Lots of "American Idol" contestants become famous for what they bring to an audition. On Tuesday night's (February 2) episode, however, a man might have become a household name for what he left at home: his clothes.
At the tail end of the Denver audition episode, after the judges had let 26 people through to the next round, producers had one more surprise in store for viewers. It wasn't yellow or polka-dotted, but he was wearing an itsy-bitsy, teeny-weeny bikini. His name was Ty Hemmerling. He halfheartedly shimmied and spoke/sang Billy Ray Cyrus' "Achy Breaky Heart" as the judges all got up and left. Kara DioGuardi told Ty, "Don't move your hips like that, honey. It's not a good look."


For his part, "Bikini Boy" voiced displeasure as they walked out. "That's kind of rude. I think you should at least stay," he pleaded. "Kara, please stay! Can I get a hug?"

Of course, the scantily clad sing-along was preceded by a tease as thorough as any "American Pie" straight-to-DVD "unrated!" release. During each commercial break, fans would see a blurred-out body walking into the judging room. The implied assumption was that an audition from a naked, most likely attractive woman was coming up. Instead, patient "Idol" fans were rewarded with a dude in a pink, purple and orange string bikini.

As a follow-up to last year's "Bikini Girl," women might say the turnabout is fair play. Men, however, might finally agree after seeing Mr. Hemmerling that future contestants keep their clothes on and audition by showing off their vocals, not their assets.