Dancing with the Stars Season 8 Cast; Remembering James Whitmore; WGA Awards Winners

Monday, February 09, 2009

Dancing with the Stars Season 8 Cast; Remembering James Whitmore; WGA Awards Winners

An all-new cast of celebrities hits the dance floor on ABC's Dancing with the Stars with the highly anticipated two-hour season premiere on Monday, March 9, 2009 from 8:00-10:02 p.m. ET/PT on ABC. Season Eight introduces us to 13 new stars, including the youngest competitor to date, an NFL legend, a computer icon, a female rapper, three music artists and a "Wildboy."
Additionally, "love is a battlefield" when, for the first time, three real life couples take the ballroom floor. 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. And in an exciting new twist, the bottom two couples facing elimination will "Dance Off" to determine who is dismissed in the first weeks of competition.
Among the stars this upcoming season are David Alan Grier (Life with Bonnie, In Living Color), Gilles Marini (Sex and the City movie), Denise Richards (Wild Things, Spin City), and Nancy O'Dell (Access Hollywood, Scream 2 and 3).
View the full cast and details on each star. As for pairings with professionals, we know Julianne Hough will be with Chuck Wicks as per the press release and Maksim Chmerkovskiy will be with Denise Richards as per Good Morning America. The full professional partnering will be announced on Thursday, February 12.

James Whitmore, the many-faceted character actor who delivered strong performances in movies, television and especially the theater with his popular one-man shows about Harry Truman, Will Rogers and Theodore Roosevelt, has died. The Emmy and Tony winning actor was diagnosed with lung cancer the week before Thanksgiving and died Friday afternoon (Feb. 6) at his Malibu home. Now he wasn't known really for TV sitcoms, but he did appear on quite a few. In fact, one of his ex-wives was a sitcom star. Mr. Whitmore was married to Audra Lindley of Three's Company fame in the '70s. Even after they divorced in 1979, they remained friends and appeared with each other in the big screen movies Zoo Ship in 1985 and The Relic in 1997. When they were married, they appeared in the TV movie The Canterville Ghost in 1974 and such plays as The Magnificent Yankee, On Golden Pond, The Visit, Foxfire and Love Letters, among others.
In the early '70s he starred on the sitcom Temperatures Rising. Set at the Capital General Hospital in Washington D.C., follows the adventures of the no-nonsense chief of surgery Dr. Vincent Campanelli (James Whitmore) and his all-nonsense staff. He guest starred on the sitcom A Minute With Stan Hooper in 2003. Among his other credits include series regular in dramas The Law and Mr. Jones, Mister Sterling, and My Friend Tony. In 2000 he won an Emmy for outstanding guest actor in a dramatic series for The Practice. Among his other guest appearances include CSI, Burke's Law, Riptide, The White Shadow, Gunsmoke, The Virginian, The Big Valley, Rawhide, Dr. Kildare, Route 66, Twilight Zone, Ben Casey, and more. His other big screen credits include The Shawshank Redemption, The Majestic, Give 'em Hell, Harry, and Battleground. The latter saw him earn Oscar and Golden Globe nominations.
Mr. Whitmore will certainly be missed. His legacy continues with his children and grandchildren, among them are grandson Matty Whitmore who was on Survivor: Gabon. Mr. Whitemore was 87.

Finally, we leave you today with the winners for the 61st Annual WGA Awards. Comedy wise, 30 Rock was the big winner for their writing work. While Mad Men took home the win for writing for dramas. Among the other categories, Breaking Bad won for best new series.
View the full TV portion winners.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Monday, April 13

The Neighorhood - "Welcome to the Breaking Point" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
After a frightening encounter, Dave takes a hard look at his health, prompting Calvin to help him find a healthier way to let off steam. Meanwhile, Tina has a hard time letting go of old memories, and Marty and Malcolm argue over a valuable find from their past.

DMV - "Fresh Ink" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
When the SoHo DMV lands a glossy magazine feature, Barb struggles with feeling overlooked, stirring up old insecurities she thought she’d left behind. Meanwhile, Gregg and Vic go head‑to‑head in a competitive quest to earn their first positive review after a rough streak online.

The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins - "Mischief and Memories" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
The Dinkins family bands together for their annual push to get Reggie into the hall of fame, but Jerry Basmati stands in their way.

The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins - "A Real Cinderello Story" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Monica tries to sign an exciting new prospect; Jerry Basmati unexpectedly takes revenge on Reggie.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of April 13)

Monday, April 13

Henry Winkler (Barry/Arrested Development/Out of Practice/Monty/Happy Days) - Watch Henry on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Tracy Morgan (The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins/Crutch/The Last O.G./30 Rock/The Tracy Morgan Show) - Tracy is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Maya Rudolph (Loot/Bless the Harts/Forever/Up All Night) - Maya appears on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Nick Offerman (Margo's Got Money Troubles/Parks and Recreation) - Nick stops by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Rachel Dratch (Grimsburg/Imaginary Mary/30 Rock) - Rachel makes a special appears once on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS. Andy Cohen interviews Rachel on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 11pm on Bravo.
Kristin Chenoweth (Stumble/Trial & Error/Kristin) - Kristin is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Rachel Dratch (Grimsburg/Imaginary Mary/30 Rock) - Andy Cohen interviews Rachel on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9pm on Bravo.
Elle Fanning (Margo's Got Money Troubles) and Michelle Pfeiffer (Margo's Got Money Troubles/Delta House) - Elle and Michelle talk about Margo's Got Money Troubles on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Jennie Garth (Mystery Girls/What I Like About You) - Jennie talks about I Choose Me: Chasing Joy, Finding Purpose & Embracing Reinvention on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am, on Live with Kelly and Mark (check your local listings), on NBC's Today in the 10am hour, and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Sarah Chalke (Scrubs/Roseanne/Mad Love/How to Live with Your Parents (For the Rest of Your Life)) - Sarah talks about Scrubs on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Anthony Norman (Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat) - Anthony talks about Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am and in the 9am hour and on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Bob Odenkirk (The Larry Sanders Show) - All Access sits down with Bob to discuss his life, career and new film Normal on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Daniel Radcliffe (The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins/Miracle Workers) - Daniel tells Sherri about his new sitcom, The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins, and his hit Broadway play, Every Brilliant Thing, on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Jake and Jazz Smollett (On Our Own) - Jake and Jazz talk about their lifestyle series, Living By Design, on CLEO TV on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Dan Levy (Big Mistakes/Schitt's Creek) and Laurie Metcalf (Big Mistakes/The Conners/Roseanne/The McCarthys/The Norm Show) - Dan and Laurie talk to Drew about their upcoming comedy crime show Big Mistakes on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings. Drew is joined by the entire cast of Big Mistakes: Dan Levy, Laurie Metcalf, Jack Innanen and Taylor Ortega.
John Stamos (Palm Royale/UnPrisoned/Fuller House/Grandfathered/Jake in Progress/Full House/You, Again?) and Jodie Sweetin (Fuller House/Hollywood Darlings/Full House) - - John and Jodie are guests on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.