Pamela Anderson, Bristol Palin, Kelly Monaco, and Melissa Rycroft are among the competitors coming back for Dancing With the Stars' upcoming all-star season, and I recently chatted with the ladies about their big return to the show. The women talked about what they're most excited to return to, what they're least excited about, and who their biggest competitors are. Check out what they have to say before the 15th season begins next week.
Welcome to the latest addition to The Bachelor franchise: Bachelor Pad. Premiering tonight, the series brings back 19 former contestants from the reality show to compete in challenges for the chance to win money — and dates. Not only will the men and women be living under one roof, but they'll even be sleeping in the same room (oh, brother). Melissa Rycroft joins Bachelor regular Chris Harrison to host, and she promises plenty of drama. Here's my early prognosis:
For the rest of my predictions and a preview video of tonight's debut, just read more
Fresh off a long day of panels, the stars of ABC and Disney kept the TCA party going last night at the Beverly Hilton. Matthew Perry cracked us up at the Q & A session, after which he mingled with Busy Philipps and his new costar Andrea Anders. Cougar Town's Josh Hopkins revealed that Jennifer Aniston will definitely be guest starring in an episode early on in season two! My Generation's Mehcad Brooks spoke at length about how much this role means to him and while he's lagged on watching, he still has lots of love for True Blood and wishes the cast the best. Joanna Garcia looked hot in her Michael Kors dress and her beautiful engagement ring completed the look — stay tuned for our exclusive interview with her! Autumn Reeser and Julie Benz were both sporting nude Brian Atwood pumps, which was Autumn's first expensive shoe purchase at her No Ordinary Family costar Julie's suggestion. The cast of Modern Family graciously accepted all the praise for their hit series as they gear up for the Emmys later this month. Follow all the updates from the press tour on Pop and Buzz on Twitter!
To see more from the ABC party, just read more
Melissa Rycroft stopped by the TCA in LA yesterday to talk about Bachelor Pad where she was glowing and happy to gush about her newly announced pregnancy! Melissa also dished about who she thinks Ali will pick tonight and the advice she has for their relationship going forward. She joked about her husband's love of being on camera, though it's going to take some convincing for her put her family — or her baby's birth — on reality TV. Here are quotes:
Congratulations on the pregnancy, are you excited?
Melissa Rycroft: Very excited! Life has thrown some curve balls this past year. [It was not planned] at all. We were going to enjoy being newlyweds . . . but life's been fun lately with lots of traveling and trips. Just he and I getting some quality time. Ideally, we were talking about waiting three to four years, but it came much quicker. So you just kind of change your path of life and take it in that new direction. [Newlywed life is] great. It's so much fun. It's every cliche that everyone talks about: rainbows and butterflies and unicorns. You've always got your best friend around. It's a comforting feeling. I love it.
Does the pregnancy affect Bachelor Pad?
MR: Thankfully, it doesn't affect the show at all. If we were planning this, we couldn't have planned it any better, timing around the schedule of it all. Bachelor Pad was shot this Summer and it will be again next Summer, which completely misses seeing me pregnant, having me pregnant, any of that. So time-wise it really worked out perfectly.
Do you have a favorite for Ali to pick tomorrow night?
MR: Well, either Chris or Roberto! I don't know. I think one of the best things about Bachelor is that whoever you want to win at the beginning is never the person that wins. To me honestly, Frank was my front-runner. They seemed like they had great chemistry and got along and he's out of the picture now. So there's Chris who I really like. He just seems like a sweet guy and his backstory really tugs at your heartstrings and you just want to see him happy. Then you've got Roberto, who she just can't seem to keep her hands off of. So I have no idea who she's going to pick. None.
To read the rest of Melissa's interview, just read more
The road to love has been a long one for Melissa Rycroft after the incident during her time on The Bachelor, but since she got together with Tye Strickland it's been smooth sailing for the pair. The happy couple were married in a sunset ceremony on the beach in Mexico last Saturday surrounded by family and friends. The bride wore a gown by Alfred Angelo. This December wedding was a bit too late to make our favorite of 2009 poll, but it looks gorgeous. Click through to see the pair on their special day!
Former Bachelor and Dancing With the Stars contestant Melissa Rycroft isn't too concerned with the planning aspect of her wedding, but she's already thinking about her wedding-day physique. She told People, "I've heard the stress alone of planning a wedding helps you get into shape for it, so we'll see if I need to stress myself out a little bit to lose that extra pound!"
Stress has been known to have the opposite effect on some people who are more apt to put on stress-induced pounds. How does your body react?
If you're following this season of Dancing With the Stars, you've probably noticed the dancers' amazingly toned and strong bodies in their sexy and revealing costumes. If you're wondering how they stay fit and lean, here are some of the dieting secrets they shared in a recent issue of Us Weekly.
Melissa Rycroft says, "I eat what I like in moderation and try to have a few small meals throughout the day."
Julianne Hough says, "I eat only until I'm full." She eats five small meals throughout the day, and during the show she tries to cut out carbs and sweets. She doesn't restrict herself entirely, though, and says, "If I want to have dessert, I'll have it. I know I'll work it off."
Shawn Johnson loads up on fruit and protein, but if she has an urge for chocolate she says, "I'll satisfy my craving and move on." She stays slim and muscular by dancing eight hours a day.
Denise Richards trained with her partner Makism Chmerkovsky and got her abs back after having two kids. She went from a size 26 waist to a 24 from all that training, and was still eating pizza and ice cream. To see how the other dancers stay trim, read more
People are still buzzing about the controversial conclusion to this season of The Bachelor, and this morning I hopped on a call with the show's executive producer and creator, Mike Fleiss, who took questions from reporters on how it all went down. Fleiss defended his decision to tape the heartbreaking postfinale episode — in which Jason dumped Melissa, to whom he'd previously proposed, and rekindled things with Molly — in the studio, saying that because Jason's feelings for Melissa involved another person from the "Bachelor universe," producers felt compelled to tell a complete story on air. "We are making a TV show," he said. "Not putting that moment on TV seemed strange."
One of the most interesting things Fleiss said was that he didn't believe Melissa was blindsided the night of that taping in terms of her relationship ending with Jason — "They were all but broken up prior to the show" — but she was shocked by Jason's feelings for Molly ("That's what caught her off guard"). That said, Fleiss said he didn't know why Melissa would walk on the stage wearing her engagement ring if she really thought things were over with Jason. He also said Molly had no idea that Jason was going to announce his feelings for her that night: She thought they were just doing the typical final show where previous contestants give the audience updates on how they're feeling and what they've been up to.
For more of Fleiss's take, including his response to a report that Jason was obligated to dump Melissa on TV, read more
