TVSquad

With Clay Aiken having wrapped up his run as Sir Robin in Spamalot, the Idol quotient on Broadway was down. Fortunately for theatergoers, it's Taylor Hicks to the rescue. Kind of. He's a bit of a step down from Clay Aiken, isn't he? I mean, Clay's new album debuted at number four, and Taylor was dropped from his label.

Whichever way you see it, Hicks will be joining the cast of Grease to take on the role of Teen Angel. Should you be in the area, you can head over to the Brooks Atkinson Theater and hear his version of "Beauty School Dropout." An interesting TV side-note, this production of Grease stars Laura Osnes and Max Crumm. You may remember them as being the winners of the ill-fated NBC show, You're The One That I Want.

I'm trying to think back in my mental Rolodex to the season of American Idol that featured Katharine McPhee and Taylor Hicks. I know that Simon Cowell wasn't too big on Hicks, but didn't he at some point praise McPhee and her singing?

That seems to have been forgotten by Cowell. He tells ExtraTV.com that he "didn't care much for Katharine McPhee. I don't think she was a credible recording artist. Katharine will end up on Broadway!"

It's a no-brainer really. Last year's American Idol charity-special, "Idol Gives Back," racked up killer ratings for FOX and raised $75 million for charities in the U.S. and Africa. And more importantly it brought in killer ratings for FOX (did I say that already)! Of course they're going to do it again this year, and now according to Variety, they've set the date for "Idol Gives Back 2008." April 9, 8/7c the two-hour star-studded extravaganza will once again bombard our retinas.