A Connecticut family is in the news today thanks to the 18,000 votes they cast over the course of the most recent American Idol season–a total that they are allegedly “hoping” will land them the world record for doing so. (I think it’s listed in the Guinness Book Of Pathetic Phone/TV-Related Achievements right under “Most Times Successfully Getting Through To Larry King Live And Saying ‘Baba Booey.’ “) The Rychalskys–Konstantine, Helen, Michelle, and Kristen–were so crazy for Kris Allen, they locked their phones in during their mandated family-bonding time every week.

This year the family dialed 18,000 times trying to vote for Kris Allen, Konnie estimates, and for the first time began voting earlier in the season before the night of the finale. He won’t know the final figures until he tabulates them from the digital recording device they use to log the calls. Such a device is necessary in order to qualify for a world record, he said.


“When we realized how many calls we had made, it led us to think about this season,” he said. “We sat down and said, ‘OK, let’s try this and see what happens.’ This season we voted from the first available night to the last.”


It takes coordination and resilience to make that many calls, he said. “Fatigue plays a major part, which is why we have to do it as a family. It’s kind of like playing a video game, with one hand dialing and one hand hanging up, with lots of fun involved.” The calls are free, and it provides them with another opportunity to do something as a family.

Watching TV: It’s kind of exercise! Although wait a second–they only called? They didn’t learn how to powertext! What pikers.

Family’s Votes For “Idol” Could Be A World Record [NBC Philadelphia via MJ]