Who is Miley Ray Stewart? The entertainment and acting world knows her as Miley Cyrus, she is the central
character of the
Hannah Montana media franchise
. The character was originated in the
Disney Channel series
Hannah Montana and also appeared in the feature film
Hannah Montana: The Movie. Miley is a normal teenage girl who, as her
alter ego Hannah Montana, secretly leads a double life as a world famous
pop star.
Character development
The character was originally named Chloe Stewart but was changed to Miley Stewart.
[2]
Casting
Cyrus learned about the casting for a new Disney show at the age of
11 through a Nashville talent agent. She sent in a tape auditioning for
the show's best friend role, but received a call asking her to audition
for the lead. After she sent in a tape and was flown to Hollywood for
further auditions, Cyrus was told that she was too young and too small
for the role. However, Cyrus' persistence and ability to sing in
addition to act caused the show's producers to invite her back for
further auditions. Producers eventually narrowed the large pool of
candidates down to three actresses, including Cyrus and
Taylor Momsen, and gave the part to Cyrus, then twelve.
[3] According to Disney Channel president
Gary Marsh, Cyrus was chosen because of her energetic and lively performance and was seen as a person who "loves every minute of life,"
[4] with the "everyday relatability of
Hilary Duff and the stage presence of
Shania Twain."
[5]
Cyrus' casting also led to the casting of her real life father,
Billy Ray Cyrus,
as the father of her character on the show. Cyrus was initially wary;
according to her mother and co-manager, Tish Cyrus, "Miley's concern at
the time was, oh my gosh, people are going to think I only got this part
because of my dad."
[3]
However, worried that her family would otherwise have to be separated
as they had been when her father first landed the lead in the television
series
Doc, Cyrus relented and helped audition her father for the part.
[3]
Character backstory
Miley was born in the fictional town of Crowley Corners in Tennessee
on November 23, 1992 (Cyrus's real birth date). Her family consisted of
her parents Robby and Susan Stewart and an older brother named Jackson.
She also has many relatives in her extended family including her
grandmother Ruthie Stewart, Aunt Dolly (played by
Dolly Parton), Uncle Earl and Aunt Pearl, and a cousin named Luanne. The characterizations given to most of her family members poke fun at
country bumpkin
stereotypes. She also had a pet pig named Luanne and a pet hamster
named Leslie. She has a horse named Blue Jeans, who came from Tennessee
to Malibu to live with Miley and her family.
Miley received a love for music from her father, who was a popular
country music star. Her parents recognized Miley's potential and gave
her a guitar on December 25, 2000. This event is shown in the episode "I
Am Hannah, Hear Me Croak" when Miley views it on her laptop.
[6]
By the time she was 12 years old, Miley had become a famous pop star under the
stage name
"Hannah Montana." She goes to great lengths to disguise herself as
Hannah in order to keep her true identity a secret, because she is
worried that if people knew her secret they would like her just because
she's famous. The only people who knew she's Hannah before revealing her
identity to the world in
I'll Always Remember You, outside of her family are her best friends, Lilly Truscott, Oliver Oken and her bodyguard Roxy. However, in the episode "
Hannah Montana to the Principal's Office" it is shown that the President of the United States knows her secret.
Personal life
Apart from her life as a pop star, Miley leads a very normal life. She is fond of camping
[7] and hanging out at the beach, but is not at all athletic.
[8] She has a fear of spiders
[9] and visiting the dentist.
[10]
She also occasionally struggles with her school work and her self
confidence. She often goes through over-the -top schemes to deal with
her problems.
School
In the first season, Miley is an
8th grader at Seaview Middle School, and in the second season she enters Seaview High School. She became a
sophomore in early episodes in Season 3 and later, a
junior during the season before the beginning of Season 4. Despite her father offering her the option of
homeschooling, Miley decided to attend
Public School in order to be a "normal kid," a decision she sometimes finds herself regretting.
[11] Due to her double life, she is often in awkward positions and is forced to lie in order to keep her secret.
Miley's best friends are classmates
Lilly Truscott (
Emily Osment) and
Oliver Oken (
Mitchel Musso) who both learn her secret and help her keep it from their other classmates.
Relationships
Miley is especially close with her father, from whom she receives
much good advice and emotional support. She also values her
relationships with her best friends Lilly and Oliver. However Miley is
shown to be very uncomfortable with the fact that they're dating and
even stops them from being a couple. Her relationship with Lilly
occasionally suffers the occasional setback, but they always make up. In
the episode 'What I Don't Like About You', Miley is asked to choose a
side between a fight Lilly and Oliver had. But Miley, showing what a
kind friend she was, made a mini-Indiana Joannie movie, which made Lilly
and Oliver forgive each other. Miley's relationship with her brother
Jackson is often hostile. The two siblings constantly fight and trash
talk each other. However, in a few private conversations, both Miley and
Jackson say that they love and appreciate each other, but they are both
unwilling to admit this in public.
[12]
Miley also has several dating relationships, many of which are short lived.
Oliver Oken (played by
Mitchel Musso):
Miley and Lily's best male friend. "In I Honestly Love You (No Not
You)", Miley believes that Oliver is in love with her when she overhears
him (while asleep in the hospital because of a broken ankle) say "I
love you". However after a talk with her dad she thinks that Oliver will
move on and so will Lilly but when Lilly announces that she is in love
with Oliver, Miley ends up telling her the truth. Lilly and Miley hatch a
plan to get Oliver back but only to find out that he was practicing
saying "I love you" so he could say it to Lilly. They both say that they
love each other in the end of the episode. (It is mentioned in this
episode that neither Oliver nor Miley have romantic feelings for each
other). However, Oliver did used to have romantic feelings towards
Hannah Montana before he knew she was Miley. Miley,at first, didn't want
to tell him who she was, just in case he had romantic feelings for her
as Miley, but when she eventually told him, he saw her as just a friend.
Leslie "Jake" Ryan (played by
Cody Linley):
Jake is a famous television star. Miley and Jake meet when he briefly
attends Seaview Middle School. Jake is attracted to Miley because she is
the only person at school who is not starstruck by his arrival. Miley
at first denies having feelings for him, but she tries to "make him
jealous" by using another guy. It works in a fortunate result of her and
Jake kissing, but Jake tells Miley he has to go shoot a movie in
Romania and she stands him up. Jake then reappears in "
Achy Jakey Heart"
Part 1 and tries to win Miley back. She decides to give him a chance,
after Jake revealing feelings for her on live national TV. Miley soon
tells Jake that she's Hannah Montana, because Jake told his secret to
Miley. Jake tries to play normal like Miley, but when he cannot handle
the pressure of not getting what he wants, the two decide to be just
friends, although it is revealed to the audience in "Jake... Another
Piece of My Heart," that both Jake and Miley still have feelings for
each other, but neither one is willing to admit it. In "He Could Be The
One", Miley chooses Jake over Jesse (her guitarist) because they have so
much history and she believes he could be the one. They then officially
start dating. It was unknown whether they were still together or not
because Jake had never been seen or mentioned since the episode "He
could be the one". However,in the season 4 episode "California Screamin"
it is implied that the two are still together as Miley talks about Jake
quite often in the episode suggesting that they haven't broken up. In
the season 4 episode "It's the End of Jake As We Know It" Oliver gets a
picture texted to his phone of Jake cheating on Miley, so Miley beats
Jake up on the taping of a Christmas special with guest star
Sheryl Crow. This ends their relationship for good.
Travis Brody (played by
Lucas Till):
Travis is a childhood friend from Tennessee. It is said in the movie
that they both used to like each other when they were younger. The two
become reacquainted during Miley's return to Tennessee in
Hannah Montana: The Movie.
He discovers that Miley is Hannah Montana and the two kiss, assuming
that they get together. However, even though the movie does not show it,
it is implied that they broke up due to the fact that Miley went back
to California and their relationship would not work long distance. Also,
he is not mentioned during the episodes following the movie.
Jesse (played by
Drew Roy):
Is a part of Hannah's band in episode "He Could Be The One". Hannah
pretends to like Jesse, so that Robby will be thankful of Jake. But she
starts to have real feelings for him. Miley then has to listen to her
heart and chose the guy who could "be the one." She ends up choosing
Jake over Jesse. In the season 4 episode "Been Here All Along", She goes
out on a date with Jesse (as Miley), but gets angry when he took a
phone call from his father, since she blow off her "father- daughter
day" with her dad, but when Jesse tells her that he took the call
because his dad is stationed in Afghanistan and they don't get to talk
often, Miley is inspired to hold a concert as Hannah for military
families. In another episode in the 4th season Miley reveals to Jesse
that she is Hannah. Yet to her surprise he already knows. Jesse can't
take the pressure of dating Hannah and Miley and ends it with Miley. In
the end of the episode, Jesse comes back to Miley and then she reveals
her secret to the whole world.
Music
Although she never plays instruments while performing as Hannah,
Miley can play the piano and the guitar. She owns several acoustic and
electric guitars, including a black
strat copy she nicknamed "
Whammy Bar Wally"
[13] and a pink sparkle
electric acoustic Stardust Series
Daisy Rock guitar.
[14] In
Hannah Montana: The Movie, Miley plays a custom built
Gibson acoustic guitar.
While her father is her main songwriter, Miley has written a few of
her own songs. In "She's a Supersneak," Miley writes the song "I Miss
You" about her mother after learning her father is dating another woman.
(In real life, the song was written by Miley Cyrus for her grandfather
Ron Cyrus.) In
Hannah Montana: The Movie, Stewart writes "
Butterfly Fly Away" and "
The Climb".
Stewart wrote "Butterfly Fly Away" after an argument with Travis (Till)
and her dad breaking off his relationship for her. In the story, "The
Climb" began when she was in the hen house writing. Travis (Till) told
her that the song didn't represent who she is or how she feels. Later in
a concert, she performs it live revealing the entire song with its new
lyrics. Then, in the episode "He Could Be the One" Miley wrote a song
called "I'm Just Having Fun". While practicing with her band, Miley
decided the song needed lyrical innovation and revamping. Then, when she
was mad at her father; Miley altered the lyrics to a "I don't care what
you say, I don't care what you say, just 'cause your my daddy doesn't
mean you get it your way". She decided to give up on the song, but later
with her guitar player she finally made it into "He Could Be the One",
inspired by Jake (
Cody Linley)and
Jesse ( her guitar player ). In the 4th season, Miley writes a bunch of
new songs that are heard and played throughout the season. She made a
song with Iyaz called "Gonna Get This".
Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana is Miley Stewart's
alter ego. The character was originally going to be named Alexis Texas, but the name was changed to Hannah Montana.
[15][16] Hannah exists as a secret identity, an extremely popular and influential worldwide
popstar.
Hannah's many fans are not aware that she is really just a normal
teenage girl, and Miley tries to keep her two lives separate from each
other.
Appearance
Hannah's blonde wig is the primary difference between her and the
brunette Miley, although Hannah also wears more extravagant clothes,
make-up, and sometimes large sunglasses. In the
Hannah Montana story, the famous blonde wig was picked out for Miley by Roxy.
[17] (In real life, the wig was not chosen until the second episode. The original wig seen in
the pilot
was a slightly different style.) Miley Stewart also mentions that she
intentionally patterned Hannah's look after her godmother
Dolly Parton.
[18]
Miley previously experienced an image crisis in "Yet Another Side of
Me" in which she grew concerned that Hannah's look might become
outdated. After considering a "
Techno Hannah," "Half-Dolla Hannah," (
Hip hop) and the "Anti-Hannah," (
Grunge) Miley decides that her fans like her for who she is.
Starting in the third season, Hannah's look changes slightly. Her wig
is shorter and wavy and her fashion changes as well. This is discussed
on the DVD
Keeping It Real in the bonus feature "Miley's Makeover – Hannah Gets a New Look." Cyrus and her team describe the new look as an "
'80s flavored style with the glitz and glam of modern fashion." It is also revealed in
Super(stitious) Girl, as part of
Wizards on Deck With Hannah Montana, that she wears a single pink glove during concerts and it is also shown in music videos like
It's All Right Here and
Let's Get Crazy
that she does. It symbolizes how Hannah Montana is growing up as well.
In season 4, she gets a new wig that's long again but curlier.
Career
Hannah Montana's music career is very successful although there have
been a few slips. In the pilot episode she is said to be continuing a
"smash tour" which was being sold out. In "
Yet Another Side of Me," Robby says that he has written 15 straight number ones for her. However, he may have been exaggerating since in "
Miley Hurt the Feelings of the Radio Star" he says he has written 14 number ones for her.
[19] Hannah also wins several awards including a Silver Boot "Booty" award for best country pop crossover with the song "
True Friend,"
[20] and an International Music Award for Female Artist of the Year.
[21] She is also honored with her own diamond on the Hollywood Parade of Diamonds, a parody of the stars on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame.
[22] She also sings for the Queen of England and the President of the United States (
President Martinez in a
crossover episode and mentioned performing for
President Obama
and Sasha and Malia Obama in season 4's "Hannah Montana to the
Principal's Office"). Hannah's greatest rival is fellow pop star Mikayla
(
Selena Gomez) who is determined to steal Hannah's fans.
[23]
Beyond her music career, Hannah also does some acting. She guest stars on the television show
Zombie High as Zaronda, Princess of the Undead. Jake Ryan's character saves Zaronda from the portal to the underworld.
[24] Hannah later stars in her own feature film,
Rob Reiner's Indiana Joannie and the Curse of the Golden Cobra, alongside
Chace Crawford.
[25] Hannah also endorses perfume and skin care products.
[26]
As a well known celebrity, Hannah makes regular appearances on talk
shows and attends glamorous parties. Despite being fictional, Hannah
knows many real life celebrities, including some who are friends of
Miley Cyrus, such as
Taylor Swift and the
Jonas Brothers.
Discography
- Live albums
Purpose
Miley has several reasons for creating Hannah. She is afraid that if
the kids at school discover she is famous they won't treat her the same.
[27] While she enjoys the attention of her fame as Hannah, she equally enjoys the option of "stepping out" of her role.
[28] Miley also values her privacy and doesn't want fans or
paparazzi
photographers mobbing her when she goes out in public. In this way,
Hannah Montana presents a unique inversion of typical celebrity
experiences. While most celebrities become famous as themselves and
later need disguises to not be noticed in public, Hannah Montana became
famous while in disguise, and now has the freedom to be in public as
herself.
As a secondary benefit, Miley also sometimes uses Hannah for specific purposes such as spying.
[29]
She also uses Hannah in other ways. In "Money for Nothing, Guilt for
Free," Hannah raises money for a school charity drive in which Miley is
competing. In "Bye Bye, Ball," Hannah performs at a restaurant in order
to get a baseball autographed for Jackson. And in "Ready, Set, Don't
Drive," Hannah obtains a drivers license after Miley fails the test.
Hannah also sometimes tries to use her dual personality as an excuse.
For example, in "You Gotta Not Fight for Your Right to Party," Miley
asks Robby to only ground Miley, not Hannah, because "Hannah didn't do
anything wrong."
Beyond the show
Hannah Montana as a character has found fame beyond the television
show, primarily as a recording artist and music performer. Three of the
seven released soundtracks (
Hannah Montana,
Hannah Montana 2/Meet Miley Cyrus, and
Hannah Montana: The Movie) topped the U.S.
Billboard 200 chart.
[30] From September 2006 to October 2006, she performed several songs from
Hannah Montana during the
The Party's Just Begun Tour as an opening act for
The Cheetah Girls.
Then, from October 2007 to January 2008, Miley Cyrus performed in a
successful concert tour as Hannah Montana. The tour, called the
Best of Both Worlds Tour, became a classic example of
life imitating art
as Hannah Montana's fictional popularity seen in the television show
became a real-life fan base which bought out every concert. The
popularity of Hannah Montana has also given Miley Cyrus the opportunity
to become a pop star in her own right.
Hannah also appears in
Hannah Montana: The Movie, the
Hannah Montana book series, and two other Disney Channel shows in cameo appearances. The character appeared in
The Suite Life of Zack & Cody episode "
That's So Suite Life of Hannah Montana" along with
Raven Baxter, and
The Suite Life on Deck episode "
Wizards on Deck With Hannah Montana" which also includes characters from
Wizards of Waverly Place. (Although the characters from
Wizards of Waverly Place and
Hannah Montana never interact)
Miley's secret
Keeping Miley's secret involves a two sided effort. As Hannah, she
must keep her fans unaware that she is really a normal kid, and as
Miley, she must keep her friends unaware that she is really Hannah
Montana. In interviews, Miley Cyrus spoke of the implausibility of being
able to keep a secret such as Miley and her family do in the show in a
world of intense media scrutiny. The show however, remains workable
primarily based on
suspension of disbelief.
In the show, three other people (Robby, Lilly, and Oliver) also wear
disguises when around Hannah to prevent anyone from drawing a connection
to Miley (Jackson is himself, only as a childhood friend). Hannah also
typically swaps limos as she leaves concert venues to keep the paparazzi
from following her home.
[31]
Miley must also rely on the silence of the people who know her secret.
These include her family members, Robby, Jackson, Mammaw Ruthie, Aunt
Dolly, Uncle Earl and Aunt Pearl, her cousin Luann, her friends Lilly
Truscott and her parents, Oliver Oken and his mother, Jake Ryan, Farmine
and Roxy, as well as Officer Diaria and his daughter Kelsey, Siena and
the President of the United States. (This group grows exponentially at
the end of
Hannah Montana: The Movie.)
Despite these careful efforts, her father seems to enjoy writing
Hannah songs which explicitly speak of her double life, such as "
The Best of Both Worlds,"
"Just Like You," "The Other Side of Me," "Rock Star," "Old Blue Jeans,"
"Just a Girl," "Supergirl," and "Ordinary Girl." In frustration of
this, Miley once complained "You might as well tattoo 'I'm really Miley
Stewart' on my forehead!"
[13] Also, in the episode
Get Down Study-udy-udy,
Rico has almost discovered Miley's secret according to the "Bone Dance"
which was created by Miley by rewritting the lyrics of "
Nobody's Perfect" and her voice singing it
In
Hannah Montana: The Movie, Hannah reveals herself as Miley
during a concert in Crowley Corners, Tennessee,(her hometown) but her
fans do not want her to stop being Hannah, and so they promise to keep
her secret. This event is actually mentioned in
For (Give) a Little Bit
during an argument between Miley and Jackson, meaning that the movie
would fit right in the middle of season 3 as if it were a part of the
season.
Near the end of the series, in
I'll Always Remember You,
Miley reveals her secret on The Jay Leno Show by taking off her wig and
singing a song called "Wherever I Go" as Miley. She gets a standing
ovation and the episode ends with Miley smiling. Lilly and Robby also
take off their disguises.
To see more of Who Is click here
Who is Gabrielle Christina Victoria Douglas? The sports world knows her as Gabby Douglas is an American artistic gymnast. As a member of the U.S. Women's Gymnastics team at the 2012 Summer Olympics, she won gold medals in both the individual and team
all-around competitions. Douglas is the first African-American and
first woman of color in Olympic history to become the individual
all-around champion, and the first American gymnast to win gold in both
the individual all-around and team competitions at the same Olympics.
She was also a member of the gold-winning U.S. team at the 2011 
World Championships.
Douglas was born December 31, 1995 began training in gymnastics at age six when her older
sister, Arielle, convinced their mother to enroll her in gymnastics
classes.[2]
When she was eight years old, Douglas won an all-around gymnastics
award for her level at the 2004 Virginia State Championships.[3]
Her first elite meet was the 2010 CoverGirl Classic in Chicago, Illinois, where Douglas placed third on balance beam, 6th on vault and 9th all-around in the junior division.[4]
At the 2011 U.S. National Championships In St. Paul, Minnesota, Douglas tied for third on bars and placed seventh all-around.[4]
On July 31, Douglas and her teammates, McKayla Maroney, Aly Raisman, Kyla Ross and Jordyn Wieber, won the team all-around gold medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics.[16] On August 2, Douglas won the gold medal in the individual all-around, becoming the first African-American woman and first woman of color to win the event.[17][18][19][20] She is also the first American gymnast ever to win both the team and individual all-around gold at the same Olympics.[21]
Douglas is the daughter of Timothy Douglas and Natalie Hawkins.[22]
When Douglas moved to Iowa to train under Liang Chow, Douglas and her
sister had to convince their mother to let Douglas leave Virginia and
live with a host family in West Des Moines.[23][24]. Douglas is a devout Christian. In a post-win interview she said that “all the glory” for her win goes “to God. She also tweeted her thanks to God, stressing “may I never forget the good things he does for me.”
After her victory, she was quoted as saying: “And I give all the glory
to God, It's kind of a win-win situation. The glory goes up to Him and
the blessings fall down on me.”[25]
