TVSquad

Well, it's official. Yesterday, ABC announced their new line-up for the eighth season (!) of Dancing With The Stars. And, as usual, the names chosen range from weird to ... even weirder (really, David Alan Grier?). Not that we necessarily disagree with the producers' choices, but we'd like to take a moment to suggest seven potential choices of people we believe to be fully primed for a spot on the dance floor.

Listen up, DWTS producers. Season nine is just around the corner, and Alan Alda is probably waiting by the phone. (...In our wildest dreams, that is.)

(S04E17) This week's elimination wasn't exactly shocking, but there was a lot of suspense leading up to the final announcement. There was also a ton of filler, and not the entertaining Kenny Mayne-style filler. In the recap of Monday's performances, we learned that Julianne snorts when she laughs, which only makes her more adorable.

(S04E16) We've reached the (thankfully) Cyrus-free semifinals, and it looks like tomorrow's elimination will be a nail-biter. There was absolutely no dead weight on the dance floor, a fact that made for an exciting evening of performances. There were perfect scores, pelvic thrusts, and the phrase "Yours is bigger." What's not to like?

Apolo Anton Ohno and Julianne Hough (Quickstep) - This week the contestants got to pick their favorite Ballroom and Latin dance styles. For the Ballroom round, Apolo and Julianne chose the Quickstep. Revealing his competitive spirit, Apolo set quite a few goals for himself. He wanted tens for his Ballroom round, and he wanted perfect scores for both dances.

(S04E14) Which one of these doesn't belong? As is par for the course on Dancing With The Stars, somebody always gets through on the power of the fan vote, surpassing contestants that are superior dancers. This year, that somebody is Billy Ray Cyrus. We could argue all day about whether or not Billy Ray should still be on the show, but one thing is for sure, while he is here, he makes things interesting. Read on to hear about the latest dustup.

(S04E13) This week's elimination wasn't exactly surprising, but the entertainment value of the results show made up for it. I wish that ABC had made DanceCenter a regular part of the elimination episodes instead of the Jimmy Kimmel segments. Nothing against Guillermo, but Kenny Mayne grilling Len Goodman is just good TV.

The judges chose the encore performance by a coin toss, but they would have picked a winner either way. Laila and Maksim won out over Joey and Kym, and their Samba was as hot as ever. I initially thought the judges were going to let both couples perform, since the results shows are normally so padded. This week, however, there were some amazing and hilarious segments.

(S04E12) Laila Ali is the only woman left in the competition, but I have a feeling that she'll make us proud. Samantha was under the impression that tonight's show "defines the season." I'm assuming that she was referring to the contestants having to learn two dances, but who knows? Len warned the contestants that the expectations were higher for the Ballroom and Latin rounds, and hoped that they would rise to the occasion. Did they? Let's find out!

(S04E09) After three weeks of watching women get sent home, it was about time that a male contestant got the boot. Samantha mentioned that the show has reached its midpoint, and it is time to get rid of the lackluster dancers and focus on the real contenders. I have a feeling that the next few eliminations will be as predictable as this week's.

As many fans guessed, the judges chose Apolo and Julianne for the encore performance this evening. The couple's Samba was called the dance of the season. No arguments here. Apolo and Julianne's performance was just as exciting and sexy as it was last night, and it was great to see it again.

(S04E08) Leeza Gibbons is gone, which means that there are only two women left to compete. After some of the men's performances tonight, I doubt that Laila and Heather are worried. There was an informal "muscle shirt" theme this evening, and the men's attempts at fun and sexy had mixed results.

(S04E05) Another week, another "shocking" elimination. The hosts were all about hyping the "jam-packed" results show, bragging that there was more music and dancing "than ever before." What else would there be on a dancing show? An ad for a workout DVD? Oh, wait, I'm getting ahead of myself.

The behind-the-scenes interviews were combined with recap footage from last night's performances. A big deal was made of the unprecedented four-way tie. Joey Fatone was offended by Len's butt comment, and stuck out his rear (and his visible panty line) in protest during his interview. Heather wanted to advance even farther than Jonathan's previous two-legged partners. I'm still hoping that Heather's dancing talents will start to overshadow her disability. It was a valid topic in the first few episodes, but enough is enough.

(S04E04) We're back for another week of dancing, and the lovely Paulina is no longer with us. Many of the dances were inspired by movies this week; we had Star Wars, Pulp Fiction, and even Goldfinger. Contestants danced either the Jive or the Tango, and the results were very entertaining.

Shandi Finnessey and Brian Fortuna (Jive) - Shandi and Brian's Jive was good, but forgettable after all of the performances were finished. Their performance was fun and spirited, and Shandi wisely showed as much skin as possible. She can't compete with the other contestants' technical skills, but she's doing her best to corner the market on hotness. The judges were impressed with her progress and gave the couple a 21 (7, 7, 7).

(S04E01) Another season of Dancing With The Stars is upon us, and I could not be more excited. Some important changes have been made this time around. Contestants were given four weeks to practice for the premiere instead of six, and there will be two weeks of dancing before the first elimination. The premiere was entertaining and surprising, as always. Let's get right to it!

Ian Ziering and Cheryl Burke (Cha Cha Cha) - It's tough to be the first dancers of the night, but Ian and Cheryl did a tremendous job. Their energetic performance included some decent footwork; those two definitely know how to have fun and work the crowd. Cheryl's hair was gorgeous, as usual, but I wasn't a fan of the Ziering facial hair. The judges gave Ian some technical criticism, but the pair walked away with a fair score of 21 (Carrie: 7, Len: 7, Bruno: 7).

It just gets stranger and stranger...

This morning, ABC announced the new slate of celebrities that will be participating in this upcoming season of Dancing with the Stars, which starts on Monday, March 19.

Some of the rumored selections, like Ian Ziering of 90210, and Billy Ray Cyrus of Hanna Montana, and Paul McCartney's bitter one-legged ex, Heather Mills, were right on the money. The other participants? Well, how would you like to see Big Pussy cutting a rug? Thaaat's right, Vincent Pastore is on board. So is basketball great Clyde Drexler, Olympic gold medalist Apolo Anton Ohno, former Entertainment Tonight host Leeza Gibbons, former supermodel Paulina Porizkova, former *NSYNCer Joey Fatone, Miss USA 2004 Shandi Finnessey, and boxer Laila Ali (yes, she's Muhammad Ali's daughter).

The full press release is after the jump. And the full story and photos are on the Good Morning America web site.

The Olympics are obviously coming to an end. NBC is the only channel airing Olympic coverage today and it's devoting much of that coverage to two Olympians who have been hyped but have yet to win a gold medal.

Apolo Anton Ohno has two sprints, in the 500m and the men's relay races on the short track. So far during these games, Apolo has won a bronze medal.

Also, we may finally hear the last of Bode Miller after he races in the slalom:

Thankfully, we're getting a break from all forms of figure skating. Daytime events include women's Cross Country, men's and women's Biathlon, and a live match of hockey where the USA men take on Slovakia. Seriously consider catching a curling match on USA when the American men take on Germany.

Primetime coverage is where all the excitement is supposed to be. American speed skaters Chad Hedrick and Joey Cheek each have a gold medal and tonight they'll race each other, plus American Shani Davis, for another one in the 1000m. Apolo Anton Ohno also is in that is in a separate race. Skiers Bode Miller and Daron Rahlves hit the slopes in pursuit of that elusive gold medal.

Here's the schedule on all of NBC's networks:

One of the athletes to watch tonight is not an American. It's Croatian Alpine Skier Janica Kostelic, who won four gold medals in her sport in Salt Lake City. Her brother, Ivica, won the silver medal in the slalom last night. Americans Julie Mancuso and Lindsey Kildow, who was injured during a training run earlier this week, are also in medal contention.

There are some Americans to watch, too. Apolo Anton Ohno races in the 1000m speed skate and hopefully he'll be able to stay on his feet for this one. Also, gorgeous Jeremy Bloom (seriously, girls, look at him) competes in the moguls.

Here's tonight's line-up on all of NBC's stations: