Talk:Simon Cowell

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is within the scope of the Idol series WikiProject, a collaborative effort to improve and organize Wikipedia's coverage of the Idol series. If you would like to participate, you can edit the article attached to this page, or visit the project page, where you can join the project and/or contribute to the discussion.
B This article has been rated as B-Class on the Project's quality scale.
(If you rated the article please give a short summary at comments to explain the ratings and/or to identify the strengths and weaknesses.)
Mid This article has been rated as Mid-importance on the Project's importance scale.
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Biography. For more information, visit the project page.
Biography Portal
B This article has been rated as B-Class on the project's quality scale. [FAQ]
Photo request It is requested that a picture or pictures of this person be included in this article to improve its quality.

Note: Wikipedia's non-free content use policy almost never permits the use of non-free images (such as promotional photos, press photos, screenshots, book covers and similar) to merely show what a living person looks like. Efforts should be made to take a free licensed photo during a public appearance, or obtaining a free content release of an existing photo instead.


Contents

[edit] Removed

I changed the spelling of 'millenium' to 'millennium'. This is a common error, even on shop-fronts. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Slyzenoui (talk • contribs) 00:26, 7 December 2007 (UTC)


you should include this:

"Simon rejects £1 million offer to be face of Viagra" http://www.nydailynews.com/gossip/2008/03/03/2008-03-03_simon_cowell_rejects_viagra_offer.html —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.130.136.55 (talk) 01:23, 7 March 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Brighton or Elstree?

[edit] Removed

"I hate him, he said I couldn't sing and look wierd. :(" (Cipher Destiny 18:46, 26 August 2006 (UTC))

[edit] If this helps...

Julie Cowell was brought up in the city of Brighton and the family did live there for a number of years. It seems that they moved after the birth of Nick. Julie Cowell moved back to Brighton and now lives in Ovingdean, just east of the city centre. Nick got married a couple of years ago in the nearby village of Rottingdean.

[edit] IDOL

Never watched IDOL was but I did play in a band signed (and still signed) with Virgin. The question: why are non-musicians and pop star has beens (I haven't played for years so that's me as well by the way) selected as judges?

Because real stars have better gigs.

[edit] Picture

Can't we have a better picture then a black-and-white one with his nose blocked by some words? Maybe someone could get one of him on The X Factor? Thelb4 20:41, 23 November 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Monolithic article

Hi, Wasted Time, I am not sure about that, that the article doesn't work with separately-headed sections. It could be done in such a way that separate sections bring in different aspects of his life or career. It works with almost any other article. This way, it is just one monolithic slab where one has to go through the whole to find separate aspects every time one looks for them. Don't forget, as time goes on more and more will be added, and eventually it will certainly be necessary, to make it more convenient. The only thing is that it may need to be reorganised somewhat, but I am sure it can be done. Dieter Simon 22:30, 4 January 2006 (UTC)

In the mean time someone else seems to have grappled with it in a different way and put a "Biography" section in. Dieter Simon
I'm not arguing against the desirability of separately-headed sections, I just didn't think the division points and titles you used were useful. It's hard, given the shape of his career, otherwise I would have done it myself. And if the material is reorganised, it will break the chronological sequence that it has now. Adding just one "Biography" section as someone did isn't very useful, unless it helps a Table of Contents float to the top, which isn't currently an issue. Wasted Time R 22:43, 4 January 2006 (UTC)
Agreed, as it stands. It's in the future when a lot more material has been added that someone will have to think about this again. Dieter Simon 01:13, 5 January 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Punk'D

Is there a way someone could elaborate on this? It would help to know the specifics of what happened on this show. --AWF

[edit] Removed - USA

Under Simon's Place of Birth it read Barnet, England, USA

I removed USA from the mini bio, as he was not born in the USA.

Of course he wasn't born in U.S., but is he a citizen by naturalization? —Chantessy 03:31, 21 April 2006 (UTC)

That's unlikely, Chantessy, considering he lives in England most of the time! Sky83 (talk) 12:42, 26 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Birthplace - Barnet or Brighton?

Googling "Simon Cowell" + "born in Barnet" returns only 9 results, whereas "Simon Cowell" + "born in Brighton" returns 216 results.

Does anyone have the definitve answer, with a reliable cite? Pufnstuf 21:15, 7 May 2006 (UTC)

The following influential sites all state Brighton definitely:
  • imdb
  • TV.com
  • www.hollywood.com
  • www.mytelevison.com
  • infoplease
  • uk.movies.yahoo
  • newsrefiew.info

Dieter Simon 00:44, 8 May 2006 (UTC)

I've just reverted to Barnet, and added cite needed tag. The problem is many of those sites just copy errors from one another, and imdb is not a reliable source. I found bbc and fox both have Barnet, but they could be wrong too. tv.com has "Birthplace: Brighton, England, UK"; hollywood.com has "Originally from Brighton"; yahoo is a copyvio of hollywood's bio; infoplease.com has "Birthplace: Brighton, England"; the bbc says Barnet and that his mother now lives near brighton, and his brother in London; newsreview.com has "Born in Brighton" by Associated Press writer Jill Lawless (possibly the best cite). Maybe someone needs to email his publicist Max Clifford at either max@mcapr.co.uk or Max.Clifford@speakers-uk.com -213.219.161.27 10:12, 16 May 2006 (UTC)
Isn't there a book that he (or a good ghost writer) wrote? None of these trivia sites are remotely reliable and we shouldn't use them for anything. I'll see if I can check the book on Amazon Mad Jack O'Lantern 04:47, 25 May 2006 (UTC)
Book says he "Grew up in Elstree". Words brighton or Barnet don't turn up. I'll put in "Grew up in Elstree" and remove the birth place until we can get an actual first-hand source (like an interview/in-depth profile, etc.) Mad Jack O'Lantern 04:51, 25 May 2006 (UTC)
Someone's reverted it back to Brighton without citing a reliable source (or any source for that matter). The Biography Channel says he was born in London [1], which rules out Brighton and makes Barnet sound more likely. Cowell's written an autobiography, I'm sure the correct information is in that.172.129.176.39 03:05, 6 September 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Net Worth

How can Cowell's net worth be less than his annual salary?

Because the latter has exploded (AI is only five years old), but only recently. --zenohockey 04:54, 31 May 2006 (UTC)
Net worth has nothing to do with salary (cash flow). -Nv8200p talk 20:07, 16 July 2006 (UTC)
Apparently he pays £21.7 million pounds sterling each year in tax, but only earns $43 million dollars? —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 217.42.81.144 (talk) 15:57, 16 December 2006 (UTC).


[edit] Cowell Jewish

What evidence is there that Cowell is Jewish? As with many articles, someone keeps claiming British media celebrities are Jewish, with no evidence.

dunno about Jewish but he has said tonight that he is 1/4 Scottish 86.2.178.168 21:09, 11 November 2006 (UTC)

How can he be listed as being Jewish, when his mother was Jewish and he wasn't brought up as a Jew?


Someone has put that SC has relations with animals. Surely this either needs to be references or removed - the former being prefered but sadly latter more likely.

the former being prefered but sadly latter more likely.

Oh, you are too funny... Imsuchadork 03:30, 29 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Sections

How many sections does this article need?! Trampikey (talk to me)(contribs) 19:10, 26 November 2006 (UTC)

15. — AnemoneProjectors (talk) 19:54, 26 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Removed

Somebody stated that the model Jasmine Lennard was a co host of the British show Pop Idol but she wasn't even famous when the show aired, I can only assume that the comment was made by someone who has never watched the UK Pop Idol which was hosted by two male presenters Ant and Dec.

In addition I removed an absurd and pointless addition "his sexuality has been questioned but he is admittedly straight"!!BumblebeeUK 01:56, 11 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Trivia

It stated that Simon had said "NO" to Kellie Pickler's audition, however that is not true. He said "YES".

[edit] Teletubbies?

Can anyone expound on Simon's relation to the teletubbies?

Are you asking this question because of the constestant Chris Sligh's recent retort to Simon on the show, in which he mentioned the Teletubbies? I suspect that it was a mistaken reference. Chris had probably read (here?) that Simon had created a song for the Power Rangers, but then on the show mistakenly (or maybe intentionally, thinking it was funny) mentioned the Teletubbies instead. WindUpRobot 05:36, 22 February 2007 (UTC)
Now to correct myself, here are some references to Simon and the Teletubbies courtesy of Google. WindUpRobot 05:42, 22 February 2007 (UTC)

Did he produce the teletubbies? JoeMystical 03:29, 26 February 2007 (UTC)

He was behind the Teletubbies releasing a single "Say Eh Oh" in the UK. I think it might have even charted. Not sure. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 79.65.252.179 (talk) 01:15, 29 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Private Life section confusing?

There are two names mentioned in the Private Life section for which there is no context. "Seymour" and "Lennard".

—The preceding unsigned comment was added by 205.158.128.162 (talk) 21:05, 6 March 2007 (UTC).

[edit] Teletubbies? Come on.

Cowell also had the idea for the childrens show "Teletubies".

First of all, if he did, find a source.

Second of all, spell it correctilly, pleese. David 07:55, 9 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] This article really needs a picture.

yes this article really needs a photo of simon... ... its a bit boring just reading the text. a picture will light it up.--Matrix17 16:17, 19 March 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Vandalism

I just reverted some vandalism:

Dead at Age 47 Due to tight black shirts, Simon Cowell's blood circulation was cut off and caused him to have a heart attack. He died in his hotel room after the Top 11 Finalist showing on March 20, 2007. More information to follow. Crion 01:57, 21 March 2007 (UTC)

LOL - platy nov 23 —Preceding comment was added at 22:10, 23 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Controversy

There should be a controversy section. He has been attacked by minorities, overweight people, feminists, homosexuals and other groups of losers for some of the comments he's made. BTW we all know that the only reason Idol has lasted this long is because people like me are eager to hear what Simon has to say.

  • that was vaguely insulting. - platy nov 23
Vaguely? --Ye Olde Luke (talk) 03:06, 12 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] References reentered, which had been removed some time ago

I think unregistered editors should not be able to access this article. The "References" list had been removed for many days and stayed removed. Without it some of the dubious statements made in the "Personal life" para for example, could not be verified. I am surprised Simon hasn't thrown a defamation suit at us. Let's put it this way, we are going the right way about it if we are continuing to let this happen. The "nose-picking" item was in for quite a number of days. If it weren't just too childish, it could be a lot more serious. Why expose Wikipedia to this sort of nonsense? Dieter Simon 23:19, 18 April 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Rudi and the Gays

Why did the thing about Rudi and the Gays making references get deleted. that is true. it should be re-posted. check out the rudie and the gays page. --Charzar2 14:53, 30 April 2007 (UTC)

There was no such show called "Rudi and the Gays". The article was deleted because it was made-up nonsense. -- ArglebargleIV 14:56, 30 April 2007 (UTC)

is he really a vegetarian i know he publicly does a lot of work for peta but is he a vegetarian

[edit] Picture Missing

This page is missing a picture. Maybe someone who's taken photos of him could download one? I would, but I don't have any pictures of him. Thanks, Meldshal42 20:43, 27 August 2007 (UTC)

I saw an episode of Rudy and the gays the other day and Simon Cowell was on it. This should be mentioned in the article. Nooblet4 00:42, 10 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Chronology

The chronology of this article needs to be improved. Specifically, under "Professional career", it is mentioned that Cowell signed a five-year contract renewal in 2006 for American Idol, two paragraphs before it is mentioned when he started on Pop Idol and then American Idol. --Metropolitan90 06:54, 20 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] My edit

I toned down some language. "Cowell went so far as to call..." is not neutral language. "Cowell called..." is much better. The reference doesn't indicate whether the person he said "Bush baby" to was disabled. That a contenstant "had a disorder" is so vague as to mean nothing.

It's also stupid to say "Cowell offended obese people". Cowell offends everybody; fat, thin, black, white, short, tall, and probably would offend someone with two heads if they auditioned for the show. 199.71.183.2 19:43, 25 October 2007 (UTC)


[edit] Income deduction based on incorrent premise

It's not accurate to estimate that Cowell pays 40% income tax. Anybody of substantial wealth who is not an employee is very likely to use the full range of options availed to them by UK tax law to reduce their tax payment significantly below 40% of income. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.224.61.182 (talk) 23:18, 19 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] record producer?

if simon is such a great record producer, why i don't i know what he's produced? i'd like to see a list. where does this crude man get his credibility? - platy nov 23 —Preceding comment was added at 22:12, 23 November 2007 (UTC)

Cowell is not a record producer. He is a promoter. I don't believe he's ever produced anything musically. There was a reference to Eternal Flame by the Bangles. That was produced by Davitt Sigerson, and recorded by John Beverly Jones, mixed by Filipetti. Cowell had nothing to do with the production of it.FungasUK (talk) 18:01, 17 December 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Fair use rationale for Image:FGLoisKillsStewie.jpg

Image:FGLoisKillsStewie.jpg is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in this Wikipedia article constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.

Please go to the image description page and edit it to include a fair use rationale. Using one of the templates at Wikipedia:Fair use rationale guideline is an easy way to insure that your image is in compliance with Wikipedia policy, but remember that you must complete the template. Do not simply insert a blank template on an image page.

If there is other fair use media, consider checking that you have specified the fair use rationale on the other images used on this page. Note that any fair use images uploaded after 4 May, 2006, and lacking such an explanation will be deleted one week after they have been uploaded, as described on criteria for speedy deletion. If you have any questions please ask them at the Media copyright questions page. Thank you.

BetacommandBot (talk) 07:36, 29 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Fair use rationale for Image:Smart and Smarter.jpg

Image:Smart and Smarter.jpg is being used on this article. I notice the image page specifies that the image is being used under fair use but there is no explanation or rationale as to why its use in this Wikipedia article constitutes fair use. In addition to the boilerplate fair use template, you must also write out on the image description page a specific explanation or rationale for why using this image in each article is consistent with fair use.

Please go to the image description page and edit it to include a fair use rationale. Using one of the templates at Wikipedia:Fair use rationale guideline is an easy way to insure that your image is in compliance with Wikipedia policy, but remember that you must complete the template. Do not simply insert a blank template on an image page.

If there is other fair use media, consider checking that you have specified the fair use rationale on the other images used on this page. Note that any fair use images uploaded after 4 May, 2006, and lacking such an explanation will be deleted one week after they have been uploaded, as described on criteria for speedy deletion. If you have any questions please ask them at the Media copyright questions page. Thank you.

BetacommandBot (talk) 17:20, 29 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Citations added 20/01/08

Have added a couple of citations to the references suggesting Cowell was a record producer. I previously went so far as to amend a version, by changing the quote to "record promoter", as I firmly believe that's what Cowell was during the 80s. However, the version was replaced with the identical quotes from before, so I feel like I'm banging my head against a wall. Anyway, I remember footage of him as a young lad, appearing on Saturday morning telly (something like "Saturday Superstore"), early 80s sort of era. There's no way this kid was a producer; in fact he was brought on as some sort of promoter, or a figure within the music industry. Anyway, if anybody can provide citations, I;d be well interested to read them. FungasUK (talk) 20:20, 20 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Discussion of some of the categories in relation to this article

Hi Rodhullandemu, re your request of discussing some of the categories in relation to halacha in the summary bar of the article, can you explain your point to all the good people who are reading this: "Rv, this needs discussion with respect to halacha and needs to be conducted on article's talk age..)". Many thanks. Dieter Simon (talk) 01:36, 8 February 2008 (UTC)

An anon IP deleted categories citing what I thought were spurious reasons, and I did a quick Google and replaced them, believing that to be the test; however, it appears that halacha is disputable, and I have just looked at Talk:List_of_British_Jews#Jewishness and decided that no reliable source within those criteria has been provided for inclusion of those categories, which is why I leave it here. I'm not an expert, and I leave it to those who are. The cursory discussion above is hardly authoritative. --Rodhullandemu (Talk) 01:47, 8 February 2008 (UTC)
Yes, thank you, I have actually rectified the source that was given at an earlier time, but like yourself am not sure just how reliable the source is, but at least one can find the citation now which one couldn't before. Dieter Simon (talk) 02:11, 8 February 2008 (UTC)
Sorry, made my remarks slightly less verbose. Dieter Simon (talk) 02:14, 8 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Rudy and the Gays

Resolved. user blocked - a lesson to others

Wasn't Simon Cowell on a few episodes of this show? Maybe not. but if he was it sould be in the article . that show was great Nooblet1 (talk) 15:59, 28 February 2008 (UTC)

What show? It doesn't show up in Google. And considering your article on it has been deleted- several times- I doubt it will ever happen, because it can't be referenced. --Rodhullandemu (Talk) 16:07, 28 February 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Controversy section

The controversy section sounds like something from a blog about interesting facts and tidbits for people who like to hate Simon. The whole section sounds like WP:OR, there are no references whatsoever (let alone WP:RS) and I question the notability of Simon calling someone a bush baby (he's probably called people worse things than that but please don't take this as a challenge to go list them all) as well as accusations of rolling his eyes when he didn't. In conclusion, this section is not encyclopedic, it doesn't belong here. SWik78 (talk) 12:51, 2 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Edits today

This diff is vandalism as is the next one by DW Celt (see a phrase introduced in the middle). Apologies if I have undone an improvement by anyone. -- roundhouse0 (talk) 12:40, 7 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Leona Lewis

Odd that there's no mention in the article of Leona Lewis, his protege and arguably the most successful of all his acts. 86.153.218.173 (talk) 19:11, 8 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] HELP WITH A WISH

Dear Sinom Cowell a few weeks ago a message was left on my daugther's web page her name is (SARAHJAYNE FOX)LONDON an email was left and i've been trying to contant you. In the massage it say that you could help with a wish my daugther had to help ohter people with cancer if you can help my phone numbers are 02070337804 or 07904767802 i hope to hear from you if you can help it would be great, with many thanks janet fox. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.129.179.245 (talk) 08:08, 5 May 2008 (UTC) sarahjayne's page is on GONETOOSOON.CO.UK —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.129.179.245 (talk) 08:15, 5 May 2008 (UTC)