They're sharpening the knives at the American Idol auditions!

My heart so weep for Baylie Brown last night as I watched her surprise exit from the competition. It must have dawned on a lot of people rather quickly that Hollywood is really quite unforgiving and merciless if she chooses to.
Many of Baylie's fans and friends must have hoped and prayed that she made it to the last 24. After the first round, I am sure, there were more than a couple of people raising her hopes with praises and compliments.
But last night's audition turned out to be a disaster for that 16-year-old country girl from Krum, Texas. Granted that she has the potential to go all the way to the last 12 but sometimes Fate plays cruel tricks on the ones people love the most.
I am not saying that there were few who could compare to Baylie Brown but certainly, if things had gone her way, she would have provided stiff competition to the leaders of the pack.
Alas, Simon Cowell had forewarned everyone of the last 170-odd contestants who made it to Hollywood that they SHOULD not forget their words. Baylie there and then committed that unforgivable cardinal sin. Even Simon who clearly was in favour of her going the distance had to hit the ejection button.
This is the American Idol, folks. There's no second chance. The entire scenario reminded me of an old movie which starred Arnold Shwarzenegger - the Running Man. It seems the "thrill of the kill" can sometimes be rather painful, especially for those who feel the cutting edge of the judges' blades.
It's not a secret that more women made it to the Hollywood round than the men. There were more than 100 females. The system is uncompromising. The TV folks wanted 12 men, 12 women, so there's no room for compassion.
If you want another Carrie Underwood or Fantasia Barrino, judges will have to be seen to be extra stringent. I wouldn't want to use the term "cruel" here because that would be unfair to them. Afterfall, that showbiz, folks, Get used to it. I mean, get used to getting rejection slips!
Did anybody besides me, felt that this week's segment of American Idol Season 6 was rather rushed? Well, I did feel it and I am not part of the "Heroes". Nope, no special extraordinary ability to perceive the passing of time.
Anyway, overall, the men did better than the women. Afterall, 34 out of 50 of them managed to make the cut.
Meanwhile, down in the "cutting room", the remaining 90-odd contestants were broken up into groups and had to perform group songs. They were given a choice of nine songs, pick one that suits them and belt it out tomorrow in front of Paula, Simon and Randy.
Naturally, if you have the bad luck of getting stuck in a group that doesn't seem to go anywhere from the word "go", you better start calling your folks on the mobile to prepare a homecoming dinner.
That's what happened to Baylie Brown. I don't want to sound like I am being an apologist for Baylie but I figure it's not too late to speak up on her behalf. Perhaps at this stage of her life, Baylie will gain some experience and use it to her advantage in future.
Back to the auditions: Frankly, I wasn't very impressed with the group performances. They all came across as not being very polished and downright unprofessional. To be fair, they were all amateurs to start with.
So when you have about 24 hours to figure out where the group is going, you are going to mix high anxiety with some loss of memory. That's the way, the cookie crumbles, as they say.
When the dust has settled at the end of the day for the group auditions, only 56 were left standing. With that number left, it was still too high for a TV reality show like the American Idol, so these guys and gals were divided into three rooms and had to wait while the "director's cut" was going on.
Soon, it became apparent that one of the three roomfuls of contestants will have to check out of Heartbreak Hotel.
I have dutifully borrowed this list of names from the Reality TV Magazine for you folks at home who may be interested to know some of the people who made it to the last 40.
They are: Chris Sligh, Thomas Daniels, Sundance Head, Antonella Barba, Sanjaya Malakar, Gina Glocksen, Matthew Buckstein, Blake Lewis, Rudy Cardenas, Melinda Doolittle, Paul Kim, Tami Gosnell, Anna Kearns, Brandon Rogers, Chris Richardson, Philip Stacy, Jordin Sparks, Nicholas Pedro, and Tom Lowe.
By next week, there will be more tears and more long faces when the judges and Fox Network clawed their way to the last 12 but the pace will probably be a bit slower this time.
I really had not expected some of the so-called better ones making to the exit door so early in the American Idol elimination rounds. What were they thinking? Well, all I can say at this juncture is "remember Jennifer Hudson".
Whatever, you and I may think about the entire elimination process, one thing's for sure, those who are still in and those who got kicked out last night have got their 15 minutes of fame. Perhaps not that many minutes but nevertheless, America has seen and heard from you.
So take heart that out of America's population of 270 million, you are one of the privileged few who have made a lot of people sit up and listen to you, for a while, that is.

Sherman Did It For Me

When you are thinking that you have more or less seen it all in the American Idol show, something pops up and surprises you.

Last night, 64-year-old Sherman Pore did just that. By the time, he had finished with the song, all the three judges including celebrity guest Olivia Newton John applauded.

But Pore did not qualify for Hollywood. For one thing, age was against him. But this fine gentleman wasn't at the auditions to find fame or fortune.

Instead, he was there for the noblest of purpose. He was there to tell the world that he loves his woman forever. Sherman Pore's lady love died two days before he appeared before the American Idol judges last night.

She was suffering from cancer. To cheer her up and to lift her spirits to heaven, Pore went around collecting signatures to petition the American Idol producers to give him a chance to sing for his lady.

Fortunately, they granted his wish, otherwise we would have missed a very touching moment. I swear by the time, Pore had finished his rendition of "You Belong To Me", there were very few dry eyes among the TV audiences.

Paula was deeply moved. So were the other judges. Simon Cowell beckoned Pore to come forward so that he could shake his hand. All of them did.

It was one of the finest moments ever recorded in the five years of American Idol contests. Sometimes when you least expect it, life together with all its warmth jumped up and embraced you.
I felt that to the core last night when I watched Sherman Pore sang his heart out. He had a good voice too. It had all the emotion of one who was deeply in love.

I am sure his lady love was smiling in heaven, as did the rest of the world watching a senior gentleman courageously singing for the very last time for someone he truly loves.

If there was one moment in the entire American Idol programme that I did not regret seeing, it was yesterday's show. Just for that singular two-minute segment, it had all been worthwhile.

Most of us have been either sceptics or cynics at some times in our lives.

Sherman Pore has reminded us quite poignantly that life is really good when you are being loved unconditionally, completely and passionately.