Ralph Macchio: What he loved (and didnt like) about Dancing With the Stars -

Ralph Macchio left his "Dancing With the Stars" days behind him back in May, when he was eliminated from last season's competition. But he still has much love for the weekly ballroom battle, even though he has "mixed feelings about the competition element of the show and how the machine works."

Macchio — who turns 50 next week — recently elaborated on those mixed feelings during a phone interview in which he also discussed which current "Dancing With the Stars" contestants he is rooting for, his daughter's appearance in an upcoming Kristen Wiig comedy, his recent online video efforts to encourage safe teenage driving and, of course, "The Karate Kid."

On “Dancing With the Stars”:

It’s been a few months since your experience on “Dancing With the Stars” ended. Looking back, what do you think you gained from that experience?

Macchio: The platform for "Dancing With the Stars" is like none other because — I have mixed feelings about the competition element of the show and how the machine works, quote-unquote. But the performance element and the creating, I loved it. I ran there every Monday night because the audience and the crowd, even on the street, was such a huge groundswell of support from the moment we came out in the first episode. Fortunately, we were at the top of the pack coming out of the gate so I got a tremendous amount of press out of it. And it was also this big nostalgic embrace [from] people who grew up with, you know, "The Outsiders," "Karate Kid," "My Cousin Vinny," and of that time. It's a great platform because the show wants everyone to do well. It's a show based on supporting a positive outcome, as opposed to trainwreck TV, which so many of these reality-based shows design themselves around, although they'll deny it.

I passed on it back, a few years before and I think I probably would have done the same thing again, except they came to me last minute because someone had dropped out. And I felt with the remake of "The Karate Kid" recently having come out and I had this Funny or Die video that I made called "Wax On, [Bleep] Off." — it was such a big hit for me that I realized the fan base was out there and probably itching to see me in a relevant, current form. And it turned out to be just that, a very positive thing. If I walk down the street today, people love that I did that show. It helps to not suck at it, you know. I was pretty good, even though some weeks I got harshly criticized. For the most part, I think I was a fan favorite and I really enjoyed Karina Smirnoff. We had a great chemistry together. So it was all good at the end of the day.

You said earlier you had mixed feelings about the competition part of it. Because you feel that people sometimes get voted off when they shouldn’t?

Macchio: That, and I still think the judging has the ability to pump someone up or push someone down based on whatever — I'm not saying it's a fixed agenda. But they do have to carry a 10-week story arc and keep people interested. You're working your butt off 10 hours a day, every day. No days off, virtually. And you're putting it out there in this 90 seconds, because that's all you can control. The rest of the show, you know, that machine is going to run its course.

Obviously, if you’re horrible they’re going to mention that. But there are people that last a long time that are not very great dancers, and there are people that are really good and show improvement that don’t wind up sticking around too long. But you have to know that going in. I hear people getting so angry at the show, like “How could they vote that off?” and “How could they score you that low?” You’ve got to know what you’re watching. It’s entertainment, it’s a competition, it’s a game show, but it’s a chance to represent yourself and work hard. And that’s what I tried to do. I tried to be funny, humorous, self-deprecating and represent myself well — put a positive vibe out there and perform for the fans, because they showed up every week, whether it was on the street or in the studio. That was awesome.

Are you watching the show now?

Macchio: I have been. I'm doing a little bit of the YouTube clips. If I'm home at the time, I'll watch the whole thing. I'm rooting for Karina, obviously. We felt we deserved to make it to the finals last year, so I always say I brought her to the red zone and maybe this year, this guy [J.R. Martinez] will take her in for the touchdown. And Ricki Lake I think is doing, I think is certainly a candidate.

But that’s as far as dancing goes. Personalities is the whole other part of the show, so we’ll see.

On his series on teens and driving, shot with his son Daniel:

How did the State Farm video series come about?

Macchio: It was a very simple decision because I think it's such a great cause. I'm a father of two teenagers of driving age. My daughter is 19 and I taught her how to drive, along with driver's ed — I'll give them some credit. But driver's education is not always available in schools, less and less these days. And it's expensive and many people can't afford that. Also, research shows that the more the parents are involved in a positive experience in teaching their kids to drive, it creates safer scenarios. This is the No. 1 cause of death in teenagers — it's car crashes. So if I can help bring that number down, injuries as well as fatalities, it's just a no-brainer for me.

It's a program through State Farm — you log on to teendriving.statefarm.com and the program is called Road Trips. And it's free online and available to anyone, regardless of whether they're a State Farm customer or not. My son and I are using the program and there are videos of us on there going through the program, and we continue to use it. It provides tutorials and instructions on how to better make use of your practice time, and it also informs the parents. We often overlook. a lot of what are the basics and the fundamentals because we have experience. Just because you have experience driving, doesn't necessarily mean you have experience teaching how to drive.

How old were you when you got your license?

Macchio: I was 16. I failed once. I got it the second time. My wife passed the first time — believe me, that comes up all the time. But yet she wants me to be the one to teach the kids how to drive because — whatever, I've been nominated and I'm happy to do it.

Was your son Daniel hesitant about appearing in these videos with you?

Share this articleShare

Macchio: No. He's very comfortable in front of the camera. Both my kids are way too comfortable in front of the camera. I'm fortunate. Both of them are very articulate and fairly level-headed teenagers. I'm blessed to have that. I credit myself and my wife but you also, you know, you don't know what you're going to get when you make these kids. I got two good ones. [Daniel] handles himself well. You'll see in the videos and everyone who checks them out — he calls me on my stuff and comes back at me when I'm a little sarcastic with him, and it creates a positive experience amid trying to learn something that's very important.

You mentioned that both of your kids are comfortable in front of the camera. Do either of them have interest in acting?

Macchio: My daughter certainly is, very much so. She's a dance major in college and she just got a part in her first movie, a movie with Kristen Wiig and Annette Bening and Matt Dillon, who I worked with on "The Outsiders." It's a couple of lines in one scene but she got her first job and she was able to do it in between classes, so that was nice for her.

Which movie is it?

Macchio: It's called "

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7uK3SoaCnn6Sku7G70q1lnKedZK%2Btu8asZpydnJqvs7XTqKOon6lkvbC%2F02ipmqSgnXqurcKcn6KnXay1osCMoZxmpJ%2BrsqV5wKebZpyZmbu1ecuiop5lkZe8tsCMnZinm5mjtG7DyK2fZqyYmnq0wMCrqmhqYGZ%2BcH2PaGluZ5d%2BnoKkq3qxgoWPl7mws42hq6ak