Simon Cowell on 'America's Got Talent'

Simon Cowell on 'America's Got Talent'
Copyright 2008 Chris Haston / NBC
When "America's Got Talent" launches its second season premiere tonight at 9 p.m. on NBC, there are some really weird acts, including a woman named Busty Hart, who likes to break things (watermelons, bricks) with her breasts, and a 7-foot-2-inch man who simultaneously drinks milk through his nose while explosives are strapped to his stomach. But there are also some contestants who are talented in a more mainstream way: an 84-year-old who allegedly sings better than Frank Sinatra and a four-year-old girl who the judges compare to a young Shirley Temple.

"What I like about watching the show is there's an unpredictability about it," says creator/executive producer Simon Cowell. "Everyone who comes on the stage genuinely believes that their act is what's going to take them to Vegas and make them multimillionaires -- every one of them."

The audition process for the talent competition is tougher this season, according to Cowell, because, in addition to the three official judges -- David Hasselhoff, Piers Morgan and Sharon Osbourne -- the audience gets a say. This feature was incorporated from the British version of the show.

"The audiences on these shows are brutal," the "American Idol" judge continues. "So, whereas on 'Idol' we would let someone sing for five or 10 seconds, on this show, if [the audience] doesn't like someone, they're after blood. So, it's a raw experience you are going to see this time."

But someone who is truly talented can turn the audience around. "Sometimes the audience, in the very beginning, will hate the person and go, 'Boo, boo, boo,' and by the end, they were standing on their feet and cheering that person, you know," Hasselhoff adds. "And then all of a sudden we ... will sometimes change our opinion and put them through."

Published 6/17/08 by the Insider

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    dzffaaa 11/17/09 Reply
  • I love Simon!!! I missed this story and I hope it will be repeated. I need my Simon fix in the Idol off-season. And America's Got Talent is off to a great start!!!
    Anonymous 6/18/08 Reply
  • It's said he recently joined a celebrity and millionaire named " S earching Millionaire___com".
    Many fans found him there. But I did not find him when I joined it. So sad
    Anonymous 6/17/08 Reply
    • Not true. He's had a steady girlfriend for the past five years.
      Anonymous 6/18/08