Does the 17-year-old Georgia peach think she fell prey to the "I won't bother voting for her because everyone else will" syndrome? "Not at all," she tells TVGuide.com. "People chose wisely as they decided each contestant's fate. In my mind, it was already planned that my journey was going to end somewhere.
"I'm not saying that I never had this [dream] of being the American Idol," Paris continues, "but I never thought too much about it."
As for the question asked (and never really answered) each week of the newest castoff — "Who do you think will win?" — Paris... has no answer, despite the field being narrowed down to just four. But she did offer up her personal take on each of the remaining contenders. Starting with Elliot Yamin, she says, "What makes him so special is that he possesses something so deep within himself. For [a diabetic] to be able to do the things that he does when he's on that stage... I honor him for that. He's the real deal."
Turning her attention to Taylor Hicks — aka "Tay-tay," aka "my big brother" — Paris declares that "he is as sweet as pie. He has so much soul in him." Chris Daughtry she sums up as "definitely the rocker. He is so intense at the things that he does, and that's what makes him a great person."
As for the lone gal left in the competition, Paris described Katharine McPhee as "very sweet, very, very classical. She's just... Katharine. The beauty queen. The Barbie. There's not one person like her."
In a conference call with reporters, Paris also had this to say about...
... turning the tables on the judges:"I honestly took every negative thing they said and every positive thing they said, and I made the negatives be positive. I never, ever really took it to heart and dwelled on it, because every week I knew I was supposed to be ready for a new judgment."
... her Best. Week. Ever."I know this will sound do weird, but I was most proud of my rock week, [singing a song by] Queen. No one ever expected me to be able to get through that week, but I was happy that I made Queen happy and that I was able to sing a song by Freddy Mercury. That was the best week for me."
... her plans for her 18th birthday, on Aug. 23:"I'm thinking about having a big party, maybe at a roller-skating rink. I love to roller-skate."
... the rumor that she's signing on with Beyoncé's manager-father, Matthew Knowles:"It cant really be confirmed. I can say that he is definitely a person that I would love to work with. Hopefully by the time my album [is ready], he'll be a part of that."
... that... that... speaking voice:" This is what I was blessed with. It's what makes me unique and different from the contestants I was with, and people in general. I wouldn't change anything that was created on me. I appreciate my voice in every aspect."
... being utterly uncontroversial (for better or for worse):"That's who I am. 'The lovable one.' I'm not a person to start things up. I always have to be the squeaky-clean one, but I will let you know when you're out of place."
... "sticking it" to Ryan Seacrest last week:"I always have a piece of gum at the roof of my mouth. So when he said, 'OK, Paris, you're going to sing' and held his hand out, I said, 'Ryan, you want to hold this for me?' And I took it out and gave it to him — just to show America that I'm ready for any given moment. There'll never be a time they'll catch me off guard!"
Why do so many people risk making fools of themselves on shows like American Idol? Find out.

"When I'm producing other artists like Jim or Angela, I'm always happy when I see that look on their face that says, 'That's it! That's what I want!'" the Santa Barbara native tells TVGuide.com. "But I'm eager to show the world what I can do, too. I hope my music will strike a chord... and connect with people [everywhere] the way it has with people here in L.A."
With the recent release of his own 17-track This Is About You album, it seems inevitable that not only will Lopez's music connect with people, it'll bowl them over. His thinking-kid's pop-rock radiates the kind of sincerity that can't be manufactured, and even his dance tracks suggest an earthiness that's almost unheard of at the disco.
"I wanted to make an album that wasn't stale or the same all the way through," explains the natural-born multitasker, whose influences range from the Beatles to Prince. "I wanted more of a variety than you'd find on a lot of albums aimed at cracking the Top 40.
"I wanted to show different sides of myself, too — the party boy, the heartbroken boy, happy, sad, optimistic, naughty, nice. Stuff that everyone kind of goes through," he adds. "That's why it's called This Is About You. The 'you' is everyone."
Despite the sweet vocals and tart lyrics dispersed on This Is About You Lopez knows that, as a non-Idol who is not dating a paparazzi magnet, he faces an uphill battle getting his music heard. Still, he believes that if you lend him an ear, he'll steal your heart.
"It's so hard these days without a show or something to launch you," he concedes. "Radio is tough right now. But online promotion is big — [authoring pages on] MySpace.com and the like. Word-of-mouth works well for artists like me. In the end, I can only hope that the honesty of the songs connects to people."
For more on Lopez, visit GabeLopez.com.

TVGuide.com: Did this Bird Flu movie set some sort of speed record in being pulled together? It's like it appeared out of nowhere.Stacy Keach: Everybody was very anxious to make sure that all of the data would still be intact by the time it hit the air. That was great motivation to finish this thing and get it out before too long, and certainly before anything were to actually happen. Everything in the news right now is about the bird flu. Free advertising!
TVGuide.com: What cinched your own involvement in the project?Keach: It was a nice part. I also have very strong feelings about the subject matter. I have two teenagers, we live in Poland part of the time, and my wife and I are concerned because over in Europe we see this bird flu beginning to creep northward from Turkey and Indonesia. The movie is a "what if" that raises the question of how prepared we are. In the film, the suggestion is that in the event of a vaccine, we'd only have enough for 25 percent of the population. Who gets it — those with the most money or the most need?
TVGuide.com: Some have said the movie could be alarmist as it takes some liberties with the current facts.Keach: It's a melodrama, yeah. But it does reference the Spanish flu of 1918. The world was in the throes of World War I at the time, so few people were aware that 50 million people died from an avian flu. I didn't know that.
TVGuide.com: Turning now to Prison Break, Michael pulled a shiv on you last week....Keach: Yeah, isn't that nasty? Such betrayal!
TVGuide.com: Does Warden Pope show one iota of sympathy for Michael's situation?Keach: Not one iota. Not an iota. He turns into an avenging angel, Pope does. He's really pissed.
TVGuide.com: Does Michael attempt to plead his case?Keach: Well, he apologizes. He bashes the Pope on the head, ties him up and throws him in the closet — but he apologizes before he does it. [Laughs]
TVGuide.com: Wade Williams (Bellick) told me that once the boys escape, the show will adopt a Fugitive flavor. How will the Pope fit in?Keach: I don't know that he does. I'm not sure. When I signed on to this thing, it was originally for four shows, so I don't know what they have in mind. Now, I'm going to be in Chicago anyway in the fall, doing King Lear at the Goodwin Theater, so I said, "Look, I'll be there anyway. You don't have to fly me in and out! Keep the Pope alive!" Make him a weekend warrior and put him on a Harley looking for those guys. Prison Break will resume production in June, and I am going to be in the first couple episodes [of Season 2], I know that. The truth of the matter is, the Pope has more reason to go after Michael than anyone else. He took this kid under his wing and trusted him. He feels so betrayed by this. You'll see that in the season finale. He's like, "Do whatever you can to get this kid!"
TVGuide.com: You served a six-month prison stint yourself in 1984. Did that harden you, or were you already a bit hardened?Keach: It neither hardened or softened me. It just made me more aware of priorities, I think. The governor of the prison was kind of a role model for the Pope. He was a very compassionate man who was very trusting of the inmates. I was the librarian when I was there, so I would read letters to illiterate prisoners and write letters on their behalf to their families.
TVGuide.com: How does Fox River compare to the prison you stayed at?Keach: They're very dissimilar in a lot of ways except that the walls were the same height. The cells in Redding Jail were closed cells. There were no open bars; they had steel doors with slits. Pretty harsh.
TVGuide.com: One of Orson Welles' last on-screen roles was in Butterfly. What was it like working with him?Keach: Oh, it was the best. I had the great privilege of going to dinner with him one night at the MGM Grand dining room. He ordered two sides of roast beef and four mashed potatoes — because he was on a diet. Also, this lady came up to him and said, "Mr. Welles, I've loved you so long. Can I have your autograph?" [In a deep, Wellesian voice] "Not while I'm eating, dear." But she waited, and he signed for her.
TVGuide.com: Do you think you might ever revisit the Mike Hammer character?Keach: Before [veteran Hollywood manager] Jay Bernstein passed away [on April 30], we were talking about the possibility of doing it as a feature movie with someone like Dennis Quaid as Mike Hammer. I was going to help produce it. My days of playing Mike Hammer are over. It's hard to revisit those roles when you're 12 years older.
TVGuide.com: If someone wanted to check out three definitive Stacy Keach films, which DVDs should they go out and get?Keach: [Instantly] Hemingway [a miniseries], The Ninth Configuration and Fat City.
TVGuide.com: Wow, that was quick.Keach: [Laughs] Those are the ones that come to mind. I like [the TV series] Titus, too.
TVGuide.com: You have a Hallmark movie coming up about Blackbeard. That must have been fun.Keach: That was, man. For a ham actor like myself, playing a pirate gives you license to chew down the yardarm!

TVGuide.com: Did this Bird Flu movie set some sort of speed record in being pulled together? It's like it appeared out of nowhere.Stacy Keach: Everybody was very anxious to make sure that all of the data would still be intact by the time it hit the air. That was great motivation to finish this thing and get it out before too long, and certainly before anything were to actually happen. Everything in the news right now is about the bird flu. Free advertising!
TVGuide.com: What cinched your own involvement in the project?Keach: It was a nice part. I also have very strong feelings about the subject matter. I have two teenagers, we live in Poland part of the time, and my wife and I are concerned because over in Europe we see this bird flu beginning to creep northward from Turkey and Indonesia. The movie is a "what if" that raises the question of how prepared we are. In the film, the suggestion is that in the event of a vaccine, we'd only have enough for 25 percent of the population. Who gets it — those with the most money or the most need?
TVGuide.com: Some have said the movie could be alarmist as it takes some liberties with the current facts.Keach: It's a melodrama, yeah. But it does reference the Spanish flu of 1918. The world was in the throes of World War I at the time, so few people were aware that 50 million people died from an avian flu. I didn't know that.
TVGuide.com: Turning now to Prison Break, Michael has a shiv pulled on you as we speak....Keach: Yeah, isn't that nasty? Such betrayal!
TVGuide.com: Will Warden Pope show one iota of sympathy for Michael's situation?Keach: Not one iota. Not an iota. He turns into an avenging angel, Pope does. He's really pissed.
TVGuide.com: Does Michael attempt to plead his case?Keach: Well, he apologizes. He bashes the Pope on the head, ties him up and throws him in the closet — but he apologizes before he does it. [Laughs]
TVGuide.com: Wade Williams (Bellick) told me that once the boys escape, the show will adopt a Fugitive flavor. How will the Pope fit in?Keach: I don't know that he does. I'm not sure. When I signed on to this thing, it was originally for four shows, so I don't know what they have in mind. Now, I'm going to be in Chicago anyway in the fall, doing King Lear at the Goodwin Theater, so I said, "Look, I'll be there anyway. You don't have to fly me in and out! Keep the Pope alive!" Make him a weekend warrior and put him on a Harley looking for those guys. Prison Break will resume production in June, and I am going to be in the first couple episodes [of Season 2], I know that. The truth of the matter is, the Pope has more reason to go after Michael than anyone else. He took this kid under his wing and trusted him. He feels so betrayed by this. You'll see that in the season finale. He's like, "Do whatever you can to get this kid!"
TVGuide.com: You served a six-month prison stint yourself in 1984. Did that harden you, or were you already a bit hardened?Keach: It neither hardened or softened me. It just made me more aware of priorities, I think. The governor of the prison was kind of a role model for the Pope. He was a very compassionate man who was very trusting of the inmates. I was the librarian when I was there, so I would read letters to illiterate prisoners and write letters on their behalf to their families.
TVGuide.com: How does Fox River compare to the prison you stayed at?Keach: They're very dissimilar in a lot of ways except that the walls were the same height. The cells in Redding Jail were closed cells. There were no open bars; they had steel doors with slits. Pretty harsh.
TVGuide.com: One of Orson Welles' last on-screen roles was in Butterfly. What was it like working with him?Keach: Oh, it was the best. I had the great privilege of going to dinner with him one night at the MGM Grand dining room. He ordered two sides of roast beef and four mashed potatoes — because he was on a diet. Also, this lady came up to him and said, "Mr. Welles, I've loved you so long. Can I have your autograph?" [In a deep, Wellesian voice] "Not while I'm eating, dear." But she waited, and he signed for her.
TVGuide.com: Do you think you might ever revisit the Mike Hammer character?Keach: Before [veteran Hollywood manager] Jay Bernstein passed away [on April 30], we were talking about the possibility of doing it as a feature movie with someone like Dennis Quaid as Mike Hammer. I was going to help produce it. My days of playing Mike Hammer are over. It's hard to revisit those roles when you're 12 years older.
TVGuide.com: If someone wanted to check out three definitive Stacy Keach films, which DVDs should they go out and get?Keach: [Instantly] Hemingway [a miniseries], The Ninth Configuration and Fat City.
TVGuide.com: Wow, that was quick.Keach: [Laughs] Those are the ones that come to mind. I like [the TV series] Titus, too.
TVGuide.com: You have a Hallmark movie coming up about Blackbeard. That must have been fun.Keach: That was, man. For a ham actor like myself, playing a pirate gives you license to chew down the yardarm!