American Idol is a reality television competition which finds new solo musical talent. It was created by Simon Fuller and debuted June 11, 2002, as American Idol: The Search for a Superstar on the Fox network. It has since become one of the most popular shows in the history of American television. It is currently the #1 TV show in the Nielsen ratings and is one of only three that have been #1 for five consecutive seasons, along with All in the Family and The Cosby Show. Part of the Idol franchise, it is a spin-off from the British show Pop Idol, of which two series were broadcast between 2001 and 2003 in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The program aims to discover the best singer in the country through a series of nation-wide auditions which culminates in viewer voting to determine the winner. Through telephone and SMS Text voting, America has chosen past winners Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Hicks, Jordin Sparks, David Cook, and Kris Allen (listed in chronological order). Every American Idol winner except for Jordin Sparks (from Arizona) has been from the American South. The eligible age-range for contestants is currently 16–28 years old. The upper age limit was 24 in the first three seasons. Ryan Seacrest has hosted the show for its entire run. During the first season, he was joined by comedian Brian Dunkleman. The American Idol band is currently led by Rickey Minor. Dorian Holley of Los Angeles Music Academy is Music Director and vocal coach ; he has been with the show since 2006. (via Wikipedia)

About American Idol

Directed By: Nigel Lythgoe (audition shows, 2002–2008)
Ken Warwick, Gregg Gelfland (audition shows)
John Pritchett (live shows, 2008)
Bruce Gowers (live shows, 2002–2008, 2009)

Last: present

Number of Episodes: 312

Picture Format: 480i (NTSC)
720p (HDTV) (since 2006)

Number of Seasons: 9

Country: United States

Executive Producer: Ken Warwick
Cecile Frot-Coutaz
Nigel Lythgoe (2002–2008)

Broadcast Channel: Fox

Host: Ryan Seacrest

Created By: Simon Fuller

Judge: Paula Abdul (2002–2009)
Ellen DeGeneres (2010–present)
Kara DioGuardi (2009–present)
Simon Cowell
Randy Jackson

Distributed By: FremantleMedia Enterprises

Presented By: Ryan Seacrest
Brian Dunkleman (2002)