Simon Fuller knows a thing or two about making stars. But seeing his name on one on the sidewalk?
That would be a first.
But why else do you think Jennifer Lopez, Victoria Beckham and Carrie Underwood were all tottering on their stilettos in the middle of Hollywood Boulevard today?
Fuller, founder of XIX Entertainment and creator of the global American Idol juggernaut, received the 2,441st star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame this morning for his considerable accomplishments. (He sold his original powerhouse, 19 Entertainment, for more than $250 million in cash and stock in 2005 and formed XIX last year.)
Along with the lovely ladies mentioned above, Lopez hubby Marc Anthony, Ryan Seacrest, Randy Jackson, Idol finalists Scotty McCreery and Lauren Alaina, past winners Kris Allen and David Cook, and former Idol executive producer and So You Think You Can Dance cocreator Nigel Lythgoe were all on hand to fete Fuller in front of the W Hollywood, across the street from the famed Pantages Theatre.
In case the Beckham connection seems kind of random, aside from Victoria's stint as an Idol guest judge last year, remember that Fuller manages both the fashion plate and her soccer stud hubby, David Beckham.
Busy guy, that Brit.
"Whenever I see that star," Fuller said, "I won't see my name, I'll see all names of the people I've worked [with] and all those amazing artists and people that have helped me achieve this stuff."