It’s really the end of summer television! Last night, NBC’s ratings anchor, America’s Got Talent, crowned its tenth winner, and also said farewell to one of its judges, Howard Stern. Paul Zerdin, a 43-year-old ventriloquist from London, took the $1 million prize, as well as the opportunity to headline his own Las Vegas show. He’s been doing this for a while: In 1996, he won ITV’s The Big Big Talent Show and appeared on BBC kids shows. Almost 20 years later, he and his trusty puppet Sam were more than ready for America:
But Zerdin is also traveling down a road with puppet predecessors. Season-two winner Terry Fator came on and did a set with him for the finale:
And, of course, America’s Got Talent is saying good-bye to Howard Stern, who, for four seasons, surprised viewers with his genuine warmth and candor. As he says himself in this video package (come on, of course there’s a video package), “I did the most shocking thing in my career: I was on a family show.â€