old jared articles back in high school
The San Antonio Express-News; Texas. June 17, 1998
The San Antonio Express-News; Texas. June 29, 1998
The San Antonio Express-News; Texas. August 11, 1999
From the San Antonio Express-News; Texas. June 17, 1998.
Students gear up for national speech tourney
Deborah Martinez; Express-News Staff Writer
Recent Madison High School graduate Chris Cardenas is hoping the adage,"the third time's the charm," proves true.
For the past two years, the 17- year-old Carnegie Mellon University-bound student has had near- misses in his quest for a duet acting title in the National Forensic League's National Speech Tournament.
"I don't feel nervous, but I am anxious because I've gotten second and fourth the past two years," said Cardenas, who has qualified for nationals with a different partner each year.
This year, Jared Padalecki is Cardenas' partner in aiming for first place. They hope their interpretation of "Dominick and Eugene," a story about two brothers who only have each other, does the trick.
But, they know the pressure is on.
"We're the favorites going in," Cardenas said. "We're anxious to go and see what we can do."
Along with Cardenas and Padalecki, 19 other San Antonio area students are representing their respective high schools in St. Louis this week.
They are competing with more than 3,000 students from across the country for titles in events ranging from debate, to speech and drama.
Eighteen-year-old Fred Noyes, a MacArthur High School graduate who is competing in two events, said he is very aware is his last opportunity to snag a national title to top off his high school career.
He is hoping his experience at last year's event will help place him in at least the top 15, in either Extemporaneous Speaking or Lincoln-Douglas Debates.
"As far as placing fourth, that would be in my wildest dreams," said Noyes who is planning to attend Northwestern University in the fall. "Anything above that would be even better."
The young scholars' anticipation is almost over. The 21 participants from area high schools left San Antonio International Airport Saturday morning for the weeklong competition which began Tuesday.
Aside from Cardenas and Padalecki, Madison's delegation includes Christopher Castillo and Meredith Klein.
Jennifer Gillespie, Scott Medlock, Gerald Voorhees and Chris Webb joined Noyes to make up MacArthur's entourage.
Churchill High School is represented by Aimee Gonzalez, Betsy Jones, Heather Lindner, Danny Lutman and Blake Walker. Lee High School's team consists of Justine Fisher, Justin Freeman and Jeremy Hoffman.
Cliff Sands and Daniel Wachdorf from Clemens High School, and Texas Military Institute's Justin Blanchard and Dane Charbeneau also are competing at the 67th annual event.
From the San Antonio Express-News; Texas. June 29, 1998.
Young actor clicks in third try
Deborah Martinez; Express-News Staff Writer
Chris Cardenas finally found his match in Jared Padalecki.
For the past two years, Cardenas has gone to the National Speech Tournament to compete in duet acting. Each time, the 1998 Madison High School graduate went with a different partner. Each time he placed in the top six.
When Cardenas, 17, teamed up with Padalecki, 15, and traveled to St. Louis last week, they were gunning for Cardenas' last shot at a national title.
The pair turned in a tear-jerking rendition of "Dominick and Eugene," a story about a man's paternal relationship with his mentally retarded brother, before a crowd of about 3,000.
The judges awarded them first place, giving the North East School District its first national championship in duo interpretation.
"It means a lot to finally win. It was my last chance," said Cardenas, who plans to go to Carnegie- Mellon University in the fall and major in theater. "It probably does mean more to me than it does to Jared because I have been trying for this the past three years."
The most harrowing moments for the pair came after their final performance. They had to sit through a three-hour award ceremony in which winners in their category were the last to be announced.
Although the partners were poised about their performance, the national title came as something of a surprise.
"I was pretty confident of the scene, and I was confident we would do well. But there's always that little question in the back of your mind," Padalecki said about the stiff competition with the 200- plus teams of duo interpreters.
With two years left in high school, Padalecki said his partnership with Cardenas will help him prepare for future competitions.
"I love the way Chris acts," Padalecki said. "I respect his work. Everything I see him do he's always really good in. All the rest of the audience is really enthralled by him.
"It was a good experience and an honor to be chosen to work with him."
Both actors attributed their success to their coach, Mike Harrison.
Cardenas said his and Padalecki's championship was an emotional climax to four years of hard work in which he sacrificed teen- age experiences such as his high school prom.
"When I look back at the last four years, it's more important than a prom," said Cardenas, who described as a relief the actual moment after he and Padalecki were announced champions.
"It was like a sigh of relief because you're like tense and you're holding your breath and all of a sudden you can exhale," Cardenas said. "After that, you just start freaking out."
Overall, North East had the best representation of any school district in the nation at the 67th annual tournament, sponsored by the National Forensic League, said Diana Schumacher, assistant to the district's fine arts director. The tournament included events ranging from debate to speech and drama.
For Churchill High School, Blake Walker took home a fourth place in humorous interpretation and Danny Lutman placed sixth in the original oratory category, while Aimee Gonzalez took 10th place in dramatic interpretation.
Lee High School student Justine Fisher was a triple winner, taking fourth place in extemporaneous speaking, eighth place in policy debate with partner Justin Freeman, and 10th place in the Phyllis Flory Barton Debate Speakers Awards category.
From the San Antonio Express-News; Texas. August 11, 1999.
Teen trades ranch work for appearance on TV
Jeanette McNamee; Express-News Staff Writer
When Hollywood came calling for aspiring actor Jared Padalecki, the Madison High School senior was working on a ranch in Blanco, far from the bright lights of a television or movie studio.
Padalecki, 17, of San Antonio was one of two teens selected nationwide as a winner of Seventeen Magazine and Fox-TV's "Claim to Fame Contest." Patricia Pendleton of Putnam, Conn., was the second winner.
A tall, Matt Damon look-alike, Padalecki won an expense-paid trip to Santa Monica, Calif., to appear as a presenter on the 1999 Teen Choice Awards. The show was taped Aug. 1 and will be aired locally 7-9 p.m. Thursday on KABB- TV.
Winning the contest meant a welcome break for Padalecki from a couple of hot weeks spent building fences, digging holes and cutting trees on a Blanco ranch owned by Spurs chairman Peter Holt.
Padalecki was one of approximately 20,000 teens nationwide who entered the contest by submitting a videotape of themselves to their local Planet Hollywood restaurant. Each contestant had 30 seconds to tell why he or she would be a good presenter. That was not a problem for Padalecki, who had been in numerous speech tournaments and taken drama classes since he was in the sixth grade.
He and his parents, Jerry and Sherri Padalecki, flew to California on July 29 for a five-day stay. Although the show was taped in Santa Monica, they stayed in Beverly Hills.
The Teen Choice Awards recognizes popular teen stars in film, television, music, sports and fashion as chosen by teens across the country who completed ballots found in Seventeen magazine's June and July issues or accessed the magazine's web site to vote for their favorites.
An estimated 1,000 teens were on hand for the filming of the show.
"I thought I was just going to sit backstage and maybe just go on stage a couple of times," Padalecki said. "But, actually, they let me help backstage. They also had me handing awards (which looked like surfboards) to presenters and even sometimes giving them to the people who won."
"They introduced me on the show, too. I don't know if they're going to keep it or if they're going to cut it."
He got to meet such celebrities as Freddie Prinze Jr., Sandra Bullock, Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Brandy and Tara Lipinski.
But the most important part of the trip for the outgoing, personable Padalecki was the chance to meet agents such as Rich Beddingfield, manager/agent for Freddie Prinze Jr.
"We're going to keep in touch, and he (Beddingfield) is going to try and send me some audition material," a hopeful Padalecki said. "It's kind of tough living in San Antonio when the main acting cities, of course, are New York and L.A. So, instead of flying you back and forth, they send you the material and ask you to put yourself on tape and then you send the tape back to them, and they review it."
His parents are very supportive of his acting aspirations, he said.
"But it's a pretty tough business in acting, and they want me to have something as a backup. But if it all works out, they'd be ecstatic."
He's hopeful the audition tapes he sends to Beddingfield will lead to appearances in some TV shows or movies.
His mother said she and her husband share their son's enthusiasm for his acting goals.
"We think it's wonderful," she said. "He's been interested in it (acting) a long time. He was always a ham when he was little."
She is a teacher at [...] High School and Jerry Padalecki is an accountant with [...] Corp.
After graduating from Madison High School, Padalecki hopes to find acting roles in Los Angeles.
"I want to see how this next year in high school goes before deciding on college," he said. "If something happens during the year, like I get to be on a TV show or I send an audition tape and they like me and want to put me in a movie, then I'll go into acting. If I can do it, there's nothing else I want to do in the world."
If he finds acting jobs in L.A., he might attend the University of California at Los Angeles to major in theater or communications.
"Or, if this doesn't work out, I'll probably go to the University of Texas at Austin and major in engineering or computer science."
Padalecki has taken speech and drama classes for several years, first at Wood Middle School and then at Madison, where he's won awards in speech and drama competition.
He praises Madison's drama teacher, Mike Harrison.
"Mr. Harrison always told me I was real talented. But he also said it helps what you do in your lifetime. It helps the experiences you have and the way you see things," Padalecki said.
In addition to his success in drama and speech, he is an all-around 'A' student and a National Merit Scholar. He takes honors classes and is in the gifted and talented program at Madison. He also enjoys basketball and football.
His brother Jeff, 20, is a student at St. Mary's University, and his sister Megan, 14, is a freshman at Madison.
The San Antonio Express-News; Texas. June 29, 1998
The San Antonio Express-News; Texas. August 11, 1999
From the San Antonio Express-News; Texas. June 17, 1998.
Students gear up for national speech tourney
Deborah Martinez; Express-News Staff Writer
Recent Madison High School graduate Chris Cardenas is hoping the adage,"the third time's the charm," proves true.
For the past two years, the 17- year-old Carnegie Mellon University-bound student has had near- misses in his quest for a duet acting title in the National Forensic League's National Speech Tournament.
"I don't feel nervous, but I am anxious because I've gotten second and fourth the past two years," said Cardenas, who has qualified for nationals with a different partner each year.
This year, Jared Padalecki is Cardenas' partner in aiming for first place. They hope their interpretation of "Dominick and Eugene," a story about two brothers who only have each other, does the trick.
But, they know the pressure is on.
"We're the favorites going in," Cardenas said. "We're anxious to go and see what we can do."
Along with Cardenas and Padalecki, 19 other San Antonio area students are representing their respective high schools in St. Louis this week.
They are competing with more than 3,000 students from across the country for titles in events ranging from debate, to speech and drama.
Eighteen-year-old Fred Noyes, a MacArthur High School graduate who is competing in two events, said he is very aware is his last opportunity to snag a national title to top off his high school career.
He is hoping his experience at last year's event will help place him in at least the top 15, in either Extemporaneous Speaking or Lincoln-Douglas Debates.
"As far as placing fourth, that would be in my wildest dreams," said Noyes who is planning to attend Northwestern University in the fall. "Anything above that would be even better."
The young scholars' anticipation is almost over. The 21 participants from area high schools left San Antonio International Airport Saturday morning for the weeklong competition which began Tuesday.
Aside from Cardenas and Padalecki, Madison's delegation includes Christopher Castillo and Meredith Klein.
Jennifer Gillespie, Scott Medlock, Gerald Voorhees and Chris Webb joined Noyes to make up MacArthur's entourage.
Churchill High School is represented by Aimee Gonzalez, Betsy Jones, Heather Lindner, Danny Lutman and Blake Walker. Lee High School's team consists of Justine Fisher, Justin Freeman and Jeremy Hoffman.
Cliff Sands and Daniel Wachdorf from Clemens High School, and Texas Military Institute's Justin Blanchard and Dane Charbeneau also are competing at the 67th annual event.
From the San Antonio Express-News; Texas. June 29, 1998.
Young actor clicks in third try
Deborah Martinez; Express-News Staff Writer
Chris Cardenas finally found his match in Jared Padalecki.
For the past two years, Cardenas has gone to the National Speech Tournament to compete in duet acting. Each time, the 1998 Madison High School graduate went with a different partner. Each time he placed in the top six.
When Cardenas, 17, teamed up with Padalecki, 15, and traveled to St. Louis last week, they were gunning for Cardenas' last shot at a national title.
The pair turned in a tear-jerking rendition of "Dominick and Eugene," a story about a man's paternal relationship with his mentally retarded brother, before a crowd of about 3,000.
The judges awarded them first place, giving the North East School District its first national championship in duo interpretation.
"It means a lot to finally win. It was my last chance," said Cardenas, who plans to go to Carnegie- Mellon University in the fall and major in theater. "It probably does mean more to me than it does to Jared because I have been trying for this the past three years."
The most harrowing moments for the pair came after their final performance. They had to sit through a three-hour award ceremony in which winners in their category were the last to be announced.
Although the partners were poised about their performance, the national title came as something of a surprise.
"I was pretty confident of the scene, and I was confident we would do well. But there's always that little question in the back of your mind," Padalecki said about the stiff competition with the 200- plus teams of duo interpreters.
With two years left in high school, Padalecki said his partnership with Cardenas will help him prepare for future competitions.
"I love the way Chris acts," Padalecki said. "I respect his work. Everything I see him do he's always really good in. All the rest of the audience is really enthralled by him.
"It was a good experience and an honor to be chosen to work with him."
Both actors attributed their success to their coach, Mike Harrison.
Cardenas said his and Padalecki's championship was an emotional climax to four years of hard work in which he sacrificed teen- age experiences such as his high school prom.
"When I look back at the last four years, it's more important than a prom," said Cardenas, who described as a relief the actual moment after he and Padalecki were announced champions.
"It was like a sigh of relief because you're like tense and you're holding your breath and all of a sudden you can exhale," Cardenas said. "After that, you just start freaking out."
Overall, North East had the best representation of any school district in the nation at the 67th annual tournament, sponsored by the National Forensic League, said Diana Schumacher, assistant to the district's fine arts director. The tournament included events ranging from debate to speech and drama.
For Churchill High School, Blake Walker took home a fourth place in humorous interpretation and Danny Lutman placed sixth in the original oratory category, while Aimee Gonzalez took 10th place in dramatic interpretation.
Lee High School student Justine Fisher was a triple winner, taking fourth place in extemporaneous speaking, eighth place in policy debate with partner Justin Freeman, and 10th place in the Phyllis Flory Barton Debate Speakers Awards category.
From the San Antonio Express-News; Texas. August 11, 1999.
Teen trades ranch work for appearance on TV
Jeanette McNamee; Express-News Staff Writer
When Hollywood came calling for aspiring actor Jared Padalecki, the Madison High School senior was working on a ranch in Blanco, far from the bright lights of a television or movie studio.
Padalecki, 17, of San Antonio was one of two teens selected nationwide as a winner of Seventeen Magazine and Fox-TV's "Claim to Fame Contest." Patricia Pendleton of Putnam, Conn., was the second winner.
A tall, Matt Damon look-alike, Padalecki won an expense-paid trip to Santa Monica, Calif., to appear as a presenter on the 1999 Teen Choice Awards. The show was taped Aug. 1 and will be aired locally 7-9 p.m. Thursday on KABB- TV.
Winning the contest meant a welcome break for Padalecki from a couple of hot weeks spent building fences, digging holes and cutting trees on a Blanco ranch owned by Spurs chairman Peter Holt.
Padalecki was one of approximately 20,000 teens nationwide who entered the contest by submitting a videotape of themselves to their local Planet Hollywood restaurant. Each contestant had 30 seconds to tell why he or she would be a good presenter. That was not a problem for Padalecki, who had been in numerous speech tournaments and taken drama classes since he was in the sixth grade.
He and his parents, Jerry and Sherri Padalecki, flew to California on July 29 for a five-day stay. Although the show was taped in Santa Monica, they stayed in Beverly Hills.
The Teen Choice Awards recognizes popular teen stars in film, television, music, sports and fashion as chosen by teens across the country who completed ballots found in Seventeen magazine's June and July issues or accessed the magazine's web site to vote for their favorites.
An estimated 1,000 teens were on hand for the filming of the show.
"I thought I was just going to sit backstage and maybe just go on stage a couple of times," Padalecki said. "But, actually, they let me help backstage. They also had me handing awards (which looked like surfboards) to presenters and even sometimes giving them to the people who won."
"They introduced me on the show, too. I don't know if they're going to keep it or if they're going to cut it."
He got to meet such celebrities as Freddie Prinze Jr., Sandra Bullock, Jennifer Lopez, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Brandy and Tara Lipinski.
But the most important part of the trip for the outgoing, personable Padalecki was the chance to meet agents such as Rich Beddingfield, manager/agent for Freddie Prinze Jr.
"We're going to keep in touch, and he (Beddingfield) is going to try and send me some audition material," a hopeful Padalecki said. "It's kind of tough living in San Antonio when the main acting cities, of course, are New York and L.A. So, instead of flying you back and forth, they send you the material and ask you to put yourself on tape and then you send the tape back to them, and they review it."
His parents are very supportive of his acting aspirations, he said.
"But it's a pretty tough business in acting, and they want me to have something as a backup. But if it all works out, they'd be ecstatic."
He's hopeful the audition tapes he sends to Beddingfield will lead to appearances in some TV shows or movies.
His mother said she and her husband share their son's enthusiasm for his acting goals.
"We think it's wonderful," she said. "He's been interested in it (acting) a long time. He was always a ham when he was little."
She is a teacher at [...] High School and Jerry Padalecki is an accountant with [...] Corp.
After graduating from Madison High School, Padalecki hopes to find acting roles in Los Angeles.
"I want to see how this next year in high school goes before deciding on college," he said. "If something happens during the year, like I get to be on a TV show or I send an audition tape and they like me and want to put me in a movie, then I'll go into acting. If I can do it, there's nothing else I want to do in the world."
If he finds acting jobs in L.A., he might attend the University of California at Los Angeles to major in theater or communications.
"Or, if this doesn't work out, I'll probably go to the University of Texas at Austin and major in engineering or computer science."
Padalecki has taken speech and drama classes for several years, first at Wood Middle School and then at Madison, where he's won awards in speech and drama competition.
He praises Madison's drama teacher, Mike Harrison.
"Mr. Harrison always told me I was real talented. But he also said it helps what you do in your lifetime. It helps the experiences you have and the way you see things," Padalecki said.
In addition to his success in drama and speech, he is an all-around 'A' student and a National Merit Scholar. He takes honors classes and is in the gifted and talented program at Madison. He also enjoys basketball and football.
His brother Jeff, 20, is a student at St. Mary's University, and his sister Megan, 14, is a freshman at Madison.