Is Simon Cowell worth $144M -- a year?
King o' the world? (Getty Images Photo)
I see the press has its tighty-whities all in knot over the report out the U.K. yesterday that Simon Cowell - SiCo - has been offered $144 million a year to continue on "American Idol."
The Post even has a banner headline, or something, seeming to suggest that it's true, and because the Post is owned by Rupert Murdoch who will presumably pay SiCo this sum, then it MUST be true.
-Photos: Simon Cowell
Except that it's highly dubious.
Let me re-phrase: I don't believe it.
Here's the graph in the Guardian story that has caused all the uproar. It's buried deep, deep, deep - as if a throwaway, as if the writer herself didn't even believe it, and I bet she didn't (the Guardian story is, by the way, quite good):
"A source close to Fuller says that Cowell has already been offered three to four times the $36m he was paid for American Idol in 2008 - but then, he is the most important person on the show and the series makes $900m a year and attracts audiences of 25 million. The point is that Cowell makes nothing more than this admittedly large performance fee and that's the gap the Green deal hopes to fill. " ("Green refers to Sir Philip Green, the retailer that SiCo's working out a deal with...)
You can almost see the writer smile as she writes these words.
Let's translate:
"A source close to Fuller..."
"Fuller," is - of course - Simon Fuller, my own Dr. Evil, who despises SiCo with all the furies of hell and beyond. He sued SiCo over patent infringement (I think it was patent infringement) over "The X Factor" and they settled out of court.
This "source close to Fuller" is repeating gossip that's been out there for weeks - and it's probably bogus gossip. Why should a "source close to Fuller" know what SiCo is doing anyway? This is hurtful information to Cowell - Dr. Evil's handiwork.
"... already been offered three to four times ..."
More bogosity! Three to four times? Vague, wouldn't you say?
Why would Rupert want to play this up? Maybe to embarrass SiCo? Who knows.
But there is NO WAY Fox is going to pay him $144M a year. Impossible. That would exceed the profit of the entire Fox network, in all probability, and wipe out whatever's left, too. It would be the highest services contract fee in TV history, by a vast margin. It would be suicidal - for Fox and for the entire TV industry. The TV industry isn't baseball and it isn't even basketball. Anyway, the last time I checked even Kobe wasn't making $144 m a year.
It would be stupid beyond stupid.
Let's get this straight: Fox knows SiCo is leaving one of these days, sooner than later. My hunch: He'll re-up for two more years beyond the season he's taping now. Gives Fox/ 19 Entertainment time to groom a successor, etc.
He'll get something far more important than mere money in return; what? Maybe an astronomical sum for "The X Factor," owned outright by our man.
SiCo's not looking for a mere $144 M a year to host "American Idol." That's chump change. He's looking to rule the world. For him, that's much more interesting.
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Comments (8)
That's some good blog work, fellas. Way to get to the bottom of this story.
I can't see Fox re-upping for nine figures - especially with "AI" dipping in the ratings. Then again, this show would be sunk without Simon.
I hope "SiCo" quits and American Idol never comes on again.... I hate the show. I hate the people on it, well except for Paula sh's hot..
Anyhoo...
Its like a slap in the face to real musicians who work their tail off to get noticed and make it in the industry. They don't rely on producers who look for pretty faces gimmicks... Later.
no one on earth is worth one million.my god 144m who do he think he is
Maybe some one is coming out of the obscurity of the shadows
Someone that both these companies wronged, Idol is like a whale
that has eaten up so many people and spat them out that they
have made themselves so big to the point where they cannot sustain
Themselves anymore.
I have a thought, on such a matter, with all the past rumors that
surround this show, people making accusations, and all the
conspiracy theories, what if, and this is a big if, but what if, one of
those artists, rises from the ashes, what if there was a story around
that person that was kept secret. What if they really did, screw over
a true singer, and that singer is coming back with a vengence
the likes that Hollywood has never seen.
You have to remember, that these are all Hollywood players, and
they all know each other and are connected to one another through
corporate contracts.
for example, Sharon Osbourne, she works with Cowell in the UK
and on of the sister shows to Idol. Like Americas got talent
It is a slap in the face of all the talented people in the world that
these talentless people, are put up on a pedestal, as if their opinion
actually mattered.
If S. Osbourne were to go up on stage at Ozzfest, and start singing
the crowd would vommit, from the sound she produces.
If Simon was oh so worth 140 M. USD a year, what are his accomplishments
in the music industry, he sits on the show, and has almost total control and
gets to tell other people that they are not good enough.
Well I have this to say, is he a world famous singer, is he a rockstar.
No, he is not, he came up in the music business, because of his father, to
simply put it, he did not start off alone and build his empire, he had help the whole way
and paula abdul on the other hand, one of the original producers that she
was pushed upon, heard her sing accapella, and he straight up (no pun intended)
said, hell no.
And if they were such a great thing for the artists, why dont they publish the details of
their contract, so all of the people who would audition see and have total access to the fine
print.
The truth is, this bloated, corrupted, monstrosity of an insult to all the
stars of music and hollywood is aged, and I have a feeling deep down
that all the wrongs they have done, and all the greed and corruptedness
of their existence is going to circle back on them.
One final thought is this, how can they say it is a reality based
television show, when quite obviously there is nothing real about it.
If an artist were to go there and they wanted to screw a person over
and if their plans backfire on them, do you think in all seriousness
that their going to show the reality of that situation to the public,
these figure heads, being totally humiliated with them laid bare.
No they would never show the truth, they have too much to lose.
Hollywood is not called tinsel town for nothing.
My thoughts on the whole issue of is S. Cowell worth 140 M.
I simply say no, none of them are, being a smart ass, does count,
but when that smart ass gets to operate with total impunity, on a fixed stage to
keep his reputation safe, I look at him and he his blue book value drops considerably.
Maybe some one is coming out of the obscurity of the shadows
Someone that both these companies wronged, Idol is like a whale
that has eaten up so many people and spat them out that they
have made themselves so big to the point where they cannot sustain
Themselves anymore.
I have a thought, on such a matter, with all the past rumors that
surround this show, people making accusations, and all the
conspiracy theories, what if, and this is a big if, but what if, one of
those artists, rises from the ashes, what if there was a story around
that person that was kept secret. What if they really did, screw over
a true singer, and that singer is coming back with a vengence
the likes that Hollywood has never seen.
You have to remember, that these are all Hollywood players, and
they all know each other and are connected to one another through
corporate contracts.
for example, Sharon Osbourne, she works with Cowell in the UK
and on of the sister shows to Idol. Like Americas got talent
It is a slap in the face of all the talented people in the world that
these talentless people, are put up on a pedestal, as if their opinion
actually mattered.
If S. Osbourne were to go up on stage at Ozzfest, and start singing
the crowd would vommit, from the sound she produces.
If Simon was oh so worth 140 M. USD a year, what are his accomplishments
in the music industry, he sits on the show, and has almost total control and
gets to tell other people that they are not good enough.
Well I have this to say, is he a world famous singer, is he a rockstar.
No, he is not, he came up in the music business, because of his father, to
simply put it, he did not start off alone and build his empire, he had help the whole way
and paula abdul on the other hand, one of the original producers that she
was pushed upon, heard her sing accapella, and he straight up (no pun intended)
said, hell no.
And if they were such a great thing for the artists, why dont they publish the details of
their contract, so all of the people who would audition see and have total access to the fine
print.
The truth is, this bloated, corrupted, monstrosity of an insult to all the
stars of music and hollywood is aged, and I have a feeling deep down
that all the wrongs they have done, and all the greed and corruptedness
of their existence is going to circle back on them.
One final thought is this, how can they say it is a reality based
television show, when quite obviously there is nothing real about it.
If an artist were to go there and they wanted to screw a person over
and if their plans backfire on them, do you think in all seriousness
that their going to show the reality of that situation to the public,
these figure heads, being totally humiliated with them laid bare.
No they would never show the truth, they have too much to lose.
Hollywood is not called tinsel town for nothing.
My thoughts on the whole issue of is S. Cowell worth 140 M.
I simply say no, none of them are, being a smart ass, does count,
but when that smart ass gets to operate with total impunity, on a fixed stage to
keep his reputation safe, I look at him and he his blue book value drops considerably.
Dude who cares! It's nobody's business what any one person makes or doesn't make. If he wasn't a celebrity no one would even know about it. I think everyone needs to just mide their own business and stop being so nosy. Yall need to seriously grow up and get a life..
Dude who cares! It's nobody's business what any one person makes or doesn't make. If he wasn't a celebrity no one would even know about it. I think everyone needs to just mide their own business and stop being so nosy. Yall need to seriously grow up and get a life..
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