America's Got Talent (2006– )

A weekly talent competition where an array of performers -- from singers and dancers, to comedians and novelty acts -- vie for a $1 million cash prize.

Creators:

Simon Cowell, Jason Raff, Ken Warwick

Stars:

Sharon Osbourne, Nick Cannon, Piers Morgan

Nominated for 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 1 win & 8 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Sharon Osbourne	...	Herself - Judge (160 episodes, 2007-2012)
Nick Cannon	...	Himself - Host (131 episodes, 2009-2013)
Piers Morgan	...	Himself - Judge (130 episodes, 2006-2011)
Howie Mandel	...	Himself - Judge (105 episodes, 2010-2013)
David Hasselhoff	...	Himself - Judge (66 episodes, 2006-2009)

Storyline

A weekly talent competition where an array of performers -- from singers and dancers, to comedians and novelty acts -- vie for a $1 million cash prize.

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Plot Keywords:

las vegas nevada | based on british tv series | circus | vaudeville | punctuation in title | 

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Genres:

Game-Show | Reality-TV

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Official Sites:

NBC [us]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 June 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Untitled Simon Cowell/Las Vegas Project

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Fremantle Media, Fremantle Media North America, Syco Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

For the seventh season, production of the live show moved from Los Angeles to Newark, New Jersey in order to accommodate new judge Howard Stern whose radio show is based in nearby New York City. For the eighth season, production for the live show was moved to Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

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Connections

Referenced in Chelsea Lately: Episode #6.18 (2012)

User Reviews

Guilty pleasure; pure mindless entertainment that makes no bones about it

The past couple years have seen a lot of competition show a la "American Idol" and America's Got Talent attempts to replicate the magic of the show, and in a way only seems to draw because of pure curiosity as opposed to actual talent. Unlike "American Idol", "Talent" has more of that antagonistic, demeaning feel to it, which is odd considering the brutality of Simon Cowell on his main show. "Talent" seems to want to showcase acts less for the merit and more for the sheer novelty.

That said, it does have it's magical moments like "Idol" does. Moments such as where 11-year-old Bianca Ryan sang like a black woman and when the Quick Change Artists completely screwed with our minds on how they changed so quickly really bring a lot of color to a show that is otherwise sinister to concept. The format of the show is also not nearly as polished as some other shows as the quick and vast eliminations (10 at a time, I believe) reduce the credibility of the show and makes it hard to really be attached. And frankly, the admission of some acts (Dave the Horn Guy? Kenny Shelton?) over more worthy competitors and the frequent Pier Morgan channeling Simon Cowell just reduce a show that lacks a lot of charm anyway.

So, in the end, I'm mixed about America's Got Talent. Watch it for just a little laugh of a show to indulgent and silly for its own good. But if you are expecting something more legit, there's always Amazing Race.