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As far as Marie Osmond is concerned, Dancing with the Stars ought to consider a name change.

“It’s called Dancing with the Starved,” Marie jokes to OK! backstage after the season premiere of the hit ABC show Monday night. “I’ve lost three inches around my waist so far.”

The 47-year-old signed onto the dance competition not to work on her quickstep, but to lose weight. Her plan is working thus far with her six-hour a day practices and a NutriSystem diet. “It’s so easy and it tastes good, salads and vegetables. [I can] heat it up at the dance studio.”

She thinks fans of the series will relate to her weight struggle: “You know every chick’s on a diet!”

But Marie doesn’t know exactly how many pounds she’s lost because she refuses to get on the scale and says preparing for the first show was stressful enough.

Paired with Jonathan Roberts, the duo foxtrotted to a score of 21 on ladies’ night last night, good enough for a third place tie. After her dance, the singer/actress joked that 25 million viewers will be voting and “22 of them will be Osmonds.”

And you can bet her eight children will be casting their votes too, but one thing they may not help with is her love life. With her divorce from husband Brian Blosil not yet final, Marie isn’t dating. “Oh, heavens, no,” she laughed to OK! “Who would want to date a woman with eight kids?”

Albert Reed is probably the least famous of the new contestants on Dancing with the Stars, but who cares? The former Abercrombie & Fitch model is hot.

I caught up with the 22-year-old Miami native recently at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, where he was scooping up swag at the GBK Productions Emmys lounge. We talked about Scary Spice’s body, the inevitable start of romance rumors with his dance partner, Anna Trebunskaya, and how wetsuits prepared him for the show.

How did you end up on Dancing with the Stars?
I never watch television. I don’t have cable in my house, so I never really knew what the show was all about. But they stumbled upon me. They got ahold of my manager.

How long did it take you to decide to do it?
I gave it a weekend. I thought about it, because I’ve never [liked] to be in the spotlight…I’m low-key. I like farms and surfing.

Wait, you don’t like the spotlight? What about all those Abercrombie ads and all your modeling? You’ve been on shopping bags and billboards.
Well, you do your shoot, but then you’re done.

How often do you rehearse?
We just hit the two-week mark. It’s been every day for five, six hours. You end up using part of your body you never used before. It’s just been really tough. I’m sore right now. I’ve got blisters on my feet, my body hurts. I used to go to the gym every day, but now I’m skipping it.

Are you ready for the romance rumors with Anna to begin?
Believe me, I have heard certain things spun in the wrong direction. But I’ve got my special someone and [Anna]’s married to Jonathan (Roberts, a fellow professional dancer teamed up in the new season with Marie Osmond).

Did you ever think you’d be dancing the cha-cha on national television?
I talked to my brother-in-law the other day. You know, I surf and I like to work with my hands—we’re real manly men. But the other day on the phone, he was like, “I can’t believe you’re on Dancing with the Stars!” He started laughing at me. Who would have thought I’d be dancing on television? It’s crazy.

Have you tried on any of your outfits yet?
I don’t mind the outfits. We’re kind of going for sexy. Let’s just say there’s a lot showing. Everything is revealed. But I wear wetsuits when I surf, so it’s kind of the same.

BLOOMING GROVE, N.Y. (AP) - Soap opera star Cameron Mathison, 1 of 12 contestants for the fifth season of the reality-show dance competition “Dancing with the Stars,” tried to get his steps right in a Hudson Valley dance studio.

The show was looking for a local studio for Orange County resident Mathison, an actor on the soap “All My Children,” and Joanne Thompson Ray was approached.

So for three days in August, Mathison and his partner, dancer Edyta Sliwinska, rehearsed and were filmed behind closed doors at Joanne’s Dance Studio in Blooming Grove.

Ray and an employee had to sign confidentiality agreements preventing them from telling anyone until ABC named the contestants last week.

When the producers of ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars” asked Albert Reed to be part of the show’s upcoming fourth season, he had a confession for them.

He doesn’t dance.

“That was the first question they asked me,” laughed the 22-year-old supermodel, who grew up in Vero Beach and now lives in Los Angeles. “I told them, ‘I can’t. I got rhythm. I’m able to pull out a few dance moves in a bar or wherever. I’m not unable to dance at all, but I’m definitely not a ballroom dancer by any means.’

“As a kid I used to step on my mom’s and sister’s toes whenever I danced with them. So we’ll see how graceful I will become.”

When “Dancing” begins its new season Sept. 24, Reed — whose claim to the “star” title is a ubiquitous presence in high-end clothing ads and commercials — will hoof against such Hollywood types as Jane Seymour and Marie Osmond.

“I’m a pretty competitive person, in surfing and tennis since I was a kid,” Reed said. “So I kind of took it as a competitive opportunity. Who knows?”

Along with the other names, Reed began intensive training with a professional dance coach Thursday.

Currently the national face of Van Heusen, Reed is a globe-trotter — he works often in Europe, Australia and the Hawaiian islands.

He owns a mountain hideaway in Colorado, but makes his home — when he’s there, that is — in Southern California.

“I try to get a week of surfing in every month, just to try and keep the balance and ground myself,” he said. “And make sure I don’t lose those roots, because that’s really the only way to keep good peace of mind with the chaos that’s always continuing to multiply.”

A 2003 graduate of Vero Beach High School, Reed said his roots were an important factor in the decision to do the show.

“My grandfather passed away this year, so I’m kind of doing it in his name,” he said. “I wasn’t able to make it to the funeral in Long Island, I was busy working in Hawaii at the time, and I didn’t really get to say my goodbye.

“I wouldn’t say he was the most amazing dancer, but he was just a classic, all-American farm kind of man. Just a good old Virginia boy. I remember as a kid when he used to dance with my grandmother. And I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be cool to have the moves that my Grandpa had?’”

“Everybody’s calling me the underdog, the random selection,” says Albert Reed, the face — and body — of Abercrombie & Fitch, who is fully aware that almost nobody knows his name. And that the few who do make some pretty insulting assumptions about his gray matter. “Everybody has this funk about models,” says Reed, 22, who first attracted major attention at age 19 when he was on the cover of Abercrombie & Fitch’s 2004 back-to-school catalog. “It’s this cliché of being a little slow, of not having too much upstairs. I’m a bit of a writer, an artist. I’ve never thought of myself as a model.”

He’s never thought of himself as a dancer, either. So when his manager got a call from Dancing with the Stars asking for a meeting, Reed didn’t exactly jump at the chance. “I wasn’t too familiar with the show,” he admits. “And I have no dance background. I surf, I play tennis. But I don’t bend the way I should. I’ve never picked up flexibility. Dancing is a way of using your body that is so alien and unnatural to me.”

Reed does, however, have a dancer in his family: his adored late grandfather, Harry Foster. Foster was a WWII fighter pilot and then, after the war, an engineer for Grumman Aerospace Corporation (now Northrop Grumman). At family celebrations, Foster would scoop Reed’s grandmother up in his arms and glide her around the floor. “He was such a gentleman with my grandmother,” says Reed. “He might not have had the trickiest moves, but he was a great dancer.”

So when Reed, who moved from New York to Los Angeles to try to break into film and television, was faced with the decision of whether or not to do Dancing with the Stars, thoughts of his grandfather tipped the scales. “I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be really cool if Grandpa’s looking down on this?’” says Reed. “It would be a way to honor him.”

But to get there, he has to survive his practice sessions. His first stop: meeting his partner, Anna Trebunskaya, who last paired with Jerry Rice. “She is a Russian firecracker,” says Reed, who is single but has a “special someone.” “She’s a sweetheart, but she means business. When we met, she was smiling and spunky, and I thought, ‘Oh boy, she’s going to be a handful.’”

The first few days of rehearsals proved him right. Day 2 was five and a half hours of nonstop training. “And I am completely overwhelmed and flustered by all the information that you’re having to process,” says Reed. “Anna said I have great rhythm. But when you add the steps, you get thrown off.”

Still, the face and body that launched a thousand shirt sales is committed to seeing it through. “It has nothing to do with stardom,” he says. In fact, his “special someone” is worried about what he calls “the spotlight factor.” Some people, he says, “change because of the spotlight. But I’ve been in it from early on. I’ve digested it. I’ve seen what can happen if you let this crap take a hold of you. But I’ve never lost my roots. I have a peaceful state of mind. You just have to be happy with where life is.”

Aging has never been a problem for Jane Seymour. Even at 56, she makes boyish fantasies come true (see Wedding Crashers).

But can she dance?

Oh, who are we trying to kid. The woman can move like an old, er, young pro. “My body is capable of doing things I didn’t think it was capable of doing,” the actor said.

Good thing, since Seymour has signed up for the fifth season of the sweaty ballroom standoff known as Dancing With the Stars.

Luckily, decades before Seymour gained fame as an actor, she was a budding dancer in England.

“When I was 16, all I wanted to do in life was be a dancer,” said Seymour, who studied ballet while in theatre school. “I then injured my knees and spent more time in the hospital than I did on stage.”

Despite her acting success, Seymour has wanted to get back on the dance floor.

Dancing With the Stars’ producers offered to grant her wish for the past couple of seasons, but Seymour turned them down. She was struggling to recover from back surgery in 2003 and was hesitant to leave her mother — who had suffered a stroke — back in England.

But since DWTS is her mother’s favourite show, she couldn’t say no when the opportunity came again.

“She attempted to talk very animatedly and she got very very excited when she found out I was going to do this in her honour,” Seymour says. “Hopefully I do my mother and anyone with injuries — and advanced age — a favour.”

Seymour’s dance partner, Tony Dovolani has taken care of that “advanced age” thing. He’s a tough coach, but she says his lessons have done wonders for her back and her stiff “British hips.”

“He’s been trying to train my hips — which are very British — to do all kinds of wiggly things. We’ve been practising now for just over three weeks and without trying I’ve lost 14 pounds and I’m in the best shape I’ve been since I was 16.”

Dancing With the Stars premieres tonight with the six women competitors — Seymour plus Melanie Brown, Sabrina Bryan, Jennie Garth, Josie Maran and Marie Osmond. Tomorrow, the stage goes to the men — Helio Castroneves, Mark Cuban, Cameron Mathison, Floyd Mayweather, Albert Reed and Wayne Newton.

Season five of ‘Dancing with the Stars’ begins tonight and we will be watching a whole new list of celebrities putting their dance moves to the test. The first up tonight will be the women celebrities. Tomorrow the guys will have their turn.Who are the celebrities competing this time around?

Melanie Brown is a former member of the Spice Girls and was “Scary Spice.” The Spice Girls are planning a reunion tour starting in December of 2007. Brown has been involved with a controversy that involved the birth of Eddie Murphy’s child. She also has another child from another relationship. She is married to Stephen Belafonte, a movie producer. She will be dancing with Maksim Chmerkovskiy.

Sabrina Bryan is an actress and recording artist who gained popularity with her role in the Disney Channel’s ‘Cheetah Girls’ movies. Bryan has put together a fitness dance DVD called BYOU that is for young girls. She has singing and choreography skills, plus she has plenty of energy with her young age. Bryan is a National Spokesperson for Healthy Kids Challenge, which promotes good eating habits in the United States youth. Bryan will also be starring in “The Cheetah Girls 3” playing the role of Dorinda. Bryan is only 23 years old.

Jennie Garth is a popular TV actress that was most known for her role in ‘Beverly Hills 90210’ and also on the show ‘What I Like About You.’ She also has acted is several made for TV movies. She has three daughters and is married to Peter Facinelli, who is an actor.

Josie Maran is a model and an actress. She is starting up her own makeup line called, Josie Maran Cosmetics. She modeled for several magazine covers, and most noted as a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model. Maran will be dancing with Alec Mazo.

Marie Osmond is most known as a singer, but has also acted and co-hosted TV shows. Osmond also has a successful collectible doll line. Osmond not only has been a bestselling author, but she also is co-founder and a co-host for the Children’s Miracle Network. Osmond will be dancing with Jonathan Roberts.

Jane Seymour is also a do it all, with many credits to her name. Seymour is an actress, artist, author, activist, and designer of home décor and accessories. We will all be watching to find out if she can dance too! Seymour is well known for her role as in the TV show ‘Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman.’ She is involved in activist for abused and poor children around the world. Seymour will be dancing with Tony Dovolani.

Helio Castroneves is a two time winner of the Indianopolis 500. This race car driver is from Brazil and is a partner and owner of NasrCastroneves racing team. He has also raced for Team Penske. He will be partnered with Julianne Hough.

Mark Cuban owns the Dallas Mavericks. He first gained his fortune from founding Broadcast.com which was purchase by Yahoo! Cuban has created a successful enterprise with the Mavericks as well. But can he make his dance steps win the dance competition?

Cameron Mathison is an actor on the daytime soap ‘All My Children.’ He has also acted on ‘CSI’ and ‘The Drew Carey Show.’ People magazine named him as one of the 100 Top Bachelors.

Floyd Mayweather is the WBC Super Welterweight Boxing Champion. He is paired with Karina Smirnoff. He gained the nickname “pretty boy” because he didn’t get cuts and scrapes on his face when he would box. In 1996, he won a bronze medal at the Olympic Games for Featherweight division boxing.

Wayne Newton is famous for his singing and performing at Las Vegas casinos. This has gained him the name, “Mr. Las Vegas.” He has released 165 albums to date. He will be dancing with Cheryl Burke.

Albert Reed is a model which recently been in the ad campaigns for Abercrombie & Fitch, Diesel Clothing, Arrow Clothing, Rayban and Reebok. He is still quite young at only, 22 years old. He also was a competition surfer in his teens. Reed also said he is an actor, musician, and an artist.

You can go to abc.com and you can play along to win yourself by guessing which one will get voted off the show. ABC is also doing this with the TV reality show ‘The Bachelor.’

I suspect that Sabrina Bryan and Albert Reed will do well on the show. I suspect that Wayne Newton will stick around for a while, but it will be difficult to keep up to the end. I will enjoy seeing Marie Osmond, and hope she gets to stay for a while. I don’t know if Melanie Brown will make it, she just had a baby and I am not sure if she is the same as when she was in the ‘Spice Girls.’ I try to keep track of the competition as it evolves. Each season is so much fun, because they have new diverse group of celebrities.