ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, March 23, 1996 TAG: 9603270081
SECTION: SPECTATOR PAGE: S-9 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: SCOTT MOORE THE WASHINGTON POST
Irene Ng doesn't yet have a driver's license, but she's had quite a ride during her seven years in the United States.
Since fleeing the anti-Chinese atmosphere of Malaysia, Ng (pronounced Ung) has learned English, graduated as valedictorian of her Allentown, Pa., high school class, appeared in a daytime soap and two films, and maintained an A average in pre-med and economics at Harvard.
Ng, 21, is the star of Nickelodeon's new half-hour series, ``The Mystery Files of Shelby Woo'' (airing Sundays at 6 p.m.).
``Working with Irene was just an extraordinary experience,'' said executive producer Alan Goodman. He marvels at a ``young actress so devoted to her craft and her school work and personal goals. ... She's really something special.''
So special is she that Goodman revamped the series, originally titled ``Shelby Wink.''
Pat Morita, cast as Shelby's grandfather, says Ng has qualities that remind him of Henry Winkler (``Happy Days'') and Ralph Macchio (``Karate Kid'') when they were inexperienced.
``She's a still-blossoming talent,'' he said. ``Once she learns that the camera is her best friend, she's going to go very, very far. And I don't care if she is better-looking than I am.''
The 65-year-old actor, of Japanese descent, also doesn't mind that his character is Chinese American. ``As a matter of fact,'' he said, ``I can also play a very good Indian.''
Nickelodeon arranged the on-location shooting in Cocoa Beach and Orlando, Fla., around Ng's Harvard schedule. The result is a mystery show that invites the audience to sleuth along with the 16-year-old amateur detective and her friends.
Goodman, who was a writer for Nick's ``Clarissa Explains It All,'' created ``Shelby Woo'' after noticing the lasting appeal of ``The Hardy Boys'' and ``Nancy Drew'' mystery-book series.
``Shelby Woo,'' he said, is a whodunit game of ``Can I beat the detective? Or, in this case: Can I beat Shelby? ... That's an important thing for kids, to get them to use their brains as they watch.''
To further the interactive appeal, the series uses an on-screen computer to help viewers - and Shelby - file and recall clues. Unlike mystery shows such as ``Murder, She Wrote,'' this one's amateur detective doesn't have all the answers or continually upstage the authorities.
``I like Shelby because I believe that girls should feel uninhibited about following their heart,'' Ng said. ``She is very adventurous and never lets anything stand in her way.''
That includes directives from her grandfather and detective pals.
Benefitting from the wisdom of others is something that Shelby usually discovers belatedly in each adventure, but Ng has quickly latched onto the idea. She credits Morita - his ``Karate Kid 2'' was one of the first films she saw in the United States - with helping to refine her acting skills, such as how to position her feet correctly.
Similarly, Ng is a mentor to 16-year-old sleuthing partner Presley Edwards. ``We get together sometimes, and she asks me advice about boys,'' Ng said.
Ng also can provide pointers about how to succeed in show business. At 16, she entered a beauty pageant and was crowned Metro Miss Teen Lehigh Valley. Having grown up watching - though not always understanding - English versions of ``Dynasty'' and ``Three's Company,'' she was easily persuaded to try acting.
With her father driving her to auditions in New York, Ng quickly landed a role on ``All My Children,'' playing An Li Chen.
At the end of 1991, she got a small part in the Oliver Stone film ``Heaven & Earth,'' shot in Thailand and released in 1993. She played star Joan Chen's stand-in. During that production, Ng was selected for the cast of ``The Joy Luck Club,'' a Stone co-production that allowed her to visit China for the first time.
``I was very aware of my identity as Chinese,'' Ng said, ``but I never had a chance before to see the mother country'' because of travel restrictions. However, she said she was disappointed by the ``dirty and crowded'' conditions there and was made to feel like an outsider.
Similar cultural differences have come up at home as she considers careers in acting and medicine. Her mother, a nurse, thinks that a female doctor would not have enough time to spend with a husband.
``I'm going to make that decision when I really have to, when I graduate or something,'' Ng said. ``My parents always [have had] a hands-off policy. My dad found that it actually works better with me that way.''
LENGTH: Medium: 83 linesby CNB