“Hannah Montana” co-star Mitchel Musso isn’t having a good day.
“I had the worst night of my life last night,” he says in a way that only 16-year-olds can dramatize so well.
His flight to his native Texas was delayed for hours. Musso was bumped to another flight, but he still ended up spending the night at the airport. He was uncomfortable, hungry and ready to get home.
On top of it all, his luggage was lost. Then, on the ride to a friend’s house, he’s pulled over by a policeman.
As he’s explaining that situation, his cell phone loses connection during this interview. His publicity handler quickly gets him reconnected.
“I’m telling you! Everything is going wrong!” he says mockingly.
Other than these inconveniences, Musso can’t complain much. He’s part of the hottest show on the planet with Disney Channel’s “Hannah Montana.” On Saturday, he’ll be meeting fans at the AdventureCon pop culture show at the Knoxville Convention Center.
When he isn’t working on “Hannah Montana,” in which he plays the title character’s best guy pal, Oliver, he’s making music around the country and working on the feature film version of “Hannah Montana,” now shooting near Nashville.
As a result, Musso has encountered fame on a rare level. “How has the show changed my life? Well, in everyday ways, like with fans, going to the mall, going to the movies, pretty much going anywhere,” he says.
“I’ll be in my car, and people will follow me home. Crazy stuff like that.
“People, like, are throwing themselves at you, like, ‘I love you, blah, blah, blah.’ In the beginning, I thought it was fun and games. Now, it’s more.”
Musso got “Hannah Montana” through auditioning. He had done the Disney film “Life is Rough” and was already on the company’s radar. The series has turned out to be his big break.

knoxnews.com

Here's what's happening today on the small screen:
* 4Real, debuting tonight, sends celebrities to far-flung destinations to highlight the social issues of those regions. The eight-part Canadian series is executive produced by Joaquin Phoenix and includes appearances by Eva Mendes, Casey Affleck, Mos Def and more. This premiere sees Cameron Diaz going to the Andes Mountains of Peru, where she meets a medicine man. (MTV)
* Nashville rolls out the red carpet for the 2008 CMT Music Awards. Billy Ray Cyrus and his daughter, teen sensation Miley Cyrus, host the show. Performing are Alan Jackson, Rascal Flatts, Toby Keith, Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley, who has a leading six nominations. Others up for hardware include Sugarland, LeAnn Rimes, Reba McEntire, Kelly Clarkson, Taylor Swift and even Led Zeppelin's Robert Plant, who is nominated for his duet with Alison Krauss, Gone, Gone, Gone (Done Moved On). (CMT Canada)
* With revelations finally unravelling on the legal drama Damages, now is not the time to be a fickle fan of this gripping series. In this episode, key witness Gregory Malina emerges from hiding to apologize to Katie and testify against Frobisher. (Showcase)
* Other contenders to consider: the performance episode of Dancing With the Stars (CTV, ABC); Bones, where a skinny-dipping couple finds a skeleton in the mud (Global, Fox); Medium, featuring a cameo by Kelly Preston (CTV, NBC); and Timothy Olyphant's guest appearance on Samantha Who? (A-Channel, ABC)
Victoria Ahearn is a syndicated columnist.

telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com

NEW YORK — You can skip the mouth-to-mouth breathing and just press on the chest to save a life.
In a major change, the American Heart Association said Monday that hands-only CPR — rapid, deep presses on the victim’s chest until help arrives — works just as well as standard CPR for sudden cardiac arrest in adults.
“You only have to do two things. Call 911 and push hard and fast on the middle of the person’s chest,” said Dr. Michael Sayre, an emergency-medicine professor at Ohio State University who headed the committee that made the recommendation.
Hands-only CPR calls for uninterrupted chest presses — 100 a minute — until paramedics take over or an automated external defibrillator can restore a normal heart rhythm.
This action should be taken only for adults who unexpectedly collapse, stop breathing and are unresponsive.
A child who collapses is more likely to primarily have breathing problems — and in that case, mouth-to-mouth breathing should be used. That also applies to adults who suffer lack of oxygen from a near-drowning, drug overdose or carbon monoxide poisoning.
Hypertension studies boost cheaper drugs
CHICAGO — Two big studies offer good news to people with high blood pressure, finding that novel ways to use cheap drugs already on the market can lower their risk of heart attacks, stroke and death — even if they are very old.
Doctors presented results Monday at an American College of Cardiology conference in Chicago.
More than 70 million Americans have high blood pressure. Guidelines advise starting on one medication, usually a “water pill,” and adding others as needed.
Dr. Kenneth Jamerson of the University of Michigan led a study of 11,462 people that tested a single daily pill combining a diuretic and the ACE inhibitor benazepril versus a daily pill containing benazepril and a calcium channel blocker, amlodipine.

seattletimes.nwsource.com