LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: 'Dancing With The Stars' alums joined Season 32 pro dancers to pay an emotional tribute to legend Len Goodman. He was an original judge on 'DWTS' before his death last year.
Alums Maks Chmerkovskiy, Kym Johnson-Herjavec, Tony Dovolani, Karina Smirnoff, Anna Trebunskaya, Edyta Śliwińska, Louis van Amstel and Mark Ballas and current pros paid a dance tribute to Goodman, who died at age 78 in April 2023 four months after announcing his retirement from the ABC dance competition.
The emotional mid-show segment began with a pre-recorded video with all the pros, including judge Derek Hough and co-host Julianne Hough, where they spoke about their most beloved memories of Goodman.
The 'DWTS' pros also spoke about Goodman's life off-camera, which viewers rarely got a chance to see, including the moments they spent together and how he adored his family and wife. The pros performed a waltz which was one of Len's favorite dances.
Tipping their hat to Goodman one last time, the pros then performed a number, choreographed by Jenna Johnson and Val Chmerkovskiy, to Henry Mancini's classic, 'Moon River,' a song and dance style they said Goodman loved.
The performance finished with a spotlight on Goodman's former chair at the judges' desk and his voice came over the ballroom, "All good things have to come to an end." However, the crowd rose to their feet and applauded, and the rest of the pros and judges broke down in tears.
However, 'DWTS' Season 32 viewers also got emotional with the touching tribute and shared their feelings on social media. An X user tweeted, "That Len Goodman tribute was wonderful. I’m still crying!"
Another person added, "The Len tribute was everything! I lasted 5 seconds before the tears started flowing." Another user wrote, "The In Loving Memory of Len Goodman at the end ? Let me watch that tribute again and wallow in my tears."
Another viewer penned, "Me crying at the dance for Len and watching Bruno and Carrie Ann comfort each other." Another social media user said, "The tribute to Len was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen..absolutely gorgeous!"
Why was former pro Cheryl Burke missing from 'DWTS' Len Goodman's tribute?
Former 'DWTS' pro Cheryl Burke was noticeably missing from Len Goodman's touching tribute. Last week, Burke claimed she was not asked to return to the ballroom for the special performance.
She wrote on Threads, "For those of you asking if I’ll be a part of Len Goodman’s tribute next week on DWTS, unfortunately, I wasn’t invited however, I’ll be there in spirit and can’t wait to cheer my former colleagues on!"
Burke added, "Sending love and light to everyone. ??? #riplen" However, she paid a tribute to Goodman on Instagram noting, "Mr. Len Goodman. Thank you for being the face of ballroom dancing and always standing by what was right, no matter what."
She went on to praise Goodman's 'tough love and no B.S. approach,' and shared that his 'respect for the art and sport of ballroom dance showed me and millions of people how much you truly cared.'
'DWTS' Season 32 renames its trophy after Len Goodman
During DWTS's season 32, co-hosts Alfonso Ribeiro and Julianne Hough announced the show would have a "spectacular tribute to Len from our dancers that you won't wanna miss." They also revealed the Mirrorball Trophy would now be named the Len Goodman Mirrorball Trophy in his honor.
Hough noted, "Len will always be going forward with us." Meanwhile, Ribeiro added, "As a tribute to him, we redesigned and renamed our ultimate prize."
Goodman had been dancing at the age of 19 and competed in various competitions across the nation, claiming victory in several competitions during his late twenties. The dancer and his partner Cherry won the British Exhibition Championships four times before Len eventually retired in the early 1970s.
Goodman passed away on April 22, 2023, from bone cancer.
Catch new episodes of 'DWTS' Season 32 every Tuesday at 8 pm ET on ABC and Disney+.
