Did Rosie Out Clay Aiken?

LOS ANGELES (November 22, 2006) — Clay Aiken took the stage at the American Music Awards on Tuesday night and laughed off the Kelly Ripa-Rosie O’Donnell controversy.

But on the same day Clay unwittingly found himself in the middle of a firestorm, he hit the red carpet where the press was waiting with questions.

A noticeably quiet Clay arrived for the AMAs but didn’t stop for interviews. Earlier in the day, Kelly and Rosie went at each other about whether or not Kelly made a “homophobic” remark towards the “American Idol” alum after he jokingly placed his hands over her mouth while he was co-hosting “Live with Regis and Kelly.”

“I don’t know where those hands have been honey,” Kelly said to Clay on national TV.

But Clay got a laugh while presenting at the AMAs with a pregnant Tori Spelling. As Clay was introducing the next performer, Tori put her hand over Clay’s mouth.

“And I’ll tell you where those hands have been later,” Spelling smiled, drawing a laugh from Clay and the audience.

Was the gag planned?

“Did you guys practice that before hand?” Access Hollywood’s Shaun Robinson asked Spelling after the show.

“No, that was spontaneous,” Tori revealed.

Meanwhile, fellow “Idol” alum Katharine McPhee (who sat next to Clay during the show) told Access that Clay may be sending Kelly an apology of some sort.

“He got caught up in a little controversy. Do you feel bad for him that he’s kind of in the middle of all this?” Shaun asked Katharine.

“It didn’t come off the way that we wanted it to and I’m sure he feels badly about it,” McPhee said. “So I’m sure he’ll have a little something for her tomorrow.”

But on Wednesday’s “Live,” there was no mention of any apology.

And apparently last February, Kelly forgot about cold and flu season, as Access uncovered a photo where she puts her hand over Regis’ mouth.

Over at “The View,” it was kiss and make up day as Barbara Walters rejoined the cast.

“Rosie and Kelly talked yesterday and Rosie and Clay talked and all is well with the world and all is well with them,” Walters explained.

What exactly Rosie said to Clay is unknown, but if Clay is gay many people believe that Rosie, while standing up for the singer, may have inadvertently outed him in the process.

Katharine McPhee, for one, thinks so.

“She did. She kind of outed Clay,” McPhee told us. “That’s his personal business that no one really knows.”

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