I found this comic on http://comics.com/nancy/2007-05-30/

Season nine of "American Idol" is under way, and judge Randy Jackson can't believe how much the show is about to change. With Paula Abdul out and Ellen DeGeneres in — not to mention that Simon Cowell will bid a fond farewell after this season — fans will certainly have a lot of interesting shake-ups to look forward to.

They will also have some amazing talent to watch grow as the season forges on. "Simon's leaving. There's no Paula there. Ellen's coming in. It's a very, very different season, but the talent that we saw on the road is amazing," he told MTV News when he stopped by to promote the Paper Tongues, a new band he's managing. "You guys are seeing the auditions now, and the guest judges we had on the road, they all held their own."

But Jackson notes that in the back of everyone's minds is just who will replace Cowell when it's all said and done. "Dude, it's so hard. I don't even know. We've been thinking about it since he announced it. It's like saying who are you going to get to replace [Minnesota Vikings player] Brett Favre or who are you gonna get to replace [New Orleans Saints player] Drew Brees. You know, it's a hard thing. I don't really know.

"There were rumors that Conan O'Brien was going to do it," he continued, also addressing the LaToya Jackson judge rumors. "That's wild. Hey, we love the Jacksons. ... I think everyone should just take a turn."

Of course, as is the case with all spoilers, these should be taken with a grain of salt. That being said, just two cities worth of auditions and there's already a handful of names on this list that I recognize. Not to mention, a couple I'm shocked to see missing.

As of 5:30 pm (PST) 20 21 22 all 24 23 names have been leaked as members of the Season 9 Top 24.

Top 12 Boys:

1. Aaron Kelly
2. Alexander "Alex" Lambert (video of him performing the Barney song, really.)
3. Andrew Garcia
4. Benjamin "Ben" Honeycutt (covering Kings of Leon "Use Somebody) (Rumor was, he was cut in the group round.)
4. Casey James
5. Christopher "Chris" Golightly (featured on Idol previews)
6. David Duke
7. Jermaine Sellers (Atlanta Auditions, church singer who auditioned with "What If God Was One of Us")
8. John Park (Chicago Auditions, doing a Glee version of "Falling Slowly")
9. Lee DeWyze
10. Michael Lynche (Reports state he may be disqualified for breaking confidentiality clauses. Reports also state Antwan Michael will take his place.)
11. Tyler Grady (Boston Auditions, "Let's Get It On"...with two broken wrists!)  read more »

An insider told Life & Style that they're considering singer and Oscar-winning actor Jamie Foxx to take over Simon Cowell's vacated slot next season. He was a mentor last year, after all, although I'll be honest, I can't remember him standing out. Another name in the toss-up? Jimmy Iovine, co-founder of Interscope Records and the man responsible for launching Eminem's name. But reports also say Idol creator Simon Fuller is eyeing Madonna as a replacement...

"Obviously I wanted to do something to help out," he told a New Orleans radio station before performing at the NFC Championship Game earlier. "I was actually going to do that telethon, but then somebody hooked me up with going and just helping out in the next few days ... This is the stuff that means the most to me, going out and helping people. And obviously, the thing that happened in Haiti was just a tragedy. I feel blessed that I get to go out there and help people out."

Brett Favre became an Internet sensation last week not because of his abilities on the football field but because of his attempt to sing the now famous and very catchy "Pants on the Ground" song that General Larry Platt performed on "American Idol."

The quarterback admitted last week at his two news conferences that he "choked" in his attempt to sing the song as his teammates laughed following the Vikings' playoff victory over Dallas last Sunday. Well, odds are the guy the Vikings met today did a better job.

Wide receiver Bernard Berrian tweeted that the players had "just met" Platt. Left tackle Bryant McKinnie and tight end Visanthe Shiancoe both tweeted that fans "would not guess" who was at the team meeting before Berrian revealed it was the 62-year-old Platt. McKinnie posted video of Platt singing. It's not very clear but you will get the point.

The move is a pretty savvy one by coach Brad Childress. The Vikings don't play until 5:40 p.m. and that means players have a lot of time to think about this game and get nervous. There is little question that bringing Platt into the room probably gave many guys a good laugh and took away some possible tension.

If it were up to Fox, they would have played a game of Simon Says with Simon Cowell, and the “American Idol” judge would have stayed in place beyond this season, according to sources.

“The ‘American Idol’ people were desperate for Simon to stay,” a show insider told Life & Style magazine. “They told him to name his price (to stay), but he still walked away.”

Cowell announced Jan. 11 that he will leave “Idol” after this season to bring his British talent show, “The X Factor,” to the United States. “X Factor” will debut on Fox during the fall 2011 television season, while “Idol” will air in the winter. Even though the two shows won’t compete head to head, the magazine reports that Cowell wants “X Factor” to “blow ‘American Idol’ out of the water.”

Click on the newslink to read the full article.

Ellen says that she's trying not to take it personally, since Cowell announced he was leaving on her very first day. She also says she's sad to see him go but wishes him luck with hosting "The Tonight Show." Snerk.

Ellen recently told Entertainment Weekly that if Simon left, she would leave too but FOX chairman Peter Rice from "Idol" clarified that she "was making a joke."

Click on the newslink to read the full article.