June 11: On This Day in 2002 - American Idol Premiere

June 11, 2002: On this day was the premiere of the television show, American Idol. Fox's talent show was based on a British program called Pop Idol. Talented signers compete for a major label record deal while being judged by a panel of highly critical music experts: Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson.

The audience participated by phoning in votes for their favorites. Ryan Seacrest and comedian Brian Dunkleman co-hosted the first season and Kelly Clarkson was the first "American Idol" winner.