We're nearly in the throes of the summer TV season, and I'm expecting to cover at least three shows: So You Think You Can Dance, Nashville Star and Big Brother. Heck, one of those has already started, and I'm behind the proverbial 8-ball.

However, there's a reason for the recent absence.

For the first time in three years, I'm embarking on a night of live music. And, for the first time ever, it will be me alone.

*** This Saturday from 6:30 to 10 p.m. at Othello's in Norman on Campus Corner. ***

I've played with bands. I've played some jazz quartets, a trio and even a cabaret duo. But this is just me, and you can expect a ton of standards and jazz classics as well as a few pop tunes and some originals. It'll be kind of a mix between dinner club music and a piano bar show.

I'd be lying to you if I didn't acknowledge some anxiety about the whole thing, which could lead to even more entertainment. Imagine if I pass out at the piano. Or keel over from a stroke during a song. Seriously, you may see something you've never seen before.

But hopefully it's merely the beginning of me playing live across central Oklahoma way more often than once every three years. Feel free to drop by anytime, but be sure to tell the folks at the bar what a punk, er, talent I am.

Blogs will resume next week. Ciao.

Oklahoma Sooners' football legend Jack Mildren died Thursday of stomach and liver cancer. He was 58, and by every, single account, Mildren was a terrific human being.

It's not one of those passings in which people are kind in public but telling stories in private. No, this guy was by 100 percent of accounts good people.

Yet every diehard Sooners fan and, for that matter, Oklahoman over 35 knows that. Those of us that old at least remember Jack's political career, enough that we knew of him as a public figure beyond the gridiron.

However, this post isn't a tribute to the man. Many people infinitely brighter than I have done that. No, this is a post to every Sooners fan under 35 who might not understand his importance to Oklahoma football, who might not understand why he is revered. Heck, many of the most savvy among us are 25 and younger, and perhaps you don't even know who Mildren was.

That's fine. I'm going to explain it for the youngins and for those who might not even be fans of Oklahoma football.

OU has had three great eras of football: The Bud Wilkinson era, the Barry Switzer era and the current regime under Bob Stoops. Yes, each coach played a big role in making the Sooners great, but the Switzer years in particular were made great even before he took the helm in 1973.

Switz was a coordinator under Chuck Fairbanks, a moderately successful coach of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Think of him like Gary Gibbs. Good but not up to the standards of The Monster. And, if you're not familiar with the term The Monster, you're either really young or not an OU fan at all.

Alas, Chuck's teams weren't faring all that great, generally, even with a recruit from Abilene, Texas, who was supposed to be an all-everything for the Sooners. That recruit would be Jack Mildren, who was the Jason White of his day.

Not the White with hobbled knees. No, think back to Jason before his injuries, when he could run. The Jason White who played in his first OU-Texas game in 2001.

In 1969, however, Mildren was pretty much relegated to handing the ball off to eventual Heisman winner Steve Owens, and while everybody back in the day was totally stoked about Owens winning the big award, they weren't so fond of the 6-4 record (?) that accompanied it.

In 1970, the Sooners were off to another crappy start, and by all accounts, it really looked like Fairbanks would eventually lose his job. Anyway, Chuck and Barry (coordinator Barry) decided to install what they called the Y formation.

The Y formation would later be called the "wishbone," and it was first implemented (I think) by Texas. If they didn't install it first, they sure as heck were the first school to have success with it -- and in the OU-Texas matchup that year, the Longhorns killed us and our new offense, 41-9.

However, Mildren proved to be the perfect QB for this offense. Truth is, the guy was a hell of a passer, and if you've ever seen tape of the 1971 game against Nebraska (usually referred to as the Game of the Century), you'd know that it was Mildren's arm that gave us a chance to win.

I could be way off base here given that I never saw Mildren play, given that I was born in his junior year at OU, but everything I have read and heard about the guy indicates he was very much like Jason White. To be honest, I can't imagine Mildren had a better arm, but in terms of being a double-threat, running and passing, before White's injuries, they couldn't have been more alike.

Relative to success though, what Mildren did to lead a new offense and bring success to OU, success that would last for two decades, by the way, is not unlike what Josh Heupel did when he came to Norman in 1999.

Even though Stoops' offense has become pretty stale in my estimation, do recall that coordinator Mike Leach installed the spread nine years ago. It was wide open. It was crazy. And Heupel was the perfect player to run it.

Thirty-eight years ago, Mildren was that guy. And his success brought OU years and years of wishbone dominance. You've heard of transformational leaders in business single-handedly bringing about positive change? Well, Mildren's ability to adapt to a new offense not only resulted in Oklahoma keeping the wishbone, it led to Barry Switzer getting a head coaching gig and three national titles.

So, while you heard tributes Friday about what a great man Mildren was and what an awesome player he was for the crimson and cream, thinking all the time that he was merely a player your dad or grandpa revered and that his relevance to Oklahoma football doesn't compare to that of signal callers like Heupel and White, you should understand this:

Mildren was loved by Oklahomans for being a great man in real life, but he is adored by Sooners fans worldwide because he was a bad ass on the field. Think of it this way: Mildren played in the NFL. As a defensive back. That's the kind of athlete he was.

That he was able to adapt to a brand new offense and be so successful with it in the middle of his OU career and then play a completely different type of position in the NFL is not only a testament to his athletic ability but also his smarts and competitive nature.

Love Heupel and White, but did either guy go play DB for the Colts? (Editor's Note: For the record, Ryan thinks Josh Heupel is the greatest human being ever to don an OU jersey, possibly ever to walk foot on Oklahoma soil. Inside joke, but more inside than joke.)

Bottom line: Oklahoma had two decades of success and won three national titles because Mildren was so good for two seasons leading a new, experimental offense at OU.

Without Mildren, there probably would have been no Barry Switzer as head coach.

And without Barry, The Monster would not have grown into what it was and is. Heck, without the success that Barry had from 1973-88, our tradition would be something steeped in 1950s nostalgia films.

Seriously, Jack Mildren the football player was a big, big deal.

Another season of Idol is behind us, and for the first time in any of the seven seasons, the singer who won the whole guacamole didn't win the approval of the judges the night before.

Kelly, Ruben, Fantasia, Carrie, Taylor and Jordin had all gotten the Simon Cowell victory prediction after final performances. David Archuleta did and lost.

But the David vs. David matchup in the finale was a Godsend for a show in need of a pick-me-up.

Ratings-wise, the Season 7 finale did just as well as last year (a tad better, actually), although the audience for the 18 to 49 demographic was at a low not seen since the first season. You have to understand that, right now, in television, "flat" is the new "up" in terms of ratings. So, ratings to end the season were a positive.

And, in the end, a former bartender from Tulsa won. Good on David Cook. Cowell said that this was the first year he didn't really care which of the two finalists won, and I definitely get that.

Perhaps one doesn't know whether either Archuleta or Cook are actually stellar citizens of the universe, bringing forth nothing but positive energy and good vibes, kissing babies and the like. However, I'm pretty sure neither guy is a douchebag, either.

And in reality television, that says a ton. Sorry, but I thought Blake Lewis and Taylor Hicks, both previous finalists, were giant douchebags.

Anyway, to wrap up the season, which overall was an improvement on Season 6, I thought I'd pose a few questions and answer them myself. Call it arrogance or call it the need to fill more space in the blogosphere with egocentric rambling.

If nothing else, call it the perfect bowtie on top of an imperfect but relatively entertaining season.

1. Why did David Cook win?

In actuality, David Archuleta has a bigger core fan base than Cook. However, a number of factors came together to give the Blue Springs, Mo., native the win.

First, Cook drew in the vast majority of support from eliminated singers. The Jason Castro crowd. The Brooke White fans. The Carly Smithson and Michael Johns fandoms. And Archuleta drew virtually nothing.

Second, and Archuleta fans hate to hear this, but I'd guess that more than 25 percent of Cook's vote came from people who could not stand The Kid. They couldn't stand the way he squinted his eyes, gasped for air like an emphysema victim. They couldn't stand the "duh" look. None of it.

Believe me, I heard it from many, many readers, and I thought most of the criticism against The Kid was terribly unfair. However, it's reality. Some people will not vote for Barack Obama this fall because he's black, and others will not vote for John McCain because he's old. It is what it is. The only truth here is that it is reality, which by definition really does make it fair.

So, while Archuleta has the bigger core fan base, Cook had a vast majority of support even before Tuesday. In fact, Archuleta's super strong performance probably saved the final vote from being 54 million to 35 million. Or worse. Seriously.

2. OK, Ryan, who did YOU root for?

Archuleta. To me, Idol is a karaoke contest, and it's all about vocals. I told a reader last night that if I needed one of the Final 12 to play a live gig with, I'd pick Cook ... but if I needed a singer, it would be Archuleta.

By a mile. And it has nothing to do with personal taste in music, either. There have been three great male singers in this series over seven seasons: Clay Aiken, Elliot Yamin and Archuleta.

I'm not particularly interested (at all) in buying any of their albums. Believe me. But I want the best singer to win each year, period. Others wanted the best performer or the best overall package to win, and any method by which you come up with a choice is totally valid.

3. Do you think either David will be successful in the marketplace?

I say prepare to be really susprised. I think both Cook and Archuleta will do phenomenally well if they get the right producer and the right songs. Both are key and are always key.

If I had to pick which singer will be most successful, I'd say that early-on it will be Cook but long-run it will be Archuleta, particularly after he grows out of what is clearly an awkward teenage phase.

4. Will anybody else from Season 7 be successful in music?

I could see Kristi Lee Cook do well in country but mostly because that industry has really taken to Idol. My gut hunch says that Syesha Mercado could probably segue into television right now should she choose, but she could surprise some folks in the industry if she hooked up with a mentor like a Jay Z or Timbaland.

I do not think any of the others stand much of a chance.

5. If you could change anything about Idol for next season, what would it be?

Great question. First, I'd alter the voting slightly to account more for judges' opinions. Make it one-third judges and two-thirds voters. Something like that. Selected music executives should get a small say, a third perhaps.

Second, I'd update the music. Ditch all the 1960s and 1970s pop classics, the Neil Diamond and Dolly Parton weeks and make this entire contest more relevant to today's styles. Given that Idol is losing a ton of its teenage base, the show's executives need to do something to lure 'em back in.

And centering the show around old-fogey music does not help.

I'd consider replacing Paula Abdul or Randy Jackson just to shake things up, and I'd also give thought to replacing the band. While Rickey Minor and company are fine musicians, they represent "old," and what this show needs is "young" and "fresh" and, dare I say, "edgy."

The show itself is still viable and, hell, even still successful regardless of the viewership drop-off the past couple of seasons. It is imperative, however, that Idol execs make some changes, to keep it fresh.

To the diehard Idol fanatics, we're cool with whatever they do. However, given that we'd like to see the show stick around more than just another few years, it's a must.

6. Best performance of the season?

Cook's renditions of "Hello" and "Billie Jean."

7. Best vocal of the season?

Archuleta's rendition of "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me." Honestly, I thought the competition was over right then.

However, in retrospect, it's pretty easy to understand why Cook won and why Archuleta lost. Heck, three weeks ago, I posted an article questioning whether Arch might not be eliminated in the Final 4 and got no less than 25 pieces of hate mail from his devoted fans.

And perhaps therein lied the problem for him when it came right down to it. While I truly believe The Kid has the bigger "core" fan base, if I had written that about Aiken five years ago, I would have gotten 1,000 e-mails.

At the end of the day, as the show exists right now, Idol is won not by contestants but by devoted voters. That's what's always been really neat about the show regardless of the outcome. It truly is democracy gone mad.

The Oklahoma Sooners' second-straight win over Texas kicks off at 11 a.m. on Oct. 11, ABC announced today.

First, doesn't it seem a bit odd that kickoff times have already been announced for a game that could have a major say in who plays for a national title this season? Usually, kickoff times are announced about two weeks out.

Second, I hate, despise, loathe the 11 a.m. kickoff. I do not like celebrating touchdowns, interceptions and Longhorn destruction in my skivvies.

Third, I typically save the fun-in-skivvies for hours after the ball game, after I've had my third soda pop and am wearing lamp shades for head gear.

TMZ.com calls it the "worst show ever," but I call it genius. Entertainment greatness. The vehicle for Chuck Barris' insanity-laden brillance.

It's "The Gong Show," and auditions are being livestreamed on TMZ' site. I saw some fat white guy singing R. Kelly's "Bump & Grind" as a polka. Freaking beautiful.

Seriously, I wonder why it has taken TV producers so long to revive this show. It truly was ahead of its time, although part of my fascination with it is that it represented a ton about 1970s pop culture: The hair, the clothes, the B-list celebrities, the drugs, the wackiness.

The show will be on Comedy Central although I don't have any specifics. Barris is pushing or beyond 80, so I don't think he'll be hosting, but I might try to come up with some ideas.

And if you have no idea what this show was or why it was brilliant (and bizarre), check out this random clip I spotted on YouTube.

More soon ...

On Tuesday night, I wrote in this space that David Archuleta scored a TKO over Idol opponent David Cook -- and while that was the opinion of the judges and writers across the country, apparently it is not the will of the people.

Unless DialIdol.com has finally lost its finale luster, David Cook is going to score a massive upset win over the 17-year-old teen phenom from Utah.

As of midnight, DialIdol.com has Cook winning handily, while ZabaSearch had Archuleta winning only to retract it and call the race even a bit later in 2000 Election Night fashion.

High drama.

As of Wednesday morning, Cook had a clear edge on his finale counterpart -- and I am virtually 100 percent confident that the Blue Springs, Mo., native will win.

Perhaps a Cook win would be a bit of intrigue at the end of a rather dull season. All the tweens would be atwitter with controversy, and the David Archuleta cult, er, fandom would be enraged. Heck, there could even be lawsuits.

Perhaps a fist fight (or a slap fight) among fans.

I stick by what I wrote Tuesday night: Vocally, it was no contest. The Kid pounded The Rocker, but reality television democracy can be a bitch, and it won't hurt my feelings one iota if Cook were to upset Archuleta.

Heck, it'll give me weeks worth of extra content to post right here.

If you've followed ryanwelton.com for the entire Idol season, you'd know that I've always referred to David Archuleta as "The Kid."

Sounds like a great nickname for a boxer, right?

Well, Idol producers invoked the sweet science throughout Tuesday night's finale, complete with ringside announcer extraordinaire Michael Buffer and boxing blow-by-blow guy Jim Lampley, referencing this David vs. David finale as if it were a prize fight.

And, it is. To the winner goes the most coveted title in all of pop culture: American Idol.

However, what millions across the country witnessed tonight was more a knockout than a split decision. From the start, Archuleta went with jabs to the head of David Cook, scoring at least a knockdown with his rendition of "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me."

Genuinely, it was one of the five best performances in the show's history, although what endeared it to me was that Archuleta was clearly willing to bury his opponent early. Cook did a terrific version of U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," and then Archuleta turned it up five notches, as if he had been holding it back for weeks. Or years even.

It appeared at times tonight as if Archuleta had this piece of his personal history mapped out to the extent that he was born to be clutch. Like Jordan. Like Magic.

Hell, if you'd like to invoke a reality television comparison, how about my favorite contestant of all time, Kendra Todd, from NBC's "The Apprentice." If you've read me at any length over the years, you know I always admired the way she turned from capable contestant into a blood-thirsty killer at the end of her season, willing to gut anything blocking her path.

I admire the hell out of that. Not to get on a sports rant, but nothing bugs me more than to see a potential champion, whether it be individual or team, not take the opportunity to bury the competition.

Alas, with a guy as talented as Cook, that wasn't going to be easy.

But Cook made it "easier," it seems, by picking the lesser of two original compositions and by choosing to do a lesser-known Collective Soul track he had never done before for his final choice.

Like I had suggested for weeks, Archuleta closed the show with John Lennon's "Imagine," and by the very virtue of going last combined with a superior selection as his final performance, not to mention an overall drubbing of Cook, it seems a lock that the 17-year-old from Murray, Utah, should win.

Right?

Even Simon Cowell called it a knockout. However, to stick with the boxing vernacular, technically, both singers are still standing. More than 30 minutes into voting, and Cook has a slight lead on Archuleta, according to DialIdol.com.

And not for a second do I believe Archuleta will beat the Blue Springs, Mo., native by the type of 58-42 margin of percentage by which Carrie Underwood drubbed Bo Bice three seasons ago.

Nope. Fans of each David are not only passionate, they're capable dialers and texters. I told a colleague today that whoever sang last would win, that it was that close -- so much so that performance positioning was crucial.

For the record, he has consistently picked Cook to win and I Archuleta. His response was, "How about the better singer win?"

Laughing that off as nonsense, I reminded him that this is still essentially a popularity contest. And if it is, then David Cook has a shot.

But if voters are dialing and texting based solely on performance, then Archuleta should win Season 7 by the most comfortable of margins. However, I predict he'll win by a very, very close margin.

Because for at least this one night, David Archuleta was the better fighter, er, performer by a mile.

Critical acclaim and the pop duo Hall & Oates never really seemed to go hand in hand, at least among the inner circle of critics. But now comes a defining column -- published on LATimes.com -- that finally puts arguments to rest.

The duo so famous for blue-eyed soul of the 1970s and early 80s isn't merely worthy of our guilty pleasures; it's time for them to be recognized as essential pop listening for anybody in 2008.

Critic Ann Powers not only examined the duo's eagerness to achieve both artistically and commercially, but she touched on the way the R&B and even hip-hop communities revere them.

Praise flowed from hip-hop artists too -- Chicago crew Gym Class Heroes even went so far as to record a "matchup" album, combining their songs with H&O classics, though a legal notice from Atlantic Records (not from H&O, who fully endorse the project) has put it on hold for now. This overflow of love for H&O has been taken up by music writers, who’ve dug into the group’s deep catalog and discovered that its merits extend beyond the forced frivolity of camp.


The H&O revival is deserved on artistic terms, but there's a deeper story here. In particular, two qualities that characterize the hits of this long-lived band resonate with younger listeners: their truly equal footing in both rock and R&B and their belief that accessible and artistically adventurous music could be one and the same.

Have to say this does my musical heart a ton of good. I'd suggest the same type of column could be penned about Phil Collins whose work in the early 1980s, particularly, is among the finest blue-eyed soul ever recorded.

But in the spirit of celebrating this reemergence of H&O, how about one of my patented Top 5 lists, the very best of Hall and Oates.

5. One On One. While Hall & Oates' choruses were often simple, their verses are where the music theory magic usually happened. Not sure how to describe it except that the changes in this verse make the entire song.

4. She's Gone A song 35 years old isn't supposed to sound this good today. For anybody who comes to ryanwelton.com for Idol updates, get a feel for what great music sounds like.

3. Sara Smile Ditto. Paired with "She's Gone," this coupling of 1970s soul ballads is on par with anything the decade produced. Anything.

2. Rich Girl. According to Powers, Brandon Flowers of the band The Killers calls this late-70s hit "the most instructive pop single ever written."

I have a feel for what he meant by that. It's both minimalist and over-produced at the same time, with the opening super basic and the chorus sugary sweet. However, all Hall & Oates songs were rife with great, great choruses.

1. I Can't Go For That (No Can Do I) - This song has been sampled numerous times by artists of all stripes for one reason: The groove. While the type of hat-tip a sample provides must be flattering to the duo (not to mention profitable), there is some semblance of sacrilege to it.

It's hard for me to approve of anybody messin' with a classic this classic. Nevertheless, the most sure-fire way to keep this music alive is to just roll with it and embrace the newfound appreciation everybody seems to be having for probably the greatest musical duo of our lifetime.

When you watch a movie titled What Happens In Vegas, you pretty much know what to expect.

There will be debauchery. There will be drunkenness. There could also be an unwanted marriage.

And THAT was specifically the case in the new Cameron Diaz, Ashton Kutcher romantic comedy. Diaz plays Joy McNally, a successful executive who has just been dumped by her fiance (Mason), played by Jason Sudeikis, in the most awkward of ways.

At a party. His party. A surprise party.

Mason walks in and tells an unsuspecting McNally that while he appreciates her willingness to experiment sexually, he can't take the fact that she's always "on."

In typical Diaz fashion, she is always on.

However, to her credit, this is one aspect of her personality that, I think, people like. When her perky, fun, good-time personality shines through in a role suited to how she really is, it works.

That started with "There's Something About Mary," and I think I had seen it most recently (before this) in "The Holiday," a movie I liked quite a bit.

But to turn it "off," she and a girlfriend (Lake Bell) head to Vegas. While there, McNally meets up with Jack Fuller (Ashton Kutcher), who has just been fired from his job by his father (Treat Williams).

A drunken night of fun later, and they're hitched.

Both McNally and Fuller realize their mistake by morning, and after some plop-plop, fizz-fizz, oh-what-a-relief-it-is, they decide to try to end the marriage.

However, Fuller plops a quarter he bummed from McNally into a slot machine and wins $3 million. Immediately, McNally realizes she has to hang on to this marriage for the sole purpose of being able to claim a piece of the money.

So, Diaz and Kutcher's characters end up in court, a proceeding presided over by Dennis Miller, who in turn orders the couple to try to work it out. The premise that a judge would order counseling to a couple who got married on the basis of knowing each other for a couple hours is ludicrous.

But there was big money involved, so I guess the only way to determine how the winnings should be divided is to see who is or was most committed to the sham of a marriage in the first place. And McNally and Fuller do this with the help of Queen Latifah.

Long story short, a romance develops along the way, slowly but surely, with all the typical devices romantic comedies invoke, such as some tension at the end with the male lead messing up and trying one last time to get his girl back.

All of the basics are here, and while none of "What Happens In Vegas" was remarkable, it was fun. That's what you expect out of Diaz and, to a certain extent, Kutcher.

And that's what one would probably expect out of Vegas.

Note: If there was a standout performance in the movie though, it was from Rob Corddry, who plays both Kutcher's Vegas buddy and his divorce lawyer. Most of you know Corddry from his time on The Daily Show, so you're probably not surprised how good he was in this.

Well, it looks like the David vs. David American Idol finale I predicted on Feb. 26 will come to pass.

Not a surprise, although I can't say that any of the final three stood out. David Cook was the bland rocker. David Archuleta was the gaspy teen idol. And Syesha Mercado was positioning herself for a Broadway show.

A little more than a week ago, I suggested that Archuleta might get voted off from the Final 4 -- and while that didn't come to pass, I think his positioning here is still tenuous at best. All indications right now are that David Cook is this year's Idol, which would make him the third male winner of the show and the first rock singer.

Those indications not only include DialIdol voting, which as of midnight had Cook with a large lead over Archuleta. The Kid had a fair lead over Syesha.

However, ZabaSearch suggests Cook would edge Archuleta in a finale, and while their results for this week aren't up, I don't expect that to change.

On the other hand, both Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson are on record as saying the Murray, Utah, teen sensation will come out on top next week. We'll see.

In the back of my brain though, I am growing more and more confident that Mercado will be this year's true winner. Not only did she improve tremendously from the first week of the Final 12 to now, but she's grown increasingly more gorgeous.

Dare I say I have McPheever all over again.

Furthermore, she has a look and a sound that will translate well into mainstream pop radio. Perhaps it's that she's female. Perhaps it's that she's pop. Perhaps it's that she has kind of a Rihanna vibe.

Perhaps it's that she's the most instantly marketable of the three. Again, we'll see.

But she'll almost certainly get her chance to prove it starting Wednesday night when she's eliminated from American Idol.

Britney Spears made her second appearance on CBS' "How I Met Your Mother" tonight, and I can't stress enough to the show's writers and producers how little she is needed.

Not that she's been bad. Her second appearance wasn't as tight as her first, and tonight she really came off as a bad actress. No, I never had some thought that she was a comic genius-in-waiting. However, in Britney's first HIMYM appearance, she looked well-coached.

Perhaps I'm not in the mood to be mean-spirited tonight ...

On the other hand, one of the things I really appreciate about HIMYM is how "nice" it is, particularly the story line this week between Lily (Alyson Hannigan) and Marshall (Jason Segel). To raise money for a house expense, Lily decided to sell some paintings.

Long story short, writers went with the cliched storyline of the husband not believing in his wife's talent only to have her prove him wrong. However, writers worked in some sight gags with Ted (Josh Radnor), some terrible red boots and a GCWOK (Gay Couple Without Kids).

And at the end of the show, once Lily and Marshall had secured enough money from her art work to pay for their expense (I won't give the circumstances away ...), he created a site for her to sell more of her paintings. But that's not the cool part.

CBS really created a site called lilyandmarshallselltheirstuff.com with souvenirs from the show for sale to benefit a children's hospital. Television producers are quite eager nowadays to invoke digital content into their shows. It extends branding past the on-air episode, and it gives blog nerds, like me, something about which to write.

Character blogs, for example, really got going with NBC's "The Office," although I bet it was done even before Dwight Schrute started his. For HIMYM, Barney Stinson (one of the best characters created this decade, perhaps second ONLY to the aforementioned Schrute) has a blog on how to be awesome.

It includes an application to be his wingman. Long story short, Ted is no longer Barney's wingman ... but last week SNL's Will Forte gave it his best shot.

What's not shown in this video is what causes Forte's character to get nosebleeds. Seriously, I collapsed in laughter.

However, and this would be "second," lilyandmarshallselltheirstuff.com as a means to do good was really a hell of an idea. Just a good karma thing to do.

They apparently didn't plan on it doing so well though because as of midnight, it's down. Bombarded with traffic. One of the first rules of the dot-com era as it pertains to building a Web site for the purpose of eCommerce is and has always been: Prepare for success.

Actually, I'm pretty sure that's somewhere in the Bro Code.

Big news breaking Friday from American Idol regarding David Archuleta. His father, Jeff, is apparently the stage father from hell (so says TMZ) and has been banned from Idol.

Jeff Archuleta will be allowed to sit in the audience, but he can no longer be backstage or participate in anything production related. Whether he's really a stage-father-from-hell is highly subjective; however, the reason he's being banned is pretty straightforward.

Now, I'm sure the good folks at DavidArchuletaFanBlast.com will comment another 20 times telling me to quit bashing the kid, but read on before making that judgment.

Jeff is being banned because David sang lyrics from Sean Kingston's "Beautiful Girls" during his Tuesday performance of "Stand By Me." For those who don't know, "Beautiful Girls" is basically "Stand By Me" with different words.

The problem is that by doing so, David violated copyright right there on live television. It cost Idol a gob of money. My guess is it probably cost them about $15,000 to $25,000 for a one-time television use. I'm not totally up on my music royalty rates considering I haven't earned any in seven years.

According to TMZ, "Producers sent him an e-mail telling him the lyrics could not be changed. They were beyond pissed when David sang the song with Kingston's lyrics during the live show."

Yes, I understand Idol's position on the matter, and I would be willing to bet that Jeff is probably overbearing. Probably a stage dad from hell. I'm willing to bet Jeff makes as many headlines the next couple of years as his kid, and I would not be surprised at all to see a reality show in his future.

However, sorry. It was a brilliant move for David to add that lyric. Jeff's advice was spot on. It completely modernized the tune, giving it current appeal, a current sound. Yes, they were merely words, but "Stand By Me" is a 47 year-old song known pretty much only by adults.

"Beautiful Girls" is a hit today.

I bet Jeff would be willing to pay the fee himself.

And I'm guessing that if we were to ask Jeff, he'd do it again. And I totally don't blame him. However, if David does it on his own again, might he be disqualified?

Let's just say that the odds of David singing "Stand By Me" again on this show are zero.

High drama.

I've said it from the beginning: I think The Kid is by a mile the most talented singer on Idol this season. However, whether Archuleta wins or even makes it to the finale, I think the show will be more than glad to be done with him.

But that's what they get for soliciting contestants who are virtually pros already.

MTV's first and, probably, only edition of "Rock The Cradle" has come and gone with the one and only rightful winner winning. That would be Crosby Loggins.

For those of you who did not watch, the show featured a handful of singers, all sons or daughters of famous musicians. Long story short, the competition came down to Loggins, Jesse Blaze Snider and Chloe Lattanzi.

Most critics panned the show, and others referred to it as hideous, a nightmare, etc. However, I have to say: Kenny Loggins' kid is good in his own right. Vocally, he sounds like the lead singer from America and his vibe is heavily acoustic.

Crosby's road to victory here was in his willingness to loosen up. Look, I empathize with that completely. I'm going to play my first solo gig in more than a decade in three weeks, and I'm as tight as ... uh, well, let's not go there.

On the other hand, he did have a formidable challenger in Snider, the offspring of Twister Sister frontman Dee Snider, who believes his son "kicks ass," as he said 567 times during the course of the six-week or so show.

But to me, Snider's potential, his upside isn't so much in music. I think the guy should get into television. He's got the look. He's charismatic. He's well-spoken.

The third person to make it to the final week was Olivia Newton-John's daughter, Chloe. You're going to laugh, scoff and think me a complete moron, but I think the chick has something. No, not a disease ... I mean some talent.

She has a very funky, dark, sexy Amy Winehouse meets Evanescence type of vibe. Chloe is heavy on the vibrato, and the show made her seem like an emotional mess. However, she's clearly a singer whose sense of style, purpose and identity is unique. Lattanzi also clearly wants no part of being a teenybopper.

She's not quite there yet, but I am not disinterested. I'm very curious to see what she does from here.

Bottom line: Loggins deserved this. And by this, I mean the win and the $100,000 and the recording deal. Mind you, the kid comes from a millionaire family and already has a touring band. However, the music biz is mega tight right now, so even celebrity kids need exposure.

However, I'd be lying if I didn't acknowledge that part of the reason I rooted for Crosby was because of his dad. Kenny Loggins is one of those musicians whose great work was truly superior but whose bad music was truly terrible.

Personally, I can listen to "Footloose," but it rather makes me cringe. I'm still not sure what "Heart-a-light" is, although I know the song's title is "Heartlight." And, all that Pooh Corner adult-hippie music makes me crazy.

But 96.9299364 percent of everything Kenny's done musically is wonderful. If you're ever in Oklahoma and need a pianist, I know your songs. Look me up.

Anyway, I thought I'd rank Kenny's Top 5 tracks of all time, just the stuff he performed, not counting songs he wrote for others, such as "What A Fool Believes."

5. "Keep The Fire"

There is not one video on YouTube for this song. However, the 1979 minor hit had that quintessential Loggins groove to it.

4. "The Real Thing"

As this video shows, Loggins was also the perpetrator of several terrible hairdos back in the day. This is truly shiteous. However, it's a great song. By the way, for Idol fans, did you know that the loser's song this year, "Celebrate Me Home," done by Ruben Studdard is actually a Kenny Loggins song?

3. "This Is It"

Also from the "Keep The Fire" album, "This Is It" is the first Loggins song I remember. It was the inspirational track for the 1981 Tulsa Golden Hurricane, who won the NIT, beating Syracuse.

A little trivia for those who didn't know, but Loggins apparently wrote this song for his sick father. However, this has evolved into one of the great "sports" songs of my generation. Believe me, this might get played right before "Eye of the Tiger" next time OU is in a national title game.

2. "Danny's Song"

Done originally with music partner Jim Messina, this is simply a classic.

1. "Heart To Heart"

I throw around some hyperbole, and I sometimes declare songs among my favorites when maybe they're borderline. However, Loggins' 1982 hit -- which peaked at No. 15 on the Billboard chart (remember it like it was yesterday) -- is truly my favorite pop song of all time.

If I made a list of all the pop music in the history of the world, this song would win out as being my all-time favorite. It's soulful, beautiful, funky. The lyrics are romantically urgent, sort of the "This is It" of sappy songs. And it came from a brief era of what I'd call deep blue-eyed soul, from roughly 1981 to about 1983, where pop music inspired me directly.

Heavy keyboard. Heavy soul. Still very pop.

Yesterday, I predicted David Archuleta would fall by the Idol wayside, the victim of a fourth-place shocker. You know, the kind that took Tamyra Gray and Chris Daughtry from their respective seasons.

Simple reason why: Archuleta's support had waned, and it was Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame week. Some of you believe this is a true talent competition, and it's not. Idol is a hybrid talent competition, prom-king/queen vote. That means the most talented vocalist doesn't always win.

David Archuleta crushed 'em tonight, and he's still in second on DialIdol.com as of 10 p.m. CDT. For those of you not familiar with DialIdol, it's a software application that measures phone business to determine probability of elimination. It's been a pretty accurate (generally) predictor of things to come, and it absolutely predicted both Daughtry and Melinda Doolittle's surprising eliminations in years past.

However, for as good as Archuleta was singing Elvis' "Love Me Tender" and Sam Cooke's "Stand By Me," with a brilliant choice to invoke a little Sean Kingston in there -- Jason Castro was as bad as could be.

If Archuleta was the "crusher" tonight, Castro was the "butcher."

He slaughtered Bob Marley's "I Shot The Sheriff," and then sliced and diced The Byrds' "Mr. Tambourine Man." And America has voted -- er, not voted appropriately.

Castro is a goner, but I am here to tell you that Syesha Mercado has her "A" game going right now, and neither Archuleta or David Cook is a lock for a finale at her expense. After singing "Proud Mary," she was brought to tears after her version of "Change Is Gonna Come."

After Randy Jackson trashed her, Paula gave her one of those uncomfortable standing ovations and just clapped. Syesha turned to pudding, the tears flowing -- and compassionate Simon made an appearance, noting that he agreed with Paula, who noted that the song was an appropriate choice for Mercado given her progress throughout the season.

I concur. I am having a hard time not getting behind Syesha, who I hated at the start of the year particularly given her experience with "The One," ABC's terrible Idol copycat. However, she's the type of contestant I particularly respect on this show.

She starts the competition OK. Gets better, and then brings it at the end. Nothing peeves me off more than somebody with an opportunity like this half-assing it, not going for it 100 billion percent.

For those of you who have followed my blog for some time, you know that my favorite reality contestant of all time is Kendra Todd from "The Apprentice" a few years back. She laid low and then turned into an axe murderer at the end, leaving bodies strung about.

Syesha has a hard time matching the fan base of Cook and Archuleta, and I do NOT think she's more gifted vocally than "The Kid." But could she sneak into a finale?

You bet.

David Cook was alright tonight, doing a fair job with Duran Duran's "Hungry Like The Wolf" and then bludgeoning (my opinion) The Who's "Baba O'Riley." He's unique, cool, hip, whatever. However, to me it's all about the vocals, and Archuleta kills him.

Make that "he crushes him."

In my previous post, there was a predicate all Idol fans had to accept as fact. That is: It mattered not what WE think. It matters who votes and how often. And I thought Archuleta was particularly vulnerable tonight.

Color me dead wrong. However, given that Simon said he "crushed" the competition, it renders me quizzical that he's only in second place, according to DialIdol. That spells trouble next week or in a finale, in my humble opinion.

But one thing is for certain. Jason Castro made his own bed tonight.

He shot the sheriff and killed the deputy and, for that matter, the tambourine man. He's a sure bet to be gone come Wednesday night.

Just more than two months ago, I proclaimed that David Archuleta would win Season 7 of American Idol.

Specifically, I wrote:

Here's the deal with "the kid" though. Not only do I think David Archuleta wins American Idol, I think he becomes the show's first legitimate male pop star.


He'll do Broadway. He'll have a legitimate hit record on mainstream radio. He'll be on TV. He is essentially a perfect pop star, and here's why I think this competition is o-v-e-r.

I still believe everything I wrote except for one thing: David Archuleta will not win American Idol.

He'll be eliminated this week.

First, I should note that I hope I'm wrong. I like the kid. He's not my cup of tea musically, but he has a tremendous vocal gift, a natural talent that I think surpasses the rest of the group. With the right kind of music, preferably a little more soulful, I could dig him enough to at least listen to a David Archuleta CD.

However, I've always maintained that if this competition is about vocal talent, Idol should have ended in February.

But it's not, and we all know it. And we accept it.

Heck, David got a ringing endorsement, I think, from none other than Taylor Hicks who told a newspaper reporter that he's pulling for Arch and that he reminds him of a young Wayne Newton.

I think it was a spot-on observation, although I still think a comparison to Donny Osmond is still much more a propos at this juncture in the kid's career. While I can envision Archuleta in Vegas, I'm not sure a nightclub act would be his thing.

Secondly, I've never once picked the Idol correctly from the start of the season, so I'd like to be right for a change. Heck, eight, nine weeks ago, I truly thought Archuleta was a lock to win, but along the way:

David Cook stepped it up, big time. And if you look at the voting trends over the past four weeks, according to DialIdol.com, Cook is the solid frontrunner.

... and ...

Syesha Mercado went Broadway. Don't look now, but the biggest mover the past three weeks not only in terms of DialIdol.com but in terms of Web buzz is Mercado. She's found her niche with the Broadway vibe, and she represents what Idol has traditionally been about the previous six seasons -- a big-voiced female balladeer with a good look.

Jordin Sparks had her up weeks and down weeks last year but didn't turn it on with voters until the very end. To discount what Mercado is doing right now in terms of converting the voting masses is not to be dismissed.

After a pretty good Neil Diamond week performance, Archuleta struggled on DialIdol.com's Tuesday night polling. Despite being beside Brooke White when she was eliminated, Syesha was not in the Bottom Two.

Ryan Seacrest never even intimated it, and I suspect Archuleta was actually in that second bottom spot. Actually, it could have been Jason Castro; however, I suspect it was pretty close. Call me a cynic, but I think that producers weren't on the up and up (and I'm presuming heavily here that I'm right) about who was in the Bottom Two, leading to some level of comfort among Archuleta's fan base in particular.

Couple with that the fact that this week is Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame week, meaning Cook and Castro *should* coast given the breadth of material suited to them available, and I think Archuleta is prime, prime, prime for the shocker of all shockers.

Sure, could Archuleta's fan base get it together and come through. However, I suspect that fan base is eroding a bit. Let's face facts: While Archuleta is probably the most naturally gifted (heavy dose of opinion, of course), he has yet to improve on his performance of "Imagine" 10 or so weeks ago.

Furthermore, in the musical arrangement department, his efforts have been as uncool as can be. Meanwhile, his competitors are pulling out some unique (albeit copied) arrangements, a subtle ploy to sway fans. It gives them a sense of uniqueness and originality.

Last and possibly most important, devoted fans of past eliminees have seemingly sided with people other than Archuleta. I wouldn't say that I think his castmates hate him; I don't think that at all. He seems to be extremely likeable, personally.

But it has to be hard to swallow for a cool guy like David Cook that the "David" Natasha Bedingfield wanted to hug on national TV wasn't you.

In my deepest gut of reality-show guts, I smell a massive shocker coming. This week. I think producers know it's a possibility, and while I wouldn't suggest they're hoping for it -- I would absolutely suggest they're aware of it.

Yeah, I hope I'm wrong because I'd like for my Web prediction at the start of the finals to come true. If you're going to be the Idol expert, you have to come through on the champ at least one year.

On the other hand, I'm a pretty fair reader of trends. Stats. Past seasons and what happened each episode and how other "shockers" happened.

And this week has all the makings of a stunner.

Hockey is the most exciting sport come playoff time there is. More exciting than baseball, basketball and football combined -- and when the game goes 4OT like Dallas' did last night (this morning) against San Jose, it becomes all the more exciting.

And for Dallas, it was not only a game winner -- it was a series winner.

On to Detroit, the Metroplex is certainly hockey mad by this point. It evokes memories of our Stanley Cup championship nine years ago, so I guess you could say the Stars are partying like it's 1999.

For real. Here are the highlights of Game 6 as well as Brenden Morrow's game winner.

How does Madonna stay pop culturally relevant?

By invoking other hot names from the music industry to work on her new album, that's how. Sure, Madge is the biggest female pop star of my lifetime, and -- yes -- she's absolutely still relevant in the music game.

But is her new album, Hard Candy, actually any good? Or is it merely a production piece?

One of the things I look for in any new CD is a musical or lyrical theme, something to cohesively tie it all together. Unfortunately, the first thing I notice about Hard Candy is that it sounds a little bit like Timbaland and a little bit like Pharrell Williams.

Neither sound is bad, but neither is Madonna.

Take the first single from the CD, "4 Minutes To Save The World." Yes, I like it. Yes, the video is cool. But it also sounds like nothing more than a Timbaland production, which can not only become tiresome, it will also be dated in three years.

Song to song, there are a few gems on the CD. Take the chorus from "Candy Shop," which opens the CD. The song is totally unremarkable UNTIL that chorus, when a jazzy-minded Queen of Pop employs some really cool progressions. Well, her producers employed those. Nevertheless, sounds really cool.

The best song on the CD by a mile is "Dance 2Night," a duet with Justin Timberlake, who partners with her on "4 Minutes." It invokes sounds from her days working with Jellybean Benitez, and dare I say it's downright hot. A mega hot track, and it's guaranteed to be a hit.

And if you're a fan of the 80s and that whole vibe, this is the one single to check out on the entire disc. In fact, here's a YouTube video with the music in it:

However, from "Give It 2 Me," to "Heartbeat" to the Pharrell Williams track "Beat Goes On," Madonna's new CD is completely unremarkable. This release comes on the heels on what I thought was her best album in at least a decade if not ever, "Confessions on a Dance Floor," which seriously was a brilliant dance record.

That CD was also well-produced, but it was cohesive, not merely a collection of mostly throw-away singles. Even worse, the singles on Hard Candy are so clearly influenced by others that it comes off as totally derivative.

Take "The Devil Wouldn't Recognize You," which is 100 percent derivative of Justin Timberlake's "What Goes Around ..." On the face of it, it's a good track, but we've come to expect more from Madonna.

So, let's get to the questions ...

1. What grade do you give this album? C+

2. What's the best song on the CD? Dance 2Night

3. Would you buy this CD? Nope. But I might buy "Dance 2Night."