Season 8 DWTS - Week 1

Dancing with the Stars already had to replace two celebrity dancers before the season even began! There have been injuries the last couple of years, but this is new. Singer Jewel suffered injuries to her legs and had to quit, spoiling the first husband-wife competition. Jewel's husband, former rodeo star Ty Murray, will continue in the competition. Access Hollywood co-anchor Nancy O'Dell announced she had to leave because of an injury and will have knee surgery. Both were in the audience. Jewel said she'd be back to sing for her husband since she couldn't dance. I hoped that Misty May-Treanor might be back. Maybe she will sometime.

No elimination until next week when both scores will determine who goes. So here they are except Jewel and Nancy are still in this picture and Lil' Kim isn't.


Lil' Kim

Claim to fame: Grammy Award-winning rapper

Partner: Derek Hough

Dance: Cha-cha-cha

Score: 7/7/7 = 21

She said she watched DWTS for the first time in prison and didn't miss a week. She dedicated her first dance to all her girls in the Federal Detention Center. Good to get that right out there, I guess! They danced a cha-cha-cha. Her legs are stiff, but I think she did well and had some good moves. The judges all said she has potential.

Belinda Carlisle

Claim to fame: Former lead singer for the Go-Go's who now has a solo career and recently became a spokeswoman for the weight-loss program NutriSystem.

Partner: Jonathan Roberts

Dance: Waltz

Score: 6/6/5 = 17

Jonathan is one of the best teachers on here and brings out the best in his partners. Jim is a HUGE fan of Belinda's and of DWTS, so here he has both at once. For his sake, I hope she does well. She worried me in rehearsal and reminded me too much of Priscilla Presley when she danced except Belinda's face moves and has expression. Bruno compared her heavy dancing to Cloris Leachman - oops! The others said she was elegant and needs to relax.

Lawrence Taylor

Claim to fame: Former NFL linebacker

Partner: Edyta Sliwinska

Dance: Cha-cha

Score: 6/5/5 = 16

Other former NFL players Jerry Rice, Emmitt Smith, Jason Taylor, Warren Sapp have been great, but L.T. is older and he probably punished his body more than any of them. He made a huge comeback after battling drug and alcohol addictions, and there are a lot of football fans in the world. He doesn't have Warren's and Emmitt's moves and isn't light on his feet like they are. He's sort of clunky. Maybe Edyta can loosen him up because he said he was scared to death he'd make a fool of himself. The judges want him to perform.

Steve-O

Claim to fame: Actor from Jackass and Wildboyz.

Partner: Lacey Schwimmer

Dance: Waltz

Score: 6/5/6 = 17

Apparently DWTS is part of his rehab. It might be a good match of personalities in some ways since Lacey thinks of herself as a rebel. Well, he tried and took a chance. He has such a goofy look on his face all the time, but that's just him. His partner in crime Johnny Knoxville was in the audience cheering him on. The judges said he was better than they expected him to be. Quote from him: "I wanted to put my foot in the waltz's butt." OK.

Gilles Marini

Claim to fame: Actor, best known for playing Dante in Sex and the City: The Movie. He was the hot, naked guy in the shower next door to Samantha.

Partner: Cheryl Burke (has won twice already)

Dance: Cha-cha-cha

Score: 8/8/8 = 24

Oh wow! Sexy, hot, and oh yes!!! I think he can dance pretty well, too. I just love Cheryl and am glad to see them dancing together. She looks great as usual. Oh, I hope he stays on the whole time!!!!! The judges liked him, too. I know who I'll be voting for!


Chuck Wicks

Claim to fame: After appearing on the short-lived reality show Nashville, Wicks went on to get a recording contract and release an album, Starting Now.

Partner: Julianne Hough She has a knack for making everyone look good and a few look great. I thought she wasn't going to be on again and am glad she is.

Dance: Waltz

Score: 6/7/7 = 20

Hmmm, they're a couple! How about that? Guess that's why she's on again. Julianne is a gifted choreographer, and he didn't want to disappoint her. They look really good together, and he danced a little stiffly but did well. She was proud of him. Oh yes, stickler Carrie Ann noticed a slight lift when her foot came off the floor.

Holly Madison

Claim to Fame: Playboy Playmate and starred in The Girls Next Door.

Partner: Dmitry Chaplin was on So You Think You Can Dance

Dance: Cha-cha-cha

Score: 6/6/6 = 18

She had only a week to prepare and was nervous about having to wing it. Who wouldn't be! It's brave of her to jump in and try it. Dmitry said he felt as if he were cheating on Jewel with another partner. She did better than many who have been on the show. Some of what she did looked like walking, but with such a short time to prepare, she did pretty well. I wish Jewel could have stayed. The judges said it wasn't that good but had potential.

Ty Murray

Claim to fame: Former rodeo cowboy

Partner: Chelsie Hightower, a newbie whose expertise is in Latin dance and was on So You Think You Can Dance.

Dance: Cha-cha-cha

Score: 5/4/5 = 14

Let's hope Ty Murray will forever erase the images we have of Billy Ray Cyrus clunking around the dance floor in his cowboy boots. He said he was approaching it like he does bull riding by not knowing what to expect and being ready for anything. Hey! He did OK! Good sport and sort of clunky but not as bad as Billy Ray. The judges weren't thrilled. Ooo, Len gave him a 4!

Shawn Johnson

Claim to fame: Olympic gold medalist in gymnastics

Partner: Mark Ballas

Dance: Waltz

Score: 8/8/7 = 23

The Olympians usually do very well. At 17, she's the youngest competitor they've had on the show. I thought Cody was younger (16) last season but maybe not. How old was he? 18? Shawn is upholding the tradition and was graceful and elegant. The judges were pleased. She'll probably make it to the finals.

Steve Wozniak

Claim to fame: Apple co-founder and philanthropist

Partner: Karina Smirnoff, known for her the drama she creates on the dance floor and off; and for her rumored romances with two previous partners, both named Mario. Now she's engaged to Maks.

Dance: Cha-cha-cha

Score: 5/4/4 = 13

The Woz is a squillionaire geek and 58. He's the oldest and most out-of-shape but had some moves and went for it. Great sport who had fun! Bruno said he was like watching a Telletubbie going mad at a gay pride parade. Whatever, Bruno! I thought he had a great attitude and did better than many have on there. From what I've read, he's an extremely nice guy. I never understood what he saw in Kathy Griffin who seems to be his antithesis. He should be with my friend Tina.

David Alan Grier

Claim to fame: Actor and comedian who made his mark in In Living Color, current host of Chocolate News on Comedy Central. I've never watched that.

Partner: Kym Johnson

Dance: Waltz

Score: 6/7/6 = 19

Kym didn't know how to react to him when they first met and just glared at him. He thinks it's because she doesn't know he's a comedian. Aha! He did well and danced smoothly and gracefully and didn't follow the tradition of comedians who have bombed out. Well done! The judges had compliments and gave him pointers. Compared with others tonight, I thought he did better than those 6's.

Denise Richards

Claim to fame: Actress, bimbo ex-wife of male bimbo Charlie Sheen, and star of her own reality show, Denise Richards: It's Complicated, which is an ironic title since she is anything but!

Partner: Bad boy and hottie Maksim Chmerkovskiy

Dance: Cha-cha-cha

Score: 6/6/6 = 18

Maks got irritated with her during rehearsal. She kept saying, "Sorry" and he told her to quit apologizing and learn how to do the steps. She cried. He doesn't seem to like her very much, which makes me like him more. Denice said she likes the bad boys, so I guess she thought she'd steal this one away, too. Karina will cut a bitch, I told you that! She was stiff and awkward. Oh please! The judges gave her higher scores than she deserved because she is blonde and pretty in a vacuous kind of way. If we can judge anything by her dancing, I'll bet she's one of those women who thinks just lying there in all her superficial beauty is reward enough while her grateful partner does all the work. So I'll go on and say that she was a dead dance.

Melissa Rycroft

Claim to Fame: Rejected fiancee on The Bachelor and Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader. I don't watch The Bachelor because I have some taste and a few standards. Why would anyone think a man who drags his child on a show like that and then makes out with all those women on national TV would be a good catch? From what I saw about him on The View, he seems like a sleazeball.

Partner: Tony Dovolani

Dance: Waltz

Score: 8/7/8 = 23

She's had 48 hours to prepare for her performance! She's dancing smoothly and gracefully. The judges said they could tell she'd studied ballet. They gave her pointers and compliments. There were several references to the sleazeball bachelor. Tony said he took all the ballet moves he could use and put a waltz around them. She will go farther than many.

Not a strong field the way some seasons have been. Yes, it's the first week, so we'll have to see who improves and what they do next week. I think we can predict some who will leave early and some who will probably stick around. What did you think? Who will be the first to go? Who will