American Idol

Simon was out at Beso for dinner with ex-GF Terri Seymour last night -- but they left in separate cars.

Just friends?

Fortunately for Cowell, the cop was a fan who fell for his old British charm and let him go without a ticket -- but not before stopping traffic to strike up a conversation about the other "American Idol" judges he's pulled over in the past. We're not kidding.

It seems like Simon even attempts to warn him about discussing such things on camera, but hey, it's Beverly Hills ... and nobody got hurt.

This pic shows the "American Idol" judge in the clutches of a Beverly Hills cop this afternoon. The PD told us it was a "non-event traffic stop" and no citation was issued.

We're thinking the violation was for putting a 4th judge on the show. It really sucks.

UPDATE: TMZ has learned that Simon didn't have his license and wasn't wearing his seat belt while being stopped. He was not cited.

Katrina Darrell (aka Bikini Girl from "American Idol") has finally found her true calling -- and it involves wearing a bikini.

Bikini Girl is starting to be booked for club appearances (a la K-Fed or Audrina) and is getting offers as high as $10k. Of course, there is one string attached -- she's got to show up in a bikini.

In a related story, there are tons of pictures on the Internet of girls in bikinis -- and they're free.

According to Katrina, we misidentified the "American Idol" reject as a contestant in a racetrack swimsuit contest and she wasn't having it.

Katrina, our apologies to you and your "cuter stomach."

Once again, our TMZ mole has successfully infiltrated the set of "American Idol", where the first twelve contestants were rehearsing for tonight's live performance.

The big scoop: Two wannabes are busting out Aretha Franklin jams -- it's on!!! No word if they're rocking an over-sized hat to match.

According to our mole, Anoop had to restart his song 4-5 times because the band kept messing up. Danny Gokey was the best (the crowd loved him) and Casey Carlson was the worst, with a "Sarah Palin-esque type performance full of winks and poses."

Here's the final rundown for tonight's ep:

Jackie Tohn: "A Little Less Conversation" by Elvis Presley

Ricky Braddy: "A Song For You" by Leon Russell

Alexis Grace: "I Never Loved a Man" by Aretha Franklin

Brent Keith: "Hicktown" by Jason Aldean

Casey Carlson: "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" by the Police

Jessica Langseth, a singer from Minneapolis, was busted a few years back on DUI. She pled guilty, spent four days in jail and was put on probation for two years -- more than enough time to master the art of bare-knuckled combat. Jessica's probation was cut short and she officially became a free woman last December.

Let's just hope there aren't any sharpened toothbrushes lying around the set. You know, for Simon's sake.

Kelly Clarkson is officially crawling back to people that made her who she is ... by reselling out and hitting up an "Idol" event at, of all places, Disney World.

In the greatest gathering of minds since the creation of NATO, sources say Clarkson -- who has dissed "A.I." and Clive Davis in the past -- is joining the other six winners (and a slew of losers) from the show for the debut of the "American Idol Experience" at Disney World in Orlando tonight.

TMZ has learned Top 36 "American Idol" contestant Joanna Pacitti was forced to pull out from the show because of ties to an A.I. exec.

Last night Joanna made the cut, but this morning "American Idol's" website revealed this: "It has been determined that Joanna Pacitti is ineligible to continue in the competition."

So what the hell does that mean? Glad you asked: Joanna's former manager at Geffen (yeah, she had a record deal) is now a big wig at 19 Entertainment (which produces "Idol"). It's unclear how that went unnoticed for five months, but we're told producers demanded her resignation yesterday. We're told Joanna refused to do it.

Don't judge.

Somewhere there's a local balloon festival, opening of a housing development or a chicken wing joint with his name on it!

Check out this clip of Jackie from Uwe Boll's "Postal." The director will be awarded "Worst Career Achievement" at this year's Razzies. From here, Jackie's career can only go up.

Frankie has stirred some controversy this season because she was previously signed to a record deal. Her husband was also a contestant on a singing reality show called "Rediscovered" where he won $50,000. Maybe that's their down payment!