The American Idol Season Finale

It was perhaps the worst final two ever in American Idol history, but the season finale is always star-studded and loaded with surprises, so I decided to give it a try. Good show. The highlight of course was the booty shaking showdown between Sasha Fierce and J-Lo. Gotta give the night to Beyonce (although she almost killed it later in the evening with that wretched new song). Gaga was fantastic as always; I think she jumped to her death at the end of her song at the prospect of Scotty or Lauren winning this season. I also liked TLC, Judas Priest, Steven Tyler and the always great Gladys Knight. I was also glad to see Randy Jackson maintain his streak of wearing his worst outfit of the year at the season finale. In the end somebody had to win by default and predictably it was Scotty. If his limited range doesn't kill his career, that awful first single certainly will.

"Macho Man" Randy Savage

I was stunned like everyone else to find out about the death of "Macho Man" Randy Savage last week. He was one of my all-time top 5 favorite wrestlers and he will truly be missed. I always thought his athleticism and intensity always brought a little a realism to the art. Here are some of my favorite Macho Man moments:

- The Introduction of Miss Elizabeth: Savage joined the WWF in 1985. He wrestled for a few weeks, winning squash matches, back when they had such things. They did an angle where all of the managers of the day like Mr. Fuji, Bobby Heenan and Jimmy Hart were trying to sign him. Finally one week he decided to announce who his manager would be. He praised all of the heel managers but then brought out the stunning Miss Elizabeth. This was so great because the announce team of Vince McMahon and Bruno Sammartino made such a big fuss over her ("what is she; a movie star or what?"). Jimmy Hart tried to hold the ropes for her to enter the ring, but Savage was having none of it, thus starting the dynamic of Savage being mean to Elizabeth, which drove the fans crazy.

- Randy Savage vs. Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat at WrestleMania III: Everyone came to see Hulk Hogan vs. Andre the Giant, but it was Savage vs. Steamboat that stole the show. It was perhaps the best WWF match of that era. I remember seeing this match at the Kiel Auditorium in St. Louis in the dying days of closed circuit TV. I think even my Dad, who is not a wrestling fan at all, enjoyed it.

- Megapower Meltdown: Who could ever forget the night that the team of Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage fell apart? They had built for this for months with Savage showing slight signs of being jealous that Hulk Hogan was friendly with Elizabeth. It came to a head on a Friday night on NBC when Savage slapped Hogan across the face to tag him into a match, then destroyed him in a backstage skit. I just remember how intense Savage was. I believed he was really mad. I always remember him saying to Hogan "you make me so sick, I can't even stand to look at you".

- Savage vs. Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania VII: This match always gets overlooked for some reason when people talk about great matches of the 80's. Despite the Warrior being involved, this was a great, dramatic match. The ending with Savage and Elizabeth reuniting at the end was a great moment. People were even crying in the audience.

Gaga Day

It was a big day for Little Monsters and big butt aficionados alike, as Lady Gaga's Born This Way CD was finally released today. It was available in two versions: the deluxe (above) and the standard, which features her head on a motorcycle; perhaps the most ill-advised album cover since Snoop Dogg's debut. The music is solid though so that's what counts. Happy Release Day!

Stewart vs. O'Reilly

I loved Jon Stewart's appearance on last night's O'Reilly Factor where he debated Common's invite to the White House. He owned Bill O'Reilly. The dude came prepared. Check it out here.