[Photo: Newscom]

You probably know Maksim Chmerkovskiy as one of the hunky male pro dancers on Dancing With the Stars. That’s right, he’s the lucky guy who’s also engaged to beautiful DWTS pro dancer Karina Smirnoff. Well, during the summer break from the show, he’s landed another TV gig on ABC.

Maks is competing as one of 8 celebrities that will be competing in a number of different sports in the new reality series called The Superstars. He’s paired with freestyle skier Kristi Leskinen for the new reality show. Here’s what he has to say about it:

“It’s an opportunity to do something outside of the dancing realm and to do something and not be judged,” Chmerkovskiy told TVGuide.com. “Nobody can say [in Italian accent], ‘That was not very good!’ There’s no voting, there’s no Bruno, there’s no Len.”

“We’ve done everything, including archery, bowling, running, kayaking. … We’re doing crazy stuff; we go crazy,” he added.

Maks & Karina will both also be appearing on Broadway on July 25th in Burn the Floor.

“We’re doing a limited engagement. It’s a ballroom dance show, so it’s exactly what we’ve been doing all our lives,” he said. “I’ve always dreamed of being on Broadway. It also doesn’t require me to learn a new trade. I can’t sing, you know.”

Two of the professional dancers from Dancing With the Stars have been named among the Sexiest Stars on TV this year by TV Guide. You probably already know who they are, it’s engaged couple Karina Smirnoff and Maksim Chmerkovskiy. Not only that, but hunky celeb dancer from season 6, Christián de la Fuente was also named to the list. I couldn’t agree more with their choices!

Here’s a great little clip for us all to drool over. It’s a behind the scenes look at the TV Guide photo shoots and some words from the Sexiest Stars on TV, including our three dancers. They are among very good company too. My own personal TV crush, Simon Baker is on the list along with a ton of other male and female hotties. So, sit back, relax and hit the play button. Enjoy!

[Photos: newscom.com]

What a night of performances this was! Tonight’s Dancing With the Stars gave us three couples tied for first place and perhaps a new lowest score ever…I’m not sure about that, but it’s got to be close. The injuries are continuing to haunt the Steves. Steve-O not only had a tough time with a painful back, but he also twisted his ankle at the end of the routine. Steve Wozniak still has the fractured foot, but now also has a pulled groin muscle to go with it.

There were also a couple of fantastic quotes this week too. Len told Lil Kim that she has a “Bionic Booty” and Steve Woznick did what was referred to as a “Demented Worm”.

There were some really high higs and some very low lows in the performances. Each week, it’s becoming more apparent who is going to make it to the end this season. Unless something horrible and unforeseen happens, it’s going to be one heck of a season toward the end…

Here are my reviews of the dance performances this week:

[Photos: newscom.com]

Tonight on Dancing With the Stars, we found out that yet another one of the celebs has injured himself. Steve-O had to go to the hospital, so poor Lacey Schwimmer had to walk down the big stairs alone. That means five injuries so far this season and this was only the second episode! We found out over the weekend that Steve Wozniak injured his foot, and Gille Marini dislocated his shoulder. I’ll write a bit about injuries and difficulty in ballroom dancing later this week, but right now I just want to emphasize how dancing is much more dangerous and difficult than it looks.

Here is my review of the dances on tonight’s show:

They saved the best three dances for last and the way it looks right now, they are the three that we may see go all the way. The others had better step it up. And tomorrow night on the elimination show, we’ll get to see the bottom two pairs do a dance-off. It’s a brand-new feature this season and it should be interesting to see how it affects the results.

[Photos: newscom.com]

Tonight’s season premiere of Dancing With the Stars was full of surprises. For example, a couple of people were better than I imagined them to be and a couple of them were worse. Sadly, Jewel & Nancy O’Dell were officially out of the season due to their injuries. But we were introduced to two last-minute replacements.

The first replacement dancer was Holly Madison. I guess she has a lot more time on her hands now that she and Criss Angel have broken up. But if she doesn’t improve her dancing pretty quick, she may be free to do whatever she wants again soon.

The other surprise replacement was the jilted Bachelor’s choice, Melissa Rycroft. She took the dance floor and showed that in only two days she is a better ballroom dancer than several of the others. I think she may be around for a while. She’s a very pleasant surpise!

As for all of tonight’s dances, here’s my review and the judges’ scores:

		Judges’ Scores
Style	Review	Inaba	Goodman	Tonioli	Total
Cha-Cha	Lil Kim & Derek Hough - It was a fair performance, but it’s a very different thin g to do hip-hop and ballroom, but I think Lil Kim has potential to improve. She’s got the basics. And it’ll be fun to see her progress.	7	7	7	21
Waltz	Belinda Carlisle & Jonathan Roberts - A good first dance, but she’s still a little stiff and flat on her feet. She did show that she has potential to be much better and it will be fin to watch her improve each week.	6	6	5	17
Cha-Cha	Lawrence Taylor & Edyta Slawinska - For a first time dancer, Lawrence is pretty good, but lacks confidence. He’s a man that can already move his hips and he has a couple of moves, he just needs to get more confident with the dance steps. I think he’s going to get much better as he goes along.	6	5	5	16
Waltz	Steve-O & Lacey Schwimmer - He was actually much better than I had expected. He was serious about the dance and not horsing around. I had expected him to be absolutely horrible, but he was not so much. I think he may actually get better!	6	5	6	17
Cha-Cha	Gilles Marini & Cheryl Burke - All I can say is that I loved watching him…and he wasn’t bad at the dancing either. He performed the best male dance so far by a long shot!!! I think he may go very far this season!	8	8	8	24
Waltz	Chuck Wicks & Julianne Hough - He’s pretty good too! I think Julianne has a way with teaching him to dance. I think he’s got real potential and will definitely get better.	6	7	7	20
Cha-Cha	Holly Madison & Dmitri Chaplain - It was clear that she only had a week to practice. Dmitri did his best, but she really needs a lot more work. She was very stiff and hesitant. It will be interesting to see how she improves.	6	6	6	18
Cha-Cha	Ty Murray & Chelsea Hightower - He seemed like a fish out of water and very uncomfortable. But I have to give him props for effort. I like him and hope he stays around to get better. And Chelsea was terrific!	5	4	5	14
Waltz	Shawn Johnson & Mark Ballas - Oh, my goodness! We have a contender! She was graceful and her movements were perfect, even though she is such a beginner. She looks like she’s been at it a while. I think she’ll be around for a while this season.	8	8	7	23
Cha-Cha	Steve Wozniak & Karina Smirnoff - He was much better than I expected. I think he’s a bit stiff and needs some polish. It’ll be interesting to see him next week to see if he improves. He’s a courageous man and surely enjoys dancing. I just wish I could hear what his ex-girlfriend, Kathy Griffin has to say about his dance. He may be our first to go.	5	4	4	13
Waltz	David Alan Grier & Kym Johnson - I see some potential in him. He has some grace and just needs more practice to get the steps. I don’t think he’ll be first to leave, for sure.	6	7	6	19
Cha-Cha	Denise Richards & Maksim Chmerkovskiy - She is a fair dancer and will probably not go home in the first couple of weeks, but needs to improve her skills. She’s a bit stiff and timid in her movements.	6	6	6	18
Waltz	Melissa Rycroft & Tony Dovolani - I have to say that she’s not half bad, and she only had two days to learn the dance. I’m impressed. She definitely will improve. She’s very graceful and has wonderful potential!	8	7	8	23

Next Monday will be the second performance by each dance team. And then the first pair will be eliminated. I expect Steve Wozniak or Steve-O to be first. Who do you think will go home first?

Here’s a little clip of dance partners Steve Wozniak and Karina Smirnoff practicing for the season premiere of Dancing With the Stars tomorrow night. Steve says that he has his share of aches and pains, but is feeling confident. I can’t wait to see the new crop of dancers tomorrow…if they all manage to stay healthy that long!

The clip also shows us that Gilles Marini has pulled a groin muscle, but has not stopped pushing himself to be ready for the premiere. Here’s the clip:

The celebrity dancers and prodancers are working hard to get ready for the new season of Dancing With the Stars. Of course, everyone wants to know how the rehearsals are going and who is expected to do better than the rest. ET talked to Maksim Chmerkovskiy & Denise Richards about how well she’s doing while learning the dances. Maks also discusses his engagement to fellow pro dancer Karina Smirnoff.

Then there’s a bit of discussion with Gilles Marini & Cheryl Burke. Cheryl has a very interesting strategy for how Gilles can get the attention of the judges this season…I like it!!

[Photo: newscom.com]

This morning, Dancing With the Stars pro dancer Maksim Chmerkovskiy met his new dance partner on the set of Good Morning America. TV Guide was there to ask him a few questions too. It seems that ABC is trying to keep the partners a secret a while longer for some reason. We now know that Maks will be with Denise Richards, country singer Chuck Wicks will be paired with Julianne Hough and that Cheryl Burke, Mark Ballas, Derek Hough, Maksim’s fiancee Karina Smirnoff, Alec Mazo & Edyta Sliwinska will be part of this season, but the restof the details are just rumors. As for the interview with Maks, here’s an excerpt:

TVGuide.com: How does it feel to be back competing on Dancing with the Stars?
Maksim Chmerkovskiy: We’re very happy, especially in this economy, that we get a job. It’s a little bit of a whirlwind because we literally finished our last day of the tour yesterday, in Philly. Some of the people already flew out to meet their celebrities, and this is my meeting [with Denise]. We start rehearsals [Feb. 10].

TVGuide.com: Did you get to indulge in any pet projects during your time off?
Chmerkovskiy: I didn’t have time off. I choreographed the tour, which went to 38 cities, and I was also the dance captain in charge of all the injuries and replacing people… . It was a crazy experience, and a lot of work. But it’s fine. I’m 29; I’ll relax when I’m 50.

TVGuide.com: How excited are you to be paired with Denise?
Chmerkovskiy: Very. Very. Things are happening up here [in my head], as to what we’re going to do for our first dance… . I’m picking up on all the things she’s been saying about her flexibility and the Pilates. Most of the things that are difficult for the celebrities are moving their legs and arms in different directions at the same time, to the music.

TVGuide.com: What sort of unique challenges face Shawn Johnson, who is just 4-foot-10?
Chmerkovskiy: I actually think her main challenge is that she’s so young 39 in a big girl’s world, so to speak. Her challenge will be to spice things up if the judges say that she’s too quiet and calm. But we all saw her at the Olympics — she’s amazing and focused and determined. A very hard worker.

TVGuide.com: Some are speculating that dancing as a team could be tough on Julianne Hough and Chuck Wicks, her country singer-boyfriend. But I think if DWTS has shown us anything, it’s that it cultivates romance. They could come out of this stronger.
Chmerkovskiy: I don’t want to start the season with a usual Maks rant, so I’m going to plead the fifth on that pairing!

There are several new, big twists in the new season of Dancing With the Stars. For one thing, there are three real-life couples competing for the first time. There will also be a “Dance Off” between the two couples with the lowest scores each week too. That’s a big change!

Back this season is the Ballroom Kids Competition and the Stars of Dance segment. I think we’re in for a fresh, new season this time around when season 8 premieres on March 9!

Husband and wife Ty Murray and Jewel compete for bragging rights, while newly engaged professional dancers Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Karina Smirnoff go head to head. To top it off, country crooner Chuck Wicks teams with girlfriend and two-time “Dancing with the Stars” champ Julianne Hough. I’m thrilled that Julianne will be back after all. She said at the end of season 7 that she would be taking the season off.

I’m also thrilled that my very most favorite style of dance to do, East Coast Swing, will be a part of the season, along with the sultry Argentine Tango. Wow! This is going to be fantastic!!

I am searching everywhere for the list of pro dancers who will be paired with the new celebrity dancers and will post it as soon as I can find it. Stay tuned!!

When I was in Las Vegas on New Year’s Eve, apparently, Dancing With the Stars professional dancers Karina Smirnoff & Maksim Chmerkovskiy were also there. Somehow, I managed to miss seeing them.

But the great news for them is that on New Year’s Eve, they got engaged in Las Vegas. I’m not too surprised at the news since they have been spotted out together holding hands for several months now and they have the dancing in common.

[Photo: Bauer-Griffin]

[Photo: newscom.com]

Congratulations & Best Wishes to Karina and Maks!!