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RealityFreakWill:
click on link below to view video

New Video: Maksim Takes the Mic at 'DWTS'

Maksim Chmerkovskiy took off his dancing shoes and grabbed a microphone on Monday night as ET's special "Dancing with the Stars" correspondent. The "Dancing" pro spoke to Gilles Marini and Cheryl Burke about their perfect score, and talked to the other couples about dealing with the judges' criticism, and learning to trust their partners.

Real life couple Julianne Hough and Chuck Wicks explain why they feel so comfortable together on the dance floor.

"He's so strong," Julianne says about Chuck. With my last partner Cody who's here tonight, I couldn't do all those flips because I would break him instead."

"She weighs like 103.5 pounds," Chuck says confidently. "So, we're good."

The couple that looked almost flawless on the dance floor Gilles and Cheryl, reveal to ET that they actually had doubts about the choreography and were stressed out about their routine.

"I was so stressed out this week more than ever," Cheryl tells Maksim. "I was so insecure about my choreography -- I stressed him out, I wanted to change it."

Gilles encouraged Cheryl not to change the routine, telling his partner; "Remember, I don't dance. Don't change what I just learned."

Despite their apprehension about their routine Gilles and Cheryl received a perfect score for their Argentine tango.

Watch the video for even more backstage action with Maksim!

http://www.etonline.com/news/2009/03/72326/index.html

RealityFreakWill:
'Dancing With the Stars' recap: Hop to It
As the dancers take on the Argentine Tango and the Lindy Hop, one pair scores the season's first perfect score

On last night's Dancing With the Stars performance show, another big twist! Samantha Harris's silly baby had made her ill. Not sure what the technical term for her condition was, but I'll go ahead and call it a particularly wretched case of the croaks. Don't worry, she didn't let that stop her from slobbering all over the contestants, wagging her germy microphone in their faces, and generally sounding like a monster whenever she spoke between demure sips of sparkly water. Still, Sam had some of her most precious hosting moments last night, particularly when, after Gilles called himself Cheryl's ''nightmare,'' she quipped right back, ''For many at home, a nightmare they wish was recurring.'' (Haha!) Then she hocked a loogie at the monitor. (Probably.)

For many at home this morning, a nightmare we endured just hours ago was a loop of Sam leaning in way too close to the camera to growl sweet nothings like ''In case yah MISSED any of the numbers...'' whilst dangling her bedazzled mic just above our non-pillow-safe ears. Throughout the night, Tom attempted to de-freak everyone out by jauntily comparing Samantha to pop culture figures so outdated that he became more and more faux-sickened by himself and by 10 p.m. was just generally defeated. I do not wish for Sam's condition to worsen, exactly — but I have to say, her predicament made the entire night a lot more unintentionally hilarious than usual.

I mean...Get well soon! Here's how the 11 remaining couples fared with either the Argentine Tango or the Lindy Hop:

Gilles Marini and Cheryl Burke: 30 out of possible 30 I can't feel my face! Am I still here? Holy cow. Jeez! Missus. Woo hoo! Oh, sorry, DANCMSTRs, just channeling Carrie Ann for a second there. Cheryl's tough-love training style is paying off: After ''Zheeeel'' (as Samantha pronounces it, except last night it was more like ''Hccaahhch'') was shown pacing the studio all by his lonesome, reminding himself how ''Stupid!'' he was, he and Cheryl turned out one of the best DWTS performances to date. The slicked-back hair, the black-and-purple palette, that one weightless lift that changed direction three times and then again once Cheryl hit the floor...happy sigh! The first 30 of the season! Even Tom (Gunn?) couldn't keep a hearty ''That was fierce!'' to himself after their final one-armed Cristian de la Fuente's ruptured bicep-inspired pose (clearly one of Cheryl's faves). My only complaint about Gilles' Argentine Tango was that once the music ''kicked in,'' by the time I got pumped up about the new lighting and quicker tempo, it was all over. Carrie Ann said she ''honestly couldn't tell who was the professional and who was the celebrity,'' which might have hurt Stacy Keibler in season 2 but shouldn't have the same effect on Gilles because his (lack of) past dance experience is not in question. If he keeps this up — and you know Cheryl will — Gilles will easily win. So basically he needs to live in a bubble whenever he's not rehearsing, so he won't get injured. Preferably a giant mirrorball. Lined with webcams.

Melissa Rycroft and Tony: 29/30 Okay, it's kind of working. I'm beginning to find Melissa Rycroft's rehearsal footage totally endearing. I blame myself for loving Tony too much. (''Stupid!'') According to Melissa, Tony has achieved the enviable status of her ''intstructor/brother/teacher/friend'' — take that, highly-functioning-chimpanzee-Mesnick! Tony and Melissa both appear to be having a blast, and Melissa's flutter-footed screech upon completing the full-twisting dip under Tony's legs during rehearsal is the stuff DWTS producers' dreams are made of. That and glitter. The pair earned nearly a perfect score for their Lindy Hop that, as difficult as it was, honestly didn't seem like such a big deal for Melissa to complete. Even Tony had to take a seat next to Tom before their critique, he was so out of breath. Of course, the pink-bowtied Phoenix eventually rose from the ashes to hear Carrie Ann call his brilliant choreography a personal best and — a bit more important — to pinch Tom's ass, acting as surrogate for his BFF Maks.

Lil' Kim and Derek: 27/30 They performed second, and I was so enthralled by the active/reactive qualities of their Argentine Tango (Derek described that perfectly) that I might have been content if this had been the only outstanding tango of the night. Kim and Derek's intuitive leg flicks were what made this dance amazing for me, especially at the beginning — for a few bars, they seemed to flow as one four-legged creature with a particularly bionic booty. Another high: that floating lift in which Kim seemed to somehow gain more height after her initial peak. (I'm clueless! Fire me!) You could tell Bruno awarded Kim a 10 to even out DANCMSTR's score of 8. But whoa, did anyone else notice DANCMSTR transform into Bruno for a few seconds during his critique of Kim? ''Buenos Aires. A bar. Smoke-filled Small room. Sensual. Quiet. Passionate. Then a quick fiery moment. And then BACK into the passion! That was lacking.'' He had the super-intense ''If I was any closer I might strangle you'' hand gestures and everything. All DANCMSTR needs is some overtly sexual metaphor and a reference to an upcoming Disney movie and he is ready to complete ''the change.''

Shawn Johnson and Mark: 25/30 DANCMSTR and Bruno complained that their Lindy Hop contained too many tricks and could have used more dancing, but I suspect that if Shawn and Mark had dressed in Melissa and Tony's costumes instead of showing up as American Gladiators rejects, the same performance might have come off as more technical and dance-y. But maybe not; there were way too many ''stops'' within the performance that we don't usually see with even the more challenged contestants. I didn't get that Shawn and Mark's ''SHARK'' warmup suits were part of their costumes and mistakenly marked down Shawn's backstage outfit as a potential Hidden Gem of the Week. ''Is she waiting for the floor exercise?'' I typed in my notes. Technically, yes, that's exactly what she and Mark ended up doing out there. She may have been underscored a bit, but at least she got to enjoy not having to be ''romantic'' (ewwwww gross boys!) and the routine allowed for a mesmerizing rehearsal segment of the couple at a local gymnastics center that I'll probably be rewinding tomorrow to watch the back-flips-on-a-trampoline part over and over and over....What's wrong with me? No, wait, I'm off the hook. It was Mark who designed those costumes.

Ty Murray and Chelsie: 25/30 First of all, I'm seriously admiring Ty's ability to hold eye contact with the camera even in the most desperate times, i.e. when the camera won't leave its subject alone during those usually heinous backstage parting shots. Ty's unflinching countenance may not be his biggest strength out on the dance floor, but his commitment to one specific gaze was almost hypnotic during that somewhat uncomfortable lingering shot he shared with Lawrence Taylor in the red room. As for his Lindy Hop last night, Ty seriously worked it out and I think most props should go to Chelsie. Some other pros have become frustrated with their partner's inability to ''just feel the dance'' early on, whereas Chelsie sat her ass on the floor and made sure Ty hammered down and understood all of his footwork before she put the two of them together for the rest of the routine. She's been teaching him the basics instead of whirling him around right away in temporary routines he'll never remember. It's just smart. I loved this couple and their crazy pink/navy plaid costumes. Sure, he didn't look too jazzed the whole time, but maybe Ty was just playing the role of the shy boy at the school's mandatory sock hop that's probably kind of lame anyway.

David Alan Grier and Kym: 22/30 Despite a total lack of negative critiques, DAG still can't quite break into the top 5. He and Kym had the disadvantage of dancing first, and I thought their performance was great but then proceeded to forget almost everything about it besides his bespangled lapels and her emitting a distinct Strawberry Shortcake Takes a Crappy Boat Cruise vibe (both of which, of course, I dug). That dual cartwheel was divine and I loved the quick-paced, multi-element finish. They deserve a better slot next week. My favorite part of their segment was probably DANCMSTR's unintentional redundancy: ''It was not your best but by no means not your worst.'' Whatever you say, man whose pink handkerchief by no means matches even one of the four other shades of pink in your ensemble.

Chuck Wicks and Julianne: 22/30 Exactly how many times did this dude fall on his head? Julianne decided to forego the dreaded back flip during the (REAL-LIFE) couple's Lindy Hop and instead went with a cute but safe routine that earned them typical semi-praises such as ''Competent'' (DANCMSTR), ''Sometimes you're borderline good'' (Carrie Ann), and ''Pizza to go, please! But can I have it crispier?'' (Wild guess). After their final pose, Julianne reached up to give her partner a high ten; too bad he was in the process of giving a virtual one to the audience. I'm surprised that when the couple were hopping around the judges' table, DANCMSTR didn't place an order for his favorite snack (a cheese roll and a cup o' tea) from the deranged wait staff of CHUCK and JULES, for whom there ain't no cure for the summertime blues of toiling away at an imaginary '50s diner within a cavernous television studio. I hear the tips are horrible.

Lawrence Taylor and Edyta: 19/30 Hooray for any excuse for us to see Alec again! After Lady Legwarmer showed uncharacteristic frustration with her partner, her quiet hubby, He of the Wondrous Hair, came in to demonstrate some of the footwork and lifts for the Argentine Tango for Lawrence. The couple's dance was pretty boring and the judges said it lacked chemistry, but that's not to say the entire segment was a bust. For one thing, Edyta looked positively chaste (in a nearly backless dress) with her classy, black-sparkly costume and sophisticated updo. Bizarro world! It continued; Samantha embarked on a dramatic monologue entitled ''I Lost My Voice But I'll Say This Anyway'': I'm going through puberty! I just want you all to know. Has the ballroom bug caught you? It's apparently caught me... And so on. This direct excerpt has not been brought to you by Sudafed. To top it all off, Tom called DANCMSTR ''Little Lenny Hardbutt.'' All of this is just terrific. That's what we wanna see, guys! Go LT!

Holly Madison and Dmitry: 16/30 ''The Argentine Tango is very sophisticated,'' began Dmitry during their rehearsal footage, and you could tell he wanted to continue, ''Just like your long-ass shiny fuchsia shorts.'' Okay, I wanted that. I find the shorts fascinating. Holly's having rib troubles, has taken over Denise Richards' ''crying lady'' slot since last week, and looks prettier without much makeup. I obviously loved Holly's black-and-white long fringed skirt and black feathered headdress, but the couple's Argentine Tango went downhill as soon as she somehow almost tumbled off one of their two prop stools. She got to execute her favorite part, the flip! But with tonight's double elimination, Holly's chances to ''Drop the Barbie; bring out the vixen'' (as prescribed by Bruno) are likely nil. [Nervous giggle]

Steve-O and Lacey: 15/30 Oh god, it's Katy Perry with purple Crocs! Nope, just Lacey in her ridiculous Lindy Hop costume. I feel for her — she and Steve-O don't even seem to be on the same show as everyone else, what with his enduring pain and their tendency to fall days or even weeks behind the other couples. I'm not sure why he doesn't just bow out, especially with two people having to leave tonight. At least half of their rehearsal segment was overlaid with Steve-O's obscenely loud grunts of unadulterated terror. Please stop! Nothing he's doing is benefitting everyone — and yes, I did see the sad-sack clown routine and fun, brightly striped Lindy Hop shirt. There's just something so eerie and contradictory about the poor-guy's low, drawn-out delivery of this week's cue card: ''If I can't get in touch with that clown character....gosh dang darnit what the hay. I'm here to have fun.'' Cringe! I'm either a bad person or a decent one for wanting Steve-O to work his issues out away from national television. Take a cue from Lacey, mid-training session: ''It shouldn't be this hard.''



Steve Wozniak and Karina: 12/30 While one Steve continued to deteriorate, the other pumped himself back up to the colorful, friendly inflatable dinosaur raft he always knew he could be. After leading a herd of Segways to a thicket of humans rife with his personal fans, Woz implored these same people to vote for him. Dude, they showed up for free at your extra-special geek rally. I think you've sealed the deal! Woz and Karina performed something resembling an Argentine Tango, with Karina wisely opting to wear an amount of costume material proportionate with her partner's dance talent. Bruno was especially harsh to the man incapable of making an angry face, telling Woz the only thing he picked up from Buenos Aires (did I fall asleep during that portion of the rehearsal segment when they traveled there?) was ''the stench,'' because ''that stunk.'' Woz fired back with an ''I'm Still Standing'' reference (that would be the Elton John music video Bruno danced in way back when). Bruno didn't care. Really, he could be a bit nicer and still make his point. Wozzup with the hostility?

Hey, speaking of rhetorical questions, what's almost as good as an EW.com Dancing with the Stars video series? Today's Idolatry, which features regrettable footage of me dancing in a sequined vest circa 1993, as well as a tepid discussion of fringe with host Michael Slezak. It's true, y'all!

Okay, DANCMSTRs — comment away on Mark's lamb shanks, Lil' Kim's leg flicks, and your best and worst DWTS nightmares. I have three words for you: Steve's Segway Stampede. [shudder]

http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,20269001,00.html

marigold:
An interesting article:

DWTS Watch: All Eyes on Shawn Johnson

On Monday night’s Dancing with the Stars, all eyes were on the show's youngest-ever contestant, gymnast Shawn Johnson , who proved to be unflappable after her terrifying stalker situation was revealed last week.

The Olympic medalist stuck all her landings on a Lindy Hop with partner Mark Ballas that was full of gymnastics tricks and earned a score of 25 out of 30.

"I had a great time," the always-smiling Shawn told OK! after performing her routine. “This is probably my favorite dance that we’ve done so far. I just went out there and took a chance and had a blast so that’s all that matters."

And in spite of the recent stalker drama, the 17-year-old declared, "I’m having the time of my life. My whole life has been gymnastics so this is the first opportunity I’ve had to do something else and I love it.”

Although the judges marked her down slightly, saying there were too many tricks and not enough dancing, Mark said people had been asking him and Shawn to throw in her signature gymnastics’ moves since the show began.

“They said, 'When are you going to do it, when are you going to do it?' And this is the only dance in which we could have done it," he explained. "I definitely feel like we danced enough. I don’t think she was heavy-footed at all. She didn’t miss a beat.”

Shawn and Mark might not have missed a beat, but it was actor Gilles Marini, with partner Cheryl Burke, who received the season's first perfect score of 30 for their dramatic Argentine Tango, while former Bachelor gal Melissa Rycroft and Tony Dovolani continued to impress with thei energetic Lindy Hop, earning a near-perfect 29.

“Wow. It’s so much work," Gilles told OK! after the show. "From Wednesday to Saturday, rehearsing was hard. It can be a beautiful dance, but I thought, can I do it?” The answer was a resounding "Yes!"

Meanwhile, Melissa talked to OK! about her high-scoring performance. “Every time we nailed a trick, I got more and more excited," she recalled. "To come out tonight and hit it 100%, it’s a really good feeling. I think my face kind of said it all — shock, excitement, relief.”

Melissa also revealed her post-show de-stressing routine. “I go eat with family and friends, go home early. I’ve done really well with my sleep this week. This is the most aerobic exercise I’ve had in years so I go home and conk out.”

Controversial rapper Lil Kim was pleased with her Argentine tango, which got a score of 27. “I was in my zone,” she said to OK! after the show.

On the optimistic front, rodeo champ Ty Murray told OK! he felt he and partner Chelsie Hightower are “getting better every week.” The pair danced away with an impressive 25 for their Lindy Hop.

Real-life lovebirds Chuck Wicks and Julianne Hough Lindy-Hopped their way to a 22. “Hopefully the fans will keep us in,” country singer Chuck said.

The boyfriend/girlfriend team isn’t engaged yet, but Julianne joked backstage about getting married, “Well, we’re going to Vegas this week…for the American Country Music Awards.”

In danger of elimination once more is computer guru Steve Wozniak, who only managed to eke out a score of 12 on Monday night for his Argentine tango with partner Karina Smirnoff. In one of his most brutal criticisms of the season, judge Bruno Tonioli said it “stunk,” but the Wizard of Woz said, “Karina told me about a book called The Secret. Where what you believe is where you’re going to get to. We’re always upbeat — and continuing!”

Holly Madison, whose Argentine Tango scored a measly 16 for her and pro partner Dmitry Chaplin, hopes she’s not in danger for the show’s double elimination tomorrow night. The former Girl Next Door has suffered inflamed muscles around her ribs and said, “It’s painful but the least of my worries right now.”

Tune in Tuesday night to see the entire cast worry and wonder which two stars must go home.

http://www.ok-magazine.com/news/view/12931

marigold:
Ty Murray's Blog:

‘We’re not going to weaken now’

After the first week, Chelsie said we have to get better every week and so far we've been able to do that. Now we're starting to get the type of scores where it's going to get even harder to keep getting better every week, but that's still going to be our intention.

The thing I liked about the Lindy Hop was that it's a physical dance.

I blew off the stage right from the beginning and that's how I like to go at things. I loved the fact that we just built the routine from that and that dance, if you try to run it over and over, just kills you. It just wipes you out.

But, tonight, with our adrenaline going you could feel it. You have this much vested in it, you've worked hard and you've put in hundreds of hours so it's not like you're going to take it lightly. You just bear down and try to do your best.

I didn't do it perfect, but I feel like I'm slowly making some progress.

It feels good to get better and it feels good to get better compliments from the judges. The amount of fan support is unbelievable and it just keeps increasing week by week.

There are no gimmicks and there are no shortcuts so the main thing that we're trying to do is to make sure we put in the effort and the work because I don't know what else to do. I don't know of any other way to go about it.

This week coming up, if we survive the elimination, we'll be doing the Pasodoble.

It's a dance they came up with when the King of England went to Spain and saw a bullfight for the first time. I don't know the whole story, but, I think, he came back and told his servants and they developed this dance, which they call the Pasodoble.

It's a serious and macho dance that would remind you a lot of Spanish bullfighters and even Spanish cowboys, for that matter, in the same way if you were to go to Mexico and watch the trick ropers. They all put a lot of time and attention toward their form and you see that come through with this dance.

From what Chelsie tells me, the technique is hard to get a grasp on. But, really, all these dances are hard to get a grasp on so it'll just be a matter of putting in the work. We would start that first thing Wednesday morning and go at like we have been.

It's all still a big challenge, but every day I have a better understanding of the challenge that's in front of me. "Dancing with the Stars" is a big show, and we're not going to weaken now.

http://www.pbrnow.com/blog/index.cfm/2009/3/31/Were-not-going-to-weaken-now

marigold:
An interesting article:

Monday’s Dancing: What You Didn’t See

Muscle Mania: Dance partners Melissa Rycroft and Tony Dovolani were filmed kissing their biceps and growling in their pre-taped segment. Before their near-perfect performance of the Lindy hop, the couple faced each other, kissed each bicep once and went “grrrr.” After their performance they repeated the routine. “It’s kiss the guns and then growl at each other,” Rycroft tells PEOPLE. “We like to get in a bubble before we go out and perform and that’s our way of saying, ‘It’s me and you out here right now.’”

Safety Dance: After an alleged stalker of Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson was discovered and arrested outside of the Dancing with the Stars studio last week, it was evident security was heightened and tightened. Four employees surrounded the entrance to the lot, every bag was checked and guests needed wristbands and hand stamps to enter the studio. Normally, special guests of the dancers are allowed to mingle on the dancefloor after the show, but even they were asked to leave before returning through another security checkpoint.

Crowd Pleaser: The crowd roared when Warren Sapp, one of last season’s crowd favorites, walked toward his seat in the front row. Throughout the night, he waved to old friends, staff and the audience, which cheered with delight. Afterward, he mingled with his former partner Kym Johnson and he was also spotted giving dancer Karina Smirnoff a giant bear hug.

Country Corner: After the show ended and the press filed out, rodeo champion Ty Murray chatted up some friends seated near the stage. His wife Jewel sat next to her former partner Dmitry Chaplin. Murray’s pro partner Chelsie Hightower, still dressed in her Lindy hop costume, sat on Chaplin’s lap. “We became a tight-knit group,” said Jewel about the foursome who spent weeks rehearsing at the couple’s ranch in Stephenville, Texas. Meanwhile real-life couple and dance partners Julianne Hough and Chuck Wicks lingered and talked with the group as well.

Eye Spy a Tear?: Actor Gilles Marini was nearly moved to tears when the crowd extended their standing ovation for his and partner Cheryl Burke’s perfect tango. “It was such a long ovation that I felt like, ‘Don’t ask me any questions or I’m going to cry,’” he said after the show. The couple’s sultry performance scored the season’s first perfect score–a 30 out of 30. He thanked the crowd and looked toward his wife before leaving the stage. After the show, Marini’s wife and Burke hugged each other and celebrated the performance.

http://tvwatch.people.com/2009/03/31/mondays-dancing-what-you-didnt-see-20/

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