We know who will be taking Vincent Pastore’s place on Dancing with the Stars now that he quit because it was too physically demanding for him… John Ratzenberger, who is best known for playing Cliff Claven on Cheers.

Funny how one change in the Dancing with the Stars contestant list can mix it up enough that the replacement is instantly the fan favorite to win the entire competition…. I know who I am cheering for (no pun intended!)

Will America mind if Cliff Clavin cuts in?

Former “Cheers” star John Ratzenberger will join the cast of “Dancing With the Stars,” ABC announced Friday, March 2.

Ratzenberger will replace “Sopranos” mobster Vincent Pastore, who bowed out of the competition earlier this week when he realized just how physically demanding his task would be.

That left a spot open for the sitcom mailman to take Edyta Sliwinksa as his partner. Although Ratzenberger only has three weeks to rehearse for the fourth season’s premiere on March 19, he’s looking forward to the challenge.

“He likes to cut a rug. People will be surprised,” his rep tells People.

Turns out, John was initially invited to the be a contestant, but he had to turn it down due to a scheduling conflict. But whatever it was isn’t an issue anymore, meaning John could accept the job!

Source

Whenever I have seen Heather Mills, she seems pretty mobile to me. Well, apparently she thinks she isn’t mobile enough to not use her disabled parking pass, which allows her to get ultra primo parking wherever she goes in her Mercedes SUV.

Heather Mills’ decision to appear on US reality TV show Dancing With The Stars has angered disabled people.

Campaigners argue that the estranged wife of Sir Paul McCartney should refrain from using her blue disabled badge to park her Mercedes four-wheel drive if she is mobile enough to compete on the celebrity dancing contest.

Mills is regularly seen cycling and walking unaided near her home in East Sussex, and she has also been photographed skiing.

Kathy Gordon of the Brighton and Hove Federation of Disabled People said: “She has mobility and, morally, should refrain from using her blue badge when she doesn’t really need to.”

If she is trying to raise her profile as a victim after the whole divorce scandal, she certainly knows how to do it… the wrong way.

Source

Well, there are so many ways you could write the headline when the person who quits Dancing with the Stars after finding it too tough is best known for playing a character named “Big Pussy”. But I degress. However, Vincent Pastore, who played the infamous character on the Sopranos, has quit the popular reality show competition after finding it just too tough.

“When I initially committed to joining Dancing with the Stars, I didn’t realize just how physically demanding it would be for me,” the 60-year-old actor said in a statement. “Unable to put forth my best effort, I felt it appropriate to step aside and give someone else the opportunity.”

“I’d like to thank ABC and the show’s producers for inviting me to participate,” he added. “I wish my partner, Edyta, and the other dancers the best of luck.”

His partner, Edyta Sliwinska, told E! News’ Samantha Harris she was “sad” about Pastore’s departure.

“We started to practice and we had two very good practices, but it was just physically too hard for Vincent,” she said. “He had a heart operation about a year and a half ago and he put on some weight. He just couldn’t do it. He was too tired.”

Wonder who will be stepping up to fill his dancing shoes?

Source

The complete cast for the upcoming season of Dancing with the Stars was announced this morning on ABC’s Good Morning America. The fourth season starts March 19th. Here is the complete list of dancers!

• Heather Mills, now known more for being Paul McCartney’s gold digging ex than anything else she has done

• Billy Ray Cyrus, Mr. Achy Breaky Heart himself
• Leeza Gibbons, Extra host
• Joey Fatone… looks like he did decide to grace us with his presence, unfortunately
• Laila Ali AKA Muhammad Ali’s daughter
• Vincent Pastore, AKA the Soprano’s Big Pussy
• Apolo Anton Ohno, US Olympic speedskater
• Paulina Porizkova, apparently a supermodel, although today was the first I heard of her
• Clyde Drexler, basketball Hall of Fame inductee and another token athlete
• Ian Ziering famous for playing Steve Sanders on Beverly Hills 90210 (which is also recently available on DVD)
• Shandi Finnessey, former Miss USA

An interesting mix of dancers. Hopefully they will be all getting into shape in preperation for the two hour season premiere!

Heather Mills is going to appear on this upcoming season of Dancing with the Stars on ABC. The new season, which starts March 19th, announced their complete cast today.

Here’s a bet there won’t be any Beatles songs on the next “Dancing With the Stars.” ABC announced Wednesday that Paul McCartney’s estranged wife, Heather Mills, will be among the competitors.

Mills will be the first contestant with an artificial limb to compete on the series, which returns for its fourth season March 19. She lost the leg in a motorcycle accident in 1993.

OK, with the whole brouhaha surrounding Heather Mills and her supposed gold digging ways with her divorce from hubby Paul McCartney, you can’t help but wonder if people won’t want to watch the show simply because she’s a contestant. But from her point of view, she needs all the help she can get to make her look more sympathetic in the eyes of fans, because right now, all the sympathies seem to be with him.

Source

According to BuddyTV, American Olympic Speedskater Apolo Anton Ohno is the latest celebv to be added to the star studded cast list of the upcoming Dancing with the Stars season.

On yesterday’s edition of ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption, Michael Wilbon reported that Olympic Gold Medal winning speedskater Apolo Anton Ohno would be a contestant on the upcoming season of Dancing with the Stars. As flimsy a source as a sports pundit might seem on matters of celebrity dancing, he’s probably in the know. Wilbon works for ESPN, which is owned by ABC, which is the channel Dancing with the Stars airs on. That’s more than enough credibility for me.

I have liked Apolo Ohno for his “take no prisoners” approach to speedskating, and I suspect his style will be pretty similar as a contestant on Dancing with the Stars.

There have been a ton of rumors about who will be on the new fourth season of Dancing with the Stars. They have announced that they will be making an announcement on the morning show Good Morning America on all the new dancers and celebs, closer to the March 19th premiere date.

Producers have also revealed that only about half of the celebs have been signed on to appear in the new season so far, meaning there is still time to lobby for your favorite celebs to appear on the show!

If you were producers, who would you try to get on the show?

Ah, Dancing with the Stars, the show that manages to turn B and C list stars into A-listers. ABC has announced that the long-rumored fourth season of Dancing with the Stars will premiere Monday, March 19 at 8pm. And the first episode will be a two hour episode, giving fans lots of opportunity to get to know the new dancers.

The show will air on Mondays from 8 to 9:30 (yes, 90 minute episodes) and then the results on Tuesdays from 9-10.

Yes, you read that right. Dancing with the Stars is switching the day to Monday from Tuesday, in order to get out of the way of the powerhouse known as American Idol.

“The great thing about this air schedule is that fans won’t have to choose between the two reality hits this spring,” said ABC Entertainment president Stephen McPherson.

As you will remember, this isn’t the first hot series that ABC has moved out of American Idol’s way. Lost has also seen its time slot changed to prevent a head-to-head with American Idol.

Source

First, Jennifer Aniston is turned down for a role on 24. Now comes news that she will not be appearing on the hit reality show Dancing with the Stars, although it is unclear if it was her decision or if an offer was never extended to her by the producers in the first place.

Jennifer Aniston doesn’t want to do it. Neither does former Indiana Pacers guard Reggie Miller. Though the show has sparked ratings and has seen some fairly wild controversies and romance some folks just aren’t quite ready to commit to ABC’s hit reality TV show ‘Dancing with the Stars.’

When reports emerged earlier that ‘A’-lister Jennifer Aniston wanted to sign on with the hit show, though many were hopeful, few believed she would. She quickly halted the speculation with a testament from her publicist.

I admit, when I first heard the rumor, I thought no way is she going to go on Dancing with the Stars.

Source

Although Danica McKellar has gone on to do other things (among them the West Wing and Inspector Mom) I will still always remember her as Winnie Cooper on the Wonder Years, the 80s staple family drama. And Danica is trying her hardest to secure a sought after spot on the hit reality series Dancing with the Stars.

Source

What a year it has been for Mario Lopez. After not hearing much about him since the end of Saved by the Bell (except for the whole Ali Landry saga when she filed for annulment after the wedding because she discovered Mario was getting it on with strippers at his bachelor party) he came storming back with his success on Dancing with the Stars. Now he has the job that every adolescent boy dreams of… hosting the Miss America pageant.

The Miss America Pageant will air on Monday, January 29 at 8PM on CMT… yep, you read the right, Country Music Television. It will be held at The Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, a change from the usual Altantic City in an attempt to shake up the ratings. And with Mario hosting, it just might attract some women instead of drooling adolescent boys and men.

ABC is bringing back its smash reality show Dancing with the Stars for a fourth season this spring. And rumored start date would put the first episode airing in March, so ABC could air the finale during the important May sweeps period.

ABC does have a dilemna on their hands though. If they air in the same Tuesday - Wednesday format they had used for the third season, Dancing with the Stars would air against the FOX megahit American Idol. And that can be a death sentence for just about any series!

And celebs will probably vie for those dancing spots - as we have seen with Mario Lopez, the series can take a third tier forgotten has-been and make him or her a star again.

Let’s dance!