Showdown of 'American Idol' Experts Predict Crystal Bowersox/ Lee DeWyze

'American Idol' Experts Predict Crystal Bowersox/ Lee DeWyze Showdown
If the judges have their way, Casey James is going home this week.

They've said it before, but this time our "American Idol" experts really mean it: This is the week Casey James is riding off into the sunset, paving the way for the long-expected showdown in next week's "Idol" finale between Crystal Bowersox and Lee DeWyze.

"Simon Cowell and company have been pushing for a Lee/Crystal finale since week one, and it looks as though they'll be getting that come results-show time," MTV News' resident "Idol" expert Jim Cantiello predicted. "Casey did nothing to convince America that he deserved to break up the MamaSox and DeWyze showdown. Rewind to a year ago, where Kris Allen was expected to sing his swan song but instead showed up armed with brilliance."

Cantiello said Casey squandered his chance to gain ground after landing the opening slot on Tuesday night's show by picking a song from obscure singer Eric Hutchinson, "OK, It's Alright With Me." He was then saddled with a lackluster judges' pick in John Mayer's "Daughters."

"Crystal's got the fanbase; Lee's got the momentum," Cantiello said. "Casey's got ... the opportunity to pack his bags. Mr. James, you are no match for the judges' pimping. Sorry. It's been fun."

Our other expert, couldn't agree more, though she added that it might just be time to crown DeWyze the champ right now after his bravura performance of the oft-sung "Idol" chestnut "Hallelujah," by Leonard Cohen.

"Wow. Simon Cowell manufactured quite the moment for Lee, with the choir, and the horns and strings," she said of the dramatic show-closing performance by DeWyze, the former paint-store clerk and high school rabble-rouser.

"He also made sure the song had the proper 'climax' as he called it," Santilli said. "The thing is, the big showy numbers are what move viewers to pick up the phone and vote. I'll bet that Lee ran away with the vote tonight. He's in the final for sure. But not undeservedly - Simon's machinations notwithstanding, Lee delivered two solid vocals this week."

That leaves Crystal and Casey to fight it out for the final spot, and Santilli lamented that small-town Ohio soul mama Bowersox had just an OK night. "Her vocals were strained, and she seemed distracted," Santilli noted. "And I have to wonder how viewers at home responded to her repeated declarations, 'I'm a man, I'm a man,' during her cover of Paul McCartney's 'Maybe I'm Amazed.'Singing the song from a man's point of view diminished the song's emotional punch."

But Bowersox may still be saved thanks to positive comments from the judges, who Santilli said seemed to have it in for James. "They obviously want him gone," she opined. "Instead of critiquing his vocals, they picked apart his song choices and played up his eye-candy appeal. It's true, Casey's first song was pretty boring, but I thought he deserved more credit for his sweet version of 'Daughters.' I hate to admit it, but if minimizing Casey's performance helps Crystal advance to the final, I'm all for it."

Do you agree with our expert's picks? Who do you think is going home? Post your comments below.

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John Travolta and Kelly Preston Are Expecting 2010

 

The new cover of Star reports that John Travolta and the 47-year-old Kelly Preston are expecting a child. "Kelly is about three months pregnant," a source told the magazine for their cover story. "Both she and John are absolutely over the moon."

Now the family confirms the news on Travolta's official site. "It's impossible to keep a secret ... especially one as wonderful as this. We want to be the first to share this great news with everyone that we are expecting a new addition to our family. Love, John, Kelly and Ella"

Travolta and Preston wed in 1991 and had two children, daughter Ella Bleu, born in 2000 and their late son Jett, who died in 2009 at age 16. Jett, who had a history of seizures, died on January 2 last year while at the Travoltas' residence in the Bahamas. Both John Travolta and Kelly Preston have kept low profiles since the death of Jett.

Preston had spoken to PEOPLE back in 2007 about her desire for a third child. "I thought I would get pregnant when Ella was about 4," she said in August of 2007. "Then I wanted to work a little bit more, and all of a sudden she's 7. I'm not pregnant now, but I don't have another movie project that's all I'll say."

Pole dancing photos surface of Miss USA

Pole dancing photos surface of Miss USA
She did not strip, but pageant officials are investigating

Image: Miss USA, Rima Fakih at Mojo In The Morning's 

"Stripper 101" in 2007.    
Rima Fakih performed a pole dance at Mojo In The Morning's “Stripper 101” in 2007.
  Image: Miss California Carrie Prejean   Beauty queen scandals
They may be beautiful, but the competition can get ugly. From blackmail to sabotage, check out the underside of the pageant circuit.

Headline News called them “racy photos.” TMZ made it sound as if the new Miss USA had done something that would make Larry Flynt turn away in disgust.

The Miss USA pageant wants to know if there are any more out there.

The photographs in question and the video from which them come show the newly-crowned Miss USA, Rima Fakih, three years ago at a women-only striptease class at a Detroit-area gentlemen’s club, sponsored by a local radio station.