American Idol judge Simon Cowell, who once told a contestant that he would make a better drag queen than an Idol, and called another contestant’s singing “diabolical,” (he was actually correct about that one, mean though he was) may have a heart after all, underneath those boring black sweaters and man-boobs. The Brit participated in “Oprah’s Big Give,” a reality/game show that is giving that other ABC tearjerker reality show, “Extreme Home Makeovers,” a run for its money. Cowell donated $162,000 to a family who fell into a financial crisis after their daughter was diagnosed with cancer.

Simon Cowell may not be so mean after all.

The American Idol judge, 48, gave the family of a cancer-stricken 3-year-old $162,000 to pay off their mortgage, he announced on Oprah Winfrey’s Big Give show on Monday.

The family drives more than 100 miles from their Minnesota home every day so their daughter, Madelaine, can receive treatments.

“It’s a very basic story of a normal family whose daughter got very ill, and they had some financial problems which was relatively easy for me to sort out,” Cowell explained to Extra.

On the show, he told Winfrey that he “credits her” for teaching him to be a do-gooder.

Said Cowell, “I never knew that doing good could feel so good.”

[From Us Weekly]

I think Oprah should recruit some more notorious meanies for this show. It would be like “The Grinch,” week after week. Too bad Leona Helmsley is dead. Anyway, good for Simon for finally understanding that there are other people less fortunate on the planet than himself. But that doesn’t mean I want to see “Nice Simon” on American Idol. Somebody has to tell these people that they suck!

Note by Celebitchy: Here’s the clip from Oprah. It made me cry so hard to see what this family and little girl are going through.

“American Idol” front runner David Archuleta, who just turned 17, has been praised up and down for his singing and performance abilities since the show began. The young musical prodigy also won a round of “Star Search” when he was only 12 years old. But now, sources say the reason David might be so perfect is that he lives in fear of his dad.

David may seem like an innocent sweet songstress from Heaven, but our inside source says he has a calculating, overbearing, stage dad from HELL! We still endorse him wholeheartedly but, we wanted to share a story from our inside Star Search source, when he won round 1 at the age of 12. According to our reliable source his father was BANNED from the set.

[From LA RagMag]

This past week, the show’s theme was “The Lennon/McCartney Songbook.” While most of the contestants were giddy at the prospect of singing Beatles songs, Archuleta confessed that he struggled with the theme, and on the night of the live broadcast, he flubbed the lyrics to “We Can Work it Out.” Backstage sources say that the teen was under intense pressure from his father, who gives him critiques after every performance.

Was there more than just nerves behind 17-year-old DAVID ARCHULETA’s shaky performance on last night’s “American Idol”?

The early favorite was definitely off his game and even forgot several lines during his version of THE BEATLES’ “We Can Work It Out.” Sources are telling ET the singer may be feeling the pressure from his “stage father” JEFF ARCHULETA, who reportedly yelled at David during a recording session Monday. Sources say Dad wasn’t happy with his son’s singing — and even brought him to tears. Neither Jeff nor reps for “American Idol” would comment on the alleged incident.

[From ET Online]

I hope this isn’t true. David seems like a good kid and he’s incredibly talented. It makes me sad to see parents who live vicariously through their kids (yes, Dina Lohan, I’m looking at you), to the point that they try to take over their kids’ lives. This should be the most exciting time in young David’s life– being on TV, singing on one of the most popular shows in the country. But it sounds like he’s being made miserable- by his own dad.

The open animosity between “American Idol” co-stars Ryan Seacrest and Simon Cowell every week on the show suddenly makes a lot more sense. I have been speculating for years that these two had an under the radar romance going on, and now that word is out that Ryan is dating Holly Huddleston, Simon’s feelings are hurt.

Who the hell is Holly Huddleston, you say? Yeah, I said the same thing. Holly is on one of the world’s most useless reality shows, E! Network’s “Sunset Tan.” If you’ve been dying to see all the drama and behind the scenes action at a tanning salon, this is your show! And also, take your meds. The rest of us find this show absolutely abysmal– and Holly is the most vapid, boring person on the show.

Is there love a brewing backstage with Holly “Olly” Huddleston and Ryan Seacrest over in Hollywood at American idol? According to reports scheduled for this week’s In Touch Weekly, the magazine will dish that a little E! Entertainment romance may have crossed over from cable show to the Fox network and Ryan Seacrest and one of the blondes from E!’s Sunset Tan are hooking up in secret.

According to a report from Perez Hilton, Holly Huddleston and Ryan will make the weekly entertainment magazine this week with what will be a surprise romance for many. The scoop according to the report is that they have worked very hard to keep the relationship a secret.

Quick question, why would anyone even worry about it? The reason it is spilling out now is because American idol is so popular and folks have notoced that Holly has been hanging around backstage, reportedly checking out Ryan as he works and spars with his pal and British bad boy judge Simon Cowell.

While many might believe Cowell and Seacrest are dating before they would believe that Holly and Ryan are a hot item that is the way it will be reported according to Hilton.

[From National Ledger]

There’s no way Seacrest is dating this chick, but I’d be willing to bet that they are friends. They have so much in common: they both love tanning, bleaching their hair, getting manicures and pedicures, and staring at their own reflection. She really is the perfect beard for Ryan.

Ryan Seacrest is shown at the Victoria’s Secret fashion show on 11/15/07. Holly Huddleston is shown at JET Nightclub on 7/27/07, thanks to PRPhotos.

Though “American Idol” claims to have a pretty thorough screening process, contestants with less than savory backgrounds keep getting through. Which wouldn’t be a problem if “Idol’s” producers said they didn’t care one way or the other – but they’ve kicked singers out for unsavory things in the past. A few years ago singer Frenchie Davis was eliminated from the competition after topless photos of her surfaced on the internet. However last year contestant was allowed to stay when her racy photos popped up. Now it’s been revealed that 24-year-old contestant David Hernandez used to work as a stripper in a gay strip club for over three years – and it’s been confirmed by the club’s owner.

“American Idol” contestant David Hernandez once entertained audiences by removing his clothes instead of singing tunes, a manager at a male strip club in Phoenix told The Associated Press.

The 24-year-old finalist from Glendale, Ariz., once worked as a stripper at Dick’s Cabaret, appearing fully nude and performing lap dances for the club’s “mostly male” clientele, club manager Gordy Bryan said Monday.

“He had the look and the type that people like, so he made pretty good money here,” Bryan said. According to Bryan, Hernandez steadily worked at the club for three years until September 30, 2007. “He never renewed his licensing with the state, so he hasn’t been on my roster since then,” Bryan said.

[From the Huffington Post]

“American Idol” producers could get a lot of bad press if they kick Hernandez out. If they’d had a clear-cut policy on this kind of issue, that’d be one thing. But since they’ve kicked one person out and let another stay, it could look like bias if they made Hernandez leave the competition. I wonder if the producers would consider working as a stripper better or worse than posing nude. They’ve also kicked people out for having criminal backgrounds – but have let some people stay as long as they revealed whatever negatives were in their past. I honestly wish they’d be a little more lenient. If a criminal has paid their debt to society, they have a right and responsibility to get a job. Why shouldn’t they try out for American Idol? What an inspirational story that would be - “Ex con turns his/her life around.” Same thing with someone who was a stripper. Talk about following your dreams. Hopefully Hernandez will be judged based on his talent and not his past.

Alright the headline is a little misleading. They were fined over Sanjaya and Jordin Sparks. The two performed along with the other members of the American Idol tour in New York, and the producers of the event didn’t bother to file for permits under the State Child Performer Labor Law. Sanjaya was 17 at the time and Sparks won’t turn 18 until December. What they really should have been fined for was letting Sanjaya within 1000 miles of anyone with ears. Yeah, I went there. Cutting, wasn’t it?

“It may be America’s favorite reality program, but not even Idol is exempt from the law - child labor law, to be exact. The New York Daily News is reporting that 19 Touring failed to apply for the necessary permits for Jordin Sparks, who turns 18 in December, and now 18-year-old Sanjaya Malakar (who was underage at the time of the performances), when the Idol concert tour came to New York last month. As a result of a reported 16 violations of the New York State Child Performer Labor Law, 19 Touring has agreed to fork over $5,000 in fines.

“Sparks and Malakar joined the rest of the top ten Idol contestants for five New York-area appearances during the tour, which wrapped on Sept. 22. Under the state’s new law, employers must file for permits in order to ensure they are following proper child labor, education and workers’ compensation protocol, the News reports. “One of our clerical staff - who was actually a fan of the show - [heard] that these performers were, in fact, under 18, and so she did some digging and referred that over to our investigators,” Labor Department spokesman Leo Rosales told the News. A representative for 19 Management, which operates 19 Touring, did not return a call seeking comment.”

[From US Weekly]

The clerical staff member was a fan of the show, and that’s how he chose to show it? I think by “fan” they meant “hater.” Not that I blame him, I loathe reality TV in all its incarnations. Yes I know you’re all throwing tomatoes at me right now for it. But it just doesn’t do it for me. I blame reality TV for the death of the sitcom. Nothing great, the sitcom, but it was comfortable and familiar, and I liked that. Rarely did people try to strangle themselves with snakes, or whatever it is they do on reality television.

I hate American Idol. Fortunately, the country I live in isn’t a fan either, so last year’s NZ Idol winner didn’t even get a recording contract, just a car. Which was probably more useful to them, since no one was going to buy that album anyway. Then all the rejects from the previous two series, from when NZ Idol way in its heyday, got together and fought it out for $50,000. Unfortunately it wasn’t a Gladiator-style fight.

Anyway, it seems American Idol might finally have sucked the talent out of the pool, and is scraping the mildew at the bottom, according to Ryan Seacrest.

TMZ cameras caught the “Idol” host before his jog outside the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in NYC on Sunday — sporting an iPod and an inconspicuous Ed Hardy hat. When asked about the upcoming season of the juggernaut that is “American Idol,” Ryan said they “weren’t great … for 20,000 people, we only found a few good ones.” Is that a change?

TMZ

Actually, the bad auditions are the best part, so maybe things are looking up for the show.

Another sign American Idol is on the way out – low ticket sales for its Idols Live shows.

Reports of attendance and gross receipts for the first 30 of the 57 shows scheduled for the tour, as recorded by Billboard Boxscore, show this year’s crop of 10 Idol finalists is falling short of last year’s concert performance.

No sellouts were reported for the first 30 shows, and only one topped the 93% of capacity mark. (That was the show in Glendale, Ariz., Idol winner Jordin Sparks’ home turf.) Of the 2006 tour’s first 30 shows, 17 were sellouts and another 10 exceeded 93% of capacity.

Nearly half (14) of the shows were below 60% of capacity. (Lowest was 38.9% in Birmingham, Ala., hometown of 2006 winner Taylor Hicks and 2003 champ Ruben Studdard.) In 2006, the lowest-capacity figure in the first 30 shows was 89.3%.

The 2006 tour was the most successful to date, but 2005’s was a lot healthier than the current version. Of the first 29 dates of 2005, 11 were sellouts and four more topped 93%.

USA Today

What will happen if the whole enterprise shuts down? How will record companies find talent? What will Paula Abdul do for a living?

Clay Aiken is one of those celebrities that annoys the crap out of me – and as a result, I tend to pay attention. I think that’s the same angle a lot of famous people take to get attention. His whole “I must expose my feet every chance I get” thing really freaks me out, but I can handle it. But thinking he’s sexy? That I just cannot take. Apparently part of Clay’s new repertoire involves a brief cover of Justin Timberlake’s now-classic “SexyBack.” My God, I hope he doesn’t cover JT’s “Dick in a Box.”

Did you notice that as the video cuts out, he starts in on a cover of Billy Ray Cyrus’s “Achy Breaky Heart?” That’s a bit more acceptable. What would make Clay think this is okay? And isn’t he loudly, annoyingly conservative Christian? Emphasis on the conservative? The guy really is an enigma. The “sexy” faces he makes are priceless. Clay, I don’t care whether you’re gay or straight, I don’t care whether you ever tell us if you’re gay or straight, I just care that you never do this to the internet again.

In slightly less horrifying Clay Aiken news, the red-headed sex machine will appear on an episode of Fox’s “Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?”

“We know Clay Aiken has a voice, but how’s his brain? We’ll find out when he appears on ‘Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader?’

“Aiken will try to win money for his foundation that runs a camp for kids with developmental disabilities. If he answers all his questions correctly, the foundation will get a million dollars.

“Aiken will tape his appearance August 28th. No air date has been set yet.”

[From ABC affiliate abc13.com]

I really hate it when otherwise contemptible celebrities do something good. Like having charities for kids with developmental disabilities. Stupid Clay Aiken. You’re so good, and so bad, all at once.

Picture note by JayBird: Here’s Clay at the Emmy Awards in 2005. Images thanks to PR Photos.

Former American Idol season 2 contestant Corey Clark, 27, was arrested and booked into jail in Little Rock, Arkansas last night. He was charged with possessing a controlled substance and possessing drug paraphernalia. This was the same guy that made it to the finals, but was kicked out of the competition when judges found out he had a previous arrest that he’d lied about. Also the same guy who claimed Paula Abdul coached him during the show, while simultaneously having an affair with him.

“The former ‘American Idol’ contestant was being held at the Pulaski County jail pending a court appearance Tuesday in North Little Rock, said John Rehrauer, a spokesman for the sheriff’s department.

Clark was arrested near Interstate 40 at about 2:30 a.m. Monday on charges of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia, Rehrauer said.

A warrant had been issued for Clark after he failed to appear in an Arizona court on a summons stemming from an arrest last year for violating a court order and trespassing.”

[From the Washington Post]

Clark was disqualified for not revealing his first arrest to American Idol producers. In that incident, he got into a fight with his 15-year-old sister in their home, and was charged with misdemeanor battery on four police officers and his sister, as well as endangering a child. Clark claimed the officers beat him.

That headline about American Idols in trouble with the law pops up a lot more than it should. Clark seems to be the worst offender, with at least three separate legal incidents on his record. He’s followed by season 4 contestant Jessica Sierra who was charged with “aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, possession of cocaine and introduction of contraband into a detention facility,” after she broke a cocktail glass over a guy’s head. An then of course, there’s Clay Aiken getting questioned by the FBI for exposing his stinky feet on a plane and getting into a fight with another passenger about it. That incident might sound the smallest, but it’s federal.

Picture note by Celebitchy: While doing the link post yesterday I noticed someone pointed out how much Corey Clarke looks like Sideshow Bob, so the header image isn’t an original idea or anything. I can’t find it again at this point, but once I do I’ll give credit. If you saw this yesterday let me know where it was.

Kellie Pickler canceled three concerts in a short span of time in June, and has since gotten American Idol and country fans alike in a bit of a tizzy. Kellie’s canceled shows, in Grand Junction, Colo., Greeley, Colo., and Albuquerque, N.M all happened on her current tour with country giant Brad Paisley. Supposedly Pickler isn’t eating enough, as many have noted that she’s lost at least 20 pounds since last year. According to the National Ledger, her rep, Wes Vause, “admits to Star that the singer is a ‘picky eater’ and canceled shows ‘because of low blood sugar.’ Vause tells Star that Kellie ‘had gone to Canada and didn’t eat enough, so she needed to get her strength back. She is well.’” Several sources on her tour say that Kellie has been under pressure to lose weight.

She’s under a great deal of pressure to be slender and slinky,’ an associate explains in the report from Star… ‘Kellie’s trying to lose weight, but that’s near impossible when she’s working 14 hours a day,’ the source adds. ‘Something has to give, and unfortunately it’s her health…She needs to eat and rest more,’ says the source. ‘There’s a real fear that she won’t hold up.’”

[Linked from the National Ledger]

I never thought Kellie needed to lose weight in the first place. She did appear to get a boob job a while ago that made her look top heavy. Dr. Anthony Youn, a Michigan-based Plastic Surgeon, noted on his website Celebrity Cosmetic Surgery that, “she does appear to have had a recent breast augmentation. When breast implants are too big they can make some women look heavy. This appears to be the case with her.” What in the world was wrong with how Kellie looked before? She was beautiful, with a healthy, perfect-looking figure.

One thing I’ll never understand, is why a girl who wants to be rail thin would have breast implants, as they do tend to make you look bigger on top. I understand wanting the curves, but then wouldn’t you want not to be rain thin in the first place? Sometimes desires, and body image issues, just don’t make sense. Kellie’s had a hard life, and has a good deal of talent. I just wish women didn’t feel like they all needed to fit into this teeny-tiny-big-boob ideal. Variety is the spice of life, after all.

Picture note by Celebitchy: Kellie Pickler is shown on 5/15/07 at the ACM Awards. Thanks to WENN for this picture.

Catholic school graduate and college dropout Antonella Barba says she’s going to stay in LA for “a week or two” to see if she can quickly carve some sort of respectable career out of her failed American Idol bid. Barba should have realized that dirty personal pictures can work to your advantage if you’re careful about it, as is evidenced by Paris’ delicate balance between massive overexposure and do-nothing fame.

She claims she’s not going to take advantage of two very lucrative offers from different adult film companies. SugarDVD, which is like Netflix for porn, has offered her half a million to be their poster girl while Girls Gone Wild wants to pay a quarter million to have her host one of their drunken boob faux-lesbian makeout fests. She’s also not going to pose nude, despite the fact that we’ve already seen most of her.

It seems like she would be a natural to me, and who can turn down that kind of money for nothing? Barba can, and she wants you to know about it. That Catholic school guilt runs deep, but only deep enough to want to protect her public image, not the one all her friends and boyfriends know about.

Barba, 20, attended Roman Catholic grammar school in neighboring Point Pleasant Beach, and went to a Catholic high school in nearby Red Bank before enrolling in Catholic University in Washington, D.C., where she studied architecture.

She withdrew earlier this year to focus on the “Idol” competition, and has no plans to go back anytime soon.

“Right now, I’m going to stay in L.A. for a week or two,” she said. “I want to see what I can do with this for a career. I want to strike while the iron is hot.”

Barba, who played the violin as a youth and gave lessons to neighborhood children, said she would consider acting or modeling, but still wants a career in music above all else.

She said she will reject any prurient career offers that come her way. Nor, she added, would she pose nude, or in partial clothing, for any reason.

“That is not the way I want to present myself,” she said. “I keep getting told no publicity is bad publicity. Yes, it’s true my name is more well-known because of it. But I’m not known for the things I want to be known for. I’d rather present myself in a more classy way.”

Residents in Point Pleasant, a Jersey shore town of 18,000 about 60 miles north of Atlantic City, supported Barba when news of the photos threatened to overshadow her appearances on the show.

Signs sprouted around town wishing her well. By Friday morning, however, they were gone, replaced with messages advertising youth baseball sign-ups, and even the imminent arrival of spring.

She’s not going to be able to extend her fifteen minutes much longer. These “scandals” have a shelf life of up to two weeks, and hers is already getting sour. Maybe if she upped the ante a little bit by posing nude she could wheedle her way into the public’s long-term memory, but she’s already ruled that out.

Here are some pictures of Antonella I haven’t seen yet, from Gambling911.com.

And here are some of the pictures that kept Antonella on Idol too long: