Who Won America's Got Talent?
Olate Dogs
Season 7 of America's Got Talent came to an end Thursday night, crowning a winner and bidding farewell to judge Sharon Osbourne.
While Osbourne's departure didn't come as a surprise, the victory announcement might have. Olate Dogs, a troupe of acrobatic pups, beat out their human finalist counterparts to take the title. After taking the $1 million prize, they'll be heading to Vegas to headline their own show.
America's Got Talent semifinals goes to the dogs
The runner-up was comedian Tom Cotter, who performed alongside Joan Rivers during the finale and delivered one-liners, including telling judge Howard Stern that he looked like "the bastard child of Joey Ramone and Big Bird." Earth harpist William Close came in third, and rounding out the top six were performance artist/painter David Garibaldi, sand artist Joe Castillo and dance troupe The Untouchables.
After the final performances on Wednesday, Stern correctly predicted the top three, telling TVGuide.com that Cotter would have his vote, but that viewers would probably be swayed by Olate Dogs' cute factor.
"I think America is going to fall in love with the dogs, as I have," Stern said. "The dogs will probably win it. I probably would've liked to see Tom Cotter win it." He also described Close as "phenomenal."
"It's too bad it can't be split between the three of them," Stern told TVGuide.com.
The final episode also featured performances by Justin Bieber, Blue Man Group, Green Day and others.
The four-legged acrobats were a favorite of Osbourne, who went up on stage and cuddled the dogs (and their trainers) after Nick Cannon announced that they were the winners.
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"Love these doggies!! #AGT" Osbourne tweeted after the show, along with a picture of herself holding one of the dogs.
She later wrote: ".@nbcagt is the best variety show in the world. It's been 6 great years, but time to move on."