NEW YORK (AP) - Jeremy Rosado has gotten the hook on "American Idol."
Thursday's edition of the Fox singing contest saw the exit of the 19-year-old receptionist from Valrico, Fla. He left behind a dozen finalists still in the running.
They include Elise Testone, a 28-year-old teacher from Charleston, S.C., whom the judges spared in favor of Rosado. The two were revealed as the female and male singers rated lowest by viewers after Wednesday's show, and in a novel twist the judges were charged with deciding, on the spot, who would stay and who would go.
Asked if America got it right putting those two at the bottom, judge Randy Jackson replied, "I don't know if they got it exactly right, but probably, I'm thinking."
Among the other four who got the lowest viewer scores but, for now, remain safe: 25-year-old gentle giant Jermaine Jones, of Pine Hill, N.J.; soaring 16-year-old vocalist Shannon Magrane, of Tampa, Fla.; 26-year-old disc jockey Erika Van Pelt, of South Kingstown, R.I.; and booming 19-year-old student Joshua Ledet, of Westlake, La.
On Wednesday's show, all the guys had performed Stevie Wonder songs, while the female contestants paid tribute to Whitney Houston, who died last month.
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