‘World Idol’: gap-toothed Norwegian

Maybe global TV fans prefer gap-toothed former plumbers to big-voiced former cocktail waitresses for their pop music idols. Maybe it’s that a recent U2 hit resonates better than an Aretha Franklin standard. It could also be some lingering anti-Americanism.

Or maybe Norway’s Kurt Nilsen simply did better than Kelly Clarkson. Whatever the reason, Nilsen was crowned the first “World Idol” winner Thursday night.

The competition, an extension of the hugely successful “Pop Idol”/”American Idol” franchise, featured performances from winners of 11 “Idol” competitions around the world, which aired Christmas night. Results of voting by viewers in each of the participating countries (or region in the case of “Pan-Arabia” contestant Diana Karazon) were announced New Year’s night.

While Clarkson, winner of the first “American Idol,” was the favorite going into the competition, the moon-faced Nilsen -- who was told by Australian judge Ian Dickson “you have the voice of an idol, but you look like a hobbit” -- was the easy winner, scoring 106 points to Clarkson’s 97.

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-- Jonathan Taylor