Dancing with the Stars 2010 Week 5 Results: Florence Henderson Leaves the Bunch, Bristol Hangs On... Again

The Dancing with the Stars week 5 results show aired Tuesday evening on ABC, just one night after the hit reality show staged its first-ever TV theme week. The elimination show featured musical performances by Jason Derulo and Shakira, and was capped off by the elimination of actress Florence Henderson from the DWTS season 11 competition. Here's the play by play.

Co-hosts Tom Bergeron and Brooke Burke opened the week five results show with a look at last night's lowest scorers, Disney actor Kyle Massey, who earned a whopping 5 from head judge Len Goodman for his Charlie's Angels Foxtrot, and teen activist Bristol Palin, who struggled through part of a Jive underneath the hefty weight of a Monkee suit. Kyle and partner Lacey Schwimmer were proclaimed safe to dance again, leaving us to assume that Bristol and partner Mark Ballas -- who scored a lowly, bottom-dwelling 18 last night -- would find themselves under the glare of the red lights. But oh no: Brooke proclaimed them safe as well, much to the surprise of the couple, and probably the chagrin of the judges. (Carrie Ann Inaba could be seen mouthing "shocking" shortly after the news was revealed.) So two down, six to go.

Tom next turned to (a still-stunned) Lennie and asked him to reveal the encore dance of the week. Not surprisingly, Crankypants called R&B singer Brandy and partner Maksim Chmerkovskiy to the ballroom floor to reprise their Friends-themed Quickstep. It was great the first time, and great again tonight: It's awesome to see Brandy steppin' it up. What followed was more extremely odd time-filling, TV theme week weirdness in the form of Bruno Tonioli, Lacey Schwimmer and Mark Ballas pimping a (man, I hope) faux workout DVD called Bring it Like Bruno. These people have no shame.

After a break (and for me, a recovery period post-watching Bruno do the Pencil Sharpener), Jason Derulo (and some folks who must be his dancers) hit the ballroom floor with In My Head. Good stuff. Good energy, good beat. Woo-ha-ha. Backstage in the Red Room, Mark Ballas claimed to be "very surprised" about still being in the competition, while Kyle thanked "Team Schmurgles" fans for phoning in and saving them from elimination.

Tom kept the Dancing with the Stars TV theme results action going in the ballroom as he turned his attention to top-scoring couples Brandy and partner Maks, and actress Jennifer Grey and partner Derek Hough. But before they learned their fates, we were treated to another bizarre infomercial, this time for Easy Steps dance aids and Special Bonus Gift Derek Hough. (Really, DWTS? Do we really need to be this cheesy? I like some cheddar with my Ritz crackers now and again, but this is ridiculous.)

Post-break, the co-hosts re-addressed the top scorers. Brandy and Maks were saved to dance again, but Jennifer and Derek found themselves in jeopardy. That's interesting. Hmm. Maybe last night wasn't a great time to struggle.

The show took a decidedly more serious turn as Tom sat in the audience with a mom and six-brother family from the Congo. A segment aired that told of their struggles in their home country, and ended with the brothers dancing a surprise Cha Cha Cha for the their mom, who happens to be a big fan of Dancing with the Stars. As someone in the midst of a different kind of family turmoil at the moment, I cried a few tears. Bravo, boys!

The season 11 athletes, who each scored a healthy 24 points last night, found themselves under the results show microscope next. NFL star Kurt Warner and partner Anna Trebunskaya were proclaimed safe, while NBA star Rick Fox and partner Cheryl Burke found themselves in danger along with Jennifer and Derek. What followed was yet another corny TV theme week ad featuring season 11's first axed celeb as David 'Sledgehammer' Hasselhoff. (Good sport or pathetic attention grab? Hmm.)

Immediately thereafter, Shakira and her dancers got to work with some entertainment of their own. I think she's cute, but didn't love her performance. For one thing, I totally don't get the MC Hammer pants her dancers wore. Please don't tell me that that particular piece of fashion history is back. For another, there was too much booty for primetime TV. I mean, my kids are in bed by 9:30, but my daughter likes to watch via DVR the next day. The hip and booty shaking Shakira-style was just too slutty. Yuck.

After a break, Jason Derulo returned with his rendition of Georgia on My Mind. A pair of dancers I didn't recognize trolled around the ballroom floor in accompaniment. Smooth, mellow, a little elevator-y, but all in all a good offering. Cool beans.

Brooke chatted with the two remaining couples in the Red Room next. Tony Dovolani, partner of reality star Audrina Patridge, revealed that the band had inadvertently messed up their music last night (phooey), while actress Florence Henderson vowed to stick around as long as the audience will vote for her. Audrina and Tony were saved to dance again, but Florence and partner Corky Ballas were relegated to the danger zone.

Just to keep ya up to speed, Jennifer Grey, Rick Fox and Florence Henderson are in danger of being eliminated on this Dancing with the Stars TV theme week results show. Surprised? I am. Well, about Jennifer and Rick, anyway. Florence, not so much.

So who got the inglorious axe? Not Jennifer and Derek -- they were proclaimed safe. The two remaining couples exchanged handshakes, and after the requisite dramatic music, Florence Henderson and Corky Ballas were eliminated from Dancing with the Stars season 11. A gracious Florence called it "one of the best TV shows I've ever been on", and went on to praise everyone from the make-up team to her partner Corky.

So that's that! While I didn't think Florence would make it much beyond this point in the show, it's a little sad to see her be eliminated on the heels of her Brady Bunch dance. Oh well: At least she went out on a high note.

Tune in next Monday night as things get rockin' with Rock and Roll week, and as Dancing with the Stars counts down the top 10 DWTS dances of all time. Will your faves make the list? I dunno, but Drew Lachey and Cheryl Burke's Freestyle from season 2 had better make an appearance! Of course, you can just check in with me if you have other things to do. You know I'll be watching.

Sources

Dancing with the Stars TV Theme week results show, October 19, 2010, ABC