Simon Cowell
The snarkiest man on television is also the highest-earning.
American Idol judge Simon Cowell is television's best-paid man in prime time, earning an estimated ...
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Simon Cowell
Simon Cowell's new deal with Fox could bring Britain's The X Factor to American TV.
Cowell, who is in the final year of his current American Idol contract, has been open about wanting to bring his British hit stateside, according to The Hollywood Reporter. His existing contract would not allow it.
Check out photos of Cowell on Idol
If a new contract is agreed upon, Cowell could executive-produce X Factor for Fox and also be locked in to Idol through the 2011-12 season. Cowell is reportedly expected to earn $50 million a season on Idol, as well as another $50 million for each cycle of X Factor.
News: Simon Cowell Near Deal for Three Years of Idol
It's unclear if Cowell
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Simon Cowell
Attention all future American Idol hopefuls: Simon Cowell can be impressed.
The usually prickly judge was recently won over by a contestant on the U.K's The X Factor, according to Popeater. Danyl Johnson dazzled Cowell so much with his rendition of The Beatles' "With a Little Help from My Friends" that the singer earned a standing ovation from Cowell.
See photos of Cowell behind the Idol judges' table
"That was single-handedly the best first audition I have ever heard," Cowell said. "He could be one of the best contestants we've ever had," he added.
But was he really that good, or just an improvement over the rest of the talent from that day? Cowell had stormed out of the theater earlier in the day after a man ...
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Simon Cowell
Simon Cowell is close to finishing a deal that would keep him at American Idol's judges' table through 2011, earning $45 million for each of the next three seasons, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The new deal includes the upcoming season — the final year in Cowell's current contract, which he had hinted could be his last — said Robert Sillerman, the CEO of...
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Paula Abdul with Simon Cowell
Paula Abdul has the support of her American Idol foil, Simon Cowell, as well as scores of fans and Idol alumni, as her fate with the hit reality show remains in limbo.
Take our quiz about reality TV competition shows
Not long after Abdul's manager, David Sonenberg, told the Los Angeles Times that the producers of Idol had yet to make his "hurt' and "angry" client an offer to return for Season 9, Cowell told Extra, "She'll be on the show."
"I don't get a lot of say," added Cowell ...
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Susan Boyle
Simon Cowell says Britain's Got Talent singing sensation Susan Boyle is "going to surprise a lot of people" with her debut album.
While some, having heard Boyle perform "I Dreamed a Dream" countless times, may think they have a good idea of what her first album will be like, "We're not going to throw out some souvenir album of show tunes," Cowell told ...
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Susan Boyle
Susan Boyle sounds "fantastic" on the first track recorded for her debut album, Simon Cowell says.
"She sounds fantastic on record," Cowell tells People. "She's so good. The album is not just going to be show tunes."
How did the phenomenon begin? Check out Boyle's first Talent performance
But fans of the Britain's Got Talent sensation won't get to hear the tune any time soon. Cognizant of Boyle's hospitalization for exhaustion and the pressure put on her during ...
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Simon Cowell
Simon Cowell could command a salary of $108 million to $144 million if he continues with American Idol beyond the coming season, according to a British newspaper.
Cowell, who serves as the most polarizing — and thus the most entertaining — judge on the Fox hit has been offered "three to four times" his current annual appearance fee of $36 million, a source close to Idol executive producer Simon Fuller tells the U.K.'s The Guardian.
Read how Ryan Seacrest keeps Idol pitch-perfect
A Fox spokesperson ...
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Simon Cowell
American Idol judge Simon Cowell may be on his way to becoming TV's "best-paid star."
Cowell has teamed with billionaire British retailer Sir Phillip Green to create a global entertainment firm that will own and produce TV content, according to Financial Times. The new company will include Cowell's existing projects, Britain's Got Talent and The X-Factor, but will also launch new programming.
Check out photos of Cowell on Britain's Got Talent, Idol and more.
More importantly, however, Green — a close friend of Cowell's — has been advising him in his contract negotiations with Idol producer 19 Entertainment. Cowell has been...
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Simon Cowell
Simon Cowell wants you to know that even he makes mistakes.
The brutally honest and oft-grumpy judge of American Idol and Britain's Got Talent said so himself in a lengthy editorial in the U.K.'s Daily Mail Saturday, in which he addressed several controversies surrounding the British talent show. His primary focus: the rise and fall of Susan Boyle.
"I'm the first to hold my hands up and admit I've made mistakes," Cowell wrote. "Looking back on it all, it has become clear to me that we didn't handle the situation with Susan as well as we could have."
Even so, Cowell decided his side of the story needed to be heard. "You can't complain when people turn the tables and criticize you. And I don't," he wrote. "The show has been accused of being a cruel circus that sets out to exploit the vulnerable in a cynical bid to boost ratings. And I, of course, am inevitably portrayed as the evil ringmaster. So love the shows or hate them, the time has finally come for me to set a few things straight."
Cowell recalled thinking that Boyle ...
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