Love is in the air for one sharp-tongued Brit. Simon Cowell is quite taken with his fiancée.

Uncharacteristic for Simon, he has opened his heart, confessing that he’s “smitten” with new fiancée, Mezghan Hussainy, 36.

“You confuse lust with love, you know, when you’re in your teens and stuff like that,” Cowell says. “It’s a difficult thing to describe other than you know it when you are.”

At times stumbling over his words, Cowell continues: “You just know when you’ve found somebody special and I feel very, very happy.”

Cowell, 50, is even talking about possibly having kids!

“I think I possibly need to have a few more Simons around,” he said, though he admitted he was “kidding.” Still, he says, “The thing about kids, it’s like marriage, you know you have to believe you’re in something that you’re in for the long term – a hundred percent.”

With sparkling proof like this, it is hard to deny being engaged!

Although Simon Cowell, 50, previously denied being engaged to girlfriend Mezhgan Hussainy, 36, the two proved otherwise as Hussainy was photographed holding hands with Cowell and wearing a huge diamond engagement ring on her left ring finger.

“The brilliant cut diamond engagement ring is approximately six carats and an estimated $750,000. You can see that the clarity and color is nothing less than perfect!”
says a celebrity jeweler.

Cowell has now confirmed to the press that he did indeed pop the question. Obviously, she said yes!

So who could fill Simon Cowell’s shoes next year when he leaves American Idol? AI producers think that Howard Stern would be the perfect pick.

An insider said that producers of the hit Fox show say Stern, America’s highest-paid radio personality, is their top choice to take over from Cowell, who leaves at the end of this season. They approached the King of All Media after he repeatedly mentioned on-air that his exclusive Sirius XM Radio deal expires next January and he was open to other offers. Cowell was paid $50 million a year.

A source connected to “Idol” said, “It’s one of the few shows that could compete with Stern’s $100 million-a-year Sirius contract, and ‘Idol’ bosses think he’d be even nastier than Simon.

“They know he would be great TV and would clash with the other judges such as Ellen DeGeneres and the contestants. ‘Idol’ will do what it takes to sign him.”

We’re huge fans of the Howard Stern show on Sirius XM. Although we know he’d be great on American Idol, we can’t image Howard retiring from radio to tour the U.S. looking for the next idol. Stern fans know that Howard wouldn’t like that type of travel. And everyone knows that Howard doesn’t need the money.

Adding to our doubts about him taking over as a permanent replacement for Simon on AI, Howard recently said, somewhat cryptically, “I was approached by a major TV network to take over a TV show and leave here and do that next year — and I did turn it down . . . I’m not even sure if I want to be working. I’m waiting to see what happens.”

The fighting has begun on American Idol already!

Ellen DeGeneres went from excited to fighting mad on her first day of taping American Idol. Ellen shuffled her schedule to accomodate both her talk show hosting duties and her American Idol judging duties, so she had her schedule moved up so that now she shoots the talk show earlier in the day and then jumps in the car and goes to Idol. Being the responsible lady that she is, Ellen showed up right on time to judge on American Idol.

Ellen became fuming mad when Simon Cowell was an hour and a half late for the taping.

“Here it was the first day of taping of the Hollywood shows, and Ellen was there waiting for Simon to show up. Ellen’s new to the gig and she’s very organized and she made a commitment to take this on, and now she’s asking herself, ‘What did I get myself into?’ She called Simon Cowell a prima donna. So right from the start, the chemistry isn’t great,” an insider says.

Ellen quickly contacted the pal who brought her to the primetime hit show, Fox alternative programming chief Mike Darnell, and made a request: she asked him to “hurry up and pick” Simon’s successor. Cowell has previously announced that this will be the last season he judges on Idol.

Simon Cowell has just signed a two-year deal with Sony for $500 million. This deal reportedly makes Simon worth $1 billion. WOW!!!

According to the contract, Simon will launch Syco TV through Sony to produce and sell the formats for his ‘X Factor’ and ‘…Got Talent’ franchises. He’s also expected to sign a multi million-dollar deal with UK TV network iTV.

He said, “I have had a fantastic relationship with Sony for many years and I’m delighted we are launching this venture together.”

A source added: “He is truly in the driving seat. He felt like an employee before, but now he has some real ownership and is thrilled to be side by side with Sony.”

The first project for Simon’s new company will be the launch of the US version of The X Factor. Despite speculation about who will appear alongside him in choosing the finalists, Simon insisted he isn’t going to rush into any decisions.

He explained to OK! magazine: “In the UK we have 250,000 applicants every year and because there’s no upper-age limit and groups are allowed to enter, you get a lot of applications.

“So we gave ourselves time to set up the show in 2011, which also gives us some time to work out who the judging panel is going to be. I don’t want to make any commitments yet.”

Money really isn’t everything if Simon Cowell get depressed. The American Idol judge is currently negotiating a new contract for the show, which is said to be over $100 million.

Cowell says, “I get very dark moods for no reason. Nothing in particular brings it on. You can be having the best time of your life and yet you’re utterly and totally miserable. I get very anti-social, depressed and irritable with people. I don’t have time for them. I can’t make phone calls and stuff. I just sit on my own for days.”

 

American Idol judge Simon Cowell, 48 and his girlfriend of six years, Terri Seymour, 34 have split.  She wanted to marry and have kids.  He did not.

“She wants a different path in life, and I totally respect her for it,” Cowell explained. “We will be the best of mates, but I think in relationships, you have to be totally honest. I have always been, and I know Terri knows that.”

“I find women confusing really,” Cowell continued. “When you hook up and date, you’re both honest about what you want. I have never ever said that I want children or marriage. I know some people find it hard to fathom, but it’s me, it’s who I am.”

“Bottom line is I am married to my job. When people moan about been a celebrity, I think ‘Oh please, sort yourself out – it’s the greatest job in the world.’ I wake up daily thanking my lucky stars, but to throw marriage into that mix is not right. I have seen too many celebrity marriages that on paper make a great mix, fall apart through ego and just plain celebrity madness.”

There’s more to Cowell’s breakup with Seymour. He gave her a sizable parting gift. Simon Cowell gave his ex, Terri Seymour, a $9 million parting gift – $5 million to play with and another $4.6 million to buy a home in Beverly Hills.

Now that’s one amicable split!

Cowell is quick to squash rumors of another woman being the reason for the split saying, “There is no one new in my life. I can honestly say some of my best friends are girls, but we’re not dating, and that is that.”

 

Simon Cowell spoke to TV’s Extra about Clay Aiken’s People magazine cover, proclaiming publicly for the first time that he’s a gay man.

Simon jokingly says, “Wow, that’s a shock. It’s like being told Santa Clause isn’t real – unbelievable.”

Cowell then softened and encouraged Aiken with “Good for him. If he said it, it’s the right thing for him. Good for him.” As for how Aiken’s fans will react, Cowell opined, “I don’t think anyone cares. Let’s face it. It’s 2008. You know, who cares?”

Did Aiken really ask Cowell to be the godfather of Parker? “No,” Simon responds, “I don’t know him well enough, and I think I’d be the last person on Earth he’d call.”

We love the Santa Claus comment! Funny!

It looks like the time-honored trio of Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, and Paula Abdul is about to add a fourth and include an additional female judge.

In a statement released earlier today, American Idol creator Simon Fuller announced that the uber-popular singing competition judges panel will include Kara DioGuardi when Season 8 begins in January of 2009.

“We are turning the heat up on Idol this year and are thrilled to welcome Kara to the judges’ table,” show creator Simon Fuller said in a statement. “She is a smart, sassy lady, and one of America’s most successful songwriters. We know she will bring a new level of energy and excitement to the show.”

Who is Kara DioGuardi? She’s been responsible for hits sung by Kelly Clarkson, Christina Aguilera, Miley Cyrus, The Jonas Brothers, Gwen Stefani, Celine Dion, Faith Hill, Carrie Underwood, Santana, and Pink.

Wow, the judges might have some actual musical talent at their table.

Do you think any of the judges are worried about this change? Of course Paula is!!!

Amidst all of the hype and excitement, American Idol judge Paula Abdul said earlier today that she has her concerns. “I am concerned about the audience and acceptance. Time will tell. We’ll see. They always tried for a fourth judge because it followed the format of the original show, Pop Idol. We haven’t had much luck with that working, but we’re gonna give it another try.” She also noted, “It takes the fun out of all the hard work I do to push those kids through.”

Don’t you need an odd number of judges though? What happens if there is an even-split decision???

It is always fascinating to learn how much celebs make.  TV Guide has released their annual star salary survey, based on information from TV industry insiders and published sources.

Oprah Winfrey earns $385 million a year.  Each year!!! 

Simon Cowell makes $50 million a year.

David Letterman makes $32 million a year.

Charlie Sheen is the highest-paid TV actor, making $825,000 per episode.  With around 22 episodes in a season, Charlie will likely bank about $20 million a year.

There are millions to be made even if you are never actually seen on television.

Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane, who supplies the voice of lead character Peter Griffin, just signed a deal with Fox that will net him $100 million through 2012.

And The Simpsons cast — Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardley Smith and Hank Azaria — each earn $400,000 per episode.