The stars of Fox’s “American Idol” expect great things from new judge Ellen DeGeneres , but they are all saying something different about her addition to the judging panel of Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi, and her replacement of songstress Paula Abdul.

Host Ryan Seacrest told Fox News at the Primetime Emmy awards on Sunday that DeGeneres, a comedian with her own daytime chat show, is a “superstar.”

“She will change the sexual tension,” Seacrest said of DeGeneres, who is lesbian and last year married longtime girlfriend and actress Portia de Rossi in California, before voters in the state banned same-sex weddings during the November 2008 election.

“Simon and Paula had a specific kind of tension, but this will be quite different…” Seacrest told Fox.

DioGuardi, who only joined the show this past season, told People magazine at an Emmy after-party that “Idol” producers’ recruitment of DeGeneres was a “genius decision,” and that she wishes she had thought of it herself.

One of the most pointed comments about DeGeneres’ addition came from director Bruce Gowers, who won an Emmy for his role with “American Idol.”

“I think there will be a lot more fun on the show than there was before,” Gowers told reporters backstage.

“I think we’re going to get even higher ratings,” he said.

But Gowers backtracked when asked if he meant the show suffered with Abdul in the judge’s chair, saying that was not the case.

Despite drawing more viewers than any other show on television, “American Idol” did not win its first Emmy until 2007, which was six years into the show’s lifespan, and even that was for the relatively unexciting category of best technical direction.

 Will next season’s arrival of DeGeneres, a highly respected figure in Hollywood, change things and get the show more respect from Emmy voters?

“American Idol” producers moved swiftly to replace Paula Abdul with comedian and TV chat show host Ellen DeGeneres  as the new judge on the show which starts again in January.

But is Ellen the right fit for the show?

Fans are split and even media watchers were stunned by the move, which serves the dual function of closing the door permanently on Paula, and making the show talked about all over again after a summer of shock announcements.

For a TV show that’s primarily about finding America’s next instant pop star — and one which is ultimately chosen by the public — there’s been a lot of hoo-hah this year about the judging panel, whether its Kara DioGuardi’s return, Simon Cowell’s future, Ryan Seacrest’s lucrative new contract or Abdul’s ultimately failed contract manoevres.

So what do you think is ultimately the most important and/or entertaining part of “Idol” — the contestants, or the chemistry on the judging panel?

And how will Ellen fit in, and will her presence on the “Idol” panel make you more or less likely to watch next year when the show has finished tossing out all the thousands of hopeless singers and gets down to the Top 20?

Are “American Idol” producers really going to dump Paula Abdul after all these years?

Or is the emotional judge (or her representatives) just playing mind-games at this late stage in a bid to get a better offer for the next few years after Ryan Seacrest upped the stakes by securing a new three-year deal reputed to be worth around $15 million a year?

And with a little over two weeks to go before auditions start in front of the panel for that golden ticket to Hollywood, the official silence around the future of newcomer Kara DioGuardi has been stunning.

Paula might be the most unpredictable, some might say wacky, member of the judging panel but would the show be the same without what one fan this week called her “rainbows and colors”?

Despite his reputation as “Mr. Nasty”, fans have made clear that they would think twice about watching if Simon Cowell were to quit the show. But would they feel the same about Paula going?

Maybe “Idol” producers should allow Americans to vote and decide whether to put Paula, or Kara, in the bottom three. Who do you think would end up being sent home?

Adam Lambert and Kris Allen will be getting all the attention on Tuesday when they sing for the “American Idol” title. But new judge Kara DioGuardi will also be sharing the limelight.

Songwriter DioGuardi, who has worked in the past with Kelly Clarkson and co-wrote Ashlee Simpson’s hit single “Pieces of Me”,  is credited as co-writer of “No Boundaries”  — the new song that will be released as a single by the winner of the TV talent show, music industry sources say.

“No Boundaries” will get its first airing on Tuesday’s show in (presumably very different)  versions by Adam and Kris.  Web site Popeater.com will premiere the winning “Idol”’s recording of the song at 10 pm PT on Wednesday — moments after the 2009 “Idol” is crowned in the West Coast broadcast of the show on Fox.

Host Ryan Seacrest has revealed that Adam and Kris will also sing two other songs each on Tuesday — one must be a number they have done before on the show;  the other is a song chosen by “American Idol” creator Simon Fuller (Fuller is also the man behind British girl group “The Spice Girls”).

Among confirmed stars performing on Wednesday night as America waits to find out who they chose as their 2009 “Idol” are David Cook, Carrie Underwood, Queen Latifah, Black  Eyed Peas, Lionel Richie, Keith Urban  and actor Steve Martin — on his banjo?.

Rumors are flying fast about a host of other possible perfomers. Take your pick from Michael Jackson, David Bowie and Kiss — and maybe even ”Bikini Girl??”.

“Idol” producers aren’t saying — but who would you like to see singing a duet with Adam or Kris? And which of their own songs should they pick to clinch the title?

“American Idol” on Tuesday entered the last week of competition before the finale, and we at “Fan Fare” had the good fortune to land second-row seats in the talent show’s live studio audience. (For the record, this twist of fate had nothing to do with our coverage of the show — it was good old-fashioned standing in line combined with almost two years of being on a waiting list.)

Watching “Idol” in its natural habitat revealed dozens of quirks imperceptible to the 25 million or so viewers who tune in at home. First off, the studio was smaller than expected — even more intimate than watching a live show in a theater. One audience member in our row even remarked that it was smaller than her college lecture hall.

Also, the judges seemed to spend more time out of their seats than in them. Accompanied by massive bodyguards, they walked backstage at every commercial break, rushing back to their seats sometimes with two seconds to spare. Judge Paula Abdul at least spent some time greeting celebrity audience members such as Kim and Kourtney Kardashian and their mom, Kris Jenner, as well as “The Hills” star Audrina Partridge.

Many in the mostly young, female audience also appeared to be partial to one contestant — supposed dark horse Kris Allen. There were more Kris-themed homemade signs (”Krazy 4 Kris”, for instance) being waved than those for either of the other contestants. And, one young fan was overheard after the show gloating that she had waved to Allen — and that he had smiled back!

So is “Idol”’s resident pretty boy Kris really a dark horse after all? His acoustic performance of Kanye West’s “Heartless” received universal praise from the judges, with Randy Jackson deeming it “better than the original.” His first song, “Apologize,” however, was less well-received.

But Allen rival Danny Gokey’s performances were by no means stellar, getting similar mixed reviews from the judges. They loved his version of “You Are So Beautiful” but were less enthused by his take on Terence Trent D’Arby’s “Dance Little Sister,” for which he was criticized for his dancing.

Golden child Adam Lambert, predictably, got rave reviews for both of his performances. Judge Simon Cowell, however, warned “Idol” viewers not to assume that Lambert would sail through to next week’s finale and reminded them that they needed to vote.

So who will be sent packing tomorrow night? Host Ryan Seacrest, toward the end of the show, made a point of saying that he had no idea what would happen on Wednesday night.

Is Lambert really the juggernaut he has been made out to be, and does Allen have a stronger wind at his back than many expected? Gokey is the only contestant never to be placed among the show’s bottom three vote-getters — but has he finally run out of steam?

It’s an unusual night on “American Idol” when the normally sharp-tongued judge Simon Cowell offers a contestant a standing ovation, which is exactly what he did at the end of Tuesday’s show in reaction to Adam Lambert’s performance. Granted that Cowell had to offer succinct praise because the show was out of time, but he was definitely acting out of character when he stood up and gushed over Lambert’s singing.

Lambert chose the 1982 hit “Mad World” by Tears for Fears, a selection much less well known than the songs other contestants performed. This week, the Idols had to pick a song from the year they were born. The judges were tough on a couple of them over their song choice, with Lil Rounds getting the worst of it.

The judges slammed her for a lack of originality on her version of the 1984 Tina Turner hit “What’s Love Got To Do With It.” Randy Jackson said: “You can do a lot of stuff but Tina is not you. And that year, there’s an amazing bunch of songs you could have sung that would have been really you.”

Kris Allen also got slammed by the judges for his version of the Don Henley song “All She Wants To Do Is Dance.” Cowell was not his usual creative self in criticizing Allen, falling back on his standby disses of “indulgent,” “boring” and “forgettable.” That prompted host Ryan Seacrest to joke, “Simon, your critique was indulgent and predictable.” Cowell responded the way he often does when Seacrest jibes him, saying “Ryan, Ryan, Ryan,” as if he can keep Seacrest in line. It’s clear that Cowell has the most power on the judging panel, but often his exchanges with Seacrest seem a bit like verbal footsie.

As usual, contestants Danny Gokey and Allison Iraheta pleased the judges with their singing, and this week they avoided the daring outfit choices that the judges criticized them for in past weeks. Gokey sang “Stand By Me” and Iraheta performed “I Can’t Make You Love Me,” with her version of the Bonnie Raitt hit prompting Jackson to compare the 16-year-old to Season 1 “American Idol” champion Kelly Clarkson.

Matt Giraud impressed the judges with his take on the Stevie Wonder classic “Part-Time Lover,” as did Anoop Desai with his rendition of 1980s hitmaker Cyndi Lauper’s “True Colors.”

At the other end of the spectrum, aside from Lil Rounds the judges also condemned the performance of Scott MacIntyre, who sang “The Search is Over” by Survivor. Will either Lil, Kris or Scott be voted out on Wednesday? And depending on who loses, will the judges use their new save power, or save the save for another week?

Top 9 contestant Megan Joy danced off the “American Idol” stage on Wednesday night after she said midway through the show that she did not care that judge Simon Cowell disliked her performance on Tuesday night. Cowell responded later on by telling her: “Megan with the greatest respect, when you said you don’t care, nor do we.” So with no chance that the judges would save her, when Megan sang Bob Marley’s “Turn Your Lights Down Low” one more time, it was all about the pathos.

When will the judges step up and use their save? Although there was some lively discussion on the panel last week when oil worker Michael Sarver sang his last song, few were surprised when the judges declined to save him.

Megan acted goofy all night, waving her arms and crowing like a bird as she was sent to the Bottom Three stools, where she was soon joined by Allison Iraheta and Anoop Desai. When host Ryan Seacrest asked Cowell how many singers in the Bottom Three were worth saving, the alpha judge said one, but did not specify who.

A single mother of one, Megan made a style out of quirkiness, singing with her hips and arms swaying in what a Washington Post writer called a Wash Cycle Dance. When Cowell said they would save one of Wednesday night’s Bottom Three, did he mean Allison or Anoop? And with the judges not ready to save Megan, who would they pull out of “Idol” banishment?

The eighth season of “American Idol” kicked off on Tuesday night, bringing back all the hijinks viewers have come to expect from the world’s most popular reality talent show.

The huddled masses of singers yearning to be the next Kelly Clarkson or Chris Daughtry came out to a sweltering Phoenix, Arizona, where the now four celebrity judges either cooed over or mocked them as only “Idol” judges can.

The new judge, Kara DioGuardi, even got into a singing faceoff with one of the contestants, a woman named Katrina Darrell who showed up in a string bikini, delighting male judges Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson and earning the scorn of DioGuardi and Paula Abdul. It’s unlikely that DioGuardi would have put her own singing pipes to work in an effort to show Darrell how it’s done, if not for the teeny weeny bikini.

“Honestly, you don’t have the chops to sing that song,” DioGuardi told the contestant, who the show dubbed “Bikini Girl.”

Bikini Girl responded by telling DioGuardi, “Your demonstration wasn’t any better.”

That set off a verbal battle between Bikini Girl and the two female judges, but in the end Darrell and her bikini made it through to the critical Hollywood round.

On a more upbeat note, 23-year-old legally blind singer Scott MacIntyre also advanced to the next round, wowing all four of the judges with his version of Billy Joel’s “And So It Goes.” MacIntyre is not only a talented singer, he told the judges that he started college at Arizona State University at age 14 and graduated at 19. Now he can add national TV exposure to his resume.

When MacIntyre walked out after his audition, show host Ryan Seacrest tried to give him a high-five, to Seacrest’s embarrassment since the contestant could not see the raised hand.

Despite the recent suicide of one spurned “Idol” contestant, the judges did not spare their criticism of the singers they deemed not yet ready for primetime. One singer named Michael had trouble raising his voice above a dull croak. In response, Cowell told him, “You could have been singing in Bulgarian, I couldn’t understand a word of that.”

Critics have said that “American Idol” too often exploits the failures of its try-out contestants. That became a major story in November when a woman named Paula Goodspeed who tried out for “American Idol” in 2005, killed herself from a drug overdose in front of Abdul’s home. Goodspeed apparently had a longstanding obsession with Abdul, and when she tried out in 2005 she brought along drawings she had made of the pop star.

On Tuesday’s premiere, none of the contestants seemed to have an unhealthy obsession with the judges, although one teen gushed that she was DioGuardi’s biggest fan. And there was plenty of naked ambition, and in the case of Bikini Girl — almost naked ambition.

Despite the hype around “Idol,” 10 percent fewer viewers tuned in for the season premiere last night. Could they have been put off by the idea of a fourth judge, or the promise of a kinder, gentler “Idol?”

 What did you think of the premiere?

(Writing and reporting by Alex Dobuzinskis)

For the 60th Emmy Awards , the show’s organizers made a bold decision to scrap the one-host format typical of awards shows.

Instead, they opted for not one, but five hosts — the five being Ryan Seacrest of “American Idol,” Heidi Klum of “Project Runway,” Tom Bergeron of “Dancing with the Stars,” Howie Mandel of “Deal or No Deal,” and Jeff Probst of “Survivor.” All were nominated for the newly-created category award for the best host of a reality or competition series.

As the show opened, the five-host strategy appeared to be a case of too many cooks spoiling the soup. After entering together in matching suits (including supermodel Klum, who towered over her co-hosts), the five Emmy hosts admitted that they had nothing prepared and were therefore winging it.

“We are like Sarah Palin’s bridge to nowhere,” Mandel joked.

It was the only joke.

To close out their opening bit, the hosts resorted to a cheap gag — ripping Klum’s pants off. The “monologue” ended with Klum standing on stage in a skimpy black lace outfit with Bergeron and “Boston Legal” star William Shatner.

Yes, William Shatner. We’re still trying to figure out what he was doing up there.

At the end of the show, Probst took home the “Host of all Hosts” Emmy for “Survivor,” which he has hosted since 2000.

“The Amazing Race,” however, took home the award for best reality series for the sixth straight year, leaving top-rated “American Idol” in the dust once again. “The Amazing Race” has won the best reality show Emmy for as long as that category has existed. In a world where there are so many reality shows, what gives?

They did great things for “American Idol” by thrilling fans in one of the closest contests on that TV talent show in years, but can David Cook and David Archuleta turn the tide for “Idol” at the Emmy awards this year?

“Idol” might be the most watched show on U.S. television but it has struggled to get some love from Emmy voters over the last six years. The show with a huge fan base has won only one of the U.S. television industry’s top honors –  for technical direction for the 2007 charity special “Idol Gives Back.” But it has lost out for five years to “Amazing Race” in the contest for the top honor in its genre, best competitive reality show.

“Idol” got five Emmy nominations on Thursday for its most recent season that ended in May, including one for host Ryan Seacrest but nothing for judges Simon, Randy and Paula – there doesn’t appear to be a category for best put-downs!

After what was considered a better show in terms of talent this year, a record 97.5  million votes cast in the May finale, an average 28 million viewers per episode in 2008, and a sell-out Idol national tour now underway, can the show now get some respect from the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences? 

Watch this space when the Emmys awards are handed out on September 21.