YAY! The official cast photos came out yesterday! And what better way to bring our series back from a two-week hiatus than to give you a fun, creative way to check out this season’s couples in costume? And as a bonus – this one’s an extra long edition! ENJOY!

Battle of the red stoned & feathered Latin dress, redux: Brandy’s pre-season 11 photo shoot with Maks vs. Debi’s salsa with Maks in season 9 vs. one of the performers in the Haiti “Stars of Dance” performance

Courtney: Some of you may remember that Heidi & I actually already critiqued (er, more like ripped apart!) this dress in Who Wore it Better? Part II. We couldn’t even pick a winner, because we hated this dress with a passion.  But now seeing it on Brandy…I actually think it looks kinda cute on her. Maybe not my first choice for her, but not terrible. So I would hereby like to retract my previous opinion that this dress did not look cute on anyone, and dub Brandy the winner of this battle

Heidi: Yeah, it looks cute on Brandy and for sh…crap on the other ladies – but a better question is why is Brandy standing so stiff and straight, both feet together?? That was the last thing  expected from her and it makes me wonder. But lord knows she’s not the only one looking stiff in these photos.

Courtney: Oh you’re terrible, Heidi It’s comments like those that start fan wars! Or showmance rumors…as if there aren’t enough of those flying around already…

The winner: Brandy!!  Her first, but likely not only, win of the new season!!

Battle of the grey button-down shirt & black dance pants: Derek’s first jive with Nicole in season 10 vs. Derek’s pre-season 11 photo shoot

Heidi: LOOK!! My pretend boyfriend recycles too!!  And this isn’t his first time reusing a costume, I just haven’t had time to go back and look up all his dittos.  I LOVED this outfit when worn for his jive with Nicole – I like the more understated outfits on the men.  Not to mention that he looks all growed up these days.  I like the photo shoot version – mainly because I keep getting distracted by the cowlick in the Jive version.

Courtney: Kudos to Heidi for finding our first ever MALE ditto! Granted, the subject in question may account for why her eye was so keen, but that’s beside the point I like the the more casual look of the short-sleeved button down shirt for Latin dances.  I think the winner of this one is…geez…I dunno…so I guess I’ll go with…DEREK! Haha But more specifically, when he wore it for the jive.  The photo shoot lighting tends to make everything look so drab.

The winner:  The Hot Blond Guy in the gray shirt.

Battle of the red, fringey & stone-y Latin dress: Kate’s jive with Tony in season 10 vs. Margaret’s pre-season 11 photo shoot

Courtney: Hahaha…ok, I know some people are put off by Margaret’s tats, but I actually really like the character they add to her.  And clearly she’s got plenty of character to bring to the stage! I have a feeling I’m gonna really like her this season.  I think Kate looks more “put-together” in this dress, but as a lot of you know, I LOATHE overstyled, bumpit-y hair…so I’m giving this one to Margaret, and her cute red shoes

Heidi: I have to go with Margaret simply for having balls to be OUT THERE and not stiffly posed like some of the others.  Did I say balls?  We’ll get to those later.

Courtney: Oh boy.  I can already tell it’s gonna be another toilet humor/innuendo filled post

The winner: The delightful Ms. Cho for BRINGING it!!

Battle of the red-stoned, long-fringed Latin dress with the skinny belt: Anna’s salsa relay with Chuck in season 9 vs. Jennifer’s pre-season 11 photo shoot

Heidi: Hmmm….they both look fabulous, but I don’t know about red on a redhead.  I have to give it up for Jennifer because she just looks amazing. I can’t believe she’s 50. I won’t look that good at 50, I’m sure.  In any case, there’s a filter on the camera that makes it look pinker on Jennifer and her makeup matches beautifully – but I do like the neck scarf that Anna has on. But I have to go back to Jennifer for the soft and lovely look.

Courtney: Now while I may have a heterosexual girl-crush on Anna, she looks a little too overstyled in this dress – the hair, the thing around the neck, the earrings…blech.  I like Jennifer’s simpler look better, but again, another dress that isn’t necessarily bad on the celeb, but isn’t the best either.  But my god – Jennifer looks fan-frickin-tastic for being 50.  If I age half as well as she has, I will be one hot cougar. ;-)

The winner: Jennifer – the woman we all want to be when we’re 50.

Battle of the 2-piece, heavily-fringed red Latin costume: Audrina’s pre-season 11 photo shoot vs. Holly’s samba with Dmitry in season 8 vs. one of the performers in the guest pro dance in season 9

Courtney: Ok, I know what some of you are going to say: “But this was also Stacy’s jive costume!” Sorry to burst your bubble, but it’s not the same outfit – very similar, but the cut of the top is different. See for yourself. Anywho, I hated this costume on Holly, not only because she was a terribly awkward mover in it, but also because the fringe accentuating her ample bosom and the headband in her hair just made her look like kind of a bimbo to me.  Looks decent on random blonde pro from the random guest pro jive – I think it could be Snejana, but who knows.  Audrina seems to pull it off with the most ease, but I think I like her better with dark hair.

Heidi: Audrina is a beautiful girl, and she certainly wears this dress better than the other two – but here’s another girl that seems to be holding herself very stiffly – is it a model thing? Nerves from the photo shoot? Her pose just seems weird to me.

The winner: Audrina, despite the hair and the perceived case of the stiffs

Battle of the long, black, lacey, fringey, and ruffle-y ballgown: Bristol’s pre-season 11 photo shoot vs. Kym’s Argentine tango with Donny in season 9

Heidi: My first thoughts when seeing Bristol in this dress?? “Where the fu..dge did they get the damn curtains to sew on to the tablecloth??” Folks, there is such a thing as too much crap on a dress and this is a dress with too much crap on it. Lordy. Poor, POOR Randall, if this is an example of what Bristol wants to go with the entire season. Poor MARK!! He’ll get swallowed up by fabric the first time he attempts a rumba. I have the overwhelming urge to comment on modest clothing versus teen pregnancy. I’m trying very, very hard to refrain. Man, think of the cheesecake awards.

Courtney: I can imagine the banter at the photo shoot: “We need more ruffles in here, STAT! No way the former first daughter of Alaska is gonna show as much skin as that Aussie bombshell!” It’s a little hard to tell from this angle, but they added quite a bit more fabric for Bristol’s modesty than the original dress offered – Kym was sex on legs in this one! Props to Bristol for staying true to values, but I daresay she isn’t going to be able to dance every week being this covered up.  Kym – you are still our favorite blonde Aussie with “ausome” boobs Hehe, get it?

Heidi: Did you just say that Bristol remained true to values?? Are you TRYING to kill me here? My tongue needs to be sewn back on as it is!! Just a joke folks, just a joke. Keep tuning in just to see how long I can hold it in. :::chants::: She’s not her mother, she’s not her mother, she’s not her mother….

Courtney: For once, I was trying to give the girl the benefit of the doubt, since she said in some interview that she was determined to wear “modest” costumes on the show.  REALLY trying to give her a fair shot like I did with Kate at first last season. But yah…values, schmalues.  I still think she’s the biggest joke to ever do DWTS.  And I think she’ll quickly find that the wardrobe department likes skimpy costumes for 3 reasons: they show the movement of the dances better, they don’t take as much time, fabric, & effort to make, and sex sells. Obviously.

The winner: Duh. Kym. The Aussie Bombshell. Hee.

Battle of the red mesh & tulle party dress: Anna’s freestyle with Evan in season 10 vs. Anna’s pre-season 11 photo shoot

Courtney: I thought this dress was a hot mess when I saw it during Evan & Anna’s freestyle – but then again, that freestyle wasn’t the greatest, either.  She’s playful when she’s wearing it in the freestyle; but I love her expression in her photo shoot – she almost won it last season, which makes her that much hungrier for it this season.  This girl means business!

Heidi: I can’t decide if I like the dress color with her hair color or not, but I do think I have mad love for this dress. It’s muy funky. She wore it well both times.

The winner: The Photo shoot Anna.

Battle of the short, cranberry-lace tango dress: Chelsie’s Argentine tango with Louis in season 9 vs. Chelsie’s pre-season 11 photo shoot

Heidi: I LOVE this dress!! Love, love, love it. I like the photo shoot version better mainly because I don’t like how she has her hair done for the tango – the bangs bother me. Straggly.

Courtney: This is another one of my favorite dresses.  So simple, yet so sexy. But I think I prefer it the way she wore it in the tango better- the overall look feels more “done”, and the dress also sits better -  I can’t help but think it looks like negligee in her photo shoot pic, especially with the hair blowing in the wind and the slightly “come hither” look in her eye.  I’m sure John’s loving it either way

The winner: Well, Chelsie, either way.

Battle of the skin-tight, red lace & fringe tango dress: Cheryl’s pre-season 11 photo shoot vs. Cheryl’s Argentine tango with Chad in season 10

Courtney: Wasn’t wild about this dress when she wore it last season (wasn’t wild about that tango, either – she just danced around Chad!), but paired with the long hair and without the gloves, Cheryl looks SEX-AY.  And I’ve already said that she & Rick are going to make one stunning couple this season…this is just the preseason shoot.  Think of what their rumba will look like!

Heidi: Well, we thought a rumba with Chad would be hot too. She and Rick will be a much prettier couple, but whether he can bring the sexy or not remains to be seen. Now Cheryl, on the other hand, is bringing the sexy. I’m with you, her photo shoot version of this dress is a zillion times better. It’s definitely the loose hair – I think she should do that more often. The severe hair just isn’t good for her face shape, I think.

Courtney: Agreed.  Her face is too round for very “pulled back” hair.

The winner: Photo shoot Cheryl!

Battle of the black & silver razor blade & chain bra & feathered skirt ensemble: Lacey’s samba with Lance in season 7 vs. Chelsie’s pro dance to Rascal Flatts in season 8 vs. Lacey in the ladies’ pro dance opener in season 9 vs. Lacey’s pre-season 11 photo shoot

Courtney: Wow, Lacey really loves her bedazzled bra & feather skirt! I just find it funny how the costume evolved: when we first saw it in season 7 (which happened to be the season that both Cheryl & Lacey were catching all sorts of flak about their weight gain), it had a vest over it.  Then they made Chelsie wear it for a pro dance – fail, since that girl just isn’t punky enough to carry off a bra with razor blades dangling off of it.  Then Lacey gets in shape, and dons it for the ladies’ pro dance – and I actually think it looks really good there, with her flowing brunette locks (who cares if her hair is mostly fake? If you can’t acheive it, weave it!).  But Lacey as a blonde? Ugh.  It just doesn’t look right.  I thought the dark hair really brought out her eyes and skin much better, while the blonde just kinda washes everything out.  And is it just me, or does that outfit seem even skimpier than before…especially in her photo with Kyle? Are they trying to pawn Lacey off as the new Edyta? Yeeeesh.

Heidi: You stole all my lines. The blonde hair is ugh, the outfit is skimpier – seeing as she probably took Edyta’s place I guess that’s one way to go. Yadda yadda yadda. What more is there to say?

The winner: Lacey as a brunette sans vest.

Battle of the black, stoned, plunging, ruched-side tango dress: Kym’s pre-season 11 photo shoot vs. Joanna’s Argentine tango with Maks in season 9

Heidi: Well, crap, this is hard – the dress and both women look awesome. I have to go with Joanna for the dark lipstick and the hair – and the gloves.

Courtney: Ooh damn…this is a tough one to call.  Two very sexy blondes, striking the same very sexy pose, in one very sexy, clingy black dress.  Joanna is, quite possibly, the only person on the show who has come close to rivaling Kym in terms of having great boobs.  But Kym is the queen of the expression – she can take a ho-hum costume and make it great just by making the right face.  It pains me to do so, but I’m gonna have to go with Joanna on this one – but just barely.  I just loved how she rocked that super dark lipstick and long black gloves in her tango.

The winner: Joanna, by a millimeter.

And folks, we went and saved the best for last…

Battle of the silver, fringey, 3-quarter sleeve sheath dress with ungodly large shoulder pads: Florence’s pre-season 11 photo shoot vs. Louis goofing around at his pre-season 11 photo shoot vs. Kelly’s freestyle with Louis in season 9

Courtney: Take one of the tackiest dresses in DWTS history.  Put it on a TV legend – meh.  It’s okay.  Put it on a reality TV star – okay, it’s kinda cute.  Put it on one very flamboyant male pro – it’s the fiercest, most fabulous thing you’ve ever laid eyes on.  Louis Van Amstel for the fashion WIN. Extra points for accessorizing with the watch.

Heidi: Girl, it ain’t just the watch, it’s the POSE. Dude is rocking that dress, although it doesn’t wear as smoothly over his lower half. :::smirk::: But you know, Florence could join the cast of Dynasty in this dress – WTF with the shoulder pads? Since Louis is not a big guy, the pads work for him – and those bumps balance out other….oh, never mind. I can’t bring myself to go there.

Courtney: If my honey were here, he’d recommend a dance belt for Louis…I won’t go into detail, but it tends to keep certain problematic bulges in check.  Oh boy, look what you’ve done…now I’m talking about genitals too!

The winner: Louis, by a….watch.

 Have you fallen in love with “Who Wore it Better”? Then be sure to check out all of our previous editions while you wait with baited breath for the next installment!

So apparently I might be onto something with my typecasting theories, because it seems like a lot of you are also trying to deduce from the absolutely CRAZY amount of rumors flying around who might be fulfilling each type…and honestly, at this point, I have no clue what to believe But that’s the fun of DWTS, right?

If the majority of what’s being reported is true (doubtful), then it looks to me like they might actually skip some types this season (haven’t heard any major reports about soap stars or hosts);  but if they’re leaking only a few actual celeb participants and the rest are red herrings, then we might get few suprises thrown in and have a more “well-rounded” cast.  But enough general speculation – on with the rest of the types!

The Teen Idol

Previous examples: Joey McIntyre, Aaron Carter, Donny Osmond, Lance Bass, Mel B., Joey Fatone, Drew Lachey, Joey Lawrence, Ian Ziering, Cody Linley, Sabrina Bryan, Mario Lopez

Advantages: If sales of Tiger Beat are any indicator, the teenyboppers will come out in full force to support their favorite heartthrobs/idols.  Being young & good-lookin’ sure doesn’t hurt! Many also have the added advantage of having a decent dance background, especially if they were part of a musical act.

Disadvantages: Youth can also have its disadvantages – as in immaturity.  What some might call “youthful exuberance”, others might call “immaturity” or “attention deficit disorder” – poor Cody Linley had a hard time sitting still! Emotional immaturity (a la Aaron Carter’s post-rumba meltdown in the confessional) can be especially off-putting.

Possible candidates this season: Looks like Brandy is our best guess. 

The Host

Previous examples: Jerry Springer, Brooke Burke, Leeza Gibbons, Mario Lopez, Kenny Mayne, Lisa Rinna, Tucker Carlson, Mark Dacascos, Rocco DiSpirito, Erin Andrews

Advantages: Being that they’ve been at the helm of their own shows, these guys usually have the media savvy & charisma to appeal to the masses, as well as the previous exposure & recognizability.  Most (not all!) are also decently attractive, which never seems to hurt (unless, of course, you’re a model – see previous post for explanation).

Disadvantages: Many hosts are only used to hosting – as in just sitting down & talking (or dodging the occasional punch, if you’re Springer), so the lack of movement experience problem seems to come into play. 

Possible candidates this season:  Chris Jericho also hosts some show on NBC, so I guess he could do double-duty and fulfill the role of both the athlete and the host. 

The Actor

Previous examples: John O’Hurley, Melissa Joan Hart, Steve Guttenburg, John Ratzenberger, Debi Mazar, Denise Richards, Ted McGinley, Shannon Elizabeth, Jennie Garth, Vivica Fox, Marissa Jaret Winokur, Shannen Doherty

Advantages: Being that their bread & butter is acting, most can usually nail the emotions of the dances. Bonus points if they’ve done any Broadway (like Winokur) because they have likely had dance experience.

Disadvantages: For lack of a better term, many of them seem to be “has-beens” – actors that haven’t been particularly active in the mainstream in the past several years – or were never that big to begin with (can anyone else think of anything John O’Hurley has been in BESIDES Seinfeld?), making it harder for them to garner votes from a public who may not remember them. 

Possible Candidates this season: This one has blown up big within the last few days – we’ve got David Hasselhoff, Jennifer Grey, & Florence Henderson (who could also be considered a “legend”) now on our radar. There’s been a campaign for Bern Nadette Stanis, as well as one for Leslie Jordan that he himself is heading up.  Also a minor campaign for Melissa Peterman.

The Reality Star

Previous examples: Kim Kardashian, Kelly Osbourne, Melissa Rycroft, Steve-O, Holly Madison, Trista Sutter, Shanna Moakler, Kate Gosselin, Jake Pavelka

Advantages: Many have achieved pop culture icon status on their respective reality outlets, making them fairly recognizable.

Disadvantages: They may be memorable for the wrong reasons – people tended to remember things like Kim Kardashian’s sex tape more than her reality show, and people seemed more focused on Holly Madison’s split from Hef than her antics on The Girls Next Door.  Many can also come across as attention-hungry & talentless – reality TV is often looked down upon as a way to get famous without having any talent whatsoever. 

Possible candidates this season: Oy vey – this is the subtype that has had, by far, the greatest amount of casting rumors…everyone from The Situation to Teresa Giudice to both Ali Fedotowsky & fiancée Roberto Martinez, to Audrina Patridge, but it’s hard to tell who’s got a legit chance and who’s bluffing.  Personally, I’m still holding out for Sig Hansen

The Singer

Previous examples: Mya, Billy Ray Cyrus, Mario, Belinda Carlisle, Master P, Chuck Wicks, Sara Evans, Willa Ford, Monique Coleman, Toni Braxton, Macy Gray, Nicole Scherzinger

Advantages: As with the teen idols, many have had dance experience concurrent with their music careers. 

Disadvantages: Most seem to be committed solely to one genre of music (often R&B or country), making it hard to appeal to a wide fanbase.

Possible candidates this season: Most obvious choice? Michael Bolton.  But in the same token, you could also have Brandy and/or David Hasselhoff fulfilling this role if they’re trying to kill 2 birds with one stone. The Xzibit rumor is still lingering slightly, and Pete Wentz fans are still holding out hope.

The Wild Card

Previous examples: Heather Mills, Tom DeLay, Mark Cuban, Steve Wozniak, Priscilla Presley, Buzz Aldrin

Advantages: The sheer novelty of having someone with such an off-the-beaten-path claim to fame (famous divorcee/widow, entrepreneur, disgraced politician, etc.) may be enough to have the public voting them – just to see what happens.  Being the “underdog” is a powerful thing!

Disadvantages: Due to their often dubious fame, people just may not have any clue who they are – I personally had to Google Mark Cuban’s name.

Possible candidates this season: Can it get much wild card-ier than Bristol Palin?! Good grief…still trying to wrap my brain around how they’re going to try and spin her claim to fame…

Did you miss part I of my typecasting of season 11? Check it out here.  Feeling nostalgic? Check out parts I & II of my typecasting of season 10, and see how everything stacked up ;-)

Season after season, celeb after celeb, it’s always interesting to see what kind of mixed bag each cast turns out to be.  Athletes, actors, comedians, models…it’s the variety of stars the show pulls in that makes things really interesting!

 But, as amazing an opportunity as the show might be for the celebs, with certain individuals, we have to kinda wonder what exactly their motivations were to do the show…are they really there for the opportunity, or is it something else entirely?

 So it got me thinking…what might be some other reasons certain stars do the show, besides “just for fun”? Read on…

 Reason #1: They’re broke.

I’m sure they’d never say it publicly, but over time it’s become a bit obvious that certain celebs probably do the show to offset some cashflow problems they’ve encountered as of late.  I can’t fault them – the $200K base pay for doing the show is nothing to sneeze at, and the possibility of getting another $100K on top of that if they win is just icing on the cake – especially if you’re like season 9’s Aaron Carter, who owed over a million bucks in backed taxes.  No wonder the kid was crying after a mediocre rumba – he couldn’t afford to get sent home! Or maybe you’re season 10’s Kate Gosselin, who claimed that she was “just trying to support her family” by doing the show (although I don’t think she was motivated entirely by the money – there was some definitely attention whoring going on there).  It’s also likely the primary reason that Real Housewives of New Jersey cast member Terese Giudice is trying so hard to get on the show – she & her husband filed for bankruptcy last year after racking up over $11 million worth of debt.  Granted, the pay from doing the show probably is probably a small fraction of what these stars are used to pulling in, but it’s still more than enough for we common folk to live quite comfortably off of for a year or two…beggars can’t be choosers

 Reason #2: They’re doing reputation damage control.

Another less-than-savory motivation for doing the show, it’s a good idea nonetheless – what better way to distract from a recent brush with the law or sex tape scandal than to show America how charming and talented you can be on DWTS? Take Lil Kim – she was fresh out of a year-long stint in prison for perjury.  And she became one of the most popular contestants on season 8! She even took it a step further and managed to speak freely about her incarceration and even poke fun at it.  Season 4’s Heather Mills was likely trying to undo some the damage done during her long, messy divorce from Paul McCartney, which seemed to give her a rather nasty reputation as a vindictive gold digger. Or there was Mel B., who had just had a baby out of wedlock with Eddie Murphy.  And of course, Kim Kardashian was still trying to live down her famous sex tape with Ray-J.  Did the show help erase these indiscretions? Eh, some better than others.  But if nothing else, it gave America something else to remember them by.

 Reason #3: They’re trying to breathe life into a dead career/jump start a new career.

You know those celebs whose names you have to google at first because you have absolutely no clue who they are? They likely fall into this category: they’ve either been inactive for so long that you can’t remember them (or maybe they weren’t that famous in the first place), or they’re so new on the scene that you’ve never heard of them.  Be honest: how many of you actually remembered who John O’Hurley was, without having to google him? Aside from his role as J. Peterman on Seinfeld, he really hadn’t done anything else prior to DWTS – but after the show? His career blew up.  Suddenly he was being offered hosting positions, roles in musicals, voice acting opportunities – all because he did some dancing show that ended up being a hit.  Ted McGinley, another actor with a waning career, tried to do the same on season 7 – albeit unsuccessfully.  On the other hand, those with new careers might be inclined to do the show just to get some exposure…take Gilles Marini.  Most people didn’t know his name, but they sure knew his face-er, body: he was just the “hot naked guy” in the Sex in the City movie.  After a wildly successful run on DWTS, though, he was suddenly popping up everywhere – Brothers & Sisters, Nip/Tuck, Ugly Betty, Criminal Minds, you name it! Proof that if you play your cards right while on the show, the payoff will be far greater than just the money you make for doing it

 Reason #4: They’re generating publicity for their next big project.

Ok, so maybe they’re still famous, but they’ve been in the background for a bit and are getting ready for a “comeback” of sorts – maybe a new album, movie, TV show, etc.  Getting their name out there by doing DWTS is almost a sort of “primer” – it gets their names on the lips of the American public again, so that when their latest labor of love drops, it’s just that much more well-received.  Ever wonder why Macy Gray was on season 9? Well, judging from her completely apathetic attitude, I think we can all agree it wasn’t because she really wanted to learn to dance (hehe).  However, she did have a new album due to come out not long after season 9 wrapped.  Coincidence? Doubt it – sounds like some smart legwork by a savvy publicist.  Louie Vito was only months away from competing in the winter Olympics (his first appearance there) when he did DWTS…probably didn’t hurt getting his name out there early, to help separate him from the hoards of other famous snowboarders.  Even Nicole probably did DWTS to generate some hype for the upcoming PCD album (and new lineup).  Again, it’s a savvy move – with DWTS’ ratings reigning supreme, the contestants become household names, which helps generate interest when they do other projects after the show.

 Reason #5: They’ve got a score to settle.

Sometimes, it’s just all about sticking it to a former rival/family member/group member/etc…a sort of “bet I can make it farther than you can!” challenge.  Almost all of the NFL stars that have done the show have had a sort of friendly rivalry with other former players that had done the show previously…the most well-known of these probably being the Jerry Rice vs. Michael Irvin challenge, which culminated in a face-off during the season 9 finale.  Warren Sapp also sparred with ESPN commentator (and early season 2 castoff) Kenny Mayne on Sports Center.  Joey Fatone also issued a challenge to fellow NSYNC group member Lance Bass to do better than he did – considering his reputation as the “worst dancer in NSYNC”, I think Lance finishing 3^rd (to Joey’s 2^nd) was pretty admirable! And then there’s the family rivalries – Marie Osmond vs. Donny Osmond, George Hamilton vs. Ashley Hamilton, and Lisa Rinna vs. Harry Hamlin.  Nothing like a little sibling/father-son/husband-wife competition to strengthen familial bonds Aside from the friendly challenge of sticking it to a family member, there’s also the added security of getting advice from someone close who’s done the show before. 

 So what do you guys think? Know of any other motivations some of the celebs might have to do the show, besides “just for fun”?

Think about it – it would be cool. So, I got the idea from Derek Hough, who made what I think was an offhand comment in his last blog of this past season –

Next time, I’d love to see some celebrities come on the show who have dance experience — with no apologies. When people say that’s unfair, I say it should be welcome. Then it gives the dancers a chance to do some great things.

So that made me think that wouldn’t it be an interesting season if you had ONLY celebrities with past dance experience of some type – NO trained ballroom people, but people like Nicole, Erin, Evan, Sabrina, Lance, Kristi, Mya, Mel B, Melissa and so on. That would eliminate (to a degree) the bitching and moaning that goes on every season and people would have to learn to understand that past experience doesn’t mean that all the dancers will have the same degree of *talent*. Nicole, Sabrina and Mel B were all in pop groups that dance as part of the routine – were they all equal in talent? Nope.

What would happen if you put Evan, Kristi, Nicole, Erin, Sabrina, Mel B, Lance, Melissa, and Mya all in one season? Well, Kristi would still win because she’s the ringer of all ringers – huge fanbase AND talent. So, get rid of her – the point is to try to level the playing field.

So, sans Kristi, just think of the great dancing we would see! It wouldn’t be so easy to predict who was staying and who was going each week. Like Derek said, each of the pros would (hopefully) rise to new heights of creative choreography – and if they didn’t it would be glaringly obvious. Even Conrad, the head dude, said before the season got started that Derek would be under tremendous pressure. The pressure would be on ALL the pros to deliver great dances for talented people week in and week out. And no outside choreographers allowed. Also, get rid of the stupid lift rule – if your people have some experience, they can handle a lift or two. NO, I’m not talking about something like So You Think You Can Dance – still celebs, but those with the relatively limited (when compared to SYTYCD) training like those I’ve listed.

The end result, I think, would be to make the competition as much about the pros as it is about the celebs – if it isn’t already anyway. Now, instead of being mostly about fanbase and less about talent, it would be about fanbase, choreography, performance – the talent should be a given. Who can bring it the most? The only question is – would the ratings allow it? Some people actually LIKE train wrecks.

Check out the entire Dancing with the Stars Freestyle Videos Series as we cover the freestyle videos from every Season of DWTS!!

Season Six will be remembered for several things:
1) they celebrated their 100th episode at this time
2) Cristián danced through the Finals with a sore left elbow
3) the queen of all ringers (IMHO) won this season

Season 6: Cristián de la Fuente & Cheryl Burke
Song: Suavemente by Elvis Crespo
Placement: 3rd Place
Start at 2:17

Season 6: Jason Taylor & Edyta Sliwinska
Song: Miami by Will Smith
Placement: 2nd Place
Start at 1:52

Season 6: Kristi Yamaguchi & Mark Ballas
Song: Workin’ Day and Night by Michael Jackson
Placement: 1st Place

DWTS upped the number of celebrities from twelve to thirteen and added a fair number of new dances to learn: Hustle, Salsa, Jitterbug and West Coast Swing. This season also featured future co-host Brooke Burke.

Season 7: Lance Bass & Lacey Schwimmer
Song: It’s Tricky by Run D.M.C.
Placement: 3rd Place

Season 7: Warren Sapp & Kym Johnson
Song: Proud Mary by Ike & Tina Turner
Placement: 2nd Place

Season 7: Brooke Burke & Derek Hough
Song: You’re the One That I Want by John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John
Placement: 1st Place

Heidi’s been doing an amazing job as usual finding all the leaks as to who will be the cast on Dancing with the Stars 2010. I find the most recent rumor of Paula Abdul on Dancing with the Stars especially interesting.

While we wait to find out the official DWTS 2010 cast, I was thinking about what could make the show REALLY exciting. Plus, I think I was influenced by the Survivor 20: Heroes vs Villains where they’re brining back a bunch of old contestants. Similar to that, what if Dancing with the Stars did a special season called Dancing with the Stars All Stars?

Of course, the hard part of doing a Dancing with the Stars All Stars would be selecting the stars to return to the show. Here’s the list of celebrities I’d be interested in seeing back on the show (in no particular order):

Donny Osmond – Better bring the ringer back so that he can compete against all the other ringers. Then, it would be really interesting.

Mya – I’d like to see her dance with someone besides Dmitry. I might change my mind about her then.

Shawn Johnson – Maybe it would be even more fun with her if we gave her 10 years to actually grow up. However, seeing her fan base against a Donny Osmond fan base would be interesting.

Ty Murray – I know I should have Gilles here, but I’m not a huge fan. I’d rather see Ty dance again. He’s just so lovable.

Brooke Burke – Let’s partner her with someone other than Derek and see how she does. She had such a natural ability to dance. I’m pretty sure she’d look great regardless of partner.

Lance Bass – I really enjoyed the effect he had on Lacey. Lacey was more exciting with Lance as a partner. I think Lance would have a similar effect on some of our other favorite female DWTS pros.

Kristi Yamaguchi – I wonder if there are more ice skating fans or gymnastic fans. This would be interesting to find out. My bets on Kristi as cute as Shawn is.

Mel B – She was great on DWTS and I’d love to see her again. Her and Maks were great, but I think Mel B would be entertaining with almost any partner. Well, except maybe the stone faced Dmitry or Alec.

Sabrina Bryan – I’d like to see her get another shot. I bet her fans would go crazy voting for her if they had another chance.

Apolo Anton Ohno – It would be odd to see him dancing with anyone, but Julianne. In fact, a whole group of fans would likely revolt. However, Apolo would be fun to watch again on DWTS.

Emmitt Smith – Emmitt was just downright smooth. I’m not sure about how he did technically, but he definitely had a gift for making his movement look silky and smooth. It was amazing to watch.

Mario Lopez – Him and Karina were great together and it would be weird to see him with another pro. However, imagine Mario dancing with Ashly DelGrosso (who they’d have to bring back as well). That would be nice to watch.

Joey Lawrence – I loved all of the top 3 from this season. Edyta definitely made Joey look good. I think a part of me sees Joey as a skinny nerdy kid dancing with someone as beautiful as Edyta and that makes me happy.

Drew Lachey – I don’t remember many standouts from season 3, but I did see Drew on tour and he was a good dancer.

Kelly Monaco – The first season barely even counts, but Kelly was the first to win and deserves to be on a DWTS with some actual competition.

Can you imagine a season of Dancing with the Stars with even half of these dancers? You’d barely have any idea each week who was going home. Plus, the dancing would be to such an amazing level. Every dance would be a pleasure to watch. I’m sure the judges would get a little crabby and anal about little things, but we could deal with that for the chance to see these people again.

Ok, so it probably won’t happen, but it’s fun to think about a Dancing with the Stars All Stars, no? Who would you include in your All Star cast and why?

Many thanks to Kristina and Katie for their blogs about the Dizzy Feet Foundation Benefit from the other night. I’ve only put some excerpts that pertain to DWTS here – you can find Katie’s in it’s entirety at PureSYTYCD. Kristina’s can be found at her personal blog.

Kristina -

So, I found out a few days ago that Katie got tickets for the Dizzy Feet Gala (thanks Dona and Dee), and I could barely contain myself mainly because that meant we’d be seeing Derek Hough. Also, it meant that I didn’t have to go to that other concert next week because I can write my paper on this gala.

We arrived at Hollywood & Highland with about 30 minutes to spare. So we hurried on up to the Kodak Theater. They were doing the red carpet on the 1st level so we got a peek at some of the people arriving like Glee’s Matthew Morrison (Mr. Schuester), SYTYCD Judge Mary Murphy, and DWTS’ Anna Trebunskaya and Jonathan Roberts. Sadly enough I couldn’t get my camera out quick enough before the guards made us leave. So we went into the Kodak Theater, and to our seats. Our seats were REALLY good – 4th row, balcony and on the left side. It was definitely a full house at the Kodak Theater, which by the way is ridiculously beautiful.

The show started and Derek Hough and Cheryl Burke were like the second performance. I wasn’t ready for it, no camera or anything (they were really strict about cameras, btw). They were amazing! I found out later that he and Cheryl just came up with it this morning. I never realized how great of a pair those two made till tonight. They definitely do the facials to Latin dances that I love to see. Hands down, a smoking hot performance. It’s a shame that it probably lasted a minute and half, 2 minutes to top.

As for the DWTS people, aside from Cheryl and Derek’s number, Lacey Schwimmer and Lance Bass (LOVE) came out. Anna Trebunskaya and her hubby, Jonathan Roberts did a beautiful dance to Norah Jones’ “Come Away With Me”. Cheryl came back out to dance with her partner from Season 8, Gilles Marini. AND Mark Ballas did the “Rip It Up” Jive with Kristi Yamaguchi! She is so cute. It was a breath of fresh air watching them have so much fun.

Katie -

From memorable dances from the So You think You Can Dance seasons, to the all so entertaining routines from Dancing With The Stars, a collective group of people came together today to celebrate its first Dizzy Feet Foundation gala.

My friend and I were privileged enough to see the works of some brilliant choreographers tonight!! And the seats were amazing! I think you couldn’t go wrong with sitting anywhere really. The structure of the place is done so thoughtfully that wherever you were, you would have a great view!

Derek and Cheryl from DWTS danced a great Cha Cha Cha, getting the audience excited with a great opening number, and making the audience want more. Derek and Cheryl definitely seemed like they were enjoying their night; however later we found out that the dance was put together earlier this morning. I say fantastic job for a time crunch. You wouldn’t have even thought for a second otherwise.
Lacey Schwimmer and Lance Bass also graced the dance floor tonight. Being such huge fans of both Dancing With The Stars, as well as So You Think You Can Dance, we were thrilled to bits when a Travis Wall routine was picked for the night. Jason and Jeanine’s Necklace routine had the room applauding, it was an exact replica of the performance piece shown on the show only a billion times better watching it live.

Dizzy Feet Foundation is:

Dizzy Feet Foundation was founded in 2009 by producer Nigel Lythgoe, director Adam Shankman, “Dancing with the Stars” judge Carrie Ann Inaba and actress Katie Holmes to help underprivileged young people realize their dream of becoming professional dancers and to support, improve, and increase access to dance education in the Unites States.

They had a huge benefit tonight at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood. From DWTS, Mark, Derek, Cheryl, Jonathan, Anna T., Lacey, Gilles, Kristi Y., Lance Bass and Ballas Hough Band all performed, along with many people from So You Think You Can Dance. Socialite Life has quite a few pictures, a few of which I’ve posted below. Please visit their site for more pictures – I did NOT post them all here. I’ve posted LOTS of pictures of Derek and Cheryl dancing together on PureDerekHough.

Lots more pictures at the Wall Street Journal.

The Local ABC Affiliate covered the event tonight:

While waiting on the breakfast to be ready (Champagne Brunch – Yay!!), I took a stroll around twitter and found the celebs and pros have been tweeting fools. Enjoying their time off. I won’t post all their tweets, but some of them and their twit pics were fun. If you want to follow them and see what they have to say, you can find all their twitter accounts on a previous post!

Aww, Tony, so sweet. And the Ballas men – strange. Lacey and Lance at the Dizzy Feet Gala!! And Natalie Jinxes herself.

Mark has a hot cousin, ya’ll.

Joanna is talking about her new Peta Ad campaign. Jonathan cracks me up, as does Louie Vito.

Natalie – word to the wise, never talk about how good traffic is, because then it WON’T be. Derek being a good uncle, taking the kids to Miley Cyrus with Julianne and his sisters. They apparently hit a local honky tonk after – I assume someone took the children home.

For those who didn’t know, Carrieann had some sort of surgery yesterday – it appears she pulled through nicely. Apparently it was minor and related to her neck/back. I could look it up, but dudes it’s Thanksgiving and I’m stuffing myself.

Natalie tweeted two of her favorite pictures from Finale night:

Kym J. finally gets some sleep.

This is a much cleaner copy of previously posted videos uploaded to You Tube by TV Guide.

Part 1 – Injuries

Part 2 – The Pros

Part 3 – The Wardrobe

Part 4 – The Judges

Part 5 – The Stars

Part 6 – The Show

Part 7 – The Hookups