foolZONE Special Reports for April 1, 2006
Fox Broadcasting today confirmed rumors that Paul McGoldrick, Editor-in-Chief of analogZONE, a popular on-line engineering magazine, will be trading places with Simon Cowell, the notoriously outspoken judge on the hit reality TV series American Idol. McGoldrick will take Simon's place at the judges' table during the next installment of the show, and Cowell has agreed to fill in at analogZONE by providing product reviews and editorials during McGoldrick's absence.
McGoldrick, known for his vast knowledge of electronics and the electronics industry, as well as his ability to hold a grudge, said that he welcomed the opportunity to take some time off from the high drama of Silicon Valley and spend a few weeks in the relatively tranquil and modest environment of Hollywood's entertainment industry. "Compared to the inflated egos, intrigue, and bogus technologies I usually have to deal with every week, telling a bunch of no-talent twits that they are a waste of precious oxygen will be a vacation for me," said McGoldrick.
We had been looking around for quite a while for a stand-in to let Simon take a well-deserved break" said Trevor Barnes, the show's executive producer. "It was a stroke of luck to find someone who is as opinionated, outspoken and downright cantankerous as Paul."
"I can't think of anyone we'd rather have on the show with us," added Paula Abdul, one of the other two original judges who will continue to appear in the next season's competition. "I've read a few of his product reviews and editorials on analogZONE, and I'm sure he'll be just as tough on the contestants as Simon is."
Unnamed Fox executives denied other rumors that people have been complaining that Cowell become a little soft, and that they wanted to get someone in there who could restore the edgy feeling to the show.
Cowell, who had studied electrical engineering before beginning his show-business career, said that he was looking forward to taking over some of McGoldrick's editorial duties at analogZONE during the next season of American Idol. "I'm not sure I can come close to filling Paul's shoes," said Cowell during a recent interview, "but I've admired his work for a long time and it's going to be great to finally have the chance to really say what I think without worrying about who I piss off".
Despite Cowell's promise to uphold analogZONE's tradition for feisty relations with the movers and shakers in the industry, Brainy Halavah, CEO of Nationalist Demiconductor expressed relief at McGoldrick's temporary absence. "No matter how cranky Simon gets, it's going to be a welcome break to have two months when I don't have to wake up each Monday and worry about what analogZONE's saying about us this week," he commented.
During the two-months McGoldrick is on the show, Lee Goldberg, analogZONE's Sr. Section Editor and Night Janitor,
will handle the administrative tasks normally performed by the absent Editor
and Chief. This will be a change of plans for Goldberg, who had been planning
to take several weeks off himself to star in the pilot for a remake of Green Acres,
a popular Sixties-era sitcom. In the new series, Goldberg is slated to play
the role of Mr. Douglas, an aging baby-boomer executive who buys an organic
dairy farm in Northern Marin County in an attempt to reconnect with the
land and his Hippie-era roots. "The offer from Fox caught us by surprise,
but I'm glad to postpone my own personal project to let Paul pursue his
dream," said Goldberg.