Althouse: "American Idol" — the last show, and I'm not watching.

May 20, 2009

"American Idol" — the last show, and I'm not watching.

But I'm reading the live chat at Throwing Things.

34 comments:

Jason (the commenter) said...: You'd think the Idols would sound better as a chorus, but they don't.; 5/20/09, 8:33 PM
rhhardin said...: The last song Edward Bear.; 5/20/09, 8:44 PM
Jason (the commenter) said...: They should have Donald Trump come on and say "You're fired!" to the new judge.; 5/20/09, 8:46 PM
Jason (the commenter) said...: The sexy one won!; 5/20/09, 9:03 PM
Peter Hoh said...: The 14 y.o. daughter is a bit upset. Well, not like those girls in the famous video, but she thought Adam deserved to win. Danny was her first choice.; 5/20/09, 9:06 PM
Ann Althouse said...: Oh no! Well, I liked them both. Kris fought for it and won. And Adam will be fine.; 5/20/09, 9:06 PM
Jason (the commenter) said...: I thought Kris was pratically begging people not to vote for him. The first words out of his mouth were even, "Adam deserved this."; 5/20/09, 9:09 PM
Jennifer said...: Aw, I feel like Kris feels bad. Like the imagined brouhaha brought him an undeserved win.

Or maybe he's just super humble.

Adam will be fine. Kris probably needed the win.; 5/20/09, 9:10 PM
Titusfeelsalittlebad said...: I admit I feel a little sad.

I wanted Adam to win.; 5/20/09, 9:12 PM
Titusfeelsalittlebad said...: I would definitely do Chris though. He's cute.; 5/20/09, 9:13 PM
MadisonMan said...: Rod Stewart was on too long. I LOVED the Queen Song though. So great to see Brian May.

The more marketable guy one. I think they'll both do very very well. Loved the last shot, Kris crying on his wife's shoulder.; 5/20/09, 9:21 PM
MadisonMan said...: Jorge is a camera hog.

I'd totally forgotten about Michael Sarver and Scott.

When they shot Sarver and Megan from the back of the stage during the Steve Martin song, was that a huge teleprompter I saw?; 5/20/09, 9:23 PM
Anonymous said...: Many of my friends twitter/facebook statuses are saying that Adam was robbed because America is homophobic. If that becomes the story I'm going to puke.; 5/20/09, 9:27 PM
Jason (the commenter) said...: It's all downhill for each of them now. I hope each has an album ready before they fade into obscurity.; 5/20/09, 9:27 PM
hombre said...: Bullshit, Jason. Adam will be beyond fine. Maybe the next Elvis?

Homophobic, my ass. He was presented as a rocker and rockers don't win AI. Remember Daughtry?; 5/20/09, 9:36 PM
Cedarford said...: MadisonMan said...
Rod Stewart was on too long. I LOVED the Queen Song though. So great to see Brian May.I admire May, too. He is the man of the riffs.
Also a very smart guy with many patented innovations in music technology and "the 1st" to try many things in music on stage and in studio recording.

The guy, also rich and famous as can be, decided to go back and finish his PhD in astrophysics.

================
Jason (the commenter) said...
It's all downhill for each of them now. I hope each has an album ready before they fade into obscurity.I think you are very wrong about that. Chris is a very appealing guy that will in all likelihood, be a commercial success.

And Adam Lambert, another appealing nice guy, looks like he will be a talented, charismatic triple threat. Music, stage, movies.; 5/20/09, 9:39 PM
Jason (the commenter) said...: Idol contestants only look good when compared to other idol contestants. When they are out in the real world, competing against skilled acts, they look much less talented and tend to fizzle out.

You shouldn't be making an Adam/Kris comparison, but an Adam/Mika/(Thousand other people) comparison. In that light Adam should have a good career as a back-up singer, and I hope he enjoys the ride until then.; 5/20/09, 10:03 PM
NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...: I have to admit that when majoritarian democracy gives a result that horrifies the elite I get a kick out of it.

AI is about broad appeal, by definition.; 5/20/09, 10:07 PM
Joe said...: I end up watching this show only because my wife and youngest kids love it. I don't know what it was about tonight, but I found it even more irritating that usual. The music sounded poorly mixed and several of the performers were dreadful (though Kris and Adam did very good.)

(Once again, it strikes me that for all the hype, this is a very poorly produced show.); 5/20/09, 10:15 PM
garage mahal said...: Speaking of Queen. Edgar Cruz -- Bohemian Rhapsody. He plays both guitars, bass, piano and vocals all on one guitar [if you like that sort of thing].; 5/20/09, 10:18 PM
hombre said...: Idol contestants only look good when compared to other idol contestants. When they are out in the real world ... [they] tend to fizzle out.

Yeah. Like Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Clay Aiken, Daughtry, Jennifer Hudson, Fantasia Barrino. You nailed that, Jason.; 5/20/09, 10:23 PM
knox said...: Many of my friends twitter/facebook statuses are saying that Adam was robbed because America is homophobic. If that becomes the story I'm going to puke.

Get your barf bag ready!! It will be for a lot of people. Was a long time ago, in fact.; 5/20/09, 10:54 PM
Big Mike said...: Professor, may I ask a silly little question? If watching Idol was that important to you, couldn't you and Meade have found a bar with a TV? Or maybe even check in a motel for just one night?; 5/20/09, 10:57 PM
traditionalguy said...: Your post headline says, "American Idol- The last show..." Are you being prophetic on us again? One can only hope for change, to quote the current American Idol.; 5/20/09, 11:11 PM
Jason (the commenter) said...: elHombre, I saw Clay Aiken as a guest judge on America's Next Top Model and thought, "Wow, he's come down to Janice Dickinson's level," but then I saw her in the crowd at American Idol!; 5/20/09, 11:15 PM
AmPowerBlog said...: Whoa ... I came to see if you were live bloggin'!; 5/20/09, 11:17 PM
Unknown said...: I just heard a radio DJ in Los Angeles say that with the New Hampshire Governor's stymie of the gay marriage bill, "that and what happened on American Idol, this is not a good night for gays".

This evangelical Christian (read "homophobe" to many)and his family thought Kris was good, but Adam was exceptional and deserved to win. Obviously us homophobes like our designers, personal care attendants and entertainers to play on both sides!

But they'll both have big careers.

And now, where exactly is Taylor Hicks? Ruben? Helloooooo?; 5/21/09, 12:08 AM
John Stodder said...: Yeah. Like Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Clay Aiken, Daughtry, Jennifer Hudson, Fantasia Barrino. You nailed that, Jason..

Pop music giants, all of them. Locks for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

(The above sarcasm doesn't apply to Jennifer Hudson. She's good enough as an actress, though overmelodramatic as a singer.); 5/21/09, 12:19 AM
Anonymous said...: I'm sorry you missed it, Ann. It was a great show, really the best rock TV show I have seen. I think the rockers really enjoyed singing with the kids and vice versa. And Adam's dream come true, a song with Kiss!

He and Kris were evenly tied, but yes Adam will be fine. Kiss is already inviting him on tour, LOL. Like Jennifer said, I think Kris could use this more. Great show!; 5/21/09, 12:26 AM
crazyray said...: Tonight I have decided to admit I read Althouse every single day. I read alot of blogs, but this is my 2nd favorite one.

I am coming out of the closet. I am admitting to the world that constantly check a nerdy, constitutional-law focued blog that occasionally has photos.
THAT IS ALL.
p.s.- Oh yeah? where were we? Way to go Kris.; 5/21/09, 12:57 AM
Lem Vibe Bandit said...: Big Papi came out of his slump last night and hit a home run.

(Why do I get the feeling you guys are talking about something else); 5/21/09, 7:04 AM
save_the_rustbelt said...: There are plenty of nice hotels and motels in the Cinci area with cable, and we all know what happens when we plop onto that big king size bed with a couple of glasses of DomP.

Anyway, a one hour show stretched to two hours gave me plenty of time to paste wax the wood floors. Yawn.; 5/21/09, 7:37 AM
hombre said...: John Stodder wrote: "Pop music giants, all of them. Locks for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. (The above sarcasm doesn't apply to Jennifer Hudson)."

I don't recall suggesting they were giants or headed for any "hall of fame."

On the other hand:

"As of February 2009, Underwood has sold over 9.5 million albums in the United States. Underwood was inducted as a member of the Grand Ole Opry on May 10, 2008.

On April 5, 2009, Underwood made history at the Academy of Country Music Awards (ACM Awards) by becoming only the seventh female to win the prestigious "Entertainer of the Year" Award. She also took home "Female Vocalist of the Year", her third consecutive win in that category.; 5/21/09, 12:01 PM
paul a'barge said...: So, Meade has no TV, clothes washer or dryer?; 5/21/09, 4:11 PM