Simon Gave Paula a Job

I'm with stupid.

Simon Cowell’s “X Factor” began taping in Los Angeles yesterday, and for some reason Paula Abdul was there. My first assumption was that she wandered through by accident while searching for prescription medication, but it turns out that she actually had a seat at the judges’ table with Cowell, Cheryl Cole, and L.A. Reid.

The reunion between the former love-hate ”American Idol” colleagues was preceded by plenty of offstage drama, so much so that it was in doubt much of the weekend whether Abdul’s deal would be ready in time for Sunday’s first day of auditions…

Though the huge audience cheered and groaned at a variety of amateur acts in the state-of-the-art basketball arena, it was Cowell and Abdul who were clearly the star attractions. Their opening remarks were interrupted by cries of “We love you, Paula.” [LA Times]

I can only assume those were sarcastic cheers. “Oooh, yeah, we totally love you, Paula. You’re the greatest! Even better than other singers from 20 years ago who are far more coherent. Please, fill us with knowledge and insight.” I’m not sure if you can make a dismissive wanking motion with one of those big styrofoam “#1″ fingers, but I hope that they tried.