DWTS: Down to the Final 3

It is has been quite a season on ABC's Dancing with the Stars. Contestants Ultimate Fighter Chuck Lidell and former Senator Tom DeLay (both of whom were cast off the show relatively early on) sparred; DeLay and Kathy Ireland and Kelly Osbourne suffered the expected bumps and bruises; and superstars such as Alicia Keys, The Bee Gees provided musical backdrops.

This ninth season of the show, which premiered on September 21, featured the largest cast for the show ever, with a whopping 16 celebrities, including the pairs:

Donny Osmond (Performer) and Kym Johnson
Aaron Carter (Singer) and Karina Smirnoff
Tom DeLay (Former Republican Majority Leader) and Cheryl Burke
Mya (Singer) and Dmitry Chaplin
Debi Mazar (Actor) and Maksim Chmerkovskiy
Ashley Hamilton (Actor) and Edyta Sliwinska
Chuck Liddell (Mixed Martial Artist) and Anna Trebunskaya
Natalie Coughlin (Olympic Swimmer) and Alec Mazo
Mark Dacascos (Reality TV Star) and Lacey Schwimmer
Macy Gray (Singer) and Jonathan Roberts
Melissa Joan Hart (Actor) and Mark Ballas
Kathy Ireland (Model) and Tony Dovolani
Michael Irvin (former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver) and Anna Demidova
Kelly Osbourne (Reality TV Star) and Louis van Amstel
Louie Vito (Professional Snowboarder) and Chelsie Hightower
Joanna Krupa (Model) and Derek Hough

This season added a new twist to the elimination procedures.  Explained DWTS' executive producer Conrad Green: "This is going to be our biggest-ever cast (...) We are going to start big, and then about halfway through, we are going to do three double eliminations back-to-back. The middle of the season is going to be brutal when half of our cast goes in three weeks."

And now it is down to the final three: Donny Osmond (Performer) and Kym Johnson; Kelly Osbourne (Reality TV Star) and Louis van Amstel; and Mya (Singer) and Dmitry Chaplin after judges favorites Joanna Krupa and partner Derek Hough were surprisingly eliminated. Despite earning an impressive 81 out of 90 points on Monday's dance-off, they fell short with the viewers votes, leaving Osmond, Maya and Osbourne, as top overall picks. They will compete for the crown next week on November 24.  Whitney Houston is confirmed as the special guest musical performer.

Hosted by Tom Bergeron (America's Funniest Home Videos) and Samantha Harris (E! Entertainment), the celebrities performed choreographed dance routines which will be judged by renowned Ballroom judge Len Goodman and dancer/choreographers Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba.

Dancing with the Stars is the U.S. version of the international smash hit series, Strictly Come Dancing. This version is produced by BBC Worldwide Americas. Conrad Green serves as executive producer and Rob Wade and Matilda Zoltowski are co-executive producers. Alex Rudzinski directs. Dancing with the Stars is broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with 5.1 channel surround sound and Spanish audio via SAP.

For more information, visit www.abc.com.

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