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Saunders: Is it too late to write in Melinda?

Published May 23, 2007 at midnight

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So who will win - Blake or Jordin?

Fox's American Idol ends its sixth season tonight (7-9 p.m. Fox31) with Blake Lewis, 26, competing against 17-year-old Jordin Sparks.

Is it too late for a write-in campaign? Melinda Doolittle, 29, eliminated last week, is by far the best singer in the competition. Her final number, I Am Woman, was a knockout.

This is praise coming from a fan of the era that produced Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald and Aretha Franklin. Recall those days? Anyway, many younger students of the vocal competition have expressed similar feelings about Melinda.

Meanwhile, has the focus of the competition changed? Created as a talent contest, American Idol seems to have drifted into a popularity contest among voters.

And this season, more than the previous five, American Idol could be subtitled "The Simon Cowell Show." The profile of the sarcastic, often nasty judge has soared, thanks to coverage, including a 60 Minutes profile, and his ongoing, combative banter with host Ryan Seacrest.

While audience ratings are down 10 to 15 percent compared with last season, Idol still remains a major force, particularly for Fox. The series has boosted ratings of two quality Fox shows - House on Tuesday and Bones on Wednesday.

And the cast and a crew of 'Til Death, a mediocre freshman comedy, owe their survival to American Idol. Ratings jumped when 'Til Death aired this spring before and after the series.

Ratings competition will be fierce tonight since ABC's Lost begins its two-hour season finale at 8 p.m. on Denver's 7.

Finally, did American Idol "jump the shark" this season because of the "Sanjaya Factor?" Jumping the shark, as defined by writer Jon Hein, is an event in politics, television or pop culture when things begin to go terribly, irrevocably bad.

Example: Michael Dukakis jumped the shark when he piloted a tank wearing an oversized battle helmet. The rock band KISS jumped the shark when performers removed their makeup. According to Hein, the phrase grew out of a Happy Days episode when Fonzie literally jumped a shark on water skis.

Will the overkill about Sanjaya and his career haunt American Idol?

The vote

63 million. Season 5 votes for Taylor Hicks surpassed ballots cast for any president in the history of our country, according to the Committee for the Study of the American Electorate, which showed President George W. Bush's historic high vote tally a paltry 62 million.

Ratings game

Idol remains the weekly leader in Nielsen ratings this season, though a scripted show, Fox's House, overtook last week's semifinal round in the 18-to- 49 demographic, according to Nielsen Media figures.

23 million viewers last week for the show when the talented Melinda Doolittle was ousted

31.3 million viewers a week last season for the performance shows. The results shows a year ago averaged an audience of 29.4 million people.

43 million viewers watched the final half-hour of last year's finale.

Source: cnnmoney.com

27.4 million viewers for performances and 26 million for results were the averages in Season 4.

Simon Cowell said . . .

"I've got to say this, Melinda."The look - it was like something out of The Addams Family."

to Jordin Sparks, May 1

"This is the first time since we've met that I actually believe, based on that performance, you could win American Idol."

to Jordin, April 17

"I'll give you unique, but I thought it was absolutely terrible, that performance."

to Blake Lewis, May 8

"When you hear a wail in Beverly Hills, that is where Diana Ross is watching this show. The only similarity is the hairstyle."

to Sanjaya Malakar, March 13

"It was like some ghastly lunch where, after lunch, your parents have asked the children to dress up and sing."

to Sanjaya, Feb. 27

Season 1

• Winner: Kelly Clarkson

• Real winner: Clarkson: The franchise's first and most successful Idol has sold 8.3 million albums and owns two Grammys, three MTV Video Music Awards and a People's Choice Award. Runner-up Justin Guarini was dropped from his record label after moving just 134,000 copies of his self-titled debut.

Season 2

• Winner: Ruben Studdard

• Real winner: Probably runner-up Clay Aiken, who (4.6 million) has nearly doubled Studdard's overall album sales. Then again, Josh Gracin (fourth place) is a rising country-music star.

Season 3

• Winner: Fantasia Barrino

• Real winners: Barrino, whose win led to album sales of 2.4 million, a best- selling memoir and a Lifetime movie of the book. She's now starring in The Color Purple on Broadway. But a case can be made for seventh-place contestant Jennifer Hudson, with a Golden Globe, a Screen Actors Guild award and an Oscar for Dreamgirls.

Season 4

• Winner: Carrie Underwood

• Real winner: Underwood, who ranks second behind only Clarkson in post-Idol success, with album sales of 5.2 million and two Grammys. She was also named the Country Music Association's female vocalist of the year in 2006.

Season 5

• Winner: Taylor Hicks

• Real winners: Chris Daughtry (fourth place). His album made its debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and his song Home serves as the parting song for ousted contestants. Runner-up Katharine McPhee has sold 291,000 copies of her debut album but gets more attention for her television appearances.

Comments

  • May 7, 2008

    12:36 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    Louise7 writes:

    Melinda Doolittle will released her first album July or August 2008. New website to support Melinda in her career. www.mdstreetteam.com All welcome to join us.