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'Dancing' bows to controversy, adds results show

Posted on: Thursday, 28 July 2005, 02:24 CDT

By Paul J. Gough

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - A day after coming under critics' fire about the "Dancing With the Stars" voting procedures, ABC said it will return the hit competition with a results show next season.

The 30-minute results show will follow an hourlong episode in "Dancing's" second season every week. There will be two dances per hourlong episode with judges' scores and comments, followed by a period of viewer votes via telephone and Web site. The couple with the lowest combined score will be eliminated at the end of the results show every week, the network said.

"Dancing" has been a big hit for ABC this summer, pitting celebrities with no ballroom dancing experience with professionals to train and then perform as couples.

But the show, which became a competition between "General Hospital" actress Kelly Monaco and former "Seinfeld" personality John O'Hurley, raised eyebrows among some viewers -- and Television Critics Assn. attendees -- about whether the voting was somehow skewed to favor the ABC personality. Network executives and the judges vigorously denied the charge.

Still, ABC and "Dancing" executives believed there could be some changes when the show returns for a second season. A premiere date hasn't been decided yet. Producer Izzie Pick said Tuesday that with the U.K. show, there's only one time zone, so it's easier to have everything happen in one show compared to the continental U.S., with three time zones. But the "Dancing" show in Australia, which also has several time zones, has a results show.

"In an ideal world, we would have a results show," Pick said.

ABC granted that wish Wednesday afternoon in a decision that was hailed -- literally -- at the TCA summer press tour at the Beverly Hilton. Several critics, who had a day earlier pressed ABC Entertainment president Stephen McPherson and "Dancing" producers about the judging, cheered when the results show was announced.

In an interview following the announcement, McPherson said the critics' concerns were only a part of the decision. It had been in the works anyway. He said there weren't any other big changes on the table for the show.

"A lot of it is great, so we don't want to fix what isn't broken," McPherson said.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

Source: REUTERS

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