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Howard Stern's bitter words for Jay Leno, Kara DioGuardi and Ellen DeGeneres

By April MacIntyre Mar 2, 2010, 18:26 GMT

Howard Stern © Sylvain Gaboury / PR Photos

Shock jock Howard Stern went after Jay Leno during an interview on The Early Show" Tuesday, the morning after Leno made a ratings smash return to his role as host of "The Tonight Show."

"Just the mere mention of Jay Leno's name makes me want to vomit," Stern said from his studio at Sirius XM Radio.  Unlike Bill Maher, who recently defended Jay Leno on CNN's Larry King, Stern sides with Conan O'Brien.

Stern said Leno "seems to be the kind of showbiz animal who won't let go."

"People in show business are afraid to say how much they dislike him," added Stern. "He's a lap dog...he's a thief"

Stern gave no criticism to NBC for the late night shuffle, and added that if Leno were "a man" that he should have gone to another network to beat David Letterman and Conan O'Brien.

Stern also laid waste to "American Idol," a show where he has been rumored to take over as Simon Cowell's replacement, an idea that Cowell himself quickly squelched during a round of interviews in the last few weeks.

Stern said "Idol" needed a complete overhaul and cited the two female judges as hopeless causes that should be removed.