dancing with the stars

Have you set your DVR yet? I sure have. On Tuesday night we'll see the ballroom dancing debut of Dallas Mavericks owner and tech entrepreneur extraordinaire Mark Cuban as he leaps onto the stage of the corny ABC reality show Dancing with the Stars, which pairs celebrities of various calibers with professional dance partners and then pits the couples against one another.

Cuban, always the subtle one, is encouraging his blog readers to dial in and vote for him and his curvy blond dance partner, Kym. "I'm up against all the pretty boys, athletes and entertainers tonight," he acknowledged in his blog entry, "so jump on board and vote for us."

He then gave some hints of what we might see in the eagerly anticipated episode, naming a handful of what he called "traditional guy dances," the sort of comedic frat-boy moves that you're more likely to see at college reunions than ballroom dance competitions. "As far as a hint for tonight, all I can tell you is that I couldn't get the lawnmower or sprinkler in tonight's routine, but I did get 'churn the butter' in," he wrote.

"Hopefully, tonight will lead the way so that future generations of guys can walk into any wedding reception or nightclub knowing that Churn the Butter and in the future, the Sprinkler, Lawnmower and the Motorboat can bring joy and happiness to your wives and girlfriends."

The motorboat? If that's what I think it is, ladies, you might not want to get on a dance floor with this guy anytime soon.

After a strong start with the female contestants the night before, Tuesday night featured a mixed showing from the men on "Dancing With the Stars." As a group, the gents couldn't match the women's efforts, but even with the bar set high, at least one standout performance surpassed the ladies.

The first to show the audience what the men could do was "All My Children" star Cameron Mathison. And he must have noticed the support season one winner Kelly Monaco got from "General Hospital" viewers, as he bragged, "Daytime fans are the best fans in the world because they're so loyal and fantastic." Okay, Cam. Consider that collective butt kissed.

But then again, he may need all the extra support he can get after his premiere dance. Maybe the problem was that Cameron and partner Edyta Sliwinska weren't able to get in enough rehearsal time with his schedule. Maintaining his full-time status on "AMC," he had to fly from New York to L.A. just to get some face time with Edyta.