Simon Cowell
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Simon Cowell is a smart man. Count us among those that admire his honest.

After his interview yesterday on Good Morning America, though, Britney Spears might not be in that camp. The American Idol judge offered some candid advice to the troubled singer.

Cowell told ABC news correspondent Juju Chang that Spears is perfectly capable of saving her career because she's "still one of the most talked about pop stars on the planet."

"She has the X-factor because people want to write about her," Cowell says. "She's not conventional, she's not normal."

That's definitely true.

At the same time, Cowell says that Britney "can't handle the tension and the pressure" that comes from being in the spotlight so she needs to refocus herself at home.

"Lock the door, don't go out with your stupid friends, have some home-cooked food, get a sense of reality," he says. "Go lie in the garden, okay? And then say to yourself, 'There's more good in my life than bad. I'm still a rich, talented girl – now I want to get my career back on track.' End of story."

Of course, the interview wasn't all about Spears. Cowell also revealed why he believes Jordin Sparks is the new American Idol. "Jordin was the most improved over the whole season," he says. "She didn't start the best but midway through, this was the girl who suddenly got momentum."

Still, Cowell feels that Sparks wasn't necessarily the one who deserved the title. "[Melinda Doolittle] should have won," he says. "She tried the hardest, was consistently the best and had the best voice."

Let's get right down to it: Who does Simon Cowell think will be named American Idol this week?

The answer? Well, he just doesn't know.

"I can't call it at this stage," Cowell told reporters on a conference call. "For Blake Lewis, he's a brilliant entertainer, but the negative is he's not a fantastic singer. The advantage for Jordin is she is a great singer and the negative is she hasn't done one performance yet which I can remember as a 'wow.'"

Cowell also said he was amused by the long run of Sanjaya Malakar, a contestant known for extreme hairstyles and mediocre singing.

"The whole Sanjaya thing was hysterical," said Cowell, who once threatened to quit if Malakar won. "I don't think I'd be happy if he was in the final, but looking back I think it was quite amusing."

Cowell added it was "unfair" that contestant Melinda Doolittle was eliminated from the show this week.

"When you allow the public to choose, you've got to live and die by the vote," he said.

One of Simon Cowell's habits strikes people as rude, even for him: While American Idol hopefuls are singing their lungs out, he's often seen idly chatting with Paula Abdul.

"I'm taunting Paula throughout the performance," Cowell explains on Monday's episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show. "I'm saying to her, 'Try to say something interesting, try not to use the words mountain and lakes in your critiques because it's always: You'll climb mountains, you'll swim lakes, whatever.' "

So how can he judge the contestants if he's so busy bugging Abdul? "I'll tell you a secret," he says. "I watch the dress run so I actually hear much, much easier what they really do sound like."

As for his Idol picks, he goes with the favorites Jordin Sparks and Melinda Doolittle, but says, "I wouldn't write off Blake Lewis or LaKisha Jones.

We hope this doesn't rock the worlds of too many fans - but Simon Cowell might actually be a nice guy.

Moreover, he might actually get along with Ryan Seacrest.

An American Idol insider has leaked that Simon’s witty yet scathing comments are scripted, noting that his on-camera scuffles with Seacrest - as well as cruel remarks to contestants - are carefully crafted beforehand.

“Most of these rifts have been outlined. Simon and Ryan are real good friends off-camera," the source said. "When the show is on the road for auditions, the two go for drinks and dinner.”

The source also revealed that the show’s top producer picks who Cowell will fall out with between the other two judges, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson.

“The executive producer of the show, Nigel Lythgoe, watches the rehearsals and writes notes on who Simon should make nasty comments about. That’s what’s on the sheets of paper on the judging desk," this person said. "Simon is not the evil guy you think he is. The truth is Ryan is just as focused on the show’s popularity as Simon. There’s no real drama. It’s all for the camera."

In a candid interview with 60 Minutes' Anderson Cooper last night, American Idol's Simon Cowell opened up about coming under fire for his catty commentary each week on FOX's hit reality series.

"I don't think I'm humiliating anybody," Cowell tells Cooper."Possibly [the contestants are] humiliating themselves."

And while Simon says he's "helping" the singers by hurling what some would call verbal assaults, he explained to Cooper that "No one is dragged into that audition room kicking and screaming."

Calling to attention season six auditioner Kenneth Briggs, whom Cowell said looked like a "bush baby," Cooper asked the judge if he believed his commentary to be hurtful.

"I want to meet the parents sometimes and say 'are you aware that your son/daughter has zero talent and you're wasting their time when they could be doing something they're good at?'" Cowell admits.

But don't for a minute think Cowell feels even the slightest tinge of remorse after making himself known to America for, frankly, being downright nasty.

"I don't have a conscience about this at all," Cowell says, describing his Idol duties with all sincerity. "At the end of the day, if you've decided you want to enter American Idol, you want a short circuit to be rich and famous. If that means you have to take a bit of criticism along the way - tough."

We're not sure about anyone else - but we agree with Simon completely.

American Idol judge Simon Cowell has laid claim to being bigger than Bruce Springsteen in an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes.” In the interview (which will air on Sunday) Cowell stated that he is worth more to Sony BMG than Springsteen.

Cowell further stated that he sells more albums for the label than the 57-year-old music icon – who signed a deal with Sony BMG for more than $100 million. He also said that if Springsteen’s contract is based on album sales then Sony BMG should pay him even more since he has probably sold “over 100 million records.”

Cowell backed up his claim to the title due to his involvement with American Idol and the amount of top selling artists that the show has produced around the world.

Sony BMG produces albums with “American Idol” winners and runners-up through a deal with Clive Davis and 19 Recordings Unlimited – the label that is managed by Idol creator Simon Fuller.

Meanwhile, Paula Abdul is a bigger Cowell fan than she might let on typically.

Simon Cowell has a gentle side ... it just doesn't come out when judging poor American Idol auditions.

The supposedly mean one has signed with PETA to form a new public service announcement to make the viewers aware of the dangers of leaving dogs in hot vehicles.

"Maybe some people are surprised that I like animals, but there's quite a difference between telling someone who's a useless singer, 'You're a useless singer' and drowning a puppy," said Cowell. "I once had an incident with a guy who auditioned [for American Idol] who actually admitted that he likes killing animals... he didn't go through."

PETA promotes and upholds animal welfare and protection issues, actively opposing animal testing, hunting and other forms of maltreatment.

Cowell's endorsement of animal welfare comes with his own observation of the lack of knowledge of people when it comes to the safety of their pets. In an interview with PETA he said:

"I actually have witnessed a dog in a car on a hot day, and luckily I found its owner… She was in a shop, and I dragged her out the shop and said, 'Your dog is going to die in a second.' And she wasn't aware of it. People just aren't aware of it."

Along with his part in Idol Gives Back, is it possible Simon is actually ... nice?

Thursday night at the 24th Annual Paley Festival at the Directors Guild of America in West Hollywood, Simon Cowell took part in a panel discussion about American Idol at the Museum of Television & Radio.

He didn't exactly hold back his feelings about a pair of former contestants.

Regarding Taylor Hicks, who won season 5's competition:

"They (Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson) loved him. I couldn't stand him. I didn't get it," Cowell snapped, adding that "at the end of the day you have to find a bona fide recording artist. Just because you win the show doesn't mean you will sell a lot of records. Chris (Daughtry) is the one who sold the albums, not Taylor."

The man does speak the truth, as much as it might pain Taylor fans to hear. Meanwhile, Jennifer Hudson was not excused from criticism, either.

Cowell commented on Hudson saying American Idol was a "stepping stone" for her.

"Stepping stone? It was her big opportunity to become noticed and she got noticed and she got Dreamgirls," Simon said, noting that other past contestants "deliberately turn against the show that made them successful. The reason (people) come on the show is because all the doors had been slammed in their face."

What do you guys think of Cowell's comments?

Congratulations, of course, are in order for Jennifer Hudson. She walked away with an Academy Award last night.

But Simon Cowell didn't go home empty handed.

The American Idol judge received a VERY warm welcome from Sir Elton John ... one that included a kiss on the cheek.

We wonder how Cowell's girlfriend, Terri Seymour, feels about this greeting. We also wonder if Idol fans will even think twice about such a picture.

After all, Antonella Barba photos have pretty much dominated their imaginations over the last week.

The judges from American Idol invaded Jay Leno Monday night.

And while they certainly focused on season six of our favorite show, Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Ryan Seacrest first focused on a certain, bald pop singer backstage with Terri Seymour (Simon's girlfriend) from Extra.

“Re-release ‘Hit Me Baby, One More Time,’” Simon suggested to Britney Spears.

“She needs a huge song,” Randy said, before Simon butted in with his two sense: “Big record; forget the shaving of the head!”

As for their own unpredictable co-star Paula Abdul, Simon said the press is making a big deal over nothing.

“She’s always been that way, I’ve never understood a word Paula has said,” Simon said.

But Paula chimed in: “I live a clean life, and the only thing I'm embarrassed about is hanging around you guys.

As far as Idol is concerned, the judges told Extra they just want to hear good singing; and that meant bad news for the 12 guys who performed last night.

“I think they’re lucky that there are groups of boys, groups of girls; otherwise we'd end up all girls in this competition,” Simon admitted.

Speaking of girls, the gang had this special message for their favorite Dreamgirl, Jennifer Hudson.

“We actually think you’re going to walk up there and accept an Oscar, so go get ‘em,” Ryan said.