Things are about to get serious on Dancing With the Stars. With the field culled down from 12 to six, the pressure is mounting beginning tonight. After Jaleel White’s ouster last Tuesday, it became clear once again that no one is safe, especially with the performances improving every time out. Roshon Fegan and Melissa Gilbert are clearly the underdogs going forward. Can either make a surprise run to the top three and the DWTS finals? If not, it’s going to be a four-person battle for three spots, with Donald Driver, William Levy, Katherine Jenkins and Maria Menounos eying the Mirror Ball. Each has been consistently impressive so far, and rarely (if ever) in jeopardy. But something has to give. One false move and it can all be over. Ask Jaleel. Who’s your favorite contestant left in the field, and who do you think is most likely to go home this week? Share your comments and vote in our poll: Who do you think will win Dancing With the Stars?
Reigning Dancing With the Stars champion J.R. Martinez and his longtime girlfriend, Diana Gonzalez-Jones, have welcomed a baby daughter. Her named is Lauryn Annabelle. Lauryn Anabelle Martinez arrived Wednesday evening, May 2 in Los Angeles. “She’s already got a nickname – Belle,” J.R. told People of his newborn baby girl , who weighed in at 7 lbs., 13 oz. and is 21 inches long. “She has a couple of cute little freckles on her cheeks, a full head of hair and the cutest little lips,” he says. “It’s just amazing to see her. She’s beautiful.” The Iraq war veteran and Gonzalez-Jones met when he landed a role on All My Children in 2008, and announced in December that they were expecting. “God has a tremendous sense of humor and wants to continue to surround me with women,” J.R. joked in revealing that a baby girl was on the way. Congratulations to the new parents!
The Biggest Loser: No Excuses was a season full of unexpected twists and turns … but, well, few excuses. At the end of the day, the final three stepped on the scale. With Mark Cornelison and Buddy Shuh, who quit just before the finals, and Joe Messina, who quit earlier in the season, ineligible, the field was narrowed a bit. In their absence, fan favorites Chism Cornelison, Emily Joy and Cassandra Sturros took to the stage with 11 other contestants to show off their new figures. That was for the at-home prize of $100,000. Mike Messina won the at-home prize by losing a total of 160 lbs., or 44.69 percent of his body weight. He beat out Cassandra Sturos (who lost 92 lbs., or 38.49 percent) and her friend Emily Joy (who lost 102 lbs. lost, or 38.64 percent). The grand prize came down to single mom Conda Britt, 24, her brother Jeremy Britt, 22, and former pro-wrestler Kim Nielsen, 38. The weigh-in results: Conda went from 294 lbs. to 179, a loss of 115, or 39.12 percent of her body. Kim went from 252 lbs. to 134, a total weight loss of 118 or 46.83 percent. Jeremy went from 389 lbs. to 190 for a weight loss of a whopping 199, which is 51.16 percent of his previous body weight. That makes Jeremy Britt, who is now half the man he used to be, but only literally, the winner of The Biggest Loser and $250,000! Well done man!
After Monday’s Dancing With the Stars performances, which saw Maria Menounos and Derek Hough receive the first perfect 30 of the season, it seemed all but certain that Melissa Gilbert and an injured Maksim Chmerkovskiy would be in the bottom two. Their 21-point tango left them in last place , a full three points behind Jaleel White and Kym Johnson and four behind Roshon Fegan and Chelsie Hightower. Which two pairs were in the bottom two, and which was safe on last night’s Dancing With the Stars results show? More than a few people were surprised. Melissa and Maks were declared safe, leaving young Roshon and Chelsie to go up against fan favorites Jaleel and Kym in the dance duel for their lives. After the two performed dueling rumbas, the judges made their decision. “This is not easy. Side by side you guys are pretty much equal,” said Carrie Ann, who picked Roshon and Chelsie to stay. Len and Bruno made it unanimous. And just like that, Jaleel White’s run on Dancing With the Stars ended. “I really only thought I’d last about three dances this competition,” White said after his elimination, “so to get this far – I’ve made incredible friends, the fans have been incredible. I love Roshon Fegan … I’m glad they saved him.” What do you think: Should Jaleel have gone home?
Gladys Knight earned the lowest scores on Motown night, while Jaleel White and Jenkins each earned a pair of 10s. By Kelley L. Carter Derek Hough and Maria Menounos Photo: ABC Monday night’s telecast of “Dancing With the Stars” opened with R&B legend Smokey Robinson crooning his Motown hit “Tears of a Clown.” Then Martha Reeves came in singing her hit with the Vandellas “Dancing in the Streets.” Then came the (current lineup of the) Temptations singing their classic hit “Get Ready.” And Motown founder Berry Gordy was in the audience, to boot. It was the perfect way to intro Motown night — this week’s theme — for the popular ABC dance reality competition. This week’s scores included bonus points for a group cha-cha dance marathon. At the top of the pack this week were Katherine Jenkins and Mark Ballas. The opera singer once again impressed judges with her moves. She and Ballas danced to the Temptations’ “I Can’t Get Next to You,” and the judges thought she continued to deliver. Her prize? She earned a pair of 10s in her initial score for an almost perfect score. “Tonight, girlfriend, you let it loose. That was amazing!” judge Carrie Ann Inaba said. 29/30 + 10 = 39. Here’s how the others fared: Jaleel White and Kym Johnson The former child actor jumped right back near the top of the leaderboard. He danced the cha-cha to “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,” and the judges found his movements to be sharp and filled with attitude “You’re back!” head judge Len Goodman told him. He also was rewarded with a pair of 10s from the judges. 29/30 + 8 = 37 William Levy and Cheryl Burke The Latin soap opera star danced the rumba, and judges loved the steam that came from the pair. Their ending was over-the-top sexual (they were laid out on top of one another on the dance floor), and the judges — and the live audience, gauging from the screams and hooting and hollering — enjoyed it thoroughly. “William! Absolute and utter filth. And I loved every minute of it!” judge Bruno Tonioli said. “On behalf of all of the women out there, I thank you,” Inaba said. Goodman thought it was a bit on the raunchy side. 27/30 + 9 = 36 Donald Driver and Peta Murgatroyd The football star danced the foxtrot to a Temptations track, and the judges were impressed by his showmanship. “Donald, you are a showman! Confidence! Power! Your performances get better and better. You should be in the theater,” Tonioli said. 27/30 + 7 = 34 Melissa Gilbert and Maks Chmerkovskiy The actress danced the Viennese waltz to Robinson’s lush hit “Ooo Baby, Baby,” and judges thought her lines were beautiful. “I see poetry starting to happen in your movements. I see the artistry there,” Inaba told her. 24/30 + 6= 30. Maria Menounos and Derek Hough The TV journalist danced the foxtrot to a Reeves’ hit, and even though she made a few missteps, judges thought she pulled it off quite nicely. “You lost your footing, but you caught up quite brilliantly,” Tonioli told her. 26/30 + 4 = 30. Roshon Fegan and Chelsie Hightower The Disney star danced to a Robinson hit, and the judges thought his moves were more suitable for a hip-hop dance — his specialty — than the ballroom. Goodman said that the execution of his routine was “clipped and jerky.” “In general, I thought your moments were a bit over-exaggerated tonight and it made it hard for me to watch,” Inaba said. 23/50 + 5= 28. Gladys Knight and Tristan McManus The soul legend took the stage first — kind of fitting, considering she recorded with the Detroit label — and she performed the rumba. Judges thought her routine was passionate and said her star quality was undeniable. They thought her rumba should have been a bit steamier and noted how she lost it a bit at the end. “You’re not the best dancer, but I’ll tell you what you are … Gladys, you are the most charismatic dancer, I’m telling you. It is so appealing,” head judge Len Goodman said. “It’s just easy like Sunday morning!” 21/30 + 3 = 24.
Ian Somerhalder is one of several stars talked about as a potentially great fit for Christian Grey in the upcoming film adaptation of Fifty Shades of Grey . He’s leading THG’s poll on the subject (below), as a matter of fact. Asked about it on Ryan Seacrest’s radio show Monday, The Vampire Diaries heart throb admitted he’s heard the speculation about his casting, and approves. Ian Somerhalder Speaks on Fifty Shades of Grey Casting Asked if he’s interested in starring in the film, Ian said : “Potentially. I absolutely would be up for that. I have the book and I just started reading it.” “That would be a pretty incredible thing, and hopefully that could pan out. Yes, beyond the shadow of a doubt I think that would be a phenomenal opportunity!” The best-selling book’s protagonist, Anastasia Steele, and her troubled, controlling man, 27-year-old millionaire Christian Grey, will surely be sought-after roles. What do you think? Should Ian play Christian? Who would be the best fit among these stars?
The 14th season of Dancing With the Stars has been almost as evenly-matched as it has been entertaining thus far. Would the sixth week be any different? Last week saw Maria Menounos and Derek Hough kiss , Melissa Gilbert return from a head injury, Chelsie Hightower almost fall out of her outfit and more. With Gavin DeGraw eliminated , eight dancers remained to vie for the Mirror Ball. Who stepped up this week and who’s going to be in jeopardy next? Coming into the sixth week, the favorites (Menounos, Donald Driver, Katherine Jenkins and William Levy) were looking to bolster their frontrunner status. The remainder of the pack (Gilbert, Roshon Fegan, Jaleel White and Gladys Knight) looked to make a move or risk elimination. How did the stars all do? We’ll be back with a full rundown soon, but in the meantime, tell us who you think was the best – and worst – on the parquet Monday in the comments. Then vote in our ongoing survey with your thoughts on the following: Of the top eight, who will win Dancing With the Stars?
Pop singer had to participate in a dance-off with Jaleel White before getting the bad news. By Kelley L. Carter Karina Smirnoff and Gavin DeGraw on “Dancing With the Stars” Photo: ABC The savvy producers at ABC’s hit reality dance competition switched things up for fans during Tuesday night’s “Dancing With the Stars” elimination show. Instead of making fans sweat it out until the final minute to find out which celebrity dancer and his/her professional partner would be given the boot based on a combination of judges’ scores and fan votes, they turned the tables a bit. The bottom two couples — pop singer Gavin DeGraw and his partner Karina Smirnoff and childhood actor Jaleel White and his partner Kym Johnson — had to duke it out on the dance floor. The couples danced side by side in a duel of cha-chas, with the judges having the final say about who would be saved and who would be going home. In the end, it really wasn’t much of a shocker. DeGraw was told he’d danced his last dance on the show — he’d been the bottom scorer on Monday night, as was pretty much the case since the competition began. Monday night’s theme was Latin night, and his samba failed to impress the judges. That said, the judges told DeGraw that they based their decision solely on the dance he turned in Tuesday night, however, and not what he’d done in previous performances. “It’s been amazing to be part of the show,” DeGraw said after learning that he’d be going home, adding that Smirnoff was a great mentor. Next week, the celebrities take on Motown week.
The Secret Service is looking into comments made this weekend by extreme right-winger Ted Nugent. During a gathering sponsored by the National Rife Association, the rocker – referring to the upcoming election – urged members of the organization help “chop their heads off in November” and added: “I’ll tell you this right now: If Barack Obama becomes the president in November, again, I will either be dead or in jail by this time next year. We need to ride into that battlefield and chop their heads off in November. Any questions?” Ted Nugent Rant Against Obama Referring to the current administration as “criminals,” Nugent appeared to directly threaten Obama – which is a crime – by ranting: “If the coyote’s in your living room, pissing on your couch, it’s not the coyote’s fault. It’s your fault for not shooting him.” Responded Andrea Saul, a spokeswoman for Mitt Romney, the candidate Nugent is backing: “Divisive language is offensive no matter what side of the political aisle it comes from. Mitt Romney believes everyone needs to be civil.”
Unlike the ousters of Jack Wagner and Sherri Shepherd , the fourth elimination on Dancing With the Stars was not a decision that will leave heads scratched. Just as things looked up last week for Karina Smirnoff and partner Gavin DeGraw, they once again sunk to the bottom Monday night after a 19-point samba. The second lowest DWTS scores went to Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Melissa Gilbert, with 21, with Gladys Knight and Tristan MacManus posting just 22. Which of these tandems comprised the dreaded bottom two? Melissa and Maksim and Gladys and Tristan were among the first to be declared safe. Gavin and Karina faced off with Jaleel White and Kym Johnson. Dancing for survival, the judges made their final call based purely on the quality of the performances as both couples did the cha cha side by side. And that call was a fairly easy one. Their decision was unanimous: the judges saved Jaleel and Kym, bringing DeGraw’s run on DWTS to a close. “It’s amazing just being part of the show,” an upbeat Gavin said. “Knowing Karina Smirnoff, of course, having a great mentor. And getting to reach out and know all these amazing people who are a part of this show.” Jaleel and Kym will be back next week to compete in the top eight. You tell us: With Gavin out, who will win Dancing With the Stars?
