Monaco comes out on top after almost losing hers
Kelly Monaco tore up the dance floor Wednesday night with a hip-shaking samba and emerged the champion of ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars.”
The “General Hospital” star upset the odds-on favorite, John O’Hurley (J. Peterman from “Seinfeld”), in the finale of the surprise hit ballroom dancing competition.
Monaco, 29, got the lowest mark from the judges in the first competition of the six-episode series, which paired celebrity contestants with professional dancers. But she stormed back.
“All my life I’ve been the underdog,” she said after being announced as the winner on Wednesday’s live program. “I know it’s such a sap story, but I have.”
In week four, Monaco’s bodice strap snapped, but she impressed the audience and the judges by completing the samba while struggling to hold her scanty green outfit in place.
After a lukewarm reception from the judges during her first number Wednesday night, Monaco quipped: “I have to lose my top more often.”
That bad apple Corey
Former “American Idol” contestant Corey Clark will not face criminal charges over a hotel food fight.
Police said Clark and a female record company executive argued last month while eating a room-service breakfast at a Sacramento, Calif., hotel. Clark threw food and dishes and grabbed the woman, causing red marks on her arms, but she declined to press charges.
Clark, 24, was dismissed from the 2003 “Idol” competition for not disclosing a 2002 misdemeanor arrest for allegedly assaulting his younger sister. He recently alleged he had an affair with “Idol” judge Paula Abdul.
Still a B.I.G. mystery
A mistrial was declared Wednesday in the Notorious B.I.G. wrongful death case, but the late rap star’s family can file a new lawsuit seeking to link his unsolved 1997 killing to the Los Angeles Police Department.
The mistrial was declared after a U.S. District Court judge expressed concern that the LAPD had deliberately withheld evidence in the case.
B.I.G., born Christopher Wallace, was gunned down while leaving a crowded late-night party at a Los Angeles museum. His family’s lawsuit claimed a corrupt LAPD officer arranged to have him killed at the behest of Death Row Records founder Marion “Suge” Knight.
Hall meets a real maneater
Pop music duo Daryl Hall and John Oates have postponed upcoming shows because Hall has been diagnosed with Lyme disease.
Hall, 55, is expected to make a full recovery from the mosquito-borne ailment, which can be fatal.
The ‘80s hit-making duo (“Maneater,” “I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do),” “Kiss on My List”) is touring in support of their latest album, “Our Kind of Soul.”
Get well soon, dahling
Zsa Zsa Gabor suffered an apparent stroke Wednesday and underwent surgery to clear a blocked artery.
The two-hour operation was successful and the 88-year-old actress was expected to return home within three days, husband Frederic von Anhalt said Thursday.
Gabor has been partially paralyzed since a 2002 car accident, forcing her to use a wheelchair and walker.
The birthday bunch
Singer Jerry Vale is 73. Singer Steve Lawrence is 70. Actor Jeffrey Tambor is 61. Children’s singer Raffi is 57. Actress Anjelica Huston is 54. Actor Kevin Bacon is 47. Country singer Toby Keith is 44. Actor Billy Crudup is 37. Actor Michael Weatherly (“Dark Angel”) is 37. Singer Beck is 35. Actor Milo Ventimiglia (“Gilmore Girls”) is 28. Actress Sophia Bush (“One Tree Hill”) is 23.