This was posted on Friday, June 16, 2017 by Rodney Ho/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog
In a huge Hollywood Reporter cover story about Ryan Seacrest this week, it appears he may end up as host of "American Idol" redux 2018 after all. (On Saturday, TMZ said the deal was done and the dollar amount was closer to $10 million than $15 million.)
There are several complications regarding Seacrest returning as a host. First of all, he just moved to New York for his new job with Kelly Ripa, though he spends most of his weekend in L.A. with other obligations. "Idol" is going to be shot in Hollywood as usual. Second, when "Idol" signed Katy Perry to a whopping $25 million, they gave Seacrest such a cut-rate offer, he said no. ABC had to come back to Seacrest to help sweeten the deal and it appears he'll be making at least $10 million. Some of his staff encouraged him to move on but his loyalty to the show is deep.
"I've always loved the show," he told the Hollywood Reporter. "And if I could do it forever, I would do it forever."
The show is set to return in March, 2018, so it's clear ABC will be running a far shorter version of the show than Fox usually did. It also sounds like they may air it on Sunday nights, enabling Seacrest to keep his job with Ripa Monday through Friday in New York.
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Adam Lambert delivered an inspiring speech at L.A. Pride:
But do you sometimes feel that we have gotten a little carried away with all these labels? Cause at the end of the day, we're all human beings. Wouldn't you rather identify somebody by their name and their energy instead of their sexual preference, their race, their gender, their age or their religion? If we could do that wouldn't that be more rewarding and allow for deeper connection? I know–that's being very idealistic. It's wishful thinking, and sadly, this is not the reality of the world we live in. Especially lately.
I typically avoid publicly speaking about politics because of its devisiveness. People get real sensitive, and I ain't trying to piss anybody off. But, this year things have gone way too far. So I'm not speaking today about being a Democrat vs a Republican. Today is about right vs wrong. The current presidential administration has manipulated the country using fear and hate to gain power to divide us. Our differences are being used against us. And the shockwaves of this dangerous rhetoric has rippled throughout our community and beyond. And it f*cking hurts. We've come way too far to stand by and watch our social progress be yanked backwards. It's almost as if they're going 'Eh, you're different. You can't sit with us.' What the f*ck is that? It's childish and it needs to end now.
Our pride parade is usually an all out sh*t show of a party where we all dress up like crazy unicorns and prance around through the streets. Yeah! It's a celebration of the progress we have made–our liberation, our freedom, our glitter. But this year, we are facing such dark forces that pride has taken on a deeper purpose. PROTEST. So today, we stand together in order to support anyone whose human rights are at risk. We resist homophobia. We resist transphobia. We resist misogyny. Bi-invisibility. We resist racism. Xenophobia. And we resist extremism, and anything else that helps promote hate. We stand defiant and will not be brainwashed. We refuse to be sucked into that kind of negativity.
But, I ask you not to fight hate with hate. We don't want to be hypocrites. So how can we resist? I'll tell you what I think: With unity, with visibility, truth, inclusion, acceptance, and most importantly–LOVE. We got a lot of work to do, and a lot of ignorance to combat. But we know right from wrong. We know that we are stronger together than we are divided. So take some time today and connect with someone different from you. Recognize another human being. We all deserve to love and be loved. And that goes for all of us within the queer community, within this country and on this planet. After all, the only way our rainbow is a motherf*ckin' rainbow, is with all the colors shining equally.
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Kelly Clarkson's adorable daughter River Rose has turned three years old. Here are some shots from her party!
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At CMA Fest, Lauren Alaina worked with Lyft and Cracker Barrel to surprise fans. She puts on the worst Minnesota accent ever! She's now touring with Luke Bryan as an opener.
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