Dancing with the Stars (American season 6)
Season six of Dancing with the Stars premiered on March 17, 2008; the first results show was a double-elimination episode airing on March 25, 2008. The show followed the format of previous seasons, with 12 couples.
On May 6, 2008 DWTS had a special two-hour edition to commemorate its 100th episode.
The most frequently-given score for this season was 29, which was given 9 times to leaders in several weeks.
Kristi Yamaguchi and her partner, Mark Ballas, won the competition. Kristi & Mark combined for four of the five perfect scores given out this season; she received three of them for her three Finals dances, giving her a perfect 90 out of 90.
Couples
The contestants were announced during the season finale of ' by season two contestants Lisa Rinna, Jerry Rice, and Kenny Mayne. The contestants were:| Celebrity | Notability | Professional partner | Status |
| Penn Jillette | Magician | Kym Johnson | Eliminated 1st on March 25, 2008 |
| Monica Seles | Professional tennis player | Jonathan Roberts | Eliminated 2nd on March 25, 2008 |
| Steve Guttenberg | Movie actor | Anna Trebunskaya | Eliminated 3rd on April 1, 2008 |
| Adam Carolla | Comedian & radio host | Julianne Hough | Eliminated 4th on April 8, 2008 |
| Priscilla Presley | Actress & businesswoman | Louis Van Amstel | Eliminated 5th on April 15, 2008 |
| Marlee Matlin | Film & television actress | Fabian Sanchez | Eliminated 6th on April 22, 2008 |
| Shannon Elizabeth | American Pie actress | Derek Hough | Eliminated 7th on April 29, 2008 |
| Mario | R&B singer | Karina Smirnoff | Eliminated 8th on May 6, 2008 |
| Marissa Jaret Winokur | Broadway actress | Tony Dovolani | Eliminated 9th on May 13, 2008 |
| Cristián de la Fuente | International film & television actor | Cheryl Burke | Third Place on May 20, 2008 |
| Jason Taylor | Miami Dolphins defensive end | Edyta Śliwińska | Runner-Up on May 20, 2008 |
| Kristi Yamaguchi | Olympic figure skater | Mark Ballas | Winner''' on May 20, 2008 |
Scoring chart
Average score chart
This table only counts dances scored on a 30-point scale.| Rank by average | Place | Couple | Total points | Number of dances | Average |
| 1 | 1 | Kristi & Mark | 425 | 15 | 28.3 |
| 2 | 2 | Jason & Edyta | 395 | 15 | 26.3 |
| 3 | 5 | Mario & Karina | 254 | 10 | 25.4 |
| 4 | 3 | Cristián & Cheryl | 353 | 14 | 25.2 |
| 5 | 6 | Shannon & Derek | 195 | 8 | 24.4 |
| 6 | 4 | Marissa & Tony | 286 | 12 | 23.8 |
| 7 | 8 | Priscilla & Louis | 114 | 5 | 22.8 |
| 8 | 7 | Marlee & Fabian | 134 | 6 | 22.3 |
| 9 | 9 | Adam & Julianne | 74 | 4 | 18.5 |
| 10 | 10 | Steve & Anna | 55 | 3 | 18.3 |
| 11 | 12 | Penn & Kym | 33 | 2 | 16.5 |
| 12 | 11 | Monica & Jonathan | 30 | 2 | 15.0 |
Highest and lowest scoring performances
The best and worst performances in each dance according to the judges' 30-point scale are as follows:| Dance | Highest scored dancer | Highest score | Lowest scored dancer | Lowest score |
| Cha-cha-cha | Kristi Yamaguchi | 30 | Penn Jillette | 16 |
| Foxtrot | Jason Taylor | 28 | Monica Seles Adam Carolla | 15 |
| Quickstep | Jason Taylor | 30 | Penn Jillette | 17 |
| Mambo | Cristián de la Fuente | 29 | Monica Seles | 15 |
| Jive | Kristi Yamaguchi | 30 | Marissa Jaret Winokur | 19 |
| Tango | Jason Taylor Kristi Yamaguchi | 29 | Steve Guttenberg Adam Carolla Mario | 21 |
| Viennese waltz | Jason Taylor | 29 | Priscilla Presley | 22 |
| Paso doble | Kristi Yamaguchi | 29 | Adam Carolla | 19 |
| Rumba | Kristi Yamaguchi | 29 | Priscilla Presley | 21 |
| Samba | Cristián de la Fuente | 29 | Cristián de la Fuente | 21 |
| Freestyle | Kristi Yamaguchi | 30 | Cristián de la Fuente | 26 |
Couples' highest and lowest scoring dances
Scores are based upon a potential 30-point maximum.| Couple | Highest scoring dances | Lowest scoring dances |
| Kristi & Mark | Jive, Cha-cha-cha, & Freestyle | Viennese waltz & Samba |
| Jason & Edyta | Quickstep | Foxtrot |
| Cristián & Cheryl | Mambo & Samba | Quickstep |
| Marissa & Tony | Tango | Cha-cha-cha |
| Mario & Karina | Rumba | Tango |
| Shannon & Derek | Viennese waltz | Cha-cha-cha |
| Marlee & Fabian | Quickstep & Viennese waltz | Jive & Mambo |
| Priscilla & Louis | Tango | Mambo & Rumba |
| Adam & Julianne | Tango | Foxtrot |
| Steve & Anna | Tango | Mambo |
| Monica & Jonathan | Foxtrot & Mambo | Foxtrot & Mambo |
| Penn & Kym | Quickstep | Cha-cha-cha |
Weekly scores
Individual judges' scores in the charts below are listed in this order from left to right: Carrie Ann Inaba, Len Goodman, Bruno Tonioli.Week 1
The couples danced the cha-cha-cha or the foxtrot.;Running order
| Couple | Scores | Dance | Music |
| Penn & Kym | 16 | Cha-cha-cha | "Fool in Love"—Tina Turner |
| Jason & Edyta | 22 | Foxtrot | "Pride and Joy"—Marvin Gaye |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 21 | Cha-cha-cha | "Bang Bang"—David Sanborn |
| Adam & Julianne | 15 | Foxtrot | "Mellow Yellow"—Donovan |
| Mario & Karina | 24 | Cha-cha-cha | "Request Line"—The Black Eyed Peas |
| Steve & Anna | 18 | Foxtrot | " Lazy River"—Bobby Darin |
;Running order
| Couple | Scores | Dance | Music |
| Shannon & Derek | 21 | Cha-cha-cha | "Shut Up and Drive"—Rihanna |
| Monica & Jonathan | 15 | Foxtrot | "Bubbly"—Colbie Caillat |
| Marissa & Tony | 18 | Cha-cha-cha | "Low"—Flo Rida |
| Priscilla & Louis | 24 | Foxtrot | "Feeling Good"—Nina Simone |
| Kristi & Mark | 27 | Foxtrot | "The More I See You"—Michael Bublé |
| Marlee & Fabian | 22 | Cha-cha-cha | "Get on Your Feet"—Gloria Estefan |
Week 2
The couples danced the mambo or the quickstep. This is the first time that the series featured a double elimination.;Running order
| Couple | Scores | Dance | Music | Result |
| Steve & Anna | 16 | Mambo | "I Got a Girl"—Lou Bega | Safe |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 20 | Quickstep | "Americano"—The Brian Setzer Orchestra | Last to be called safe |
| Monica & Jonathan | 15 | Mambo | "My Lovin' "—En Vogue | Eliminated |
| Penn & Kym | 17 | Quickstep | "Man With the Hex"—Atomic Fireballs | Eliminated |
| Priscilla & Louis | 21 | Mambo | "Bossa Nova Hand Dance "—Connie Francis | Safe |
| Shannon & Derek | 24 | Quickstep | "Swing With Me"—Jessica Simpson | Safe |
| Jason & Edyta | 27 | Mambo | "Lupita"—Perez Prado | Safe |
| Marissa & Tony | 21 | Quickstep | "Flip, Flop and Fly"—The Blues Brothers | Last to be called safe |
| Adam & Julianne | 19 | Mambo | "House of Bamboo"—Andy Williams | Safe |
| Marlee & Fabian | 24 | Quickstep | "Mack The Knife"—Rosemary Clooney | Safe |
| Kristi & Mark | 27 | Mambo | "Hey Baby"—No Doubt | Safe |
| Mario & Karina | 26 | Quickstep | "Valerie"—Amy Winehouse | Safe |
Week 3
The couples danced the jive or the tango.;Running order
| Couple | Scores | Dance | Music | Result |
| Marlee & Fabian | 21 | Jive | "You May Be Right"—Billy Joel | Safe |
| Steve & Anna | 21 | Tango | "Jalousie"—Alfred Hause's Tango Orchestra | Eliminated |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 25 | Jive | "Don't Stop Me Now"—Queen | Safe |
| Mario & Karina | 21 | Tango | "El Tango de Roxanne"—Moulin Rouge! soundtrack | Last to be called safe |
| Shannon & Derek | 24 | Jive | "Goody Two Shoes"—Adam Ant | Safe |
| Adam & Julianne | 21 | Tango | "I Can't Tell A Waltz From A Tango"—Alma Cogan | Safe |
| Marissa & Tony | 19 | Jive | "Girlfriend"—Avril Lavigne | Safe |
| Priscilla & Louis | 26 | Tango | "El Choclo"—Lalo Schifrin | Safe |
| Jason & Edyta | 23 | Jive | "I Got a Woman"—Ray Charles | Safe |
| Kristi & Mark | 27 | Tango | "Rio"—Duran Duran | Safe |
Week 4
The couples danced the paso doble or the viennese waltz.;Running order
| Couple | Scores | Dance | Music | Result |
| Kristi & Mark | 29 | Paso doble | "Blue Monday"—New Order | Safe |
| Priscilla & Louis | 22 | Viennese waltz | "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man"—Etta James | Bottom two |
| Adam & Julianne | 19 | Paso doble | "Plaza of Execution"—James Horner | Eliminated |
| Marlee & Fabian | 24 | Viennese waltz | "She's Always a Woman"—Billy Joel | Safe |
| Mario & Karina | 24 | Paso doble | "Higher Ground"—Stevie Wonder | Safe |
| Jason & Edyta | 29 | Viennese waltz | "It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World"—James Brown | Safe |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 26 | Paso doble | "La Virgen de la Macarena"—Canadian Brass | Safe |
| Shannon & Derek | 28 | Viennese waltz | "Keep Holding On"—Avril Lavigne | Safe |
| Marissa & Tony | 24 | Paso doble | "My Family is My Life"—James Horner | Safe |
Week 5
The couples danced the samba or the rumba.;Running order
| Couple | Scores | Dance | Music | Result |
| Mario & Karina | 27 | Samba | "A-Tisket, A-Tasket"—Ella Fitzgerald and Chick Webb | Safe |
| Priscilla & Louis | 21 | Rumba | "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"—Roberta Flack | Eliminated |
| Marissa & Tony | 24 | Samba | "Tambourine"—Eve | Safe |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 23 | Rumba | "If You're Not the One"—Daniel Bedingfield | Bottom two |
| Marlee & Fabian | 22 | Samba | "Samba Hey"—El General | Safe |
| Kristi & Mark | 29 | Rumba | "Say"—John Mayer | Safe |
| Shannon & Derek | 23 | Samba | "Pon de Replay"—Rihanna | Safe |
| Jason & Edyta | 27 | Rumba | "You're All I Need to Get By"—Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell | Safe |
Week 6
The couples performed one unlearned dance and a group country-western.;Running order
Week 7
The couples performed two unlearned dances.;Running order
| Couple | Scores | Dance | Music | Result |
| Marissa & Tony | 27 | Tango | "Champagne Tango"—Carlos Di Sarli | Bottom two |
| Marissa & Tony | 25 | Rumba | "Quando, Quando, Quando"—Engelbert Humperdinck | Bottom two |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 25 | Viennese waltz | "I'll Make Love to You"—Boyz II Men | Safe |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 21 | Samba | "Sobe Son"—Miami Sound Machine | Safe |
| Kristi & Mark | 26 | Viennese waltz | "I'm with You"—Avril Lavigne | Safe |
| Kristi & Mark | 28 | Cha-cha-cha | "Don't Stop the Music"—Rihanna | Safe |
| Mario & Karina | 24 | Foxtrot | "I'm Your Man"—Leonard Cohen | Safe |
| Mario & Karina | 27 | Mambo | "Mambo a la Sandoval"—Angel Melendez | Safe |
| Shannon & Derek | 27 | Tango | "Tanguedia II"—Ástor Piazzolla | Eliminated |
| Shannon & Derek | 24 | Mambo | "Ain't Nothing Wrong with That"—Robert Randolph and the Family Band | Eliminated |
| Jason & Edyta | 29 | Quickstep | "The Dirty Boogie"—The Brian Setzer Orchestra | Safe |
| Jason & Edyta | 26 | Paso doble | "Heavy Action"—Johnny Pearson | Safe |
Week 8: Quarterfinals
The couples performed two unlearned dances.;Running order
| Couple | Scores | Dance | Music | Result |
| Kristi & Mark | 29 | Quickstep | "Billy a Dick"—Klaus Hallen | Safe |
| Kristi & Mark | 26 | Samba | "Volare"—Gipsy Kings | Safe |
| Mario & Karina | 27 | Viennese waltz | "If I Ain't Got You"—Alicia Keys | Eliminated |
| Mario & Karina | 26 | Jive | "Little Bitty Pretty One"—Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers | Eliminated |
| Marissa & Tony | 25 | Foxtrot | "New York, New York"—Frank Sinatra | Safe |
| Marissa & Tony | 25 | Mambo | "Ritmo de Chunga"—Perez Prado | Safe |
| Jason & Edyta | 29 | Tango | "Tango Barbaro"—Lalo Schifrin | Last to be called safe |
| Jason & Edyta | 23 | Samba | "It Had Better Be Tonight"—Michael Bublé | Last to be called safe |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 28 | Tango | "Beat It"—Michael Jackson | Safe |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 29 | Mambo | "Saca Tu Mujer"—Tito Puente, Jr. | Safe |
Week 9: Semifinals
The couples performed two learned dances.;Running order
| Couple | Scores | Dance | Music | Result |
| Jason & Edyta | 28 | Foxtrot | "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off"—Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald | Safe |
| Jason & Edyta | 27 | Paso doble | "El Gato Montes"—Manuel Panella | Safe |
| Marissa & Tony | 26 | Quickstep | "Around the World"—Buddy Greco | Eliminated |
| Marissa & Tony | 26 | Rumba | "Just the Two of Us"—Grover Washington, Jr. | Eliminated |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 27 | Viennese waltz | "Satellite"—Dave Matthews Band | Last to be called safe |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 29 | Samba | "Sweetheart from Venezuela"—Harry Belafonte | Last to be called safe |
| Kristi & Mark | 29 | Tango | "Midnight Tango"—Arthur Murray Orchestra | Safe |
| Kristi & Mark | 28 | Jive | "Nutbush City Limits"—Tina Turner | Safe |
Week 10: Finals
On the first night, the couples danced a cha-cha-cha face-off and a freestyle.On the second night, the final two couples performed their best dance of the season.
;Running order
| Couple | Scores | Dance | Music | Result |
| Kristi & Mark | 30 | Cha-cha-cha | "Dancing on the Ceiling"—Lionel Richie | Safe |
| Kristi & Mark | 30 | Freestyle | "Workin' Day and Night"—Michael Jackson | Safe |
| Jason & Edyta | 24 | Cha-cha-cha | "Dancing on the Ceiling"—Lionel Richie | Safe |
| Jason & Edyta | 27 | Freestyle | "Miami"—Will Smith | Safe |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 26 | Cha-cha-cha | "Dancing on the Ceiling"—Lionel Richie | Third place |
| Cristián & Cheryl | 26 | Freestyle | "Suavemente"—Elvis Crespo | Third place |
;Running order
| Couple | Scores | Dance | Music | Result |
| Kristi & Mark | 30 | Jive | "Rip it Up"—Little Richard | Winner |
| Jason & Edyta | 30 | Quickstep | "The Dirty Boogie"—The Brian Setzer Orchestra | Runner-up |
Dance chart
Junior ballroom dancing competition
- Names in bold are the winners of the round.
| Date | Round | Pair | Dance | Votes |
| April 8, 2008 | 1 | Aaron & Daniela | Samba | Len Goodman |
| April 8, 2008 | 1 | Aaron & Rashell | Paso doble | Carrie Ann Inaba & Bruno Tonioli |
| April 15, 2008 | 2 | Dmitriy & Michelle | Jive | Carrie Ann Inaba |
| April 15, 2008 | 2 | Jaryd & Cara | Cha-cha-cha | Len Goodman & Bruno Tonioli |
| April 22, 2008 | 3 | Brandon & Brittany | Cha-cha-cha | Carrie Ann Inaba & Bruno Tonioli |
| April 22, 2008 | 3 | Austin & Liza | Samba | Len Goodman |
| May 13, 2008 | 4 | Aaron & Rashell | Cha-cha-cha | The public voted for the winner, announced on May 20, 2008. |
| May 13, 2008 | 4 | Jaryd & Cara | Samba | The public voted for the winner, announced on May 20, 2008. |
| May 13, 2008 | 4 | Brandon & Brittany | Paso doble | The public voted for the winner, announced on May 20, 2008. |
- In the final round, Kym Johnson helped Aaron and Rashell, Maksim Chmerkovskiy helped Jaryd and Cara, and Ashly DelGrosso helped Brandon and Brittany.
Musical guests & performance dancers