Steve Tyler's a Dog, and Jennifer Lopez is a Fox

After all the hype about the "new" era of "American Idol," the season premiere of Season 10 was pretty much just like the season premiere of Season 9.

There were the same weirdos (the guy who burps when he's nervous), the same wannabes (the Britney fanatic), the same sob stories (enter triumph over tragedy here), even the same songs ("Hallelujah" yet again) -- pretty much the same everything.

Jennifer Lopez put it. But here's one pleasant surprise -- they were a lot funnier than we thought they would be. Especially Steven Tyler. While the Aerosmith frontman doesn't have Cowell's frosty wit, he is pretty outrageous. His best line of the night, in response to one contestant: "Well hellfire, save matches, f--- a duck, and see what happens." What??

The "Idol" judging panel also has something else it never had before -- a bona fide sex symbol. Between the hair, the makeup, the clothes and the jewels, you can't take your eyes off of Jennifer Lopez (even if you find her tinny little-girl voice kind of annoying). Even Randy took a peek at her legs, which Tyler was kind enough to point out.

Which brings us to another point about Tyler -- he's a dog. Not "the dog" like Randy -- a "dog," as in a pig. Tyler loves the ladies, and the ladies -- most young enough to be his granddaughters -- love him right back. At 62, he had no problem pointing out that a super-wholesome 16-year-old was showing "just the right amount" of leg.

One major criticism: More so than the judges of yore, this panel seems a little too willing to send the freaks to Hollyweird -- most notably Tiffany Morris, a well-endowed dance teacher who literally let it all hang out while singing about how America needs her for "higher ratings on TV." But Tyler made up for it by addressing the dangling stars on her skimpy bikini top, asking, "What's with the jujubes on your hoo hoo bes?"

But we kind of wished Simon were there to point out, "If you're so poor, why do you look like you're wearing designer eyeglasses?"

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The American Idol Contestant Alex Lambert Not Homeless

Well, on Monday night, Lambert posted a string of tweets in which he claimed he'd been forced to live on the streets of Los Angeles since October, when he wrapped up his stint on the reality series "If I Can Dream," the online show he fled to after being booted from "Idol."


On the eve of the season 10 debut of "American Idol," one of last season's most lovable losers has gotten himself back into the news. Perhaps you remember (though probably not) stage-fright-wracked singer Alex Lambert, the talented but nervous guitar strummer whose ouster unleashed an online petition of support from more than 13,000 fans who wanted him reinstated to the show.


According to Entertainment Weekly, however, things are not nearly as grim as they might seem. A spokesperson for an "Idol" production company, 19 Entertainment, which manages many of the show's contestants, confirmed that the tweets did come from Lambert but denied that the 20-year-old Texas singer is sleeping behind dumpsters. "He's not homeless. I don't know where that came from," the unidentified rep told EW, explaining that there's good reason to believe that Lambert should have the ability to pay for housing thanks to his development deal with 19. "He's on a retainer, and he's getting money every month," the spokesperson said. "He's working on demos. He's with writers, he's working on music. ... He's not homeless. How could he be texting? How could he be going into [the] recording studio and sleeping on the streets? There's no record deal yet, but hopefully these demos ... something could come from that."


After chatting with some fellow fans and former "Idol" pals about his frustrations with the music biz, Lambert dropped this bombshell: "Ever since 'IICD' ended I've been kinda homeless! Sleepin on the street and behind buildings. I have a choice to stay and pursue my career or go back to texas and not do music! I'm usually a strong person but I can't take it anymore. I've been goin to coffee shops and other stores so I can tweet to my snaf! Because to be honest! You guys are all I really have!"


Perhaps someone at 19 had a chat with Lambert about his down and out in Beverly Hills claims, since he updated his status on Tuesday afternoon, writing, "Sorry for the miscommunication ;) I'm just fine! MAHALO!"


And even though he claimed to be living on the streets, he asked his followers not to feel sorry for him, adding, "I know a lot of people think I tweeted my living situation for publicity! But I don't give a damn about fame!" But then he muddied the waters again with some follow-up tweets in which he stated emphatically, "I'm real! And I don't lie! and I would never lie to y'all! (y'all being my supporters who got my back through thick and thin) F--- yeah I was ... sleepin outside! That sh-- sucks too! I'm goin back home to get my sh-- together! But I will be back! And I'm comin strong! LETS DO THIS!"


Don't miss our "American Idol" live stream "Judging the Judges: An 'Idol' Without Simon," featuring post-show analysis from Jim Cantiello and special guests, on MTV.com tonight at 10 p.m. ET. Tweet your "Idol" commentary with the hashtag #idolwithoutsimon, and we could quote you on the show!

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Investing in social media can offer high reward with high risks

Earlier this month, California investment company NeXt BDC Capital Corp. started a closed-end mutual fund to buy shares in fast-growing private tech startups, which could include Facebook and other social media. That would give the public, who can buy closed-end shares that are traded like stocks, a chance to get in on the action.


And some mutual funds are reporting stakes in social media, though those investments are often only a fraction of a fund's portfolio. Baltimore's T. Rowe Price Group was one of several companies reportedly in talks to buy stakes in online deal site Groupon. Price is not commenting, but after avoiding the tech fads during the Internet bubble, the company has dabbled in the social media space through several of its funds.


But while early investing can mean the potential payoff is greater, so are the risks.


For every powerhouse like Google, there are dozens of Internet companies that flop. Still, a decade after the dot-com bubble that burst, there is no shortage of investors trying to get a piece of the next online blockbuster.


Lately, much of the hype has centered on social media.


While many of the big names — Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter — may sell stock publicly through IPOs one day, they have been raising capital by selling stakes to institutional investors, venture capitalists and wealthy investors. Mom-and-pop investors — and users of social media — also are angling for ways to invest in these private companies.


With little public information about the financial performance of social media, it's difficult to put a value on these private companies and many other tech startups, analysts said. And questions remain about whether the hot startups can turn a profit and sustain it.


"The question for investors is when you look at some of the private companies out there, are they the next Google or not?" said Jordan Rohan, an Internet analyst at Stifel Nicolaus. "There's no easy answer to that."


"One of the major issues — this goes back to the dot-com crisis and the bubble effect — is everything is based on an estimation," said Roger Staiger, an adjunct professor of finance at Johns Hopkins University's Carey School of Business. "It's not really based on real cash projection."


Investors also need to consider the fluidity of social media — where technology, trends and consumer interest can swiftly change, analysts said.


Just a few years ago, MySpace was the dominant social networking website, and it was snatched up by News Corp. for $580 million in 2005. But Facebook has now taken over, and MySpace announced plans last week to lay off nearly half of its work force.


"Sustaining a social network allure is difficult to achieve," said Rohan of Stifel. "So far, Facebook and a handful of others have done so. The allure of MySpace has faded."


But unlike the buying frenzy during the 1990s dot-com boom, which pumped up the stocks of many companies, today's investors are putting up the cash for a more select group of private startups, said Harry Weller, a general partner of venture capital firm NEA, an early investor in Groupon.


"People are more focused on investing in the winners because of the lessons learned during the Internet bubble," said Weller, who is based in NEA's Chevy Chase office and sits on Groupon's board.


Indeed, venture capitalists and other big investors are pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into recognizable names.


Such trades have drawn the attention of the Securities and Exchange Commission, which is looking into whether it enables some firms to avoid public financial disclosure requirements. SecondMarket said this month that it received a request for information regarding "pre-IPO pooled investment funds" and is cooperating with the regulator's inquiry.


Staiger of the Carey business school said such private investment should be limited to wealthy individuals because "common shareholders are not going to understand the complexity of the product."


Goldman Sachs, which bought a stake in Facebook for $450 million a few weeks ago, recently offered its wealthy clients an opportunity to buy shares of the social networking site now valued at $50 billion. Groupon raised $950 million during its most recent private fund-raising. Groupon is pushing ahead with plans for a public offering that could value the company at $15 billion, according to published reports late last week.


Wealthy individuals can buy private stocks of Facebook, Twitter and other tech startups on secondary trading markets like SecondMarket and SharesPost.


Individuals must have income exceeding $200,000 or $1 million in assets to trade stocks on these secondary exchanges. On SecondMarket, for instance, the average transaction size is $2 million, according to spokeswoman Aishwarya Iyer.

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Miss America 2011 Teresa Scanlan, Winner Good Or Bad Example For Girls?

Teresa Scanlan, Miss Nebraska, was crowned the Miss America 2011 winner at last night’s Miss America Pageant. As one of the youngest Miss America contestants to ever compete in the pageant, Teresa Scanlan beat Miss Arkansas to take the crown.


Teresa Scanlan has done work in the past to help girls with eating disorders, but by participating in a competition where beauty and perfection is the main focus, is she contradicting her work?


The Miss America pageant does come with a scholarship prize, and the Miss America winner always goes on to do charity and volunteer work, etc. There is an academic component to the pageant, but honestly, have you ever seen a Miss America contestant who wasn’t drop-dead gorgeous and a size 2?


Many young girls were likely watching the Miss America Pageant with their parents last night and looked on in awe at all of those beautiful ladies on stage. Now that Teresa Scanlan is Miss America 2011, she will serve as a role model to girls across this country. As the winner of a beauty pageant, is Teresa Scanlan setting a good or bad example for our youth?

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James Cameron's "Avatar" was the year's box-office champion

James Cameron's "Avatar" was the year's box-office champion, grossing $117.1 million. Two other 3D movies, "Shrek Forever After" and "Alice in Wonderland," made the box office top ten.

Revenues increased by 43% from $736.2 million in the previous year to $1.05 billion.
"The increase was obviously due to the large-scale spread of the 3D format," Alexei Ryazantsev, general director of the distributor Karo-Premier, told The Hollywood Reporter. "Movies like 'Avatar,' 'Clash of the Titans' and 'Alice in Wonderland' were primarily responsible for the rise. And the number of screens suitable for 3D nearly doubled during the last year."

He added that the trend is likely to continue this year, but viewers will pay more attention to quality, and the very fact of a film being in 3D will no longer be sufficient for a good box office performance.



Meanwhile, local fare didn't do very well. Russian films' share in the total box office plummeted for a second year in a row, from 24% to 15%.

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Batman - 'Million Dollar Money Drop' random facts

First up was the most popular boy's name in 2009. Jacob (Thanks, "Twilight"!) was the correct answer over Michael and Ethan. Next, we have "Which celebrity woman has been divorced the most?" The choices were Christie Brinkley, Heather Locklear, Drew Barrymore and Britney Spears. The correct answer was Brinkley and Locklear.

Another random fact we learned from the episode was that Christian Bale starred in the highest grossing "Batman" movie, beating out Michael Keaton and George Clooney.

Also, did you know that "American Pie" is the longest classic rock and roll song? Well, now you do. "American Pie" is 8 and 1/2 minutes long, while "Bohemian Rhapsody" is around 5 minutes and "Ramblin' Man" clocks in at 4 minutes and 48 seconds. This question knocked out the first girls playing in the episode and the two split their money between "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "Ramblin' Man." Kind of funny considering "American Pie" almost doubles their running time, no?

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