Dorothy Lucey says goodbye to Jillian, 'Good Day L.A.'

For the first time in 17 years, Fox 11’s "Good Day L.A." aired without Dorothy Lucey as permanent co-host this week, as fans continued protests that began last week via Twitter, Facebook and posts on the television station’s website.

After being fired from the show she helmed with Steve Edwards and frenemy/“sister” Jillian (Barberie) Reynolds, Lucey was free to take her middle-school-age son to school Tuesday and to begin laying plans for a post-"GDLA" future.

“I was really surprised and deeply touched,” Lucey said about the many social media messages supporting her over the last week. “Morning TV is kind of intimate. People are watching you in their jammies and they feel close to you.”

Lucey has been talking to producer Nigel Lythgoe (“So You Think You Can Dance”) about a show focused on the charitable group run by “The Good News Girls” — Los Angeles new personalities Lucey, Wendy Burch, Pat Harvey, Ana Garcia and Christine Devine.

She has also been contacted by other TV executives and pondered writing a book. The subject? “God and gossip,” she said. “I have been torn as a nice Christian girl who has done a lot of smutty gossip reporting in her life. That has been big and push and pull.”

Lucey had said last week she didn’t feel much like sitting through a send-off program celebrating her KTTV tenure, particularly for the same managers who declined to renew her contract. “The suits, as they fired me, they asked me and I don’t want to celebrate being fired,” she said on the air.

But as it turned out, her co-hosts noted her departure on both Thursday and Friday — Reynolds by apologizing for some unflattering comments she made about Lucey when Reynolds was a guest on Howard Stern’s radio show.

“I’ve said some dumb, dumb things and I just want to say,” Reynolds began, before apparently choking back tears, “I just want to say, I think that’s what’s made this show what it is, that you and I have not always agreed. But we are like sisters and…. I love you.”

Reynolds blamed The Times for using the Lucey departure to raise the old accounts about feuding between the co-hosts. “That was so five years ago,” she told the audience, while suggesting that the newspaper wanted to write bad things about the morning show in order to help rival KTLA Channel 5. KTLA, like The Times, is owned by Tribune Co.

Although some bloggers mocked the teary rapprochement between the two women, a source close to Lucey said she appreciated Barberie’s words. The two have become close, despite past disputes,  said the source, who asked not to be named while sharing a private conversation with Lucey.

Among those tweeting their support to Lucey in recent days have been television personalities Simon Cowell and Piers Morgan. Wrote Cowell: “I love Good Day LA. But cannot imagine it without Dorothy. I wish they would change their minds. I really, really like her.”

Former sitcom star and fitness maven Suzanne Somers, who saw her run on the mega-hit “Three’s Company” cut short by a contract dispute, also tweeted support for Lucey. “U will be missed,” she wrote. “I remember another show with three people they broke up the chemistry over a contract.”

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-- James Rainey

Twitter: latimesrainey 

Photo: Dorothy Lucey, left, Steve Edwards and Jillian Reynolds of "Good Day L.A." are seen in 2000. Credit: Adam Sheridan Taylor / KTTV

'American Idol': Jessica Sanchez talks up Phillip Phillips

If Jessica Sanchez sounded a little tired when she got on the phone Thursday to take questions from reporters, who could blame her? Less than 24 hours before, the 16-year-old power singer had not only been named the Season 13 runner-up on "American Idol," losing the win to 21-year-old Phillip Phillips, she'd also turned in a duet of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" with original "Dreamgirls" star Jennifer Holliday that brought the house down. (Phillips said it was his favorite moment of the finale.)

"It was so much fun," Sanchez said of the remarkable duet. "I was in the moment and so was she. And we were making, like, the most ridiculous faces, I know. We were just digging really deep … and singing the heck out of that song."

As "Idol" watchers know, singing the heck out of the song is what Sanchez does best, and she's promising an album that will be a little bit urban, a little R&B, and just a pinch of pop – "but not much," she adds. "Not like bubble gum."

Here's what else she gave fans to chew over:

Phillips on 'American Idol': 'I'm not that great a singer'

Only hours after being declared the winner of Season 11 of "American Idol," Phillip Phillips still sounded like he was struggling to grasp the dimensions of his accomplishment when he got on the phone Thursday to take calls from reporters.

"It's so unreal," he said, allowing that, yes, he was feeling relieved that the competition was over, but also sort of bowled over by the dramatic changes in his life the win would bring. "It's kind of crazy."

Still, though Phillips insists he hadn't expected to win -– "I honestly thought [runner-up Jessica Sanchez] was gonna win; she has such an amazing voice" -– he's nevertheless planned for the next stage in his musical career, which he'll be able to focus on without health distractions as soon as he gets his much-needed kidney surgery "pretty soon." (He expects to be 100% recovered by the time the "Idol" tour kicks off this summer.)  

His first album, he said, will fuse rock and jazz and acoustic elements into his own trademark sound. "I'm really excited to get it out there. It's gonna be cool."

Here's what else "Idol's" newest winner had to say:

'American Idol' 2012: Record-low ratings for Phillip Phillips victory

It was a great night for Phillip Phillips, but for "American Idol," maybe not so much.

Phillips, a husky-voiced troubadour, conquered Season 11 as expected on Wednesday night's two-hour finale, slipping past his last competitor, 16-year-old chanteuse Jessica Sanchez. But the Fox show itself slunk to the lowest "Idol" finale ratings ever, with 20.7 million tuning in, according to preliminary figures from Nielsen.

That's an alarming 29% drop compared with last season and in line with "Idol's" overall decline this year, as audiences have seemed to tire of a glut of singing shows that includes NBC's "The Voice" and Fox's own "The X Factor." Fox predicts viewership will rise to 21.5 million once final figures arrive Thursday afternoon, but that would still make it the least-watched "Idol" finale ever, including Season 1 back in September 2002 (23 million).

"Idol's" most-watched finale was in May 2003, with 38.1 million viewers.

In the key category of adults ages 18 to 49, this season's finale ebbed to a 6.1 rating/18 share, down more than one-third compared with last season's closer, indicating that "Idol" is losing appeal among young adults even more quickly than it is among the general population.

Male vocalists have now won "American Idol" for five consecutive seasons. The last female singer to win was Jordin Sparks in Season 6. After being named the winner, Phillips began singing his victory song but was overcome with emotion and stopped singing to hug his family.

What did you think of the "Idol" finale and Phillips' victory?

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— Scott Collins (twitter.com/scottcollinsLAT)

Photo: "American Idol" winner Phillip Phillips performs his victory song at show's end Wednesday. Credit: Michael Becker / Fox.

'American Idol' finale recap: Phillip Phillips takes the win

After a record-breaking 132 million votes were tallied -– and just for perspective, that's more votes than were cast in the 2008 presidential election -- the winner of "American Idol" Season 11 is Phillip Phillips.

Not Jessica Sanchez.

Most of us probably aren't terribly surprised -– yes, the cute white guy won again, for the fifth straight year -– but perhaps, we can be forgiven for feeling a little disappointed. It would not only have been gratifying to see a young woman snap that streak; it would have been particularly pleasing to see Sanchez, the 16-year-old singer with the preternaturally powerful voice, be the one to snap it.

VIDEO: A season of songs from Phillip and Jessica

She was a hard worker, a proud child of a military man, an American of Mexican and Filipino heritage, a come-from-behind contender who had returned strong after her near-elimination. Sanchez was the antithesis of the white male who coasts to victory –- or perhaps is carried there by a bevy of smitten teenyboppers.

Which is not to say that Phillips, of whom I am an avowed fan, didn't earn his win. Struggling with health issues throughout the competition and eschewing some of the show's more crass aspects, he stayed unwaveringly true to himself and his talent. But he also allowed himself to grow, stretching his range, testing his voice, embracing different sorts of music and bigger production values.

Both contestants, the winner and the runner-up, in their best performances, could make the fine hairs on the backs of your arms stand up. (Jennifer Lopez has ruined that gauge of talent with her "goosies" references, but that doesn't stop us from feeling that tickle.) And yes, both stand to stake out stellar careers in the music biz.

Each of their talents was amply on display during the finale Wednesday night. Phillips' guitar-strumming duet with Creedence Clearwater Revival's John Fogerty –- on "Have You Ever Seen the Rain" and "Bad Moon Rising" -- seemed to suit him like a favorite flannel shirt. Sanchez's "I Will Always Love You" solo was impressive, but her duet with "Dreamgirls" star Jennifer Holliday on "And I Am Telling You I Am Not Going" blew the roof off the place.

On a night that also included performances by Rihanna, Jennifer Lopez, Aerosmith, Fantasia Barrino (who sang with third-place-finisher Joshua Ledet), Chaka Kahn, Neil Diamond, Jordin Sparks (who performed with Hollie Cavanagh, who came in fourth this season), Reba McEntire (who sang with Skylar Laine) and (repeatedly) this season's top 12, the Sanchez/Holliday number was unrivalled in its power and excitement and pure vocal virtuosity.

It was a propitious marriage of voices, and the evening also offered the promise of a real marriage between two former "Idol" contestants: Diana DeGarmo (second place, Season 3) and Ace Young (seventh place, Season 5). Yes, with Ryan Seacrest supervising from just a few feet away, Young got down on one knee and proposed to DeGarmo, ring and all. (After Seacrest faked us out, making us briefly think he was proposing to his girlfriend, Julianne Hough, the other week, it may have taken viewers a few seconds to believe Young was popping the question in earnest.)

But the biggest moment of the evening, of course, was the big reveal. After a few words of thanks from the two finalists, Seacrest issued his request that the lights be dimmed.

"After a record-breaking 132 million votes, the winner of 'American Idol' Season 11 is … Phillip Phillips."

How did Phillips take the news? He wept like a champ, getting through only part of his "winner's song," "Home," which we can probably look forward to hearing under next season's departing-contestant highlight reels, before becoming too overcome with emotion -– as the confetti tumbled from above –- to continue. So he left the stage and headed straight into the audience, where his family awaited him.

The 21-year-old crooner from Leesburg, Ga., had brought home the win and was heading home a victor. But the music and his bright future would have to wait. First, he just needed a hug from his mom.

I hope Sanchez got one from her mom too.

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-- Amy Reiter

Photo: Runner-up Jessica Sanchez embraces Phillip Phillips on "American Idol." Credit: John Shearer / Invision / AP

'American Idol' finale: The Season 11 winner is ...

And so after what must be acknowledged as an evening packed with show-stopping, star-studded performances as well as a marriage proposal (former contestants Ace Young and Diana DeGarmo are engaged) –- and after a record-breaking 132 million votes were officially tallied -- we have our Season 11 "American Idol" winner, America: Phillip Phillips.

The 21-year-old guitar-playing crooner from Leesburg, Ga., brought the win home on the action-packed finale of "American Idol" on Wednesday night, making him the show's fifth straight white male winner and depriving runner-up, 16-year-old power vocalist Jessica Sanchez, of her chance to break that streak.

And if any of us ever wondered if the competition or the win actually meant all that much to Phillips, who said for him it was all about the music and had pledged to stay his course with integrity and a firm grasp on who he was (and who he wasn't), we sure got our answer. After singing only a bit of his "winner's song," "Home," Phillips dissolved into tears: unable to sing, unable to play, and ultimately, unable even to stand on that stage as the confetti fell like a massive blizzard all around him.

VIDEO | Performances: Jessica Sanchez and Phillip Philips

With the music still playing, the backup singers singing, the marching band still drumming, Phillips, who'd struggled past health issues to stay in the running, took off his guitar and walked off the stage -- past the other contestants and the judges -- and straight into the arms of his waiting family, bringing home the emotions, the stakes and the implications of his victory.

He will keep on making the music that means so much to him. And now, he'll do it as the 11th winner of "American Idol."

He's gonna make this music world a … home.

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-- Amy Reiter

Photo: Phillip Phillips and Jessica Sanchez with Ryan Seacrest on 'American Idol.' Credit: Michael Becker / Fox.

'House' series finale provokes fan tears

After eight seasons and several hundred brilliant diagnoses, there's no more "House."

And though Dr. Gregory House was cantankerous and arrogant and made his own share of enemies, the end of the series brought out its fair share of tears both off-screen and on.

Around 8.7 million viewers tuned in for "House's" final hurrah, up from the season average, which means many former fans returned just to see how the series would wrap up. (Warning: finale spoilers ahead.)

And what they got was a funeral. Dr. House's funeral, to be precise. House was trapped in a burning building and before he could get out, the thing exploded on him.

Even Phillip Phillips, Jessica Sanchez can't save 'Idol' ratings

Phillip Phillips sang "Stand by Me" -- but, still, relatively few viewers stood by "American Idol" on Tuesday. 

Tuesday's show -- the last before either Phillips or Jessica Sanchez is crowned the winner Wednesday -- delivered "Idol's" lowest-rated and least-watched performance finale ever, according to Nielsen.

"Idol" earned a 4.2 rating/13 share in the key demographic of adults aged 18 to 49, its worst outing since the show premiered back in summer 2002.

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The one-hour performance finale delivered 14.4 million total viewers, another record low for "Idol" and far worse than the two-hour season finale for "Dancing With the Stars" that started at 9 p.m. (17.4 million, also a new low for that show).

On the bright side for Fox, "Idol" easily won the 8 p.m. hour and provided a solid lead-in for the season finale for "Glee" at 9 p.m. (7.6 million).

Many fans and commentators have predicted Phillips will win the show, although Sanchez is considered the more accomplished technically of the two. On Tuesday, Phillips won plaudits for his new song "Home."

What did you think of "Idol's" last performance show? Why do you think the ratings were weak?

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--Scott Collins (twitter.com/scottcollinsLAT)

Photo: Phillip Phillips is facing off against Jessica Sanchez for the "American Idol" crown. Credit: Michael Becker/Associated Press.

'American Idol' recap: Jessica Sanchez, Phillip Phillips vie for the win

Well, America, who will it be? Jessica Sanchez, the powerhouse singer with the gorgeous tone, total control and just enough grit to make it seem perfectly imperfect, or Phillip Phillips, the soulful crooner with a sound all his own?

The 16-year-old with a sweet smile, a perhaps precocious taste for high heels and a passionate performance style, or the sly guy with a sneaky glint in his eye, a handsomely scruffy look, twitchy tendencies onstage and a steady insistence on doing things his own way?

The girl, who'd be the first female winner in years and the only contestant ever to have made it to the finals after having been saved by the judges, or the boy, who resembles the show's recent winners and has never been in real danger of elimination?

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Personally, I like them both, though in different ways and for different reasons. I like the way Phillips sings. I admire that he is who he is and no one else. I find his performance style peculiarly riveting. I dig his guitar riffs and I really like that chicken walk he sometimes does and the mad-bird stomp. I even find it cute that he has a hard time saying anything coherent into a mic, like a young Elvis and prefers to let his music speak for him. It makes him seem winningly shy and genuine.

Also Phillips has all along been the contestant whose album I'd be most likely to buy. (Elise Testone, perhaps, too.)

But let me be clear, Sanchez has the better voice. And it's a singing competition. If we were to choose a winner by vocal power and tone and beauty alone, Sanchez would win. Hands down. Case closed. End of story.

So who will win? It's anyone's guess, and it's hard to predict how Tuesday night's final performance show will tip the balance. Sanchez power-balladed. Phillips crooned. The judges said a few wishy-washy things. And then, after Phillips sang his final song, they gave him a standing ovation and indicated they thought he just might have hit a game-winning home run.

In fact, both contestants did well, overall, with some performances better than others. Each sang three songs: Round 1 was Simon Fuller's choice. Round 2 was the contestants' choice, reprising a song they had previously sung on the show. Round 3 was their official "winner's song," the first single they'll release following the competition. Phillips, who had won a coin toss, had chosen to perform second, giving him an advantage.

In Round 1, Sanchez turned in a powerful, polished performance of Whitney Houston's "I Have Nothing." Phillips responded with a sleepy take on the classic "Stand by Me." After some noncommittal hemming and hawing from Lopez about how voters should pick the person who made them "feel something," Randy Jackson gave the first round "probably" to Sanchez. The other judges ultimately agreed.

Round 2 was closer. Sanchez soulfully sang "The Prayer," which Ryan Seacrest reminded us had "earned her a spot in the top 24." Phillips reprised "Movin' Out," from Billy Joel night, giving a somewhat less exciting, yet also somehow sleeker and more confident performance than he had the first time around. The judges were split, with Tyler giving the round to Sanchez, Jackson calling it "a dead heat," and Lopez contending Phillips claimed it, thanks to his authenticity.

In Round 3, Sanchez was saddled with a "winner's song," "Change Nothing," that was sort of a loser. She still sounded great on it, but there really wasn't much in the lyrics or the melody to connect to. The judges were not kind. Jackson said he "did not love the song," adding he missed Sanchez's urban "swag," but praised her for doing with it what she could. Lopez advised Sanchez to assert herself more, in future, when presented with material that didn't suit her, adding, "Everything has to be you, Jessica, so you can be you, which is really good." Tyler also "didn't feel like that song was the proper song," driving the point with a pitiful, "Yeah, baby."

Then Phillips gave his best performance of the night (though he hadn't set a terribly high bar), with "Home," on which he was backed by, among other things, a passel of marching drummers.

The judges gave him a standing O.

Jackson was beside himself. "Dude, I loved the song. I loved you. I loved the production. I loved the marching band. Everything about that was perfect. I loved it," he said, dubbing it a "true artist performance … brilliant … genius."

Lopez praised Phillips for being "so different," saying the song sounded like nothing on the radio today.

Tyler compared Phillips to Paul Simon and said, "By virtue of your vulnerability and style, you have made the world your home, my friend … and I think you are the man."

So does that mean Phillips has clinched this thing? Or will Sanchez's fans feel more motivated than ever now to vote for her?

We'll find out Wednesday. Who do you think should be crowned "American Idol's" Season 11 winner?

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Photo: Phillip Phillips, left, Jessica Sanchez and Ryan Seacrest on "American Idol" airing Tuesday, May 22, on Fox. Credit: Michael Becker / Fox.

Hugh Laurie talks about his long goodbye to 'House'

When Hugh Laurie first came to Los Angeles nine years ago to star in what he assumed would be a short-lived medical drama called "House," he stayed, as befits a man of his musical and comedic tendencies, at the Chateau Marmont. There, he said, life felt as if "the grown-ups had left and the place was being run by teenagers." He liked it so much he stayed until, finally convinced of the show's success, he bought a house and moved his family over.

Now "House" is over, but for the exit interviews. So it seems only fitting he would choose the same hotel where it all started. Only this time he's just here for the day; in a bit he'll begin a world tour with his band Copperbottom and leave the world of Dr. Gregory House far behind.

"It's a proper world tour," he said, as if he might not be believed. "I mean people say 'world tour' and it's two stops, but we're going from Buenos Aires to Moscow."

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Laurie is a tall man, lanky, and though he looks, obviously, like House, he also doesn't. There's no limp, for example, but an easy laugh and he smiles a lot, his mouth hooking up at the corner like a boy's. Walking into the room with his motorcycle helmet in one hand and gloves in the other, he exudes such an air of genuine congeniality that you wonder how exactly he suppressed it on camera for all those years.

It's been a long goodbye, he said, with weeks of farewells as this actor or that crew member shot their final scene.

"I got very emotional when Omar [Epps] left," Laurie said. "I did his test with him.  Robert [Sean Leonard] was the only one who shot right to the end, so we had our last day together. And he took off like a scalded cat; I suppose he knew it would be emotional. And that we would see each other soon so ..."

Although Laurie is clearly looking forward to the next leg of his professional journey, he said he will miss Gregory House.

"I don't feel he was my character; he's not like me, or I'm not like him, but I do love him. I think it's part of an actor's responsibility to love the character you play, and I found him endlessly unpredictable and funny and self-loathing and unhappy. I was attracted to and moved by his unhappiness," he added, "and by unhappiness in general. Unhappiness is an unfinished state; happy people don't need our help."

Critic's Notebook: Farewell to 'House,' which remained true to itself

Time takes a toll on us all, no more so than characters of long-running TV shows. All narrative demands transformation of one sort of another and multiple seasons of revelations, realizations and shifting relationships work like the pounding surf against rock, softening the edges of even the most complicated personalities. By the final season of “MASH,” everyone was a good guy; it took only three seasons of “Glee” to turn Sue Sylvester into an applauding fan of New Directions.

So, as we prepare for the series finale, it is worth pausing for a moment to salute the people behind “House,” namely creator David Shore and actor Hugh Laurie, two maestros who have pulled off a near-miraculous feat: After eight long and occasionally crazy seasons, their title character departs with all his amazing faculties and flaws intact.

Dr. Gregory House is arguably the best and certainly the most influential character to appear on network television in the last decade. As played by Laurie, he answered the question many of us ask ourselves daily: What would life be like if you honest to God didn't care what anyone thought of you? Loosely based on Sherlock Holmes, House was brilliant and clearly broken (both physically and emotionally). He saved lives by solving cases, but his satisfaction came from the solution, not the salvation. “Everybody lies” was his mantra, proving it his life's work — the truth would out, no matter what the cost to him, to his patients, to those around him.

In the wake of the show’s success, that template became standard issue; every other TV detective (including a modern relaunch of Holmes himself on BBC) now comes equipped with a special ability to detect mendacity and a broken heart protectively rimed. But eight years ago, it was quite breathtaking; House was as instantly iconic as Tony Soprano.

Along with the limp, the Vicodin addiction and the refusal to shave, Shore and his writers wisely gave their medical detective a quick, black humor, which made Laurie an inspired casting choice. An accomplished comedian and musician, he not only nailed the punch lines and the pain, he infused them with an ecstatic soulfulness. House may have been an avowed atheist, but there were times when he looked like nothing so much as a hollow-eyed prophet, wandering the halls of Princeton Memorial waiting for the gods to speak.

Not every season of “House” worked as well as others. Chances were taken, with cast and story, and not all of them panned out. And there was a certain level of degeneration built in to both the genre and the character; even Arthur Conan Doyle famously got tired of all the brilliant deductions. More so than most shows, “House” often seemed to rest almost entirely on the strength of its main character, and one wondered just how long Laurie, and those writing for him, could keep things going.

Eight seasons, as it turns out, was just right. It isn't often that a show's final year is as good as its first, but it's true in this case, even with the rather crazy jail time (House in the big house) that opened things.

'American Idol' recap: Joshua Ledet goes out with style

No matter who was eliminated on "American Idol" Thursday night, it would have felt like a shocker. All three finalists -- Joshua Ledet, Jessica Sanchez and Phillip Phillips -- were in solid contention for the win. But heading into the finale, one of them had to go home, and that person was … Joshua Ledet.

Of course, the judges gave him one last standing ovation.

How many had they given him over the previous weeks? It was nearly impossible to keep count -- though, at least for a while, his fellow contestants apparently had. It may be that all of that judge enthusiasm had cost Ledet the win -- turning voters off or luring his fans into believing he was safe and therefore not in need of their votes. Or the judges' high praise may have been a key factor in his staying as long as he had.

We'll never know. But going out in third place ain't bad. And Ledet will likely forge a perfectly respectable – yes, Randy Jackson, perhaps even "ginormous" – career in music from here.

In any event, Ledet could hardly have taken the news better. At the show's outset, he told Ryan Seacrest he felt they were "all winners" to have made it as far as they had, and that if he was not able to continue to the finale, he'd be voting for the two remaining contestants, both his friends, because they were "amazing."

He'd also shown admirable humility and gratitude after mentor Jimmy Iovine assessed the performances he'd given the previous night. Iovine said Ledet had had a "good night," though not his best, and said the judges had been "very generous" to him on his first song, Etta James' "I'd Rather Go Blind." Iovine was no fan of Ledet's take on John Lennon's "Imagine," either, feeling that his "exciting showman" talents were wasted on the song, and that he'd overcompensated for the song's simplicity with "riffs and runs." It was, Iovine said, "kind of like putting a Ferrari in a racetrack and leaving it in first gear."

Iovine had kinder words for Ledet when it came to his own song choice, Mary J. Blige's "No More Drama," on which he felt he'd hampered the singer with "a song that didn't have enough melody." "Joshua needs melody," the veteran producer said, adding that the fact that Ledet did as well with the song as he had was testament to his talent. "Does Joshua belong in this finale? 100 percent. He should be in anyone's finale," Iovine said.

"I listen to everything Jimmy says," Ledet said afterward, noting that Iovine had been in the business "for so long." "I look up to him and he's always right," he said.

But if Iovine's praise for Ledet was a finale prediction, it turned out to be one time he was not right at all.

After Adam Lambert and Lisa Marie Presley had both sung their songs, the Season 11 top three were gathered to hear the results of the audience vote.

Sanchez, who had not had a strong night Wednesday and had been saved from elimination earlier in the season, was the first contestant to learn she'd made it to the finale.

Even she looked stunned by the good news.

That left Ledet and Phillips -- and Phillips had been credited with having the biggest "moment" on the show the previous night. (Iovine said that with his version of Bob Seger's "We've Got Tonight," Phillips had "won the night.")

If only for that reason (and not, say, because Phillips, as an attractive white guy, resembles other recent "Idol" winners), it wasn't a total shock to hear that, of the two, Ledet was the one who'd been sent home.

Ledet finished his "Idol" run with "It's a Man's Man's Man's World." During his performance, he hugged the two singers who'd bested him for the finale and the "Idol" judges who'd often deemed him the best, and never missed a beat. Then Ledet brought his mom onstage, a very sweet tribute that made his final moment not just a "moment" but, perhaps, a "moment-moment" or even a "moment-moment-moment."

For that gesture, and for a season of passion and dedication, Ledet deserves, yes, a standing O as he departs the "Idol" stage.

Are you sad to see him go?

'Idol' vs. 'The Voice'

More than 300,000 reader votes have been cast in The Times' agnostic poll on the talent on the Fox and NBC singing competitions. Even before the results Thursday, San Diego native Sanchez had the most so far, with Phillips in second place and Ledet in third. Juliet Sims has the most votes for any "Voice" contender.

The poll below includes the top 15 reader vote-getters. Vote for your favorites and check back to see Friday to see who tops the chart and where our experts stand on the talent after watching all season.

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— Amy Reiter

Photo: Joshua Ledet performs on "American Idol," airing Wednesday, May 16, on Fox. Credit: Michael Becker / Fox