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Hi, did you see "American Idol" last night? Even if you did, here's a snappy recap. Our freakishly-obsessed-with-Idol boss, Jim Fraenkel, definitely watched, and noticed some sort of connection. He writes:
He’s been known all season long as “the Australian.” But as the contestants’ bios were fleshed out a bit more last night in the taped pieces preceding their performances, it was revealed (at least more explicitly than at any time in the past) that Michael Johns grew up not in Sydney (which is where we pretty much assume all Aussies are from) but in the western Australian city of Perth. Interesting.
Add to that John’s age, 28, and it was definitely enough to make us go hmmmm. Is it possible that this guy (one of two contestants to steal the show last night, by the way) went to school with/knew/was friends with Heath Ledger? How big is Perth anyway? Is that a ridiculous question, kind of like when that guy I’m sitting next to at a college friend’s wedding in Iowa says “Oh, my cousin lives in New York City”?
Well, a quick Google search last night following the show suggests that there’s no such thing as a stupid question! If random unnamed friends speaking to the National Ledger (OK, that’s just kinda weird) are to be believed, Johns & Ledger were, in fact, acquainted in their younger days.
My super-sleuth antennae is going haywire right now. Does this revelation shed more light on Johns’ comments last week when defending his song choice and rendition of “A Day In The Life,” a performance that was skewered by the judges? Johns told Seacrest, after the lashing from Simon, that he stood by the selection because it had been the favorite song of a friend who had recently passed away. Now we know that the late Heath Ledger loved Nick Drake. Was he a Beatles fanatic as well?
Don’t call me “Monk” quite yet. Just checked the replay on YouTube and Johns says he performed the song in memory of a friend named John who died last year. Hey, at least no one can say we’re not paying attention!
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