Judging With the Stars
by Andrea SandkeJan 26, 2007
The terms "celebrity" and "star" have been applied loosely in recent years, as anyone who's ever been teased about watching "Dancing With the Stars" knows. ("Stars?! Joey Lawrence? Lisa Rinna?... Ian Ziering?").
Indeed, the "celebrity" guest judge on Wednesday's edition of "American Idol" confounded quite a few viewers. Her name: Carole Bayer Sager, and if you've ever had "That's What Friends Are For" or the theme from Arthur stuck in your head, then you know her (Academy Award-winning) work. Whether you recognize her face is another matter.
Idol did take the time to introduce their viewers to the legendary songwriter, whose one-time husband and collaborator Burt Bacharach also saw a spike in search. But show viewership increased throughout the two-hour episode, so late comers could only watch and wonder as Simon, Paula, and Randy would turn to the well-moussed woman beside them and ask for her opinion.
Users turned to the Web to solve the mystery, consulting the great online oracle about "american idol guest judge carol," "american idol judge carol," "carol on american idol," and "american idol guest judges."
Some searchers simply typed in the name "Carol." We'd like to highlight the creative efforts of users who decided that the mystery celebrity must have been Carole King, a legend in her own right. But the biggest search spike by far was also the most satisfactory—Joan Collins. Simply because we also experienced that quintessential Plastic Surgery Era double-take and exclaimed, "She looks exactly like Joan Collins!"
A word of caution: next week's celebrity judge will be Olivia Newton-John. Whether our beloved Sandy proves to be recognizable to viewers is another question entirely. We'll be watching the searches to see.