Bono: Mom Cher proud of my dancing

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 22 (UPI) -- Chaz Bono says his entertainer mother Cher was shocked, but proud, by his first performance on the U.S. TV competition series "Dancing with the Stars."

Bono was asked by "The Talk" co-host Molly Shannon Wednesday what his mom's reaction was when he told her he was going to be on the show.

"I think she was very supportive, but a little surprised because I'm just not known as the performer guy in the family," the author and gay and transgender rights activist replied.

Bono said his mother stayed away from the tapings of the first few episodes of the show because she didn't want to upstage him.

"I think she will come, but she's very sensitive and knows if she came the first night, she could've overshadowed my performance and she didn't want to do that," he said.

So, what did Cher think of Bono's very first on-air dance with professional partner Lacey Schwimmer?

"Pretty shocked. Yeah," Bono said. "She was so proud. She cried when she saw it. So yeah, she's been so supportive, and I've been having really bad problems with my knees and ankles and she sent somebody over to work on me last night, which was really great because I do need all the help I can get at this point."