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Tag: Karina Smirnoff

  • Doug Flutie Combines Football With Dance Skills on “Dancing With the Stars”

    Doug Flutie Combines Football With Dance Skills on “Dancing With the Stars”

    Doug Flutie, who played for the Chicago Bears from 1986-1987, is competing on this season of Dancing With the Stars, and he’s combining his football prowess with his dance skills to turn out his best performance.

    Paired with pro dance partner Karina Smirnoff, she wrote in her blog about using football moves to help Doug Flutie remember his dance moves.

    “What has really worked for us is using football terminology and movements to help Doug remember the dance. I’ve also worked with him on developing a story through the movements so that each one makes sense to him as we progress through the dance,” she wrote.

    Karina Smirnoff had no idea who Doug Flutie was when learning she was paired with him for the DWTS 22nd season.

    Flutie first rose to fame when playing football at Boston College. That’s why his opening number on Monday evening was Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline,” which is a Boston Red Sox favorite.

    The dance pro has one major complaint about Flutie.

    “Doug loves slouching! So I’m constantly reminding him not to give in to the gravity of life and always look up,” she wrote.

    Did you catch Doug Flutie and Karina Smirnoff on the premiere week of Dancing With the Stars?

    How long do you expect he’ll last?

    Does Doug Flutie stand a shot at winning that coveted mirror ball trophy?

  • Bindi Irwin Spotted All Glammed Up in Sparkles and Fringe Ahead of ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Premiere

    Bindi Irwin confirmed recently she will compete during the upcoming 21st season of Dancing With the Stars. The daughter of Terri Irwin and the late Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin–Bindi was recently spotted all glammed up in both sparkles and fringe–something the 17-year-old never wears.

    Bindi Irwin was getting fitted for costumes ahead of the DWTS competition, sporting a glittery little number that was just adorable on her.

    “This is completely different to anything I have ever done in my life. I am used to wrangling crocodiles,” Bindi says. “It’s all about having the courage and strength and, for me, it is something completely different but I hope that I am able to inspire others in their own lives to seize opportunity and to make a difference and just jump, take that leap, even if it terrifies you.”

    “I just hope my dance partner, whoever it is, is very patient and likes animals, because you never know what I’m going to bring to rehearsal,” she added.

    It wasn’t so long ago that Bindi Irwin admitted that competing on Dancing With the Stars scares her more than the crocodiles she works with as she follows in her late dad’s footsteps.

    “I have to tell you though, the judges scare me more than crocodiles,” Bindi said during her appearance on Good Morning America. “They are so knowledgeable. They’re supreme athletes. I’m just this girl from Australia who’s used to crocs so give me a 15-foot crocodile any day.”

    Bindi Irwin definitely won’t have a crocodile as a dance partner on DWTS. So far, dance pros Karina Smirnoff, Val Chmerkovskiy, Derek Hough, Mark Ballas, Artem Chigvintsev, Allison Holker, Witney Carson, Sharna Burgess, and Peta Murgatroyd are confirmed for season 21.

    Steve Irwin would certainly be proud of his daughter. He might be shocked, however, to see her decked out in sparkles and fringe.

    Will you be cheering on Bindi Irwin during season 21 of Dancing With the Stars? The new season premieres on September 14.

  • Karina Smirnoff Will Return To ‘Dancing With the Stars’ This Fall

    Karina Smirnoff will return to Dancing With the Stars this fall.

    A source confirmed the news to Us Weekly, saying that the popular dancing pro will return for the upcoming 21st season. This is good news for fans who were disappointed to hear in February that the pro planned to leave the series after 16 seasons.

    “I was a little nervous about not dancing on the show at all last season. I was doing it for the last 10 years,” the dancer-turned-author told Entertainment Weekly of her upcoming return. “I had other things to do in my life, but not going back to the show felt like trying to see if I can walk on my own two feet! I’ve had obvious moments when I missed it.”

    In recent months, Smirnoff has been out promoting her book, We’re Just Not That Into You: Dating Disasters from the TrenchesTango Shalom.

    Apparently, she was missing the dancing and decided to come back to DWTS.

    Karina Smirnoff made her debut on the popular series in 2006 for Season 3, and has since competed with musicians, actors, and athletes such as Mario Lopez, Billy Ray Cyrus, Aaron Carter, Sean Avery, and many more.

    Smirnoff has only won the Mirrorball Trophy once with J.R. Martinez in Season 13, but has placed in second and third place several times over the years.

    “After a lot of thought and prayer, I’ve decided to focus my energies on some other exciting endeavors including adding author to my resume,” the star, 37, wrote in February when she revealed she was leaving.

    Glad to hear Karina Smirnoff is bringing her talent back to Dancing With the Stars.

  • Karina Smirnoff: Engagement Number Three Ends After Two Months

    Karina Smirnoff just isn’t very successful at getting down that aisle.

    The dancer has been engaged three times now, and has yet to marry someone!

    Karina Smirnoff was engaged to Jason Adelman, who reconnected with her at a party in December and proposed in January.

    Jason Adelman and Karina Smirnoff’s whirlwind romance is over almost before it began, and it’s time to start looking for fiance number four.

    Sources close to Karina Smirnoff’s former fiance said that Jason called the whole thing off because she has “different family values.”

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTqAgPLnOyc

    In other words, he doesn’t like the way Karina Smirnoff cozied up to other dancers. In fact, he reportedly holds the opinion that all dancers are sex-crazed people constantly on the hunt for a hookup.

    A rep for Karina Smirnoff says that assumption on Adelman’s part is “disrespectful and insulting to the entire dance community.”

    However, it does seem that Karina Smirnoff has had lots of dance…partners.

    Karina Smirnoff was once engaged to fellow DWTS dancer Maksim Chmerkovskiy. And, she reportedly got hot and heavy with Mario Lopez.

    Still, that doesn’t mean Karina Smirnoff and her entire dance community is living for that hookup.

    Last month, Karina Smirnoff announced that she was leaving Dancing with the Stars to focus on other endeavors.

    Among other things, Karina Smirnoff listed being an author. Her book, We’re Just Not That Into You: Dating Disasters from the Trenches, has been a huge success.

    Perhaps that is because Karina Smirnoff has so much experience with dating.

    Karina Smirnoff listed several outrageous pick-up lines in her book. Maybe she can use some of them next time she goes out with her friends?

    Karina Smirnoff said some of them were, ‘“Can I get a picture of you? Because I want to show it to Santa and tell him what I want for Christmas”; “Do you know what my T-shirt is made of? Of boyfriend material,” and “Do you live in a cornfield? Because I am stalking you.”‘

    I bet Karina Smirnoff could make those work, don’t you?

  • Karina Smirnoff and Fiance Jason Adelman Split Up

    Karina Smirnoff and her fiance Jason Adelman have called it quits. It was only a couple of months ago when the couple announced their plans to marry.

    E! News reports that Adelman proposed to Karina Smirnoff back in January. He gave her a Martin Katz emerald cut diamond ring that weighed in at just under five carats. The cost of such a piece of jewelry runs between $100,000 and $300,000.

    Karina Smirnoff is best known for her Dancing With the Stars roles as pro dancer and dancing coach. Last season she competed in unison with UFC fighter Randy Couture, but the pair was eliminated during their third week of competition. She isn’t participating in season 20 of the show.

    Former Dancing With the Stars pro Maksim Chmerovskiy was once engaged to Karina Smirnoff. Their engagement lasted about a year. She was also engaged to baseball star Brad Penny. That means this is the third broken engagement for Karina Smirnoff. What’s that all about?

    Smirnoff hasn’t spoken out about her broken engagement. She appeared on The Heidi & Frank Show–a radio show–on Wednesday, but didn’t mention the split.

    She captioned her post, “Had so much fun on @HeidiandFrank just now! What an amazing fun show! @frankArmy @HeidiHamilton @955KLOS #werejustnotthatintoyou.”

    TMZ reports that Jason Adelman claims he broke his engagement with Karina Smirnoff because the two have “different family values.”

    A rep for Karina Smirnoff reportedly told TMZ that Adelman’s comments are “disrespectful and insulting to the entire dance community” and it’s “nothing less than an attempted smear campaign from a malicious person.”

    Regardless of the why or the how, it sounds like Karina Smirnoff and Jason Adelman are no longer engaged. Hopefully the two will go on to find love elsewhere if they couldn’t make their relationship with one another work.

  • Karina Smirnoff: Dating Book Is Out, Looks Great

    Karina Smirnoff announced recently that she would not be returning for the next season of Dancing with the Stars.

    This has a lot of her fans bummed. However, she isn’t disappearing entirely.

    When Karina Smirnoff made the announcement via Instagram, she said, “After a lot of thought and prayer, I’ve decided to focus my energies on some other exciting endeavors including adding author to my resume.”

    Well, the time has come for Karina Smirnoff to go ahead and add author to that resume.

    Her new book is out! It’s called We’re Just Not That Into You: Dating Disasters From the Trenches, and it looks awesome.

    The thing about Karina Smirnoff’s book is that its premise is familiar to everyone.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTqAgPLnOyc

    Many of you have been asking if I will be back for season 20 of DWTS and I wanted all of my incredible family to hear it directly from me. After a lot of thought and prayer, I've decided to focus my energies on some other exciting endeavors including adding author to my resume. I have absolutely loved dancing for all of you for all these years and feel blessed to have been given a platform to put my passion for dance, choreography and creativity on display. DWTS has been a huge part of my life for the last 10 years and i will always have a special place in my heart for it. I am thrilled that now you will be seeing more of me in new arenas in the days and weeks to come. My first book We're Just Not That Into You – Dating Disasters From the Trenches was released today and I look forward to hearing from you as you read it! I love all of you so very much and couldn't feel more grateful for your support in all that I do! #werejustnotthatintoyou

    A photo posted by karina_smirnoff (@karina_smirnoff) on

    Karina Smirnoff said, “Well, we all go on dates, right? We all go on dates whether you’re in a relationship, whether you are looking for Mr. Right. And a lot of times when you’re in the moment and something happens, you kind of sit back and go, like, ‘How did I get myself into it?’”

    So true.

    The book is co-written by Karina Smirnoff with her manager, Lindsay Rielly. The antics and heartbreak portrayed in the book sound like so much fun to read and just go, “Yep, I’ve been there.”

    The book includes stories from the dating lives of Karina Smirnoff and Lindsay Rielly, but it also boasts stories from her colleague, Cheryl Burke, and TV personality and former DWTS contestant Maria Menounos, among others.

    Look who's peeking over the shoulder? Having a blast on @dancingproslive with @alan_thicke s

    A photo posted by karina_smirnoff (@karina_smirnoff) on

    Karina Smirnoff’s book even includes advice for those still in the dating game. Like, listen to your instincts.

    “A lot of times women go against their intuition. Like, we feel something. We see the red flags. But we are always so hopeful, you know, that we can be the ones,” she said.

    And maybe the best part of all, the book has a list of horrible pick-up lines.

    Karina Smirnoff shared some of the gems, for instance, ‘“Can I get a picture of you? Because I want to show it to Santa and tell him what I want for Christmas”; “Do you know what my T-shirt is made of? -Of boyfriend material,” and “Do you live in a cornfield? Because I am stalking you.”‘

    I can’t believe those were actually spoken.

    Are you going to pick up a copy of Karina Smirnoff’s new book?

  • Karina Smirnoff On Her New Dating Book

    Karina Smirnoff On Her New Dating Book

    Karina Smirnoff has been one of the favorites among the Dancing with the Stars professionals for a long time.

    We have seen Karina Smirnoff laugh, cry, and get fired up.

    After watching someone on TV for that long you kind of feel like you know them.

    Now, fans of Karina Smirnoff can cheer up. Even though she’s leaving the show, we can now read about her dating disasters.

    Karina Smirnoff has written a book full of them. The book also includes cautionary tales and hilarious mishaps from her friends.

    2 days and counting till #WeReJustNotThatIntoYou is out!!! Did u get ur copy yet? @msrielly

    A photo posted by karina_smirnoff (@karina_smirnoff) on

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTqAgPLnOyc

    We’re Just Not That Into You: Dating Disasters From the Trenches is co-written with her manager, Lindsay Rielly.

    The book sounds so great, because we can all relate, right?

    Karina Smirnoff said of the book’s premise, “Well, we all go on dates, right? We all go on dates whether you’re in a relationship, whether you are looking for Mr. Right. And a lot of times when you’re in the moment and something happens, you kind of sit back and go, like, ‘How did I get myself into it?’”

    The book includes stories from colleague Cheryl Burke, as well as TV personality and former contestant on Dancing with the Stars, Maria Menounos.

    Checking out the ice with @justoscaro in Georgia! @dancingproslive

    A photo posted by karina_smirnoff (@karina_smirnoff) on

    Karina Smirnoff included some surprising features in the book, also.

    Many of you have been asking if I will be back for season 20 of DWTS and I wanted all of my incredible family to hear it directly from me. After a lot of thought and prayer, I've decided to focus my energies on some other exciting endeavors including adding author to my resume. I have absolutely loved dancing for all of you for all these years and feel blessed to have been given a platform to put my passion for dance, choreography and creativity on display. DWTS has been a huge part of my life for the last 10 years and i will always have a special place in my heart for it. I am thrilled that now you will be seeing more of me in new arenas in the days and weeks to come. My first book We're Just Not That Into You – Dating Disasters From the Trenches was released today and I look forward to hearing from you as you read it! I love all of you so very much and couldn't feel more grateful for your support in all that I do! #werejustnotthatintoyou

    A photo posted by karina_smirnoff (@karina_smirnoff) on

    For instance, she says the book will have advice for modern dating women, like, be sure to listen to your instincts.

    Karina Smirnoff explained, “A lot of times women go against their intuition. Like, we feel something. We see the red flags. But we are always so hopeful, you know, that we can be the ones.”

    So true.

    There will also be a list of the worst and most cringe-worthy pickup lines heard by the authors and contributors.

    Like these beauties shared by Karina Smirnoff, ‘“Can I get a picture of you? Because I want to show it to Santa and tell him what I want for Christmas”; “Do you know what my T-shirt is made of? Of boyfriend material,” and “Do you live in a cornfield? Because I am stalking you.”‘

    Excuse me while I shudder.

    Karina Smirnoff just may have a bestseller on her hands! What do you think?

  • Karina Smirnoff Not Returning to ‘Dancing With the Stars’

    Karina Smirnoff won’t be returning to the upcoming season of Dancing With the Stars. The show recently announced those dance pros who would be returning for season 20 of the popular show, but Karina Smirnoff was noticeably absent from that list.

    Smirnoff has danced and coached on Dancing With the Stars since its third season. She was the mirror ball trophy winner for season 12. So why isn’t she coming back?

    As with dance pro Cheryl Burke, it was Karina Smirnoff’s decision not to return this season. She shared that decision with her fans via Instagram.

    “Many of you have been asking if I will be back for season 20 of DWTS and I wanted all of my incredible family to hear it directly from me. After a lot of thought and prayer, I’ve decided to focus my energies on some other exciting endeavors including adding author to my resume. I have absolutely loved dancing for all of you for all these years and feel blessed to have been given a platform to put my passion for dance, choreography and creativity on display. DWTS has been a huge part of my life for the last 10 years and i will always have a special place in my heart for it. I am thrilled that now you will be seeing more of me in new arenas in the days and weeks to come. My first book We’re Just Not That Into You – Dating Disasters From the Trenches was released today and I look forward to hearing from you as you read it! I love all of you so very much and couldn’t feel more grateful for your support in all that I do! #werejustnotthatintoyou,” Karina Smirnoff captioned her post.

    So who is coming back to Dancing With the Stars?

    Witney Carson is coming back, alongside fan favorite (and two-time champion) Mark Ballas. Seasoned pros and fellow mirrorball winners Tony Dovolani, Peta Murgatroyd, and Kym Johnson are back on the dance floor, too. Newer dance pros Val Chmerkovskiy, Sharna Burgess, Allison Holker, Emma Slater and Artem Chigvintsev are also joining the group for season 20.

    Post by Dancing with the Stars.

    Are you disappointed to learn that Karina Smirnoff isn’t returning to Dancing With the Stars for season 20?

    The cast for season 20 of DWTS will be announced on Good Morning America on February 24th.

  • Karina Smirnoff May Be Sidelined From ‘DWTS’ For Entire Season After Suffering ‘Serious’ Injury

    Karina Smirnoff may be done with Dancing With the Stars after an injury sidelined the dance pro — at least for this season.

    The professional dancer’s likelihood of returning is not looking all that good after suffering a “serious” injury during rehearsals on Sunday, according to costar Tony Dovolani, who was with Smirnoff when she went to the hospital.

    According to Dovolani, his colleague took a tumble that led to an injury on her shin.

    “She went to wet her shoes so that we could have better traction…she slipped and ran into the stairs with her shin, her arm,” said Dovolani. “I was so afraid because I saw half of it, basically on her way down. I thought she would hit her face or neck or anything like that, so luckily she didn’t.”

    Still, when Dovolani spoke with Karina earlier in the day, he said, “She’s in a lot of pain…I’m just hoping that it’s not a break, that it’s more like a scuff or something on her shin.”

    Smirnoff was eliminated from the competition in week three with celebrity partner Randy Couture. She took to Instagram on Monday to share her condition with fans.

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    So sad I'm not able to perform tonight on the show. Got hurt yesterday rehearsing. Now, some TLC and I'll be back stronger then ever! thank u for ur support, guys. Love u! @dancingabc

    View on Instagram

    Smirnoff apparently didn’t want to go to the hospital, but Dovolani says that he forced her to go. While she seemed to be okay walking on her leg, Dovolani says that he hopes she takes it easy and that her injury is just a bad bruise. Dovolani said she was still “in pain.”

    It is unclear at this point whether the dancer will return this season.

  • ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Season 19 Premiere

    ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Season 19 Premiere

    Dancing With the Stars premieres its 19th season on Monday evening, and the cast members are reportedly ready–and very excited–about their first forays across the dance floor.

    Thirteen ‘stars’ will compete for that coveted mirrorball trophy throughout season 19. This season’s contestants include Jonathan Bennett, Tommy Chong, Randy Couture, Betsey Johnson, Lolo Jones, Bethany Mota, Janel Parrish, Alfonso Ribeiro, Sadie Robertson, Antonio Sabato, Jr., Tavis Smiley, Lea Thompson, and Michael Waltrip. Of course each of these contestants is paired with a dance professional. This season’s pros include Mark Ballas, Cheryl Burke, Sharna Burgess, Witney Carson, Artem Chigvintsev, Valentin Chmerkovskiy, Tony Dovolani, Allison Holker, Derek Hough, Keo Motsepe, Peta Murgatroyd, Emma Slater, and Karina Smirnoff.

    Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba return to the Dancing With the Stars judges’ desk. They are also joined this season by two-time mirrorball trophy winner and film star Julianne Hough–whose brother Derek is one of the pro dancers.

    USA Today reports that some of these ‘stars‘ are amateurs at best, and that it really is quite a stretch to call them stars. Since the show is called Dancing With the Stars, however, the producers had to do what they could to come up with contestants who could somewhat fit that criteria.

    Duck Dynasty star Korie Robertson is already soliciting votes for daughter Sadie Robertson.

    Will you be tuning in to the season 19 premiere of Dancing With the Stars on Monday evening, September 15th, at 8PM? Dancing With the Stars airs on ABC.

    Which of the ‘stars’ might you be rooting for during season 19?

  • ‘Dancing With the Stars:’ Who Are These Stars?

    Dancing With the Stars hosts Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews announced the new season’s cast a few days ago, leaving some fans to ask, “Where are the stars?” Of course it was pretty likely from the inception of the show that they would eventually run out of real stars–but Tommy Chong? He and Cheech Marin made up the duo famously known as ‘Cheech and Chong.’ The two smoked enough pot back in the 1970s to leave them with a life long case of the munchies.

    In addition to Tommy Chong, who will be paired with dance pro Peta Murgatroyd, is a lineup of cast members who might become stars by appearing on Dancing With the Stars, but really aren’t stars as of yet. A few were stars, but haven’t had that claim to fame for a very long time.

    Sadie Robertson is Phil Robertson’s granddaughter and she sometimes appears on Duck Dynasty, so that makes her a ‘sort-of’ star–maybe even a ‘star in training.’ Sadie will compete on Dancing With the Stars with Mark Ballas.

    Michael Waltrip is a star if you’re a pro racing fan. He will temporarily trade in his race car for dancing shoes and is paired with DWTS pro Emma Slater.

    Lolo Jones is an Olympic star, unless you count her efforts on the bobsled during the 2014 Winter Olympics. She will dance with Keo Motsepe, and can at least outrun everyone on the show if she feels she’s too embarrassed to continue on with the competition.

    Jonathan Bennett joins Dancing With the Stars following (no one said ‘following soon thereafter’) his appearance in the 2004 film Mean Girls. He won’t be dancing with Lindsay Lohan, but rather with dance pro Allison Holker.

    If you loved Back to the Future, you’ll remember Lea Thompson, who played Marty McFly’s (Michael J. Fox) love interest Lorraine Baines. She has come back to the present to dance with Artem Chigvintsev.

    Antonio Sabato, Jr. earned his stardom on General Hospital and Melrose Place, meaning when the drama gets ridiculous on Dancing With the Stars, he just might be involved. Cheryl Burke–his dance partner-in-crime–will likely hold him accountable for his actions, however.

    Randy Couture is a champion mixed martial artist who is trying to become a star as part of The Expendables franchise. In the meantime he is dancing with Karina Smirnoff on Dancing With the Stars.

    Janel Parrish plays the role of Mona Vanderwaal on Pretty Little Liars. Hopefully she leaves Mona’s cunning personality on that set as she comes to the DWTS set to compete alongside the very handsome Maksim Chmerkovskiy.

    Designer Betsey Johnson is a star in the fashion world. Might she be there to help out with the costumes she and partner Tony Dovolani will wear during this season’s competition?

    Bethany Mota comes to your TV straight from YouTube. She is a beauty expert with more than seven million followers. How does that even happen? She is dancing with just one Dancing With the Stars pro, however–Derek Hough–whose sister Julianne Hough will be sitting at the judge’s table this season.

    Alfonso Ribeiro comes from 1996–the last year The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air aired. He played the role of Carlton Banks opposite Will Smith. Will couldn’t be his dance partner on Dancing With the Stars (oh–he wasn’t asked?) so Alfonso is dancing with pro Witney Carson instead.

    Rounding out this season’s contestants is Tavis Smiley. The talk show host (most of us don’t know where he did that talking) will dance with Sharna Burgess.

    Will you be tuning in to watch this season of Dancing With the Stars? It premieres on September 15th on ABC. How many of this season’s ‘stars’ do you recognize?

  • Julianne Hough Returns to Her Roots on ‘DWTS,’ This Time as a Permanent Judge

    Julianne Hough is returning to the long-running ABC reality competition series, Dancing With the Stars, where she got her start in Hollywood in 2005. This time, however, she will return as a judge.

    Hough will join returning judges Len Goodman, Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli for the season premiere on Sept. 15.

    This isn’t the first time the two-time DWTS champion has judged. She returned in April to be a guest judge, but this time the position will be permanent.

    The professional dancers for the 19th season have been announced and include Mark Ballas, Witney Carson, Cheryl Burke, Artem Chigvintsev, Valentin Chmerkovskiy, Tony Dovolani, Allison Holker, Keo Motsepe, Peta Murgatroyd, Emma Slater, Karina Smirnoff, and Julianne’s brother, Derek Hough.

    Hough has had her hand in a variety of different endeavors since leaving the show in 2009, including films like Christina Aguilera‘s Burlesque, Footloose, Rock of Ages and Safe Haven, with Channing Tatum.

    Also during her time away from DWTS, the singer debuted an album, which topped Billboard’s country music chart in 2008.

    Her latest endeavor was a North American dance tour with her brother called Move Live on Tour. The siblings are also developing a series for Starz, Blackpool, which follows the world of international competitive ballroom dancing.

    Fans of DWTS will have to wait until Sept. 4 to learn which celebrities will vie off this year for the coveted Mirror Ball Trophy, when it is announced on Good Morning America.

    The 26-year-old Jackie-of-all-trades seems pretty pumped for the new gig, posting a snap on Instagram Thursday, along with the caption: “Warming up for Dancing With The Stars with @heineken_us! #USopen preparty”

  • Karina Smirnoff: Judges Give Corbin “Tough Love”

    Karina Smirnoff and her celebrity dance partner Corbin Bleu have managed to work their way into the top five on “Dancing With The Stars”, despite the fact that the judges seem to be a little harder on them than the other contestants.

    Smirnoff commented recently on the judges, saying they “leave no room for error” when it comes to her and Bleu, possibly because he has a dance background.

    “I think when Carrie Ann mentioned something in the waltz that he wasn’t on his center … I went back and watched that over and over again, and I was like, gosh darnit. That’s what cost us a 10?” Smirnoff said. “They leave no room for error for us. I remember, for the last several weeks, it was us and Elizabeth and Val at the studio, always leaving last. And I’m thinking, how the heck does everybody get ready so fast? Are we that slow? But you know, I just don’t want to leave anything to chance because the judges do give him a lot of tough love.”

    The professional dancer said she was excited for them to do the “Game Of Thrones” routine they’d worked so hard on, but it seemed like the judges were looking for something else. Going into the finals, they’ll stick to what everyone knows, just to be on the safe side.

    “With the Game of Thrones [dance], we learned that the judges don’t particularly like thinking outside the box, and they would much rather prefer sticking to the traditional ideas. And coming to the quarterfinal week … we decided that maybe we shouldn’t risk it and do a traditional waltz the way waltz is expected to be done,” she said.

    Image: YouTube

  • Karina Smirnoff Dating Owen Wilson?

    Recently, there have been various rumors spreading that Karina Smirnoff, a Dancing With The Stars pro dancer, has been dating Wedding Crashers lead Owen Wilson. News of this supposed relationship started to surface right after Smirnoff divorced Brad Penny, a pitcher for the Detroit Tigers baseball team.

    The rumors of Smirnoff and Owen started to circulate when a source reported to Life & Style Magazine and published an article stating that “They’ve been out a few times” and “They’re totally into each other.”

    With all of these rumors starting to surface around the entertainment industry (and online), a close connection of Karina Smirnoff tells E! News that the rumors are false. The close connection to Smirnoff states…

    “There is nothing there. They ran into each other once randomly. They are friends but not dating at all.”

    Some tweets on Twitter are starting to formulate pertaining to these rumors (mostly spreading the news that the rumors are false), but there have been a few eyebrow-raising ones (provided below).

    @DNR_Rogo
    DesigNate Robertson    Karina Smirnoff denies that she’s dating Owen Wilson. Meanwhile, no word on if Brad Penny’s seeing the girl from “Growing Pains” yet. 1 day ago via web ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    @Joyce_Middleton
    Joyce Middleton    I thought Karina was engaged! http://t.co/YAOAdiqH 2 hours ago via Seesmic twhirl ·  Reply ·  Retweet ·  Favorite · powered by @socialditto

    Karina Smirnoff will soon be back in the public eye next week when she dances with pop star Gavin DeGraw on Dancing With The Stars Season 14 when it airs Monday @ 8/7c on ABC.