Archive for TV
A Clay Aiken Christmas
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On December 8, 2004, NBC aired a Christmas special featuring Clay Aiken. The holiday show was an hour long and was filled with intimate performances set in a beautiful Christmas set that was put together as a beautiful family home, decorated with traditional holiday ornaments.
Clay was joined on the stage by musical superstar, Barry Manilow, Gospel singer, Yolanda Adams and actress and singer, Megan Mullally. Clay’s good friend and back-up singer, Quiana Parler was also a featured performer.
There was an interesting twist in the flow of the show. Instead of just showing the final taping, the producers showed some of the backstage workings of putting a show together. The clips showed the cast and crew as they buzzed about between the different parts of the program.
Among the beautiful Christmas decoration, friends and family were seated on the stage to add to the family feel.
Highlights of the program included “Christmas Waltz, “Merry Christmas With Love,” and Santa Claus Is Coming To Town. Another favorite part of the show was when the performers talked about some of their unusual gifts.
In the finale, Clay was joined by Barry Manilow and Yolanda Adam as they sang a stirring rendition of “Because It’s Christmas.”
This Christmas special was unique in that it focused on the music and had no skits or jokes. And the idea of having some of the audience members on the stage gave the impression of a big Christmas Party.
Clay was credited as an Executive Producer of the show. A DVD of the program was available and was certified Gold by the RIAA in December, 2005.
Clay Aiken – Late Night!
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David Letterman is a well-known television host and comedian. He hosts the talk show, Late Show with David Letterman which is broadcast on CBS. Letterman has been a fixture on late night television since the 1982 debut of Late Night with David Letterman. Johnny Carson, who was Letterman’s friend and mentor, is the only person to have a longer late-night hosting career.
Letterman is also a television and film producer. His company, Worldwide Pants, produces his show and The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson. Worldwide Pants has also produced several prime-time comedies, including Everyone Loves Raymond and Ed.
Letterman’s shows have received 67 Emmy Award nominations, winning twelve times in his first 20 years in late night television. From 1993-2009 Letterman ranked higher than Leno in the annual Harris Poll of Nation’s Favorite TV Personality twelve times.
Letterman has a private foundation called The American Foundation for Courtesy and Grooming. Through it, Letterman has donated millions of dollars to charities and other non-profits in Indiana and Montana, celebrity-affiliated organizations, universities, and other organizations such as the American Cancer Society, the Salvation Army and Doctors Without Borders.
On November 24, 2003, Clay Aiken was a guest on David Letterman’s Show. Clay was in New York still doing some promotion for his album, Measure of A Man.
Unlike Leno and Kimmel, David Letterman is reluctant to have his musical guest sit down and talk. But, Clay was an exception. Even though his time sitting with Letterman was very short, Clay did get a few moments to chat with the host.
Clay followed Paul Newman on the show and sung a great rendition of his hit song, Invisible.
All in all, it was a wonderful night and one that was watched by many people. Letterman’s ratings were very high that night.
Clay Aiken – The Best Interview They Ever Had!
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When Americans watch television, they can’t miss the talent and reach of Tyra Banks. In 2003, Banks became a true pioneer in reality TV when she created, executive produced, and hosted the tremendously successful “America’s Next Top Model.” The show quickly became a phenomenon and was UPN’s most-watched program for six seasons.
With the launch of her syndicated daily talk show “The Tyra Banks Show,” Banks became one of the few women to be seen regularly on both daytime and primetime television. Premiered in 2005, the talk show quickly became one of the most popular new daytime programs on the air, and continues to boast the youngest audience in daytime.
On November 22, 2006, Clay Aiken was a guest on the Tyra Banks Show. It was a huge hit with the television audience and the live audience reported that it was one of the best shows they had ever seen.
The live audience saw Clay sing at the beginning of the show. He first sang “A Thousand Days.” Then, after a quick set change, he sang “Mary, Did You Know” that would be used on another show.
According to reports from audience members, the director planned on taping 2 segments of Clay and Tyra. However, the two stars just had so much fun together that they just kept filming.
More and more people from backstage filtered in to watch and listen as the show went on and on. The serious man who held the cue cards began to laugh… a lot. Two of the cameramen were grinning ear-to-ear the entire show. The young director talked and laughed with Clay during the breaks. They all seemed to be having a great time.
During one of the breaks, Quiana came out onto the set and stood behind the couch talking to Clay. Clay turned to the audience and told the story of how Quiana had beaten him in his first AI audition. He said he wished they could hear her sing. Quiana acted rather shy and started to leave. The warmup man gave chase and dragged her back out and gave her a microphone. Clay said to Tyra, “If I get her to sing, will you tell her about your hair weave?” Tyra agreed. Quiana then blew away the place with “I Will Always Love You.” The warmup guy commented about what kind of a guy Clay was and how rare it was to see a big star do something like that. He later said Clay was the best interview they had ever had.
Fortunately, we have videos of the show. We don’t get to see the fun backstage antics, but we can see how relaxed Clay and Tyra were as they talked to each other.
If you watch the videos, you will see talk about Clay’s changing looks, his allergies and even a short segment when Clay interviewed Tyra. Oh yes, even a small kiss!!
The three videos take a bit more than 30 minutes, but they are so worth it. We can all hope that there will be another fun interview with these two good friends.
Clay Aiken – What? No mustard?
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In the last seven years, Clay Aiken has been interviewed hundreds of times. He has been interviewed for magazines, been questioned by radio DJ’s and chatted with television hosts at all times of the day.
One of the most unique interviews that Clay participated in was the day he was questioned by a “Hot Dog.” It was October 17, 2003 and it was really Meredith Vieira who hosted The View and for some reason, was dressed as a Hot Dog.
Clay was on the promotional tour for Measure of A Man and he was hitting all the major talk shows on TV. He stopped by The View after performing on The Early Show at CBS.
Before a performance of Invisible, Clay talked with a couple of the ladies on the show. Meredith led an interesting interview. Clay looked relaxed until Meredith read a letter from a fan who wanted to know how Clay smelled. WHAT?? Yes, that’s what she wanted to know.
So, as Clay looked uncomfortable, Meredith obliged the fan and smelled Clay! Then, to make Clay feel even more embarrassed, a professional perfumer was called down to give a sniff too. Both reported that Clay smelled fresh and had a hint of a perfume smell which was good.
Why do TV panelists feel the need to do such silly things? I wonder how they would feel if it happened to them.
Fortunately, the rest of the interview was interesting and Clay chatted with the hosts and showed that he was relaxed and professional in his interview.
The stage setting for the performance was lovely and Clay sounded wonderful when he sang Invisible. All and all, it was a fun show and Clay probably still remembers that visit.
The following is a great video of the interview and performance. It is always fun to see Clay at the beginning of his successful career.
Clay Aiken – Never Takes Himself Too Seriously!
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Clay Aiken was brought into the limelight by performing on a reality TV show called American Idol. Week after week, Clay stood up and sang to millions of people all over the world.
Being a Reality show, the producers of American Idol tried to give the personal side of each Idol to the public. Because of this, many of Clay’s fans thought they knew all about him when the show was over. But, on October 9, 2003, fans were introduced to some of the true personal sides of Clay Aiken.
Primetime presented a 20 minute interview with Clay Aiken. Diane Sawyer discussed a wide range of topics with Clay, including American Idol, his biological father, Vernon, his half-sister, Deb, his name change, his faults and his future.
In the interview on ABC, Clay said he had never taken himself too seriously, even during his run on American Idol.
“In my case, triumph of the nerds…. It was a great moment for that show. It was really an opportunity for them to have to eat their words. Simon didn’t know exactly what to crack on, and the media didn’t know exactly what it was about me that made me look weird. So I said, ‘Well, let’s give them something.’ “
Diane asked Clay about Vernon, his biological father. Clay revealed that he was most hurt when his father called him a mistake. He also told Diane that his father had not called him for years, yet he called the publication, The Star, to talk about his son.
After watching the show, the reactions of the fans seemed to be very positive. Many commented that they just wanted to give Clay a hug. Others agreed that Clay was presented as a strong man who was comfortable enough to show his vulnerable side. Many fans were amazed that Clay had been able to overcome so much pain in his life.
It was interesting to watch the interview at this time. I still saw a strong man who overcame so much, but I also understood so much more than I did the first time I watched it.
The interview has been put into two videos. I hope you have the time to watch them. It’s another thing that will make you proud of Clay Aiken and the way he lives his life.
Clay Aiken Visits The View
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September 22, 2006………Clay Aiken was in the “blender.” It was the fourth day of his frantic spin through the talk-show circuit, promoting his new album, A Thousand Different Ways.
On September 22, Clay visited The View. Clay was greeted with great warmth by Rosie O’Donnell and the other ladies. They chatted about several different issues including panic attacks, fame and hair styles.
Rosie was the definite leader of the interview. She related that she had her roots in Star Search and could relate to his experience on American Idol and how overwhelming the whirlwind was after the show.
Much of the short interview was about panic attacks and how common they are in the world. The ladies were very supportive and wanted to make sure they conveyed the fact that the panic attacks were nothing to be ashamed of. Rosie said that Clay was doing all the right things. Clay was surrounded by a very supportive group of ladies.
The audience was filled with Clay fans and the entire group was excited to see Clay and hear him sing. Clay sang his first single Without You, a favorite on the new album. Clay stood on the stage which was set beautifully. This is something The View tries to do for their musical artists.
Two videos are available for this appearance and the first one includes the positive interview. The second video is Clay’s performance of Without You.
Clay Aiken – 100 Songs
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On June 22, 2004, CBS aired a 3 hour special called “AFI -- 100 Years, 100 Songs. Hosted by John Travolta, the countdown from the American Film Institute featured clips of 100 songs.
Clay Aiken joined Burt Bacharach, Celine Dion, Barry Gibb, Barbra Streisand, and Paul Simon who commented on the songs in the Top 100.
The 100 songs were chosen by 1,500 “industry experts”; songs were evaluated on quality of music and lyrics as well as their cultural impact and legacy. “Over the Rainbow” -- the Judy Garland anthem from “The Wizard of Oz” -- was voted the greatest movie song ever.
The top ten list of greatest movie tunes follows:
Over the Rainbow from The Wizard of Oz
As Time Goes By from Casablanca
Singin’ in the Rain from Singin’ in the Rain
Moon River from Breakfast at Tiffany’s
White Christmas from Holiday Inn
Mrs. Robinson from The Graduate
When You Wish Upon a Star from Pinnochio
The Way We Were from The Way We Were
Stayin’ Alive from Saturday Night Fever
The Sound of Music from The Sound of Music
Commenting on “Lose Yourself” by Eminem, Clay said:
“Movie music does not have to be soaring love ballads. Lose Yourself is definitely an example of a movie song that makes a movie much more hip and much more popular for today’s culture.”
When commenting on “Unchained Melody” from Ghost, Clay said his mother had a dream that Clay would record a cover of Unchained Melody and it would be a big hit. One week later, LeAnn Rimes came out with the recording and it became a big hit. The hopes of Clay’s mom were dashed. Clay also commented that he was in 4th grade when Ghost was released and that he did not understand the significance of the hands on the potter’s wheel during the song.
Another of Clay’s comments brought a laugh when he shared that he tried hard to learn to spell supercalfragalisticexpialidocious.
100 Years, 100 Songs, with the American Film Institute had an audience of 12.3 million people. How many of those people were fans of Clay Aiken?
Watch the video below to see Clay’s part of the AFI show.
Clay Aiken And Celebrity Stalkers
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This past week has been a roller coaster ride for Clay Aiken fans with a lot of conversation focusing on the state of “journalism”, unscrupulous internet bloggers and celebrity stalkers. The purpose of this particular blog is to give some facts about celebrity stalkers. There are many articles on the internet about the topic and each one has their own lists and ideas. So, the ideas presented in this article come from many different sources.
According to Psychiatric Times, Vol 23:
1.4 million people are stalked annually in the United States. 1 in 12 women and 1 in 45 men will be stalked in their lifetime. 77% of women and 64% of men know their stalkers. 87% of stalkers are male. Less than two percent of stalking cases result in homicide. However, the emotional toll on the victims is significant, especially if you don’t know who the stalker is, or if he/she is mentally ill.
There are three basic types of stalkers. They are Simple Obsessional Stalkers, Delusional Stalkers, and Vengeful Stalkers. In many cases there is overlap in the definitions.
A Simple Obsessional Stalker is anything but simple. They are typically the person who refuses to believe that a relationship is over, although they have been told repeatedly that it is. This type of stalker is the most common.
Do not be misled by this type thinking they are harmlessly in love. Many of them were emotionally abusive and controlling during the relationship and many even have a criminal record unrelated to stalking.
The next type is the Delusional Stalker. These stalkers frequently have never had any contact with their victim beyond the boundaries of their own mind. They may suffer from mental illness like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or erotomania. What they have in common is a false belief that keeps them tied to their victims. In erotomania they believe that the victim loves them, even though they have never met. A good example of this is the man that stalked and killed Rebecca Schaeffer.
Another type of Delusional Stalker may believe that he and the victim are destined to be together and even though they may not have met if he only just shows how much he loves her then she will love him and they will be together as it is meant to be. An example of this type of stalker is John Hinckley Jr. who shot President Reagan in order to show Jody Foster how much he loved her.
A Delusional Stalker is usually a loner, unmarried, socially immature and does not possess the interpersonal skills to maintain friendships and relationships. They have had few if any sexual encounters. They most often choose victims that are unobtainable like a celebrity or a married woman, their doctor, teacher, nurse or therapist. Those helping professions are at risk for attracting a Delusional Stalker.
Delusional stalkers are very difficult to get rid of and many go on for many years fixated on one person.
The last type of stalker is the Vengeful Stalker. They get angry at their victim due to some slight either real or imagined. We have all heard of disgruntled employees, these are vengeful stalkers and can be just as dangerous as the delusional. They stalk to get even and believe that “they” have been victimized. Ex-spouses can turn into this type of stalker and violence is all too common a result.
Delusional Stalkers who are obsessed by love have been in the news the last few years due to some high profile cases such as the murder of Rebecca Shaffer the actress and the stalking of famous people like David Letterman and Brad Pitt.
The victim of this type of stalker does not even have to have ever had a relationship with the person or even know them for that matter. The love is perceived by someone who is mentally unstable.
They imagine every day actions like walking on the same side of the street or buying the same kind of orange juice at the supermarket are secrets signs and signals you are giving them of your undying love. Bottom line the stalking is not about “You” at all but very much about the stalker and their state of mind.
For this reason avoiding this type of stalker, although they are not overly common can be difficult. Because you do not have to show them any attention or affection in order for them to become fixated on you, how can one prevent this from happening?
Every case of stalking should be taken seriously even those where there is no violence threatened in any manner. The case of Rebecca Shaffer is a prime example of this. He wrote her love letters and sent her gifts then showed up at her door one day and shot her dead in cold blood with no warning. “Never” assume that someone is harmless because they have not threatened you with violence. That can change at any moment.
According to Brent MacLean, Founder and CEO of J.B. MacLean Consulting Inc.:
Perhaps the saddest thing about most North Americans is that we don’t always know the law. Many people think that there is nothing that they can do to stop a stalker. Even more people think “people on the internet can do/say what ever they want to you”.
Stalking is a legal form of harassment and is against the law. It important to know that the law is available to protect you from any stalker or someone hounding you and your “virtual” identity. If you even suspect that someone is stalking you, don’t wait until it escalates. Contact the authorities immediately. The information is out there, so get educated quickly.
In California, both criminal and civil laws address stalking. According to the criminal laws, a stalker is someone who willfully, maliciously and repeatedly follows or harasses another (victim) and who makes a credible threat with the intent to place the victim or victim’s immediate family in fear for their safety. The victim does not have to prove that the stalker had the intent to carry out the threat. (California Penal Code 646.9,)
The criminal penalty for stalking is imprisonment up to a year and/or a fine of up to $1,000. There are more severe penalties when the stalker pursues the same person in violation of a court restraining order, with a sentencing range of two to four years imprisonment. Persons convicted of felony stalking also face stricter penalties if they continue to stalk their victim(s). Courts may issue restraining orders to prohibit stalking. (California Family Code 6320)
A victim of stalking may bring a civil lawsuit against the stalker and recover money damages. (See Civil Code 1708.7 for the elements and remedies of the tort of stalking.
Unfortunately, the Federal Government has few laws to help victims of stalking. They rely on the individual states to solve the problem. At this time, North Carolina has not addressed the problem and has very little in place to help victims of stalkers. For information on the laws of your state visit HERE
All of us care about anyone who is being stalked. One can only hope that the stalkers can get help and that the law will soon catch up so these predators can be put away.
Clay Aiken – Any Volunteers?
Posted by: | CommentsWe've had polls on here before about Clay Aiken, but this one is a video poll. SueReu used some of her Sunday to put together some videos to make this poll.
One of the fun parts of Clay's Solo Tour and the Juke Box Tour was his use of volunteers. Sometimes they sang and sometimes they danced, but each one gave Clay a chance to interact with them and the audience. And the moments always earned applause and even some laughter.
So..............watch the poll and then vote on your favorite volunteer encounter. Don't forget, we would love to know why you chose the person you did.
Loading ...Clay Aiken – Katie Couric is a Fan
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Back in 2003, Clay Aiken was very busy on May 26th. He and Ruben visited the Today Show. Katie Couric was the anchor back then and she presented the two American Idols to the Today Show audience. Both Clay and Ruben had been running from different TV shows, to radio interviews, to business meetings about their careers. They were obviously tired, but happy.
It was a Monday and it was Memorial Day......and it was raining hard! Katie interviewed Ruben alone and then Clay alone. Katie admitted that her younger daughter was an original Claymate. Katie took as much time with Clay as she did with Ruben. In the next segment, they all went outside with umbrellas and got under tents. Katie asked both Ruben and Clay some more questions and then Clay and Ruben performed "I'm Proud To Be An American."
The videos for this performance are terrible. I could not find any quality ones anywhere. However, I still am posting two YouTubes. The first is the Clay interview and the second is the duet. It's fun to see such an early performance and interview. It's hard to realize that it has been 6 years!!
