NEW YORK - Start spreading the insults, tears and broken dreams. "American Idol" provided all the above -- and more -- during auditions in Manhattan.
"The reality is you should be singing in a dress and stiletto," Simon Cowell snapped to a male hopeful who sang in a high-pitched voice. That put-down drew the ire of Paula Abdul, who picked a fight with Cowell and called him a "jerk."
But Cowell, who has been taking heat for the cruelty he inflicted upon "Idol" wannabes during last week's round of auditions in Seattle, wasn't ready to make nice in The Big Apple. Cue the tears -- and the melodrama.
A 28-year-old singer named Ashanti made quite an exit after Cowell said her rendition of "Loving You" was old-fashioned and cabaret.
"I have fought so hard for this. ... How was my timing? How was my intonation? How was my pitch? ... If America saw me, they would love me," she pleaded, looking and sounding as if she were auditioning for a role on the daytime soap opera "All My Children."
Another hopeful, an exuberant 24-year-old named Nakia, wept when she was told she wasn't going to Hollywood. "I just wish I could change their mind," she said to the cameras. "They (said) no, but sometimes you get tired of hearing no."
One young woman argued she could win the CTV talent competition without displaying a hint of talent, while another made bizarre noises not intended for children's ears. A guy warbled "New York, New York" but pronounced the city "New Yore."
Thirty-five singers made it past the panel of judges, including two best friends from New Jersey, a winning young man who made Abdul blush, and a plucky New Yorker who can tackle rock and R&B as deftly as she can opera.
New York was one of seven cities where tryouts were held last summer. The next "Idol" episode, on Tuesday, will feature the Birmingham, Ala., auditions.
