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When Stars Sing . . . Badly

Celebrity Karaoke at the Primetime Emmys

By BUCK WOLF

Sept. 13, 2005 — Is Donald Trump the next William Hung? The real estate mogul begins his singing career Sunday — and in the mixed-up, crazy world of celebrity karaoke, a really bad performance might just guarantee The Donald a lucrative recording career.

This year's Primetime Emmys are getting "American Idol"-ized, with an unlikely batch of celebrities competing in a sing-off of classic TV theme songs. Ratings have apparently sunk so low, producers have asked Trump to belt out a version of the "Green Acres" theme with "Will & Grace's" Megan Mullally to spice things up. Eddie Albert must be turning over in his grave.


In another celebrity duet, Gary Dourdan of "CSI" and R&B star Macy Gray will sing "The Jeffersons" theme, while "Veronica Mars" star Kristen Bell chimes in with "Fame."

And, of course, no kitsch competition is complete without America's favorite bad singer, William Shatner. The former captain of the USS Enterprise and opera star Frederica Von Stade are providing vocals to the instrumental theme from "Star Trek," to boldly go where no man in his right mind has gone before.

Is this a positive turn? It's one thing when amateurs screw up on stage before their friends on karaoke night. But if you're a well-paid star, why sing if you can't sing? And should the public be encouraging celebrities to act even sillier?

Already, with nominations for their work on "The Apprentice" and "Boston Legal," Trump and Shatner stand to walk away with a Primetime Emmy, one of the few Hollywood awards that actually carry some weight.

But when these two sing in what's now called "Emmy Idol" — and viewers vote online — one of them stands to be doubly honored. Or dishonored, depending on how you look at it.

Emmy Phasers Set on 'Ironic'

Bad singing has carried Shatner through that awkward stage of his career, when he had to adjust to his principal character zipping through the galaxy with a toupee.

Of course, when the erstwhile Captain Kirk released his infamous first album — "A Transformed Man" — he never expected to be the William Hung of 1968.

As he said in the original liner notes, "Music and I are old, familiar friends." They were just never on a first-name basis.

Shatner's over-the-top, spoken-word versions of "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" and "Mr. Tambourine Man" were so bad, you just had to play them to your friends to marvel at the insanity. As one critic famously put it, Shatner "sounds in dire need of padded restraints."

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