Nigel Lythgoe Upset Abdul Is Tying Goodspeed Tragedy To ‘Idol’ Audition

Paula Abdul feels the ‘American Idol’ producers put showbiz over safety, citing the case Paula Goodspeed’s ‘Idol’ audition for the show. Goodspeed died last month from an apparent suicide in front of Paula’s home.

Former ‘Idol’ producer Nigel Lythgoe offered his take to ‘Access Hollywood’, telling Billy Bush: “I can’t go back and deny that didn’t happen. We are talking about three years ago and many, many hundreds of auditions later. However, if that did happen it was still not the thought that she was dangerous to Paula or dangerous to herself. That was three years ago and when Goodspeed did what she did [last month], the unfortunate actions that she took, [were] three years later. To sort of tie that to an audition on ‘American Idol’ I find… upsetting.”

Watch the interview below the cut. (more…)

December 13, 2008 Jeff C Multimedia No Comments

Paula Abdul Discusses Paula Goodspeed On ‘The View’

Paula Abdul visited ‘The View’ on Monday (December 8), discussing the apparent suicide of Paula Goodspeed, who the ‘American Idol’ judge claims had been following her for 17 years.

“What people don’t know is that a few months prior I was in new York and she had attempted the same thing and they… she was code blue apparently. In Front of my house she was in the back seat of a car and they took her to the hospital and she survived,” Paula explained. “This time around I was fortunately at the Kodak Theater doing Hollywood week for ‘American Idol’. The crew knew but waited until I was done taping. But I had some kind of feeling and premonition something was going on.”

Abdul added, “She has been a stalker-fan for about 17 years and it wasn’t until ‘American Idol’ that she knew how to get to me. Prior to that it was always through a fan club. So when that happened it opens up the target to be followed home. The last five years have been a little tough on me.”

Video of the comments have since been removed.

December 8, 2008 Jeff C News No Comments

On TV: Paula Abdul, Jason Mraz, Sara Bareilles

Pop acts on television this week include:

Gavin DeGraw, who performs on ‘Last Call with Carson Daly’ (NBC) on Monday.

Paula Abdul, who visits ‘The View’ (ABC) on Monday, ‘The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet’ (FOX) on Tuesday, and ‘The Martha Stewart Show’ (Syndicated) and ‘The Late Show with David Letterman’ (CBS) on Wednesday.

Sara Bareilles, who performs on ‘The Tonight Show with Jay Leno’ (NBC) on Tuesday.

Josh Radin, who performs on ‘Last Call’ (NBC) on Tuesday.

Jesse McCartney, who performs on ‘The Bonnie Hunt Show’ (Syndicated) on Tuesday.

Jason Mraz, who performs on ‘Live with Regis and Kelly’ (ABC) on Wednesday.

Barry Manilow, who performs on ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ (Syndicated) and ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ (ABC) on Friday.

Diana DeGarmo, Kimberley Locke, David Hernandez and Chikezie of ‘American Idol’ visit ‘The Morning Show’ (FOX) on Friday.

December 8, 2008 Jeff C TV Appearances No Comments

Ex-‘Idol’ Contestant Paula Goodspeed Dies Outside Paula Abdul’s Home

‘American Idol’ season five contestant Paula Goodspeed, 30, whose audition performance of ‘Proud Mary’ was panned and mocked by the judges, appears to have died of a drug overdose in her car nearby Paula Abdul’s home in Los Angeles.

“Ms. Goodspeed’s mother had gone to [the sheriff’s department] to report her daughter missing, and advised them that she might be suicidal,” says Los Angeles police Capt. James Miller. “The sheriffs determined that Ms. Goodspeed may be up in the vicinity by Paula Abdul’s house. Our officers discovered her vehicle parked on the street, and found her inside. She was unresponsive to officers.”

“I am deeply shocked and saddened at what transpired yesterday,” Abdul said in a statement. “My heart and prayers go out to her family.”

Check out more details from People.com.

Update: ‘Entertainment Tonight’ has exclusive footage of Paula Goodspeed, the young woman who was found dead near ‘American Idol’ judge Paula Abdul’s home. The footage was taken when Goodspeed was trying out for ‘Idol’, where she was asked why she wanted to be the next ‘Idol’. The video clip at ETOnline.com has since been removed.

November 12, 2008 Jeff C News 1 Comment

Paula Abdul Talks ‘Idol’ Auditions With Ryan Seacrest

Paula Abdul appears on ‘On Air with Ryan Seacrest’ on Tuesday (August 26) to talk about the first day of ‘American Idol’ auditions. Paula talked about how she knew the show’s new fourth judge Kara Dioguardi, giving Kara her first break and having her stay at her home coming to Los Angeles to begin work as a songwriter. Paula said she can immediately recognize an exceptional artist the moment they walk in for an audition.

She also talked about being nine days out of surgery for a disc replacement in her neck. “It’s no secret, I’ve had major problems in my neck from that plane crash I had in the early 90s,” Paula told Ryan. “I had some time off and I just wanted to take care of it, and thank god, it’s better.”

The subject then went to her boyfriend JT Torregiani, with Ryan obsessing about having “the most moisturized male skin in all of Hollywood.” Paula said she’d like to do ‘Dancing with the Stars’ someday - depending on when her ‘Idol’ run ends.

The interview audio at kiisfm.com has since been removed.

Paula Abdul ‘Really Thrilled’ Kara DioGuardi Is Joining ‘Idol’

August 26, 2008 - Paula Abdul is clarifying her comments to Johnjay and Rich of 104.7 KISS FM in Phoenix after the ‘American Idol’ judge talked about her concern for how viewers would react to newly hired fourth ‘Idol’ judge Kara DioGuardi. “This is gonna be a good thing,” Paula told Perez Hilton. “I’m really thrilled! For me, I’m excited as can be. I think this time around, it’s gonna work adding a new judge. A lot of surprises are in store that are gonna make it more exciting to watch the show.” Paula added, “It’ll be good to have two girls, and two guys. Kara’s like a sister to me.” Read more.

Kara Dioguardi Talks About Joining ‘American Idol’

August 26, 2008 - Kara Dioguardi visited ‘On Air with Ryan Seacrest’ on Monday (August 25), talking about joining Ryan on ‘American Idol’ as the show’s fourth judge. Kara said she knows Randy Jackson “in a Santa Claus way” and has worked with Paula Abdul as well. She hadn’t seen or spoken to Paula since the announcement, and said the pair will contrast because “I’m definitely a bit harder”. Kara said Simon Cowell had spoken to her on Sunday to welcome her to the show. “I’m really excited about it, I really am,” she said. “It’s what I do every day, except now it’s in front of 30 million people.”

Kara said the ideal ‘Idol’ she’s looking for would be someone like Katy Perry. “I really like her,” Dioguardi said. “She’s been banging around for years and finally got her shot. I’m so excited.” It was a bunch of things coming together for Perry which has worked, Dioguardi opined.

The interview audio at kiisfm.com has since been removed.

August 27, 2008 Jeff C News No Comments

Paula Abdul On Kara DioGuardi Joining ‘American Idol’

Paula Abdul hardly sounded welcoming with news Grammy-nominated songwriter Kara DioGuardi has been added as a fourth judge for the eighth season of ‘American Idol’. “I am concerned about the audience and acceptance,” Abdul told Johnjay and Rich of 104.7 KISS FM in Phoenix. “Time will tell. We’ll see.”

Paula said the decision was made because they “wanted to try a change. They always tried for a fourth judge because it followed the format of the original show, ‘Pop Idol’. We haven’t had much luck with that working, but we’re gonna give it another try.”

DioGuardi has a long history of writing songs for ‘Idol’ contestants and many other top pop acts this decade. She was heavily involved with Hilary Duff’s ‘Dignity’ album, Christina Aguilera’s ‘Back to Basics’, and Ashlee Simpson’s ‘I Am Me’ and ‘Autobiography’.

Audio at YouTube has since been removed.

‘American Idol’ Auditions At The IZOD Center

August 21, 2008 - Thousands of ‘American Idol’ hopefuls waited in line for their crack at stardom in the show’s eighth season at the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey on Tuesday (August 19). News 12 New Jersey’s Syma Chowdhry was at the scene, talking with some wannabe ‘Idol’ stars and hearing others sing. Video of the segment at CNN.com has since been removed.

‘American Idol’ Auditions Draw Thousands In Jacksonville

August 13, 2008 - ‘Entertainment Tonight’ was on hand in Jacksonville, Florida on Wednesday for the ‘American Idol’ season eight auditions, where thousands lined up at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena for a chance to go to Hollywood. Video at ETOnline.com has since been removed.

August 26, 2008 Jeff C News 1 Comment

Paula Abdul Barefoot At LAX

Paula Abdul and a Rabbi were spotted departing from Los Angeles International Airport on August 24th, where the ‘American Idol’ judge kissed and hugged many of her fans and airport staff and was barefoot in the security line.

Note: The image provided by Bauer Griffin has since been removed.

Paula Abdul Backs Out Of ‘Today’ Performance Again

August 4, 2008 - After Paula Abdul cancelled her plans to perform her comeback single ‘Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow’ on the ‘Today’ show in April, the NBC program rescheduled her for August 29th, but Abdul cancelled that appearance last Friday, citing ‘American Idol’ commitments. In response, a source told the New York Post, “Please. She can’t perform live. Her voice on the single is so mixed and electronicized you don’t know what she really sounds like any more.”

August 25, 2008 Jeff C News No Comments

Paula Abdul Wants To Record Duet With Jesse McCartney

Paula Abdul was on the phone with Johnjay and Rich of 104.7 KISS FM in Phoenix on Monday (July 28), where the ‘American Idol’ judge talked with the DJ’s about going up against Ryan Seacrest for best morning show on Radio & Records, how ‘Idol’ loses in the Emmy Awards every year to ‘The Amazing Race’, and Paula’s belief that with the new Emmy category best show host will see Ryan win for ‘Idol’, but the show lose, causing Ryan to get an even bigger ego. “I get it. To have to go through how big his head gets,” Abdul said. “I get where you guys are coming from, I’m in the same boat.”

Paula also teased about her plans to turn a movie into a Broadway musical that she’d star in, intriguing the DJ’s into wondering what the movie was. Paula said she couldn’t reveal the movie until she secured the rights.

Abdul then talked about having her house broken into, and all of her Emmy Awards and Video Music Awards were stolen. She then instructed her assistant to make a list of all the awards she won. Then they got Jesse McCartney on the phone and Paula congratulated him on his recent success with ‘Leavin’. They then agreed to hook up in the studio along with legendary songwriter Oliver Leiber. Paula said she’d like to do something “fresh and new” with Jesse. “Oh my god, there’s actually a song,” Paula babbled, “if he would be willing to do a duet.” Abdul sounded overly medicated throughout the interview, but the DJ’s who are friends with Paula and plan to hang out with her in Phoenix this weekend never made an issue of it.

The interview audio at johnjayandrich.1047kissfm.com has since been removed.

July 31, 2008 Jeff C News No Comments

Brooke White Eliminated From ‘American Idol’, Abdul Defended

Another would-be ‘American Idol’ hopes were dashed when Brooke White was given the boot on Wednesday’s show, and judge Paula Abdul’s strange brain-freeze on Tuesday night got an explanation. Watch a report from NBC’s Michael Okwu aired on the ‘Today’ show, featuring commentary from music producer David Foster and Entertainment Weekly writer Dave Karger, as well as highlights from the show, below.

‘Countdown’ Discusses Paula Abdul’s ‘Idol’ Confusion

May 1, 2008 - ‘American Idol’ princess Maria Milito visited ‘Countdown with Keith Olbermann’ to discussed the possibility that producers intentionally confused Paula Abdul during Tuesday’s ‘Idol’ performance show to boost sagging ratings. Instead of judging after each performance for the top five finalists, Randy Jackson, Simon Cowell, and Paula reacted to the singers all at once. Milito said that the show “is a little boring this year”, but insisted the show hasn’t yet jumped the shark. Watch the segment, which was the ‘Countdown’ #1 story, below.

Paula Abdul’s Comeback Video Won’t Make The MTV Rotation

February 29, 2008 - After an MTV spokesman told OK! magazine that there are no plans to put Paula Abdul’s new video ‘Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow’, a source said there’s good reason why the ‘American Idol’ judge wouldn’t even ask the music network to play the video she was reportedly disappointed with. “It makes sense that it wasn’t even submitted,” a source told Courtney Hazlett of MSNBC’s ‘The Scoop’. “The only thing worse for a star like Paula to not have her video on TV is to have it actually rejected by MTV. You can’t be rejected if you never formally campaign for it.”

Paula Abdul Unhappy With ‘Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow’ Video

February 23, 2008 - A source close to Paula Abdul tells Courtney Hazlett of The Scoop that the ‘American Idol’ judge isn’t happy with how her comeback video ‘Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow’ came out. “She doesn’t think it’s Heidi Montag-bad, but she’s still trying to pretend like it didn’t happen,” the insider said. “If Randy (Jackson) wasn’t involved, she’d be more vocal about it, but she does appreciate the fact that he was involved.”

On The Set Of Paula Abdul’s ‘Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow’ Video

January 29, 2008 - With the help of ‘American Idol’ co-judge Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul is coming out with new music, and she may even make a surprise appearance at the Super Bowl. ‘Access Hollywood’ caught up with Paula and Randy on the set of their new video ‘Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow’, which featured a cameo by ‘Idol’ pals Simon Cowell and Ryan Seacrest. The song is the first release on ‘Randy Jackson’s Music Club Vol 1’, out soon. Watch the report, aired Monday (January 28), below.

May 2, 2008 Jeff C Multimedia No Comments

On TV: Paula Abdul, Mariah Carey, Gavin DeGraw

Pop acts on television this week include:

Paula Abdul, who promotes ‘American Idol’ on ‘The Late Show with David Letterman’, ‘Total Request Live’, and ‘The View’ on Monday, and ‘The Tonight Show with Jay Leno’ on Friday.

Katharine McPhee, who performs on the ‘American Idol’ results show on Wednesday with David Foster.

Sheryl Crow, who performs on ‘The Tonight Show’ on Monday and ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ on Wednesday.

Heidi Montag, who visits ‘Live with Regis and Kelly’ on Monday (unclear if she’s going to perform).

Raven Symone, who visits ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ on Tuesday.

Gavin DeGraw, who performs on ‘The Tonight Show with Jay Leno’ on Wednesday.

Kate Voegele, who performs on ‘Last Call with Carson Daly’ on Thursday.

Jordin Sparks, who visits ‘The Tyra Banks Show’ on Thursday.

Mariah Carey, who is musical guest on Hillary Clinton’s ‘Saturday Night Live’ this weekend.

March 10, 2008 Jeff C TV Appearances No Comments
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