Trav's Thoughts

It's live from Hollywood!



OK...so it's not really live from Hollywood. Not yet anyway. But it will be in just a little over a month!

So it gives me great pleasure to introduce the Season 9 celebrities. Here they are in no particular order, as Tom and Sam would say. I took the photos from the Good Morning America announcement.

Yes indeed...you did count 16. There will be several scheduled double eliminations this season. Oooooo skeery!

The pro partners will be announced on 24 August. Of course I'll post about it.

I can report that Pam squeeeeed in my ear when Donny Osmond was confirmed as a participant. She said that I got Marie and now she gets Donny. Figure the Osmond juggernaut to bring the fans big time. And Pam says you can blame her all you want, but if Donny can dance she's voting Purple!

At first glance, I'd say it's a wide open field. It's just impossible to know how well anyone is going to adapt to the dancing. We can suppose that athletes understand how to train and that entertainers know how to perform. But even the most seasoned get nervous once the lights go up and they sashay out onto the ballroom for that first dance. The early eliminations almost always come down to fanbase, but even then you can really never guess how the viewers are going to vote.

Sometimes the ones you think should be able to really dance, can't really.

Of the eight champions so far, five have been professional athletes. The other three have been two actors and a singer/entertainer. And in each season, a case could be made that any of the top four might have been the better dancer. And in some seasons, a case could be made that the fans voted through a "lesser" dancer based more on personality than ability. And in a couple of cases, a "better" dancer went out seemingly way too early.

If you've never watched the show, be prepared for it and vote for your favorite. And if you have watched, you know what can happen so vote for your favorite! And if you get easily annoyed when the voters "get it wrong", don't watch!

Here are the past celebrity participants with their partners, in the order they finished.

Season 1 - Champion Kelly Monaco with Alec Mazo; John O'Hurley with Charlotte Jorgensen; Joey McIntyre with Ashly DelGrosso; Rachel Hunter with Jonathan Roberts; Evander Holyfield with Edyta Sliwinska; Trista Rehn Sutter with Louis van Amstel

Season 2 - Champion Drew Lachey with Cheryl Burke; Jerry Rice with Anna Trebunskaya; Stacy Kiebler with Tony Dovolani; Lisa Rinna with Louis van Amstel; George Hamilton with Edyta Sliwinska; Tia Carrere with Maks Chmerkovskiy; Master P with Ashly DelGrosso; Giselle Fernandez with Jonathan Roberts; Tatum O'Neal with Nick Kosovich; Kenny Mayne with Andrea Hale

Season 3 - Champion Emmitt Smith with Cheryl Burke; Mario Lopez with Karina Smirnoff; Joey Lawrence with Edyta Sliwinska; place Monique Coleman with Louis van Amstel; Jerry Sprinter with Kym Johnson; Sara Evans with Tony Dovolani; Willa Ford with Maks Chmerkobskiy; Vivica Fox with Nick Kosovich; Harry Hamlin with Ashly DelGrosso; Shanna Moakler with Jesse DeSoto; Tucker Carlson with Elena Grinenko

Season 4 - Champion Apolo Anton Ohno with Julianne Hough; Joey Fatone with Kym Johnson; Laila Ali with Maks Chmerkovskiy; Ian Ziering with Cheryl Burke; Billy Ray Cyrus with Karina Smirnoff; John Ratzenberger with Edyta Sliwinska; Heather Mills with Jonathan Roberts; Clyde Drexler with Elena Grinenko; Leeza Gibbons with Tony Dovolani; Shandi Finnessey with Brian Fortuna; Paulina Porizkova with Alec Mazo

Season 5 - Champion Helio Castroneves with Julianne Hough; Mel B with Maks Chmerkovskiy; Marie Osmond with Jonathan Roberts; Jennie Garth with Derek Hough; Cameron Mathison with Edyta Sliwinska; Jane Seymour with Tony Dovolani; Sabrina Bryan with Mark Ballas; Mark Cuban with Kym Johnson; Floyd Mayweather Jr with Karina Smirnoff; Wayne Newton with Cheryl Burke; Albert Reed with Anna Trebunskaya; Josie Maran with Alec Mazo

Season 6 - Champion Kristi Yamaguchi with Mark Ballas; Jason Taylor with Edyta Sliwinska; Chrstian de la Fuente with Cheryl Burke; Marissa Jaret Winokur with Tony Dovolani; Mario with Karina Smirnoff; Shannon Elizabeth with Derek Hough; Marlee Matlin with Fabian Sanchez; Priscilla Presley with Louis van Amstel; Adam Carolla with Julianne Hough; Steve Guttenberg with Anna Trebusnkaya; Monica Seles with Jonathan Roberts and Penn Jillette with Kym Johnson

Season 7 - Champion Brooke Burke with Derek Hough; Warren Sapp with Kym Johnson; Lance Bass with Lacey Schwimmer; Cody Linley with Julianne Hough; Maurice Greene with Cheryl Burke; Susan Lucci with Tony Dovolani; Cloris Leachman with Corky Ballas; Toni Braxton with Alec Mazo; Rocco DiSpirito with Karina Smirnoff; Misty May-Treanor with Maks Chmerkovskiy; Kim Kardashian with Mark Ballas; Ted McGinley with Inna Brayer; Jeffrey Ross with Edyta Sliwinska

Season 8 - Champion Shawn Johnson with Mark Ballas; Gilles Marini with Cheryl Burke; Melissa Rycroft with Tony Dovolani; Ty Murray with Chelsie Hightower; Lil Kim with Derek hough; Chuck Wicks with Julianne Hough; Lawrence Taylor with Edyta Sliwinska; Steve-O with Lacey Schwimmer; David Alan Grier with Kym Johnson; Steve Wozniak with Karina Smirnoff and Holly Madison with Dmitry Chaplin; Denise Richards with Maks Chmerkovskiy; Belinda Carlisle with Jonathan Roberts

What? I could, so I did!

Look for the premier on 21 September!