So, American Idol returned for its eleven billionth season this week, and many millions of (older) people watched! Which is nice, and not just for Fox—because three New Yorkers were on this week and are now heading to Hollywood. more ›

If you felt left behind by all your CEO buddies who were getting raises, don't sweat it, you're in good company: judges in New York haven't received a raise in 12 years, and their pay is ranked 46th in the nation. But before you ready your tiny violins for a class of people that make over $100K a year, consider that the exodus of judges just means MORE LAWYERS. more ›

Hot on the heels of winning the award that is closest to the Nobel Peace Prize, U2's Bono and The Edge are scheduled to perform on American Idol's Wednesday finale with the cast of everyone's favorite Broadway musical, Spider- Man: Please Make The Pain Stop Turn Off the Dark. more ›

American Idol returned last night to just ok ratings but it still managed to piss off Bronx beep Ruben Diaz, Jr.. Let us explain: last night's audition episode—featuring Bronx native/new Idol host J.Lo!— included a segment about 16-year-old Bronx-native Travis Orlando, a boy who apparently has had a rough childhood that included time in shelter. He describes his formative years as "tough," surrounded by "gangs, drugs, violence," and continues later to boast his neighborhood has "robberies, killings, anything you can possibly imagine goes on here." Enter an angry Diaz! more ›

Bronx native Jennifer Lopez has gone full circle: After appearing on Fox's In Living Color as a Fly Girl dancer, she's now back on the Fox as one of the new judges for American Idol. Lopez was officially announced was a judge today, as was Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, who will critique a crop of new singing hopefuls alongside Randy Jackson. It's unclear who will take the role of bitchy truth sayer now that Simon Cowell is gone, but Steven Tyler seems like he's In the Paula Abdul seat. more ›

Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand is losing out in the polls to an opponent who hasn't even announced his candidacy yet. "We'll see down the road," said Republican ex-governor George Pataki, when asked if he would vie for the seat. Marist College research shows Pataki beating the former upstate congresswoman by two percentage points, 47-45. As for job approval, a scant 27 percent of the electorate believe Gillibrand, who critics say fails to connect with voters, is doing good work, reports the Post. Fifty-one percent rated her performance in the Senate as fair or poor, however the study suggests she could best other potential rivals like onetime Nassau County official Bruce Blakemen, American Idol dad Joe DioGuardi and former Wall Street economist David Malpass.
more ›

American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi says she’ll totally support her dad Joe DioGuardi's Republican bid for the senate, even though where politics is concerned, they’ve had their differences. "We don't always agree on every issue," she told the Post, equivocating when questioned about her party allegiance. "To me, it's not whether he's a Republican or Democrat or if I'm a Republican or Democrat. We have our opinions," she said. "I vote based on the candidate." DioGuardi says her dad is a smart guy; 25 years ago he even “predicted the deficit was way more than what they [Congress] said.” Still she won’t be campaigning for him because she’s pretty busy. "If I have one more job, I will fall apart,” said the “Idol” decider and songwriter. more ›

For better or worse, American Idol has done its part to change with the times over the last few seasons. The show, for the most part, has gotten away from plucking the most inoffensive generic pop stars from the masses, and settled in on some acts with actual personality. While there is still plenty of room for the Danny Gorkey cheeseballs of the world to give it a go, the final two this year boiled down to emo-glam vs. sensitive lite-rock. While these are by no means underrepresented genres in today’s pop landscape, it does take the show into a new direction. And yet, despite his rabid fanbase, Adam Lambert fell short of Kris Allen's more conventional look and approach. It still feels nearly a half decade behind the curve, and there are numerous peripheral issues with the show, but it does seem to live and evolve with the times, which is better than most shows that have come and gone before it. more ›

Hillary Clinton may be Secretary of State but she does have to deal with the debt remaining from her 2008 presidential campaign. Which is why strategist James Carville sent an e-mail to Clinton supporters, telling them that if they contribute, they could be entered in contest to win one of three prizes: "Spend a day with President Clinton" in NYC, "attend the American Idol season finale," and a weekend in D.C. talking politics with Carville and Paul Begala. OMG!! You can read the whole e-mail here; donations can be as small as $5 (Clinton's debt is about $6 million). A veteran Republican campaign finance lawyer told the Wall Street Journal, “It’s difficult to pay off $6 million when a losing candidate has already exhausted his or her base contributors. I think the only thing more difficult than raising money to pay a pollster is raising money to pay lawyers.” more ›

Considering most parties have a hard time getting through a summer in this town, the fact that GBH has been doing their thing for 10 whole years is an incredible achievement. These guys have been hosting parties in just about every space available, from the high end hotels to the low brow clubs. To celebrate the anniversary, they blew it out in spectacular form last Friday night, taking over Webster Hall's main ballroom for the evening with an impressive collection of DJs and dance acts. MSTRKRFT (pictured), James Murphy, Grandmaster Flash, among others hit the decks till the early morning, and while there was no secret LCD Soundsystem set (as rumored), few seemed disappointed with what was an completely raucous night. Here's to another 10 years. more ›

Colin Leahy, who never made it past the audition round during the third season of American Idol, is accused of having "inappropriate interaction with students" at P.S. 236 in Brooklyn. Leahy, a 23-year-old school volunteer, was charged with two counts of child endangerment. more ›

Hillary Clinton's campaign happily announced that the Senator from New York had raised $35 million during February, her best month ever. Adviser Harold Ickes used the news to accentuate the positive, "We have been through a dry period in the last eleven contests but we are about to start our upswing." Clinton is thrilled with the fundraising efforts, saying, "It’s incredibly gratifying to see people coming forward with their vote of confidence." She also said her $5 million personal loan to the campaign was not paid back. more ›

Two of the world's largest crossover Country stars joined forces this winter for a massive arena tour that came through NYC this week. Former American Idol and legitimate breakout star Carrie Underwood opened the show for Keith Urban at a sold out MSG, both dazzling the crowd with song and spectacle. While Carrie's set was slightly less ambitious – a mere 4 costume changes and a fairly pedestrian light show to complement the surprisingly competent songs – Urban was the complete package. Even somebody who couldn't hum a single one of his songs would have been transfixed by the ultra-sharp, 50 foot HD backdrop and his dazzling charisma and energy. The highlight of the set might have been when he took it into the crowd mid-song, standing in the lower ring of seats with a mob of fans and camera phones all pointed at him. In a moment of pure generosity and awesomeness, he took the guitar he was playing off his shoulder, autographed it on the spot and handed it to a stunned, random fan. An amazing move to cap off an unexpectedly spectacular show. more ›

A Giant hooked up to a shock device, numerous wedding proposals and an American Idol audition all added to the collective fun know as “Media Day” at the Super Bowl. What else can you expect when nearly 5,000 reporters have to shake out stories from 200 or so football players and coaches. more ›

In a matter of weeks, Kimya Dawson has gone from nice, unassuming local anti-folk artist to a bona fide national breakout star, thanks to the success of the movie Juno and her contributions to the soundtrack. This week the soundtrack hit #3 on the Billboard album chart, and Kimya's been busy basking in the much deserved success. Aside from speaking with us earlier this week, the former Moldy Peach played a handful of packed (overflowing, even) shows around Brooklyn, likely impressing her new fans at every stop. Those who couldn't make it, or couldn't get enough, be sure to catch her on The View with her idol, Whoopi, next Monday. (pic via thepiratehat's flickr) more ›

There was a bit of drama Friday at the Broadway theater where The Color Purple performs, just not onstage. The lobby of the theater was mobbed by disgruntled ticket holders demanding refunds when ex-American Idol Fantasia, who stars as Celie, failed to turn up for work. Lobby spies for Post columnist Michael Riedel witnessed an 8-year-old girl “sobbing uncontrollably when she heard Fantasia was not going to be in the show.” But it seems there... more ›

When the stagehands’ strike ended late Wednesday night, the general consensus was that not all Broadway productions would be able to pull it together in time for Thursday night re-openings. But as it turned out, all 27 strike-darkened shows were up and running last night, despite the challenges that larger productions faced after 19 dormant days. Chicago, for instance, had two stars joining the cast – Vincent Pastore and Aida Turturro of “The Sopranos” –... more ›

Yesterday's lovely weather made the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade a big crowd pleaser. An estimated 3.5 million spectators watched as giant balloons, floats, and hundreds of parade performers sauntered from 77th and Central Park West to Herald Square. Some people waited since 4AM in hopes of catching a glimpse of their favorite performers, who included Dolly Parton, Wynonna, the cast of Legally Blonde, American Idol winner Jordin Sparks, Good Charlotte, Menudo (really!), the Rockettes... more ›

American Idol has been on the decline ever since Kelly Clarkson stepped off the stage. It's understandable, the first time is always more exciting -- and c'mon, one can only take so much of Paula's craziness, Simon's snarkiness and Randy Jackson's what's up dawg's. more ›

American Express developed an interesting promotional tool that combines good press and good works with a dash of American Idol-style competition thrown in for good measure. The Members Project has been a winnowing contest where AmEx cardholders (or "members") have selected five charitable causes from a large number of entries. The single charitable project that then receives the most votes among the five will receive as much as $5 million from American Express to continue its work. Some people are now complaining that Procter & Gamble, which currently hold a sizable lead as the voting window is near its close, has hijacked the competition to make itself look good at the expense of smaller non-profits to whom $5 million would make a huge difference. more ›

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. has secured the votes necessary to purchase Dow Jones & Co., Inc. which includes The Wall Street Journal itself. The win comes after a lengthy proxy battle in which the Bancrofts––the family that has acted as stewards of the company from afar for more than a century––resisted a very generous overture from Murdoch. more ›

MOVIES: It's a perfect night to head to the movies. Get a double-feature in at the MoMA with Fabricating Tom Zé followed by David Cronenberg's Crash. Let's focus on the former film. Tom Zé (pictured) is a Brazilian songwriter and composer and this documentary (filmed during a 2005 European tour) charts his "personal universe". Zé is an "uncompromising and inspired artist...seen by many (including David Byrne and Arto Lindsay) as revitalizing the ever-evolving Tropicalia movement. Zé, who narrates his own story, is a very special musical phenomenon in a genre mostly associated with Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil—both of whom warmly assess the musical genius of their friend." more ›

Covering Coverage
more ›

Oh, the dangers of the interwebs. Recently crowned Miss New Jersey Amy Polumbo held a press conference yesterday to announce that she was being blackmailed into stepping down after someone sent packages of photographs where she's in possibly compromising positions to her and pageant officials. The pictures had once been posted on Facebook. more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a bank robbery on East 79th St. in Manhattan, another bank robbery on East 89th St. in Manhattan, and a police scooter accident at Adams and Tillary Sts. in Brooklyn.
• A parking ticket fixer was sentenced to three-to-six years in jail for arranging false-documented excuses to get people out of parking tickets.
• Robert Deniro and Al Pacino are teaming up as detectives tracking a serial killer in a new film. 50 Cent will join them as a helpful drug dealer informant character.
• Rupert Murdoch-owned News Corp. isn't about to cooperate with The New York Times or its China-based correspondent.
• No NYC tryouts for the latest incarnation of American Idol.
• Curbed notes an Upper West Side townhouse that can be yours for just a K-note under a half billion dollars, courtesy of a typo.
• An SUV struck two pedestrians in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, before crashing into a storefront. The female pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene.
• The "limited time only" lobster roll at Cosi gets a Midtown Lunch review: "There’s no way it’s healthy, and if you are not a fan of mayo you will probably hate this sandwich."

A look at some noteworthy television this week: more ›

Although the mass media informs us that our nation was monolithically united around last night's final Sopranos episode, we believe a small pocket of dissenters were tuned into CBS, where the 61st Annual Tony Awards were broadcast over the span of three hours. We know from The Playgoer’s pithy live-blogging that there were big musical numbers by each of the nominated musicals, a (“thankfully”) drunk Eddie Izzard and an appearance by American Idol sensation Fantasia Barrino belting out a song from The Color Purple. more ›

A look at some noteworthy television this week: more ›

• Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a double shooting at Belmont and Christopher Aves. in Brooklyn, a body was found on Otis Ave.on Staten Island, and there was a jumper up on the Brooklyn Bridge this afternoon.
• The Gotham Book Mart is closing and having a going-out-of-business sale.
• There's a new Subway Idol. American Idol is in America's hands now with a slight NYC vote for Staten Island-born Jordin Sparks necessitating our regional favor.
• If one is dumb enough to write in for "apartment therapy", one is dumb enough to paint over exposed brick. We hope this couple's ouija board doesn't recommend installing wall-to-wall shag carpeting, because we will go over there and exorcise the place ourself.
• Pictures of New Yorkers getting tattooed at last weekend's TattooCon.
• Rosie O'Donnell was bilked out approximately $70,000 by someone passing stolen checks from her production company account. It was nearly a non-story until we read the culprit's Mom's reaction: '"He's a very good boy," Mitchell said. "This is out of character."'
• A portion of the East Village was left waterless after a water main break flooded 2nd Ave. Do you live on 7th St. between 2nd and 3rd Aves.? Send us your pics!
• The NY Post can only pray so hard: are Amy Fisher and Joey Buttafuoco back together as a couple? Shot-in-the-face-former-wife Mary Jo doesn't care and we applaud her indifference.

A look at some noteworthy television this week: more ›