THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, April 8, 1996 TAG: 9604080033
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY RICKEY WRIGHT, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 68 lines
Obviously, her bunny-rabbit-ear sunglasses had gone to her head.
``What's up, Doc?!'' 4-year-old sickle-cell anemia patient Tiara Riden shouted to LL Cool J as the rapper/actor approached her at Children's Hospital of The King's Daughters.
A playroom full of ailing kids saw an Easter Sunday appearance from the star a few hours before his scheduled show with singer R. Kelly at Hampton Coliseum. LL - a Queens, N.Y., native, born James Todd Smith - is known for hits such as ``Hey Lover'' and ``Mama Said Knock You Out.''
In a Yankees cap, leather jacket and jeans with one leg - the left - rolled up, he seemed eager to prove that his commitment to children goes beyond his role in the family-oriented sitcom ``In the House.''
He greeted them gently, offering a soft ``How you doin'?'' to one, and standing for pictures with others, like Kaitlyn Burch, 4, of Elizabeth City. After nine days in the hospital with pneumonia, a chat with a famous face was a welcome relief.
Having received word of the impending treat, Kaitlyn's mother, Jeannie Burch, said, ``I was expecting someone like Barney.'' Instead, her daughter got to pose shyly with another platinum recording artist.
LL autographed a pink notebook for diabetes patient Nicki Baranowski, 10, of Newport News.
``OK, Nick? Get well, go home and be good,'' he said.
``No matter what situation the kids are in, I try to encourage them to continue, to keep dreamin', to not forget their dreams,'' he explained later. ``Like today, I told them, `Close your eyes and see yourself gettin' better.' ''
He spoke of his trip to King's Daughters and of Camp Cool J, his nonprofit project that allows city kids to spend time in the country during the summer, as parts of his attempt to ``do things that are right and positive.''
LL took pains to play down his celebrity status in favor of simply interacting with patients.
``You know, it's funny,'' he said. ``Sometimes I don't know if the kids know who I am. I don't know if the kids are gonna recognize me. I never assume that they do. There's a thin line between sincerity and arrogance when you visit someone, and I try to stay sincere. . . . Plus, on top of it all, it makes me feel good.''
It also appeared to do that for Jessica Galentine, an aide who described her job as providing ``diversion for the kids.''
``A lot of times it gets monotonous for them, and something like this makes it a little more exciting,'' she said.
As record-company staff members handed out bright gift bags with LL buttons and coloring books, Tiara knew one thing.
``You got somethin' for me? Now everybody gonna get a surprise!'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by HUY NGUYEN, The Virginian-Pilot
LL Cool J greets Kaitlyn Burch, 4, of Elizabeth City at Children's
Hospital of The King's Daughters. Kaitlyn, who had been there nine
days pneumonia, was one of several kids who met LL Sunday.
Photo by HUY NGUYEN, The Virginian-Pilot
Macho Agosto, star-gazing, eagerly awaits an autograph from LL Cool
J. Said LL, ``There's a thin line between sincerity and arrogance
when you visit someone, and I try to stay sincere.''
by CNB