Howard Stern wants Rosie O'Donnell to join 'America's Got Talent'

Tuesday December 18, 2012 12:15 PM By Kirthana Ramisetti

Photo credit: Newsday.com composite | Howard Stern and Rosie O'Donnell are celebrities with ties to the Hudson Valley.

Howard Stern is returning to “America’s Got Talent” next season, and the star is pushing for Nyack resident Rosie O’Donnell to join him on the judges’ panel.

When Stern, who began his radio career in Briarcliff Manor, welcomed fellow "America's Got Talent" judge Howie Mandel to his radio show on Dec. 10, the shock jock asked Mandel what he'd think if O'Donnell replaced Sharon Osbourne, who announced this year she would not to return as an "AGT" judge.

"What about Rosie O'Donnell?" Stern asked Mandel. "I've recommended her."

"Really?" Mandel replied.

"And everyone looks at me like I'm crazy," Stern continued. "Why is that? I think she's terrific. And women like her."

That's not the only unsettled aspect of the "AGT" judges' panel heading into the next season, which will air in 2013. Although auditions for season eight are taking place across the country, Mandel hasn't yet signed. And both Stern and Mandel publicly wondered if the panel would expand to four judges; Stern said he disliked that concept, adding he had a tough enough time getting in his thoughts with a panel of three.

On Monday, The Huffington Post reported that Stern was lobbying for O’Donnell to get the judging gig. While the report was made based on an unidentified source, the site did reach out to O’Donnell for her thoughts, and she said “if offered the position she would definitely consider it.”

O’Donnell’s last full-time television gig was "The Rosie Show" on the OWN network, which was canceled in March due to poor ratings. While the comedian has served as a talk show host and as a panelist on “The View,” she has not yet made the move to reality television.

What do you think? Do you think O’Donnell would make a good “AGT” judge? Do you think she and Stern would have good chemistry? Let us know in the comments!

With Chris Serico

Tags: Briarcliff Manor , Nyack , Howard Stern , Rosie O'Donnell , America's Got Talent , TV