Carly’s T-Shirt Party
After receiving positive remarks from Simon Cowell for her version of “Jesus Christ Super Star,” Carly Smithson proudly held up a blue T-shirt with the words “Simon Love Me (this week).” But when the cameras were off and she was leaving the stage area, Carly kneeled down and gave the shirt as a gift to one lucky fan.
The Show Must Go On
After Brooke White started over her performance of “You Must Love Me”, her loving husband, who never misses a show, lowered his head, feeling the pain for his wife, who told the judges, “I lost the lyric.” Even Simon, who could visibly feel Brooke’s pain as she stood there before the judges, kept his criticisms to a minimum, as there was obviously no need to throw salt on her open wound. When the cameras turned off, Ryan Seacrest came over and gave Brooke a hug of support before Debbie the mother-hen stage manager rubbed her arm affectionately. But surprisingly the emotional singer, who cries at almost every elimination, left the stage without shedding a tear.
Seeing (Lots of) Stars
David Duchovny, who grew to cult status in the ’90s The X-Files, was one of the first celebrities to enter the Idol arena, accompanied by one of his twin boys (a dead-ringer for daddy), who must be a Simon fan as daddy hoisted up his son to get a better look at the judge when he made his entrance. The very sexy Roselyn Sanchez, who gave a memorable performance in the Monkee’s “I’m a Believer” for Idol Gives Back, lit up the front row. Why haven’t they had a Kiss night yet? That might be what lead singer Paul Stanley was asking himself while sitting in the Idol bleachers during the show. Juno star Allison Janney and 24’s Rick Schroder and his wife were also in the house. But the most notable face in the crowd was the week’s mentor Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber, who received a standing ovation from the crowd after he was announced by Corey the warm-up guy.
Idol’s Littlest Fan
Friends star Courteney Cox treated 3-year-old daughter Coco (about 2 years below the Idol audience age limit) to a night of music. There with friends, they seemed to be having a blast. Coco jumped up on mommy’s lap during Jason Castro’s emotional version of “Memory” from the musical Cats. Swaying together, mom held Coco tight as she lovingly kissed the back of her daughter’s head and wiped hair out from her eyes so she could see. During breaks, the precocious young girl and mom happily chit-chatted. During David Archuleta’s performance of “Think of Me” from Phantom of the Opera, Coco broke away from mommy’s grasp and danced in the row with other kids.
Fan Down in the Mosh Pit!
They don’t call it a mosh pit for nothing. During one of the performances, a female fan rushed off to the side of the stage holding her hands over her nose to where the studio medics stood waiting. As the show went on, more crew came over to see if she was all right. Things get pretty raucous with the hand-wavers, who crazily sway elbows from side-to-side any chance they get. Did this poor fan get hit in the face accidentally? How very punk rock! Hopefully, the fan is recovered.
Speaking of Recoveries…
Idol producer, Nigel Lythgoe, who wore a blue cast on his right arm during last week’s shows, seems to be progressing on his recovery. His blue cast was gone, replaced with a pristine white one, and it was no longer confined to a sling. Idols, please report to Nigel’s white cast and bring your Sharpies!
Other Stuff You Didn’t See
• One lucky fan was received a Guitar Hero III Activision playset by Corey the warm-up guy at one of the breaks — and the guitar was signed by all the remaining Idols!
• During one of the breaks, Simon looked up, nodded and pointed with approval at a sign that read: “Simon Cowell, Brazilians (heart) You!”
• With ten seconds left before the show was to start, a limber Paula Abdul — in a skirt and heels — raced to her seat as Debbie the stage manager called out “Ten, nine, eight, seven …” She made it just in time.
• At the break, Ryan and David Archuleta sat on stools and answered questions from young girls in the pit. When Ryan invited young girls to come up and hug their favorite little star, they turned out to be David’s sisters!
• As David Cook gave his best non-rocker version of “Music of the Night” from Phantom of the Opera, female fans in the pit were still, silent, and holding hands together as they swooned passionately. Some even looked like they were going to pass out! –Jed Dreben
Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic, Micelotta/American Idol 2008/Getty
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