and increase the angle of the plank, making it harder to hold on. Plus, water will be streaming underneath them, making it slippery. According to my husband, this is the "No One Will be Able to do THIS for 12 Hours Challenge." I concur.

Again, three people will face the jury in the finals, as they did last season (but they hadn't seen last season, so they are surprised).

The challenge begins. Everyone lasts the first five minutes, but after Jeff changes it to a 40 degree angle, people start having problems and adjust. Everyone makes the next five minutes, further than I thought Cassandra would make it, frankly, and Jeff adjusts it to 45 degrees. After 15 total minutes, the angle changes to 50 degrees, and Cassandra loses her grip before Jeff even finishes resetting the angle. Dreamz starts fighting to find a place that works for him, but he does. After 20 minutes, they go to 55 degrees, and they are all struggling. Yau-Man also seems to be getting hit in the face by the water more than anymore. But Earl loses it first, so it's down to Yau and Dreamz, and theoretically, Yau should get immunity either way, right? But Yau-Man loses his grip, and Dreamz wins.

So with Dreamz having immunity, will he keep his word and give it to Yau, or will the potential million-dollar prize prove too enticing?

We'll just have to see.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Survivor
        

The live-blogging of Survivor: Fiji continues ...

Yau-Man looks pretty darned happy to be wearing the immunity necklace. It seems like everyone is targeting Boo, who they have been wanting to get out for a while. Dreamz asks if he is going and adds he is voting for Boo. Why would Yau vote Dreamz out? Dreamz said any outcome would not surprise him.

Boo takes Earl aside to say they should take out Dreamz and argues that Boo should go to the final three because he's totally beatable. Earl interviews that he could beat Boo in the final two, but Yau would get the popular vote and Dreamz would get the sympathy vote. Boo argues the "sympathy" angle with Yau, too, and it seems to be working on him.

At tribal council, Jeff asks Dreamz what kind of threat is most worrisome at this point -- someone who is a physical threat or someone who might break their word. Dreamz says being betrayed is a much larger concern at this point. Earl says there is a lot of careful thinking at this point. Boo says he is the only one who was "scrambling" after the challenge. He says he's a better final-two person than Dreamz because of the sympathy factor and than Yau because he's made no enemies. Dreamz wants to address the sympathy factor -- he says he went on the show to show how far people can make it if they try, not to get sympathy votes. He is not amused.

Boo and Dreamz argue their relative strengths. For a long time.

Time for the votes. Earl plays the last hidden immunity idol, but I don't think anyone cast votes against him. Votes are: Boo, Dreamz, Boo and Boo. (Last one isn't shown.)

So, Boo is out (and he sprints out), and the final four are Yau-Man, Earl, Cassandra and Dreamz.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 8:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Survivor
        

Somehow on tonight's Survivor: Fiji, we're going to go from the final five to the last person standing. I'll be covering it as close to "live" as I can. So let's get started.

On Thursday, Yau-Man saved himself when he played the hidden immunity idol. Back at camp, he and Earl realize they could be in trouble since they were the only ones not in on the plan to vote for Yau. But Earl has the second idol, so they might be OK.

Yau-Man is determined to win the next immunity challenge since he knows his deal with Dreamz makes him a target. (Thursday, he traded the Ford truck he won for Dreamz's promise that if Dreamz won immunity in the final four, he would give it to Yau, if they were both still around.) Earl talks to Cassandra about how he was out of the loop and not happy about it, saying he doesn't care if people take Yau-Man out, that he is all about strategy. Interesting. I'm hoping that statement was a strategic move because he's been playing the game on the up-and-up thus far. Cassandra expresses surprise, but Earl goes on to say that he wouldn't have written down Yau's name, but I can see why people wouldn't talk to him about it.

The first challenge of the evening is for immunity. It's a huge five-section maze that the contestants will have to maneuver blindfolded. It also involves keys and drawbridges (still with the blindfolds). It looks particularly problematic -- that people could fall in the water or off the drawbridge or run their ribs into the walls of the maze, but a few minutes in, they're all injury-free, and Yau-Man is in the lead. Cassandra continues to be totally useless and can't even find the first guidepost in the first section of the maze.

Yau-Man wins immunity and is guaranteed a spot in the final four, and Earl can play the immunity idol (this is the last time it can be played), so he is in the final four, too. Will the others then target Dreamz because of his deal with Yau-Man?

Let's see ...

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 8:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)
Categories: Survivor
        

When they introduced the hidden immunity idol to Survivor, it seemed like it would really mix up the game. But last season, that was not the case, as Yul held on to it for most of the game. This season, it's been a whole different ball game. (Some tweaks in the rules definitely helped -- there were two hidden idols, one on each beach, and after one of them was played, it was re-hidden, with new clues found on Exile Island.)

Yau Man found one (with an assist from Earl), and Mookie found the other. When the tribes merged, in one of the early votes, Mookie, Edgardo and Alex thought they were tricking the other alliance by giving Mookie's idol to Alex, which he then played. But, tipped off my Dreamz, the other group blindsided Edgardo, making the idol useless.

The next episode, fearing that Alex or Mookie had somehow found the re-hidden idol, the other alliance purposefully split its votes, thinking there would be a tie and they could revote and kick out Alex. But Alex thought ahead (must have been his self-proclaimed "ninja-like" powers) and voted for Mookie, saving himself. Then, Alex seemed to nearly persuade some people to turn against and blindside Yau-Man, but it didn't work.

Then tonight, the idol switched things up again. But first, let's talk about the deal-making referenced in the headline. At the reward challenge, Yau-Man won a truck. But he offered it to Dreamz (who had made it extremely clear before the challenge that he really, really needed a car and it could change his life) in exchange for the promise that if they were both in the final four, and Dreamz won immunity, he would give it to Yau-Man. Dreamz took it without hesitating, but later started to realize that the move could also make him vulnerable before the final four. He started working over the rest of the contestants to take out Yau while it was still an option. Meanwhile, Yau-Man sent himself to Exile Island to get another clue to the re-hidden idol and shared it with Earl, who later found the second idol.

Boo won yet another immunity challenge, leaving the tribe confused since they were going to kick him out. So the Yau option seemed like it was going to work. Several voted for him, but he and Earl voted for Stacy, and since Yau unexpectedly played his idol, Stacy got the boot.

Don't forget, the finale is on Sunday. (I almost did.)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Survivor
        

Tonight, the final three of this season of American Idol are revealed. There's a lot of buzz about who might be out this evening. Is it the end for Blake? LaKisha? I'm not really that worried for Jordin or Melinda.

Ryan says this week is often a shocker and asks whether they anticipate a big surprise. During the banter with the judges, they cut over to the contestants, and LaKisha looks very unhappy. I think she suspects she's out.

After some recappage, Ryan says that about 45 million votes were cast last night. That's a few. Or more.

Pink comes out to sing "Who Knew," perhaps to make up for promoing her performance at "Idol Gives Back" and then not ever airing it. (Actually, watching it back, I'm thinking this could be that recorded performance. Midsong, the camera showed the whole stage, and the contestants weren't in the "hotseat" area, and then like a minute later, there they were. What do you think?)

This week's car commercial is to "You Really Got Me." It's followed by the group sing, a medley of Barry Gibb songs. They have a rough start, when Melinda's mic isn't working, but after that it's the usual medley. Except this one really shows how many options they really had, ones that could have been better than some of the choices they made last night. Ryan points out that Bill Maher was in the audience lip syncing to "Islands in the Stream." Would have liked to see that one!

Ryan asks LaKisha why she looked so uneasy last night. She says she had a lot of things going on earlier in the day, including wardrobe issues, and a key change and "hoping that Simon would kiss me again." ("Why not," Simon says. Ryan says hi to Simon's girlfriend in the audience.) Melinda says the judging last night was a wakeup call and that she realizes she needs to step it up.

Then the contestants got to see part of a movie, but since I'm not getting sponsorship fees, I'm not going to spend a lot of time on that. And the stars of unsaid movie are there, including Jessica Alba. (Oops, that was a hint.)

The next segment gives some more background on the contestants. LaKisha cries and says she knows that everyone has a story, but that she has really been through a lot. She also says her grandmother pushed her into singing. After the break, results. Supposedly.

After the break, the final four are group hugging and won't break. Finally, they do, but they are still all clutching one another.

Jordin Sparks is safe.

Then Ryan introduces a segment on a new show about finding the best unsigned band in the country. Of course, more information is at americanidol.com.

Barry Gibb performs while the rest of the contestants worryhopewishwait to find out the results.

Melinda Doolittle is safe.

Simon guesses that LaKisha is out.

Paula tells her and Blake that they are tremendous talents and that they are great.

Blake Lewis is safe, and ...

LaKisha Jones, our pseudo-hometown girl, is out.

She cries during her goodbye montage. At one point, you can see her saying, "It's OK, it was my time," in the corner. She sings "Stayin' Alive." It's all right, it's OK, she knows she'll make it anyway.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: American Idol
        

From guest blogger Lori Sears:

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 6:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

The final four are revealed on tonight's Dancing With the Stars.

Here's how it went down:

• Apolo and Julianne reprise their perfect-scored paso doble.
• Nelly Furtado sings "I'm Like a Bird" because she sure hasn't released two more albums with completely different styles and approaches or had any other hits since her debut in 2000. But maybe "Promiscuous" would be a harder sell on this show (the women's skimpy outfits notwithstanding).
• Working toward revealing the final four, Tom reveals that Billy Ray and Karina are in the bottom two. They are not shocked.
• Maksim and his brother Valentin have a dance-off.
• Nelly comes back to sing "All Good Things," which appears to be from her most recent album.
• Next is the Kimmel segment, which includes a vaguely funny appearance from Master P.
• Ian and Cheryl (or Nacharel, as Tom seems to say) are safe.
• The competitors talk about how much they all love one another and it's so awful that people have to leave. Yawn.
• Laila and Maks are safe.
• Apolo and Juliane are safe.
• Joey and Kym are in the bottom two? (Even Apolo and Juliane are shocked and confused.)
• Billy Ray and Karina are out, and he is THRILLED.

Next week, I think Ian is in trouble, unless the 90210 bloc is stronger than I thought.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: Dancing With the Stars
        

Tonight on American Idol, the final four will perform twice, with all the songs courtesy Barry Gibb, who is the evening's mentor.

His bio notes his time with the Bee Gees, as well as his producing background. Not sure what this means as far the song choices go. When Barry met with them, he tells them they sound great together: "Wanna be a group?" Response: "[nervous laughter, and no one says anything indicating yes]."

Melinda Doolittle is up first with "Love You Inside and Out." Barry says he was confused because it's usually falsetto, but that she pulled it off. What is there to say? She is great as usual. Randy says it's going to be an interesting night. He says it was solid, but he wasn't jumping up and down. Paula says it's hard to critique her because her vocals are always "spot on," but they are maybe looking for something else to wow them. Simon says that "what Paula was attempting to say is that she was not impressed." He adds that it was more of a backing vocalist performance than a star's performance and that he hopes for better in the second song.

Haley Scarnato gets glimpsed in the audience after the break.

Blake Lewis is going to sing "You Should be Dancing." Barry (whose speaking voice reminds me of Sean Connery) says the song suits the beatboxing he's adding. So, sorry Blaker Girls, but I don't love it. The falsetto bugs me, and the "skipping" he adds to the "yeah" at the end of every line gets kind of old. Randy says sometimes the beatboxing works, but tonight it didn't work for him. "To be honest with you, it made it really corny for me." Paula said it started shaky but got better and showed his musicianship. Simon says he will give you "unique" but he thought it was absolutely terrible. I guess I'm the dudes on this one.

LaKisha Jones is going to sing "Stayin' Alive." (We in Maryland hope she does!) She brings a lot more energy and personality to the song than she has in a while. I think she wants this and wants it bad. Randy says it wasn't working and didn't like how she altered the melody. Paula says taking the tempo down took everyone ready to be dancing and brought their mood down. Simon: "Well, LaKisha, no kiss tonight, baby." He says it was verging on scary, and she too is lucky there are two songs. OK, apparently I'm on my own on this one.

Jordin Sparks takes a viewer question about what she's learned about herself in this competition. She says that she can handle a lot more than she thought. She's going to sing "To Love Somebody." Barry says, "I know a couple of hundred people have sung this song, but I haven't heard a great version than Jordin's." Wow. I'm so out of sync with the judges, I barely know what to say about it. But to my (untutored, exhausted) ear, she sounded pretty darned good. Randy says it's been a rough night so far, but that she had the best vocal thus far. Paula says she looks beautiful, and it's not sorta kinda the best vocal, it is the best vocal. Simon says they are back in the competition.

Melinda Doolittle is asked what first tape or CD she first bought. She says it was a tape of Michael Jackson's Bad and that her mom crossed it out and put Good. Hee! Her next song is "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart?" He's confused about why she skipped a line, and she says it's because she doesn't want to sing "about being a loser on American Idol." So I'm not the only one who thinks about the lyrics in the context of whether they would be horrible to sing if you got voted out. About three-quarters of the way through the song, she steps it up a notch and goes big with it. Randy says the second song was way better, with a beautiful ending, and she's still the resident pro. Paula says the vocal was perfect again, but that it would be nice for her to throw all her technique away and surprise him. Simon says the second half of that song has put her into the semifinals. (Uhhhh, aren't we wayyyy past the semis here?)

Blake Lewis is going to sing "This is Where I Came in," a slight more obscure song. Barry says they thought it was going to be a hit, but they were wrong, but that it still can be a hit record, and this is what the song needed. It did sound very contemporary. Randy says this was better, but he's still not jumping up and down, but that he doesn't have to beatbox every time. Paula says he is the "contemporary rebel in this competition." Simon says he doesn't know what that song was and that he found it "completely tuneless."

Can I just say this show goes a lot faster when there are eight performances in an hour instead of having the show be an hour and a half for no reason.

Judge Judy is in the audience, as is Simon's mother. What did I just say about filler? Oy.

LaKisha Jones is going to sing "Run to Me" for her second choice. He asks her to try bringing it up a key earlier than she had planned. Will she listen? It sounds like she might have a little bit of a cold going and might have stayed lower to protect her voice. On the last note, it kind of gives out. Randy says it was a lot better, despite the hoarseness. Paula says not to beat herself up, and when she responds, she can barely be heard. Simon says he thinks she and Blake are vulnerable. (They wouldn't be running out of time for JUDGING if they had dispensed with the Judge Judy nonsense!)

Last is Jordin Sparks. She sings "Woman in Love," taking on Streisand. Barry says he thinks she is going to be one of the greatest female recording artists. He sure isn't holding back with the praise. And she is good tonight. Randy says it wasn't her best performance, because it was a little pitchy (and here I thought we were going to get through an entire episode without that word). Paula thought it wasn't her best, and Simon thought it was old-fashioned and pageanty.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants
        

Yesterday, I interviewed Charla Baklayan Faddoul and Mirna Hindoyan, third-place finishers in The Amazing Race All-Stars, for this story. Here are some more tidbits from our conversation:

• Mirna said one of the biggest differences for her this season of the show vs. season five in 2004 was that she is now married, and her husband got to experience watching her on the show for the first time. "It was all laughter and excitement at our house," she said.
• Charla and Mirna attended "a fan party" after the finale on Sunday (I'm fairly certain it was TARcon) and said they heard so many "encouraging words" and that it was a "mob scene ... a little overwhelming" but oh so great to interact with the fans.
• They said the worst leg of the race for them was probably the last one. Mirna on their experience in San Francisco: "We had the best flight -- we had a two-hour lead [time stamp on the show indicated 40 minutes, just for the record], but when we arrived in Oakland, it was the matter of a taxi ride. Our driver had no idea where anything in San Francisco was, and his phone was broken. We arrived at each destination last because we had to change taxi drivers. That was the most frustrating thing."
• Mirna on luck: "We didn't always have the best luck -- we spent three hours on the cookie challenge and never found a cookie -- but regardless of how bad our luck was, we worked extra hard to push through."
• Asked if they were happy with the winners, they said they had made a couple of tight alliances in the game, with Danny and Oswald and with Eric and Danielle, so if it couldn't be Danny and Oswald, they were happy it was Eric and Danielle.
• Charla and Mirna agreed that their favorite Detour was the kung-fu fighting in Hong Kong. (They had to scale a wall while fighters did stunts around them to intimidate them and slow them down.)
• When asked if they get recognized a lot in Maryland, Mirna said they do, but that the show is also wildly popular in Asia, which often created "a mob scene" when the race took them there this season.
• When asked if they had anything to tell their fans in Baltimore, Mirna said, "We appreciate all your kind words and support, and we hope we made you laugh. ... That's what TV is all about."
• Speaking of TV, they made reference to a possible future reality show that would follow them and their husbands, but for the moment, it sounds pretty up in the air. If I hear anything else about that, I will let you know.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 7:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Maryland reality contestants, The Amazing Race
        

Tonight, we see who is going to win The Amazing Race All-Stars. In the running are beauty queens Dustin and Kandice, Eric and Danielle and Towson cousins Charla and Mirna.

The final leg begins in Fort Soledad in Guam. Dustin and Kandice read the first clue, which directs them to Honolulu, Hawaii. There, they will catch one of three charter flights to the island of Lanai. Dustin and Kandice interview that they have a lot of confidence.

About an hour later, Eric and Danielle take off. Eric interviews that finishing five minutes out of first place in Season 9 is the "most bitter" thing he's ever experienced, and that winning would be redemption.

About a half an hour later, Charla and Mirna get their clue and head to the airport.

Meanwhile, Dustin and Kandice have secured their flight. Eric and Danielle get tickets on a different flight to Tokyo, but the same flight from Tokyo to Honolulu. Charla and Mirna make that flight as well.

Eric and Danielle catch up with Dustin and Kandice in Tokyo, while Charla and Mirna realize there is another flight that arrives in Honolulu 40 minutes earlier than the other plane. They barely make it, and the other teams are FREAKED that Charla and Mirna aren't on the plane with them.

Charla and Mirna arrive at 6:40 a.m. and head to the helicopter place. The second flight arrives at 7:20 a.m., with the two other teams close behind. The teams will fly to Lanai and then drive to a harbor for their next clue. But the charter flights are only 10 minutes apart.

At the harbor, it's a Detour: Under or Over. In Under, they have to go to an underwater cave and swim under the rocks to find their next clue. In Over, they have to go to an inlet, stand and paddle on paddleboards to the a buoy.

Charla and Mirna choose Over, as do Eric and Danielle when they see Charla and Mirna. Then they change their minds again when they see the trouble Mirna is having (while Charla rocks it and gets it done fast).

After the Detour, they have to go to Shipwreck Beach and trek 1 mile up the beach to the next clue.

Eric and Danielle finish the Under detour, while Dustin and Kandice decide to go with that one, too.

Charla and Mirna start navigating the 1-mile trek on the rocky beach, which Charla is not enjoying. Eric and Danielle arrive, and Dustin and Kandice are right behind, having made up time somehow. The other teams pass Charla and Mirna, with Eric and Danielle arrive at the clue first. They learn they have to kayak out to a(nother) buoy with a clue on it, and the other two teams are soon also headed in that direction. Dustin and Kandice have an awful time and start arguing with each other. Meanwhile, Eric and Danielle get the clue. Dustin and Kandice finally make it there, while back on the beach, Eric and Danielle read the clue, which tells them to go to their final destination, San Francisco. There, they will have to find the Old Mint. In the car, Dustin and Kandice spar more over their troubles in the kayak, and it doesn't bode well for them.

Charla and Mirna continue to fight with the waves and finally get to the clue. Dustin and Kandice cry but agree to move on.

Eric and Danielle and Dustin and Kandice book flights to Oakland leaving at 11:55 p.m. Charla and Mirna try to work the airport staff some again, but it doesn't work out this time, and all three teams are on the same flight. (Dustin and Kandice, who have been listening in, are thrilled.)

The teams all catch cabs after the flight lands, and Dustin and Kandice get to the clue first. One team member must enter a vault and answer the questions on a wall about the other teams. The answers will create a code that they will program into a safe. Then, the other teammate will come in and try to answer the questions the same as their teammate, determine the code, unlock the safe and get the next clue. If they don't get it within 10 minutes, they have to stop. The questions are about which teams is the least trustworthy, has the best sense of humor, is the most overrated and the one you want to stay in touch with. By the way, everyone said Rob and Amber were the most overrated, which amused me.

Danielle gets it first. Their clue says to go to the Botanical Garden, which is the finish line.

Dustin and Kandice's 10 minutes are up, so they get the clue and head to the finish. They're followed momentarily by Charla and Mirna.

So it looks like it's going to come down to traffic and how good their cabbie is. Yikes!

And finishing first are Eric and Danielle! So I guess he will get his redemption, and she won't have to worry about him blaming their loss on her for the rest of their relationship. Dustin and Kandice come in second. Then, Charla and Mirna hit the finish. Host Phil Keoghan tells them they ran "a hell of a race."

Eric and Danielle call their families, but Jeremy, Eric's partner the first time around, answers the phone instead.

Man, that was a tight close on that race. But all in all, it was a fun season, even if it's not a result I would have predicted.

Tomorrow on CBS' The Early Show, they will get their prize.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Maryland reality contestants, The Amazing Race
        

Yesterday, you might have read The Sun's interview with Evangelin Pesci, the Cockeysville hairstylist who is on Bravo's Shear Genius. Or rather, she was. Last night was, as host Jaclyn Smith so seriously put it, her "final cut."

In a challenge in which the contestants were asked to create a red-carpet updo for Vanessa Williams, Pesci faltered. Trying to be uber-edgy, she created a style that mixed straight and curly hair, with results that the judges deemed disastrous enough to land someone on the worst-(hair)dressed list.

In the previous week's episode, Pesci won the challenge of taking someone from long hair to short using odd tools. Her choice was hedge clippers, and she was so excited about having won with them that she decided she would always use them. In last night's show, she wouldn't stop going on about it, and the other contestants thought she was nuts. (And so did I -- I get nervous enough around big shears. One wrong move with hedge clippers, and it could cost you an ear!)

If you've always wanted someone to go to town on your hair with garden tools, she works here.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 8:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Maryland reality contestants
        

Tonight on American Idol, two contestants will be sent home based on the past two weeks' votes combined. Host Ryan Seacrest jokes that the show will be stretched into an hour and promises "no filler" with a grimace, so at least he knows how silly it is when they spread everything out for so long.

Things get weird for a little while when Paula makes a comment about a "puppet," Ryan riffs on it, and Simon thinks they're making fun of his girlfriend. But everyone gets over it.

Next, there is a montage from last night, but I've already covered that ground.

Ryan talks to Blake about how he figures out how to rearrange songs. He explains the technical details and says he just wanted to have fun, so he wasn't too worried. Jordin says everyone has their bad week, and she thought this might be it, but she gave it her all. Phil says his dad is a pastor, and he was discouraged from listening to pop music, but he still sneaked a little Bon Jovi here and there. LaKisha of course is asked about "the kiss" and whether Simon is a good kisser. She says he is and, "I would do it again." The camera cuts to Simon, who appears to be saying, "I would, too." Ryan refers back to the girlfriend thing from earlier, adding, "and it is VERY serious, trust me." Simon busts into laughter more than we've probably ever seen from him when he's not mocking someone, which makes me think maybe they do have more of a joking friendship than they usually let on.

Ruben Studdard appears to implore people to continue to give to Idol Gives Back. But I guess he doesn't get to sing.

Ryan asks Melinda what kind of effect the Idol Gives Back show had on her. She says it was great to make a difference. This leads into a recap of the Idol Gives Back show. Which, again, ground covered.

Then Robin Thicke comes out to sing even more breathily than Chris Richardson does.

Fantasia then appears in a clip to ask people to give. I guess these two Idol winners don't get to perform.

Next: the usual car commercial with the kids, this one to "Paint It Black."

OK, some results. Ryan calls Melinda Doolittle, Phil Stacey and LaKisha Jones forward. The two-week combined total votes are 135 million, per Ryan. Then he tells Melinda that she is safe. LaKisha is safe, and Phil is out. Um, in a "Blaze of Glory." Which he has to sing as he reprises last night's performance. But actually, he kind of is, seeing how he's improved so much the past couple of weeks.

More results. Ryan directs his attention to the back row and immediately tells Jordin Sparks that she is safe because he messed with her so much last week. He says the producers are making him make Chris Richardson and Blake Lewis wait longer for results and throws it to a break.

(By the way, the tour is going to be at D.C.'s Verizon Center Sept. 9 and Baltimore's 1st Mariner Arena Sept. 19. Tickets for both go on sale May 19.)

Bon Jovi comes out to perform one of its not that well known songs (at least not to me), "Make a Memory." Afterward, Jon Bon Jovi praises the contestants' hard work.

Taylor Hicks also gets to make an appearance to ask for Idol Gives Back donations. But no singing.

Ryan talks to Chris and Blake about how they are best friends, and they'd go home to save the other, etc. Very sweet. But who is leaving? Chris Richardson is out.

Next week, it's "boogie sounds with Barry Gibb."

And Chris sings us out. After the song, when he's hugging the remaining contestants, his mike is still on. I couldn't quite make out what they were saying, but you kind of forget that they are probably consoling one another and saying goodbyes at that point.

I think this was the right cut to make. Blake's clearly the strongest of the guys, and a final four of him, Jordin, LaKisha and Melinda looks pretty good to me.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 10:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants
        

On last night's Dancing With the Stars, John Ratzenberger finally got the ax after several weeks in the bottom two. He did much better than I thought he would on this show, especially after he got added to the cast late and didn't have as much practice time as the other couples in the beginning. He's been charming on the dance floor and off, and I might actually miss him.

Poor Billy Ray Cyrus, who was in the bottom two for the first time, looked devastated that he's staying. I think I actually heard him tell John that he was jealous John got to leave. He is clearly outside his comfort zone and pushing himself to do his best, but he's not actually, you know, doing the steps of the assigned dances. I guess the Hannah Montana voting bloc is stronger than anticipated.

Sadly, I actually missed the performance show on Monday night, but I think I'll have to go back and watch some of the dances online since they handed out so many 10s this week.

One last thing about last night's show. Remember when Meat Loaf performed on the season finale of American Idol last year? He looked positively deathly while duetting with Katharine McPhee, and it was attributed to his massive stage fright. He didn't seem quite as freaked during his two performances (two!) on DWtS last night. About as many people were watching (give or take a couple of million), but maybe it's less scary when the in-your-face audience is that much smaller.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: Dancing With the Stars
        

It's Bon Jovi night on American Idol, and I'm sure the flatiron will get more work than it even did when Sanjaya was still around. (Can you imagine if JBJ and Sanjaya had been in the same room? The hair products required to support that meeting could have stocked an entire season of Shear Genius!)

Anyway, host Ryan Seacrest shares the total raised for charity from last week's "Idol Gives Back" -- almost $70 million. Then, a montage reintroduces us to Bon Jovi. (You know them: They're wanted, dead or alive. Etc.) So the contestants met with Jon Bon Jovi and his keyboardist, David Bryan. Jon tells them his kids love the show and that the contestants need to make the songs their own, advice they might have heard before.

Phil Stacey is opening with "Blaze of Glory." Which is not a good goodbye song, if he goes home tomorrow. ("I'm goin' down in a blaze of gloreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee ...") Phil starts the song in the middle of the audience, and they audience members look like they don't know quite what to do with the cameras that close. He really seems to be hitting his stride. It's pretty late in the competition for that, but it's working for him. Randy Jackson says other than country week, this is his best performance yet. Paula says it's the best opening he's had all season long. Simon says, "I thought it was OK ... I didn't hear any authenticity, and I thought in the middle, you were like a bad actor playing a role." He adds that he thinks he's out next week.

Jordin Sparks is going to sing "Livin' on a Prayer." But first Ryan is talking from the audience, where Gina Glocksen (who would have loved this theme week) is there. Jordin makes a lot of friends, telling Jon that her mom is going to freak, but her mom "was raised on Bon Jovi." It's still adorable, but doesn't make Jon feel all that young, I'm sure. She rocks out (with some giant hair working, too), but some of the low parts are uncharacteristically rough. But she performs the heck out of it nonetheless. Randy says it was interesting, and that rock was tough for her, he could tell. He adds that the big notes were good, but that the verses were "rough." (So I'm not the only one.) He says he could tell she knew she wasn't quite getting it on that first low note. Paula says she went for it and gives her credit. Simon says ("Give it to me," says Jordin), "Cue the boos ... The look was like something out of The Addams Family. The singing was out of control."

LaKisha Jones takes a viewer question about what training she's had. She says none, other than church. Ryan asks if she's going to "take it to church tonight." She says she's "going to give it a little sumthin' sumthin'." In her intro, she says she's never heard Bon Jovi's music before, but she's seen him on Oprah. She's going to sing "This Ain't a Love Song." Jon says he's not a betting man, but he would bet money on her not going home this week. I really wish they would ditch the background singers because they just muddle things for me. About the last third of the song, she switches back into the diva mode we saw when she sang "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going." Which is a good thing. Randy: "LaKisha is back this week." He says she was singing it to Simon, to prove herself to him. He says she started a little rough, but by the middle of the song, she sold it and "blew it out the box." Paula says her lower tones are the money in her pocket. Simon: "LaKisha, I actually could kiss you after that." Ryan walks her over to him, and he gives her a peck. "You were so good, and I love the fact ..." then the music cuts him off. He gets to add, "You rose to the challenge, you absolutely nailed it." And he says that he loves her lips. Which takes it to creepy-ville. Nice job, Simon.

No longer blond, Blake Lewis is next. He's going to sing "You Give Love a Bad Name." Jon tells him it is an "adventurous rendition." This could be horrendous or awesome. Jon: "Sixteen measures of him not singing on a show that's about singing. ... It makes me wonder." He starts out mimicking a record player, and the song starts, and it's all slowed down with occasional breaks. He goes big in the chorus, though. Then he beatboxes and alternates with the drummer for a while, then scats, then sings the chorus big again. As much as everyone is going to fixate on the parts where he wasn't singing, his voice actually sounds much, much stronger than it has in weeks. I think the gamble was worth it. Randy gives him the award for most original version of a song ever on the show. He says he took a leap of faith and won. Paula says it was the "biggest leap of faith," which she might have heard somewhere recently. She says it was hot. Simon's mom was rocking in the audience. Simon says half the audience will hate it, and half will love it and that it was the right thing to do: "This is what's going to keep you in the competition next week."

Chris Richardson is next with a viewer question about what he tells himself before he goes out on stage. He says to have fun, man. He's going to sing "Wanted Dead or Alive." He's shown totally blowing the words in front of Jon Bovi Jovi. Jon tells him to "find the blue note" in the song. He sounds like Chris trying to sound like Bon Jovi. Which is actually way better than his usual "nasally is a type of singing" mode. Randy says he put a little R&B twist on it and it was good. Paula says it's a great night. Simon: "I think you did as much as you possibly could with the song."

Melinda Doolittle is closing the show yet again. She tells Jon she is so bad at rock. She's going to sing "Have a Nice Day." He tells her to "testify ... it's church." She says she likes church, so she's going for it. As uncomfortable as she purported to be beforehand, as usual, she rocks it on the stage. Literally this time. Randy says he doesn't know if it was her best, but it was still good. Paula says that from the first note, they knew the game was on. Simon says it "was like a young Tina Turner ... and vocally, it was in another league."

Lastly, President Bush and Laura Bush appear in a clip thanking people for their donations.

A lot of people stepped it up tonight, so it's hard to say who might be out tomorrow. Don't forget that it will be two, with tonight's votes combined with last week's. With as many votes as were cast last week, I wonder whether this week's performances will actually have as much of an impact. I'm going to predict Chris is out, even though he did better than I expected last night. What do you think?

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 9:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (23)
Categories: American Idol, Maryland reality contestants