By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally filed November 26, 2012
Two metro Atlantans Hines Ward and Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas of TLC will be competing in the kitchen on the upcoming season of Food Network's "Rachael Vs. Guy: Celebrity Cook-Off," which returns for a second serving Jan. 6.
Actor Lou Diamond Phillips beat singer Coolio in the finals of season one earlier this year, enabling Phillips to win $50,000 for his favorite charity No Kid Hungry.
Ward, who played for both the UGA Bulldogs and the Pittsburgh Steelers, won "Dancing With the Stars" last year. Chilli is part of one of the best-selling girl groups of all time in TLC and had her own VH1 reality program for two seasons called "What Chilli Wants," which aired in 2010 and 2011.
The other six celebrities are stand-up comic Gilbert Gottfried, socialite and designer Cornelia Guest (never heard of her!), actor Dean McDermott (Tori Spelling's husband), actress Kathy Najimy (another "Dancing With the Stars" vet), Wilson Phillips singer Carnie Wilson (part of many reality shows including CMT's"Gone Country") and figure skater Johnny Weir.
The eight stars will be split into teams, one led by Rachael Ray, the other by Guy Fieri.
Chili is part of Team Guy. Ward is part of Team Rachael.
In the first episode, according to the press release:
at a Los Angeles dinner theater, as well as perform a three-minute skit for one hundred theatergoers, including
Rachael and Guy, and special guest judges from the editorial staff at Entertainment Weekly. The judges and dinner
guests will vote on the team's dishes, leaving the bottom two celebrities to compete in a sudden death challenge. At
the end of the day, one celebrity is eliminated from the competition.
Chilli's charity is her own: Chilli's Crew. The Atlanta based community organization dedicates itself to empowering young women between the ages of 12 to 18 to develop and maintain self-respect, and a healthy lifestyle by providing guidance, advice and professional makeovers.
Ward runs his own Hines Ward Helping Hands Foundation, which works to improving literacy among children in Atlanta and Pittsburgh and provide programs and services to better equip them for achieving and handling success in life.
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