Freewheeling 'Talent' is back

There's something about "America's Got Talent" (Tuesdays on NBC) - free-form, free-style, free of rules - that seems to fit its place and time.

"It's a kind of showcase for all American talent," said Piers Morgan, one of the judges. "In that way, we've become a sort of patriotic show."

He said that from an outside view. Two of the show's three judges (Morgan and Sharon Osbourne) are British; so are two of the three creators.

They built a show with a new-world view, he said. "It's the ultimate American dream." Here is a world where jugglers and plate-spinners have equal status with cellists and sopranos. The first champion was an 11-year-old singer; the second was a ventriloquist. "He signed a big contract in Las Vegas," Morgan said.

The show also seems to fit this time of year. When it began in 2006, producer Ken Warwick pegged it as a summer show.

"People have been out all day in the sun," he said. "They just want to sit down, have a beer and have a laugh."

The idea was to avoid rules, he said. "Wouldn't it be great if we could literally throw the rule book out the window and have anybody who thought he had any talent?"

So contestants have ranged from a rapping grandmother to an 8-year-old comedian. "We've got a 4-year-old this year who is an unbelievable singer," Morgan insisted. "She's the youngest contestant we've had and she's fabulous."

Alongside that is the American knack for re-invention. That certainly fits:

- Osbourne, the rock wife, TV personality and cancer survivor. "She's a tough cookie," Morgan said.

- Jerry Springer, the host. He went from politics to a lurid talk show, then showed elegance and humor on "Dancing with the Stars."

- David Hasselhoff, a judge. He's ranged from TV and pop-music stardom to alcohol problems. "The Hoff is not your normal bloke ... He's a very complex guy," Morgan said. Hasselhoff seemed to fit the show's unstructured nature.

"It was like fast-food television," he said that first year. "All of a sudden, we're on television, trying to figure out how to work the buzzers."

Then there's Morgan's image, which was revised this winter. He had gone from unknown (in the U.S.) to villain, the judge who made contestants cry; then "Celebrity Apprentice" captured many extremes.

"People run up to me all the time," Morgan said. "They say, 'Thank you for destroying Omarosa on Apprentice.' "

"Celebrity Apprentice" seemed to have a manipulator on each team - Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth for the women, Morgan for the men.

Two men became so annoyed that they tried to quit. Vincent Pastore did; Stephen Baldwin switched teams.

"I'm very competitive," Morgan said. "(But) I think Donald Trump was disappointed that the two New Yorkers wanted to quit. Where's your fight? New York is supposed to be the toughest city in the world."

Trump set up a final confrontation between a sturdy American (Trace Adkins) and Morgan, who says he was considered "the ruthless, obnoxious Brit." Then Morgan was the surprise winner.

Life is full of surprises, including when Lennox Lewis - a boxing champion and "Apprentice" contestant - suggested a chess match.

"I've played chess all my life," Morgan said. "I was my school's champion. We played 36 games and he won 35 times."

Images change, surprises happen, winners emerge. Anything is possible when Americans have talent.

The group Indiggo auditions for "American's Got Talent."