Catch the stars
on the red carpet

Kids Stuff
By William Feldman

Welcome to Kids Stuff. This is the final column in my four-part series on the Disney Channel 2007 talent games, which will be aired all summer long on the Disney Channel beginning June 15, with the opening ceremonies. Also included today are a very important safety tip and a cryptogram.
These interviews are brief because they took place on a red carpet event, which was very fast paced.
First interview on the red carpet was Maiara Walsh, who portrays the character of Meena Paroom, the daughter of an ambassador from Behavia, in Disney’s Cory in the House. Maiara is half Brazilian. Besides speaking English, she knows Spanish and Portuguese. Maiara Walsh hopes to incorporate Portuguese with English if and when she completes an album.
Maiara enjoys working with Kyle Massey on the show.
"It’s awesome. He is exactly the way he is on the show, just off-the-wall hilarious," said Maiara, who has been accepted at the University of California at Irvine and is presently taking classes online.
Next, three of the four Cheetah Girls, Adrienne Bailon, Kiely Williams and Sabrina Bryan, walked down the carpet. Through research I found out that the Cheetah Girls group is based on a best-selling series of young adult books, The Cheetah Girls, by Deborah Gregory, which is about a girl pop band. Disney turned these books into TV movies.
All three were gladly answering questions. I had a chance to ask them if any new single will be released. As a group, they responded, "We recently just wrote a song called Step Together, and it is about bringing our generation together to make a movement about being heard. We always say little kids are people, too. That is a message we wanted to get out there about having our generation heard."
Last was Ashley Tisdale, a tri-state local native. She was born in Monmouth, N.J. Ashley was discovered at age 3 in a mall in her hometown by a talent manager. At age 8 she had a leading role in the national tour of Les Miserables and toured internationally with Annie. She is known for her character as Maddie, the candy counter clerk at The Tipton Hotel, in The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. Also, she has starred in High School Musical.
Ashley has also been involved with The Howie Mandel Pilot, The George Lopez Show, Still Standing, Boston Public and 7th Heaven, She was selected a Teen’s People’s 25 Under 25, Teen Vogue’s young Hollywood Stars and as part of Entertainment Weekly’s annual "Must List" as Must Musical Prodigies."
Ashley noted the source of her inspiration: "It just comes to me. It is just something where I will start to sing and lyrics will just come out."
She also said her greatest influence when she was a younger child was her mom.
"She is the kind of person to tell you never to give up on your dreams," Ashley said, offering this simple message to all of her fans:
"Thank you for supporting me."

SUMMER SAFETY TIP
I really never thought of writing a column on barbecue safety until we drove down a street and saw a barbecue on fire.
Before barbecuing:
Check your grill and propane tank for leaks, cracks, bulges, dents or rusting.
Clean out the tubes that lead into the burner.
Make sure the grill is at least 10 feet away from a house, garage, or trees.
Store and use your grill on a large flat surface that cannot burn, concrete.
Don’t use grills in a garage, porch, deck or on top of anything that can catch on fire.
Keep children away from fires and grills.
Have a fire extinguisher close by in case of a fire.
Never use any flammable liquid other than a barbecue starter fluid on charcoal grills.
During barbecuing:
Don’t wear loose clothes.
Use long handled barbecue tools and flame-resistant mitts.
Never pour or squirt starter fluid onto an open flame. The flame can flashback along the fluid’s path to the container in your hands.
Never leave the grill unattended.
After barbecuing:
Always follow the manufacturer’s cleaning and storing instructions.
Keep your grill clean and free of grease buildup.
In case of a barbecue fire:
1. For propane grills, turn off the burners and if you can safely reach the tank valve, shut it off. For charcoal grills, close the grill lid. For electric grills, disconnect the power.
2. If the fire involves the tank, leave it alone, evacuate the area and call the fire department (911). If there is any type of fire that either threatens your personal safety or endangers property, ALWAYS DIAL 911.
3. NEVER attempt to extinguish a grease fire with water. It will only cause the flames to flare up. Use an approved portable fire extinguisher.
Propane safety:
• Never use cigarettes, lighters or matches near your gas grill, whether it’s in use or not. You can’t be sure that there’s not a slight gas leak somewhere.
• Always close the tank valve when you are done.
• Never bring your propane tank indoors, and never store spare gas containers under or near your grill. Don’t store other flammable liquids, such as gasoline, near propane tanks. To prevent hazardous situations, keep your barbecue covered when it’s not in use.
• If you must transport your propane tank be sure you choose a relatively cool day. Keeping containers or any other grill parts that are under pressure in a hot car will cause an increase in the pressure of the gas, which could cause an explosion.
• Never dispose of your propane tank by throwing it in the trash.
Charcoal grills:
Charcoal produces carbon monoxide. Never burn your charcoal grill inside your home or any other enclosed area.
CRYPTOGRAM
HVPPAB ZDKH DBA DCPTHR XABA DLDMS
Hints: P is M; Z is D; L is G; K is Y
Columnist William Feldman can be contacted by e-mail at wmkidscolumn@aol.com