Wednesday, May 23, 2007 – Idol Madness

Yeah, yeah -

(05-23) 16:35 PDT Los Angeles (AP) - Hundreds of "American Idol" fans lined Hollywood Boulevard leading up to the theater where finalists Jordin Sparks and Blake Lewis faced the music one more time Wednesday.

Sparks, 17, of Glendale, Ariz., and Lewis, 25, of Bothell, Wash., competed on Tuesday's show with three songs each. The winner of the audience vote was to be announced Wednesday at the Kodak Theater.

Both contestants performed "This Is My Now," the tune picked by viewers in an online "American Idol" songwriting contest introduced this season, along with two other songs of their choice.

The contest came down to either the stronger singer, Sparks, or the better entertainer, Lewis. Sparks delivered her songs simply and powerfully; Lewis' flourishes included his sound-effects beatboxing and sharp dance moves.

"I'm obsessed with the show. I auditioned for it this past season. I'm just coming out to show my love," said Sarah Blackmon, 19, who drove more than two hours from San Diego County to attend the finale.

"I don't like picking favorites. They say it's a music competition, so Jordin's going to win," Blackmon said, but added, "I think Blake's really hot."

One of the series' executive producers, Cecile Frot-Coutaz of FremantleMedia North America Inc., said she'd be happy with either contestant as the new idol. …

This is an odd neighborhood. Here are some shots for the record – Kodak Theater, Hollywood Boulevard, Wednesday, May 23, 3:00 pm Pacific Time.

Here are the folks from "Good Day L.A." - the number one television show aired on KTTV (Fox 11), the Fox Broadcasting Company-owned and operated station in Los Angeles. The show airs Monday through Friday mornings from 7:00 to 10:00 - hosted by Jillian Barberie (out of frame), Steve Edwards (born Steven Edward Schwartz in New York City) and Dorothy Lucey.

On May 14, 2004, Edwards was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Lucey, by the way, graduated from George Washington University in 1979 with a degree in political science before going into television reporting. She was an on-air reporter for WNEP in Scranton, Pennsylvania and WABC in New York City (including a stint alongside Regis Philbin), and later joined NBC Sports. She was also a co-host of Attitudes, a talk show on Lifetime Television and in 1992 hosted the CBS series How'd They Do That.

Now this…

Who knows who this is? He was very enthusiastic.  He was saying he couldn't believe he was actually in Hollywood, the center of everything, at the American Idol final.  Such talk is odd to those of us who live here.

Getting the old man with the plastic bag to move along…. (This is a "reality show" – damn it!)

Nearby, Frank Sinatra's daughter provides appropriate irony.

Trivia –

American Idol is the annual American televised "singing' competition which began its first season on June 11, 2002.  Actually it's part of the "Idol" franchise - it is a spinoff of UK reality program Pop Idol.  Here it's televised on the Fox Network, and on the Fox Network and CTV in Canada.  The "Idol" concept was created by Simon Fuller (manager of the Spice Girls and S Club 7) and developed by Simon Jones of FremantleMedia. The directors are Bruce Gowers (director of Queen's original "Bohemian Rhapsody" video), Nigel Lythgoe (a judge on So You Think You Can Dance) and Ken Warwick (Gladiators and Grudge Match).

In an interview with Anderson Cooper on the CBS TV current affairs show 60 Minutes on March 17, 2007 (repeated in extended format on CNN's AC 360 program on March 27, 2007), judge Simon Cowell openly declared that the underlying primary purpose of the Idol franchise (including American Idol) was for "19 Entertainment" (the parent corporation that produces the Idol TV shows) to discover new singing talent that can be signed to recording agreements that the corporation maintains with a major record company (Sony/BMG) and benefit from the record sales of contestants and winners who are exposed to the worldwide marketplace through the shows. Cowell indicated that revenue from recordings by performers associated with the Idol franchise has already exceeded a hundred million dollars.  "19 Entertainment" also retains exclusive right of refusal for management and merchandising of any contestant.  Exercising management rights is at the sole discretion of "19 Entertainment" – but if they don't pick up the rights, the contestant performer is free to pursue his or her own miserable career in obscurity.

FAQ –

How do I vote?

Each contestant will be assigned his or her own toll-free number and text message short number during the performance show. To vote, simply watch American Idol on FOX each week and dial the phone number of the contestant for whom you wish to vote. Or, Cingular Wireless subscribers may text the word VOTE to the Text Messaging 4-digit short numbers promoted for each contestant. Only send the word 'VOTE' to the 4 digit numbers you see on screen, you cannot send a text message to the toll-free numbers. Voting will open at the end of each performance show. The lines will NOT be open before that.

Rules and procedures are subject to change at producer’s discretion without notice.

Who can vote?

Anyone calling or any Cingular Wireless subscribers Text Messaging from within Continental US, Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico can cast their vote for the next American Idol.  Voting within the US Virgin Islands is available via toll-free calling, although text message voting is limited to St Croix for Cingular Wireless subscribers.

But you have to watch.

If you wish to use any of these photos for commercial purposes I assume you'll discuss that with me. And should you choose to download any of these images and use them invoking the 'fair use" provisions of the Copyright Act of 1976, please provide credit, and, on the web, a link back this site.

Technical Note:

Most of these photographs were shot with a Nikon D70 - using lens (1) AF-S Nikkor 18-70 mm 1:35-4.5G ED, or (2) AF Nikkor 70-300mm telephoto, or after 5 June 2006, (3) AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor, 55-200 mm f/4-5.6G ED. They were modified for web posting using Adobe Photoshop 7.0.  Earlier photography was done with a Sony Mavica digital still camera (MVC-FD-88) with built-in digital zoom.

All text and photos, unless otherwise noted, Copyright © 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 - Alan M. Pavlik