Aladdin' Star Discovers
Whole New World at Harvard

When the former "Full House" star first lent his voice to Disney's Aladdin, he was 15 and impressionable.

Today, as the third "Aladdin" film is about to be released, he's almost 21 and a junior at Harvard University.

"Aladdin Goes to Harvard"? Who'da figured?

"It was never a consideration that I wouldn't go to college," Weinger says. "My dad's a surgeon and my mom's a teacher," so the die was cast.

Going to Harvard, however, required a bit more than schedule juggling.

Since school started while he was in the middle of his run on "Full House," Weinger had to get permission from the series' producers to film during breaks. Then, too, since he was also the voice of television's "Aladdin," he had to make sure there were studios nearby to do his recording work. Enjoying the best of all worlds? Actually, Weinger says, it's possible.

"Everyone was accommodating. Nobody tried to get in my way," he says. "But some people on the set said, "When you go to college you just come out and get a job. Well, you've already got one.' "

True, but the English literature major thinks there could be more for him in Hollywood. Since he likes to write, that's an option. Then, too, there's the thought of going to law school in a year or two.

"I would definitely love to stay in show business," he says. "I love acting. I lean toward writing. That's one thing about the entertainment industry. There's never a lack of things to do."

Girlfriend Kellie Martin agrees. Although she's a student at Yale, she also has managed to star in one series ("Christy") and plan another.

"She definitely has a full-time commitment to school. The second she walks off campus, she's back on the set somewhere. She's had an interesting career that no one has had."

Surprisingly, Weinger and Martin see each other often. When they're at school, one will make an effort to visit the other. When they're in California, "we're always together."

Both see education as an important part of life. Even though he began acting at 8, Weinger knew he was going to get a degree. Jodie Foster, he says, has been a real role model. "I've got her autograph on my wall. I've always admired her."

Jodie's way - going to school full time, acting during breaks - has served others well, too. Brooke Shields, Sara Gilbert and Fred Savage are among the younger actors who have successfully followed in her wake.

To keep his name before the public, Weinger says he continues to audition ("so I don't get rusty")and look for parts that will bridge the gap between child star and adult actor.

Friends at Harvard, he says, are quite accepting of his extra-curricular activities. "There hasn't been even one snide comment," he says. "In high school you'd get it, but not in college."

Harvard students, Weinger explains, "try to be so blase about it," the subject of his stardom rarely arises.

Indeed, Weinger didn't really broach the subject of "Aladdin" until he invited friends over to watch a version dubbed in French. Eager to brush up on his language skills, Weinger asked the Disney folks to send him the foreign-language version. "Instead of sending me "Aladdin,' they sent me the entire Disney collection dubbed into French. So we had a Disney movie marathon at my house. Even the kids who didn't speak French enjoyed it."

Although it was difficult to understand what the Genie said (like Robin Williams, the French actor spoke a mile a minute), Weinger did keep up with the French Aladdin. "Naturally, I'm partial to my own performance, but as far as a French Aladdin goes, he wasn't bad."

This week, the third Aladdin feature, "Aladdin and the King of Thieves," arrives on home video. Weinger spent two years working on the film, recording bits and pieces in New York, Boston and Los Angeles.

"The entire time the movie was being made, I was in school," he says. His grades didn't suffer. The work didn't interfere with classes.

To get that Aladdin sound, Weinger says, "I'd get my energy way, way up and, occasionally, my voice would crack."

Since his work is done behind a microphone, that means Weinger could continue to play the role for years to come.

A retirement Aladdin? Weinger, for one, wouldn't mind. "I hope there are more films to come. Hopefully when I'm a grandpa, my kids will appreciate what I've done."

by Bruce R. Miller
Souix City Journal