OK, the rumor mill is just getting silly. “Amy Andrews Gossip Girl” at Irish Central reports that deposed “Tonight Show” host Conan O’Brien is in the running to fill the judge position on “American Idol” opening up as Simon Cowell exits.
That would certainly be going a different direction than the current negotiations that Fox is having with Howard Stern.
Stern, by the way, is not mentioned in the Irish Central report, no doubt because he’s not an Irish American. Andrews does mention Elton John, Piers Morgan, Jamie Foxx and Tommy Mattola. OK, they’re not all Irish either.
RBR-TVBR observation: First of all, Conan would have to spend the next many months taking nasty lessons to qualify. He never even let any public display of anger slip out during the ugly negotiations with NBC, so how could he possibly be able to tear into aspiring singers he doesn’t even know? It would be like having a second Ellen Degeneres on the show, but taller and with red hair.
