Dancing with the Stars - The First 8 Seasons

I am all about dancing I truly enjoy it and have since I started dancing as a little girl. My dance of choice is tap dancing as I have talked about in a previous hub Tap Dancing – My Secret Love. I am not the best dancer in the world but to me it’s all about fun and enjoying what you are doing, I also enjoy watching and learning different styles of dance. Which might be why I enjoy watching the competition in Dancing with the Stars, of course, I also enjoy watching different stars fumble their way through the difficult routines.

The latest season of Dancing with the Stars just wrapped up and its time to look forward to the next season. Only time will tell which stars will be asked to make an appearance for Season Eight of DWTS. Dancing with the Stars has a huge following in this country as well as internationally where the show originates from. Dancing with the Stars is based on the British reality series Strictly Come Dancing. Dancing with the Stars is a chance for celebrities to be partnered with professional dancers in a competition of different forms of dance. There are three judges who score the dances and that combined with the viewers’ votes helps to decide the winner; those with the lowest votes are eliminated until a winner is crowned.

HOST:

Tom Bergeron was born May 6, 1955 in Haverhill, Massachusetts and is a well known host of a variety of shows.

JUDGES:

Len Goodman – was born April 1944 in London, England and is a professional dancer.

Carrie Ann Inaba – was born January 5, 1968 in Honolulu, Hawaii and is a dancer. Carrie Ann studied choreography at the University of California, Irvine and one of her first jobs was as a dancer on In Living Color.

Bruno Tonioli – was born November 25, 1955 in Ferrara, Italy is a professional dancer and choreographer.

PROFESSIONAL DANCERS:

Alec Mazo is a Russian-born American professional ballroom dancer and latin dancer based in San Francisco and is married to Edyta Sliwinska.

Anna Trebunskaya is a Russian-born American professional ballroom dancer and is married to Jonathan Roberts.

Ashly DelGrosso was born July 9, 1982 in Denver, Colorado and is a professional dancer.

Charlotte Jørgensen was born in 1972 and is a Danish ballroom dancer.

Cheryl Burke was born May 3, 1984 in San Francisco, California and is a two time winner on Dancing with the Stars.

Derek Hough was born May 17, 1985 in Salt Lake City, Utah and is an American dancer and choreographer and brother of Julianne Hough.

Edyta Śliwińska was born May 6, 1981 in Warsaw, Poland and is a professional ballroom dancer. Śliwińska's husband and professional partner in dance competitions is Alec Mazo.

Jonathan Roberts was born April 20, 1974 and is a professional ballroom dancer and married to Anna Trebunskaya.

Julianne Hough was born July 20, 1988 in Provo, Utah and is a professional ballroom dancer and country music singer. Hough is also a two time winner on Dancing with the Stars.

Karina Smirnoff was born March 13, 1978 and is a world champion professional dancer from Kharkiv, Ukraine.

Kym Johnson was born in 1976 and is an Australian former professional ballroom dancer, model, and television celebrity.

Lacey Schwimmer was born June 28, 1988 in Moreno Valley, California and is a competitive ballroom dancer.

Mark Ballas was born May 24, 1986 in Houston, Texas and is a professional ballroom dancer.

Maksim Chmerkovskiy was born on January 17, 1980 in Odessa, in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic of the former USSR and is a Ukrainian Latin Ballroom dance champion, choreographer, and instructor.

Tony Dovolani was born July 17, 1973 in Pristina, Yugoslavia and is a professional ballroom dancer.

STARS:

WINNER - Season 1

Kelly Monaco & Alec Mazo

Kelly Monaco was born May 23, 1976 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She was a Playboy Playmate of the Month in April 1997 and starred on Baywatch, Port Charles and GeneralHospital.

RUNNERS-UP - Season 1

John O'Hurley & Charlotte Jørgensen

John O'Hurley was born October 9, 1954 in Kittery, Maine. O’Hurley is an Actor who got his start on Soap Operas, had a regular role on Seinfeld as J. Peterman and has hosted game shows and done voice work for cartoon character.

Joey McIntyre & Ashly DelGrosso

Joey McIntyre was born December 31, 1972 in Needham, Massachusetts and is a member of the boy band New Kids On The Block.

WINNER - Season 2

Drew Lachey & Cheryl Burke

Drew Lachey was born August 8, 1976 in Cincinnati, Ohio and is a member of the boy band 98 Degrees as well as the younger brother of Nick Lachey

RUNNERS-UP - Season 2

Jerry Rice & Anna Trebunskaya

Jerry Rice was born October 13, 1962 in Crawford, Mississippi and is a former NFL football wide receiver with the San Francisco 49ers, the Oakland Raiders and the Seattle Seahawks.

Stacy Keibler & Tony Dovolani

Stacy Keibler was born October 14, 1979 in Baltimore, Maryland. Keibler began her professional wrestling career as a part of the Nitro Girls in WCW until WCW was taken over by WWE.

WINNER Season - 3

Emmitt Smith & Cheryl Burke

Emmitt Smith was born May 15, 1969 in Pensacola, Florida and is an American Football player for the Dallas Cowboys and the Arizona Cardinals and also a three time Super Bowl Champion.

RUNNERS-UP - Season 3

Mario Lopez & Karina Smirnoff

Mario Lopez was born October 10, 1973 in San Diego, California he is best known for his role as A.C. Slater on the television show Saved by the Bell.

Joey Lawrence & Edyta Śliwińska

Joey Lawrence was born April 20, 1972 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Lawrence is best know for his roles on Gimme A Break and Blossom.

WINNER - Season 4

Apolo Anton Ohno & Julianne Hough

Apolo Anton Ohno was born on May 22, 1982 in Seattle, Washington and is an American speed skater as well as a five-time medalist in the Winter Olympics.

RUNNERS-UP - Season 4

Joey Fatone & Kym Johnson

Joey Fatone was born January 28, 1977 in Brooklyn, New York and is a member of the boy band 'N Sync.

Laila Ali & Maksim Chmerkovskiy

Laila Ali was born December 30, 1977 in Miami Beach, Florida and is a professional boxer as well as the daughter of boxing great Muhammad Ali.

WINNER - Season 5

Hélio Castroneves & Julianne Hough

Hélio Castroneves was born May 10, 1975 in São Paulo, Brazil. Castroneves is a Brazilian auto racing driver currently competing in the North American IndyCar Series.

RUNNERS-UP - Season 5

Mel B & Maksim Chmerkovskiy

Mel B was born May 29, 1975 in (1975-05-29)inininWest Yorkshire, England she is also one of the members of the girl group the Spice Girls.

Marie Osmond & Jonathan Roberts

Marie Osmond was born October 13, 1959, in Ogden, Utah. Osmond is a singer and actress.

WINNER - Season 6

Kristi Yamaguchi & Mark Ballas

Kristi Yamaguchi was born July 12, 1971 in Hayward, California and is an American figure skater and the 1992 Olympic Champion in women's singles.

RUNNERS-UP - Season 6

Jason Taylor & Edyta Śliwińska

Jason Taylor was born September 1, 1974 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and is an American football defensive end for the Washington Redskins and the Miami Dolphins.

Cristián de la Fuente & Cheryl Burke

Cristián de la Fuente was born March 10, 1974 in SantiagoChile and is a Chilean model and actor.

WINNER - Season 7

Brooke Burke & Derek Hough

Brooke Burke was born September 8, 1971 in Hartford, Connecticut and is a television personality and model, known for hosting the shows Wild On! and Rock Star.

RUNNERS-UP - Season 7

Warren Sapp & Kym Johnson

Warren Sapp was born December 19, 1972 in Orlando, Florida is a retired American football player who played defensive tackle for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Oakland Raiders.

Lance Bass & Lacey Schwimmer

Lance Bass was born May 4, 1979 in Laurel, Mississippi and is a member of the boy band 'N Sync.

WINNER - Season 8

Shawn Johnson & Mark Ballas

Shawn Johnson was born January 19, 1992 in Des Moines, Iowa and is a Gold Medal Gymnast.

RUNNERS-UP - Season 8

Gilles Marini & Cheryl Burke

Gilles Marini was born January 26, 1976 in France and is best known as an actor in the movie Sex and the City and the television show Brothers & Sisters.

Melissa Rycroft & Tony Dovolani

Melissa Rycroft was born March 11, 1983 in Dallas, Texas and is best known as a reality television star on The Bachelor.

Now that you are up to date on the winners of the first 8 Seasons you can go out and dance yourselves, there are different ways you can take dance classes and learn new dances from your local community centers to your local dance studios. Dancing is fun and a great way to get into or stay in shape so what are you waiting for?