Wise up!

Christina Aguilera became famous at a very young age ater coming in second on a nationally televised episode of “Star Search,” being a member of the Disney TV series “Mickey Mouse Club,” and singing the song “Reflection” in the Disney animated movie “Mulan.”

• Christina Aguilera became famous at a very young age after coming in second on a nationally televised episode of “Star Search,” being a member of the Disney TV series “Mickey Mouse Club,” and singing the song “Reflection” in the Disney animated movie “Mulan.”

Unfortunately, her schoolmates were jealous of her success. After she finished in second place on “Star Search,” someone slashed the tires on her mother’s car. Immediately, young Christina transferred to another school. In addition, ater newspapers began to print articles about her after she joined the “Mickey Mouse Club,” her new schoolmates resented her success. Fortunately, the resentment of schoolmates was countered by the love of her fans, who started writing her letters, all of which she attempted to answer. After her debut album, “Christina Aguilera,” became a huge success, some young fans who had just bought her single recognized her and bought a disposable camera so they could take her photograph. his kind of attention didn’t bother Christina. She said, “I know some people hate that, but not me. I’ve been waiting for this moment for my entire life.”

• Parents can embarrass even future celebrities. As a young boy, Oscar De La Hoya was sent to the grocery store to buy food with food stamps. his horribly embarrassed him, and he waited 45 minutes for the other customers to leave before he would pay for his purchase. When the grocery store cashier asked why he had waited so long to pay, he replied, “Because I have these food stamps.” After he had earned millions of dollars as a boxer, Mr. De La Hoya carried a food stamp in his wallet to remind himself of his origins. In addition, when he was 16, Oscar stayed out past his curfew even after first his mother, then his father, had called him. Suddenly, his father—dressed in a bathrobe—ran out of the house and started screaming at him. Today, Mr. de La Hoya says, “I was never more embarrassed in my life— which was the reason he did it.”

• Eric Gregg, the third black umpire in the major leagues, got an early lesson in umpiring while working a Little League game early in his career. Billy, a seven-year-old kid playing for a team being battered 21-1, came up to bat and told him, “Mister, you see that guy coaching third base? hat’s my dad. I’ve struck out three times today, and if I strike out again, he’s really gonna let me have it.” With a full count on the kid, a pitch was close enough to be called a strike, but Mr. Gregg called it a ball and the kid walked. Later, he started to tell the other umpires about the kid, and they knew immediately who he was: “Billy! hat kid get you, too? He pulls that sh*t every week! You didn’t give him a free walk, did you?” • Impressionist painter Edgar Degas loved children. A mother once criticized her daughter for making spelling mistakes, then she asked Mr. Degas, “It’s very bad to misspell, is it not, Monsieur Degas?” He agreed, but when the mother’s back was turned, he asked the child, “Which would you prefer—to spell correctly and not have ice cream or to make mistakes and have ice cream?” he child replied, “To make mistakes and have ice cream.” Mr. Degas agreed, “So would I.”

• While waiting in line at a post oice, gay author Michael Thomas Ford noticed a young boy about seven years old wearing glittery pink nail polish on his toes and on his fingers. He also noticed that the boy’s mother was totally nonchalant about the glittery pink nail polish. he boy may someday discover that he is gay, or he may be going through a temporary phase, but either way, Mr. Ford says, “You go, girl. Both of you.”

• Hispanic movie actor Antonio Banderas has been successful at avoiding the stereotype of the Latin lover in Hollywood, although he is handsome, successful, and sexy. In real life, he has sometimes been unsuccessful in his pursuit of females. Once, he got down on one knee and declared his love for a girl, and she ignored him. (Of course, he was only five years old then.)

• When Jerry Lewis was a child, his mother prepared a stack of sandwiches for him on school days. Each sandwich had a large black and a large green olive. Jerry would put the olives on the side of his plate, eat the sandwiches, then eat the olives. When his mother asked why he did that, he replied, “I like the olives better than the sandwiches, so I’m saving them for my dessert.”

• Bob Keeshan played Captain Kangaroo on early TV. While playing the role, he wore a gray wig. After one show, Mr. Keeshan took of his wig. Just then, some children walked into the TV studio. Mr. Keeshan dived behind the Treasure House desk so the children wouldn’t see him without his wig and be disillusioned.

• When George Ella Lyon was in the seventh grade, she devised a code to use in writing a novel. Unfortunately, after she had written 50 pages, she lost the key to the code, and so no one could read her novel—not even herself. Later, she became a successful writer of children’s books.