Simon Cowell

I will miss Simon's presence on "American Idol". It has been said many times that he has the guts to say what everyone else is thinking. However, I do feel he could be more tactful at times. Even he was disgusted with himself when he played back the clip of Susan Boyle's audition and saw how he initially reacted. The whole audience got a wake up call that day. He mentioned the two "Idol" contestants he spotted right off the bat as being special were Fantasia and Carrie Underwood. Unfortunately, I missed those seasons.

There were a few things I found surprising to learn about Simon. He talked about how he can have very dark periods like depression. He allows himself to feel down instead of taking a pill or pretending that everything is okay. He has also had some huge failures in life. I recognize that he can be a little overconfident and cocky, but when he started out as a record executive in his twenties he was living a life of excess. He couldn't afford the fancy lifestyle he was living and lived on credit. At 30 years old he had to move back in with his parents because he lost everything. Simon said once everything was gone all the pressure went away. He paid off his loans in three or four years, and said it was one of the happiest times of his life.

Simon made the comment he feels lucky to be in the position he's in right now to create a new show. Oprah doesn't believe in luck, "I think there is no luck without preparation meeting the moment of opportunity." He has worked hard to get where he is in life and feels lucky that he learned from his past mistakes.

Simon will be leaving "Idol" because he's grown as much as he can on the show and felt the timing was right to move on. His new show the X-Factor is also a talent search format. With his new show he is going to have everything he would like to see on a talent show. Oprah said if she was a betting woman she'd bet on Simon. I'll second that.