News Round-Up: July 30, 2018

Some news items you might have missed:

• Now why don't any of my hikes come across folks like InstaHunk Joel Green? #NatureDoesAGuyGood

• The documentary Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood, which chronicles the life of Scotty Bowers who procured "dates" for movie stars back in the Golden Age of Hollywood, scored big at the box office in it's first weekend.

• Donald Trump's lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, told the hosts of Fox & Friends that "collusion is not a crime." #ItsCalledTreason

• Deonton A. Rogers faces several serious charges for the non-fatal shooting of a 29-year-old trans woman in Detroit. Rogers made a lewd remark to her, but when he realized the woman was transgender, he initiated a fight. But the woman fought back; that prompted Rogers to pull out a gun and shoot the woman in the shoulder before fleeing the scene. The victim has since made a full recovery, and lucky for her, the entire incident was caught on security cameras.

• Hundred of mourners showed up for the funeral of Anthony Avalos, the 10-year-old boy who died having endured years of physical abuse and had come out as gay just before he was killed.

• Olympic medal-winning figure skater, Adam Rippon, announced this morning that he will be joining the panel of judges for “Dancing With The Stars: Juniors.” Rippon won season 26 of the reality show with pro partner Jenna Johnson.

So excited to announce that I will be judging this season of Dancing With The Stars: JUNIORS 🌟 along side my friends, @iamvalc and @nopenother. The show premieres October 7th on @abcnetwork 🕺🏼💃🏼

A post shared by Adam Rippon (@adaripp) on Jul 30, 2018 at 6:56am PDT

Podcast: Anti-LGBTQ Adoption Discrimination In Kansas & Oklahoma; Adam Rippon Slays On DWTS; 2018 Tony Award Nominations; Pride Nights At Major League Baseball

In this week's LGBTQ headlines:

• Oklahoma and Kansas state legislatures pass anti-LGBTQ adoption laws

• A new survey of over 40,000 Americans shows acceptance for same-sex marriage has hit 61%

• Ireland moves to ban so-called "conversion therapy"

• The 'boys of summer' are back and most Major League Baseball teams have scheduled special LGBT Pride Nights (head over to Outsports.com for a complete list of MLB Pride Nights)

• Drag queen Ada Vox exits American Idol with her head held high

• Tony Kushner’s Angels In America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes became the most Tony-nominated play in history as the 2018 Tony Award nominations were announced

• Adam Rippon came to slay on the premiere of the all-athletes season of Dancing with the Stars

All that and more on this episode of The Randy Report

News Round-Up: April 6, 2018

(image via Instagram)

Some news items you might have missed:

• Max Emerson and Abram Hodgens (above) know how to April in style! Oh, to be in Park City right now...

• Ok, so now I have to watch the upcoming all-athletes edition of Dancing with the Stars because oh-so-awesome Olympic bronze medalist Adam Rippon will be taking part in the reality competition. Two Olympic skaters have won in the past, so, just saying... :)

• Fitness model Quin Bruce is giving you "off-duty Superman"... #woof

A post shared by Quin Bruce (@quin_bruce) on Apr 6, 2018 at 1:36pm PDT

• HuffPost: Everyone got the Pulse massacre story completely wrong. Available evidence now suggests Pulse Nightclub was "chosen at random."

• Democratic Congressman Ruben Gallego on Donald Trump: "I will gladly work with the President when his ideas aren't stupid and detrimental to the United States." #SoundsAboutRight

• Hawaii has become the 7th state to legalize the right to medically assisted suicide. #Good #Dignity

• For a little #TBT action, I'm digging re-visiting American Idol alum Frenchie Davis' single "Love's Got A Hold On Me" from back in 2012. Oh - and are those hot, shirtless guys in there...?

I met and interviewed the openly bi singer during the promo for the single and she was an absolute doll.

Olympic Swimmer Ryan Lochte To Compete On Next Dancing With The Stars

Us Weekly is reporting that U.S. Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte will appear in as a contestant in season 23 of Dancing With the Stars.

This comes, of course, in the aftermath of his Rio robbery scandal, which he eventually tearfully admitted was “overexaggerated” regarding being robbed at gunpoint.

“Doing DWTS will be great for Ryan’s image!” an insider tells Us Weekly. "He will be able to show America that he’s a good guy who made a mistake. He’s still an Olympic champion! He will be great on the show."

The cast of celebrities for the upcoming season of the ABC dancing competition has not yet been announced and reps for the show never comment on casting rumors, but this season will likely include a few Olympic athletes.

You have to wonder if this was a quick PR move or if it was in the works before the Olympics.

Meeting The Uber-Handsome Nyle DiMarco

Me with the uber-handsome Nyle DiMarco and my hubby Michael

So, this happened yesterday :)

I teased a pic of American's Next Top Model and Dancing With The Stars champ Nyle DiMarco yesterday in advance of me dropping by a photo shoot he did for the Chippendales in Las Vegas where he will be appearing for four weeks as the next "Celebrity Guest Host" for the Chipps.

Not only did I meet and snap a pic with the VERY handsome DiMarco, but I interviewed him for The Randy Report and my online radio show - coming soon.

I have to say I've met a lot of celebs over the years, and most look like themselves in real life for the most part (versus their "prettier" TV or film selves).

However, Nyle exceeds all expectations. He really is this awesomely handsome. And very charming.

In addition to his current modeling career and upcoming gig at Chippendales, he's launched The Nyle DiMarco Foundation. Nyle wants to work with parents and families to ensure Deaf children receive the same opportunities he did in terms of being able to learn American Sign Language and English. I was surprised to learn that out of the 70 million deaf people worldwide, only 2% has access to education in sign language.

Look for the interview here in the next day or so. I first have to recover from meeting him.

Regular readers of The Randy Report know I was a big supporter of Nyle during his triumphant DWTS run with Peta Murgatroyd, posting several times about him. You can see those posts here.

UPDATE: I aired my radio show interview. You can listen below.

NFL-er Michael Sam Makes DWTS Debut With "Uptown Funk"

NFL football player Michael Sam with Peta Murgatroyd makes DWTS debut

My man Michael Sam made his Dancing With The Stars debut last night, with pro dancer Peta Murgatroyd, cha-cha-ing to "Uptown Funk."

Murgatroyd won Season 14 with Donald Driver (formerly of the Green Bay Packers) so I'm thinking she's got an inside track on how to teach a football player to dance :)

Sam took to Twitter after his first dance:

America I hope you guys enjoyed @PetaMurgatroyd and I dance. Make sure you go vote for us 8552345603! 💃💃💃💃 pic.twitter.com/nIO2BoDFqh
— Michael Sam (@MichaelSamNFL) March 17, 2015

Having been a professional dancer myself for over 30 years, I step back and watching this I'm awestruck at not only Sam, but any of these celebs who are not "performers" by trade. The idea of DANCING a difficult routine in front of millions for the first time? Wow. Imagine what goes through your head.

Sam and Murgatroyd ended up in the middle of the pack with a score of 26 out of 40 from the judges, so while there's room for improvement, we all know Sam isn't one to shy from hard work.

(And yes, I voted for Team Sambatroyd)

Promo: Michael Sam For Dancing With The Stars

Michael Sam with DWTS partner Peta Murgatroyd

Out NFL-er Michael Sam posted this promo pic with his pro partner, Peta Murgatroyd, on his Facebook page today.

The pic was captioned, "My promo shoot turned out great thanks to this beautiful girl @petamurgatroyd #TeamSambatroyd"

In addition to getting ready for DWTS, Sam will take part in the first ever NFL Veteran Combine on March 22nd in Tempe, AZ.

Out NFL PLayer Michael Sam Will Dance With The Stars

The cast of the 10th anniversary edition of Dancing With The Stars was announced today, and it includes out football player Michael Sam.

Television icon Suzanne Somers, music great Patti LaBelle, football star Michael Sam and Olympian Nastia Liukin are among the stars getting ready to rhumba and samba on the dance floor.

"Shark Tank" mogul Robert Herjavec, “Hunger Games” actress Willow Shields, artist-actress Rumer Willis, “Party Rock Anthem” singer Redfoo and R5 singer-songwriter Riker Lynch will also be vying for the trophy this season.

Sam posted this statement to his Facebook page today regarding DWTS:

Very excited to be a part of DWTS. Football remains my unquestioned number 1 priority, however, while I continue to train and stay ready, I am ecstatic to participate in a fun, athletic competition like so many players before me have done. Filming this offseason is very flexible and allows me to be part of the veterans combine 3/22 if accepted or any other workouts. I’m looking forward to getting started with @PetaMurgatroyd and winning! Thanks for the support! ‪#‎TeamSambatroyd‬

(h/t JMG)

Dancing with the Stars - Valerie Harper Week 1

Inspiration. National treasure. Go, Valerie, go!

Dancing with the Stars All-stars pairs announced

From Access Hollywood: The “Dancing with the Stars: All-Stars” pairings have been revealed and some former favorites have been teamed up once again and other stars will strut their moves in the ballroom with a new partner.

Five repeat couples will get a second chance to shine again:

- Season 3 winner Emmitt Smith & Cheryl Burke

- Season 4 runner-up Joey Fatone & Kym Johnson

- Season 8 finalist Melissa Rycroft & Tony Dovolani

- Season 11 finalist Bristol Palin & Mark Ballas

- Season 12 runner-up Kirstie Alley & Maksim Chmerkovskiy

Cheryl Burke has three of her former stars returning for “All-Stars.” Season 8 runner-up Gilles Marini will dance with Peta Murgatroyd and Season 2 winner Drew Lachey has been paired with Anna Trebunskaya.

Other new couples include:

Season 1 winner Kelly Monaco & Val Chmerkovskiy

Season 4 winner Apolo Anton Ohno & Karina Smirnoff

Season 5 winner Helio Castroneves & Chelsie Hightower

Season 8 winner Shawn Johnson & Derek Hough

Season 10 contestant Pamela Anderson & Tristan MacManus

One final returning “Star” chosen by the audience – Kyle Massey (Season 11), Sabrina Bryan (Season 5) or Carson Kressley (Season 13) – will have his or her pair revealed on August 27 on “Good Morning America.”

“Dancing with the Stars: All-Stars” debuts Monday, September 24 on ABC.

My hubby and the fab Mark Ballas of Dancing With The Stars

Michael was down at the Tropicana last night to hang with Mark Ballas who played an acoustic set after dancing in the "Dancing With The Stars Live" show.

You can check out Mark's solo CD "LoveHurtBox" on iTunes by clicking here.

Don't miss Mark on the upcoming "Dancing With The Stars" All-Stars season - whoo-hoo!

Mark Ballas and my hubby Michael

Mark Ballas playing out with Dylan Chambers at The Tropicana in Las Vegas

Dancing With The Stars All-Stars announced

The all-star "Dancing With the Stars" cast was announced today for season 15, where for the first time ever, previous contestants will return to the ballroom to vie for the coveted mirror ball trophy.

The All-stars are:
Apolo Ohno (Season 4)
Shawn Johnson (Season 8)
Drew Lachey (Season 2)
Emmitt Smith (Season 3)
Helio Castroneves (Season 5)
Kelly Monaco (Season 1)
Pamela Anderson (Season 10)
Kirstie Alley (Season 12)
Gilles Marini (Season 8)
Joey Fatone (Season 4)
Bristol Palin (Season 11)
Melissa Rycroft (Season 8)

Another first in "Dancing" history, the 13th contestant will be decided by America in an online vote. Fashion commentator Carson Kressley (Season 13), singer Sabrina Bryan (Season 5), Disney Channel star Kyle Massey (Season 11) are vying for people's votes to score the 13th spot in the competition.

The all-star line-up will hit the dance floor on the two-hour season premiere of "Dancing With the Stars" Monday, Sept. 24 at 8 p.m. ET. 

William Levy leaving DWTS semi-finals rehearsal

Dancing with the Stars' top contender, William Levy, was spotted leaving rehearsals for next week's semi-finals.

The Latin Heartthrob looked comfortably hot in his Earnest Sewn Joseph Tee.

I feel extra special cool and sexy now as I love Ernest Sewn clothes. While I may not LOOK exactly like William Levy, I think I feel just as good.

All of the brand's clothing is made of really soft cotton and fabrics, and handcrafted in the USA. Big "up" for the "made in the USA" tag.

William Levy from Dancing With The Stars

"Does anyone still wear a hat?"

More on William Levy here.