In anticipation of the United States X Factor (led by Simon Cowell), GQ has published a great feature on the former American Idol judge which gives us a great look at his every day life.

Scattered throughout the article are various “real life routines” that Cowell does on a regular basis:

The Very Specific Real-life Routines of the 51-Year-Old Simon Cowell #2.
Each morning—as he breakfasts, has his morning bath, and prepares for the workday ahead—Cowell watches cartoons. Old cartoons. His favorites tend to be from the golden age of Hanna-Barbera. “It just puts me in a good mood,” he explains. “It’s less depressing than watching the news, which is just relentless. You’ve got to try it one morning. You’ll be happy for the rest of the day.”

Typically he finds them on cable, though he travels with backup DVDs, just in case. This morning it was The Flintstones followed by The Jetsons on the Cartoon Network. It turns out that he was paying attention, too: “The Flintstones was about Fred having a gambling habit, and he made a noise like a chicken every time he mentioned the word gambling, and he lost his money to the paperboy, and eventually Barney got him out of trouble. The Jetsons was about George being replaced by a robot. Eventually they put alcohol into his oil to scupper the robot, and he got his job back.”

The article also follows the judge through a day of filming promotional material for the X Factor. Read the entire feature at this link – it’s a fun read if you like this man!