The rumor mill started churning when Mel Karmazin hinted that Oprah Winfrey is on his talent wish list to join with Sirius at an analyst call a few weeks back.

At the 2005 Media Summit, Mel danced around a question about who is on his on-air wish list, acknowledging he had dropped Ms. Winfrey's name, but clarified the earlier mention about Oprah which drew some laughter from the crowd, "I said, 'If Oprah was interested, we'd return her call.'"

Other personalities rumored to be on Sirius' want-list include former President Bill Clinton and his wife, New York Senator Hillary Clinton.

All three would probably compete with Stern as the best damn paid people in radio.

You know we love any info on the possible Sirius / iPod Satellite Radio Rumor, but apparently Sirius Satellite Radio CEO Mel Karmazin said he has had discussions with Apple's CEO Steve Jobs about the possibility of adding satellite-radio service to iPods.

"I've spoken to Steve Jobs," said Karmazin, speaking Wednesday morning at a media conference in New York. He went on to say that the "current thinking" at Apple is that "they don't need to put a satellite radio in their box."

Karmazin declined to elaborate on his discussions with Jobs. Karmazin said he believes that adding satellite radio would be an enhancement to MP3s and other portable music devices. He likens the possibility to Sony Corp.'s (SNE) Walkman, a gadget whose popularity soared when radio was added. Sirius is likely to launch its own portable satellite radio device in time for this year's holiday season, Karmazin said.

"Do I think (a satellite radio-MP3 player combo) is going to happen some day in the future? Absolutely," said April Horace, a satellite radio analyst with Janco Partners. But whether XM or Sirius nabs Apple or another MP3 maker like Sony or Virgin first is anybody's guess, she said.

Thanks candlebougie!