Trav's Thoughts

We're live from Hollywood on Monday!!!

I am so ready for this season!  Here's a recap of our celebrities and their pro partners, with a 12th pair recently revealed.

Tune in Monday gang!

Aly Raisman is a 3-time gold medal winning Olympic gymnast.  She was the captain of the US team during the 2012 London Olympics and has 19 international medals in her career.  She will dance with 2-time champion Mark Ballas.  This is his 12th season.   He has previously been paired with Sabrina Bryan (Season 5), Kristi Yamaguchi with whom he won Season 6, Kim Kardashian (Season 7), Shawn Johnson with whom he won Season 8, Melissa Joan Hart (Season 9), Shannen Doherty (Season 10), Bristol Palin (Season 11), Chelsea Kane (Season 12), Kristin Cavallari (Season 13), Katherine Jenkins with whom he finished 2nd in Season 14, and Bristol Palin during All Star Season 15.

Andy Dick is a comedian, actor, writer, director, musician, and producer.  He is probably best known for his roll in the show News Radio which aired from 1995 through 2006 on NBC.  He will dance with Sharna Burgess.  This is her 1st season as a pro partner after 3 seasons with the Dance Troupe.  Sharna is a former Australian national Standard and Latin ballroom champion, and danced in the closing ceremonies of the Summer Olympics in Australia.  She also earned a role as a choreographer for the movie Street Dance 2.


DL Hughley is a comedian and actor.  He produced his own show, called The Hughleys and was a featured performer in the film The Original Kings of Comedy.  He will dance with 2-time champion Cheryl Burke.  This is her 15th season. She has previously been paired with Drew Lachey with whom she won Season 2, Emmitt Smith with whom she won Season 3, Ian Ziering (Season 4), Wayne Newton (Season 5), Cristian de la Fuente (Season 6), Maurice Green (Season 7), Gilles Marini with whom she finished 2nd in Season 8, Tom DeLay (Season 9), Chad Johnson (Season 10), Rick Fox (Season 11), Chris Jericho (Season 12, Rob Kardashian with whom she finished 2nd in Season 13, William Levy (Season 14), and Emmitt Smith during All Star Season 15.

Dorothy Hamill is a gold medal winning Olympic and World Champion figure skater.  She has toured with the Ice Capades, plus has starred in numerous touring companies.  She is a member of both the Olympic and Figure Skating Halls of Fame.  She will dance with Tristan MacManus.  This is his 4th season as a partner after earning his stripes as a member of the Dance Troupe.  He has previously been paired with Nancy Grace (Season 13), Gladys Knight (Season 14), and Pamela Anderson during All Star Season 15.

Ingo Rademacher is an actor, starring since 1996 as Jasper Jacks on General Hospital airing daily on ABC.  He has also been a champion skier and equestrian, as well as competing in beach volleyball and triathlons.  He will dance with 2-time champion Kym Johnson.  This is her 13th season. Kym has previously been paired with Jerry Springer (Season 3), Joey Fatone with whom she finished 2nd in Season 4, Mark Cuban (Season 5), Penn Jillette (Season 6), Warren Sapp with whom she finished 2nd in Season 7, David Alan Grier (Season 8), Donny Osmond with whom she won Season 9, David Hasselhoff (Season 11), Hines Ward with whom she won Season 12, David Arquette (Season 13), Jaleel White (Season 14), and Joey Fatone during All Star Season 15.

Jacoby Jones is a wide receiver for the Baltimore Ravens.  It pains me to remember this, but he led off the second half of the 2013 Super Bowl with a 108 yard kick off return against my 49ers.  He will dance with former champion Karina Smirnoff.  This is her 13th season. She has previously been paired with Mario Lopez with whom she finished 2nd in Season 3, Billy Ray Cyrus (Season 4), Floyd Mayweather (Season 5), Mario (Season 6), Rocco DiSpirito (Season 7), Steve Wozniak (Season 8), Aaron Carter (Season 9), Mike Sorrentino (Season 11), Ralph Macchio (Season 12), JR Martinez with whom she won Season 13, Gavin DeGraw (Season 14), and Apolo Anton Ohno during All Star Season 15.

Kellie Pickler is a singer and songwriter.  She used a Top 10 finish on American Idol in 2006 as a spring board to a successful career as a country music artist.  She will dance with 3-time champion Derek Hough.  This is his 10th season. He has previously been paired with Jennie Garth (Season 5), Shannon Elizabeth (Season 6), Brooke Burke with whom he won Season 7, Lil Kim (Season 8), Joanna Krupa (Season 9), Nicole Scherzinger with whom he won Season 10, Jennifer Gray with whom he won Season 11, Ricki Lake (Season 13), Maria Menounos (Season 14), and Shawn Johnson during All Star Season 15.

Lisa Vanderpump is a restaurateur, designer, author, philanthropist, producer, and TV personality.  She has been seen on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, and on her own reality show Vanderpump Rules which follows her restaurant business.  She also wrote a best selling book called Simply Divine: A Guide to Easy, Elegant and Affordable Entertaining.  She will dance with Gleb Savchenko.  This is his 1st season as a pro partner.  He has a background in athletics as well as dance.  He graduated from the Russian Theatre Arts University and has been a Latin ballroom champion.

Sean Lowe is Bachelor #17 in ABC's long running reality series.  He is a businessman and entrepreneur in Dallas TX, and played linebacker on a full scholarship at Kansas State University.  He will dance with former champion Peta Murgatroyd.  This is Peta's 4th Season after earning her stripes as a member of the Dance Troupe and winning the opportunity. She has previously been paired with Ron Artest (Season 13), Donald Driver with whom she won Season 14, and Gilles Marini during All Star Season 15.

Victor Ortiz is a former welterweight champion boxer.  He has a career record of 29-4 with 2 draws, with 22 wins by knockout.  He will dance with Lindsay Arnold.  This is her 1st season as a pro partner.  She follows a very successful string of graduates from So You Think You Can Dance to DWTS.  She was a Top 10 finalist on SYTYCD last summer.  She has been a youth and junior Latin ballroom champion, and is part of the Utah connection that includes Julianne and Derek Hough, as well as Mark Ballas.

Wynonna Judd is a 5-time Grammy winning singer and songwriter, as well as a best selling author.  She has been in the music business for over 29 years, both as a solo artist and in partnership with her mother as part of The Judds.  She will dance with defending champion Tony Dovolani.  This is his 15th season. Tony has previously been paired with Stacy Keibler (Season 2), Sara Evans (Season 3), Leeza Gibbons (Season 4), Jane Seymour (Season 5), Marissa Jaret Winokur (Season 6), Susan Lucci (Season 7), Melissa Rycroft (Season 8), Kathy Ireland (Season 9), Kate Gosselin (Season 10), Audrina Partridge (Season 11), Wendy Williams (Season 12), Chynna Phillips (Season 13), Marina Navratilova (Season 14), and Melissa Rycroft with whom he won All Star Season 15.

Zendaya Coleman is an actor and singer who got her start in the Disney stable of young performers.  She attended the California School of the Arts and also was a member of the California Shakespeare Theatre.  As a singer, she has performed around the world.  She will dance with Val Chmerkovskiy.  This is Val's 4th season. He has previously been paired with Elisabetta Canalis (Season 13), Sherri Shepherd (Season 14), and Kelly Monaco during All Star Season 15.

There they are!  Check it out Monday evening, then come on back here on Tuesday for my review of performances and then on Wednesday for encores and results.

Later gang!