Did Jaleel White clash with Kym Johnson on 'Dancing With the Stars'?
Did "Dancing with the Stars" skirt one of the more damaging flaps in 14 seasons when Jaleel White - who had reportedly clashed with his partner Kym Johnson and pro dancer Mark Ballas beforehand - turned up for the live telecast a few minutes ago?
"DWTS" declined comment about the fracas earlier, while a statement released by White said he and Johnson "are getting along great."
Both danced the rhumba, and received good scores (25 out of 30) and reasonable facsimiles of what appeared to be sincere judge compliments: "You're back in the game...smooth...competent."
In fact, only White broke through the veil of happy talk when he teared up, or seemed to, while saying, "I just wanted to complete this week..."
A ratings stunt? A valid question given this show's huge appetite for them. But this was probably not an example of one. White - "Urkel" from "Family Matters" - got in a screaming fight with Johnson during rehearsals, according to a report in Us magazine, which was not denied by ABC. He had stepped on her foot during rehearsal. When Johnson expressed pain, White, 35, began chastising her. After Johnson left the studio in tears, Green Bay Packers wide receiver Donald Driver, a fellow "DWTS" contestant, spoke with him, and White then took his argument to show producers, at which point Ballas intervened.
The argument became so pitched that the producers separated both before they came to blows, according to the magazine, which said White had refused to return to the rehearsal or the studio.
Two-time champion Johnson won in 2011 with Hines Ward and in 2009 with Donny Osmond. A contestant has never been fired from the U.S. version of the series.