Alas, it was only a matter of time. People magazine is reporting that "Dancing" pro Karina Smirnoff and her one-time celeb partner Mario Lopez have parted ways. The magazine cites a reputable source for the news of the breakup.

It was a night filled with surprises, passion and pain. The six remaining celebs each had to perform two dances, once in ballroom dance and one in Latin dance. And it was the Latin dance that did in the sexy hot Cristian de la Fuente.

Marlee Matlin dances with Fabian Sanchez in Los Angeles backstage during the "Dancing with the Stars" show broadcast last night. (AP)

For the third consecutive week, a last-place finish has led to elimination on ‘‘Dancing With the Stars.’’

This week’s celebrity casualty was Marlee Matlin, who came into Tuesday’s results show with 21 out of 30 points. The actress, who is deaf, lost her timing at various points during her mambo Monday with professional partner Fabian Sanchez, and the judges took note.

‘‘You guys looked like you were forcing and struggling,’’ said judge Carrie Ann Inaba, who noted that the mambo is more rhythm-dependent than other ballroom dances and she expected it to be most difficult for Matlin.

‘‘You did a great job,’’ said head judge Len Goodman, ‘‘but it just looked uncomfortable throughout.’’

Judge Bruno Tonioli noticed ‘‘a few stumbles’’ but still called Matlin’s performance ‘‘a great achievement.’’
‘‘What you do here is a plus for the show,’’ he said.

It's mid-season point on "Dancing with the Stars" and Kristi Yamaguchi finally snagged her elusive perfect score of 30 with a truly enjoyable jive. Of course, Yamaguchi is no stranger to dancing --- on ice ---- having toured in numerous ice shows in her skating career. Does it give her an edge here? I'll bet you her Olympic gold medal it does!

Presley has left the building. As in Priscilla.

Cristian de la Fuente and partner Cheryl Burke, and Priscilla Presley and partner Louis Van Amstel were left to stand in that hideous red light while the scary exit music played. But the writing was pretty much on the wall Monday night when Presley just couldn't deliver her rhumba. (She was also in the bottom two after last week's results show.) The 62-year-old actress/businesswoman was voted off the show.

"This has been an incredible experience. It's been life-changing," Presley graciously said.

And once and for all, the show officially clarified that Presley DOES NOT operate a psychic hotline, as was "reported" on the April 1 (April Fool's Day) "Dancing" show. Told ya so.

More "cute kids" danced. Again, one tiny tot couple was "eliminated." Still seems harsh, but boy can they dance!

It's halftime on "Dancing with the Stars," the midpoint of this season's competition, and still there is little to be excited about. Even on the "hottest night of the season" as Latin dance night is billed, there was little sizzle to be had amid all the attempts at the sensuous rhumba and sexy-playful samba.

Seems the Web is abuzz with news that some folks were unhappy with the "children's competition" on the week four results show. Tiny dancing tots, two couples to be exact, danced their hearts out in front of millions of us viewers. One duo was told they were "out" of the competition; the other moves on to face a new challenger next Tuesday night. Yep, these kids are "seasoned veterans" supposedly of dance competitions so "losing" shouldn't be traumatic. But was it right to make them face the music in such a way in front of millions of viewers? Why wasn't it just a demonstration dance, rather than a judged performance?

Other "Dancing" news you can use..... Julianne Hough's country music album, "That Song in My Head" (Mercury/Nashville) is due out May 20. The title rack is already getting tons of airplay. The 19-year-old is also slated to sing the National Anthem at the Indy 500 on May 25. And, the bubbly dancer-singer hits the road for her first tour starting June 11. The headliner? Brad Paisley.

Heard Tuesday night: Priscilla Presley was penalized one point by the judges for performing a lift during her Viennese waltz. La Presley murmured "I love feeling my legs in the air." There you have it.

You are right. There is no "sparkle" this season as there has been in the past. Carolla was having fun and at least did bring some humor to the show. But it in the end, it's the dancing that matters, so he had to go. I thought Jason was great and deserved the 29. At least he has the charisma and personality that Kristi seems to be lacking. I gotta agree with judge Len Goodman, all her dances have a "sameness" to them in terms of emotion and musicality.

Should be interesting to see how next Monday's dances go.

"Dancing With the Stars" has reinstated its practice of letting viewers know just who's in the "bottom two" each week. This time out, it was Priscilla Presley and Adam Carolla left standing in the red light while the scary exit music plays.

In the end, it was Carolla who bowed out gracefully when he was told he was voted off the show.

"I lost 20 pounds of fat but gained 100 pounds of angel," he said of his pro partner Julianne Hough.

'Nuff said for this week.