Season 8
The eighth season of Dancing with the Stars premiered on Monday, March 9, 2009, as part of ABC’s spring line-up. The show generally followed the format of previous seasons, with 13 couples, although there were some changes, including two new dances (Argentine Tango and Lindy Hop), and an occasional dance-off between the bottom two couples, in order to determine who will be eliminated. The show was again hosted by Tom Bergeron and Samantha Harris. Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba all returned as judges again this season.
Originally, the season was advertised as the first U.S. season where a husband and wife would compete against each other: rodeo champion Ty Murray and singer-songwriter Jewel. The two had married the previous year after a ten-year courtship. However, just prior to the series, Jewel fractured both her tibias and was unable to perform. She was replaced on the show by Playboy model Holly Madison. Murray chose to continue on the show, and Jewel appeared during the season as a special musical guest.
Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson won the competition, narrowly beating out actor Gilles Marini by less than 1%. The finale was declared the highest ever in the show’s history.
| Celebrity |
Occupation |
Professional partner |
Status |
| Belinda Carlisle |
The Go-Go’s Singer |
Jonathan Roberts |
Eliminated 1st |
| Denise Richards |
Actress |
Maksim Chmerkovskiy |
Eliminated 2nd |
| Holly Madison |
Reality TV Star & Playboy Model |
Dmitry Chaplin |
Eliminated 3rd |
| Steve Wozniak |
Apple Co-Founder |
Karina Smirnoff |
Eliminated 4th |
| David Alan Grier |
Comedian & Actor |
Kym Johnson |
Eliminated 5th |
| Steve-O |
Jackass Star |
Lacey Schwimmer |
Eliminated 6th |
| Lawrence Taylor |
Retired Football Hall of Famer |
Edyta Sliwinska |
Eliminated 7th |
| Chuck Wicks |
Country Singer |
Julianne Hough |
Eliminated 8th |
| Lil’ Kim |
Grammy Award Winning Rapper |
Derek Hough |
Eliminated 9th |
| Ty Murray |
Rodeo Champion |
Chelsie Hightower |
Eliminated 10th |
| Melissa Rycroft |
The Bachelor Star |
Tony Dovolani |
Third Place |
| Gilles Marini |
Actor |
Cheryl Burke |
Runner-Up |
| Shawn Johnson |
Olympic Gold Medal Gymnast |
Mark Ballas |
Winners |
Dancing With the Stars Season 8 Episode Guide:
| No. |
Episode |
Air Date |
Prod. No. |
||
| 1 |
Episode 801 |
3/9/2009 |
801 |
||
| 2 |
Episode 802 |
3/16/2009 |
802 |
||
| 3 |
Episode 802A |
3/17/2009 |
803 |
||
| 4 |
Episode 803 |
3/23/2009 |
804 |
||
| 5 |
Episode 803A |
3/24/2009 |
805 |
||
| 6 |
Episode 804 |
3/30/2009 |
806 |
||
| 7 |
Episode 804A |
3/31/2009 |
807 |
||
| 8 |
Episode 805 |
4/6/2009 |
808 |
||
| 9 |
Episode 805A |
4/7/2009 |
809 |
||
| 10 |
Episode 806 |
4/13/2009 |
810 |
||
| 11 |
Episode 806A |
4/14/2009 |
811 |
||
| 12 |
Episode 807 |
4/20/2009 |
812 |
||
| 13 |
Episode 807A |
4/21/2009 |
813 |
||
| 14 |
Episode 808 |
4/27/2009 |
814 |
||
| 15 |
Episode 808A |
4/28/2009 |
815 |
||
| 16 |
Episode 809 |
5/4/2009 |
816 |
||
| 17 |
Episode 809A |
5/5/2009 |
817 |
||
| 18 |
Episode 810 |
5/11/2009 |
818 |
||
| 19 |
Episode 810A |
5/12/2009 |
819 |
||
| 20 |
Episode 811 |
5/18/2009 |
820 |
||
| 21 |
Episode 811A |
5/19/2009 |
821 |