An Altruistic Idol
by Vera H-C ChanApr 26, 2007
Wednesday's results show ended up being an "Idol Gives Back" two-hour telethon, with host Ryan Seacrest playing the part of Jerry Lewis. The six finalists were an afterthought, mostly playing spectators to their own show as celebrities spilled from every corner. The top six might as well have been hanging in the audience with Sanjaya.
While Ryan teased about the most "shocking" results (which could only have been the return of Sanjaya or no eliminations), the true earth-jolting, buzz-spurring spectacle may have been the duet of Celine Dion and a revivified Elvis. The digitized resurrection spurred surreal look-ups for "elvis on american idol." From hair raising to raising the dead—is there nothing that this show can't or won't do?
Even though the special suffered post-Sanjaya ratings depression, "Idol" calls went far beyond the 50 million match level set by News Corp (explaining Tuesday night frenetic queries for "american idol phone numbers" and "dialidol") and had raised $30 million by the show's end, East Coast time. But did the charities or the causes stick? So far, searches have climbed for "malaria" (+61%), "aids in africa" (+27%), and "boys and girls club" (+18%).
Other Buzz stand-outs from the night:
Winner's Circle: Carrie in Africa (+53%) and Kelly (+65%) in, er, a muumuu.
Performers: Josh Groban (+160%) with the African Children's Choir gathered the most searches, but Annie Lennox had the biggest spike (+1,072%).
Comic Relief: Jack Black pleased Seal more than searchers, Ben Stiller (+26%) got points for trying, but Ellen DeGeneres (+22%) earned the most searches overall for her satellite hosting duties and donation.
As for the finalists, a tearful Jordin Sparks engendered a whopping +234% sympathy spike for being the last to be spared. The show returns to business as usual next week, but charity runs out: Two go home. Idol-ers, is that really fair? Some critics think "Idol Gives Back" should have eliminated the elimination angle entirely. What do you think?