Even if you don’t watch “Dancing with the Stars,” you might have heard about the throw down between now-eliminated celebrity dancer Michael Bolton and judge Bruno Tonioli.
Bolton danced a jive to Elvis’ “Hound Dog” with partner Chelsie Hightower last Monday night and Tonioli let him have it in his critique. Bolton’s total score from all the judges was 12, with Carrie Ann Inaba giving him a 4, Len Goodman giving him a 5, and Tonioli giving him a 3. But it was Tonioli’s words that were most stinging to Bolton. He named it the “worst jive in 11 seasons” and followed that up with it was danced “very, very, very badly” because apparently one or two “verys” just didn’t get it.
The next night was the results show and Tonioli didn’t back down much. I remember him saying Rin Tin Tin could have done a better job, despite Len jumping on him to give Bolton a break.
Bolton was eliminated, but the tiff between the two goes on. Bolton has called Tonioli’s critique “mean-spirited” and said that “Bruno should search his soul for what he is doing on that show.” He said the worst part is that his 90-year-old mother Helen was in the audience when he got the critique and she was very angry at Tonioli.
Bolton’s also admitted publicly that he would like an apology, but hasn’t doesn’t blame the show. He wants Tonioli to have a “personal epiphany,” saying the show has a lighthearted spirit and invited celebs to do something very scary and challenging. Bolton is also afraid that Tonioli’s harsh words for his dancing might scare other celebrities from participating in the future.
As for ABC and “Dancing with the Stars” staff, they support Tonioli, saying it is his job to give him honest opinion about performances.
Personally, I am on Team Bruno. I love Bruno and think he puts his entire heart into each critique he makes, whether the performance was good or bad. Yes, he was harsh, but Bolton is a grown man – he should suck it up and take it like one. What do you think?