Idol in a Million

Bad timing that American Idol Season 8 and One in a Million Season 3 are being aired at the same time.  The differences between the two productions are oceans wide in terms of talent, scale and professionalism.  Though you are aware of the disparity, if you watch the two shows, say six months apart, you don’t get so rankled.  Last Friday’s (27 March) OIAM episode was particularly bad.  Usually when the camera zooms in on the host, you don’t see the other background activities.  Last week we saw contestants creeping on stage and slinking back stage again.  One guy brought the mic stand with him to the back, then someone else brought it back out.  At one juncture, the contestant (I think it was Rizu) walked right past Marion as she was introducing him!  What a distraction. Totally amateurish.  OIAM needs to buck up.

One in a Million

It seems like the top three contenders are Esther, Tomo and Amylea.  I’m hoping that Esther will win – she’s really talented and dynamic, but if history is anything to go by, I’d rather she take second spot.  Look at the past two seasons’ winners : Suki won over Faizal but the way I see it, Faizal is the one who’s going places.  He’s everywhere : on tv, in the newspapers, concerts etc.  Last year Shila lost to Ayu but where is Ayu?  I hardly hear news of her but I’ve seen Shila on tv and in commercials.  ‘Packaging’ in entertainment is as important as the ‘product’ itself and I think Shila has an edge over Ayu in terms of packaging.

American Idol

I didn’t watch some of the earlier rounds as the scheduling was erratic and some shows were screened at 11.45 pm!  Maybe it’s a deliberate move by 8tv so that viewers will see less of American Idol.  OIAM on the other hand gets primetime slot at 9.30 pm on Fridays.  (In case you’re wondering, I don’t have Astro.  Gasp!)

Some of the more memorable contestants are Adam Lambert, Danny Goke and Lil Rounds.  I like Alexis Grace but she didn’t make it to top 10, boo-hoo.  Adam comes across as a white Michael Jackson.  Danny received a lot of airtime in previous rounds as the AI producers highlighted the loss of his wife. Lil Rounds is a powerhouse but she’s not very different from other black singers with big voices.  One contestant to watch is Matt Giraud.  I only saw him in action in Top 13.  Simon Cowell is right (as he usually is) : the judges haven’t been giving him enough credit for his talent.  They’d been singing the praises of Danny too much and neglecting Matt.  If Matt keeps on performing the way he did for the past few rounds, I think he can make it to the top 2.  His singing is impeccable.  I admit I wasn’t bowled over by him initially but he kind of grows on me.  I think he and Danny might well be this season’s finalists.  Oh, one more person : Anoop Desai.  The fact that he was pulled in as the first ever 13th contestant has to mean something.  he could turn out to be the dark horse or the slumdog that wins..

A word about Kara DioGuardi.  In one word, she is DISPENSABLE.  My kids and I are unanimous on this.  She doesn’t bring anything to AI at all.  The only good thing about her inclusion is that Paula Abdul seems to be making more sensible remarks nowadays.

Appearances

I’m going for a radio interview tomorrow to promote Do You Wear Suspenders? The Wordy Tales of Eh Poh Nim.  If you want to win copies of the book, tune in to Traxx Fm, (100.1 for KL and Selangor) between 11.15 am to 12 noon. 

For this book, I’m not going to do author events at book stores.  Attendance is usually dismal unless I drag along family and  friends but they don’t count as real audience.  But there is an event that garners a loyal following without my having to badger people to attend :  Readings @ Seksan’s in Bangsar.  So that’s where I’ll be this Saturday.   Do come by if you’re in the area.

Bookertizement contest results

I know you can’t wait for the results, so here goes :

Grand prize : zhenmeng
RM100 book vouchers and a copy of Do You Wear Suspenders – The Wordy Tales of Eh Poh Nim

Consolation prizes (a copy of any of my books) :

1. moviemania
2. sweet cinnamon
3. cassie missy
4. walids

Selection of winners is by random draw. I picked the grand prize winner and my four children each picked one name. Congratulations to the winners! Please email me at tehlydia@yahoo.com. To those who didn’t win, chin up. There’ll be other contests in future. 

A big thank you to all those who participated.  Hope you’ve enjoyed Opela’s Book Club as much as I had enjoyed putting it together.

A new room

Q : What do you get when you cross the conference room with the reception? 

A : Conception room.

This little riddle is courtesy of no. 3.  At our recent church camp in Pangkor, when I asked him to gather our group for talentime rehearsal, he said to meet in the Conception Room.  Just so you know, no baby was conceived in the conference room, or the reception for that matter.

Opela’s Book Club and Contest! (Sticky – newer posts are underneath)

Finally the bookertisement* (see postcript) is ready!! It was a blast getting it done, from the conceptualisation to casting, procuring of props to acting and a whole lot of nitty gritty stuff that went into its execution. On the day of filming, we spent 10 solid hours for the shoot which was distilled into 4.24 minutes. Enjoy it :

Here’s your chance to win some cool prizes.

How

Put up the trailer on your blog or website and post the link to that entry in the comment box below and you will automatically qualify for the contest.

Prizes

Grand prize : Rm100 book vouchers + 1 autographed copy of Do You Wear Suspenders – The Wordy Tales of Eh Poh Nim.

Consolation prizes : 4 autographed copies of Do You Wear Suspenders?

Winners will be chosen by random draw. If you’re such a loyal fan that you’ve immediately rushed out to buy the book and you’re picked as the winner, you can opt for one of my other books : Honk! If You’re Malaysian or Life’s Like That – Scenes from Malaysian Life. If you have those too, we can work something out privately.

Conditions

1. Anyone can enter but the prize will only be sent to a Malaysian address.

2. The closing date is 20 March 2009.

Thanks

My heartfelt appreciation to my friends for helping me with the book trailer. They’ve been so sporting and committed. They’re really the best friends anyone could hope for. Don’t you think they’re pretty good at acting their part? Credit roll :

Director : Ian Kirk (He was also the videographer, script editor etc etc. He did a great job despite the equipment and time constrain. Anyone interested in procuring his services?)

Opela : Lily Tan

Eh Poh Nim : Ginny Low

Jane Lau : Catherine Chirng

Paul Manickam : Pannir Santiago

Lydia Teh : as herself (but she’s not as fierce as depicted in the trailer. Acting only mah.)

Others who have helped out in one way or another : Saroja and Olivia Daniel, Mr. Daniel, Salome Santiago, Quay Wei Li, Yik Chuan, Raymond and Randall Chirng, Connie Kirk, Lim Ai Kee, Lee Tiong Soon, Ng Bee Fong and Penny Teh.

Postscript

1. I have been told that I can’t use the term with the initials B.T. to describe a trailer for promoting books. (See third comment below from bibliobibuli. Thanks, Sharon.) So I’ve coined the word Bookertisement – remember you first hear this word being used here – to describe the B _ _ k T _ _ _ _ _r instead. I’m not sure if the copyright for this term applies to usage outside USA but better to play safe than to risk being sued.

2. For bloggers who aren’t proficient in posting a youtube clip, here’s how to do it. At the youtube website where the bookertisement is being played, look for the word ‘embed’ on the right hand side of the screen. It’s in a blue box. Copy the whole junk of gibberish and paste it into your blog entry. Then copy the link to your blog entry into my comment box.

Bloody, fast reprint

(Please note there’s a comma between bloody and fast in the header.)

The flush in the toilet downstairs doesn’t work very well and sometimes residues are left behind.It was that time of the month and I had just vacated the toilet.  No. 3 went in and yelled, “Mummy, are you coughing blood?  There’s so much blood in here!”  I should tell him I don’t have TB.

On another note, my editor informed me today that he has just ordered a reprint for Do You Wear Suspenders?  The first print run of 2,000 copies have been distributed!  And in less than one month too!  Thank you.

Eh Poh Nim hits best seller list

Do You Wear Suspenders? went into bookstores on 16 February 2009 and it’s already on the BSL!  Thank you, readers!

Best-Sellers for week ending 1 March 2009

Local Author

1. Mahathir Mohamad: An Illustrated Biography by E. Yu

2. Eat Well, Live Well: Your Healthy Lifestyle Guide by Chia Joo Suan

3. Malaysian Politicians Say the Darndest Things (Vol 2) by Amir Muhammad

4. 50 Days: Rantings by MM by Marina Mahathir

5. Urban Odysseys: KL Stories edited by Janet Tay and Eric Forbes

6. You Wear Suspenders? – The Wordy Tales of Eh Poh Nim by Lydia Teh

7. Supermodel’s Secret of Success by Amber Chia

8. Chedet.com Blog Merentasi Halangan by Mahathir Mohamad

9. Politik Baru:Mematangkan Demokrasi Malaysia (Bilingual) by Saifuddin Abdullah

10. Buat Duit dengan Ikan Keli by Mohd Fakhrulrazi Safiai

Weekly list compiled by MPH Bookstores, Mid Valley Megamall, Kuala Lumpur; http://www.mphonline.com