Archive through May 22, 2003
TV ClubHouse: Archive: American Idol (FOX):
The last show (5/21/03) (ARCHIVE):
Archive through May 22, 2003
Luvmom | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 07:45 pm     Yuhuru, Noone answered you when you asked if that was RJ....I loved seeing him tonight.My 9 year old daughter,Yvonne almost fainted with excitement when she saw him.She loves him so much.His official website is now up so we are there almost every day......lol I am a huge Clay fan but I liked Ruben as well.Congratulations to Ruben!!!I can't wait to buy Clay's CD!! |
Marameko | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 07:47 pm     The 2 hour show was not as bad as I thought it would be, I am very happy that Kim Locke sang tonight and that Ruben won. I am looking forward too cd's by "The IDOL" , Kim L and Clay |
Seamonkey | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 07:47 pm     So, I wonder if they had to bring in the crash cart to surgically remove Kim Caldwell from Ruben's arm??? ROFL |
Bob2112 | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 07:53 pm     The actual difference in votes is around 134,400 and not either of the numbers Ryan said! Why does AI have so much trouble getting the vote count right? 24,000,000 * 50.28% = 12,067,200 24,000,000 * 49.72% = 11,932,800 12,067,200 - 11,932,800 = 134,400 Still a close vote, just not as close. |
Hermione69 | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 07:54 pm     I just got home from class. CONGRATS TO RUBEN for the win! And to CLAY for making it as far as he did. They both have gorgeous futures ahead of them! |
Prisonerno6 | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 07:55 pm     Arithmetic hard. :-) |
Seamonkey | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 07:57 pm     Hermi, you are such a sweetheart.. I know that heart hurts.. thanks for a class act. |
Halfunit | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 07:58 pm     My thanks to all of the participants for the wonderful entertainment. To the fans for their support of their favorites. And to TVCH for giving us a place to express our opinions. And to my B- buddy for doing the math! |
Seamonkey | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 07:58 pm     Bob.. yeah.. as soon as they started talking numbers I thought it was a misquote but so many repeated the same magnitude.. clearly it didn't match the percentages. |
Jimmer | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 07:59 pm     Congratulations Ruben! I really think that he wanted this win more than Clay did. Clay has it all anyway - he's intelligent, articulate, talented, and personable - he's going to be a success at whatever he wants in life. Sure Clay wanted to win but I really think this show was just a game to him and he had a good time and depending on what he wants to do, he's only going to get bigger and more famous down the road. |
Spygirl | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 08:04 pm     Good ending to a great season....I didn't watch all the show tonight, but I enjoyed the season. I didn't watch last year, so this was all new to me. Congrats and good luck to Ruben, and I can't wait to get Clay's CD when it comes out. Nite everyone! |
Whoami | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 08:31 pm     Congrats to Ruben. I haven't read the whole thread, so I need to ask.... Was there a lady wearing red at the end (on the stage), it looked like she was sort of swooning, and two men were holding/pulling her up by the arms. I was across the room laying down on the couch, so my vision was distorted. The camera never went back to that shot. Ruben was sweating so bad at the end. He looked absolutly overwhelmed and exhausted. I was actually very afraid for him. I kept saying, "get him backstage and out of that hot black suit and give him some air before he collapses!" Right after the show, our local FOX news came on, and said there was over 30 million votes, and the results were separated by 1300 votes. Nice accurate reporting, eh?  |
Bob2112 | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 08:33 pm     Hang on! I think they may be recounting Florida! <...wonders if anyone is waiting for this joke...>  |
Hermione69 | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 08:35 pm     I was waiting for that joke, Bob. Thanks for not disappointing me!!! |
Seamonkey | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 08:37 pm     I'm watching now and they did that matchup between Ruben and Clay.. I had NO idea that Clay was so tall.. 6'1" and 145lb.. Ruben 6'4" and "a whole lot". Yeah.. 1300, oh 13,000 oh no it was 130,000.. sheesh. |
Whoami | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 08:47 pm     That's what they put in the graphic for Ruben's weight? "A whole lot?" (my CC was covering up the graphics when it played). I'm sure tired of them taken open "fun" about his size. Our local FOX reporter had to go on and on about seeing Ruben's "crew" loading his clothes in the limo. She talked about how his shirt could have been a pup tent for her, how large his pant leg was, etc. Enough already. So he's big. He's also an awesome talent. Let's focus on that. OK? edited to add....I'm talking to the media regarding them focusing on his weight. Not the TVCHers! |
Jimmer | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 08:53 pm     They really have to improve/change their voting system. It just isn't working the way it should. The first thing wrong with it is Clay lost! Seriously, they have to do something about it. The lines are overloaded. There's no way that the vote should have been that close, first as a three-way tie and then a two way tie. I know that some people are sensitive about their weight, but I really think that in general the comments about Ruben's size are not made in a mean or derogatory manner. Heck … Ruben and his brother were joking about it themselves (the turkey sandwich story was very funny). Having said that, I understand why it may bother people. |
Whoami | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 09:00 pm     Well, I joke about my weight too. It's a self defense thing. Beat them to the punch. You have to put on a smile and take it with "good nature" and all that rot. It still hurts when people think it's okay to point out my size. |
Fabnsab | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 09:01 pm     I think Ruben's weight has helped him with the media. You wouldn't call a 140lb-er a velvet teddy bear. It is as much a part of him as Clay's accent. I don't think he minds it at all. He is the antithesis of what Simon always said an idol was. People got behind Ruben because they wanted someone to prove him wrong. Let's just hope he doesn't do like Luther and yoyo for the rest of his life. Poor Luther has weakened himself so much doing that, he's ill. |
Ladytex | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 10:03 pm          enough said ... |
Seamonkey | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 10:33 pm     OK.. Who.. I saw the woman in red and couldn't tell if she just stepped on her dress, or turned an ankle or got pushed into someone.. she was caught, didn't seem to be unconscious and then they didn't come back to her. Did you SEE who hugged Ruben right after Kelly Clarkson did? DIANA ROSS!! I also loved it when Kim was singing her solo and in the audience there was Gladys Knight, singing along with Kim!! I also loved how Ruben's and Clay's families were hugging each other, specially the two moms. |
Walker | Wednesday, May 21, 2003 - 10:38 pm     it was paula who nearly fell off the stage. |
Hobbs | Thursday, May 22, 2003 - 06:08 am     Before I go back to work after 3 months of hanging around here, I have to give my final opinion of last nights show. It's very simple. I like female singers better. I thought Kim and Kelly outsang Clay and Ruben. It's just a personal preference. I could say a lot more, but I'm just burned out and bored with it all. Last year was better, but this year was more fun because of TVCH. Uh-oh. Here comes my boss. See ya at BB4!  |
Hobbs | Thursday, May 22, 2003 - 06:55 am     I got a chuckle out of this article. I think the writer might hang around here! Link to Washington Post Ruben Studdard Squeezes Into the 'Idol' Pantheon By Lisa de Moraes Thursday, May 22, 2003; Page C01 Ruben Studdard, the 24-year-old, 350-pound "Round Mound of Sound" from the 205 area code, was crowned Fox's new "American Idol" last night. By the slimmest of margins -- only 1,335 out of 24 million votes -- Studdard edged out gamin Clay Aiken, 24, of the long, fluttering eyelashes. Studdard's metamorphosis from awkward head-bobbing, arm-flinging contestant into the guy Gladys Knight called a Velvet Teddy Bear and Aiken's transformation from geeky grad student to hipster heartthrob were witnessed by an average of more than 20 million viewers over the past 18 weeks, catapulting the Fox network into first place among the young viewers advertisers crave. So much for those conspiracy theorists who, leading up to last night's finale, had pronounced a black person's odds of surviving a slasher movie better than his odds of winning this show, as Salon.com put it. With no baby birthings on "Friends," a paltry first daughter kidnapping on "The West Wing" and a mere presidential assassination attempt on "24," last night's "American Idol" was the Hot Ticket of the May sweeps ratings race, when the broadcast networks pull out all the stops to attract viewers. TV industry navel-gazers expected the final showdown between Birmingham native Studdard and Raleigh, N.C., son Aiken to reach about 35 million viewers. That would make it second only to the "Joe Millionaire" finale, with its average of 40 million viewers, in the Reality TV Ratings Hall of Fame. With fewer than 1,400 votes separating Studdard and Aiken, Studdard's win must have come as a shock to Aiken's many fans. Not to mention the folks at Washington-based business intelligence and marketing firm New Media Strategy, which had put out a news release forecasting a close Aiken win. (NMS CEO Pete Snyder, former pollster for former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, is the guy who nicknamed Studdard the "Round Mound of Sound.") And the people at Amazon.com, who reported earlier this week that Aiken's not-yet-released single was the Web site's top-selling CD, while Studdard's was way back at No. 386. The "American Idol" producers, however, had to have gone tingly all over with the outcome, having labored for weeks to influence viewers to vote for Studdard. From the get-go, acid-tongued judge Simon Cowell, who is also one of the show's executive producers, spared Studdard all discussion of his weight, for instance, while harshly criticizing the physiques of other contestants. When even irritatingly uncritical judge Paula Abdul had issues with Studdard's performance, Cowell checked himself. And he was furious with viewers when Studdard landed in the bottom two a few weeks back. Cowell worked just as hard to send "hello, might be gay" messages to the hordes of smitten young women who have formed the Claymates fan club. Usually his unsubtle messages took the form of blasting the singer's performance as "too Broadway." That included this Tuesday, during the final sing-off, when Cowell called Aiken's performance of "This Is the Night" too "American Idol: The Musical." "What's astonishing is how handsome this show has made you," added Cowell, who has repeatedly criticized Aiken for not looking like a pop star. "You look at those early clips -- I'm not being rude, but you were really ugly and now you're handsome." (Apparently, Cowell, who often seemed bored during this edition's competition, had dozed off each time Studdard had appeared in one of those "205" muumuus.) Studdard's performance of "Flying Without Wings" rated a "fantastic" from Cowell. Don't take our word for it; contestant Kimberley Locke said as much last week before she got the heave-ho, telling Newsweek that Simon had said at every opportunity "they want Ruben"; the magazine also reported that Cowell said that "what you're trying to do, if you can, is to tell the audience who you want to be in the final. You're not getting accurate judging." The producers care who wins because they are compelled to sign him or her to a $1 million recording contract and management deal. Clearly they think they know how to market Studdard. Still, like "American Idol 1" runner-up Justin Guarini, Aiken will be signed to a recording deal and will put out an album. Maybe he'll even star in a buddy movie with Studdard. Because this edition's two finalists, let's face it, are not only far more talented; they also have way more chemistry than the summer edition's winner Kelly Clarkson and runner-up Guarini. Ruben and Clay were always slapping, hugging, poking and grinning at each other in the last couple of weeks of the competition. They were really cute together. I'd much rather see Ruben and Clay together in a flick than watch Justin and Kelly making out in the teener movie "From Justin to Kelly," which is coming our way next month from the Fox studio -- the same studio that owns the Fox network. There is so nothing going on between Justin and Kelly that Fox has had to work overtime to try to get "American Idol" fans to think there is. Most recently, Justin appeared on "American Idol" last week to explain carefully to "AI" host Ryan Seacrest that in the movie Justin plays a character named Justin who falls for a character named Kelly, played by Kelly Clarkson, and that there is actually nothing going on between the two of them. Wink, wink. So how exactly do you turn five minutes' worth of voting-results information into a two-hour special? With Prime-Time Padding. You have Sugar Ray Leonard weigh in on the competition. Plus, Michael Chiklis, star of the drama series "The Shield." Why? Who knows. You toss to Raleigh and Birmingham to talk to the little people in Ruben's and Clay's lives. You have Kelly Clarkson perform her single "Miss Independent" -- again -- and trot out RCA Records CEO Clive Davis to give a "This Competition Is About Finding the Most Talented Blah Blah Blah" speech and to announce that Clarkson's album has sold 1.3 million copies, which means that only a fraction of the people who watched the first edition of "American Idol" bought it, which you don't mention. You show a video of Simon and Paula having a romantic dinner, sharing a strawberry, swilling champagne and licking whipped cream off of each other's fingers. Paula says, "I love you, Cuddles" and kisses Simon, but Simon wakes up and it was all just a horrible dream, only it's worse, because he's in bed -- with Randy. And you take all of the worst songs from the entire competition and make Clay and Ruben sing them, including Clay's version of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and Ruben's rendition of "Flying Without Wings." And all the while, you're parceling out voting results in excruciating state-by-state dribs and drabs, as though daring young viewers to turn it off. "Clay has won the state of Ohio!" Who cares? And the winner in Florida is -- Ruben Studdard! Yawn. After 1 hour and 48 minutes, you give the judges the opportunity to say a few final words to the two contestants. Randy tells them they're both his "dawgs." Brilliant, Randy. Paula races to pack her 30 seconds with as many cliches as possible, as though she's a contestant in a show called "Cliche Competition": "It's been an amazing journey," "Life is an audition," "Listen to what your mama told you," "No kid ever grew up wanting to be a critic." And so much more. Simon, after telling Paula that once again he has no idea what she was saying and pronounces her comments "rubbish," proceeds to drop the biggest bombshell of the evening. The judging has been so close that the producers have decided to treat both like winners and will put out records by Ruben and Clay in the same week so that "the big battle" will continue. While viewers are still absorbing that information, Seacrest reveals that Ruben Studdard won. © 2003 The Washington Post Company |
Prisonerno6 | Thursday, May 22, 2003 - 06:59 am     " And he was furious with viewers when Studdard landed in the bottom two a few weeks back." Um...wasn't he the only one of the three who said something like, we gave the people the right to decide, you have to respect the wishes of the voters? |
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