There’s one offer “Dancing With the Stars” winner Shawn Johnson will not be entertaining in her post-show career: singing on “American Idol.”
“I met Randy Jackson, and he asked me to sing on ‘American Idol,’” she told Us magazine. “I was like, ‘Um, I’ll stick to dancing.’’”
Whether she sticks to gymnastics remains to be seen. Since Johnson took home the “Dancing” trophy, she’s been offered book and movie deals, but is on the fence about competing in the 2012 London Olympics.
“(On the 2008 Olympic team) I was an outcast,” Johnson told the magazine. “I was the youngest, led a normal life and, I hate to say it, I was good. It’s kind of a jealousy thing. Then when I got (‘Dancing With the Stars’), it was hard because it was (teammate) Alicia (Sacramone)’s dream to be on it.”
Currently, Johnson is currently a high school junior and tells Us she’s “always wanted to go to Stanford or UCLA.”
Susan Boyle’s Peruvian paramour
Susan Boyle didn’t need a makeover to meet a man: just You Tube.
“I had a gentleman turn up on my doorstep all the way from Peru,” the “Britain's Got Talent” singer told Life & Style. “He said he’d seen my clip on YouTube and had to come congratulate me. That was pretty weird.”
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Boyle returns to the “Talent” stage for the finals of the competition on May 30. Regardless of whether she wins, Boyle tells the magazine that she’s thrilled about being on the show. “It’s been an amazing experience so far,” she said. “I really feel the show has changed my life already.”
‘Real Housewives’ goes to Washington
It’s tough to say just who is having the jump-the-shark moment here: “The Real Housewives” franchise, or the city of Washington, for allowing it to be the newest notch on the series’ belt.
“House” star Kal Penn jumping to the nation's capital one thing, but a reality show franchise? Really? While there’ve been no formal announcements about who will be cast, the name of Ali Wentworth, wife to George Stephanopoulos, is being bandied about inside the Beltway.
One well-connected Washingtonian says that at the end of the day, “It’s going to be tough for the show to get an accurate picture of what goes on. The city really does operate seriously. Access won’t be easy.”
Read this, watch that
This week’s summer weekend reading/watching fodder comes from two unlikely outlets: The Wall Street Journal and CNBC.
Read: Who knew the Wall Street Journal had a bling beat? Give a read to “Culture of Bling Clangs to Earth as the Recession Melts Rappers’ Ice,” which explains how rappers are coping with the economy — by stocking up on cubic zirconia. It’s not a universally approved strategy, however — the piece points out that “hip-hop luminaries with the cash to keep it real are appalled. Bling aficionados fret that the art of ‘ice’ is being watered down.”
Watch: “The Oprah Effect” on CNBC. This documentary, which airs May 29 at 9 p.m. and 1 a.m., delves into the backstories of people who try for years to get on the show, companies who’ve made it big thanks to Winfrey’s endorsement, and basically anything filed under the category “touch, magical.” This is not an obligatory endorsement, I might add; anyone who’s secretly wished to be part of the “Favorite Things” audience understands.
Courtney Hazlett delivers the Scoop Monday through Friday on msnbc.com. Follow Scoop on Twitter: @ courtneyatmsnbc.
