July 2010 archive

Ryan Seacrest Productions is working with Paul McKenna on a new TV show which will help people with debilitating fears and phobias. On this week’s American Top 40, Ryan explained that Paul is the man to help if you have a fear of heights, a fear of flying, or even a fear of committing to marriage … I wonder who he was talking about there!

Paul told Ryan that he started out as a hypnotist but became interested in all kinds of psychological techniques from a variety of disciplines, adding that phobias that would have taken months to cure 20 years ago can sometimes now be cured in a couple of hours. Ryan said that Paul has worked with celebrities including Ellen DeGeneres and Russell Brand, but he couldn’t name others because Paul won’t tell him!

Back on the subject of his new RSP show, Ryan said people might be shy about talking about fears and phobias, but they’re common, and this show gives people the chance to get Paul’s help for free. If you know someone in the LA area who might benefit, see the casting call on Ryan’s website: New Show Seeks To End Life-Ruining Compulsions & Phobias

Ryan said he has the fear of rejection, but Paul thought that might not be such a bad thing because it’s part of what drives Ryan and has made him so successful, even suggesting installing it into other people …

Their discussion continued with a look at where fears and phobias come from; Paul called them an example of “one trial learning”:

“you get bitten by one dog, you get mistreated by one dentist, you get stuck in one elevator, and your mind goes, hang on a minute, this was scary, I didn’t like it, I felt a little bit out of control, I felt a little threatened. So whenever I see a dog, whether it’s a Rottweiler or a tiny little Poodle, or I even smell that smell that you smell at the dentist’s office, I’m going to produce a massive amount of fear in myself to protect myself … and I’m just going to do it too much.”

Ryan said Paul will be back to talk about other topics including stress and how to quit an addiction or compulsion. There was also a fascinating discussion about triggers on Ryan’s morning show this week, with Ryan delving into his own childhood to explain some of the secrets of his success. You can read that here: Childhood Triggers Reveal Much of What’s Behind Ryan Seacrest’s Work Ethic

Ellen DeGeneres announced yesterday that she’s ‘voted herself off American Idol’:

A couple months ago, I let FOX and the “American Idol” producers know that this didn’t feel like the right fit for me. I told them I wouldn’t leave them in a bind and that I would hold off on doing anything until they were able to figure out where they wanted to take the panel next. It was a difficult decision to make, but my work schedule became more than I bargained for. I also realized this season that while I love discovering, supporting and nurturing young talent, it was hard for me to judge people and sometimes hurt their feelings. I loved the experience working on “Idol” and I am very grateful for the year I had. I am a huge fan of the show and will continue to be.

via: ellen.warnerbros.com

Ryan tweeted out to say he will miss her.

@JLo is one of the names a lot of people are throwing around as a possible replacement, with Steven Tyler being talked about for the seat vacated by Simon. There have been rumours recently that the whole panel would be replaced, but I hope Randy stays to give it some continuity. The only thing that seems sure is that Ryan’s going to have an interesting season working out how to play with the new kids.

Ellen commented on the radio show this morning that Ryan hadn’t shaved and Ryan said it’s his look for the new movie, which of course he couldn’t talk about yet. The last time Ryan said he was in a movie but couldn’t talk about it, it turned out to be Shrek … so is he teasing or does he have another bit part starring role? Ellen asked Ryan if it’s an animated film or a dream he had last night, but Ryan said it’s an action movie and he’s a secret agent. Well, that sure sounds like Ryan …

More from today’s show: On-Air, 29th July 2010

WENN has an article about a rumour from In Touch that Julianne Hough is moving in with Ryan.

Now according to U.S. tabloid In Touch, Hough is set to move into Seacrest’s home in Los Angeles’ Nichols Canyon.

Read article: Hough And Seacrest Get Serious

Julianne’s performing tonight at the Orange County Fair, which Ryan and Ellen have talked a lot about recently. Ryan said there are tickets still available at ticketmaster. He didn’t say if he’d be there, but a while ago when Ryan said he’d be going to The OC Fair this year, Ellen suggested the 29th.

Ryan interviewed Tim Gunn on his show today, but the best part happened before the interview when Ryan read out a letter to Tim’s style column, and his reply.

This is such a great video! I love the video taken on the plane (the lightening not so much) and getting a peek at Ryan in the studio.

After a story in Ellen’s sleaze, she asked Ryan about his first driving violation. Ryan retold the story of getting a ticket in Simon’s car.

On his show today, Ryan said there were some spirited people in New Orleans and it’ll make for good TV.

video: rlself82

Ryan broadcast his radio show from a locker room under the New Orleans arena where he was filming for American Idol. Ryan talked about the beautiful weather in New Orleans, feeling tall there (!) and landing in lightening. Ellen had landed before the storm hit, but Ryan’s plane was dodging clouds.

This month it seems there’s one topic that everybody has been searching the site for: Ryan Seacrest and Julianne Hough. The same is true of our twitter feed and headlines page — nine of the top ten click throughs were to articles relating to Ryan and Julianne.

Ryan’s Vacation

Most of the vacation articles we added to the headlines page were about the photographs of Ryan kissing Julianne or leaving a $10k tip, but we had more important things to hold our attention: new shirtless photos of Ryan! Obviously this was polite appreciation for the results of Ryan’s pre-vacation juicing obsession and not shameless ogling … and we weren’t alone in our ogling appreciation as it was one of the most clicked on links this month.

• Ryan Seacrest Dives Off a Yacht [13 photos, July 5th]
  Tag: Ryan Seacrest, Ryan Seacrest Shirtless, Ryan Seacrest diving, Ryan Seacrest yacht
• Ryan Seacrest at Club 55 [73 photos, July 5th]
  Tag: Ryan Seacrest, Ryan Seacrest at Club 55, Ryan Seacrest yacht, Ryan Seacrest beach
• Ryan Seacrest and Julianne Hough in St Tropez [31 photos, July 7]
  Tag: Ryan Seacrest, Julianne Hough, Ryan Seacrest and Julianne Hough in Portofino
• Ryan Seacrest Arriving At LAX Airport [14 photos, July 16]
  Tag: Ryan Seacrest, Ryan Seacrest at LAX, Ryan Seacrest arrives in LA

Larry King Live

Larry King announced he was leaving CNN, adding that he thought Ryan would be his ideal replacement, it seemed everyone had an opinion. Speculation continued the whole time Ryan was out of the country, but on his return he said he was flattered by Larry’s comments, but didn’t appear to have much interest in taking over.

via Mediaite: Larry King Would Like Ryan Seacrest To Replace Him

video: X17video

Award nominations

Ryan has been nominated for Teen Choice Awards in the “Choice TV: Personality” and “Choice Twit” categories. Keep voting daily at www.teenchoiceawards.com. The show airs on Monday 9th August on Fox.

In the 2010 Emmys, Ryan has been nominated in the “Outstanding Host For A Reality Or Reality-Competition Program” category, Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution has been nominated for “Outstanding Reality Program” and American Idol has been nominated for categories including “Outstanding Reality – Competition Program”. More info: Emmy Nominations 2010

American Idol

American Idol auditions are underway and searches for Idol news are starting to increase in volume. Ryan attended the Milwaukee auditions and had a couple of interviews on local radio just before going out to do his intro and give contestants a pep talk. We’ve had quite a lot of searches for “who is replacing Simon Cowell”, but we don’t have an answer to that one! Ryan hinted before his vacation that he knows something, but hasn’t given anything away.

Ryan Seacrest Productions

We’ve heard about a couple of new shows recently, but the one people have been searching our site for is The Incurables. Ryan has talked about it briefly on his radio show and interviewed Paul McKenna. More information: NOW CASTING: New Show Seeks To End Life-Ruining Compulsions & Phobias

On her birthday, Julianne Hough tweeted about a huge surprise involving flowers, and according to an article on LARadio.com, Ryan had arranged for her hotel room to be filled with flowers!

Julianne’s boyfriend, Ryan Seacrest, surprised her by filling her entire suite at the Westin Hotel with flowers from top to bottom, according to Todd Baker, most recently afternoons at KKGO, “Go Country” and now working afternoons at Country “Kat” (WKKT).

Julianne was meeting with the staff at Todd’s Country station. “She couldn’t take all the flowers with her so I kinda inherited some of them,” said Todd.

source: Seacrest flowers Julianne Hough via: Lori G.

There’s a photograph of Todd with a few of the flowers on his blog : Thanks for the flowers Ryan, but I think my wife will like them better.

Here’s another contestant video from Milwaukee. This one zooms in much closer to Ryan.

video: Scansinboy

Ryan said today that his radio show will be coming from New Orleans on Monday as he’ll be in town for American Idol auditions.

Auditions take place at New Orleans Arena and if it follows the pattern of the first two audition stops in Nashville and Milwaukee, there are likely to be a lot of people trying out:

“The numbers of people turning up to the American Idol auditions in Nashville and Milwaukee have been incredible. These attendance figures are significantly up on the last few years, and there is clearly renewed excitement and interest in the show, which is great to see.” — Simon Fuller

26,000 people have auditioned so far; 16,000 in Nashville and 10,000 in Milwaukee.

video: icollin757

Have a look at the channel for other videos from the American Idol audition.

Great behind the scenes at Milwaukee auditions video from Ryan’s YouTube channel.

video: JS Online via @mdesisti

Ryan is at the American Idol auditions in Milwaukee. So far there have been several tweets about him, a few photographs, and Ryan was interviewed on 991WMYX He was asked about Julianne Hough and said “she’s right here, say hi”. Ryan also said he’s heading back to LA today.

Ryan was interviewed on 103.7 KISS FM: Ryan Seacrest Interview

Ryan sure knows how to makes us want to know more about his new show:

Wait until I tell you about this one dude who sleeps in a ski mask with a blowtorch

Paul McKenna will be on his radio show tomorrow talking about his new Ryan Seacrest Productions show The Incurables. Ryan said the show’s about curing serious phobias.

Ryan mentioned a show he used to host on his radio show today

Here’s a video of Ryan leaving Taverna Tony (Greek Eats & Sweets) in Malibu. Ryan tweeted yesterday to say he was having a late lunch with his sister and friends.

@ryanseacrest: At a late lunch with some friends and my sis enjoying a great sunday just had seabass and greek salad….send me reports of what ur doing

video: X17video

Ryan doesn’t answer the question “are you still dating Julianne?” but does answer respond to someone else with, “I believe we should always take care of those who serve us.” TMZ reported recently that Ryan left a $10k tip on a $41k check after a business dinner in Europe, which is not the first time Ryan’s made the news for generous tipping.

“I think my relationship with the American Top 40 listeners is one of a listener. I’m a fan of this music. I love listening to pop music and I love being a part of just that world of being a fan. So when I’m hosting the show, I’m as exited as anybody is listening to the show and I love it. I was a listener. I was the guy that listened to this thing and now somehow I’m doing it. So I’m them. I really am.”

Ryan took a call on Friday’s show from someone he met at CHOC a couple of years back and it sounds like Ryan made an impression on her son Seamus at a difficult time in his life.

Ryan’s been at CHOC a few times. Last year he prank called someone in the hospital who told him he’d left several hours earlier!

Ryan tweeted out a reminder about the Lady Gaga Superfan contest:

@ryanseacrest: 1 day left! RT @AmericanTop40: Last chance to enter our @LadyGaga Superfan contest for a trip to see her in 4 cities! http://bit.ly/gagafan

There are some amazing pix in the photo galleries! Looks like some people have gone to a lot of effort to get their fierce on.

If you’ve ever worried about Ryan’s safety, you can stop right now. He revealed on his radio show the extreme precautions he follows just to keep himself safe at night.

We can all sleep soundly now! More from yesterday’s radio show: On Air with Ryan Seacrest 2010-07-16

Ryan named BEP and Madonna as a couple of the top artists he’s spoken to hosting American Top 40, but said it doesn’t matter how long they’ve been in the business, they’re still stoked to get the phone call telling them they’ve got the biggest song in the country.

Ryan was back on American Top 40 this weekend, and had to address a few comments made last week by his stand-in George Lopez. Ryan got a tramp stamp? Who knew …

If you missed any of the photos from Ryan’s recent vacation, Zimbio has several photo galleries:

• Ryan Seacrest Dives Off a Yacht [13 photos, July 5th]
  Tag: Ryan Seacrest, Ryan Seacrest Shirtless, Ryan Seacrest diving, Ryan Seacrest yacht
• Ryan Seacrest at Club 55 [73 photos, July 5th]
  Tag: Ryan Seacrest, Ryan Seacrest at Club 55, Ryan Seacrest yacht, Ryan Seacrest beach
• Ryan Seacrest and Julianne Hough in St Tropez [31 photos, July 7]
  Tag: Ryan Seacrest, Julianne Hough, Ryan Seacrest and Julianne Hough in Portofino
• Ryan Seacrest Arriving At LAX Airport [14 photos, July 16]
  Tag: Ryan Seacrest, Ryan Seacrest at LAX, Ryan Seacrest arrives in LA

Enjoy!

Ryan’s back on the radio this morning and he sounds great! He played a clip from the X17 video taken at LAX, talked about getting home, and after playing 3OH!3 and Ke$ha mentioned his first kiss … and his last:

video: X17video

Ryan told the guy from X17 that he didn’t propose while he was on vacation and marriage won’t be happening any time soon; he didn’t see Simon [at the beach] but he hopes to see him soon; he’s missed working; he’s happy to be back, rested, he’s put on 4lb and he’s ready to rock the Idol auditions; he is flattered about the things Larry King said but wouldn’t have time to do that too. Ryan spent a while taking photos with fans before heading out.

Ryan looks great on that video and his interaction with fans and photographers is always a pleasure to see. Even though it looked as though he was getting the hurry up, he seemed to make time for everyone.

Voting is still open in the Teen Choice Awards 2010. Ryan’s in the TV/Personality and Other/Twit categories and you can vote every day at www.teenchoiceawards.com.

Ryan doesn’t think his first time hosting AT40 was his best — he wasn’t sure whether or not he should change up the way Casey had done the countdown and he wondered if people would miss the long distance request and dedication. But although he felt the pressure, Ryan thinks nerves are a good thing because it makes you try to perform the best you can.

Ryan’s back on the radio tomorrow and Jason Segel will be on the show. Damien Fahey, who’s been filling in for Ryan this week, said he’d heard about Ryan’s man crush but Ellen explained that Jason’s actually a part of Ryan’s core — one of the select few who’ve made it to the centre of his globe of guys.

Ellen was talking to Manny about vacation, when her thoughts turned to Ryan:

Ryan should be back on the radio on Friday.

Redbook has an interview with last season’s American Idol Runner Up Crystal Bowersox in which she talks briefly about why she went to Ryan for advice:

“It was hard during Idol because there were times when I didn’t even get to see Tony awake. Toward the end of the show, [my ex-boyfriend] big Tony and little Tony were living with me. I’d wake up early to leave for rehearsals, and my son would be sleeping. Then sometimes I wouldn’t get home until 10 to 15 hours later, and he’d already be in bed. It was hard, and I did go talk to Ryan [Seacrest] at one point because he works 24/7 and I knew he would understand. He gave me the best advice: He said the best thing I could ever do was work hard enough now so I could take care of my family. And it’s true. Sometimes you have to work really hard and make sacrifices so you can provide for the people you love.”

From: Mama Sox Rocks!

Ryan’s favourite memory of American Top 40 is quite straightforward — it’s the moment he found out he’d got the gig. Hosting the show is a big deal to him, as was getting the approval of Casey Kasem who told Ryan he was doing a good job.

For me to host the American Top 40 every weekend is really special. Professionally it’s fantastic because it’s the biggest countdown in the world. Personally it means a lot to me because it’s the one show that I listened to when I was a kid. It’s the show I would flip on every weekend with my little Walkman and mow with my lawnmower. I would go up and down the front yard of my house and even some neighbours’ homes while I’d listen to the American Top 40; that was my first job. And I’d listen to Casey count them down and he did such an amazing job, painting pictures — you’d see these artists in your mind and get to know them through his delivery and his stories. And so it was an honour to first meet him and when he said you know what, I’m going to bless the baton in your hand and pass this on, it was very surreal for me. I think it’s very special and there’s a lot of pride in doing this show for me.

Ryan looks adorable doing the actions for putting on his Walkman and mowing the yard!

Pop Sugar has a quiz to guess the shirtless celeb — does it look like Ryan Seacrest, Justin Timberlake, Zac Efron or Peter Facinelli?

Guess Who’s Diving Into the Water Shirtless?

American Top 40 has had a huge impact on pop culture. It is a part of pop culture. This is a show that was created by two legends in the business. An artist releases a record and an artist wants that record played on the radio, and an artist wants that record to be on the chart and wants it to be a number one song. It’s a victory for an artist to make it to the top of the American Top 40. There’s nothing like being number one. It’s the best. To be number one is what you want when you’re an artist.

It only seems five minutes since Ryan revealed Lee Dewyze as the winner of American Idol Season 9, but it’s almost time for the first round of Season 10 auditions.

• July 17: Nashville, Bridgestone Arena
• July 21: Milwaukee, Bradley Center
• July 26: New Orleans, New Orleans Arena
• August 3: East Rutherford, Izod Center
• August 11: Austin, Frank Erwin Center
• August 19: San Francisco, AT&T Park
• TBC: MySpace

We haven’t seen any information about which ones Ryan will be attending to film crowd scenes and intros — always a highlight, not least because it usually means new videos of Ryan and interviews in the local press!

"The American Top 40 has been successful for 40 years because it is the soundtrack to life. The music that's current and popular, it sparks emotion and memories and, frankly, the race and the drama of that 40-to-1 is always fun and you root for your favourites and you want your favourite song to be the one that's on top and that other people are rooting for as well."

To vote go to http://www.youtube.com/smalltalk and click on the ‘Vote’ tab. You’ll see the finalists’ videos — they’re not all visible as thumbnails on the first screen so make sure to use the left-right arrows to move through the videos so you don’t miss one. Use the thumb up / thumb down to vote.

According to the contest rules you can vote “a maximum of once per video, per day” and are encouraged to use the criteria used to select the finalists: cuteness (50%), humor (25%), appropriateness to producer’s and advertiser’s brand image (15%),technical execution (10%).

Voting ends at 11:59:59 pm on July 11.

TMZ reports that Ryan attended a business dinner in Sardinia last night and speculates that it might have been connected with either the end of his radio contract later this year or a deal with CBS. Which sounds like they don’t know … or if they do have an idea what it was about, they’re not able to say yet. Interesting! The article also states that Ryan paid for everyone involved, so let’s hope it was a good investment!

via TMZ: Ryan Seacrest Drops a $10,000 Tip

Who could forget Ryan’s epic interview with Kathy Griffin recently, and her theory that Ryan and Oprah are plotting to get her …

They may have played nicely together for the radio show, but now RSP’s Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution has been nominated for an Emmy in the same category as Kathy’s show, she is even more convinced that Ryan is in league with Oprah to take her down:

I was reeling from the news that my little show had a shot this year. […] And then I find out that one of my competitors is a show co-executive produced by Ryan Seacrest, which I feel is further proof that he and Oprah are systematically out to get me. They have entered some agreement signed in blood where the two of them are just slowing taking over the universe.

Excerpt from EW.com: Kathy Griffin on Emmy nom: ‘I am now pitted against my archnemesis, Ryan f-ing Seacrest’

Uh oh … where Oprah features in this one, I don’t know. Maybe hers will be the deciding vote!

It’s fantastic to see Food Revolution recognised with a nomination. I think it’s the best show Ryan Seacrest Productions has produced so far and I really hope it wins.

Entertainment Tonight’s preview clip featuring photos of Ryan with Julianne Hough:

via: www.etonline.com

Radar Online has more photos: Ryan Seacrest And Julianne Hough Kissing In Italy

More photos at Bauer Griffin: Ryan and Julianne’s Sexy Getaway!

Ryan has been nominated in the “Outstanding Host For A Reality Or Reality-Competition Program” category, Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution has been nominated for “Outstanding Reality Program” and American Idol has been nominated for categories including “Outstanding Reality – Competition Program”.

More info: Emmy Nominations 2010

E! online attributes the following response to Ryan:

“I am honored that the Academy chose to recognize my work on American Idol and Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution—two projects that I am deeply devoted to. Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution has inspired so many Americans affected by obesity while American Idol has inspired millions to go after their dreams. I feel lucky to have been part of such moving programming and it has been an incredible experience to contribute to both shows.”

Read more: Tina Fey, Ryan Seacrest, Neil Patrick Harris, Conan O'Brien & Many More Stars React to Emmy Noms

The New York Post is reporting that Julianne Hough has joined Ryan on his vacation:

Sources said a set of sensational photos now making the rounds show dancer/country singer Hough wrapping her legs around the “American Idol” host as she greets him onboard after jetting in from Atlanta

Sounds like they were pleased to see each other!

Read more: Seacrest and Hough smooch on the sea

Entertainment Tonight has photos of Julianne kissing Ryan, which will be on the show tonight: Julianne Hough Spotted Kissing Ryan Seacrest, ET has the Pics

The Hollywood Reporter has information that E! and Ryan Seacrest Productions are developing a pilot for a show involving choreographers and dancers in LA, naming Laurie Ann Gibson, who choreographed several Lady Gaga videos, as a member of the cast.

Read more: E!, Ryan Seacrest developing dance show

Ryan is running a great competition to mark American Top 40’s 40th anniversary: upload a photo that shows off your fiercest Lady Gaga look and win tickets to see her in four different cities across America. The competition is open to US residents and Ryan has so many collaborators on this one I think he’s been taking lessons from some of the artists in the AT40 (for some tracks it takes him almost as long to read out the title and list of collaborators as it does to play the song).

It’s a cute video of Ryan too. I love the bit near the end where the music stops and Ryan looks down at his own outfit saying, “this probably wouldn’t qualify”, but I wish someone had then ‘qualified’ him in post-production him by flipping on some Gaga-esque glam to the sound of the bing sound effect before the music kicked back in … Cinderella, you shall go to the monster ball.

You can enter at bing.com/gaga

The LA times has an article about the role of the host in the success of a reality show: Reality show hosts are the real survivors

The author looks at the way the host on leading reality shows has become a “surefooted guide to the genre”, breaking away from the role’s ‘game show host’ roots to become more controlling, while still maintaining the appearance of impartiality. Ryan is one of four reality show hosts identified, along with Jeff Probst, Cat Deeley and Chris Harrison. The article examines how each of the four has evolved.

Jeff Probst and Chris Harrison are singled out for moving the show along through conversations with participants, and writing a detailed blog for each episode that gives them the final word. The article notes that unlike Survivor and The Bachelor, American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance don’t have a complex narrative that needs the “human filter” to the same extent, but calls Cat Deeley an “anchor” and credits Ryan with becoming “one of the feistiest voices on television”, making him the show’s most famous personality after Simon Cowell.

He’s chatty and tart, and sometimes outright dismissive, adding much needed seasoning to “Idol,” which has been suffering under the weight of its importance of late. Seacrest, alone among this group, also has numerous other high-profile business ventures. That’s nice, but none of those things would be possible without the confidence he’s earned over nine years of “Idol,” and, as a result, Seacrest will stay relevant long after “The X Factor” swallows “Idol” whole.

Excerpt from: Reality show hosts are the real survivors

The article goes on to note that Jeff Probst has won the Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality Competition Program Emmy twice since its introduction in 2008, but believes any of the four could claim the title next time.

It’s an interesting article that touches on one of the things Ryan has said: it’s his job to make it look easy. I’ve often thought Ryan is hugely underestimated because of this and that it’s a compliment that some people are still bewildered by his success — even if Ryan himself has claimed to have no particular talent.

I think Ryan’s massively talented, and I’m not just talking about his gift of song! He’s unassuming, making his shows largely about the contestants or the guests; funny in a self-deprecating way that makes him an easy target for humour; most of the time he’s comfortable to watch, though he doesn’t shy away from doing something embarrassing or awkward if that’s what the show needs, and he takes on everything that comes his way with an almost superhuman drive that seems part determination, part visionary and part insecurity, with a hint of ruthlessness that’s offset by the sort of charm that would leave you believing selling your grandmother was entirely your own idea and you’re very grateful for the opportunity to do so.

One thing I don’t agree with is the article’s line about The X Factor swallowing American Idol. I expect The X Factor to be successful, and it may end up bigger than Idol, but there’s another season of American Idol before The X Factor first airs, so Idol has time to show it can survive without Simon and reestablish itself after a weak season. Simon has been a huge part of American Idol’s personality, but as the fall-off this season has shown, they really do need the right contestants too — and that’s at least as important as what is done to fill the gap Simon has left behind. Regardless of who takes over as fourth judge, if Ryan continues hosting Idol he’s going to have his work cut out to keep things running smoothly … but we probably won’t notice.

@vicsilvstedt tweeted out a photo taken with Ryan in St. Tropez. According to celebrity-gossip, she was on a yacht cruise with her boyfriend and other friends heading towards St. Tropez on Friday.

Watch the finalists and vote at http://www.youtube.com/smalltalk

American Top 40 celebrates its 40th anniversary this weekend and it sounds like Ryan and his team have a great show planned! The anniversary show will include a tribute to the show’s creator and original host Casey Kasem, highlights from the show’s history, Ryan will reveal the top artist of the last 40 years, and a competition for Lady Gaga fans will be launched. The show’s Executive Producer @therealcc tweeted: "@AmericanTop40 fans 1 more day til our big @ladygaga annoucement. SUPERFANS, get ready -- even @ryanseacrest wants to win this trip(s)!"

AT40 reaches around 20 million people worldwide every week via 500 radio stations and has become an important part of popular culture. Ryan has hosted AT40, which is still the number one countdown show, since January 2004:

“The American Top 40 is the soundtrack to life. You listen to these songs and you go back years ago when it started and you remember certain things. You’ve celebrated to some of these songs; you’ve partied to some of these songs; you’ve driven to school and work to these songs and it’s a true soundtrack to what’s happening in popular culture.”

“I love hosting the show because it’s a great race. It’s dramatic and everybody wants to be on top. Everybody wants to be number one and when you get to tell an artist that they’ve got the number one song in the country that week, they’re elated! They’re so excited about it and one of the great parts about hosting the show is being able to deliver that news to an artist. I know that they get frustrated when they get bumped out of number one, so that drama on the chart is always consistently fun. It’s fun for me to host and it’s fun for the audience to listen to.”

“This show is really special to me personally because it’s the one show I grew up listening to as a kid and I remember every single weekend tuning into the American Top 40 to find out if my songs, the songs I liked, were the songs everybody else liked and the songs that were going to go to the top of the charts. So I take a lot of pride in hosting this show every weekend.”

I can’t wait to listen to the show … happy anniversary AT40!

The American Top 40 website has been redeveloped too and is looking much improved!

American Top 40 airs on KIIS FM from 6am PDT Saturday morning and on stations throughout the US and worldwide at various times during the week. Find it on a local station via hwww.at40.com/stations or check the listings on radiotime.com

Video of Kathy Griffin talking again about meeting Ryan at the Shrek photo shoot.

video: AssociatedPress

Julianne Hough is still talking about not talking about Ryan: “I’m not going to confirm or deny anything, but Ryan’s great; he’s a really good guy.”

Julianne was in Nashville for the ACM Lifting Lives Music Camp.