Network: NBC
Episodes: Ongoing (1-2 hours)
Seasons: Ongoing
TV show dates: June 21, 2006 — present
Series status: Has not been cancelled
Performers include: Howard Stern, Howie Mandell, Sharon Osbourne, Piers Morgan, David Hasselhoff, and Brandy Norwood (judges). Nick Cannon, Regis Philbin, and Jerry Springer (hosts).
TV show description:
American Idol’s Simon Cowell created this show and judges the UK version, Britain’s Got Talent, but does not judge this US version due to contractual obligations.
The judging panel is made up of journalist Piers Morgan, actor/comic Howie Mandell, and reality maven Sharon Osbourne. Mandell replaced actor/singer David Hasselhoff and Osbourne replaced singer Brandy Norwood after the first season. It’s hosted by actor/rapper Nick Cannon, with Regis Philbin and Jerry Springer previously filling those shoes.
Acts for this program include singers, dancers, comedians, magicians, and more. After a pre-audition process (unseen by the television audience), performers audition in front of an audience and the three judges. Each judge has a buzzer they can hit to stop the act if they don’t enjoy it, often with the audience egging them on. If all three judges hit their buzzers, the act has to stop. Whether they are stopped or are allowed to continue to the end, they are judged by the panel and it’s determined if they’ll be allowed to continue with the show and appear in Las Vegas callbacks.
The forty-eight acts that make it to Las Vegas perform again for the judges in four groups of twelve, with each group having a week to perform. The five best acts from each group move on and become the semi-finalists. The first four to move on in each group is decided solely by home viewer voting. The two acts that come in fifth and sixth by the viewers then go before the judges who decide which act will become the fifth of that group.
In the semi-finals, the acts perform in groups of ten. Viewer votes and the judges then pair them down to ten finalists who perform yet again to choose a winner. The winner of the show goes on to receive a $1 million cash prize and a headlining show in Las Vegas.
Image courtesy ABC.
bring back nick…….. cannon……………
I stopped watching this show because there are too much up close and personal scenes with the judges doing silly things; too much up and close and personal contacts with the contestants; too many carnival acts; too many dangerous acts and am really tired of watching 400 dancers compete and do Michael Jackson moves. Enough. When it becomes a regular Talent Show, let me know. .
Something must be done to these dangerous acts they seem to be promoting. Taking the cake was the guy who put firecrackers in his mouth after Howie mixed three of them up. You call this talent? This is too dangerous and should be not be allowed. Was surprised that Howard Stern loved it. Shame on you Howard… shame, shame, shame. Get rid of these really stupid and dangerous acts and put them on another show that I won’t watch. And no one else sees the danger here? Shame on all of you.
Nick Cannon is great!!!
Yayyyyy! Can’t wait for season 9 to premeire!
Worst season finale ever!!!!! The mixing of the acts was terrible. The winner being a dog act? I can see the British picking one, but it just goes to show that collectively the general TV audience is pretty poor.
[…] shows so it’s no surprise that they’re running several new reality shows this summer. America’s Got Talent continues to be one of their most successful shows each […]
i love this show every every much is hooowie goooing
Jerry Springer was the best judge. They should bring him back. I don’t like Nick Cannon as a judge at all.
Too bad neither of those people are judges, they are hosts.