THE finale of “America’s Got Talent” ended last night when the fat man sang – and won $1 million.
Neal E. Boyd, 32, an unassuming insurance salesman with a voice like Luciano Pavarotti’s, took the NBC show’s grand prize and now is on the verge of realizing his dream of becoming an international opera star.
“What has happened to my life,” Boyd cried as tears streamed down his face.
Boyd narrowly defeated fan favorite Eli Mattson, 26, a pianist and singer from Wisconsin, who started playing the piano at age 5.
Host Jerry Springer said the pair had been separated by a viewer vote of less than one-half of 1 percent.
In a shocking loss, favorites Tourie and Damien Escobar – a k a Nuttin’ But Stringz – a pair of fiddler/hip-hop brothers from South Jamaica, Queens, came in third.
Among those caught by surprise was “AGT” judge Sharon Osbourne, who was left mouth agape.
The Escobar brothers, Tourie, 24, and Damien, 22, had honed their blend of hip-hop and classical music on the A and C trains and attended the Juilliard School of Music.