Dancing with the Stars 2013 premiere

The two-hour season 17 premiere of "Dancing with the Stars" was a night of firsts. For starters, judge Len Goodman said he gave out the most "8s" ever. And the evening also saw all three judges, including Carrie Ann Inaba and Bruno Tonioli, acting kinder to the contestants than normal, with the exception of Bill Nye the Science Guy who lacked chemistry on the dance floor. It ultimately earned him the lowest score of the evening.
And in a departure from previous seasons, there will be only one two-hour show per week.
Perhaps most Jersey-centric was the reveal by "Jersey Shore" alum Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi, who said she would like to go by "Nicole" during the competition. Host Tom Bergeron, who reminded her she is well-known as Snooki, suggested the compromise, "Snicole."
Here's how it all played out:
Brant Daugherty and Peta Murgatroyd
Kicking off the night was Brant Daugherty, star of "Pretty Little Liars," and partner Peta Murgatroyd. The pair performed the cha cha almost cohesively to Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines."
There was one noticeable misstep by Daugherty, who said in his introduction video that lacking the ability to sing or dance would make him "a single threat" in the competition.
Judge Carrie Ann Inaba disagreed, calling him a "double threat" by the end of the performance. Inaba said she sees a lot of potential in this pairing, as they had both the look and the moves.
Len Goodman described their performance as "a sizzling teaser of things to come."
"You've got the equipment," he said. "Just keep the timing."
Total Score: 7, 8, 7 = 22
Leah Remini and Tony Dovolani
Described by her partner as "a force of nature," Leah Remini joined Tony Dovolani in a performance of the foxtrot.
Remini said she is competing to "face her fears." The former Scientologist found fast fans in the judges, one of whom questioned, "Are you sure you've never done it before?"
She also had the support of Jennifer Lopez, who was cheering her on from the audience.
Bruno Tonioli praised Remini and compared her to Miley Cyrus. "I want you to twerk next week," he demanded.
Carrie Ann Inaba called Remini the perfect combination of "sass and class."
Total Score: 7, 7, 7 = 21
Corbin Bleu and Karina Smirnoff
Karina Smirnoff said with Corbin Bleu, she has "met her match in crazy."
Their performance was anything but.
Smirnoff and Bleu, dancing contemporary, moved gracefully across the floor, delivering a skillful and emotional performance. It was Smirnoff's first ever contemporary routine.
Smirnoff, a veteran "Dancing with the Stars" coach, said given Bleu's "High School Musical" background, the expectations were high for the couple.
And they delivered.
Their performance, which included a lot of gymnastics as well as a lift, drew praise from all three judges and the second highest score of the evening.
"Great choreography," Carrie Ann Inaba said. "It was emotion in motion."
Goodman asked, "This is week one isn't it?"
Total Score: 8, 8, 8 = 24
Jack Osbourne and Cheryl Burke
As one of the two contestants in the competition with a serious illness, Jack Osbourne, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis a year ago, said he was competing to promote awareness for the disease.
He is the second Osbourne to compete on the program, behind his sister Kelly who placed third overall during her season.
Given his father Ozzy Osbourne's musical background, Cheryl Burke told Osbourne she expected him to have some rhythm.
With the fashion accent of a boyish bow tie, Osbourne gave a charming performance of the foxtrot. It drew tears from his mother Sharon, who was in the audience alongside her rocker husband.
Len Goodman said, "I loved your footwork."
Bruno Tonioli said Osbourne handled the intricacy of his footwork well but advised him to watch his turns. That critique along with his score of 7 drew boos from the audience.
Carrie Ann Inaba said Osbourne definitely had dancing genes.
Total Score: 8, 8, 7 = 23
Amber Riley and Derek Hough
A self-described "theater child," Amber Riley performed the cha-cha-cha with partner Derek Hough, wooing all three judges. Their high-energy performance was seamless. It drew no criticism from any of the judges.
"That's how you make it yours," one judge said of their routine.
The pair ended with the highest score of the night.
Total Score: 9, 9, 9 = 27
Elizabeth Berkley and Val Chmerkovskiy
Val Chmerkovskiy confessed to Elizabeth Berkley during practice that his favorite "Saved by the Bell" character was Kelly Kapowski, but it didn't impede the pair's success. He and Berkley had an undeniable chemistry on the dance floor.
Their performance drew the praise of the judges, who said the "difficult" performance was performed gracefully.
Total Score: 8, 8, 8 = 24
Bill Nye and Tyne Stecklein
Weird Science. No, not this pairing — well, maybe a little. That was actually the song they performed to.
While the audience appreciated Nye's mad scientist-inspired cha-cha-cha, the judges were not fond of it at all.
In a stiff and rhythm-less performance on the part of Nye, he and partner Tyne Stecklein drew the lowest scores of the evening.
Len Goodman said it was as painful (to watch) as it is to experience a waxing. Bruno added that Nye would win no medals for that performance.
Total Score: 5, 4, 5 = 14
Keyshawn Johnson and Sharna Burgess
The issue was the timing in their rendition of the cha cha, said judge Bruno Tonioli.
While he may have had good timing on the turf as a football star, Keyshawn Johnson lacked the same comfortability on the dance floor with partner Sharna Burgress.
Len Goodman said he was confident that the pair would fair better if they worked on their timing because they already possessed a great attitude.
Total Score: 6, 5, 6 = 17
Christina Milian and Mark Ballas
Singer Christina Milian said she anticipates people will have high expectations of her because she is a performer but insisted she has no experience dancing with a partner.
After a contemporary routine with partner Mark Ballas, Milian admitted, initially via Twitter, that she was nervous over Jennifer Lopez being in the audience.
Carrie Ann advised Milian to open up more and said she was a beautiful dancer but said she should try to connect more with the audience.
Total Score: 7, 7, 8 = 22
Bill Engvall and Emma Slater
Bill Engvall said he would get a lot of flak from his friends for competing on the show but his day job made him comfortable performing in front of a crowd.
Dancing the foxtrot, the comedian and his partner Emma Slater performed to
Donna Summer's hit song "Hot Stuff." Engvall said he was not a dancer but he moved with the confidence of one.
Their performance was described by Bruno as "elegant." Carrie Ann Inaba advised Engvall to work on being more smooth.
Total Score: 6, 6, 6 = 18
Valerie Harper and Tristan McManus
Valerie Harper jokingly described her partner Tristan McManus as a "slave driver," and said he was a kind and loving person. McManus admitted during rehearsals that working with the TV legend who was diagnosed earlier this year with terminal brain cancer made him nervous at first.
It was hard to tell that Harper was battling anything or that, at 73, she was the oldest contestant to ever compete on the show.
"I'm way past my expiration date and I'm dancing," Harper said. "It's good to be alive and even better to be dancing."
Carrie Ann Inaba was brought to tears by Harper's performance and advised her to work on her "spots." Bruno Tonioli called Harper radiant and told her to work on her balance.
Total Score:7, 7, 7 = 21
Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and Sasha Farber
In perhaps the shortest pairing to date on the show, Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and Sasha Farber shined tonight.
Asked whether she preferred to go by her signature Snooki or Nicole, the former "Jersey Shore" star said, "Now that I've had a son, I think I've grown into a woman so I'm going to say, Nicole."
Dancing the cha cha to "Wild One," Polizzi showcased her footwork. And Len said he loved it.
"You just went for it," Carrie Ann said.
Total Score:8, 8, 7 = 23
Totals
Amber Riley and Derek Hough: 27
Corbin Bleu and Karina Smirnoff: 24
Elizabeth Berkley Lauren and Valentin Chmerkovskiy: 24
Jack Osbourne and Cheryl Burke: 23
Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and Sasha Farber: 23
Brant Daugherty and Peta Murgatroyd: 22
Christina Milan and Mark Ballas: 22
Leah Remini and Tony Dovolani: 21
Valerie Harper and Tristan MacManus: 21
Bill Engvall and Emma Slater: 18
Keyshawn Johnson and Sharna Burgess: 17
Bill Nye and Tyne Stecklein: 14
Next week, each couple will perform again and one will be sent home.
Who do you think performed the best? Who should be sent home?

Read More : http://www.nj.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2013/09/dancing_with_the_stars_2013_premiere_recap.html

Aaron Alexis was Hewlett-Packard contractor

The man responsible for Monday's deadly rampage at the Washington navy yard was a subcontractor and former reservist who was arrested at least twice in the past for gun-related offences.
Aaron Alexis, 34, was discharged from the navy in 2011 after an incident in which an upstairs neighbour complained that he had shot into the floor of her apartment.
But Alexis restored his connections with the navy when a professional services company subcontracted by Hewlett-Packard employed him on a navy IT project. His ID badge gained him access to the navy yard base on Monday, the FBI said.
According to the US navy, Alexis, whose home was listed as New York City, enrolled in the reserves in 2007. He was a navy aviation electrician's mate third class from 1 February 2008 until he was discharged on 31 January 2011. He is listed as having received the national defense service medal and the global war on terrorism service medal.
In 2010, while he was based at Fort Worth in Texas, he was arrested after discharging a firearm. In 2004, police in Seattle questioned him after what they described as an "anger-fuelled shooting" involving the car of a construction worker.
Seattle police said on Monday that during their inquiries into the 2004 incident, Alexis's father reported that he suffered from "anger management problems associated with PTSD, and that Alexis had been an active participant in rescue attempts on September 11, 2001".
The statement went on: "Following his arrest, Alexis told detectives he perceived he had been 'mocked' by construction workers the morning of the incident, and said they had 'disrespected him'. Alexis also claimed he had an anger-fueled 'blackout' and could not remember firing his gun at the victims' vehicle until an hour after the incident.
"Alexis also told police he was present during 'the tragic events of September 11, 2001' and described 'how those events had disturbed him'," the police statement said.
According to a Texas police report, Alexis was arrested in September 2010 on suspicion of discharging a firearm in a municipality, but not formally charged.
The police report from the time states that an officer was dispatched to Orion at Oak Hill, a large, gated apartment complex in west Fort Worth, after a woman called the police and said that she believed someone had fired a shot into her apartment.
According to the report, the woman was "visibly shaken up". She said that Alexis was her downstairs neighbour, and that he had "called the police several times on her for being loud". The woman reported that Alexis had confronted her in the parking lot about making too much noise.
The report adds that the woman told the officer that she was "terrified" of Alexis and believed that the shot had been fired intentionally. The report states that the officer knocked on Alexis's door but did not receive a response. He only emerged after the officer called the fire department to get them to forcibly enter the property.
Alexis claimed to have discharged the gun accidentally, the report says. "He said that he was trying to clean his gun while cooking and that his hands were slippery," the witer of the report says. "He told me that he began to take the gun apart when his hands slipped and pulled the trigger discharging a round into the ceiling."
In both instances, Alexis was not charged. Court records reviewed by the Associated Press how he was released on the condition he not have contact with any of the workers. In Texas, it was determinded that Alexis had discharged his gun by accident.
After leaving the reserves, Alexis worked as a waiter and delivery driver at the Happy Bowl Thai restaurant in White Settlement, a suburb of Fort Worth, according to Afton Bradley, a former co-worker, quoted by the Associated Press.
Having travelled to Thailand, Alexis learned some Thai and could speak to Thai customers in their native language. "He was a very nice person," Bradley said in a phone interview. "It kind of blows my mind away. I wouldn't think anything bad at all."
A former acquaintance, Oui Suthametewakul, said Alexis lived with him and his wife from August 2012 to May 2013 in Fort Worth, but that they had to part ways because he was not paying his bills. Alexis was a "nice guy," Suthametewakul said, though he sometimes carried a gun and would frequently complain about being the victim of discrimination.
Suthametewakul said Alexis had converted to Buddhism and prayed at a local Buddhist temple. Ty Thairintr, a congregant at Wat Budsaya, a temple in Fort Worth, told the AP: "We are all shocked. We are nonviolent. Aaron was a very good practitioner of Buddhism. He could chant better than even some of the Thai congregants."
Thairintr said that Alexis told him and others at the temple that he had taken a job as a contractor and he indicated to them he was going to go to Virginia. He last saw Alexis five weeks ago. "He was a very devoted Buddhist. There was no tell-tale sign of this behaviour," Thairintr said.
Hewlett-Packard confirmed that Alexis worked for a subcontractor. It said in a statement: "Aaron Alexis was an employee of a company called 'The Experts,' a subcontractor to an HP Enterprise Services contract to refresh equipment used on the navy marine corps intranet (NMCI) network. HP is cooperating fully with law enforcement as requested."
It said the company was "deeply saddened" by the incident. "Our thoughts and sympathies are with all those who have been affected," the company said.
On its website, The Experts, whose headquarters are in Alexandria, Virginia, describes itself as providing "innovative and mission-critical IT, engineering and litigation professional services for federal, state and local governments and departments".
It said in a statement: "The Experts would like to express our deepest condolences and sympathies regarding the incident that occurred at the DC naval yards. We are actively cooperating with the FBI and other authorities in relation to the investigation on the suspect. Any additional information we have will be shared accordingly."
On Monday night, officers from the New York Police Department cordoned off a section of the tree-lined street in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighbourhood of Brooklyn, where family of Alexis lives in a brownstone apartment.
A huddle of NYPD officers stood in the road outside the three-storey building, watched by a small crowd of reporters and TV crews. Earlier in the day, Anthony Little, the brother-in-law of the uspect, emerged from the house and told NBC4 the family were "distraught". He said: "It's a shocking experience. Nobody expected this. No-one saw it coming. No-one knew anything. So all of this is just shocking."
Little, who is married to Alexis's sister, said he had never met him.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, which offers online courses in aviation and aerospace, confirmed that Alexis was enrolled as an online student via its Fort Worth campus, started classes in July 2012 and had been pursuing a bachelor's of science in aeronautics. "We are cooperating fully with investigating officials," the university said.

Read More : http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/16/aaron-alexis-washington-navy-yard-shooting