Kelsey McNeal / AP
By Anna Chan
The speculation can finally end.
On Monday night, ABC unveiled its latest bunch of celebrity hoofers, putting weeks of rumors to rest.
After an hour and a half of "Bachelor Pad," the network finally�started to reveal the stars who will be vying for the coveted mirror ball trophy.�Host Tom Bergeron called the bunch "our most surprising cast yet," but as with previous seasons, the mostly accurate list leaked earlier in the day ruined much of the surprise:
- Ricki Lake
- Ron Artest
- Chynna Phillips
- Kristin Cavallari
- David Arquette
- Carson Kressley
- Nancy Grace
- J.R. Martinez
- Hope Solo
- Rob Kardashian
- Elisabetta Canalis
- Chaz Bono
After the announcement, some of the stars shared their thoughts on participating.
"I love to dance and I love to entertain, and there's no place better than this show to do that," said actor�David Arquette, whom co-host Brook Burke referred to as "king of the big screen." (Canalis' A-list ex, George Clooney, may beg to differ about that.) "I'm really looking for positive things in my life, and dancing makes me happy ... I'm not joking!"
Nancy Grace, who hosts her own show on HLN,�also had a few thoughts on her new gig: "I think it will probably be a lot easier to report the live news than be the live news -- such as falling on your booty. So let's try to avoid that."
And as with previous seasons, the ballroom bash cast yet another contestant with previous dance experience -- Ricki Lake. The actress starred as Tracy Turnblad in 1988's "Hairspray," but don't expect that to give her an advantage. "I was 18 years old, that was 1988, I was 200 pounds and I was faking it the entire time," Lake told the studio audience. "I assure you, I do not have an edge here."
One highlight of Monday's announcements was Artest. When the LA Laker was introduced, he ripped off his shirt and flexed his many muscles for the audience. Seems pro dancer Maksim Chmerkovskiy may have some competition for best abs! (I can already hear head judge Len Goodman griping about the men's gratuitous display of flesh. Funny how he never complains about the women's barely there costumes.)
Season 13 kicks off at 8 p.m. on Sept. 19.
What do you think of the celebs? Better or worse than past seasons? Tell us on our Facebook page!�You can also chat with me and my fellow "Dancing" writer, Ree Hines, about the latest bunch of hopefuls tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. ET. Sign up for a reminder!
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