'DANCING' ENTREE FOR DE LA FUENTE.

Byline: GREG HERNANDEZ

The last time I saw Cristian de la Fuente was on "Dancing With the Stars." Remember the guy who continued to compete -- even reaching the finals -- after injuring a tendon in his left arm performing the samba?

Earlier this week, Cristian looked good as new when we chatted at a garden party at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

"My arm is almost back to normal and I start physical therapy next week," he said.

But the extremely fit 34-year-old actor, who currently has a role on the new USA Network drama "In Plain Sight," is still recovering from the grueling training that was required to do well on the show.

"It was crazy from the work point of view," he said. "I've never worked that much in my life, not having one day off for three months."

Even though he did not win, he found out how much the show did for his profile when he got back to the U.S. after trips to Chile and Mexico.

"When I was coming through immigration, officers were nicer," he said. "They didn't ask me what it was that I did for a living. They said, 'Oh, I saw you on 'Dancing With the Stars' so, you know, that's priceless for me. I go in and out of this country many times a year -- probably 15 or 20 times -- and to be treated by immigration officers nicely, you see that 'Dancing With the Stars' is a powerful show."

Cristian told me Sunday that "Sight" had been renewed for a second season earlier that day and he was hopeful that his character of Raphael Ramirez would also return.

"There's a lot more story to develop," he said. "It's a great show and it's doing really well. People are liking the show. I'm very happy for that because we put a lot of work and effort into doing the show and we have a lot of fun."

Cristian, married to actress Angelica Castro and father of a young daughter, acts in television shows and movies in both English and Spanish.

His previous U.S. series was far different from "Sight." He played a gay man on the CBS comedy "The Class."

"It was fun. It was a great experience for me," he said. "The show was so funny, it was so well-written and I love to do comedy. If you see 'In Plain Sight,' there's a lot of comedy in that drama. Life itself is a drama, but there's always comedy."

Grammer better, credits wife Kelsey Grammer gives credit to his wife for helping him bounce back from the mild heart attack he suffered in late May shortly after paddle-boarding in Hawaii.

"She's been amazing," Grammer said of Camille Grammer, his wife of over a decade. "She was the rock; she really was the rock."

Kelsey told "Access Hollywood" that he is also grateful to the hospital staff.

"The people that took care of me did a great job and got me back on track and I have great follow-up care right now," Kelsey said. "I'm feeling pretty good. ... If I can have several years ahead of me that I hope are full of life and love and some artistic reward, that's what I value."

Kelsey's Fox sitcom "Back to You" got a surprise cancellation after just one season. But he co-stars with Kevin Costner in the new movie "Swing Vote," which hits theaters Aug. 1.

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Photo:

(color) Angelica Castro and Cristian de la Fuente