‘Hellcats’ star leads the cheer

Here’s more info on the new tv show. We know it’s peripheral to our interests on this site, however, I would be interested to know more about Aly’s mom, Carrie. Based on Aly’s age, I’m guesstimating that Carrie Begley Michalka is in her 40s and went to the Super Bowl in 80 or 83. ~sasha

‘Hellcats’ star leads the cheer
By Bill Harris, QMI Agency
The Toronto Sun
September 5, 2010

Cheerleading was not part of Aly Michalka’s life before Hellcats. But it is in her blood.

“I have no cheerleading background, but my mom happened to be a Raiderette that went to the Super Bowl, and they won, which is rad, and a Rams cheerleader and a UCLA cheerleader,” said Michalka, 21. “So that’s kind of a cool thing.

“I’ve never had an interest to be on a squad, probably because there’s no home-schooling cheerleading squads. That might be weird, a home-schooling cheerleading squad. Very small.”

What won’t be small, Michalka hopes, is viewer reaction to the new series Hellcats, which debuts Wednesday, Sept. 8 on CW and A.

You may laugh when you hear this, but it’s true: Even though we are not even remotely in the target audience for a series set in the world of competitive U.S. college cheerleading, we were very impressed with the first episode of Hellcats.

Shot in Vancouver, Hellcats also stars Ashley Tisdale of High School Musical fame and is co-executive produced by Smallville’s Tom Welling. For what it is, Hellcats is well-acted, well-written, and the setup for the story actually makes sense.

Michalka stars as Marti Perkins, a serious student who has dreams of becoming a lawyer. But Marti’s future takes a bleak turn when her financial viability at college deteriorates for reasons beyond her control.

Marti’s only hope to stay at school is to get a scholarship. She hates cheerleading – or, more specifically, hates cheerleaders – but she is shocked to discover that competitive cheerleading is designated as a scholarship sport.

Out of desperation, Marti – who obviously has a dance background that she isn’t keen to talk about initially – tries out for the cheerleading squad. The team is captained by Tisdale’s character, Savannah Monroe.

“I didn’t really know what the (writers had in mind), so I was like, ‘I don’t know, cheerleading, hmmm?’ ” Michalka admitted. “But I read the script and fell in love with it. “Then when I actually filmed it, my respect level (for cheerleading) went up 1,000%. Cheerleading is bad-ass. These people are athletic. These people are trustworthy because they are there to catch you when you’re up in the air, flying.

“My mom saw the pilot and loved it. It was refreshing for me to see her rooting for something she can relate to, because half the time she’s like, ‘I have no idea what this movie is about.’ But she actually got it with this one.”

Michalka – a product of the Disney TV stable who also has a music career with her sister A.J. – obviously has the body for this role. While Michalka insisted she’s not a dieter by any means, she works out regularly and has stepped it up only mildly for Hellcats.

But seriously, Aly, did you always have killer abs like that? “Yeah, but nobody really knew, which is kind of funny,” she said. “I guess I wouldn’t be walking around with a crop-top all the time.”

Any time you want to do it, Aly, honestly, it’s cool.