ABC ANNOUNCES THE CELEBRITY AND PROFESSIONAL PAIRINGS FOR THE NINTH SEASON OF “DANCING WITH THE STARS”

ABC announces the professional dancer pairings for the all new cast of “Dancing with the Stars.” In alphabetical order, the 16 stars — with their professional partners — making their ballroom dancing debut are:

AARON CARTER, pop star, teams with KARINA SMIRNOFF, who returns for her seventh season.

NATALIE COUGHLIN, Olympic champion swimmer, teams with Season 1 champion ALEC MAZO, who returns for his fifth season.

MARK DACASCOS, “Iron Chef” star, joins LACEY SCHWIMMER, who returns for her third season.

TOM DELAY, former House Majority Leader, teams up with two-time champion CHERYL BURKE, who returns for her eighth season.

MACY GRAY, Grammy Award winner, teams with JONATHAN ROBERTS, who returns for his seventh season.

ASHLEY HAMILTON, actor and comedian, teams with EDYTA SLIWINSKA, who is the only pro to compete in all nine seasons of “Dancing with the Stars.”

MELISSA JOAN HART, actress, teams up with reigning two-time “Dancing with the Stars” champ MARK BALLAS, who returns for his fifth season.

KATHY IRELAND, entrepreneur and model, teams with TONY DOVOLANI, who returns for his eighth season.

MICHAEL IRVIN, NFL Hall of Famer, teams with Season 8’s Professional Dancer Competition winner ANNA DEMIDOVA, who makes her debut.

JOANNA KRUPA, model, teams with Season 7 champ DEREK HOUGH, who returns for his fifth season.

CHUCK LIDDELL, Ultimate Fighting Champion, teams with ANNA TREBUNSKAYA, who returns for her fourth season.

DEBI MAZAR, actress, teams with MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY, who returns for his seventh season.

MYA, award winning singer, teams with DMITRY CHAPLIN, who returns for his second season.

KELLY OSBOURNE, reality star, teams up with LOUIS VAN AMSTEL, who returns for his fifth season.

DONNY OSMOND, showbiz legend, is paired with KYM JOHNSON, who returns for her seventh season.

LOUIE VITO, professional snowboarder, joins CHELSIE HIGHTOWER, who returns for her second season.

With the biggest season yet, “Dancing with the Stars” Season 9 kicks off on MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 21 (8:00-10:00 p.m., ET) when eight teams strut their stuff, while the other eight teams will show off their moves on TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 22 (8:00-10:00 p.m., ET). On a special night and time, two couples will learn their fate and be sent home, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET).

DWTS Karina Smirnoff and Maksim Chmerkovskiy Engaged

It’s always nice to write a Dancing With the Stars post that isn’t about an injury. DTWS’ Maksim Chmerkovskiy proposed to fellow dancer Karina Smirnoff on New Year’s Eve, and she accepted.

Karina previously was linked to Mario Lopez, whom she previously was partnered with on Dancing With the Star. The two were together for two years, before breaking up almost six months ago.  Not soon after, she and fellow Ukraine Maksim became a couple.

No word yet on when the dancing duo plan to wed.

Dancing With the Stars Cast Released

From ABC Press Release:

It will be a season of surprises in what promises to be the biggest and most demanding season ever as thirteen celebrities take the ballroom floor on the hit series Dancing with the Stars, which returns with a three-night premiere event, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 22 (8:00-10:00 p.m., ET) on ABC. Each week, all new surprises and twists await viewers. Season seven marks the largest cast assembled to date, the oldest and youngest competitors ever, and includes two Olympic Gold medalists, a Grammy-winning singer, a television legend, an Oscar winner, and a Super Bowl champion. Additionally, all four professional dancers who’ve previously tasted the thrill of victory return to compete against one another for bragging rights. Can one of them reclaim the mirror ball trophy?

For the first time ever, all thirteen teams must prepare two routines for the first week of competition, one of which they’ll perform on Monday night. The judges will score the performances on Monday while the viewers cast their votes for their favorites. Only twelve will have the chance to showcase their second dance on TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23 (9:00-10:0 p.m., ET). In dramatic style on Tuesday’s show, one couple will be eliminated as the remaining contestants perform their second dance of the season. The judges will score the dances on Tuesday and the viewers will once again cast their votes before a second duo is dismissed WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET).

As announced today on Good Morning America, in alphabetical order, the thirteen stars making their ballroom dancing debut are:

LANCE BASS – Lance Bass has sold over 50 million records as a member of the phenomenally successful pop group *NSYNC. The 2006 U.S. Youth Latin Champ and 2007 World Swing Dance Champ Lacey Schwimmer teams up with Lance to make her series debut.

TONI BRAXTON – The winner of six Grammy Awards, Toni Braxton is a Billboard chart-topping singer and actress, selling over forty million records worldwide. Her U.S. number-one hit Un-Break My Heart is the second biggest single by a female artist in history. Dancing with the Stars marks her return to the spotlight after a six-month health hiatus. She teams up with season one champion, Alec Mazo, who returns for his fourth season.

BROOKE BURKE – A host, actress, entrepreneur and celebrity mom, Brooke Burke has truly done it all. She has graced numerous magazine covers, has her own top-selling swimsuit calendars, and is regularly ranked in men’s magazines as one of the sexiest women in the world. Recognized worldwide as host of the hit travel series Wild On!, Brooke has since hosted several high profile network series, including Rock Star: INXS and Rock Star: Supernova.Brooke teams with Derek Hough who returns for his third season.

ROCCO DISPIRITO – The James Beard Award-winning celebrity chef and author Rocco DiSpirito combines his world-class cooking with a passion for empowering home cooks.  In 2003 he launched Rocco’s for the reality series, The Restaurant. Rocco will next appear on the A&E series, Rocco Gets Real, beginning in October, along with its companion cookbook, Rocco Gets Real: Cook at Home Every Day. He teams with Karina Smirnoff who returns for her fifth season. Karina teamed with R&B singer, Mario, last season.

MAURICE GREENE – The winner of two gold medals, in the 100m sprint and the 4×100m relay at the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympics, track star Maurice Greene was dubbed the “World’s Fastest Man” during his career. In addition to being the former world record holder in the 100m sprint, and winning multiple world championships, he also won silver and bronze medals at the 2004 Athens Summer Olympics. He is the current Indoor World Record holder in the 60m at 6.39 seconds. He teams up with two-time champion, Cheryl Burke. Cheryl returns for her sixth season.

KIM KARDASHIAN – Actress, model and reality television star, Kim Kardashian shot to stardom after the first airing of her hit E! reality series, Keeping up with the Kardashians.  She teams up with defending champ, Mark Ballas, who returns for his third season.

CLORIS LEACHMAN - Actress Cloris Leachman’s storied career has been recognized with nine Emmys, a Golden Globe, and an Academy Award. She has the distinction of being the only woman to win eight Primetime Emmy Awards and one Daytime Emmy. Leachman has starred in a wide range of theater, television and motion picture projects, creating such indelible characters as Phyllis in the TV series Phyllis and The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Frau Blucher in Young Frankenstein, Nurse Diesel in High Anxiety, and Ruth Popper in The Last Picture Show (for which she won an Oscar and a BAFTA).  Cloris teams with World Latin Champion and Mark’s father, Corky Ballas, who makes his series debut.

CODY LINLEY – Cody Linley will be the youngest contestant ever to compete on Dancing with the Stars. He is best known for his role as Jake Ryan on the wildly popular Disney Channel series Hannah Montana, a role in which he was nominated for a Young Artist Award. He teams with two-time Dancing with the Stars champ, Julianne Hough who returns for her fourth season.

SUSAN LUCCI – As the most famous face in daytime television history, Lucci has held audiences spellbound for years as the sexy, sassy, beautiful woman you love to hate, Erica Kane on All My Children. In May 1999, all of America stood and cheered when Susan Lucci won the Emmy Award for Best Actress.She teams with Tony Dovolani who returns for his sixth season.

MISTY MAY-TREANOR – Beach Volleyball champion Misty May-Treanor and partner Kerri Walsh captured their second Olympic gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics and became the first team ever to repeat as back-to-back champs. The victory also marked their 108th straight match win.  She now joins a new teammate, Maksim Chmerkovskiy, who returns for his fifth season.

TED MCGINLEY – Actor Ted McGinley’s extensive television credits include Married with Children, and Hope & Faith, Happy Days, recurring roles on the critically-acclaimed series The West Wing, Sports Night, Charlie Lawrence, Dynasty, and The Love Boat.  Newcomer Inna Brayer will be paired with Ted. Inna is the current US Amateur 10 Dance Champion.

JEFFREY ROSS – Comedian Jeffrey Ross a.k.a. the “Roastmaster General,” has delivered numerous show stopping performances at celebrity roasts honoring the likes of William Shatner, Hugh Hefner, Donald Trump, Pamela Anderson, Bob Saget and Emmitt Smith, inspiring New York Magazine to crown him The Meanest Man in Comedy.  He teams with Edyta Sliwinska, who is the only pro to compete in all seven seasons of Dancing with the Stars.

WARREN SAPP – Recently retired defensive tackle and Superbowl Champion Warren Sapp played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Oakland Raiders during his 13 year career. Warren was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1999, played in seven consecutive Pro Bowls and won Super Bowl XXXVII with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2003. This Fall, Warren will co-host Showtime’s Inside the NFL and will be a studio analyst and game commentator for the NFL Network. He is teamed with Kym Johnson who returns for her fifth season.

Andrew Baldwin Dating Karina Smirnoff

Andrew Baldwin is a very busy man. This weekend he was spotted with Dancing With the Stars’ Karina Smirnoff at the Palazzo Hotel in Las Vegas. Witnesses saw the pair by the pool at the hotel, being very affectionate. Smirnoff just recently broke up with Mario Lopez, and Baldwin was dating Marla Maples earlier this year.