Fan Fare

Eyes turn to Lil’ Kim’s costume on “Dancing”

Rap star Lil’ Kim had a near wardrobe malfunction on “Dancing with the Stars” Monday night that forced host Tom Bergeron to stand between her and the judges as she adjusted her top while judge Len Goodman critiqued her performance. It was quick, which has led to speculation about how much the rapper, who is known for sexually explicit lyrics, might have actually shown to viewers of the ABC program?

The accident happened after Lil’ Kim and her professional dancing partner Derek Hough performed a jive dance to the tune of “Jailhouse Rock,” a song made famous by Elvis Presley in 1957.  The performance was slightly ironic, since Kim was sentenced to prison for a year in 2005 following her conviction on conspiracy and perjury charges for lying to a grand jury about her friends’ involvement in a 2001 shooting.

Her “wardrobe malfunction” on Monday night’s “Dancing with the Stars” called to mind singer Janet Jackson’s half-time show at the 2004 Super Bowl, when Jackson upset many viewers by exposing a breast at the end of a performance with Justin Timberlake. Jackson blamed it on a “wardrobe malfunction,” but at the time it looked more like a publicity stunt gone awfully wrong and it angered many viewers. Lil’ Kim’s apparent gaff was edited out for “Dancing” viewers on the West Coast.

Derek Hough joked with US Weekly that his partner ”desperately tried to pull a Janet Jackson,” but Lil’ Kim interrupted him during the interview. “Don’t say that!” she said. “That’s a whole other show! I’d have to get paid a lot, a lot of money!” 

Lil’ Kim and Derek Hough got a judges score of 28 out of 30 for their dancing. But will her costume problems hurt her chances with the show’s voters? Or will it help? The show’s elimination round is Tuesday.

Elsewhere on ”Dancing,” French actor Gilles Marini told E! News that when he is finished competing on the show he will undergo surgery for a separated shoulder suffered during his run as a contestant. “I don’t really like to talk about it,” Marini told E! News. “I don’t want people to pity me.” Marini’s shoulder problem was one of several injuries this season on “Dancing,” which has lead to speculation of a “curse” affecting contestants.

Steve-O looks to bounce back on “Dancing with the Stars”

Expect stunt-performer Steve-O back on “Dancing with the Stars” on Tuesday night’s show, despite falling on his back during a rehearsal for Monday night’s episode. On his blog on Tuesday, the “Jackass” star showed a picture of the swelling on his back, where he landed on his mic pack during rehearsal with his professional dancing partner, Lacey Schwimmer. 

“With 20/20 hindsight, I must admit that I exercised very poor judgment last night,” Steve-O wrote. “Jumping flat onto a bad back with a microphone pack strapped to it was sensationally idiotic, especially after Lacey told me what a bad idea she thought it was.”

Before he performed the on-camera stunt, Steve-O was already suffering from back spasms. But evidently, he thought slamming his back onto the ballroom floor might impress the judges. But they were non-plussed by the stunt, and did not care for his dancing. After watching the rehearsal on video, as allowed by the rules, the judges gave Steve-O a score of 14 out of 30.

Steve-O, whose real name is Stephen Glover, starred in a reality show called “Jackass” on MTV that involved him doing crazy stunts and pranks, and he has starred in a couple “Jackass” movies. In one display of how “Jackass” his stunts can be, he previously stapled his scrotum to his thigh in an act he called “The Butterfly.”

A spokeswoman for the show’s network, ABC, said Steve-O would be back on the show on Tuesday night.

The performer is not the only “Dancing with the Stars” contestant to suffer injuries this season. Before the season premiere earlier this month, singer Jewel and celebrity journalist Nancy O’Dell were scratched as contestants because of knee and leg injuries. And contestants Steve Wozniak and Gilles Marini have also suffered some injuries.

It seems on “Dancing with the Stars,” you don’t have to be a shock stunt performer to get hurt.

The “curse” continues on “Dancing with the Stars”

Three more contestants on the ABC show “Dancing with the Stars” nursed injuries on Friday as they steeled themselves for their appearance on the show next week. Dance floor casualties Steve-O, Steve Wozniak and Gilles Marini are all hurting, but they want to stay on, according to media reports.

Steve-O, a daredevil stunt man who starred in the television series “Jackass,” has complained of an on-going back injury. Wozniak, who co-founded Apple Computer Inc, was photographed earlier this week leaving a Los Angeles dance studio with a cast on his leg. Marini, a French-born actor who starred in last year’s movie “Sex and the City,” has said he separated his shoulder. It remains to be seen on Monday’s episode if all three contestants will follow through on their pledges to soldier on.

This comes after two original contestants, the singer Jewel and the celebrity journalist Nancy O’Dell, were scratched from the show before the premiere episode last Monday with knee and leg injuries. Former Playboy model Holly Madison and “Bachelor” star Melissa Rycroft replaced the two contestants.  

Media reports have described all the injuries as a continuation of the “curse” that supposedly plagues the show, now in its eighth season. (Who could forget Marie Osmond’s collapse on the ballroom floor or Julianne Hough’s appendicitis and endometriosis?) Another possible explanation is that many Americans are simply out of shape, so the rigors of performing on a show with pirouettes, jumps and dizzying footwork could be too much for the average body to take.

Who else will the show’s “curse” claim? Surely the pain will continue, at least for some contestants. The show has sparked a popular interest in ballroom dancing, but it may want to adopt the disclaimer “don’t try this at home.”