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Nancy Grace
"Dancing With the Stars" Special
Aired December 23, 2011 - 20:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: J.R. and Karina!
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Your first mirror ball trophy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you very much.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You`ve made no secret of the fact you wanted to...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dance with a Chmerkovskiy?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Check that off the bucket list.
NANCY GRACE, HOST: I`ve been teaching Tristan how to dance now for months.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I`ve got a partner that is so committed.
J.R. MARTINEZ, "DANCING WITH THE STARS" SEASON 13 WINNER: I was injured in Iraq, but I survived, overcame the odds and I became an actor. But now I`m ready to become a ballroom dancer.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you for voting for us. Thank you for supporting us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE: Good evening. I`m Nancy Grace. I want to thank you for being with us. Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah. Happy holidays all around. Tonight, a break from missing people and unsolved homicides. Tonight, focus on fun, F-U-N, fun. That`s a technical legal term. With us tonight, taking your calls, an all-star line-up of famous dance pros, stars and experimental guinea pigs that our pros instruct on ballroom dance live.
Bombshell tonight! It`s a dance-off! With us, fan favorite Carson Kressley, dancing phenoms, brothers Maks and Val Chmerkovskiy, dancing star Tony Dovolani, season 13 winners J.R. Martinez and Karina Smirnoff, and of course, my partner, the best dancer in the word, Tristan McManus. And finally, I`m going to teach poor Maks Chmerkovskiy how to dance. Poor thing. He needs help. I`m going to help him. And maybe you can give him some dancing tips since we`re taking your calls.
First of all, let`s go straight out to J.R. Martinez and Karina Smirnoff. They are the season 13 mirror ball winners. Hi, guys! Thanks for being with us!
MARTINEZ: Hi, Nancy. And also, I want to say feliz navidad! And how you say it in Russian?
KARINA SMIRNOFF, "DANCING WITH THE STARS" SEASON 13 WINNER: S rozhdestvom.
MARTINEZ: Hey, you forgot those, too. Come on, Nancy.
GRACE: Oh! Karina, that sounds kind of nasty when you say it that way! Grr! All right, first of all, it`s great to see you guys back together. The last time I saw you, J.R., you had your hand up in the air. You were holding the mirror ball that really should have been mine. And Karina, you had on practically nothing. You had some ribbons down the front of your body. I don`t know to bring that up. It`s probably very embarrassing for you. There you go!
But the big bombshell tonight is -- please put the camera on J.R. Martinez, war hero, TV star. There he is! Is it true that there`s going to be a mirror ball baby? What am I hearing about a baby?
MARTINEZ: There is. There is. There is. Diana actually -- we found out right before the premiere, and of course, my mindset was kind of -- I was excited and I was happy but I was focused on, you know, the season and trying to do the best that I could. You know, as Karina and everyone else said, it goes by so fast.
But now that everything`s kind of in some way kind of slowed down, now it`s time to say, OK, you know what? Let`s share the exciting news. And it`s -- we`ve got a lot of good feedback from it and people are just excited for us. And so...
GRACE: Wait a minute! Stop.
MARTINEZ: You know...
GRACE: Whoa! Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait. J.R., are you telling me that you knew about the baby during season 13, but you wanted to focus on your dancing? Did I just hear that? Because that`s way wrong on so many levels. But is that what you just said?
(LAUGHTER)
MARTINEZ: I did say that. That is -- that is a direct quote...
GRACE: You`re laughing.
MARTINEZ: ... from J.R. Martinez. It`s true, though, but I mean, because, like, it`s, like -- it`s, like, you wait until, you know, the first trimester and make sure everything`s good. And then, you know, by that time, it was, like, OK, we didn`t want the direction and the attention to be pulled away from, you know, what was at hand. And you know, we figured the time would come, the appropriate time where it would actually be able to be focused on...
GRACE: All right, J.R....
MARTINEZ: ... a very exciting thing.
GRACE: ... since you didn`t ask -- since you didn`t ask, I`ve got a lot of parenting advice for you.
(LAUGHTER)
GRACE: OK, Karina Smirnoff, I want to hear everything you`ve been doing since you dragged J.R. to victory, all right, because I was in your group dance. Liz, please pull up the insane asylum outfit. And we watched you coming up with a dance. Of course, that other team won that night due to poor, poor judges. But...
(CROSSTALK)
SMIRNOFF: ... Nancy, first of all. Team Paso. Exactly! But to J.R.`s defense, in the beginning of the season, when he found out that Diana and him were expecting, actually, he made every appointment. Some of the rehearsals had to be pushed back. So he was fully in it, it`s just he kept it quiet. But now it`s congratulations, so happy for him. Hopefully, the baby girl is going to have a lot of dancing moments in her life.
MARTINEZ: She`s going to teach her how to dance.
(LAUGHTER)
SMIRNOFF: Yes! And after this show has been, you know, taking time...
GRACE: You know what?
SMIRNOFF: ... enjoy his family...
GRACE: I just...
SMIRNOFF: Yes?
GRACE: I just can`t think of a better way to start the new year and a merrier Christmas and happier holidays than J.R., the winner of season 13, having a beautiful baby. So first of all, we`re happy for you.
MARTINEZ: Thank you, Nancy.
GRACE: So happy.
MARTINEZ: Thank you. When...
GRACE: Now, you know what?
MARTINEZ: ... I heard it was a girl...
GRACE: Let`s bring in...
MARTINEZ: ... I thought God was saying karma (ph)...
(LAUGHTER)
MARTINEZ: ... like, I`m going to show you what it`s like (INAUDIBLE)
GRACE: It`s all going to come back on you. All right, so J.R., Karina, now we`re bringing in our pros, all right? Now, Karina, isn`t it true, as Tristan once told me, that really, the male dancers really don`t have that much to do, that they are the frame -- I believe you did say this, Tristan, so quit looking around like you don`t know what I`m saying...
SMIRNOFF: (INAUDIBLE) celebrity male dancers (INAUDIBLE)
GRACE: ... that the men are the frame and the women dancer is the picture, all right? So the men can basically stand there and, quote, "look strong," while the women do all the work, all right?
CARSON KRESSLEY, "DANCING WITH THE STARS": That totally worked for me.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: Yes, Carson, but -- you stood around and looked strong the whole time?
KRESSLEY: Well, you know, that`s kind of my strong suit. I mean, I was just -- sometimes I would show them the guns -- go ahead, touch it.
GRACE: Go ahead, Maks. Don`t be afraid...
(CROSSTALK)
MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY, "DANCING WITH THE STARS": I`m trying to find it. I`m trying to find it.
KRESSLEY: I`m not that delicate. But yes, that`s kind of what I did.
GRACE: OK, Maks, to you. Is it true that the man just has to stand there and look good? And I`m not going to bring up the time that you dropped a star on the floor during a so-called lift. I`m not going to even touch that because I know you don`t want to talk about that. But is it true the man just has to stand there and look strong?
MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY: Not really. But I think what...
GRACE: OK, well, what did you do, other than look strong?
MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY: ... Tristan -- what Tristan was referring to is that male celebrities have a little bit of an easier time.
GRACE: Did you hear that, J.R.?
MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY: But it is what it is.
GRACE: I think he`s starting something up with you.
TRISTAN MCMANUS, "DANCING WITH THE STARS": Now I have to defend myself?
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: OK, first of all, are you coming back for season 14, Maks Chmerkovskiy?
MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY: Are you asking me?
GRACE: Season 14.
KRESSLEY: I thought you were talking to me, and I was, like, Sure, you know?
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: ... and I already signed up to do the all-stars with the fan favorites, all right?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are we going to do the all-stars?
GRACE: Yes. Totally. OK, Maks, are you coming back for 14? Yes, no, maybe.
MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY: I am selecting as my spokesperson Carson Kressley.
GRACE: OK. OK.
KRESSLEY: We`re taking it under advisement, Nancy.
GRACE: All right, Val...
(CROSSTALK)
(LAUGHTER)
GRACE: Val, season 14?
VAL CHMERKOVSKIY, "DANCING WITH THE STARS": Sure, I would love to be a part of it.
GRACE: OK. Have they invited you back?
VAL CHMERKOVSKIY: (INAUDIBLE)
GRACE: Now, what week did you get thrown off in season 13?
VAL CHMERKOVSKIY: You know what week (INAUDIBLE)
GRACE: I bet that hurt. Ouch. All right...
VAL CHMERKOVSKIY: I know it hurt me.
GRACE: OK, over here. Over here, Tris. Are you coming back for season 14?
MCMANUS: I don`t know.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: OK, for all of you guys that are watching tonight, if you want these pros back, you got to go right on line and you got to start telling "Dancing With the Stars" season 14 who you want to come back. Otherwise, Tristan says he`s going to be laying brick in Ireland, and I don`t want that to happen.
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
KRESSLEY: Can we film that, please?
GRACE: OK, Carson...
KRESSLEY: I`m probably not coming back for season 14. They haven`t asked met yet.
GRACE: But -- whoa! Is it true there`s going to be a Vegas act? Out to you J.R. and Karina. We`ve all heard about that. And where does the baby fit in with the Vegas act, J.R.?
MARTINEZ: A Vegas act? I guess this is where the...
GRACE: Yes. We hear that you and Karina...
(CROSSTALK)
MARTINEZ: ... I only heard so much.
(LAUGHTER)
SMIRNOFF: It was supposed to be a surprise, Nancy, I think.
GRACE: Don`t use that as an excuse anymore, J.R.!
MARTINEZ: What?
(LAUGHTER)
GRACE: Go ahead, Karina.
SMIRNOFF: No, I think there were rumors about maybe "Dancing With the Stars" doing a show in Vegas, but at this point, we don`t know anything. And we would be excited to do both season 14 and Vegas show all at the same time.
MARTINEZ: I`m having dancing withdrawals. I want to dance again. I really do.
(CROSSTALK)
MARTINEZ: I do miss it. I want to dance, Rob Kardashian. I love to dance.
GRACE: OK, you know what, J.R.? You`ve done a lot of interviews since you won the mirror ball. And everyone here on the set wants to know if the baby was conceived the night of your mirror ball win. But you`re telling me that you already knew about the baby, so I`m just going to forego that question.
MARTINEZ: It was conceived...
GRACE: But I want to hear...
MARTINEZ: ... when I found out...
GRACE: ... what you did...
MARTINEZ: ... I was going to be on "Dancing With the Stars."
GRACE: ... what you did the night -- what did you do the night that you won? How did you and Karina celebrate?
MARTINEZ: We ran to our trailer. We packed up our stuff. We jumped on a plane and flew with everybody else to New York. And...
SMIRNOFF: We had a great party on the plane, though...
MARTINEZ: Yes.
SMIRNOFF: ... with Derrick (ph), like, doing the beats as if we`re in a European nightclub and...
MARTINEZ: Carson was on the plane and Carson actually did the...
SMIRNOFF: Safety instructions.
MARTINEZ: ... the safety briefing.
KRESSLEY: I was the flight attendant.
MARTINEZ: Yes. He was the flight attendant, yes.
KRESSLEY: Leave it to the gay guy to be the flight attendant! I was doing a lot of -- when I was doing the security announcement, I was actually doing, like, Rob Kardashian cha-cha hands (ph).
(LAUGHTER)
GRACE: You know, speaking of Kardashian, his mother has tried to get me to influence him to go to law school. I sent him all the information about USC admissions, the LSAT, even a private tutor. His mother wrote me back, Kardashian is too busy playing Gameboy to even focus on his law school career. Thoughts? Do you think he`s going to give it all up and be a professional dancer?
KRESSLEY: Maybe.
GRACE: OK.
KRESSLEY: I thought he was quite good.
GRACE: Onward and upward.
KRESSLEY: Yes. Wasn`t he?
GRACE: Do you guys select -- select your partner?
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: I`m sure that you did. I heard that you did and (INAUDIBLE) threw a big fit.
MCMANUS: I did. I actually asked to not have you...
GRACE: Well, I actually asked to have Maks.
MCMANUS: I know you did!
(CROSSTALK)
KRESSLEY: That`s so weird!
MCMANUS: I turned up for the first day rehearsing, she`s, like, You`re not Maks.
GRACE: But that was before I knew you had a little brother.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: That kind of changed everything.
MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY: This happens to everybody. They`re all, like, I want Val. What?
GRACE: I heard you wanted Nicole Scherzinger (ph).
MAKSIM CHMERKOVSKIY: What, I wanted Nicole Scherzinger?
GRACE: Yes, or that you insisted on having a pussycat (ph) doll (ph). Is that true?
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: What, an Olympian isn`t good enough for you?
KRESSLEY: Well, he had asked for me.
GRACE: Oh, you asked for Carson.
KRESSLEY: And I has asked for him. That`s what`s so shocking that we didn`t wind up with each other.
GRACE: Tristan...
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: ... you do or you do not ask for partners?
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: What, you just reach in a pot and you pick one?
KRESSLEY: Now we`re together.
(CROSSTALK)
KRESSLEY: I mean, no together, but sitting next to each other. So I`ll take it.
GRACE: How do you make a choice between these three, Carson? That`s my big question tonight.
KRESSLEY: Why choose, OK?
(LAUGHTER)
KRESSLEY: Why not just have them all, OK? I`ve danced with everyone on this -- well, we`re going to dance later, and then there was that night at Scores (ph) and then there was, of course, you and I in the finale, which was pure magic. But anyway, I don`t want to bring this back to me. Go ahead, Nancy. This is your show.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I mean, not as much as Nancy Grace.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But still, this is going to be water cooler talk tomorrow, so don`t move.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: Welcome back, everybody. Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah. Happy holidays. Tonight, a break from missing people and unsolved homicides. I`m here with dancing phenomenon Maks Chmerkovskiy. Hey, that feels good, but stop. I`ve got to dance.
Everybody, we are live tonight from Dance With Me dance studios. This is Maks`s and Val`s and their family`s dance studio here in Soho, in Manhattan. And they also have studios in Long Island, New York, New Jersey, and they`re very kindly letting us perform our show here tonight.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We had no choice. You ambushed us.
(LAUGHTER)
GRACE: Thank you. So Carson, do you think anybody remembers their moves?
KRESSLEY: I don`t remember mine. Do you guys -- do you remember yours or yours?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no. (INAUDIBLE)
KRESSLEY: You probably do.
GRACE: You know, you look like you`re lying. So I`m challenging you to a dance-off. Come on.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my God.
(CROSSTALK)
KRESSLEY: Well, that leaves you and me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Welcome to my life. No, no, no!
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`d prefer if you didn`t.
(CROSSTALK)
KRESSLEY: ... background, anyway.
MCMANUS: I`m looking forward to seeing this now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: Welcome back, everybody. Merry Christmas. Happy holidays. Happy Hanukkah. Tonight, a break from unsolved homicides and missing people. And we`re focusing on fun. That`s a technical legal term.
We re taking your calls. And to help us do this tonight, right now a special presentation by Val Chmerkovskiy, who`s won practically every major tournament on the globe -- two-time world champ, 14-time U.S. champ -- and Daria Chesnokova, three time U.S. champ. Oh, my stars! What a long list - - British Open, you saw her on season 13.
Let`s see if they still have their moves.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Should I hit it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hit it, Carson!
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: Welcome back, everybody. Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah and happy holidays all around. We`re joining you live from Maks Chmerkovskiy`s SoHo studio Dance With Me. And we just had Val and Dario dance. It was beautiful. But you know what, you didn`t teach me how to shake my booty.
KRESSLEY: We`re just going to do one move.
M. CHMERKOVSKIY: Are you ready?
KRESSLEY: Yes, I`m ready. Yes. Let`s do it.
GRACE: OK, Carson just proved quote, he`s still got it.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: Joining me right now is dancing sensation Tony Dovolani. Tony, thank you for being with us.
TONY DOVOLANI: My pleasure.
GRACE: OK, Tony, where exactly are you right now?
DOVOLANI: Right now I`m on a Disney cruise the Dream with my kids and the family.
GRACE: Tony, you were so great during the season. When you`re on "Dancing with the Stars," you`re out in L.A. and your family is back east at home, right? This has got to be very hard, huh?
DOVOLANI: It`s very difficult, but I always think that I`m working for the family. So even though I`m away from them, they are never so far away from my heart. We`re constantly in touch also. My wife has been great about bringing my kids out to L.A. every three weeks.
GRACE: You were seeing Tony dancing right now with Chynna, who is just an absolutely beautiful dancer. Hey, Liz, re-rack the scene where Tony comes down from the ceiling in that "Mission Impossible" routine. There`s another good one. So Tony, how hard did you and Chynna have to work to come up with those routines?
DOVOLANI: It was very hard, actually. We were doing five to six hours every day. Chynna was a hard worker, but the only thing that she did is she was so hard on herself, that sometimes she wouldn`t let go of mistakes, and that`s exactly what got her.
GRACE: You know, what a great dancer and you a great instructor. Tony, what would you say is the hardest thing about competing on "Dancing with the Stars?"
DOVOLANI: I think the hardest thing about competing on "Dancing with the Stars" is having to teach from a professional`s perspective, having to teach four years`s worth of material in a matter of four days. In our schools in SoHo, New Jersey and in Long Island, one of the things we always recommend is that people take it slow and they learn the foundation, and if you build a strong foundation, you can build anything on top of it.
In this particular case, we don`t really even give you a chance to learn the foundation. We just build the biggest house possible and we hope it`s in (ph).
GRACE: With us is Tony Dovolani, who was Chynna`s partner in season 13. With me tonight is an all-star lineup of seasoned dancing professional stars in their own right. We`ve got actually some guinea pigs we`re going to take off the street and teach to dance here in the studio here at Maks and Val`s studio.
Also with us, stars, including fan favorite Carson Kressley and mirror ball winner, J.R. Martinez.
OK, Carson, I think aside from myself and Tristan, you and Anna practiced harder than anybody.
KRESSLEY: We did. It still didn`t work.
GRACE: But I also saw you in wardrobe quite a bit.
KRESSLEY: I was in wardrobe, yes.
GRACE: Why?
KRESSLEY: That was my happy place.
GRACE: I kept seeing you trying on Maks`s outfits in wardrobe.
KRESSLEY: We`re not talking about that, it`s very uncomfortable for me.
GRACE: Especially the hot pants.
KRESSLEY: The hot pants were amazing, and I did copy -- you know, Maks wore shorts I think in like week two, and then I was like, wait a minute, I`ve got to show off these pins, these stems, and I did shorts and got myself voted off.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: What was the hardest part?
KRESSLEY: I think the hardest part is not knowing what you`re doing, you know. And you`re trying to be really good at something, and it takes four days, and literally after we would make it through the first dance and you would be there on Tuesday night and they put you under the hot red light and they beat the drum, like you might be going home. And then you find out you were staying. We would literally go to the dance studio that night on Tuesday and start working on our routine, because I was so terrible.
GRACE: You were not terrible.
KRESSLEY: But I worked very hard and I had amazing costumes. I mean, the pirate, hello.
GRACE: OK, Maks. The hardest part of being a pro, because you know, you are one of the most let me say sensational figures on "Dancing with the Stars." I`m going to forget about you climbing--
(CROSSTALK)
M. CHMERKOVSKIY: I`m blushing right now. Thank you.
GRACE: But really, for a number of reasons, you`re talented and good looking, you`re a great, great dancer. But --
M. CHMERKOVSKIY: Can I have some water please?
GRACE: As if you`ve never been told that before. So what was the hardest part of that?
M. CHMERKOVSKIY: I think the pressure of having to -- having to prove to all of the viewers and the fans of the star that you get that she can dance, or he, in any case. And I feel like what Tony said is that what we teach is not to rush into it, not to go through dancing experience like under a gauntlet or with a gun to your head. It`s kind of anti-climatic when you do do a performance on Monday, you guys can assess to it, is that when you do come out on Monday, you don`t even get to enjoy it. You`re so nervous, and you`re like a nervous wreck.
Unfortunately that`s the schedule, and that`s how we have to do it. That`s the hardest part.
I love teaching and I think all of us pros love doing it. It`s our job. And that`s what we`re good at. But the pressure of the time restraint is the hardest thing.
KRESSLEY: The timing -- I kept telling my partner, you`re rushing. And-- I`m here every Thursday.
GRACE: We got it.
(CROSSTALK)
KRESSLEY: I know you`re Ukrainian, but mine was Russian, that`s why she went so fast.
GRACE: J.R., I know you`re still with me. J.R., I recall and I remember this when Chaz did his -- what was that, Tristan, I thought was his best dance? Was it the tango, and they were doing phantom? I thought that was his best dance. And then he got completely panned by the judges. J.R., I remember in one of your dances which I thought was yours and Karina`s best dance to that moment, the judges really let you have it, told you you did a horrible job, blah, blah, blah. You stood there and took it with a smile, as did I. But how did you do that?
MARTINEZ: You know, at the end of the day, it`s 50/50, and that was the biggest thing that I had to remind myself, despite what the judge`s opinions were, I had to say everyone at home understands the hard work that we put into this, and we felt good about the routine. It was definitely difficult to choreograph for her and then for me to actually be able to stay on rhythm to dance to "Ghostbusters" on a tango. So I think people at home understood that it was hard, so you just smile and you hope that America carries you through.
GRACE: Well, you know, Karina, remember when you did the dance of the pink panther, and it was a great dance. And at one point you guys turned around and you shook your booties for like four beats, and it was kind of a comic relief. And then you were reprimanded by the judges for being too funny in a pink panther routine, which is a funny song. But you know, you two always took it like pros when you would be reprimanded, always had a big smile on your face. How do you do that, Karina?
SMIRNOFF: You know, it`s been a long journey, it`s season 13 we just wrapped, and I used to take all the comments close to my heart, and have an effect on me. And I would probably make a face or roll my eyes, but it`s season 13 and I realize as much as I love certain aspects about the show like choreograph, and the designing of the costumes, (inaudible), meeting these amazing celebrities and amazing guys like you and J.R. And it`s like, you know, it`s OK, the judges are there to entertain. Like as you know, maybe something that we don`t like to hear, at the same time America loves it, what they have to say.
So you have to understand that and smile at it and not take it close to your heart.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KRESSLEY: Welcome back to a very special Christma-Kwanzaa at Nancy Grace. I`m filling in for Nancy who is in the ladies room. It should only be a moment, but while she`s taking care of business, I thought, why not interview somebody? So I have Val Chmerkovskiy with us here. You look fantastic, by the way. That is such a great color, I wish I had put you in that but I didn`t.
So tell me about, you know, this was your first season on "Dancing with the Stars" as a pro, right?
V. CHMERKOVSKIY: Yes.
KRESSLEY: How did that happen? Did you start--
V. CHMERKOVSKIY: No, actually, I performed on the show since season two, just guest appearances, and they`ve asked me to be a pro on the show a couple of times but I was actively competing with my partner. And I guess I was addressing the other side of ballroom dancing, which is the competitive side. And that`s what I was committed to. Once I accomplished everything I wanted to, I committed myself to "Dancing with the Stars," and I`m blessed enough to have them welcome me, open arms.
KRESSLEY: Excellent. Now, you grew up in the Ukraine, right? And when did you start dancing?
V. CHMERKOVSKIY: I started dancing around 7, because I kind of like tagged along after my brother.
KRESSLEY: Right.
V. CHMERKOVSKIY: And --
KRESSLEY: What`s that like? Did you follow in his footsteps?
Excuse me, I`m trying to do an interview here, Nancy.
GRACE: You`re boring me.
KRESSLEY: Well, I guess I`m losing my job, everybody. We`re going to throw to Nancy and Tristan, they`re going to tango. We`ll be back with more of me and Val. You can also watch us online. OK? I`ll figure out a website for you later. Take it away, Nancy.
(MUSIC)
KRESSLEY: Happy holidays, everyone, I`m Nancy Grace, we`re back -- no, I`m lying. OK, Nancy Grace, if you were watching, just finished her amazing tango. Was it a tango, Tristan?
MCMANUS: It was.
KRESSLEY: OK, I`m getting really good at this dancing stuff. So while she`s getting her hair did and all that stuff, I thought I would interview this handsome trio. OK, we have got Val Chmerkovskiy and Maks Chmerkovskiy and Tristan McManus.
(CROSSTALK)
KRESSLEY: Are you going to be the third Chmerkovskiy?
MCMANUS: I can do this.
KRESSLEY: Are there any more Chmerkovskiys waiting in the dancing wings?
V. CHMERKOVSKIY: Sir Sleep Chmerkovskiy.
KRESSLEY: Who does?
V. CHMERKOVSKIY: Our bulldog, Sir Sleep a Lot.
KRESSLEY: I haven`t met him. I am going to have to come see him. Is he at the studio in New Jersey?
V. CHMERKOVSKIY: Yes.
KRESSLEY: OK, I`m there. Because I`m going to continue dancing, because it`s so inspiring seeing everybody and all the pros here. It really makes you -- you miss it, don`t you? Do you miss the season when you come back to like, the real world?
M. CHMERKOVSKIY: This is for us vacation, so no. You miss it.
KRESSLEY: OK, I miss it. I miss it. Now, Tristan, what are you doing for the holidays?
MCMANUS: I`m going home.
KRESSLEY: To?
MCMANUS: To Ireland, to see my family and my friends. So I can`t wait to go back.
M. CHMERKOVSKIY: You just love his accent.
(CROSSTALK)
KRESSLEY: It`s like watching "Oliver," the musical. I`m going to see me family and me friends. Or it makes you hungry for Lucky Charms, it`s either one, it`s all good.
MCMANUS: I haven`t been home in a while, so it`s going to be nice.
KRESSLEY: What`s your holiday tradition, what do you do back in Ireland?
MCMANUS: See, I haven`t been home for the holidays in a long time. I think I`ve been away for the last five or six years. So again, we`ll go see me nannies, see me aunties and uncles.
(CROSSTALK)
KRESSLEY: Will you have a pint of Guinness?
MCMANUS: I`ll have a few pints of Guinness.
(CROSSTALK)
KRESSLEY: Good times.
MCMANUS: It`s going to be a fun time. I`m not -- I couldn`t be with a better group of people before I go home. This is the first time I`ve ever been in this studio, and I`m delighted that Maks and Val and Tony invited me up here.
KRESSLEY: I know you guys were first timers this year on "Dancing with the Stars" and Maks is an old pro -- I don`t mean old, but I mean--
M. CHMERKOVSKIY: Seasoned veteran.
KRESSLEY: Is it really daunting, that first season? I mean, all the stars are like freaked out. Were you guys freaked out?
V. CHMERKOVSKIY: There`s a little bit of pressure, especially for me coming from the competitive world of dancing and being an accomplished dancing competition, you know, retiring from that and coming into the show, there`s a certain standard that I want to live up to. And getting eliminated second week wasn`t really up to that standard. But everything is a learning experience. And it was good.
MCMANUS: Yes, it`s something totally new for me. You know, I`m coming in and kind of meeting everyone for the first time. And I think what people don`t get is that we as professionals are actually learning all the time as well from our partner but also from the rest of the professionals that we`re dancing with. So for me it`s my first time working with people like Val and Maks.
GRACE: What were you saying about your partner?
MCMANUS: I`m saying--
GRACE: Hi. Why are you back in my chair?
(CROSSTALK)
MCMANUS: There`s something I need to say, all right, because this is very important for a second.
GRACE: You`re the dancer and I`m the --
MCMANUS: You`re the talker.
Like I said, this is my first time on, and it`s been a privilege for me to be able to dance with these people. Like I said, Val, he did go out the second week, but Val was there until the end and he did a lot of the problem numbers on the Tuesday nights and stuff. So I was personally able to learn an awful lot from everyone -- and from the way, although--
GRACE: Tristan, you`re leaving out the other part.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: All the female viewers want to see Maks and Val. You`ve got to unleash the Tristan inside of you, the Tristan --
(CROSSTALK)
MCMANUS: And then you ask yourself, are we going to miss the show?
(CROSSTALK)
KRESSLEY: -- people on street recognizing you and saying, oh, my God I`m in love with you?
MCMANUS: No, not yet, no, hoping for that.
GRACE: You`ve got to release the inner Tristan.
M. CHMERKOVSKIY: In a section of (inaudible) and he`s about to walk out of the studio, so you can totally --
(CROSSTALK) -
GRACE: Are you sweating? You`re wiping your face.
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: He needs to release his Tristanesque (ph). Because see, they are the heartthrobs, you`re the Irishman.
KRESSLEY: What would you guys do if you weren`t--
GRACE: You asked what he`s going to do over the holidays?
KRESSLEY: Yes. He`s going to have a pint of Guinness.
What would you have been if you weren`t a professional dancer?
GRACE: Brick layer. You go ahead.
MCMANUS: Maybe, I don`t know. Unfortunately, I`ve gone through an awful lot of jobs before, so I worked on building sites a couple of times. A postman at one time. I`ve done a bit of everything, like, you know? I might be in here cleaning the floors.
KRESSLEY: I doubt it.
GRACE: Guys, can you teach him to be a heartthrob? He`s obviously the best dancer in the world, sorry. Can you teach him to be a heartthrob? And what were you doing with his chest hair?
M. CHMERKOVSKIY: It is like, it`s a trick, when you need something to --
(CROSSTALK)
GRACE: It`s sexual harassment. Leave that alone. And Carson, you, too.
KRESSLEY: I don`t have any chest hair, so they can`t do that to me.
GRACE: We`re going to be right back.
KRESSLEY: Take it away.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KRESSLEY: You look fantastic in this color, you`re inspiring. It would be a great color for our costumes next week.
We could do crimes of fashion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GRACE: I`m telling Liz to get out.
KRESSLEY: Oh, Liz. I don`t even remember her, she`s dead to me.
GRACE: Why are you still in my chair?
KRESSLEY: I just -- oh my God. Ow, my neck.
GRACE: You liked every minute of it.
Welcome back, everybody. Merry Christmas, happy Hanukah, and happy holidays all around. What you don`t know about Val Chmerkovskiy is that he was first violinist in the Manhattan Music Orchestra. He is classically trained. Take a listen.
(MUSIC)
GRACE: That was amazing.
All dancing and joking aside, merry Christmas and happy Hanukkah, everyone. Thank you for being with us tonight. Thank you especially to Maks, Val, Carson and Tristan, J.R. and Karina, and to all of you. Have a blessed, blessed holiday season. Good night, friend.
END
