Second part in an occasional series on Max and Will Graf’s first year of middle school. Both were born with the most common form of dwarfism.

From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, an extended feature on brothers with achondroplasia who are adjusting to their first year at middle school. Reporter Gretchen McKay accompanies them to two dances, one sponsored by Little People of America and one at their middle school. She reports that the boys exude self-confidence and are comfortable in both settings.

Well-liked by their classmates, they’re active in everything from intramural sports to student council and Boy Scouts. And at an age when many kids are so painfully self-conscious about the way they look and where they fall in the social pecking order, the boys are remarkably comfortable in their own skin. How else to explain Will’s long blond locks in a school full of crew cuts and his brother’s penchant for Hawaiian shirts, when striped polo shirts and hoodies are the unspoken uniform?

The story is accompanied by a video of Max and Will. The first story in the middle school series is here.

From the Los Angeles Times:

The seven surviving Munchkins from the 1939 movie classic “The Wizard of Oz” are honored with a star on Hollywood Boulevard’s Walk of Fame. That’s Margaret Pellegrini pictured above.

For decades after the movie premiere, the Munchkins had little contact as a group. It wasn’t until the last 20 years that the survivors began gathering at special events honoring the movie. Most are well into their 80s.

From the Arizona Republic:

… On weekends across Mexico, troupes of dwarf bullfighters thrill audiences at fairs, patron-saint festivals and nightclubs. Some of them tour the United States, where they bring a dose of nostalgia to Mexican migrants from Oregon to Florida.

Although some activists worry that they propagate stereotypes, the troupes — known as cuadrillas — provide steady jobs in a country where employment discrimination is rampant and people with disabilities have trouble getting work.

“We’ve become part of Mexican culture,” said Antonio Garcia, one of the Original Bullfighting Dwarfs. “You can’t deny the attraction of a dwarf fighting bulls.”

Little people, classified as 4-foot-10-inches or less, are finding their own ways to succeed

From ABC News, Good Morning America, a profile of two women of short stature. Performer Terra Jole has taken Las Vegas and the Internet by storm with her imitation of Britney Spears. Dr. Jennifer Arnold works as a physician at Stony Brook University Medical Center on Long Island, where she treats babies in the neonatal unit.