Friday, May 19, 2006

Good Guy Elliott

Elliott didn't win American Idol. But he definitely takes the "Miss Congeniality" title. Here's his exit interview with EW.

23 comments:

Ellen said...

God! What's a genuinely beautiful soul. He made me cry. Thanks for linking that.

Anonymous said...

I listened to the phone interviews last night while simultaneously watching him on Leno.

Thanks, Susan, for seeing to it that we keep the Elliott love flowing.

SusanD said...

Ellen, it's like he's almost too good to be real.

Meep -- that phone interview is the best, isn't it? He's very articulate which didn't ever come across in the "sound bite" format of AI. He gives thoughtful answers instead of rapid-fire ones. Plus he just sounds so happy.

He's the anti-Chris.

elegraph said...

Well, hell. Just when you think you couldn't love this guy any more, he goes and gives the best interview in EW. And I feel much more at peace with the whole outcome. I mean, you have to - it's clear that he is at peace with it. He's celebrating, and rightly so.

PS You mentioned Blue Note as a possible venue for him - I had thought the EXACT same thing!! Someone sign this man to your label, pronto!!

Anonymous said...

Elliott is Miss Congeniality & Most Likely to Succeed; Kat's destiny: Most Likely to be arrested for slapping a cop during a routine traffic stop two years after the AI machine spits out what's left of her.

Did you notice during the phone interview that our E thanked every reporter on the phone interview for giving him their time? Thoughtful, aware of his talent without the accompanying braggadocio, sweet; you're right: he is the anti-Chris

Anonymous said...

Y'all, he's the anti-everythingthat'ssowrongwiththisshow. It's why he was squashed by it.

But no matter! Get the silly tour behind you, E, and life is your oyster.

I think all of us who fell in love with him will make it so. Everything he's done since Wednesday night's ouster just makes it seem less and less like foolish fangirl wishful thinking, doesn't it?

elegraph said...

I just listened to the AI exit interview. He was wonderful, but good lord, even in his friggin' exit interview, could that stupid background music be any louder?? And you'd think that AI would do their best to spell his first name correctly on their website, but I see it misspelled here and there throughout the site. AI, y'all suck.

Anonymous said...

I have been reading all of the articles and listening to/watching all of Elliott's interviews in the last couple of days. He is the most genuine, humble, and kind person that has ever graced the idol stage. I kinda knew that already, but...

His answers are so wonderful, intelligent, witty...things that weren't showcased to the fullest while on Idol.

If this "beauty pageant" would have been fair, Elliott would have taken best evening wear (love his classy suits/suit jacket and jean combos, and his footwear rocks!), best question and answer segment, best TALENT, and Mr. Congeniality. Gee, I guess he wins hands down!!! :) Great Job, E!!!

Anonymous said...

just listened to elliott's elimination night rendition of 'i believe to my soul'. it is jazzy, fun, everything it should have been on tuesday. glad they let him sing the whole song before cutting away.

Anonymous said...

Oh, why does Elliott have pierce further and further into my mushy heart. Every new thing I read or see makes me love him more - it's so pathetic of me, I can hardly bear it.

This boy is solid gold and MUST see his dreams come true - who can we bribe? I have nothing to offer but a merge amount of pound notes and some fancy earrings, but maybe if we all join forces...I don't know, I'm pretty near to getting my own personal straight jacket so I won't be needing any of my worldly goods anyway.

Have you all seen Elliott's exit interview, it's another killer. He looks all small (I know, I know) and his hair is really fluffy, as if everyone has been lovingly muzzing it. Utterly and completely adorable and huggable - hey, I'm being restrained (not literally, you understand).

This

http://online.tvguide.com/Video/VideoPlayer.asp?videoname=TVGShoot_Idol&headerJPG=TVGShoot_Idol&vTime=1691&live=true&vdir=showvideos

...to cheer us all up. Okay it's a bit sad because Elliott looks tired and a little lonely (although very handsome), BUT Chris - heehaw! Jackass! McPretty is needy, she's going to fall to pieces.

Anonymous said...

by the way, richmond's lite 98 played elliott's full version of moody's mood on the ai5 cd today. and some elliott fans recorded it. it's incredible!

"http://rapidshare.de/files/20884852/elliot...s_mood.mp3.html"

hopefully this link will still work when you guys try. make sure you guys buy elliott on itunes on tuesday when it becomes available to the public!

Anonymous said...

Susan,

Daddy McPhee is/was a producer, some say for Fox. Every hit I've gotten on him in search engines has disappeared. I read a Wikipedia article on Katherine McPhee that clearly stated that Daniel McPhee was a producer of "numerous televison shows and other projects." When one goes to that same article, now, that sentence has disappeared. Now, I figure that Mommy McDearest wrote the article, because it continues to be updated every week with the songs Kat sings, etc. and it is an interactive encyclopedia. But, why is there such an attempt to hide this information?

ALL AI fans are trying to get more info. ANY post about it on the message boards are immediately removed, with posters banned, etc. AI moderators will not respond to questions as to why this topic violates any posting rules.

You seem to be a person with knowledge and the ability to find out neat stuff. Can you find out anything about Mr. McPhee?

I saved the cached version. You can see it here:

http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:JpgPiJbUd_AJ:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katharine_McPhee+%22daniel+McPhee%22&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=30

If you go to the current non-cached version, you won't find any mention of the father.

He produced the first Incredible Hulk movie in 1988 for NBC and I found a tidbit on him from 1984. But, it's so unusual that if someone is a producer that there is nothing else to be found.

Then again, maybe Mommy McPhee lied about that in her attempts to make the McPhee's so heavyweight (like she does on her OWN website), and now she's afraid of being caught. Not to worry. Katherine carries on the classless gene for her.

Thanks!

Anonymous said...

Just read this lovely article, http://www dot mrsjonesonidol dot com/fastlanes/may1906.html

Anonymous said...

What a classy guy. What he adds to his art is his depth as a person. That's what's missing in McPheek, she's only shown a callow superficiality and self-centered smugness. And her performances have been shrilly irritating. She nailed Over the Rainbow though. I'll give her that. She'd better stick to that song cuz she fucks up everything else.

Elliott's not bitter but I am. That's because he's a better soul than me, and that's what you want in an idol. Not the blinding glare of lip gloss.

Go Taylor, woo!

Anonymous said...

Wow. I feel like a group hug with Susan and her commenters is what we all need right now.

Noone, we have the same thoughts. I've been wishing I had some pull or connections that could help get E every single thing he wants, and then some. Insane isn't it?

I'm watching the finale this week only because He'll Be Singing.

SusanD said...

kg -- isn't that the trick of Elliott -- he gets the boot and yet he makes US feel good about it. After hearing that Moody's Mood, I'm convinced he needs to hook up with Chris Botti or Branford Marsallis or someone and really make some beautiful music.

anon -- right on on Kat's future. and no braggadocio -- exactly!

Meep -- yes, I'm convinced that there are enough fans of Elliott who REALLY love him and want him to succeed to make it a reality.

Eileen -- not only is that AI exit interview touching, boyfriend looks exhausted but yet smokin' hot in it! But, yeah, like KG said, that background music -- what the hell?

Laura -- he shoulda won. He just shoulda. But I have to say, Taylor's not my favorite, obviously, but I've been feeling SO thoroughly upset for him today. I just feel so ambivalent even about him winning, but at this point he's just as screwed if he doesn't because they sign the runner up, too. So he might as well win. But that worry for Taylor, that's all to say that I'm really convinced this was the best scenario for Elliott.

Jim -- I thought it was really telling that they never even let Kelly close to the mic again, and they cut off most people, but they made sure to give Elliott his time.

Noone -- Ohh! Thanks for the TV guide vid link!

Anon -- I've been trying to find something concrete about Mr. McPhee, because one of the rumors was that he actually produced something that Ryan Seacrest was in -- for FOX. But I haven't been able to find anything concrete about this. It certainly seems like something's fishy, and I'll keep digging. (I'm motivated by enough bitterness and loathing to follow through) But so far I can't come up with anything other than hearsay or rumors. There's no entry for him on IMDB, and if he did indeed produce some stuff, there really should be.

Suki -- cheer up. He may be out of the competition, but he'll be singing again, I think on Wed. night for the two hour results show. Yay!

anon -- I love how Mrs Jones came around on elliott, too.

Alicia -- you're a riot. "That's because he's a better soul than me, and that's what you want in an idol. Not the blinding glare of lip gloss." Ha ha! And I'm with you -- SOUL PATROL, SOUL PATROL!

Meep -- I'm all for a group hug, too! All for Elliott!

Anonymous said...

Meep and Noone, you guys aren't the only ones...I wish I had connections to the biz....than I would help Elliott out like no other.

Anonymous said...

I shared your recap of the last show with my 17-year-old son. He was (before you damn me as a failed parent, please note the past tense!) a Kat fan (come on, he's a 17 year old boy!). But the past 4 weeks he started moving over to the light side (from the dark side)! I think his appreciation for Elliott comes from not being the best looking, most coordinated, most popular kid ... and watching Elliott blossom was a kind of reassurance for a kid with growing pains.

Elliott is a classy guy, and I believe that he will stay humble, especially after listening to that phone interview (he thanked the reporters for their time more than they thanked him!).

Susan, I appreciate your humor and warmth - thanks for sharing with us!

elegraph said...

In case you guys haven't heard the full cut from the AI album, here's a link to it:

http://rapidshare.de/files/
20884852/elliot
t-moodys_mood.mp3.html

The arrangement is too fast, too loud, and overall subpar, but MAN, does Elliott SHINE in it! He could sing the warning label off of a pack of cigarettes and sound amazing, so I'm not surprised. But give this a listen-to - the 2nd half of the song, which was not on his stage performances, is AMAZING!!!!! OMG.

SusanD said...

Anita -- aw, that's so cool about your son. Good for him for realizing that all kinds of peeps can be superstar thanks to Elliott.

kg -- thanks for the Moody's link~ I agree about the arrangement -- it sucks. But E sounds terrific, so it's a keeper.

Anonymous said...

Hey Anita.....that is exactly how I felt about Kat. I am 20 years old and I really liked KAt, not only is she hot, but she really is a good singer. But her personality or attitude just seemed to rub me the wrong way in the recent few weeks, so my love for her really died down. I've always been a fan od Elliott, but my love for him ONLY grew stronger week in and week out.

Anonymous said...

Cute Elliott article in today's Richmond Times Dispatch...

http://www.timesdispatch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=RTD/MGArticle/RTD_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1137836260320

Susan, I love reading your blog regarding AI. You are hilarious! Thanks!!!!! Becca

Anonymous said...

I listened to E's recording of "Moody's Mood for Love." The AI morons stuck a idiotic drum machine in the background, which changed the feel and texture of the song A LOT. MMFL is one of those songs which is driven by the vocals. E's voice is strong enough to move the song along, but the producers in their infinite stupidity decided they need a cheesy beat box. Don't get me started on the saxophone nonsense. Despite my misgivings, I bought it off iTunes, just to show my support to E. Hopefully, he'll make some cash from peeps buying this song.