Kara Dioguardi

Songwriter, singer and former "American Idol" judge Kara DioGuardi has listed a home in Studio City at $10 million. The estate features a 7,600-square-foot house renovated and expanded by DioGuardi and her husband, home builder Mike McCuddy. The five-bedroom, 6 1/2-bathroom manse, originally built in 1923, sits on 3.5 acres with an artist studio, an infinity pool and a hot tub. DioGuardi, 40, was on the panel of "American Idol" for two seasons starting in 2009 and this year was a judge on "Platinum Hit. " She has written hundreds of songs and worked with Celine Dion, Gwen Stefani, Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, Pink and "Idol" winner Kris Allen, among others.

Songwriter, singer and former "American Idol" judge Kara DioGuardi has listed a home in Studio City at $10 million. The estate features a 7,600-square-foot house renovated and expanded by DioGuardi and her husband, home builder Mike McCuddy. The five-bedroom, 6 1/2-bathroom manse, originally built in 1923, sits on 3.5 acres with an artist studio, an infinity pool and a hot tub. DioGuardi, 40, was on the panel of "American Idol" for two seasons starting in 2009 and this year was a judge on "Platinum Hit. " She has written hundreds of songs and worked with Celine Dion, Gwen Stefani, Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears, Pink and "Idol" winner Kris Allen, among others.

LINDSAY LOHAN couldn't believe her ears. In early September the actress-singer was recording her second album, "A Little More Personal (Raw)," when she heard Ashlee Simpson's pop single "Boyfriend." "Hey, how long till you look at your own life instead of looking at mine?" Simpson sings. "I didn't steal your boyfriend ... Don't you got somewhere to go?" Talk about personal and raw.

In "Platinum Hit," premiering Monday, Bravo takes the formula it perfected with "Project Runway" and "Top Chef" and plugs in a dozen singing songwriters — which is not necessarily to say "singer-songwriters," in the James Taylor sense of the phrase — and whittles them away weekly until only one remains, holding cash and contracts. You will recognize the elements, even to the way that the demerits of the losers are enumerated in groups of three: "Your song was trite, confusing and uninspiring.

Kara DioGuardi, a.k.a. "the fourth judge," will be back on "American Idol" next season. A person familiar with the situation confirmed that DioGuardi, a songwriter and producer who was added to the judging panel for its eighth season, has had her contract option picked up for the show's ninth season. "She's coming back for a second season. She really enjoyed the first," said the person, who asked not to be identified. Filmed auditions will begin next Thursday in Denver.

Fact about the number eight: Scorpio is the eighth sign of the zodiac. Scorpio traits include loyalty, passion and commitment. On the flip side, those can manifest themselves as possessiveness, jealousy and manipulative or controlling behavior. The march to Kansas City, Mo., confirmed many of the trends seen on the Season 8 premiere (a more energetic judging panel, a gentler spirit of mockery toward the misbegotten).

Season 10 and "American Idol" finally brought in a couple of pros. Whether new judges Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez will find and foster an actual pop star or create the ratings-generating buzz of their predecessors remains to be seen. (Wednesday night's opener was the lowest-rated premiere since its first season and was down 13% compared with last year's, but with an audience of 26.2 million, it easily trounced the competition.) But as soon as they took their seats, it was as if the elephant in the room had finally ambled out of view ?

As the drumbeat toward Season 8 of "American Idol" continues, judge Simon Cowell addressed the media Wednesday morning in a national conference call. Asked about the addition of Kara DioGuardi as a fourth judge to the lineup, Cowell said, "I have no idea whether this is going to work or not, because I haven't seen the shows back yet. The thing I do support is at least trying new things." On the overall crop: "My feeling having done the Hollywood round is that we've got an interesting bunch.

In "Platinum Hit," premiering Monday, Bravo takes the formula it perfected with "Project Runway" and "Top Chef" and plugs in a dozen singing songwriters — which is not necessarily to say "singer-songwriters," in the James Taylor sense of the phrase — and whittles them away weekly until only one remains, holding cash and contracts. You will recognize the elements, even to the way that the demerits of the losers are enumerated in groups of three: "Your song was trite, confusing and uninspiring.

It could not have had a less auspicious beginning. Season 8 of "American Idol" came out of the gates in a hailstorm of controversy, missteps, shake-ups and wildly uneven episodes. After a seventh season in which the reigning juggernaut of entertainment showed its first signs of mortality as the ratings eroded, the buzz among showbiz cognoscenti was that the long-awaited decline of "Idol" had begun. And in its early days, Season 8 seemed on the way to fulfilling that prophecy. The preseason was dominated by news of format changes, including the addition of uncertain new elements (such as Kara DioGuardi as a fourth judge)

Season 10 and "American Idol" finally brought in a couple of pros. Whether new judges Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez will find and foster an actual pop star or create the ratings-generating buzz of their predecessors remains to be seen. (Wednesday night's opener was the lowest-rated premiere since its first season and was down 13% compared with last year's, but with an audience of 26.2 million, it easily trounced the competition.) But as soon as they took their seats, it was as if the elephant in the room had finally ambled out of view ?

Prolific songwriter and " American Idol" judge Kara DioGuardi's Spanish-style home in the Hollywood Hills is on the market at $1,649,000. The gated house, built in 1964, has city and canyon views, wood-beamed ceilings, an open floor plan, extensive decks and a spa. Three bedrooms and 3 1/2 bathrooms sit in 3,400 square feet. She added an outdoor cedar sauna to give the secluded property a spa-like feel. The guest unit has its own entrance, living room, kitchen and bathroom.

Prolific songwriter and "American Idol" judge Kara DioGuardi's Spanish-style home in the Hollywood Hills is on the market at $1,649,000. The gated house, built in 1964, has city and canyon views, wood-beamed ceilings, extensive decks, an outdoor cedar sauna and a spa. There are three bedrooms and 3 1/2 bathrooms in more than 2,700 square feet. The guest unit has its own entrance, living room, kitchen and bathroom. DioGuardi, 39, joined the panel of the Fox singing competition in 2009.

Kara DioGuardi, a.k.a. "the fourth judge," will be back on "American Idol" next season. A person familiar with the situation confirmed that DioGuardi, a songwriter and producer who was added to the judging panel for its eighth season, has had her contract option picked up for the show's ninth season. "She's coming back for a second season. She really enjoyed the first," said the person, who asked not to be identified. Filmed auditions will begin next Thursday in Denver.

It could not have had a less auspicious beginning. Season 8 of "American Idol" came out of the gates in a hailstorm of controversy, missteps, shake-ups and wildly uneven episodes. After a seventh season in which the reigning juggernaut of entertainment showed its first signs of mortality as the ratings eroded, the buzz among showbiz cognoscenti was that the long-awaited decline of "Idol" had begun. And in its early days, Season 8 seemed on the way to fulfilling that prophecy. The preseason was dominated by news of format changes, including the addition of uncertain new elements (such as Kara DioGuardi as a fourth judge)

The "American Idol" personality is largely id-driven: The pleasures the talent show offers are immediate, whether a singer soars or sinks. And the show around the show can yield even more merriment, as it spews out a ceaseless stream of news/gossip generated by the contestants' biographical details, the judges' antics, behind-the-scenes backstabbing that may or may not be fictional and, often least important, discussion of the results of the actual singing competition.

In May, responding to a small decline in "American Idol" ratings, Fox executives said there would be changes to the show in its eighth season. The first of those changes was announced on Monday. When "Idol" premieres in January, there will be a fourth judge seated at the table: Grammy-nominated songwriter Kara DioGuardi. The New York-born DioGuardi, 37, has written songs for and with Christina Aguilera, Celine Dion and Gwen Stefani. She has also worked with former "Idol" folk such as Kelly Clarkson, Bo Bice and Taylor Hicks.

With the debut of Season 8 a mere 28 days away, "American Idol" producers are offering the first hints of what looks to be the biggest shake-up in its format since the show's early seasons. In an exclusive conversation, executive producer Ken Warwick confirmed the rumors sweeping the Internet on some of the changes afoot, knocked down a few others, urged patience on some more and gave his thoughts and insight on the entire shake-up. Below are a few high points: Warwick said the biggest challenge to making this season work stems from the show having been on the air for so long.

Fact about the number eight: Scorpio is the eighth sign of the zodiac. Scorpio traits include loyalty, passion and commitment. On the flip side, those can manifest themselves as possessiveness, jealousy and manipulative or controlling behavior. The march to Kansas City, Mo., confirmed many of the trends seen on the Season 8 premiere (a more energetic judging panel, a gentler spirit of mockery toward the misbegotten).

Fact about the number eight: In the Judaic religion, eight is a very auspicious number, designating both the complete days of Hanukkah (the faith's second-biggest miracle) and the moment, when a Jewish boy has lived this many days, that the rite of circumcision is performed. As with any "Idol" dawn, the premiere of Season 8 is an event too huge for its full consequence to be adequately represented in any one episode of television programming.