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My Cool Friend Michelle: 'Matilda' star Mara Wilson remembers her old friend.

Other kids called Trachtenberg a bitch, but in our group of child stars, we all wanted to be like her.

At the same time the Pussy Posse was wreaking havoc around New York, my group of child-actor friends were making PSAs about wearing bicycle helmets, walking in fashion shows to support Multiple Sclerosis research, and giving Christmas gifts to children in hospitals. That group included Chester; Ashley Johnson; Andrew Keegan; Jonathan Taylor Thomas; Rider Strong; Lindsay Felton; Mae Whitman; Bryton McClure; Michael Fishman; Raven-Symoné; Miko Hughes; Taran Noah Smith; Zane, Paris, and Reeve Carney; Tia, Tamera, and Tahj Mowry; Adam Wylie; and many more. I did miss screen acting, but I was tired of all that went with it: the months away from family and friends, the long hours and tedious reshoots, the constant scrutiny from the press and studios, the “fan letters” from grown men about your body.

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