Jump To Simon Cowell's Stats
Cowell has gotten that kind of large cash from his very brutal assessment of how someone looks, acts, performs or sings. As an integral cog on a variety of hit star-search shows, Cowell knows how to diminish pipe dreams in a single breath. As the acerbic judge on American Idol, many a contestant has gone off crying after Simon tells them the brutal reality of their limited talent.
Some of the contestants do everything they can to impress the English born former mail boy, but the Queen of England has gone on the record saying that she thinks he is dreadful. It turns out that one of his nicknames incorporates her mindset as he is sometimes referred to as Judge Dread.
Even though most people associate Cowell's many successes in the music industry, a few projects he has been involved with have gone south. A Caribbean resort tops that list as a half built development continues to suck at the purse strings through legal wrangling and incomplete construction.
His actual start in the entertainment business came with the U.K. firm EMI. He worked his way through to become a talent scout and he honed his eye and ear in order to discern the next big artist. Over the years, the road to success had some hiccups along the way as he hit some and missed some as he went through several different record companies as a scout, an agent and a producer. In 2001, he took the next big step by producing the British show Pop Idol along with Simon Fuller. The show was designed around a new concept with the British public voting to determine the eventual winner of a multi-week contest. It became an instant hit in the U.K.
Just one year later, American Idol debuted and Cowell teamed up with Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson in America. Again, audiences became addicted to the format and the singing series continues to this day. With another success under his belt, Cowell has stretched his wings and produced two more like-formatted reality real time television shows: X Factor and America's Got Talent.
