Howie Mandel told school janitor Richard Goodall that he thought his singing performance was enough to win on Tuesday’s finale episode of America’s Got Talent.
‘Not only is he a hero, but I’ll make a prediction right now,’ Howie, 68, said. ‘I think you just sang yourself $1 million dollars.’
Before he took the stage, Richard, who has worked as a middle school janitor for 23 years, from Terre Haute, Indiana, watched a video of his school wishing him luck that brought him to tears.
Neal Schon from Journey also appeared in the video and told him that he was coming to perform with him on the finale. Richard, 55, wiped away tears and then took the stage and sang Journey’s hit song Faithfully.
‘You are such an amazing man,’ Heidi Klum, 51, told her Golden Buzzer pick. ‘You are so humble and so kind. You are also a little bit quiet but not when you are behind that microphone then you are a big rockstar!’
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Howie Mandel told school janitor Richard Goodall that he thought his singing performance was enough to win on Tuesday’s finale episode of America’s Got Talent on NBC
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AGT: Heidi Klum hits Golden Buzzer for singing janitor Richard Goodall
‘We all need a hero right now and you are a hero,’ Simon Cowell, 64, said.
Hakuna Matata acrobats from Tanzania opened up the show. They were the first acts still competing for the $1 million grand prize.
They blindfolded themselves and tried to balance themselves doing a headstand on top of each other on a moving board.
The stage they were on was lifted high above the audiences while the entire acrobatic team balanced precariously on top of each other.
‘This is bigger, more dangerous and more exciting than anything I’ve ever seen,’ Howie said.
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Simon said he was ‘terrified’ watching their act.
‘You are four heroes,’ Simon said.
Comedian David Alan Grier made an appearance on the show to play a prank on the judges. Howie told them David was going to direct their promos. He had them put on props like cowboy hats and hold surfboards and fishing rods.
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Richard, 55, wiped away tears and then took the stage and sang Journey’s hit song Faithfully
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‘You are such an amazing man,’ Heidi Klum , 51, told her Golden Buzzer pick. ‘You are so humble and so kind. You are also a little bit quiet but not when you are behind that microphone then you are a big rockstar!’
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‘We all need a hero right now and you are a hero,’ Simon Cowell , 64, said
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Terry Crews hosted the two-hour live show with judges Howie, Heidi, Sofia Vergara and Simon
‘I’m not doing any of this,’ Simon said.
Singer Dee Dee Simon, who worked as a nurse at San Quentin state prison, stunned the audience with her rendition of Take Me To Church. The audience gave her a standing ovation when she finished.
‘You just took us all to church and I’m bowing down at the Dee Dee altar,’ Heidi said. ‘Your voice is incredible! The strength and the power you have.’
‘You keep getting better and better,’ Sofia Vergara, 52, said.
‘I think you just showed millions of people what it means to sing well,’ Simon said. ‘This was what we call a moment.’
Dee Dee said her experience on the show so far has been ‘life changing.’
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Singer Dee Dee Simon, who worked as a nurse at San Quentin state prison, stunned the audience with her rendition of Take Me To Church
Aerialists Sebastián Jiménez and Sonia Moreno put on an amazing comeback performance after Sonia had suffered an injury earlier in the season. Sebastián spun and twirled from a rope high above the stage. He even twirled Sonia in his arms as they kissed.
‘That was incredible!’ Simon said.
‘I think you raised the bar,’ Howie said.
Brent Street, a dance crew from Sydney, Australia, came up with a whole new routine in days for the finale show. They put on a powerful synchronized performance dancing to Justin Timberlake’s song Cry Me A River.
‘You are absolutely amazing!’ Heidi said.
‘It’s perfection, mesmerizing,’ Sofia said.
‘It’s so brilliant,’ Simon said. ‘You put yourself in a place where you could walk away winning this show.’
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Aerialists Sebastián Jiménez and Sonia Moreno put on an amazing comeback performance after Sonia had suffered an injury earlier in the season
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Brent Street, a dance crew from Sydney, Australia, came up with a whole new routine in days for the finale show
Quick-change artist Solange Kardinaly from Portugal went next. She said she was a third-generation magician. She said she was determined to perform the best magic ever and then took the stage doing rapid outfit quick changes.
‘Incredible, incredible, incredible,’ Simon said. ‘You have combined quick change with magic and I think that is why it is so unique and so popular.’
‘You are the most beautiful magician we have ever had,’ Heidi said.
Comedian Learnmore Jonasi, 31, from Zimbabwe, had everyone laughing with his jokes. Before he took the stage he recalled his journey to get from his small town to the stage. He said he learned how to speak English by watching Richard Pryor and Eddie Murphy. He said he always wanted to make people laugh.
‘I love you,’ Sofia said. ‘Everybody loves you.’
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Quick-change artist Solange Kardinaly from Portugal went next
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Comedian Learnmore Jonasi, 31, from Zimbabwe, had everyone laughing with his jokes
‘You are brilliant,’ Simon said. ‘You make fun of all the things that we think are normal.’
The dance group Airfootworks from Japan who had gone straight to the finals after getting Howie’s golden buzzer went next. For their routine, they hung from metal poles as the screen behind them showed a video of skyscrapers making it seem that they were moving through the city. They moved on the bars in unison dancing in the air.
‘I believe this is the season of dance,’ Howie said. ‘You created an originality and something we have never seen before.’
‘I loved it,’ Heidi said. ‘This was top notch. You brought your A game to the finale.’
‘What you guys do is so unique,’ Sofia said.
‘Sensational,’ Simon said. ‘You know why I love this act? Because I’ve never seen this act before. This is so smart, so talked about, so difficult, so unique and I would say one of the best acts we have seen tonight.’
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The dance group Airfootworks from Japan who had gone straight to the finals after getting Howie’s golden buzzer went next
Roni Sagi and her dog Rhythm performed a challenging new routine and learned it in a short time. Roni said she felt blessed because she gets to work with her best friend.
The two then danced across the stage with Rhythm jumping in the air over her at times. The crowd and the judges gave them a standing ovation.
‘That was in my opinion perfection,’ Simon said. ‘I’ve never seen an act like this, as good at this.’
‘That dog is actually dancing,’ Howie said.
Sky Elements, a high tech drone aerial performance group from Coppell, Texas, closed out the show with an epic drone display.
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Roni Sagi and her dog Rhythm performed a challenging new routine and learned it in a short time
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Sky Elements, a high tech drone aerial performance group from Coppell, Texas, closed out the show with an epic drone display
The drones created images of a boy on top of a sailing ship, the Statue of Liberty, a man riding a horse, a train, a giant eagle and finally spelling AGT.
‘I love America,’ Simon said. ‘I’m a Brit but I love America. It made me feel very emotional and the fact that you did this with your own creativity. Actually this was a really special act.’
‘What a way to close an epic night,’ Howie said.
America’s Got Talent will return next Tuesday with the results of viewer voting and a new champion will be crowned on NBC.
