Thousands Line Up In San Diego For ‘Idol’ Auditions

SAN DIEGO, Calif. (July 30, 2007) — Thousands of people hoping to be the next Kelly Clarkson, Jennifer Hudson or even just another Sanjaya lined up outside San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium before dawn to try out in the first round of auditions for the seventh season of “American Idol.”Some brought makeup kits, Starbucks cups filled with throat-clearing salt water and even karaoke machines. Others came armed with sleeping bags and pillows.Twenty-year-old Lonnie Beatty spent the night on a trolley platform just outside the stadium grounds in order to be one of the first in line.Producers say they expect more than ten-thousand people to show up for their chance at stardom.Would-be contestants began lining up at three a-m. They had already spent hours in line over the weekend waiting to register for wristbands to get into the tryouts: neon yellow for singers, slate gray for supporters.With the Comic-Con entertainment expo drawing a record crowd of more than 120-thousand to San Diego over the weekend and thousands more in town for a sandcastle competition and an international youth soccer tournament, “Idol” hopefuls who wanted some shut-eye resorted to the online classified Web site Craig’s List or even to military bases for beds.