#28: The man's a joy magnet!

[ldyjocelyn]

Yellow sweater girl:

(Clickable picture)

I'm not sure if this was her first "appearance," but at least this is where her name came from. It's from the Kenneth Cole fashion show that Clay attended in 2005.

She tends to be "around" whenever Clay's in NYC. I remember people noticing her outside "The Early Show" when Clay appeared for the Toys for Tots campaign (?) -- I think she was even caught on fan videos. However, no one knows her name (thank God, IMO).

[bottlecap]

I think the consensus is that Yellow Sweater Girl is someone from RCA in NYC, although I don't remember for sure. However, since she's attractive, of childbearing age, and was seen in Clay's vicinity more than once, I think you can figure out the rest.

=================================================

((((gbmifan and family))))

[liney23]

Of course, that being said, I still plan to campaign shamelessly for CUTE Sir Robin of Clegg.

I understand the Clegg campaign has taken a controversial position on the hot button topic of the exploitation of swallows to assist in the illegal immigration of coconuts.

bottlecap....

Ok, I'm stepping off my soapbox now and return you to your regularly programming.

CG... your rant needs to be everywhere, it was a good rant!!! :F_05BL17blowkiss: I knew you were not talking about anyone in specific and since I feel much the same way about the state of the voting in this country, I was clapping. You should start a politics thread and see what happens.

:F_05BL17blowkiss: one and all...hope everyone is feeling better. If not, I hope Sir Robin will play doctor and come over to give you an injection. *eye waggle*

Broadway.com

Rosie O'Donnell Visits Clay Aiken at Spamalot

How do you know you've made a splash on Broadway? You start getting visits from celebs. Case in point: Rosie O'Donnell and wife Kelli popped in on Idol wunderkind Clay Aiken, who recently made his Broadway debut in Spamalot. We caught the couple enthusiastically congratulating Aiken backstage at the Shubert Theatre on March 11. The O'Donnells will be heading to the Mexican Riviera next week on one of their fab R Family Vacations cruises, while Aiken will continue entertaining droves of his devoted fans on the Great White Way.

Make sure you view all 6 pictures. There are a few stage door shots in there.

laughn... I saw luckiets and crimsonice... YEAH!!!

[00lsee]

So sorry for the losses in your life right now, gbmifan. My condolences.

And this:

Well...it's the curly nape hair, y'all. That. Impudent. Curly. Nape. Hair.

[merryclay]

You know we haven't seen YSG in a while. Maybe she's incognito. I sure wouldn't blame her.

I love the pictures.

Claygasm. I'm not an arguing girl; I just said how I felt. I don't have any follow up.

[Kareneh]

{{{{{gbmifan & family}}}}}}

The curly impudent nape hair showed up just in time. I'm off to bed. Enjoy the rest of your day everyone!

[treenuts]

You know we haven't seen YSG in a while. Maybe she's incognito. I sure wouldn't blame her.

I love the pictures.

Claygasm. I'm not an arguing girl; I just said how I felt. I don't have any follow up.

I believe the last reported sighting of said shawledshoulderedfemaleofchildbaringage was at the "Idol, The Musical" or whatever that bit of nonsense was that guy put together for off-broadway. Anyway, when Clay got around to seeing that (myeyes myeyes) She was reportedly with him and his entourage. Heh, I thought she was supposedly with SAM.

verra verra confusing

((((gbmifan))))

[aikim]

Olsee I think your post had something to do with cats but all I remember is towel and hips...maybe you should repost and leave out that last part so I can focus!

Update on Cinnamon...got her into the carrier fine this morning but I don't think she will be as willing on the 24th when she goes to get her stitches out. I never heard such pitiful meowing on the way to the vet this morning; I felt like such a bad cat mommy!

Anyhoo, she is home and fine; I was amazed at how quickly the vet called to tell me the deed was done and she was awake and eating. She is having a little trouble jumping and we have to keep her from licking her stitches and she has three syringes of pain medicine I have to give her over the next three days...any ideas on how to do this as painlessly as possible?

gb big hugs to you!

Kim

[Claygasm]

You know we haven't seen YSG in a while. Maybe she's incognito. I sure wouldn't blame her.

I love the pictures.

Claygasm. I'm not an arguing girl; I just said how I felt. I don't have any follow up.

I know you were just saying what you felt and you raised a valid question - that maybe some here might have felt I was directing my comments toward them. I wasn't, so I just wanted to clear that up.

That is all.

And as a peace offering I give you this.............

[annabear]

she has three syringes of pain medicine I have to give her over the next three days...any ideas on how to do this as painlessly as possible?

They are oral syringes, right? The towel suggestion from 00lsee (unfortunately minus the hips - hee!) is a good one for that, too. I did that with my youngest, wrapped her up like a mummy and kind of tucked her under one arm, steadying her head with that hand so that I could get the syringe into her mouth with the other. Easier if there are two of you! Good luck & my kitties send feel better wishes to Cinnamon!

[Couch Tomato]

Poking my head up from under the covers where I have been all day. The crud has won.

[Claygasm]

she has three syringes of pain medicine I have to give her over the next three days...any ideas on how to do this as painlessly as possible?

They are oral syringes, right? The towel suggestion from 00lsee (unfortunately minus the hips - hee!) is a good one for that, too. I did that with my youngest, wrapped her up like a mummy and kind of tucked her under one arm, steadying her head with that hand so that I could get the syringe into her mouth with the other. Easier if there are two of you! Good luck & my kitties send feel better wishes to Cinnamon!

When my Waldo went under the knife I had syringes that I had to get between his gums and his cheeks. He wasn't supposed to swallow it. I just sort of cradled him, stroked him until he was purring and half asleep and then took one hand and gently delivered the goods.

Worked until the last 2 doses. They went more on me than in him!

{{{couchie, muski and all the other sickies}}}

[aikim]

Poking my head up from under the covers where I have been all day. The crud has won.

Sometimes you just have to give in and hibernate for a while; feel better soon!

Thanks annabear; I think I will have my DD help me out with this tonight.

Kim

[heinz]

aikim- I just had my outdoor cat (I'm severely allergic) spayed on Tuesday and I was sent home with 4 syringes of pain meds and was told to make sure I gave it to her with a meal with the suggestion of squirting the liquid into her mouth. That didn't work well at all, so I got a small amount of soft food that I know she loves, put the medicine in there, watched her eat it up, then gave her more of her regular food. That did the trick just fine. She stayed overnight at the vet Tues night and came home on Wed afternoon. I played it safe and kept her in large dog crate I have, in the garage, just to make sure she wasn't groggy from the anesthetic. I just her outside now and she's one happy kitty.

gbmifan- so sorry for you loss

[keepingfaith]

I just watched the interview again with Clay talking about "that song" that he listened to on the flight to Indonesia and how Jaymes brought that very demo with her at their meeting upon his return ... and that this song will be on the album, and I'm wondering, just thinking and wondering and speculating and surmising ... could that song possibly, conceivably, oh dear God please be ..... Tears Run Dry?

I LOVE that song. And when I first watched JBT clack it was the one that blew me away ... by a mile ... the one that I knew could be huge for him with every ingredient for a smash hit, and that his voice was made for this song and just soared ... yes -- not that song he released to Loverboy and not the one he recorded on ATDW, but, in fact, TRD?

Would I just DIE????

[merryclay]

skybar-- If you're around anywhere, Sagmoon posted about the album at CV, and they're talking about astrology at CV. I thought you might enjoy reading Sagmoon's post and etc. I'd bring it over, but there's too much.

[FromClaygary]

Eeeeeeee!!! So good to see luckiest1 and crimsonice's happy, grinning-like-a-goof faces on Broadway.com!

They look like they're having a wonderful time!

I just have one more little thingy to add about Idol last night. I'm a Ruben fan, to a point, but that version of Celebrate Me Home was journeyman at best. I don't think that's going to kickstart his career.

Sure with ya there! I liked Ruben on AI2 (as second best) but was not fond of his hiphop and gospel personas when he recorded, so I haven't purchased any of his music. I was very disappointed in CMH last night; I was prepared to like it a lot, but....ummm, no. It sounds like he is stretching his range to reach the notes, and it's just....flat. Boring.

[liney23]

Poking my head up from under the covers where I have been all day. The crud has won.

couchie... muski.... dang it, women (and any others fighting the crud)... get well fast, ok! :F_05BL17blowkiss:

[playbiller]

Sigh - The insider is trying to post a rumor, so they have to fit Clay in to give the celebrity plug.

Is it true Rosie is trying to book Clay for her family cruises?

The answere is no, she has her eye on another idol, Danny Noreaga. Now, there was two things out there for them to talk about,and it is easy to jointhe to, but really, could a cruise trip afford Clay Aiken? I think not! There is probably quite a gap (sarcasm) between what Clay charges and what Noreaga charges.

It is about the money, people!

[playbiller]

[treenuts]

Poking my head up from under the covers where I have been all day. The crud has won.

Feel better, couchie! I finally turned the corner yesterday and am even coughing less. So I'm here to tell you guys you 'll make it!! Keep drinking fluids and taking your meds if you have 'em. Promise

When my Waldo went under the knife I had syringes that I had to get between his gums and his cheeks.

I can't tell you what a SCARE this gave me!

Then I realised you were talking about a pet. Jes-us!

[aikim]

Brief Show info from Cotton:

Cotton just called again.... She said to let everyone know that Brad Oscar is being replace by Anthony Holds tonight &

she just walked right past yellow sweater girl.... hmmmm...what's up with that?????

Kim

[Couch Tomato]

hmmm did we conjure up yellow sweater girl by talking about her today..quck..everybody start thinking about a million dollars.

[treenuts]

Brief Show info from Cotton:

Cotton just called again.... She said to let everyone know that Brad Oscar is being replace by Anthony Holds tonight &

she just walked right past yellow sweater girl.... hmmmm...what's up with that?????

Kim

BWAHAHA!! Speak of the devil

[ldyjocelyn]

Interesting blog entry....

Brian & The Biz: Adventures in Entertainment of a Celeb Interviewer

My Life as a Claymate

While this season of “American Idol” is shaping up as an especially exciting one full of surprises and reversals, I don’t know if I agree with the show’s claims that the current Season 7 features the best lineup of talent ever. After all, I’m partial to Season 5’s combo of Taylor Hicks, Katherine McPhee, Elliott Yamin and Chris Daughtry, and there’s no doubt in my mind that the most exciting season was number two, featuring the neck and neck competition all the way to the end between Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken.

While I had tuned in at times to Season 1 of “Idol,” the second season was the one that really captured my attention, starting with an appearance by my friend Fred Bronson, who pitched the show the idea for the theme, “Billboard Number Ones.” That theme night was followed up with shows devoted to some of my favorite artists, including Billy Joel, the Bee Gees and Neil Sedaka, but I think what really sold me on the show was Ruben’s fabulous performance of “Kiss And Say Goodbye,” the final song on that Billboard night.

But as I continued to watch, I started to grow more and more impressed with Clay, who shined on both ballads (Neil Sedaka’s “Solitaire”) and fun uptempo songs, like one of my alltime favorites, “Build Me Up Buttercup.” Then on the season finale, Clay let out a one-two knockout punch: first a transcendent version of “Bridge Over Troubled Water” (while Ruben sang a rather boring take on “Imagine”), followed by his soon to be number one hit, “This Is The Night,” which I liked much more than Ruben’s “Flying Without Wings.” But Ruben still ended up winning the “Idol” crown, which I didn’t feel bad about because it seemed like it couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy. As it turned out, I still haven’t met Ruben, but I would cross paths with Clay again and again.

The first time I met Clay was at a radio studio across from the NBC building in Burbank where Clay was appearing on “The Tonight Show” that evening. Fred Bronson had been assigned to do one of the first in-depth interviews with Clay after his “Idol” stint, and as often happens, I tagged along. Fred conducted a long interview that covered Clay’s life from singing in the carpet department at Sears at age five all the way to the Idol finale, and along the way added a lot to his fans’ knowledge about their hero. I found Clay to be an excellent storyteller, funny and also brutally honest about his “Idol” song and wardrobe choices. One other thing surprised me: Clay gave me a hug when he left (a year later, when Fred interviewed Season 3’s Diana DeGarmo at the same studio, I gave her a hug as she was leaving, probably surprising her at the time… but then, I’m no Clay!).

After the interview was released on the internet, Clay’s fans came out of the woodwork, deciding Fred was a reliable insider when it came to Clay and sending him e-mail after e-mail with questions and comments. One such e-mail came from a lady named Diann in Lancaster, PA, which is my hometown, so Fred asked if she knew me when I lived there. She hadn’t, but she mentioned it to a few of her friends, including Anita, who I had indeed palled around with during summers at the local pool. We ended up getting back in touch and I always make time for dinner with Anita and her Claymate friends whenever I’m visiting Lancaster.

Fred interviewed Clay again a few weeks before his debut album, “Measure Of A Man,” was released. This time Fred and I met Clay at the hotel he was staying at in L.A. and joined him for breakfast in the hotel restaurant. With no publicists in attendance, this interview was much more informal than the first one. I was impressed by Clay’s determination to learn all he could about the music business. He often stopped the interview to ask Fred questions about radio play and the charts.

Eventually, I got a chance to interview Clay myself, but it would have never happened if I hadn’t been at those earlier interviews. One of my friends hosts his own movie review show on TV. He was based in Portland, Oregon at the time and couldn’t make it back to Los Angeles to cover the festivities celebrating the DVD release of Disney’s “Aladdin.” He asked me to do the interviews on the red carpet outside Hollywood’s El Capitan Theater for him, and I gladly agreed, having never done any interviews for TV before. Many of the stars attending were featured in Disney produced shows, and I got a good number of them to talk to me. But when Clay arrived, it seemed like he was in a hurry to get inside and skipped talking to most of the gathered press. Fortunately, I caught the eye of his publicist, who recognized me from the earlier interview with Fred (as did Clay) and steered Clay over to me for a few minutes.

I got in four questions. First I asked Clay how he keeps his energy up on tour, to which he replied, “McDonald’s!” He laughed and added that he tries to change his show a little bit every night to keep things interesting for him, and in turn, the audience. I also asked him about his upcoming Christmas album as well as the song he did for the “Aladdin” DVD. But the best response I got from him came when I said that I know his female fans love him to death and go to great lengths to see him in concert, but does he ever hear from the husbands and boyfriends they drag along? Clay said every once in a while, he’ll see a T-shirt on a guy in the audience that says, “I got dragged to see him,” but to him the funniest thing was how the women manage to make it to the front row in front of the stage, leaving their men stewing fifteen rows back.

I’ve seen Clay a few other times as well, like at a Halloween party at Kim Locke’s house (Clay didn’t bother to dress up in a costume, but he did stay a while), and also backstage at two of his concerts I attended with Fred. And while I thought his last album was a bit of a disappointment, I’m hoping the one he’s releasing later this year will mark a return to the strong songs and melodic diversity of “Measure Of A Man.” Plus any time Clay’s out promoting a new CD, he makes a stop on “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” which is always hilarious. I can’t wait!

_____

Sorry to hear about your crud couchie! aikim, my kitties send their sympathies (they've been through this before). Four words: top loading cat carriers.

Heh. We were just talking about yellow sweater girl, and she shows up. Maybe she's a member here? *g*