"Star Search" Legends
There are so many talent shows on TV these days, from "American Idol" to "America's Got Talent" to all the dance programs, it's hard to believe that everyone who can carry a tune or pop-and-lock hasn't been discovered by now. But there was once a time when such series were a novelty, and one show ruled supreme: "Star Search."
Starting in 1983 and running until 1995, the competition showcase (hosted by Ed McMahon in its initial run, then by Arsenio Hall) sought the day's brightest up-and-comers - and they found a whole bunch. The series gave us the comedians Sinbad and the spokesmodel Sharon Stone, but it was the singers who gave "Star Search" its legacy. From LeAnn Rimes to Usher, undiscovered talent finally got their big break, and whether they walked away with the most stars awarded by a judges panel or not, they certainly gained enough exposure to set them on the path to superstardom.
We look back at some of "Star Search's" most famous singing alumni, their first moment in the TV spotlight, and where they are now.
VIDEO GALLERY: See all the "Star Search" legends' performances
David Archuleta, 2003
We never thought it was possible for someone to look older at 12 than at 18, but David Archuleta is like a real-life Benjamin Button. When he appeared on "Star Search" as a preteen in 2003, he looked like a little old man. Now he looks more like his youthful age. Archuleta won the show's coveted Junior Vocal Champion prize, with judge Naomi Judd calling him a "Wayne Newton Mini-Me" and Ben Stein offering, "I can't believe how much soul came out of this little teeny loaf of Wonder Bread." Four years later, he passed an audition for "American Idol's" seventh season and came in second behind David Cook, with 44 percent of the 97 million votes. His fans, lovingly called the Archies, have since bought more than 700,000 copies of his album "Crush" (which debuted at #2 on the "Billboard" 200 chart). Archuleta has toured the U.S., the U.K., and the Philippines (with David Cook) and has been nominated for three Teen Choice awards. He made his acting debut on Nickelodeon's "iCarly" and performed a duet with Miley Cyrus on "Hannah Montana." Watch for two new releases from him this fall: his sophomore pop CD and a Christmas record.
Justin Timberlake, 1992
In 1992 an 11-year-old boy from Shelby Forest, Tennessee, stepped onto the "Star Search" stage wearing an oversized belt buckle, a cowboy-hat-and-boots ensemble, and a really, really tacky shirt. On top of that, Justin Randall sang the age-inappropriate Alan Jackson hit "Love's Got a Hold on You." And even though the diminutive country crooner scored 3.25 stars, he was no match for fellow competitor Anna Nardona, who received four (with the much-safer "Dreams to Dream," from Disney's "An American Tail: Fievel Goes West"). A year later Justin decided to go by his first and last name (Randall was his middle name) and joined the cast of "The New Mickey Mouse Club" as Justin Timberlake. After that show wrapped production in 1994, he joined the boy band *NYSNC and, well, you probably know the rest: hit singles, celebrity girlfriends, stellar appearances on "Saturday Night Live" -- heck, he even found time to bring sexy back. As for Nardona, last we heard she was working at a day spa in Connecticut. Who's got more stars now, huh?
Britney Spears, 1990
The 11-year-old Spears made her first national TV appearance on "Star Search" with a performance of The Judds’ "Love Can Build a Bridge." She won the first round but not the Junior Vocalist title. She did, however, get noticed by The Disney Channel, which offered her a spot on "The New Mickey Mouse Club," a show she’d auditioned for at age eight but was considered too young for at the time. Of course, we all know what’s happened to Britney since. Her first album, 1999’s "…Baby One More Time," debuted at #1, as did her next two releases. She toured with *NYSNC and Backstreet Boys, got married twice, shaved her head, had more than a few run-ins with the paparazzi, and then staged a high-profile comeback in 2009, culminating with her worldwide "Circus" tour.
Christina Aguilera, 1990
At nine years old Christina Aguilera went on "Star Search" and sang Etta James’ "A Sunday Kind of Love." But like so many of her contemporaries, she didn’t win. Still, the Pennsylvania youth’s brief moment in the spotlight opened doors for appearances on local talk shows and national-anthem performances at Philadelphia sporting events. By 1993 she was invited to join "The New Mickey Mouse Club," where she was cast mates with Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, and Keri Russell. In 1998 she recorded a pop version of "Reflection" for Disney’s "Mulan," which earned her an RCA recording contract. Her self-titled 1999 debut release yielded three #1 singles. She’s since accrued four Grammys, one Latin Grammy, and 42 million albums sold worldwide. Christina is currently working on her fourth studio album (due this fall) and has recently announced that she will star alongside Cher in a new movie musical, "Burlesque," set to start production in November.
Alanis Morissette, 1988
The 14-year-old Alanis Nadine took to the "Star Search" stage in 1988, but her performance wasn’t deemed good enough by the judges, so she was cut after her first appearance. Isn’t it ironic that she’d mature into a multi-Grammy winning, multi-platinum recording artist and poster girl for angst-ridden women everywhere? She hasn’t yet managed to match the enormous success of her 1995 album, "Jagged Little Pill," but she continues to record (she released her seventh disc, "Flavors of Entanglement," in 2008) and act in film ("Dogma"), theater ("The Vagina Monologues"), and on TV ("Nip/Tuck"). Alanis will appear as an obstetrician on "Weeds" later this year.
Phil Vassar, 1987
Before he became Nashville’s great piano man and an ASCAP Country Songwriter of the Year with 18 singles on the "Billboard" Country chart, Phil Vassar was a mullet-haired "Star Search" champion. His compatriots would probably give him a hard time for his geometrically-patterned-silver-shirt-and-jacket combo and decidedly ’80s song choices (with lyrics like "My heart was the very last to know/you’re the love that won't let go"). But Phil would become a music legend soon enough and go on to become a judge on country music’s "Star Search" equivalent, "Nashville Star."
Tiffany, 1985
Future shopping-mall superstar pop singer Tiffany Renee appeared on "Star Search" in 1985 at the age of 14. She made it all the way to the end, but wound up as runner-up for the Junior Female Vocalist crown. She soon dropped the Renee (her middle name; her last name was Darwish) to become Tiffany, the first "Star Search" alum with a #1 hit, 1987’s "I Think We’re Alone Now." She enjoyed a few more chart-toppers and went head-to-head with Debbie Gibson for the unofficial title of America’s Sweetheart. But her fame didn’t last, and court battles with her parents over control of her earnings were pretty much the end of Tiffany. She attempted a few comebacks, but it wasn’t until she posed for "Playboy" in 2002 that she really returned to the public eye. From there she hit the reality-TV circuit on Britain’s "Hit Me, Baby, One More Time," then on America’s "Celebrity Fit Club," and "Hulk Hogan’s Celebrity Championship Wrestling." She released a few more albums - most recently 2007’s "Just Me" - and has been dipping her big toe into the acting pool with her first feature film, "Necrosis," which premiered at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival in May.
Sam Harris, 1983
Sam Harris might have seemed like an overnight sensation when, at the age of 22, he became "Star Search’s" first Male Vocalist champ. But, in fact, Harris had been performing for anyone willing to watch since the age of five, when he was in his first play. As a UCLA student he co-wrote and starred in the musical "Hurry! Hurry! Hollywood!" And even Old Blue Eyes himself told Sam not to "get any better till I get out of the business" when he handed the young crooner the Frank Sinatra Pop Singing Award. Following his TV victory, Sam released a couple of top-selling albums and toured the world, but music wasn’t his only passion. He co-created and wrote for the TV series "Down to Earth"; took a Drama Desk-nominated "Grease" tour on Broadway and sang and danced in "The Producers"; appeared in films like "In the Weeds;" and starred in the sitcom "The Class." Sam’s Broadway-bound again this fall in a musical adaptation of "The First Wives Club."
VIDEO GALLERY: See all the "Star Search" legends' performances
