Julianne Hough and Helio Castroneves, Dancing with the Stars
Oh, what a long, strange trip it's been — 37 cities, 250 costumes and more than 200,000 rhinestones. But finally, Sunday at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, it was time for the Dancing with the Stars tour to come to an end. "It's bittersweet but I'm happy to go home," Cheryl Burke said after she joined the cast and a few crew members for their final pre-performance cheer. "I'm going to miss everyone," added Edyta Sliwinska. "I'm just really excited to sleep in my own bed."
But first there was a show to do. And what's a final show without a few surprises? The first non-scripted moment of the evening came when the entire crew joined the dancers on stage to dance the twist. Derek Hough was mid-move when he caught a glimpse of the crew, all dressed in black, doing the moves behind him and pointed out the impromptu dance party to his partner, who quickly burst into a smile. It was the first of
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Cheryl Burke and Wayne Newton, Dancing with the Stars
This will be the third national tour for one of Dancing with the Stars' most popular pros, Cheryl Burke. Even before the fifth season ended at the end of November, the two-time champ started tour rehearsals and then packed up to hit the road again — without a single day off. There was just one fly in the ointment: A health scare the night before the tour's big opening night in Seattle on December 18th. After cramping on stage during final run-throughs, Burke was rushed to a Seattle emergency room and diagnosed with possible appendicitis. Thankfully, it wasn't. And after getting cleared by her family doctor, Burke is back on tour and in winning form.
To be accurate, maybe the tour should be called "SoftScrub Presents Dancing — and Singing — with the Stars." Because Las Vegas legend
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Helio Castroneves and Julianne Hough by Carol Kaelson/ABC
I don’t know about you, but I got my wish Tuesday night. Boiled down to three words: Anyone. But. Marie. Seriously folks, if Dancing with the Stars’ trophy had gone to Marie Osmond the underdog — or rather, underdoll, as I like to think of her after Monday’s bizarre freestyle nondance that would have been better suited for the Island of Misfit Toys — I might even have joined the legions of disgruntled fans who tend to declare "I’m never watching again" after each cycle when their favorite doesn’t win.And then, of course, they return the following season, because once hooked on this deliriously entertaining reality contest, few can resist the spectacle of watching B-list celebs put on their dancing shoes with varying degrees of nerve, style and success. New stars tend to emerge from this process, and few have blazed with such effortless charm than the eventual winner, Helio Castroneves, whom I’d bet very few outside of my Indy-500-obsessed fami...
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Although Wayne Newton's recurring heart infection recently acted up — forcing him to cancel a two-month gig at Harrah's Las Vegas — the legendary entertainer has been OK'd to tour with Dancing with the Stars. But listen, when the 38-city road trip begins on Dec. 18, cut the guy some slack if he refrains from lifting Joey Lawrence. — Ben Katner
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Wayne Newton by Carol Kaelson/ABC
If you’re wondering what makes a legend, consider this: The morning after Wayne Newton was voted off Dancing with the Stars, "I was diagnosed with pneumonia," he says. "I spent about a week going through all kinds of physical tests with my personal doctor, [famed heart surgeon] Dr. Michael DeBaky — not for heart stuff, just breathing stuff. I've had asthma my whole life, but I hadn’t had an attack in maybe 20 years."Newton's close call spooked fellow contenders. After she collapsed on air — also from breathing problems — Marie Osmond says, "All I could think was, 'That could have been Wayne.' I was so worried about him."Newton, though, is made of tough entertainer stuff, and as such looks forward to not only returning for the DWTS finale, but also the national tour kicking off in mid-December. Toward that goal, this week he says he will seek "a clean bill of health from my doctors." — Reporting by Deborah Starr Seibel
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Dancing With The Stars by Craig Sjodin/ABC
See your favorites, if not up close, certainly in person: Dancing with the Stars celebs and their professional partners will twirl their way through 37 North American cities on a winter tour starting Nov. 18. Wayne Newton, Marie Osmond, Sabrina Bryan, Karina Smirnoff, Drew Lachey, Joey Lawrence, Monique Coleman, Cheryl Burke, Edyta Sliwinska, Kym Johnson, Mark Ballas, Jonathan Roberts, Derek Hough, Alec Mazo, Brian Fortuna and others will kick off the traveling event, SoftScrub® Presents Dancing with the Stars, at Key Arena in Seattle, Washington. The third Dancing with the Stars tour features a rotating cast of popular competitors, in new combinations: Dancers from previous seasons will trip the light fantastic with those from the current season. New pairs include Wayne Newton with Cheryl Burke, Marie Osmond with Jonathan Roberts, and Sabrina Bryan with Mark Ballas; Season 3's Joey Lawrence with Edyta Sliwinska and Monique Coleman; professional dancers Derek Hough, Alec Mazo ...
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Will Scary Spice deliver the goods tonight? Melanie Brown, Maksim Chmerkovskiy by Carol Kaelson/ABC
Well, danke schön — and auf Wiedersehen — Wayne Newton. Did the respect-your-elders clause of seasons past expire so soon? Did Wayne's popularity wane? Or did viewers just not give enough of a fig about Newton to keep him around? More likely, it was simply a case of conventional wisdom catching up to the overmatched Mr. Las Vegas, but ever the class act, he knew it was his time to go. And it sets the stage for the nine remaining couples to tackle the paso doble or the Viennese waltz. — Joe FriedrichBonus! For all the exclusive backstage scoops on DWTS, check out the cover story in the new issue of TV Guide Magazine!
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Floyd is still fighting! But for how long? Floyd Mayweather, Karina Smirnoff by Carol Kaelson/ABC
Phew! The ballroom gods came through and sent Wayne Newton packing! Was I too hard on him? Tell me the truth! Wayne — don't feel bad! I'm sure you have a bathroom the size of my townhouse. We're even!So Floyd Mayweather joined Wayne in the bottom two. I'm not shocked, because I think Floyd and Mark Cuban are the only other two who could have been there. It's only a matter of time for them.This is the first time I am comfortable saying that a woman will win this competition. The men don't have it this year, am I right? With the exception of my beloved Helio, of course! Come on guys, prove me wrong! Since it was a rather uneventful exit, here are some other topics that piqued my interest tonight. Let me know what you think!The music selections: I want all the posters to know I read the comments and I am with you on the music selections being heinous! I don't know if the info we got tonight helped calm you down, but at least we saw that even the dancers have issues with it! "The B...
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Mel B jives to the top! Melanie Brown, Maksim Chmerkovskiy by Carol Kaelson/ABC
Episode RecapTango! Tango! Tango! And the jive! Without a doubt, Jennie Garth was my pick of the tango dances! You could see the fire and anger in her face, which is what the tango is all about! I was glad to see her strike back after her slip last week! She didn't score the highest, but I think her improvement was the most notable. Way to go, Jennie!Jane Seymour also had a great tango. Loved the wig! Very Bond girl! The death of her mother may have her down, but she is not out. She'll be in the competition for the long haul! Did anyone else think Carrie Ann poured the cheese on a little too thick? It was nice that she was moved by Jane's dance, but I couldn't help but wonder if she was going to break out and cry!So who had a bad tango? Cameron Mathison did! It was not his technique, but I thought they spoofed the tango. How dare they mock the mother of all ballroom dances!? They took the passion out of it and made it quirky, which I did not care for at all. The technique was there,...
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It's ok, Albert! You look great! Albert Reed, Anna Trebunskaya by Carol Kaelson/ABC
Episode Recap: "Eviction 2"Before I say anything else, I want to send my thoughts and prayers to Jane Seymour, whose mother passed away. Jane — I'm so sorry! I'm glad you'll be coming back and I hope you can find some peace in such a dark time.In case you didn't gather this from my paragraph above, I operate under the assumption that the stars of DWTS read this blog religiously. Don't believe me? Did you check out Marie Osmond's hair tonight? It looked better than last night and I did mention in my recap what a faux pas it was! Ah, the power of my blog! It is changing the course of the show! P.S. I'm so kidding. Now onto the results!I'm a bit shocked about the bottom two! I've made it clear I'm no fan of Albert Reed, but I thought he still had a few weeks left in him. Sorry Albert, it's back to the runway for you! Again, who is voting for Wayne Newton? Stop! Mark Cuban dodged a big bullet tonight and, as much as I hate to say it, so did Floyd Mayweather. Albert's performances ...
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