The members of the United States Armed Forces face scary situations in real life every day, so asking celebrities to help them attend their military balls ... well, that turned out to be a piece of cake.
That's what Cpl. Kelsey De Santis learned when she made a videotape of herself asking Justin Timberlake to Saturday night's Marine Corps Ball in Richmond, Va. He accepted, and in the process propelled her from the dance floor into a whirlwind of media publicity. Dressed in uniform and standing before a Marines helicopter Tuesday, De Santis told TODAY's Ann Curry that "it was a really good experience" to have Timberlake accompanying her. "He had a really big smile on his face, and so did I."
Timberlake has since posted a heartfelt, enthusiastic account of the event on his blog where he called his night at the Ball "one of the most moving evenings I've ever had."
De Santis agreed with him: "If you haven't been, it's something that's hard to put in words. But I was most honored that he said the things that he did in his blog."
And, she added, having Timberlake on hand meant they both could hit the dance floor ... Marine style. "The whole night was extremely ... bringing sexy back, I guess you could say," she said, quoting the name of a Timberlake hit and offering up a grin. "We were on the dance floor and had a good time at the table joking and laughing, so it was altogether really great."
As for advice for fellow Marine, Sgt. Scott Moore, who has asked Mila Kunis to his own Marine Corps Ball this Friday, De Santis said he didn't need it. "He seems very confident. And I'm confident that he'll have a great time, just like I did!"
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