NBC'S TOP-RATED SUMMER SERIES "AMERICA'S GOT TALENT" ANNOUNCES OPEN CASTING CALLS IN NEW YORK, ST. LOUIS, WASHINGTON, D.C., TAMPA BAY, ANAHEIM, AUSTIN AND CHARLOTTE BEGINNING IN OCTOBER

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. - September 29, 2010 -- NBC's top-rated summer series "America's Got Talent" will begin its nationwide search for season seven contestants with auditions beginning in New York (October 8 and 9), St. Louis (October 22 and 23) and in Washington, D.C. (November 5 and 6).

The search continues in Tampa, Fla. (November 12 and 13), Anaheim, Calif. (December 10 and 11), Austin, Texas (January 14 and 15), Charlotte, N.C. (February 4 and 5) and San Francisco (January 25 and 26).

The "America's Got Talent" auditions are a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for performers across the country to showcase their talents in 90 seconds to series' producers in the hopes of being able to take the stage in front of the judges. Every type of performer is welcome - including musicians, dance crews, magicians, contortionists, comedians, singers, jugglers, animal acts and everything in between - all of whom want to perform for America's votes and the coveted $1 million prize.

Details for the open auditions are below:

NEW YORK
Saturday, October 8 and Sunday, October 9
Registration: 8 a.m.- 7 p.m
Location: Jacob Javits Center
655 West 34th Street, New York, N.Y. 10001

ST. LOUIS
Saturday, October 22 and Sunday, October 23
Registration: 8 a.m.- 7 p.m
Location: St. Louis Convention Center
701 Convention Plaza
St. Louis, Mo. 63101

WASHINGTON, D.C.
Saturday, November 5 and Sunday, November 6
Registration: 8 a.m.- 7 p.m
Location: Washington, D.C. Convention Center
801 Mt. Vernon Place, NW
Washington, D.C. 20001

TAMPA (Fla.)
Saturday, November 11 and Sunday, November 12
Registration: 8 a.m.- 7 p.m
Location: Tampa Bay Convention Center
333 S. Franklin Street
Tampa, Fla. 33602

ANAHEIM (Calif.)
Saturday, December 10 and Sunday, December 11
Registration: 8 a.m.- 7 p.m
Location: Anaheim Convention Center
800 W. Katella Ave
Anaheim, Calif. 92802

AUSTIN (Texas)
Saturday, January 14 and Sunday, January 15
Registration: 8 a.m.- 7 p.m
Location: Austin Convention Center
500 East Cesar Chavez Street
Austin, Texas 78701

CHARLOTTE (N.C.)
Saturday, February 4 and Sunday, February 5
Registration: 8 a.m.- 7 p.m
Location: Charlotte Convention Center
501 South College Street
Charlotte, N.C. 28202

Open to talent of any age, "America's Got Talent" offers a unique chance for anyone who has dreamed of performing his or her talent on a national stage. Additional cities may be added for auditions. For all the latest information and to pre-register, go to www.AGTauditions.com.

Season six winner Landau Eugene Murphy, Jr. - a Sinatra-like crooner from Logan, W.V. - beat out thousands of acts, including finalists POPLYFE, the Silhouettes and Team iLuminate to take home the coveted $1 million grand prize. The win changed his life, as he is now able focus on his dream of becoming a singer. Murphy recently took to a larger stage and sang the national anthem at the West Virginia versus LSU college football game and will be headlining the upcoming "America's Got Talent Live" show in Las Vegas.

The fifth season's "America's Got Talent" winner -- Mississippi-bred Michael Grimm -- charmed millions of viewers as he parlayed his substantial singer-songwriter appeal into a first-place finish, a $1 million prize, and the headline spot on the first-ever national "America's Got Talent Tour," which visited major cities throughout the U.S. in Fall 2010. Grimm has signed to Epic Records, who released his major-label self-titled debut album this past spring. He is currently on tour opening for Stevie Nicks.

Season five's runner-up Jackie Evancho, an 11-year-old soprano prodigy who auditioned for the series through YouTube, recently released her debut album "Dream with Me," which was certified gold after only four weeks of release. Evancho is currently on a sold-out U.S. tour and Syco/Columbia Records recently released the DVD of "Dream with Me Live -- Great Performances PBS Special" in September.

Season two winner Terry Fator - a ventriloquist from Dallas, Texas - achieved his lifelong dream when he was crowned the second season champion. After the win, he went on to sign a five-year $100 million-dollar deal to headline at the Mirage in Las Vegas.

Following weeks of intense competition and awe-inspiring performances, the winner and fan favorites from this season will perform in a special three-night engagement in Las Vegas on October 28, October 29 and October 30 in the famous 4,500 seat Colosseum at Caesars Palace. The two-hour live event will be hosted by Jerry Springer and include an all-star roster of the country's most dynamic "America's Got Talent" entertainers. There will also be a special guest appearance by the 2011 "Australia's Got Talent" winner, whose album has already gone gold, 14 year old Jack Vidgen. Tickets to "America's Got Talent Live," presented by AEG Live, are on sale now and can be purchased via http://agt.aeglive.com.

"America's Got Talent," hosted by Nick Cannon, stars Sharon Osbourne, Howie Mandel and Piers Morgan as the panel of celebrity judges. The series is a true celebration of the American spirit, featuring a colorful array of aspiring stars, including singers, dancers, comedians, contortionists, impressionists, jugglers, magicians and ventriloquists, all vying for their chance to strut and perform on stage hoping to win America's hearts - and the $1 million prize.

For more information, please visit nbc.com/americas-got-talent/, twitter.com/nbcagt and facebook.com/nbcagt.

For contestant embeddable clips and full episodes of "America's Got Talent," please visit NBC.com's official show site: http://www.nbc.com/americas-got-talent/

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About NBC Entertainment:

NBC Entertainment develops and schedules programming for the network's primetime, late night, and daytime schedules. NBC's quality programs and balanced lineup have earned the network critical acclaim, numerous awards, and ratings success. NBC has earned more Emmy Awards than any network in television history. NBC's roster of popular scripted series includes critically acclaimed comedy Emmy winners "The Office" and "30 Rock," starring Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey. Veteran, award-winning dramas on NBC include "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" and "Chuck." Unscripted series for NBC include the new vocal competition hit "The Voice" as well as the popular "The Biggest Loser," "The Celebrity Apprentice" and "America's Got Talent." NBC's late-night story is highlighted by "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon," "Last Call with Carson Daly" and "Saturday Night Live." NBC Daytime's "Days of our Lives" consistently finishes among daytime's top programs in the valuable women 18-34 category. On Saturday mornings, the network broadcasts Qubo on NBC, a three-hour block that features fun, entertaining, and educational programming for kids, including the award-winning, 3-D animated series Veggie Tales.

About FremantleMedia North America:

FremantleMedia North America (FMNA) is the U.S. production division of global media giant FremantleMedia. Based in Burbank, California, FMNA produces entertaining and innovative programs for network, cable, syndicated and online platforms, including the Emmy-nominated musical/reality phenomenon "American Idol" (FOX), "America's Got Talent" (NBC), "What Chilli Wants" (VH1), "Hole In The Wall" (Cartoon Network), "Let's Make A Deal" (CBS), "Family Feud" (syn), "The Price Is Right" (CBS), and the much-anticipated "The X Factor" (Fox) for Fall 2011.

About Syco:

Syco, with offices in London and Los Angeles, is a global music, television and film production joint venture between Simon Cowell and Sony Music Entertainment. Syco Television owns and produces the BAFTA Award-winning "The X Factor," which has topped the charts around the world. Syco Television is also the owner of the "Got Talent" television format. Versions of both "The X Factor" and "Got Talent" are co-produced by Syco, and are shown in more than 70 countries and have won multiple awards including national television awards and BAFTAs. Syco is also the record label home for such diverse international recording stars as Leona Lewis and Il Divo. Cowell has worked with artists selling more than 200 million albums and delivering more than 180 #1 records. Britain's Got Talent in 2009 launched the global singing career of Susan Boyle. Her debut Syco album sold over 8 million units in six weeks, making it the world's biggest-selling album of 2009 and the fastest-selling album in history, selling a total of 20 million records to date.