'American Idol': Sign, sign, everywhere a sign

So many elements go into the making of the next "American Idol": The vocal coaching, the musical arrangements, the styling, the posterboard.

Yep, posterboard: Homemade signs are as much a part of the "Idol" visual landscape as blue lights and Simon Cowell's T-shirts. And if you happen to go to one of the mass auditions? You can barely see the sky for all the people proclaiming that they're the next Idol via posterboard, markers, stick-on letters and glitter. Like this:



AmericanIdol.com is featuring a gallery of some of the placards people carried to this season's auditions with them, and after looking at a few of the photos it becomes clear that A) there aren't many graphic designers in the audition pool and B) there's a formula to making an "Idol" sign that goes something like this:

[Insert name here in big shiny letters] is the next American Idol!!! [arrow pointing to person holding sign]

Optional additions include "[City name] loves 'American Idol'" and "I drove [X] miles to be here."

There are a few standouts in the gallery though, like the one this pair is brandishing, claiming that Ryan Seacrest is actually their dad (bonus points for matching T-shirts):



I like the sibling rivalry present in this pair:



And finally, a shot that encompasses several major types of "Idol" sign-making: The standard "I'm the next Idol" one in the middle, a hybrid local shout-out/it's me poster on the right and a funny one on the left (note: the fact that the woman on the left isn't wearing a bikini proves her point).



We are now T-minus 50 days or so (give or take a few; FOX hasn't announced a premiere date yet) from the season premiere of "Idol"; those of you hoping to attend tapings of the show have several more weeks beyond that to get your own signs ready.

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Photo credits: AmericanIdol.com