THE RECAPS
STORMSEEKER.COM RECAPS! Reality writer Ryan Vicker provides
recaps of each show.
January 8, 2003
And now, here's the host of Star Search, Mr. Ed McMAAAAAHHHOOOONNNNNNN!
No, wait. Scratch that.
ARSENNNNNIIIIOOOOOO HALL!
And so begins Star Search: The New Generation. But we first have to revisit our roots. Flashback to singers like Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera and Justin Timberlake (in a country/western style nonetheless). Recall Rosie O' Donnell, Drew Carey, Ray Romano and Kevin James. So who, asks fearless leader Arsenio, will be next?
Arsenio enters and immediately greeted with his dog pound. 'Welcome to Star Search Live! I cannot believe CBS let me do a live show! Well, here we are!'.
The four categories that will be played out this and every night are junior singer, model, comedian/enne, and adult singer. A bracket system (not unlike CBS coverage of the NCAA Basketball Road to the Final Four) is shown on screen. The performers need to win three bouts of competition to claim the $100K prize (and its fringe benefits in each respective category).
Following Arsenio's monologue, we are treated to the judge's introductions. From the world of music, it's Naomi Judd! From the world of television, speech writing, and game shows, it's Ben Stein! From the world of comedy, it's Carol Leifer! These three are the permanent judges, with a rotating guest judge. This week it s Chaka Khan. And the fifth judge, well, that's you, America (and Canada too!). All votes can be made at cbs.com/star during the show. The judges can rate the performers fro 1 to 5 stars, and viewers also can rate the performances from 1-5 stars on the website. The judges score is out of 20 (4 judges x 5 stars) and the audience vote also totals 20. Let s get to the show!
JUNIOR SINGER (8-14 years of age)
Erik Kidd Jr., 12, Akron OH
Meghan Markert, 13, Plymouth MN
Erik raps to Li'l Bow Wow's 'Basketball'. The first thing I noticed is his microphone is quite distracting, but apart from that, the performance seems nice. Good movement.
Judges (all performances rated out of 5 and judge's notes are after the rating):
Judd: 4 - 'T stands for talent'
Stein: 5
Leifer: 4 - She likes that the rapper's crib is really a crib
Khan: 5 - 'Brilliant'
Total: 18
Meghan sings 'Ave Maria'. She seems slightly nervous, but gets through it with no problems.
(Arsenio: 'Her performance is butter')
Judd: 5 - 'I'm gonna see you at the Met in NYC.'
Stein: 5 - 'Still needs more excitement though.'
Leifer: 3 - She needs to work on stage performance
Khan: 5 - 'Prodigy.'
Total: 18
Head to commercial, America votes. When we're back, the decision is 34-32 for Meghan. Eric is stunned, but Arsenio lets him know that Christina Aguilera didn't win when she was on, either!
MODELS: (The champion also wins a modeling contract with the $100K)
Melanie Molnar, 19, Phoenix
Andrea Diaz, 23, Miami
Melanie Molnar - Melanie is a sophomore at NYU who is studying Biology and French. She says perseverance is a high quality for her and she wants to open a bakery one day. Her modeling is quite impressive.
Stein: 4
Leifer: 4 - 'Stunning'
Khan: 3 - Chaka explains that it's not her field of expertise (at least she's honest!)
Judd: 4 - But tells her to get the education, because that's where it s at.
Total: 15
Andrea Diaz - When Andrea was younger, she liked to recycle old clothing into new outfits. She likes to dance, which she shows on the runway. Clothing choices are very intriguing.
Stein: 3 - A little too sexy
Leifer: 4 - Very all-American and exotic at the same time
Khan: 4
Judd: 4 - Andrea is a 'sassy lassy'.
Total: 15
After the live feed cuts out slightly, we re back to find that Andrea won by a single point, 30-29. To celebrate the win, she's calling her mother!
COMEDIAN (The winner gets $100K plus a CBS development deal)
Steve Byrne, 28, Pittsburgh
Ty Barnett, 26, Tacoma WA
Steve s routine which includes sound effects jokes, Bruce Lee, and kung fu.
Leifer: 4 - 'Hysterical'
Khan: 4 - 'A little on the rough side'
Judd: 2 - 'A little too esoteric'
Stein: 3 - Ben echoed Judd's comments
Total: 13
Ty then steps into the spotlight with humour relating to NYC panhandlers, dating, and 1-800 collect (much to Arsenio's chagrin!)
Liefer: 5 - 'Smart, clever'
Khan: 4 - 'Clean, funny'
Judd: 4
Stein: 4 - 'He tells the truth better than Nixon'
Total: 18
While voting at the commercial, I notice that the times are listed as 8EDT/delayed PDT. Does this mean that Pacific/Mountain gets to vote at all? Time will tell...
Back after the break, it s revealed that Steve is too far in the hole to climb out - he ends up losing 35-25 to Ty.
ADULT SINGER (The winner gets $100K plus a recording contract at SONY)
Christina Souza, 26, Los Angeles
Ugochi Nwaogwugwu, 30, Chicago
Christina belts out 'I Will Survive'. She seems to have good stage presence. Let's see what the panel has to say.
Khan: 2 - 'Take it easy.'
Judd: 3 - 'Watch your pitch...try a different song that will showcase you better'
Stein: 3
Leifer: 3 - 'Fun presence'.
Total: 11
Ugochi teaches creative writing and gets creative with 'Neither one of us'. It's a very soulful rendition.
Khan: 4 - 'Beautiful presence...you need to work more'
Judd: 5 - '(while standing up) You touched me.'
Stein: 4 - 'Super!'
Leifer: 4 - She wants Ugochi to make it so that DJ's will have to pronounce her name.
Total: 17
Back from the break, and Christina wins the audience vote, but it s not enough, as Ugochi advances to semi-finals by a score of 29-24.
Come back tomorrow, as we continue to search for the stars on STAR SEARCH!
January 9, 2003 January 15, 2003 January 16, 2003 January 22, 2003
Arsenio: We do it LIVE!
True enough! The new Star Search is indeed live, and let's get on with episode number two! Tonight's guest judge, from The Osbornes, is Jack Osborne.
We are told that that almost 900,000 votes were cast last night, and that they only got one complaint about the O.J. Simpson joke. Arsenio reminds us that this isn't your father's Search! A short montage of last night's winners finishes the opening introduction.
JUNIOR SINGER
Tiffany Edwards, 10, Ocean City NJ
Janel Parrish, 14, Oahu HI
Ladies and Gentleman, Tiffany is, in her words, ready to be on national television , and it shows. She may well be the first breakout star of the series. While singing 'I am changing' from the musical 'Dream Girls', she conducts herself like a young Aretha Franklin and can really belt it out. Shots of Ben and Naomi stunned with Tiffany's performance are shown, just before the audience gives her a standing ovation.
Judges:
Judd: 5 - 'Every song is like a three minute story'
Stein: 5 - 'Unbelievable talent'
Leifer: 5 - 'How can you give her less than five stars?'
Osborne: 5 - 'I've seen musicians three times her age, and none as good as you'
Total: 20 - our first perfect score of the series!
Janel now takes to the stage, with a tough act to follow. She recently moved to L.A. to pursue a career, and she sings a personal favourite, 'On My Own' from 'Les Miserables' . She has a really nice voice, and this was a good song selection... unfortunately, one judge in particular doesn't seem to think that she measures up.
Judd: 2 - 'a future someday in musicals, but you ve got some work to do'
Stein: 4 - 'Not quite up to top rank'
Leifer: 3 - 'Great Broadway voice'
Osborne: 4 - 'Performance was good'
Total: 13
This part was particularly unsettling to watch, as tears started welling in Janel's eyes shortly after Judd's score was given. She was having a hard time on stage after that, but Arsenio was giving her and Tiffany a hug as they went to commercial. When they return, Janel seems a bit better, but Tiffany cannot be caught as she wins 38-26. Kudos to CBS for showing an on-screen graphic with the breakdown of judge/audience vote. Tiffany only has one thing to say:
'I love you America, I love you audience' - and it seems they love you too.
MODELS
Roda Grocic, 22, Oak Park IL
Kim Harlan, 19, Marietta GA
Roda was born in Yugoslavia and moved to Chicago when she was 10. She loves modeling because there is a lot of opportunity in the U.S. Works the catwalk well, and she's very photogenic with her lovely smile.
Stein: 4 - 'Great figure... great legs'
Leifer: 4 - 'Absolutely stunning'
Osborne: 4
Judd: 3 - ' Obviously they don't have Krispy Kreme in Yugoslavia!'
Total: 15
Kim used to be shy when she was little. After trying sports and dancing, her mother suggested modeling. Shortly thereafter, she was crowned Miss Teen Georgia - a title that once got her out of a speeding ticket! Her catwalk performance is quite different than that of Roda's: Kim seems to only swing her hips in delivering her poses.
Stein: 5 - 'Love southern girls, love those who have red hair'
Leifer: 4 - Great attitude
Osborne: 4 - Good attitude
Judd: 4 - 'I'm gonna practice walking like that!'
After learning about CSI and Without A Trace, we're back. There must have been some technical difficulty, because it takes a while to get the results, but finally we see that Kim takes it 32-31.
COMEDIAN/ENNE
Adam Grove, 35, NYC (but has roots in Canada)
Jeff Garcia, 27, La Puenta CA
Adam tells a joke that his kid wrote in the introduction, and then tells a smoke joke, a dirty (look) joke and some army jokes.
Leifer: 3 - 'I enjoyed... but wasn t knocked out'
Osborne: 3 - 'It was funny... but I wasn't on the floor'
Judd: 2 - 'When your kids get older, you ll have more material'
Stein: 2 - 'you sort of lost me...'
Jeff, in his act, talks about Mexicans, white people, Asians and black people. Right after the act finishes, I turn to my friend and say to her that Jeff was an equal opportunity offender.
Ten seconds later, Arsenio makes the same joke. Does this mean I get his job next week? Doubtful.
Let s get to judges, shall we?
Leifer: 4 - 'great... relaxed... really funny'
Osborne: 5 - ' hysterical, you covered everything, no-one got offended'
Judd: 3
Stein: 5 - 'Race jokes are incredibly hard to pull off right, you pull them off brilliantly'
Following two seconds of a mistaken UPN feed after the ads, Arsenio announces that one of these talented performers will be advancing to the semi-finals, the other will be headlining next week at the Chucklehut in Poughkeepsie. Well, it looks like Adam's got a date on Long Island, as Jeff wins easily 35-21. Jeff comments that he was scared because Mexicans don't have Internet. Arsenio, after he leaves, states 'I asked him what he wanted during the commercial, he said some weed...Oh! We re live, I m sorry!'
Ah, memories of Julie Chen uttering a bad word during a Big Brother boot-out interview are rolling back.
ADULT SINGER
Nikki Kimbrough, 27, Richmond VA
Thomas Chyno Seabrooks, 22, Brooklyn NY
Nikki had Olympic aspirations, but then sang at a Syracuse sporting event, and discovered her talent. She sings 'Let's stay together', made famous by Al Green and Tina Turner, and resembles very much the latter, in style, vocals, and delivery. Note to CBS: what's up with those psychedelic squares in the background?
Osborne: 4 - Amazing range
Judd: 5 - 'You sparkle like that dress (Nikki is thrilled at getting this mark, it leads her to jump up and down resembling her to most Price is Right contestants after getting one dollar on the big wheel)
Stein: 4 - love the voice
Leifer: 5
Total: 18
When Thomas was in high school, he decided he needed to choose between football and choir, and decided singing was it. He belts out a soulful rendition of Sisqo's 'Incomplete', but I find that the towel in his hand is somewhat distracting. But what do the judges say?
Osborne: 3 - 'a little cookie cut'
Judd: 3 - 'you stud puppet - need a bit more work'
Stein: 5 - 'great stage performance, major force to be reckoned with'
Leifer: 3 - 'You know how to work it!'
Total: 14
We see the final ad break, and then Nikki is victorious, 33-29. The winner re-emerge, and they will next Thursday for the semis! See you next Wednesday!
Arsenio and the gang of judges are back for the third of the first half quarter finals, and he start by showing us how he remembers his name it's on a teleprompter. Just in case he forgets and wants to call himself Chris Rock or something else, I suppose. He also has a large screen TV to show him the scores, which is an shows an exact reproduction of the star graphic that we see behind the contestants when they are waiting for the results.
Tonight's guest judge? Well, let s have Arsenio put it in perspective:
"He's not in space, he's here! From *NSYNC, it's Lance Bass!" I guess Justin Timberlake wasn't big on coming in to do the show, seeing as how they might break out his country music stint from the previous incarnation.
JUNIOR SINGER
We ve already got Meghan and Tiffany, but who will be the third?
Sebastien Mego, 13, North Hollywood CA
Maridel Terciano, 10, Vallejo CA
Sebastien started singing at age 5 at his church. Tonight, he's singing "A song for you" by Donny Hathaway. He has a nice voice, comparable to Stevie Wonder or Jamiroquai. He also seems to be able to hit the high notes, which I imagine is hard at his age!
Judges (scores are out of 5, remember)
Judd: 5 "You have destiny in front of you"
Stein: 3 "Great voice... but style was too much"
Leifer: 4 "Phenomenal"
Bass: 4 "I could imagine what you ll be in three to four years"
Total: 16
Maridel would like to be a painter when she grows up. She sings Leann Rimes' "I Believe". She has good stage presence, but her voice doesn't seem as developed as Sebastien's. Mind you, like her competitor, she can hit the high notes with relatively good accuracy.
Judd: 5
Stein: 5 "This kid has a voice you can die for"
Leifer: 4 "Phenomenal"
Bass: 4 "You re definitely amazing"
Total: 18
After the first break, Arsenio proves once again that we're live, because tonight's winning lotto numbers in Delaware are 5, 7, 8, 10, 12 and 15.
FIFTEEN?? FIFTEEN?? Later, Gordon!!
((runs out of house, towards car, stops, run back in))
Ah, crumbs. Those were the numbers I played in Maryland. That'll teach me to change my digits.
(ED NOTE: It's OK, Ryan, I took the engine out of your car, and replaced it with shaving cream, so you wouldn't have gotten far, anyways =))
Speaking of digits, the scores are in and Maridel wins 36-30. Interestingly enough is the fact that Sebastien got more of the people's vote, something we haven't seen much in the series so far.
MODEL
Going to the semis with Andrea and Kim will be one of the following two:
Porschla Coleman, 19, Gulfport MS
Vanessa Scheffler, 19, Bellbuckle TN
Porschla has always liked being in front of the camera. She has her whole town supporting her on Star Search. Her runway walk is mainly filled with hip swinging. Judges?
Stein: 4 "gorgeous, but amateur walks"
Leifer: 4
Bass: 5
Judd: 3 "walking that walk, talking that talk"
Total: 16
Vanessa rode horses when she was younger and liked competing. She hopes one day to combine her loves of horseback riding and modeling. And out of the six candidates we've seen so far over three shows, she seems the most relaxed in her profile. In addition, her catwalk stroll doesn't seem forced at all, which is good.
Stein: 4 "very very gorgeous"
Leifer: 3 "you could loosen up a little"
Bass: 4 "a lot of personality"
Judd: 3 "smile more"
Total: 14
Arsenio tells viewers to stop downloading music illegally and vote! And they do! After Arsenio points out the "crazy group in the back" (who apparently couldn't get "Price is Right" tickets), he declares that the loser is going home with him (I'll keep my thoughts to myself at this point). Porschla moves on, 32-27.
COMEDIAN:
Who will laugh all the way to the semi-finals with Ty and Jeff?
Flip Schultz, 28, Plantation (Orlando) FL
Loni Love, 35, Detroit MI
Flip still gets tickled by his mother. He tickles the audience's funny bone with jokes about his ex-girlfriend and L.A.'s fashion scene. Very animated, but maybe a bit too much.
Leifer: 3 "little too animated"
Bass: 3 "reminds me of Jerry Lewis"
Judd: 3 "shades of Jim Carrey"
Stein: 2 "I didn t quite get it"
Total: 11
An electric engineer by day, Loni tells us about 99 cent stores, Osama Bin Laden, and her cousin Skillet. Her pronunciation needs to be cleaner though it's somewhat warbled.
Leifer: 5 "seriously funny"
Bass: 5 "wonderful energy"
Judd: 5
Stein: 5 "quit your day job... everything went perfectly"
Total: 20 our second perfect score of the series!
With that kind of result, it should come as no surprise that after the break that Loni is revealed as the winner, in a 38-22 thrashing.
ADULT SINGER:
Joining Ugochi and Nikki will be one of these two:
Spencer Day, 24, Layton UT
Liz Byler, 20, Hendersonville TN
Passionate about politics, Spencer performed at Earth Day in Washington DC. Tonight he performs "Turn me on" by Norah Jones and he plays the piano too. Very nice voice, great range, as he hits very high and very low notes as well.
Bass: 4 "range is incredible"
Judd: 3 "welcome to the dream catcher's club"
Stein: 3 "a little too much"
Leifer: 4 "I like that you can play the piano too"
Total: 14
When Liz was 10, she tried out for the original Star Search. She got a callback but her family couldn't afford to fly her to NYC. So now she gets a second chance! She sings "Where does my heart beat now" by Celine Dion. It s a nice choice. She starts out slow and gets better, but it seemed forced at times.
Note to US viewers: If you re looking for this song, it's on Celine's first album, "Unison", which was released in 1990 in Canada. Best start the search on eBay...
Bass: 4 "got the look and the talent"
Judd: 4 "see you in Nashville"
Stein: 4
Leifer: 3
Total: 15
After the break, we re back, and the word "live" plays an important part.
Arsenio: "WE HAVE A TIE!... Both y all gonna come back and do something... WE HAVE A TIE! WE NEVER EXPECTED A TIE! WE DIDN T REHEARSE A TIE! Oh boy!... The winner is Spencer... what? What? The winner is Spencer? Wait a minute... okay, I ll just read that... they say the winner is Spencer... because the audience*... okay, maybe Carrot top will be hosting tomorrow night because this live stuff is crazy..."
*It was at this point when there was a close-up of Spencer, resembling a deer caught in a set of headlights (looking very very stunned!).
Well, we did find a winner, and I would guess from Arsenio's "speech" that there must be an audience vote that happens at the break just in case this happens. Note to CBS: if you're going to have an audience vote to break the tie, make sure to TELL YOUR HOST!!! Just some kind words of advice, free of charge, from your friends here at the Game Show News Net.
And during the credits, all the companies involved have their logos shown. One of the first? 29/29 Entertainment! Too spooky a coincidence for me...
So we ll be back (after we sort out this mess) Thursday for the first of our two semi-finals. See you then!
We've started with 24, now we re down to 12 - but who will move onto the finals?
Before we start, Arsenio clears up last night's show. He tells us that the teleprompter went dead last night and he didn't know what was going on. It turns out that in case of a tie, the performer with the highest total from the American public gets to move on. Spencer had 15, Liz had 14. With that cleared up, and the introduction of model/singer Tyrese as guest judge, let's get on with it!
JUNIOR SINGERS
Meghan Markert/Tiffany Evans/Maridel Tersiano
Meghan chooses the song "Reflection" to reflect her variety. It doesn't suit hear as well as "Ave Maria" did in the first round, but it's good nevertheless. Nice to notice that the singers are in the extreme front of the stage (as opposed to the small platform they worked off of before).
Judges rate out of 5: for the singers, 5 is for Mariah Carey (if you don't like owning flatware) and 1 being Drew Carey.
Judd: 4 "Touched by an angel"
Stein: 5 "Voice I want to hear in heaven"
Leifer: 4 "Unbelievable"
Tyrese: 4 (knocked her down one point because of her dress!)
Total: 17
You'll recall that Tiffany got the perfect 20 last time from the in-studio judges. She sings "The Winner in You", and it looks like perfection again! My word, does this child have pipes! Judges are stunned! Audience gives her a standing ovation! My exclamation point key can't take it anymore!!!!
Judd: 5 "I'd give you 10 if I could"
Stein: 5 "Cannot argue with perfection"
Leifer: 5 "Whitney Houston in the making"
Tyrese: 5 "You are off the hook"
And Tiffany gets ANOTHER perfect 20!
Maridel is up next, with her song being "When you Believe". It s very well done, but unfortunately when you're after Tiffany, it s pretty tough to do anything, apparently.
Judd: 4
Stein: 4 "Impossibly high standard to live up to"
Leifer: 4 "Tough night"
Tyrese: 4 "I was impressed"
Total: 16
Judd makes a comment about how she can't choose... and it is tough, but after the break, it s not much of a shocker when Tiffany wins with 35, and Maridel & Meghan get 32 each which on most nights would allow them advance. That s not the case tonight.
MODELS
Andrea Diaz/Kim Harlan/Porschia Coleman
*All models will do a short catwalk in their swimwear. Does this mean that we ll have the all-important "question from a fishbowl while everyone else is sequestered in the soundproof booth on stage" round for the finals? Only time will tell.
Andrea is wearing a red two-piece. She seems to have really brushed her teeth tonight, because her smiles are glowing:
Stein: 3 "very very beautiful"
Leifer: 4 "a little stripper action goin' on"
Tyrese: 5
Judd: 4 "body language was saying some suggestive stuff"
Total: 16
Kim is wearing a sort of "peach conch shell" outfit. She looks a bit bony in her selection.
Stein: 5 "that s what a model is supposed to look like"
Leifer: 4 "stunning"
Tyrese: 3 "I liked the way you walked"
Judd: 3 "fearless self confidence"
Total: 15
Porschla has selected sky blue as her swimsuit colour. She seems to have that "pouty look" going on.
Stein: 3 "Liked the way she looked at me"
Leifer: 5 "She s so thin"
Tyrese: 4
Judd: 3 (why so low?)
Total: 15
Back from the break, Arsenio has some cards in his hand will we have a repeat from last night?
The scores flash up. 29-29-29. Audience laughs.
AGAIN???
After everyone settles down, the winner, with 14.4 stars, after the audience vote, was Porschla! She ll be back in three weeks for the finals.
COMEDIANS
Ty Barnett/Jeff Garcia/Loni Love
Ty yuks it up with humor on paying compliments, addictions and race interaction.
Leifer: 4 "weren't as strong as last time"
Tyrese: 3
Judd: 3 "good humor man"
Stein: 3 "you ll be a star but not yet"
Total: 13
Jeff, the "equal opportunity offender", talks about the projects, Neighborhood watch, security guards and obese people. Why break with tradition?
Leifer: 4 "funny guy"
Tyrese: 3
Judd: 4
Stein: 3 "fat joke was funny"
Total: 14
Loni's on for the second night in a row. Tonight, she talks about office potlucks, the 80's and Michael Jackson. And I'm splitting my sides and rolling on the floor!
Leifer: 5 "when she's on stage, you know it!"
Tyrese: 5 "loved it"
Judd: 5 "a-ti-tude"
Stein: 5 "she could read the PHONE BOOK and it would be funny!"
And Lori, like Tiffany before her, scores her second perfect score with the in-studio judges.
Fire up those modems and vote, people! And you did, handing Loni the win with 37 stars. Jeff gets 28; Ty, 23.
Adult Singer
Ugochi Nwoagwugwu/Nikki Kimbrough/Spencer Day
Ugochi, whose last name is apparently worth at least 73 points in scrabble according to Arsenio...
(Ryan note: it s actually 21; but you would have to use a blank tile for one of the W s, because there s only two W s in the normal tile selection. Just for all you purists out there.)
(Ed. Note - It would probably worth at least 71, since you would probably have to empty out your tiles for a 50 point Bingo Bonus. And let's not forget the double and triple letter and word scores and joined new words, etc...)
... sings "Do Right" by Aretha Franklin. Her style is very likeable tonight in comparison to Lauren Hill. A bit too much movement for me though.
Tyrese: 3 "you don t sing in your key"
Judd: 3
Stein: 3 "not quite there yet"
Leifer: 3 "you have potential"
Total: 12
"Home" from "The Wiz" is Nikki s choice. It s nicely done, but it doesn t seem to work as much as last week's Tina Turner selection.
Tyrese: 3 "very animated"
Judd: 4 "strong"
Stein: 4 "made the hairs on the back of my head stand up"
Leifer: 4 "great presence"
Total: 15
Spencer is back after last nights debacle and performs "Don't get around much anymore". Like the others, the second time around doesn't seem as strong, but the audience seem to have a good time clapping along.
Tyrese: 4 "you were in your comfort zone"
Judd: 3 "where's my Margarita, I feel like I'm in a piano bar"
Stein: 3 "way over style" (side note: anyone notice that Judd is really "chummy" with Stein?)
Leifer: 3 "preferred Nikki"
Total: 13
And our final decision tonight goes to Spencer!! Spencer comes from behind again, by scoring 16 out of 20 in the people's survey! And he's stunned even more than last night! Finally tally: Spencer 29, Nikki 28 and Ugochi far behind at 21.
Congratulations, then, to all the winners from tonight:
Jr. Singer - Tiffany Evans
Model - Porschia Coleman
Comic - Loni Love
Adult Singer - Spencer Day
They ll all be back on February 6 for the finals! And next Wednesday's guest judges will be Nick and Aaron Carter. I d better go look for my earplugs now... see you next week!
Flashbacks commence the show - from back in Ed McMahon's days, and then from the first half of the series. Tiffany, Porschia, Lori and Spencer have already made it to the finals - who will join them?
Arsenio tells us that people have a tendency to audition for him in elevators, and he encourages them to go to cbs.com instead! Good thinking! Besides, American Idol is on Fox! And now that I've put my earplugs in, because Nick and Aaron Carter are the guest judges (and the girls are already screaming), let us begin!
JUNIOR SINGER
C.J. Johnson, 13, Los Angeles
Lisa Tucker, 13, Anaheim
C.J. is just a 'regular kid', and he enjoys movies and basketball among other things. He feels that teens are the coolest. One question: what is up with your pants, C.J.? Singing 'Dancin' Machine' by the Jackson 5, his voice range is showcased. Lots of 'ooh baby'. And he's wearing what appears to be a Harry Potter shirt!
Judges (grades from 1 to 5)
Judd: 5 'You got it going on'
Stein: 4 'Great stage performance'
Leifer: 5 'Bring in da funk'
Carters: 4 'Good dancer'
Total: 18
Lisa sees school as fun, not as a chore. She likes doing volunteer work, because it makes other people happy! She sings 'One moment in time' by Whitney, unlike Bobby Brown, who would sing 'One Moment in Handcuffs', according to Arsenio. Very very smooth voice, nice high notes, very classy. And it looks like she is having a good time.
Judd: 5 'Rich voice'
Stein: 4 'Incredibly strong'
Leifer: 5 'So fantastic'
Carters: 4 'You can sing!'
Total: 18
CBS apparently has been saving some good acts for the second half. Arsenio asks for votes, but not a tie, because that screws him up (see: Spencer day, also see: model semi-final).
We are back, and Nick tells his star search story. Apparently the Backstreet boys tried out, but didn't get a callback! Lisa pulls it out, 35-32 over C.J. I think she could possibly win the semis!
MODELS
Candace Campfield, 20, Plano TX
Chy Huang, 24, Huntington Beach CA
Candace is currently in a nursing program, wants to go to business school, and eventually wants to go into medical sales. She'll have to sell some defibulators after her very classy walk down the runway in a lovely blue sequined outfit.
Stein: 5 'Stone solid'
Leifer: 4 'Stick with modeling! you would end up selling those paddles to people'
Carters: 3 'You did great'
Judd: 4 'Beauty/brains/heart'
Total: 16
Ummmmm...Gordon? Can you, or someone else on staff tell me why I am to predict the cast's jokes before they deliver them? Is this a gift? A curse, maybe? Do let me know!
(GORDONGRAM - I was told that even the average Canadian could figure out the predictability of Arsenio Hall - G.)
Chy's parents named her as such because they hoped for her to be shy. Apparently not. And she wasn't allowed to wear makeup when she was younger! Tonight she's wearing some. She walks down the runway with great confidence, and good poses.
Stein: 3 'Amateur walk'
Leifer: 3 'Nice look'
Carters: 4 'You are beautiful'
Judd: 3 'Need more of 'the polish''
Total: 13
Following the new 'ALF in a Hawaiian shirt' ad (you can get those on Melmac?), we are back on Star Search live, and with a score of 32 to 26, the decision goes to Candace.
COMEDIAN/ENNE
John Reep, 30, Hickory NC
Ben Bailey, 32, Chatham NJ
John thinks people from a small town have to have a sense of humour, or they'll die of boredom. He talks about his lips, his white skin, and football sound effects on the big screen. I don't know why, but I did not find him funny at all. Judges?
Leifer: 3 'pretty good'
Carters: 4 'You did great'
Judd: 3
Stein: 3 '1 at first, 5 at the end. I averaged it out'
Ben smokes, drinks and is a part time triathlete. Bizarre. He runs with jokes on the job process? no, wait, that's all. But it is good. He should do TV voiceovers with that voice of his.
Leifer: 4 'great presence'
Carters: 5 'extremely comfortable'
At this point, Naomi would usually get her score posted. But tonight, she gets her own paragraph.
'This is why we call it a variety show - there are a variety of talents, a variety of opinions. You are an athlete; so you should know that laughter is like eternal jogging, and I didn't get much of a workout. So I just gave you a one.'
OUCH!
Ben (the competitor): doesn't look happy.
Arsenio: ((cough))
Stein's rating isn't much better: 'Funny presence, but drop the material on Saddam Hussein, cause it's a bomb'. 2 stars.
Total is 12. Ben looks peeved. To say the least. I'm watching this on tape and as I fast forward the ads, I'm hoping that the viewers will give Ben the win. I don't really understand what Simon Cowell's (oops, wrong show, strike that) Naomi Judd's problem is!
Who is going on? Ben! And he looks stunned! Arsenio: 'Say something to America'. Ben: 'HA HA' (pointing at the judges, in that Nelson voice from the Simpsons)'.
Classic!
ADULT SINGER
Jake Simpson, 27, Crocker MO
Alison Page, 15, Bryant AL
Small town, no traffic light, is how Jake describes Crocker. He belts out 'Isn't she lovely' by Stevie Wonder. He moves around a lot, but a nice job nevertheless! Mind you, he seems to scrunch his eyes a lot.
Carters: 4 'A very good singer'
Judd: 5
Stein: 5 'Sang it better than Stevie Wonder'
Leifer: 4 'Felt it in the room'
TOTAL: 18
Alison is the youngest competitor in the adult group, but she isn't intimidated. She sings 'Am I the only one?' by Melissa Etheridge. She seems a little weak on the vocal range. She looks older, much older than 15.
Note to CBS: Remember we talked about the psychedelic squares two weeks ago? Uh huh, yeah. So what's up with the psychedelic CIRCLES??
Carters: 3 'A little nervous'
Judd: 4 'Really good'
Stein: 4 'Awesome voice'
Leifer: 3 'Good road ahead'
Total: 14
After the break - and ((Dr. Evil)) ONE MILLION ((Dr. Evil)) hits on the web site - Jake wins 35-27 against Alison. And it's a nice present for Jake, it's his birthday!
That's all for tonight, folks! Tomorrow night, star search alum Countess Vaughn will be the guest judge! Until then, goodbye!
