Happy 10th anniversary, ‘American Idol’!
Ten years ago today, “American Idol” debuted as a fill-in Fox summer TV reality show.
I read some of the stories from the time. Expectations were modest. “Idol” did not send out an advance copy of the first episode, which made TV writers at the time instantly suspicious.
The Chicago Tributne: “American Idol” (8 p.m., WFLD-Ch. 32), copied from a British hit called “Pop Idol,” operates under the flawed assumption that this nation wants or needs another treacly pop star. Don’t the producers know that Celine Dion is back from exile and only one of the ‘N Sync boys is planning to go to space?
The Cleveland Plain Dealer: How bad is “ American Idol“? Well, we learned long ago not to ask how low Fox will go.
The Salt Lake Tribune: Fox mailed a short clip of the program to television critics, and, oh daddy, the cringe factor is really high — for the viewer, too. This is the show for those who truly love the sight of someone making an unintentional fool of themselves.
And it’s interesting to hear how Nigel Lythgoe spun the show before it first aired to the Los Angeles Times:
Lythgoe maintains that “American Idol” is less a talent show and more a slice of human drama, “like the kid who turned up and said to the judges, ‘Both my parents are deaf and they’ll never hear me sing.’ And he sang ‘When I Fall in Love’ and signed it at the same time. It was just beautiful.”
I recall the two TV writers at the AJC at the time passed on covering the show so they handed me some early advance tapes (in VCR form!) Fox did send out in June. Believe it or not, I still have them.
The PR person at “Idol” also informed me of five folks who were from the Atlanta area.
So I started tracking them in Peach Buzz.
Here’s the very first thing I ever wrote about “Idol,” which ran in Peach Buzz June 17, 2002:
‘Idol‘ has five Atlantans
Atlantans heavily populate the Fox television show “American Idol, ” which seeks to find the “best” singer/performer via popular vote. Of the 30 semifinalists, five are from the Atlanta area.
So far, the twice-weekly summer replacement series has done well amid a sea of repeats. Tuesday at 8:30 p.m., the first group of 10 will sing individually, and viewers will vote whether they’re worthy of moving to the next round.
Among the 10 will be Christopher Aaron, 23, of Duluth (a fan of Brandy) and teacher Tamyra Gray, 22, of Norcross (who loves Prince). R.J. Helton of Cumming, Melanie Noelle of Atlanta and an Atlantan who goes only by Jamar are the three other competing locals who will be shown on later episodes.
On my 33rd birthday, June 21, 2002, I wrote about Gray, who would ultimately finish fourth:
Norcross’ singing ‘Idol‘
Norcross resident Tamyra Gray blew away her crooning competitors in the first semifinal round of “American Idol, ” a twice-weekly Fox show that takes elements from Ed McMahon’s old “Star Search” and adds a dollop of edgy nastiness (or simple honesty) from a panel of judges.
Gray (left), competing for one of three finalist slots along with nine others, including Duluth pal Christopher Aaron, pulled in the most votes out of 3 million cast by the viewing public. The results were announced live Wednesday night.
To get to the finals with gorgeous Ryan Starr and sentimental pick Jim Verraros (who has deaf parents), 22-year-old Gray sang an inspiring version of “And I’m Telling You I’m Not Going, ” made famous by torch singer Jennifer Holliday.
Gray told Buzz that she chose that song because her mother, Rita Preston, loves it. When Gray reached her mom on the phone, “all she did was scream and then hang up the phone.”
The judges all predicted Gray would be the top vote-getter. “At the audition in Atlanta, I described her as having the X factor with a capital X, ” said the usually snide British record executive Simon Crowell, one of three judges that culled 10,000 contestants down to 30. “This girl is a star.”
Gray, unlike many of the jilted contestants, of course has nothing bad to say about Crowell. “I’m just a girl from Norcross being who I am. I’m so grateful people actually support me, ” she said.
The ratings for the first episode were solid and away the show went until Kelly Clarkson beat Justin Guarini before more than 23 million viewers, a huge number for a summer show. (I remember being at a Star 94 viewing party at Dave & Busters for that one.)
For folks who watched the show from 2002, what are some of your memories?
For nostalgia’s sake, here’s the first few minutes of episode one from a decade ago:
And check out this story on Billboard.com: “Idol” contestants have had 345 separate titles from 29 different “Idol” contestants reach No. 1 on one of its charts over 10 years for a total of 1,142 weeks. Kelly Clarkson has the most No. 1’s (73), followed by Carrie Underwood (62), Daughtry (38), Fantasia (31) and Ruben Studdard (16).
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By Rodney Ho, Radio & TV Talk
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257 comments Add your comment
JTesla aka Maybe
June 12th, 2012
4:46 pm
For me the winners:
1. Kelly
2. Carrie
3. David Cook
4. Taylor
6. Ruben
6. Jordin
7. Fantasia (while on Idol) – if I ignore the post Idol stuff she wasn’t that bad, it has always been about the story.
8. Phil
9. Scotty
10. Kris
11. Lee
Rickster
June 12th, 2012
4:54 pm
My winners:
1a. Carrie
1b. Kelly
3. David
4. Kris
5. Scotty
6. Kris
7. Ruben
8. Phillip
9. Lee
10. Taylor
11. Fantasia (and only under protest)
Deirdre
June 12th, 2012
4:57 pm
Two Kris’s, Rickster
Rickster
June 12th, 2012
4:57 pm
ooops…
Please substitute Jordin at #6.
Doh!
bknsty14
June 12th, 2012
4:58 pm
Winners in order(for me)
1. Carrie
2. Kelly
3. David Cook
4. Kris
5. Lee (no I’m not kidding)
6. Phil
7.Taylor
8. Jordin
9. Scotty
10. Ruben (should’ve been Clay)
11. Fantasia
The thing about 3 on down the list is I’ve never listened to any of their post Idol stuff, but during the show did enjoy what they did. For Lee, I liked The Boxer, Hallelujah, Simple Man and loved Falling Slowly duet with Crystal. Should he have won? No. But I enjoyed his time on there. Kris I picked over Adam from the start. Just liked his style better. Cook I liked the first time I heard him sing (which wasn’t until the top 24). He was never featured, that I remember, during auditions. Same with Elise this year. I had no idea who she was. Phil is 6 by default because the rest are just not that good. Scotty should have been out between about 6-10. Lauren was so much better. Clay should’ve won his year. McPhee should have won hers. If those three won they’d be 3, 4 and 5 on my list. If Hollie had won she’d be 2 on my list. Crazy how things work out. To each his own.
Deirdre
June 12th, 2012
4:58 pm
Poor Jordin…she always gets forgotten. Why is that?
Rickster
June 12th, 2012
5:04 pm
WGWG amnesia, your queeness. After all those… everything not Kelly or Carrie kinda gets lost.
Have a great evening, everyone!
Mercedes S.
June 12th, 2012
5:18 pm
Gosh, I was about to make a mistake and make a snide remark by saying, oh D., you forgot Adam… but I see you’re listing the official winners… this is why I would love to see an All Star a la Project Runway All-Stars, where the non-winners were competing and a grave mistake was rectified when MONDO won…
Jenny
June 12th, 2012
5:28 pm
Shoot, I missed a couple of songs for the top moments! Thanks, Sam-twin!
Carly’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart” and Diana’s “Don’t Cry Out Loud”.
And on the Summertime debate… I liked it. A lot. It just didn’t *quite* make my top list.
On Deirdre’s game…. Well, I haven’t liked very many of the winners, so:
1. Carrie
(big gap)
2. David Cook
Not counting Kelly and Ruben cause I didn’t watch their seasons, but they would’ve fit in here, probably.
(huge gap)
3. Lee
4. Fantasia
5. Jordan
6. Kris
(enormous gap)
11a. (tie) – Scotty, Taylor
11b. Worst winner ever: Phil
Jenny
June 12th, 2012
5:32 pm
Mercedes – I should’ve listed Adam anyway. Count him at #1 in a tie with Carrie for “best winner” in my book.
D – Poor Jordin gets forgotten because she was so mediocre. She only won because TPTB wanted a young pop type winner, so they started with all that r i d i c u l o u s pimping. IMO…
Mercedes S.
June 12th, 2012
5:34 pm
My Idol winners in favorite order:
1. Kelly
2. Carrie
3. David Cook
4. Phil
5. Scotty
6. Jordin
7. Ruben (shoulda been Clay)
8. Fantasia (only because of Summertime)
9. Taylor
10. Kris shoulda been Adam)
11. Lee (shoulda been Crystal)
If my should haves had won, the list would have been:
1. Adam
2. Kelly
3. Clay
4. Carrie
5. David Cook
6. Phil
7.Crystal
8. Scotty
.9 Jordin
10. Taylor
11. Fantasia
Only three guys with guitars and one with harmonica.
Oh wait, which was J-Hud’s year??
Whoever took her pkace – was that Fantasia?
It’s getting complicated.
Good Evenin.., Stacy Jaxx awaits!
Jenny
June 12th, 2012
5:35 pm
And bknsty14, glad it wasn’t just me who had Lee ahead of many others. For me, it wasn’t so much that I liked him (except for Hallelujah and The Boxer)… but even with his off-key problems, he was more interesting than all the other WGWGs and Fantasia and Jordin.
Jenny
June 12th, 2012
5:39 pm
My list of *real* winners (those who either did win or should’ve won their seasons) in order:
1. Carrie
2. Adam
3. Katharine
4. Jessica
5. Haley
6. Carly
7. Crystal
8. Melinda
9. LaToya
Jenny
June 12th, 2012
5:45 pm
If Hollie had won, she’d sub in at #4 for Jessica.
And bk, I forgot about Falling Slowly for Lee! That was a good duet (though it played up how much better Crystal was than him.) Yeah, he was much easier to watch than those like Phil and Scotty.
Deirdre
June 12th, 2012
6:03 pm
I think Jordin get forgotten for 2 reasons. 1. She’s the middle child…not the best, not the worst. 2. She was very middle of the road on Idol. Good voice but caught between an interesting beat-boxer(I always have to be reminded of his name, too) and a powerhouse. Jordin again was just the happy medium between the two of them.
Things will very likely change for Jordin however when her movie comes out. Whitney Houston was going to draw a big audience while she was alive…..now, even bigger.
Highlander
June 12th, 2012
6:50 pm
Jenny, we will definitely have to place you on the “Glamberts” alumni board for including Adam’s version of “Ring of Fire” in your top performances list.
Highlander
June 12th, 2012
6:50 pm
Hope things work out for you, RoHo!
JTesla
June 12th, 2012
8:46 pm
I hear that Lauren (yes from Season 10) and Carrie will be working with Aerosmith on their new album. Very interesting, two country ladies singing with the old man?
G
June 12th, 2012
9:04 pm
Excellent job from Jessica Sanchez on the National Anthem for the NBA Finals. She’s been busy. She just sang the same for the mega boxing match over the weekend. Good for her!!!
G
June 12th, 2012
9:13 pm
Winners in order(for me)
1.Ruben
2.Fantasia
3.Kelly
4.Carrie
5.Taylor
6.David Cook
7.Kris
8.Jordin
9.Scotty
10.Phil
11.Lee
Orlando
June 13th, 2012
7:06 am
My order, just in case anyone cares… lol
Kelly
Ruben
Fantasia
David Cook
Carrie
Jordin
Scotty
Lee
Taylor
Phil-should have been Jessica
Deirdre
June 13th, 2012
7:10 am
Morning!
Big shocker for me this morning! G doesn’t have Phil on the bottom of his list!!!!
JT, I heard that Carrie was working with ST and this isn’t the first time. Those 2 enjoy singing together. But I hadn’t heard about Lauren joining him.
Highlander
June 13th, 2012
7:59 am
Morning, all!
Okay, I’ll play. My personal, “doesn’t mean anything”, “just an opinion” ranking of the Idol winners…
1. Kelly Clarkson
2. Carrie Underwood
(I would have them at a tie but I think that would be a cop-out so I go with the “original” first!)
[...small gap]
3. David Cook
4. Taylor Hicks
5. Kris Allen
[...somewhat larger gap]
6. Phillip Phillips
7. Ruben Studdard
8. Jordin Sparks
9. Scotty McCreedy
[...leaning over the edge, looking into the abyss]
10. Off-Key Lee
11. Fantasia Barrino
(The last 2 could also be a tie.)
Harriett
June 13th, 2012
8:18 am
Good morning! I don’t have a list, but my favorite winner is David Cook and my favorite non-winner is Adam.
Deirdre
June 13th, 2012
8:20 am
LOL Highlander. looking into the abyss.
Next challenge: Worst performance ever by a top 10, 12 or even 13 finalist. Adding the youtube version will just enhance the experience.
My vote goes to Mikalah Gordon:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1iioj_mikalah-gordon-love-will-lead-you-b_music
Mercedes S.
June 13th, 2012
8:32 am
Wish I could link, but coming to my mind, immediately, is Caw-Caw’s “Rockin’ Robin” – that’s when she waved her arms, right?
And good morning to all!
Also, anything by Beanpole this past season.
Deirdre
June 13th, 2012
8:39 am
I could only find one youtube version that wasn’t studio but, for Mercedes, Megan Joy Corkery singing Rockin Robin(off someone’s tv) I actually didn’t think this was too bad. She stayed on key through most of it and she meant for it to be fun and funny. She just didn’t pull it off:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-56Dn2ssPA4
Sam-A
June 13th, 2012
8:41 am
See, Bknsty, you’re starting to further endear yourself – your post of 4:58 has much that I agree with, ie Lauren better than Scotty, Clay should have won, loved Hollie. But Kelly would have been my undisputed #1, and I’d have to shuffle your list a bit. And, didn’t like anything about Lee or McPhee. But we obviously agree on lots of stuff Idol-related.
RoHo: I hope you had a restful evening and a better day is ahead for you.
Pitchy
June 13th, 2012
9:15 am
Good morning. I’ve missed two days of blogging. Didn’t realize it’s been 10 years. Hope I was missed (lol).
G
June 13th, 2012
9:16 am
@Deirdre. Believe me, it was closer than you think for me to place pp above off-key Lee. LOL!!! Lee is probably the worst winner of any show that I’ve seen……..really.
Harriett
June 13th, 2012
9:23 am
Hey, Pitchy! Welcome back.
I think I remember a bad one from Nikki McKibbin: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gYIZRdrgAM&feature=results_video&playnext=1&list=PL0DE75FE7ECBE2DC6
Deirdre
June 13th, 2012
9:39 am
Happy to see you have returned, Pitchy.
Harriett, Nikki was truly awful and I cannot understand how she could have made it to 3rd unless Kelly and Tamyra were splitting votes
Mercedes S.
June 13th, 2012
9:48 am
Thank you, D., for the RR video… such a pretty girl, so sadly felled by lack of impulse control. IF she hadn’t picked that awful song, IF she hadn’t “cawed” and flapped her arms so stiffly, IF she hadn’t ruined her arm with that godawful tattoo… who knows where she’d be today. Where is she today?
Checked on other videos on that page – there was Carrie and “Alone”. That should have been on my ten best moment lists. Amazing. Would have liked to hear Hollie sing it – without Carrie’s country twang.
WIll now check out bad Nikki.
Mercedes S.
June 13th, 2012
9:54 am
Not a good Nikki. Poor lower register. Also seemed unrehearsed. Her kid must be a teenager now.
Harriett
June 13th, 2012
10:03 am
She definitely did not belong in that company, D!
Pitchy
June 13th, 2012
10:05 am
One of the more memorable look backs on AI is Simon’s facial expressions whenever Tamara was on stage. That man could have eaten her alive if allowed! He was truly smitten with her. And, she had a beautiful voice.
Deirdre
June 13th, 2012
10:06 am
Um, the challenge isn’t like an assignment. Y’all don’t HAVE to do it…just if you think of someone who made you cringe.
Sam-A
June 13th, 2012
10:11 am
Simon was crazy for Tamyra, however, it was Christina that he batted his eyes at, and said on a number of occasions, “I have a crush on you”. I think he’d have run off with her if there’d been any encouragement on her part. Took him several weeks to finally admit Kelly was the gigantic talent of the whole show.
Mercedes S.
June 13th, 2012
10:21 am
Caw-Caw was also a Simon girl.
For my fellow Georgians out there, it’s a copperhead year… just killed my third one in two weeks. A baby one, but they’re just as poisonous.
JTesla
June 13th, 2012
10:35 am
Let’s see, that guy that Ramielle hung all over, Ramielle, DeAndre, Jason Castro. The worst performance though was Ace Young showing his permanent scar on “Drops of Jupiter” I still cringe when that song comes on the radio. No YouTube for me.
Sam-A
June 13th, 2012
10:41 am
Mercedes: the babies are even more dangerous, because their poison is more concentrated than in adults. A girl I work with’s aunt’s puppy Bulldog was bitten by a copperhead last week, and died before they could get him to the Vet, And there was an AJC story a couple of weeks ago about a man who was clearing his back yard in ATL, and a baby copperhead (or maybe rattlesnake) bit his hand. It swole the size of a baseball mitt, and he spent days in intensive care – the cost $250,000!
I’m so horribly scared of snakes (any of them) I can’t even look at a picture or watch a movie scene with one in it. Can’t believe you can actually take them on! Brave lady!
JTesla
June 13th, 2012
10:52 am
There is a solution to the snake problem: MOVE!
You people are crazy.
Rickster
June 13th, 2012
10:53 am
Sam-A, I guess you never watched the Indian Jones movies all the way through without closing your eyes?
Rickster
June 13th, 2012
10:59 am
From the AJC Buzz:
Another reason to stay as far away from Twitter as possible:
Some time ago, according to Twitter lore (is there a more reliable source of information?) her current boo Kanye West may or may not have tweeted a photo that did or did not show Kim K’s bare assets.
Rickster
June 13th, 2012
11:03 am
Snooki’s complaining about nude pics that are making the rounds. Now KK.
If you don’t want the naked picture out there… don’t take the blooming picture!!
♥ kelly&carriefan ♥
June 13th, 2012
11:05 am
D, I like these challenges. I can play, but I can’t add youtube links at work…before I do, here’s my winners’ list:
1. Kelly
2. Carrie
3. Cookie
4. Kris
5. Jordin
6. Phil
7. Scotty
8. Ruben
9. Taylor
10.Lee
11.Fantasia
As for horrible performances, I’m voting for Lisa Tucker attempting Because of You, pretty much anything Sanjaya ever sung, especially Besame Mucho (ugh!), Chris Richardson doing Mayberry, Kristy Lee Cook’s Eight Days a Week (shudder!), the mentioned Rockin’ Robin, and finally, Tim Urban’s whole time on the show, especially Under My Thumb…
Sam-A
June 13th, 2012
11:10 am
Rickster: I put hands over eyes, with thumbs in ears (Spielberg always seemed to pick “hissing” snakes – noise scares me too), and whomever I was with had to tell me when the scenes were over. Worst scene, the pit where Indy and the Karen gal were put in the first movie – wowsa!
It wasn’t too much easier in the Harry Potter movies with Nagini, even though I knew it was computer-generated!
Sam-A
June 13th, 2012
11:12 am
K&CF: I didn’t care at all for Chris Richardson or Tim Urban, and I too would shudder if I ever went crazy and remembered KLCs murder of “Eight Days A Week” – criminal dismemberment of a Beatles song! Definitely a felony.
Rickster
June 13th, 2012
11:13 am
“Indiana” Jones – not “Indian” Jones
Deirdre
June 13th, 2012
11:34 am
k&cf…omg I forgot about Urban’s Under My Thumb!!! Reggae-style….one of the funniest awful moments on Idol.
Kristy Lee sang Eight Days a Week just fine…it was the arrangement….country hoe-down… that made me run screaming from the room.