In the audition rounds, 121 contestants were selected from around 10,000 who attended the auditions. These were cut to 30 for the semifinal, with ten going on to the finals. One semifinalist, Delano Cagnolatti, was disqualified for lying to evade the show's age limit. One of the early favorites, Tamyra Gray, was eliminated at the top four, the first of several such shock eliminations that were to be repeated in later seasons. Christina Christian was hospitalized before the top six result show due to chest pains and palpitations, and she was eliminated while she was in the hospital. Jim Verraros was the first openly gay contestant on the show; his sexual orientation was revealed in his online journal, however it was removed during the competition after a request from the show producers over concerns that it might be unfairly influencing votes. COUNT 10
QSN1 How many contestants made it past the first round of auditions? ANS1 121 QSN2 How many people initially auditioned? ANS2 around 10,000 QSN3 Who was the first known homosexual contestant on American Idol? ANS3 Jim Verraros QSN4 Which contestant was surprisingly eliminated during the top four episode?  ANS4 Tamyra Gray QSN5 Where was Christina Christian at when she was eliminated from the show? ANS5 the hospital QSN6 How many contestants were chosen from the 10,000 that auditioned? ANS6 121 QSN7 Of the 121 chosen, how many became semi-finalists? ANS7 30 QSN8 Which contestant was disqualified for lying about his age? ANS8 Delano Cagnolatti QSN9 When was Tamyra Gray eliminated? ANS9 top four QSN10 Who was eliminated while she was in the hospital due to chest pains? ANS10 Christina Christian