People

Jimmy who? Kids unsure about Smits

Jimmy Smits shouted "Viva la educacion" as he snipped a ribbon at the ceremonial opening of a charter school in Miami, but some students weren't sure just who he was.Though many know Smits as the star of "NYPD Blue" and "LA Law," some middle-schoolers were puzzled about the identity of the guy with the goatee, hoop earring and stretch limo.

"Wasn't he in 'The Godfather?' " one whispered.

Smits offered a pep talk at the ASPIRA Youth Leadership Charter School. He won a scholarship from the organization in the 1970s.

Country singer mixes music and education

Country singer Chely Wright returned home to perform a brief concert and make a donation to her hometown schools.

Wright, 29, donated about $6,000 worth of musical instruments, sheet music, equipment and money to Wellsville, Kan., schools on Monday.

The donation came from her foundation, Reading, Writing & Rhythm, which was set up to help music programs at schools in small towns.

Ride helps launch new Goodyear blimp

The first American woman in space followed the footsteps of Amelia Earhart by helping to launch a Goodyear blimp that replaced one that crashed last fall.

"It was rougher than I expected," a smiling Sally Ride said after the Spirit of Goodyear's 45-minute maiden flight Wednesday in Suffield, Ohio. Was there any feeling of air sickness? "No," she said. "It feels more like an airplane; you can feel the buffeting," said Ride, 49, who went into space aboard the shuttle Challenger in 1983 and 1984 as a mission specialist for NASA. She now is president of a space-theme Internet company called Space.com.

The new blimp was built in 3 1/2 months after the Spirit of Akron crashed near its hangar Oct. 28. No one was seriously injured.

Nancy Reagan feted for 'Just Say No'

Nancy Reagan said Wednesday that her husband was "as well as can be expected" as he struggles with Alzheimer's disease.

The former first lady made her comments while receiving an award for the "Just Say No" campaign against drugs that she launched in the mid-1980s.

Earlier this month, Ronald Reagan's friend and doctor John Hutton was quoted as saying the 89-year-old former president appeared to be in the final phase of the disease, which was first diagnosed in 1994.

Britain's Prince Philip presented Nancy Reagan with a Congressional Leadership Award honoring her efforts in the fight against youth drug abuse.