Prior to the cast announcement last season, some of you may remember me analyzing the typecasting of DWTS – basically, the patterns in celeb casting over the seasons which can help us to predict who we might see each season.  Interesting to note – last season’s cast fulfilled all 12 of my types (counting Nicole as both a “Teen Idol” and a “Singer”).  So why not examine those types again and see what we might get for this season?

The Olympian

Previous examples: Kristi Yamaguchi, Shawn Johnson, Apolo Ohno, Natalie Coughlin, Misty May-Treanor, Maurice Greene, Louie Vito, Evan Lysacek

Advantages: The winningest of the 12 types, their obvious advantage is their athleticism – you won’t see these guys struggling with strength or endurance moves.  In addition, the same tireless work ethic that helped them medal in the Olympics will likely carry them through the toils of the competition.

Disadvantages: For those specializing in sports that are less “artistic” (i.e. swimming, running, volleyball), it might be a bit hard to really get into the character of the dance and truly perform to the crowd.  Previously incurred injuries (or the fear of incurring an injury that might hinder their participation in subsequent competitions in their sport, a la Misty May-Treanor) may also slow them down & limit their mobility.

Possible candidates this season: Johnny Weir fans (including Karina Smirnoff) have been tweeting like crazy trying to get him cast this season, but I don’t see them succeeding.  I see more possibilities with swimmer Greg Louganis, who has been trying to get on the show for several seasons now, or gymnast Nastia Liukin – a teammate of Shawn Johnson’s & an alleged former flame of Lysacek.

The Athlete

Previous examples: Chuck Liddell, Warren Sapp, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin, Helio Castroneves, Laila Ali, Floyd Mayweather, Ty Murray, Evander Holyfield, Jerry Rice, Clyde Drexler, Monica Seles, Jason Taylor, Lawrence Taylor, Chad Ochocinco

Advantages: As with the Olympians, their athleticism & work ethic make them well-suited to the competition.  An edge they might have over their Olympic counterparts: sports like football, auto racing, & mixed martial arts tend to have a larger, more mainstream following than some of the Olympic sports.

Disadvantages: Again, a lack of “artistic” experience & previous injury (especially with the football players, who have really taken a beating over the years). Some of the more muscular athletes in hard-hitting sports may also have difficulty with the refined, precise moves of some of the dances.

Possible candidates this season: At this point, the numerous (reputable) news outlets reporting that Kurt Warner is going to be on season 11, along with Kurt’s own coy dodging of questions regarding his participation, make him almost a lock for this season in my eyes.   Don’t see a whole lot of hope for wrestler Shelley Martinez. Landon Donovan is a toss-up for me – maybe, maybe not. We here at Pure DWTS would love to see a representative from a more unique sport – such as jockey Chantal Sutherland.  Troy Aikmen – nice try, but we’re pretty sure you’re just joshin’ us

The Model/Playmate/Beauty Queen

Previous examples: Kelly Monaco, Rachel Hunter, Tia Carrere, Shanna Moakler, Paulina Porizkova, Shandi Finnessey, Josie Maran, Albert Reed, Shannon Elizabeth, Brooke Burke, Holly Madison, Kathy Ireland, Joanna Krupa, Pam Anderson

Advantages: All the costumes seem to look fantastic on them (and they can get away with wearing the really skimpy ones) and so do their pro partners – easy to imagine a “showmance”, which always seems to grab votes.  Also seems to have cornered the votes of the small population of male viewers, for obvious reasons

Disadvantages: Despite making a career out of looking great posing & strutting down the runway, many of them have proven to be rather awkward movers outside of that context, and some seem to have a hard time carrying around their taller than average stature.  They also run the risk of “pretty girl backlash” – the female viewers may turn on them due to jealousy or perceived arrogance, or just never vote for them in the first place, instead giving their votes to the attractive male participants.

Possible candidates this season: Rumors have been flying about UFC ring girl Arianny Celeste, and True Beauty contestant Amy Schmoldt has been hinting that she’d like to do the show.

The Legend

Previous examples: Cloris Leachman, Wayne Newton, Donny Osmond, Tatum O’Neal, Marie Osmond, Jane Seymour, Marlee Matlin, Susan Lucci

Advantages: These individuals are extremely well-known & respected in the entertainment business, with many years of experience (and fans) under their belts, as well as an award or two. Also masters of the stage & screen – perhaps the best at emulating the emotions of the dances.

Disadvantages: With many years of experience comes an older age than many of their competitors – which comes with an increased risk of injury & fatigue that could limit the difficulty of their routines.

Possible candidates this season: The Betty White rumor seems to be kaput, so that only leaves Ryan O’Neal, whose name we’ve heard only a few times as a possible contestant.

The Soap Star

Previous examples: Kelly Monaco, Cameron Mathison, Lisa Rinna, Susan Lucci, Aiden Turner

Advantages: The demographic of soap opera viewers overlaps heavily with the demographic of viewers of DWTS, and most soap opera viewers have been watching those shows for years (I started watching General Hospital when I was 6!), so they often have a fierce loyalty to their favorite characters (and the actors/actresses who portray them).

Disadvantages: This group likely has the most grueling schedule to contend with, as most soaps tape year-round, and some of them are taped in New York, forcing the stars (and sometimes their partners) to fly coast-to-coast several times a week to practice.  Many also have absolutely no background in any kind of sport, making them a real “project” for the pros to take on.

Possible candidates this season: The most likely is probably Nancy Lee Grahn, since she’s on an ABC soap.  Although I’d love to see Martha Byrne’s campaigners succeed in getting her on the show! As for the men – seems like the only name we’ve heard is Antonio Sabato Jr., and that really just seems more like wishful thinking on the part of his fans.

The Comedian

Previous examples: Penn Jillette, Jeff Ross, Adam Carolla, David Allen Grier, Ashley Hamilton, Niecy Nash

Advantages: Let’s face it, they’re fun to watch, and they definitely inject some much- needed hilarity into the show. 

Disadvantages: They often come across like they don’t take the competition seriously, instead favoring their usual schtick over actual dancing. Some of their on-show humor (Jeff Ross’ in particular) can also be rather polarizing – hilarious to some, offensive to others. And again – often no background in any sort of sport, let alone dancing.

Possible candidates this season: The only name we’ve heard is Heather McDonald, and we can’t even telling if she’s serious or kidding

Tune in for part II, when I make my predictions for who we might see in the way of reality TV stars, teen idols, and much more!

As promised, here is your third weekly installment of our continuing analysis of reused costumes on the show. While the first 2 editions dealt solely with costumes reused in season 10, this one is a mixed bag of dresses going as far back as season 5 – proof that if the folks at Randall are reeeeally having a hard time selling a costume to the public, some lucky/unlucky pro or celeb may get the privilege/punishment of having to wear it a second (or sometimes third!) time. Read and discuss!

Oh, and P.S. – we’re trying hard to do a guys’ edition of Who Wore it Better, but it’s proving to be really, really hard…so if you know of any dittos, please let us know, and please at least look up pictures or find them on youtube to ensure they are, in fact, the same costume – some of the ones that have been brought up to me are really just similar (but not identical) pieces.  ;-)

Battle of the black, silver-spangled Latin dress: Melissa’s cha-cha with Tony in season 8 vs. Kym in the ladies’ pro dance opener in season 9
Courtney: As an aside, I really didn’t care for that opening dance that the season 9 pro ladies did – it felt a little low-energy and kinda like it was just thrown together at the last minute to fill space (lord knows why). That probably explains why Kym just doesn’t look quite as “finished” in it as Melissa does – love the fedora and jewelry that really ties it together on her. Both gorgeous ladies with fabulous bodies – but I’m giving it to Melissa for having a little bit of extra “oomph”.
Heidi: Boy, this is a tough one! I do agree about the ladies pro dance – very messy, disjointed. As for the dress…not sure how I feel about the fedora on Melissa – it almost feels like overkill, what with the choker and the bracelets and the earings AND the hat. Who was the famous actress that said she always took one thing off before she left the house? This could have been done here to better effect. She needs to lose something from the head/neck area. That said, Kym is the opposite extreme – too minimalist. And really, those pro dances are the opening numbers so there’s really no excuse for it except maybe laziness.
The winner: Melissa, by a choker.

Battle of the short, red, fringed, Latin dress w/matching belt: Karina in the Michael Jackson tribute in season 9 vs. Julianne’s cha-cha with Helio in season 5
Heidi: Again, two beautiful girls who can wear just about anything. If I have to pick I have to go with Karina because of how well she can wear red. Jules wears it well too, but it looks better on Karina. Have to agree with Courtney, below, also – Jules’ hair is too severe.
Courtney: Now as adorable as Jules tends to look in pretty much anything she wears, I think I actually like this one better on Karina – it could be the lighting, but I think the red looks better against her skin than it does Julianne’s, who looks a bit more washed-out. Also prefer Karina’s loose curls to Julianne’s bump-it updo. I hate those damn things!!!
The winner: Karina, by the skin of her…skin.

Battle of multi-colored, neon-fringed Latin dress: Jewel’s would-be preseason photo shoot with Dmitry in season 8 vs. Misty’s mambo with Maks in season 7
Courtney: Ok, I’m putting it out there – this dress is cursed and should probably be burned due to bad karma. Misty donned it for a mambo; two weeks later she withdrew with a devastating Achilles’ tendon injury. Jewel wore it for her promo photo shoot; not long after she was sidelined with 2 fractured tibias and had to be replaced with Holly Madison. And really, this dress is just tacky with a capital T. I loathe neon – especially multiple shades of it on the same dress – and I particularly loathe it when it’s fringe. Blech. Nobody wins in this one!
Heidi: Have you noticed that Maks has a fondness for multicolored, bright, tacky dresses? It’s weird, because then he puts Joanna in a classy beautiful dress – which I’m going to credit to Derek since the design is done early in the week and Maks has a bad track record. But yes, this is one nasty dress and they seem to pair it with bad hair and OTT jewelery.
The winner: Do you see any winners here? I sure don’t.

Battle of the two-piece, tri-color ruffled & feathered Latin dress: Joanna’s preseason photo shoot with Derek in season 9 vs. one of the dancers in the Tiempo Libre performance in season 9 vs. Kym’s samba with Warren in season 7
Heidi: Okay, I’ve decided that I don’t like multicolored dresses. Too, too much. But like every other possible article of clothing, Joanna can pull it off. Partly confidence, partly issues with her competitors, like Courtney says below.
Courtney: Poor Kym & unidentified Tiempo Libre performer – it’s really hard to hold a candle to Joanna in, well, pretty much any costume. And I daresay she rocks what would be an otherwise rather awkward dress pretty damn well – having a fab figure and a great spray tan doesn’t hurt, either. Kym looks a little pasty in the sunset color scheme; the costume just looks kinda loose on the brunette from Tiempo Libre.
The winner: Joanna, by default.

Battle of the silver-fringed, super-sparkly, cut-out Latin dress: Mya’s preseason photo shoot with Dmitry in season 9 vs. Lil Kim’s cha-cha with Derek in season 8
Courtney: Ok, observation: the lighting in the pre-season shoots never seems to do justice to some of these dresses the way the lights of the dance floor do. This is no exception – the dress just glows on Kim, while it barely reflects any light on Mya. Plus Mya’s pose just looks awkward to me – really kinda surprised they picked that one as her best shot. The dress seems to be wearing Mya, rather than the other way around. Kim DOMINATES this dress!
Heidi: Kim dominates everything. It’s all about confidence and attitude and Kim has plenty of both!! Both dresses were used early on too, so that’s not a reason. It’s weird too, because Mya was a trained dancer – I would expect a more confident stance from her even that early.
The winner: Kim by a ‘tude.

Battle of the blue-fringed & stoned Latin dress: Shawn’s samba with Mark in season 8 vs. Natalie’s preseason photo shoot in season 9
Heidi: Not a fan of this dress, really. I think it looks better on Shawn but only because she’s moving. Hate her hair and think they went overboard on the make up though. Natalie is fine in it and she has a beautiful smile. But I have to give it up to Shawn.
Courtney: Another instance where photo shoot lighting doesn’t do a girl any favors, and neither does standing still – this dress doesn’t look nearly as impressive on Natalie as it does on Shawn. I wouldn’t say it necessarily looks BAD on her, but it’s just kinda…blah.
The winner: Shawn, for not being a statue.

Battle of the long, dark blue, corseted paso dress: Brooke, Kym, & Cheryl in the team paso doble in season 7 vs. Kelly’s preseason photo shoot with Louis in season 9
Courtney: 4 very different ladies, one dress. Poor Cheryl – everything costume they made her wear in season 7 just seemed to look mediocre, and unfortunately this is no exception. I think what bothers me about Brooke wearing it is her expression – it’s supposed to be aggressive, but to me it looks more confused…so she’s out, too. Kym looks decent in it, but I really love Kelly in this one – the dramatic feel of the dress seems to suit her personality well, and looks good with her coloring.
Heidi: Love, love, LOVE this dress. It’s probably one of my favorites ever on the show. Love the color, love the corset, love the flowy skirt. Love. As for who wears it best? Well, not Cheryl, for reasons stated. She doesn’t look horrible in it, she just doesn’t hold up as well as her competitors. The thing I remember about this dress is Kym’s fierce face during the dance with Warren, and how beautifully they all pulled this dance off. I think the dress brought out the right attitude in all the women. Kelly? Yeah, I love it on her too. If I have to pick a winner, I’ll go with a tie between Brooke and Kym, mainly because of my fond memories of that dress.
The winner: Kelly, because Heidi can’t pick just one.

UPDATE: ABC has announced the official Dancing with the Stars Season 8 Cast.

The rumors are really swirling about which stars are going to be on the Dancing with the Stars 2009 cast. ABC has announced that the latest cast on Dancing with the Stars will be unveiled on Sunday Feburary 8th during the primetime shows on ABC. It will also be shown online (per the website). They’re calling it the Dancing with the Stars All Night name drop.

Until Sunday, we might as well talk about all the rumors that are going around. Here’s a look at the various names that I’ve seen mentioned across the internet.

Heidi Klum, model and actress

Steve-O, former Jackass star

Stevie Wonder, singer

Read more…

I recently saw a rumor that Misty May-Treanor would be returning to be a member of the Dancing with the Stars Season 8 cast. Dancing with the Stars fans will certainly remember that Misty May-Treanor had to leave season 7 of Dancing with the Stars due to injury.

How fun would it be for Misty to be able to go back on the show and see how well she’d do. It did feel kind of wrong for her to have to quit because of injury. I personally would like to see Misty’s partner on the show Kerri Walsh. Unfortunately, I found this quote from Kerri talking about Misty’s experience on Dancing with the Stars and whether we’ll get to enjoy Kerri Walsh on Dancing with the Stars also.

“She had so much fun. She only made it two episodes in before she got hurt, and Misty was doing very well prior to this. She was one of the ringers, and she was doing a great job. Her main motivation is to get healthy and go back out there and dance.”

Has Walsh ever thought about being on the show?

“Absolutely not,” Walsh laughed. “Misty’s the brave one. She’s such a ham. She grew up dancing, and she puts herself out there. I’m a little more reserved than that.”

That’s too bad. I’d love to see Kerri Walsh on the show. Why not have a couples Dancing with the Stars and bring on celebrity couples to compete against each other?

Also, rumors that Cindy McCain was going to be on Dancing with the Stars have been reported as not true. Wouldn’t that have been interesting. Ok, not really. I’ve seen enough of McCain to last a lifetime.

The following video by E! News Weekend is a good report on both Misty May’s Injury and Helio Castroneves’s tax evasion legal problems.

We know now that Misty May tore her Achilles. OUCH!!

I don’t know what to think about Helio, but we’ll just let it play out in the courts before we decide any sort of verdict.

UPDATE: All of the music from Dancing with the Stars will be posted as soon as possible at that link.

It was a sad day for true Dancing with the Stars fans, because Misty May is injured and no longer on the show. Still a ton of great competitors and we have no clue who is really going to win this year. However, I would have liked to see Misty May finish developing herself on the show. I felt like she never broke out in her dancing.

Ok, Misty May aside, here’s the list of all the Dancing with the Stars music from tonight’s episode of DWTS.

Susan & Tony danced a Jive to the song Why Do Fools Fall in Love sung by Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers

Lance & Lacey danced a Viennese Waltz to the song Let Me Leave sung by Marc Broussard

Maurice & Cheryl danced a Jive to the song Rock Around the Clock sung by Bill Haley & His Comets

Rocco & Karina danced a Viennese Waltz to the song What’s New Pussycat? sung by Tom Jones

Warren & Kym danced a Viennese Waltz to the song Lovin’ U sung by Alicia Keys

Cody & Julianne danced a Jive to the song Call Me The Breeze sung by Lynyrd Skynyrd

Toni & Alec danced a Viennese Waltz to the song Für Elise sung by Ludwig van Beethoven

Cloris & Corky danced a Jive to the song The Girl Can’t Help It sung by Little Richard

Brooke & Derek danced a Viennese Waltz to the song Daughters sung by John Mayer

– Original Music Video
Check out all the previous songs from Dancing with the Stars.

UPDATE: Misty May-Treanor’s reps have released a statement to ET about the Olympic gold-winner’s injury that could affect her stint on “Dancing with the Stars.” Misty’s reps tell us she “sustained an injury on Friday and received immediate medical attention. Despite previous reports, she did not break her ankle. She is resting comfortably at home. Doctors will reevaluate her condition on Monday and determine the outcome of her participation on the show. Source

A number of sources are reporting that Misty May broke her ankle while practicing for Dancing with the Stars. This is really an unfortunate loss. I don’t think Misty May had become nearly what she could have become on the show. She never fully came out of her shell.

Rumors are saying that Keri Walsh (Misty’s volleyball partner) will take her place in the competition with Maks. Something about that idea just doesn’t feel right. I think it would be cool if Keri came for just one dance or something, but to have her replace her entirely isn’t fair to Keri or to the other dancers who have already been sent home.

Check out Jessica Simpson on Dancing with the Stars. She’s gone country…ok enough of that. The Judges Choice was by far the most memorable dance from last night. I think the black pleather and Kym’s ability to lean back like the Matrix makes the Matrix dance the best.

Tonight was an awesome night on Dancing with the Stars. I think it was the fact that it was Rhumba and Paso Doble night on Dancing with the Stars. Very sexy and very beautiful. I’ve already posted the Dancing with the Stars music for your reference.

**Click on the arrows on the sides to skip to the next dance

Which dancers or routines are your favorite?

Check out the Dancing with the Stars music from tonight’s episode that contains some great Rumba music and Paso Doble music. Check out all the previous dancing with the stars music here.

Toni & Alec danced the Rumba to the DWTS song I Can’t Make You Love Me sung by Bonnie Raitt

Brooke & Derek danced the Paso Doble to the DWTS song Palladio, first movement sung by Karl Jenkins

Rocco & Karina danced the Rumba to the DWTS song You’ll Never Find Another Love Like Mine sung by Lou Rawls

Lance & Lacey danced the Paso Doble to the DWTS song I Kissed a Girl sung by Katy Perry

– Original Music Video
Kim & Mark danced the Rumba to the DWTS song You Give Me Something sung by James Morrison

– Original Music Video
Misty & Maksim danced the Paso Doble to the DWTS song Take Me Out sung by Franz Ferdinand

– Original Music Video
Maurice & Cheryl danced the Rumba to the DWTS song Mercy, Mercy Me sung by Marvin Gaye

Cloris & Corky danced the Paso Doble to the DWTS song Bolero sung by Ravel

Susan & Tony danced the Rumba to the DWTS song Waiting on the World to Change sung by John Mayer

– Original Music Video
Warren & Kym danced the Paso Doble to the DWTS song Malagueña sung by Ernesto Lecuona

Cody & Julianne danced the Rumba to the DWTS song Bleeding Love sung by Leona Lewis

– Original Music Video