Hines Ward tangos through talk shows
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"Dancing With the Stars" winners Hines Ward and Kym Johnson show off the Mirrorball Trophy on Wednesday's "Good Morning America."
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Things we learned from the Hines Ward post-"Dancing With the Stars" tour Wednesday:
• Having Jimmy Kimmel bet on you to win the show is like having money in the bank.
• Copying dance moves from YouTube can be a dangerous idea.
• Very few people can pull off a smiley face hoodie without looking silly, but on the Steelers wide receiver, it's a good fit.
These and other bits of silliness only added to the appeal of the most recently crowned "DWTS" champion. Mr. Ward, who charmed his way through more than 10 weeks of the ABC reality competition, was whisked through New York City for the morning talk show circuit.
But first, he and partner Kym Johnson visited "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" in Hollywood Tuesday night. There, the host revealed that he took advantage of 7-2 odds from an online betting site to win "a lot more than $20" from the show after backing four previous winners.
He also couldn't help ribbing Mr. Ward after the player said that in a sense, winning the Mirrorball Trophy was "comparable" to a Super Bowl victory.
"No, it's not -- stop that!" Mr. Kimmel said. "If this is your Super Bowl, what does that make the Super Bowl?"
"Jim, they made me say that," Mr. Ward replied, laughing.
After dancing up a Times Square samba to "Fantasy" on "Good Morning America," the winners dashed uptown to guest on "Live! With Regis and Kelly."
There Ms. Johnson, who was also the team's choreographer, had to again watch the video showing the accident that led to her neck injury two weeks ago -- it has become the Joe Theismann film clip of the dancing world.
She revealed that a YouTube video of the Colombian world salsa champions convinced her to add a risky move to their routine, to almost disastrous result.
"They need to have that 'Do not try this at home' " on the video, Mr. Ward said.
Everywhere they went, Mr. Ward gave props to the fans whose votes added up to a Mirrorball Trophy so he thanked Steelers Nation, "HineKym Nation" and even Bulldog Nation (his alma mater is the University of Georgia).
While a parade in Pittsburgh is unlikely, given the expense and demands on public-safety services, the city has contacted the Steelers to discuss how best to honor the receiver.
"Rest assured to the people of Pittsburgh and Steelers Nation, we will be celebrating Hines Wards' victory," Joanna Doven, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's spokeswoman said.
It is unclear when Mr. Ward, 35, will return to Pittsburgh. He will undergo surgery next week to repair torn ligaments in his thumb. His manager, Andrew Ree, said he understood the procedure would be done locally.
This was the most-watched season in 12 cycles of "DWTS," with the Tuesday finale scoring more viewers (21 million) than an "American Idol" finale (20 million the same night) for the first time.
First Published May 26, 2011 12:00 am
