ABC said Monday more than 1,500 people called to complain about Adam Lambert's sexually charged performance at the American Music Awards.

The network characterized the response as "moderate,"which is another way of saying "We didn't know this guy was going to behave like a rampaging Viking, so we're pretending it's no big deal."

Before his performance, Lambert said that he wanted to break down a double standard in which female performers are allowed to be more sexually provocative than men.

There were also hostile comments online about the "American Idol" rocker who sang his new song "For Your Entertainment" on Sunday's show with an elaborate, S&M-themed production. Lambert fondled a dancer, led another on a leash, had a dancer briefly stick his head in Lambert's crotch and kissed a man.

Usually the AMAs is one of the most vanilla awards shows, which may've made Lambert's antics more shocking to some.

"I'm about to turn up the heat," Lambert promised during the song's chorus, after a male dancer simulated oral sex on the "American Idol" alum. Moments later, Lambert grabbed one of his backing musicians by the nape of the neck and gave him an open-mouthed kiss.

Sounds like a couple of guys may be looking for lawyers about now.

With a gaggle of scantily clad dancers writhing in S&M get-ups, the performance at Los Angeles's Nokia Theatre effectively erased the prior events of the evening: a handful of

posthumous awards for Michael Jackson, numerous wins for Taylor Swift, even an eye-popping performance from Lady Gaga. Lambert's performance immediately sent ripples across the Twitterverse, with many viewers criticizing Lambert for what they found to be excessive.

Reports say ABC did not edit out any portions of the performance from the West Coast feed. And the network can't say they didn't see it coming. On Friday, Lambert was boasting about leather, chains and copious writhing to come, saying the same thing as he did Sunday night.

"We've seen female pop and rock performers do that for the last 10 years," the singer told the Associated Press last week. "You just don't see men doing it very often. And I'm hoping to break down that double standard with this number."

Chris Richards of the Washington Post wrote that the performance felt like a calculated response to the controversy that bubbled last week after Out magazine editor Aaron Hicklin criticized Lambert's management for agreeing to a cover shoot only if the magazine didn't make Lambert look "too gay." Lambert fired back at Hicklin via Twitter last week, but he appeared Sunday to let the world know where he stands onstage at the AMAs.

Some fans might want to keep their eyes covered this week, as Lambert is scheduled to perform on "Good Morning America" and the "Late Show with David Letterman" on Wednesday.

CONVICTIONS IN SARAH JESSICA PARKER CASE: An eastern Ohio police chief has been acquitted of burglary charges but convicted of three other felonies in an alleged break-in at the home of a woman who carried twins for Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick.

A jury Monday found suspended Martins Ferry Chief Barry Carpenter guilty of receiving stolen property, theft in office and tampering with evidence. He was acquitted on charges of burglary and unauthorized used of property or services. He still faces trial for being the only male in the Midwest to admit that he not only saw, but enjoyed, the Sex In The City film.

Prosecutors say Carpenter broke into Michelle Ross' home in May, and that he and the police chef of a neighboring town tried to peddle items related to her pregnancy and surrogacy to celebrity photographers.

Carpenter had testified that he went into the home to check it out because he saw a door open.

CAPTAIN EO MAKING COMEBACK: The word from Hollywood is that Disneyland is planning to revive Michael Jackson's 3D film "Captain EO" beginning in January. Heavily influenced by "Star Wars," the 1986 short film was produced by George Lucas and directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

The cast included Jackson, Anjelica Huston and Dick Shawn — the latter died less than a year after "Captain EO" was released.

"Captain EO" was pulled from Disneyland years ago. But with Jackson's box office returns for his new movie "This Is It" up to about $220 million worldwide, interest in the King of Pop is rekindled. Sales of the "This Is It" companion CD sold more than 125,000 copies last week.

"Captain EO" contains fuzzy animals, talking robots and a video of Jackson dancing and singing a song called "We Are Here to Change the World."

No word yet on whether Huston or any of the other "Captain EO" cast members will get paid for this revival. According to sources, Disney has the right to use the film whenever it wants to. There's word the company is even thinking of staging a new premiere — with a red carpet — if they can get Jackson family members to attend.