‘Idol’ In Hennessey Waltz

A mini-controversy is already brewing for season five of "American Idol."

Word is judge Simon Cowell has a favorite contestant – an Irish girl whom he thought was as good as Kelly Clarkson, according to the New York Post. Idol provocateur Web site Votefortheworst.com picked up on the item and investigated.

It turned out the "Irish girl" was none other than Carly Hennessey – who was signed to MCA Records, which spent $2.2 million developing her and released a record that sold 378 copies. The story became a Wall Street Journal feature in 2002.

The Web site claims that as soon as it put two and two together, Hennessey switched her MySpace page to private. "American Idol" allegedly has a rule that singers cannot compete if they are linked to a record company.