Few can forget William Hung and his awkward, pelvis-twirling rendition of Ricky Martin's She Bangs on the third season of American Idol in 2004. 'You can't sing, you can't dance, so what do you want me to say?' Simon Cowell spluttered, rolling his eyes in disbelief.
The Hong Kong-born student grinned sheepishly. 'I already gave my best and I have no regrets,' he replied politely, before hitching up his backpack and walking off.
In spite of being dismissed after just 90 seconds in front of the judges, what happened next can only be described as a huge win. Hung, then a civil engineering student at the Berkeley campus of the University of California, had a record contract in the bag before the series had even finished, his presence was demanded on America's leading talk shows, and since then he has had a long list of engagements, from travelling the world to starring in a film in Hong Kong, and performing live before cheering crowds. He also made a DVD and a documentary, appeared in television ads, rose to the No3 spot in Amazon.com's album chart, got his own fan club and a website that scored 4 million hits in its first week, and won an international cult following.
Two years after being booted out of the contest, the gap-toothed hero - who celebrated his 23rd birthday last week - still boasts an adoring fan base who have christened him Leader Hung. His third album, Miracle: Happy Summer from William Hung, flopped when it was released last July, yet his bizarre run of fame continues.
The accidental hero, who was raised in Hong Kong and Macau before moving to America at the age of 11, reported last month that he was in talks to star in a second movie - his first in America. 'Those 15 minutes of fame have turned into a lot of 15 minutes. I travel all over the world to perform, I shot my first movie, I shot commercials, I meet all kinds of people,' he told America's TV Guide last month. In his spare time, he is an online strategy writer for the Pokemon trading-card game and he reached the top 32 in the 2005 Pokemon world championship, his biography says.
Does he sense that American Idol will spawn other William Hungs, TV Guide asked him. 'I'm pretty sure there will always be a few out there,' he replied. 'But I think that if they take from me the same optimism in life, it's a good thing.'