Welcome to Monday!!
Susan Boyle taken to clinic following Saturday's loss...
British internet singing star Susan Boyle has been admitted to a
private clinic after being beaten into second place in the final of the
popular "Britain's Got Talent" television contest, British media
reported.
Dowdy and unglamorous, Boyle seemed an unlikely star when she first
appeared on the show in April, only to stun the judges and win popular
acclaim with her rendition of "I Dreamed a Dream" from "Les
Miserables."
Boyle, 48, had been heavily backed to beat nine other finalists
on Saturday after clips of her earlier appearance were downloaded
nearly 200 million times and she was hailed the world over as a
superstar.
But according to the Sun newspaper, she suffered an "emotional breakdown" at her hotel in London on Sunday.
A police spokesman confirmed that officers had been called to a
London hotel "to doctors attending a woman under the mental health
act."
"She was taken voluntarily by ambulance to a clinic. At the
request of doctors, police accompanied the ambulance," the spokesman
added.
Despite expectations that Boyle would make a fortune from her
talent and almost instant fame, there has been concern among show
organizers about her ability to cope with pressure.
Boyle, who was starved of oxygen at birth leading to minor brain
damage, has been pursued by the world's press since early April and,
according to show judge Piers Morgan, broke down in tears repeatedly
during the run-up to the final.
Nearly four million people phoned in to choose a winner, and
street dance troupe Diversity won 24.9 percent of the vote ahead of
Boyle's 20.2 percent.
Diversity won $160,000 and will appear at the Royal Variety Performance in front of the Queen.
Boyle's financial future had been seen as secure despite coming second,
as Britain's Got Talent judge Simon Cowell and his Syco music label
were widely expected to sign her up for an album. There has also been
talk of a Hollywood movie about her story.
Media quoted the TV show's makers as saying Boyle was "exhausted and emotionally drained."
"She has been seen by her private GP, who supports her decision
to take a few days out for rest and recovery," one newspaper quoted
their statement as saying.
WATCH: Jay Leno's final 'Tonight Show'...
Jay Leno bid farewell to "The Tonight Show" on Friday, ending his
17-year run as host with a finale that stayed true to the style that
made him the top-rated performer on late-night television.
The main difference was a long ovation that Leno struggled to
quiet as he took the stage for an opening monologue that poked fun, as
usual, at politicians, celebrities and current events.
He thanked the likes of pop star Michael Jackson and former
White House intern Monica Lewinsky, whose affair with Bill Clinton led
to the former president's impeachment, for giving him material over the
years. He also took a final jab at his network, NBC, which is mired at
the bottom of the ratings among the four major U.S. broadcasters.
Leno takes his act to 10 p.m. on NBC this autumn, where he will
mount a program expected to be similar to the "Tonight Show" but
attract a wider audience than the roughly 5 million viewers, on
average, who tune in nightly to the broadcast.
"I'm going to be going to a secluded spot where no one can find
me -- NBC prime time," Leno said. "It's a gamble. I'm betting NBC will
still be around in three months, but that's not a given."
He joked that he had finally cleaned out his office and "found
O.J.'s knife. I had it the whole time," referring to former football
star O.J. Simpson, who was acquitted on charges he murdered his wife in
the mid-1990s.
Leno even introduced a new segment, "White Trash Theater,"
which showed a video clip of a woman throwing a trash can at a man to
get him off her porch.
CONSUMMATE COMEDIAN
Throughout the opening, Leno betrayed no special sentiment -- no
tears or even a choked-up voice. Indeed, he proved the consummate
comedian by putting on a show that made people laugh. Guests included
Conan O'Brien, who will take over as host of the "Tonight Show" on
Monday, and singer James Taylor.
Leno played a video clip of a young and clearly uncomfortable O'Brien
when he first appeared on the "Tonight Show" in 1993, and Taylor sang
his classic "Sweet Baby James," which Leno said he remembered hearing
when, as a young comedian, he drove across country to move to Los
Angeles.
The host ended with a tribute to the "Tonight Show" staff, many of whom
stayed with the program throughout his 17 years and even married their
co-workers. The show's many couples had 68 children between them, and
Leno said his legacy would be that the show had spawned such a
close-knit group of friends.
He said the show's former host, late-night television legend
Johnny Carson, had taught him one key thing: to keep people laughing
through good times and bad.
Leno, 59, took the reins of the venerable program in May 1992 from Carson.
After initially struggling in the ratings against late-night
counterpart David Letterman, who had been his rival for the "Tonight
Show" job, Leno grabbed the lead in viewership about 13 years ago and
become a mainstay of American TV.
He has taken jabs at four presidents, from George H.W. Bush to
Barack Obama, who in March became the first sitting chief executive to
appear on a late-night talk show. He made audiences laugh through an
era that included natural disasters, wars and the September 11 attacks.
Notable moments included Arnold Schwarzenegger's announcement
of his candidacy for California governor in 2003 and British actor Hugh
Grant's first public appearance after being arrested with a Los Angeles
prostitute in 1995.
Leno's comic segments such as "Jaywalking," in which he joked with everyday people on the street, became popular staples.
Jay, I doubt you'll ever see this, but it was a pleasure watching your show for the past few years, I can't wait to see what's next at 10:00 PM.