The Disney Channel's Rainbow Coalition

According to their credo, Cheetah Girls are created equal, but they are not alike. They come in different sizes, shapes and colors, and they don't pass judgment on others by the color of their spots. They refuse to spend more time on their hair than their homework. They don't run with wolves or hang with hyenas. They follow their own dreams and admit when they are wrong. And even though they know grown-ups aren't always right, they give them respect and, in turn, receive respect from adults.

"The Cheetah Girls," for anybody older than 20 who may not be familiar with them, are popular young girls' books by Deborah Gregory. The book series was launched in 1999. Over the last four years, Gregory has penned 13 "Cheetah Girls" books, which follow the adventures of five multicultural girlfriends in New York City who pursue their dream of becoming musical superstars.

And now "The Cheetah Girls" is the Disney Channel's first musical movie. Premiering Friday, "Cheetah Girls" stars Raven as Galleria Garibaldi, Adri- enne Bailon as Chanel, Kiely Williams as Aqua, Sabrina Bryan as Dorinda Thomas and Cappuccino, Gregory's own bichon frise dog, as the group's mascot, Toto.

Debra Martin Chase, executive producer with pop star Whitney Houston, was introduced to the novels in 1999 by her friend and co-producer Cheryl Hill.

"I just fell in love with them and sold them to the Disney Channel," Chase says. "We originally developed this as a TV series and then, kind of along the way in talking with the network, decided, let's do a movie first. Let's flesh out the world and flesh out the characters and really get a sense of what we have and go for it and see what happens." Depending on how well the film is received, what may happen is a more regular Cheetah Girls series.

Instead of five Cheetah Girls, Friday's film has four. "That made it easier to manage," says Chase. "There was not really a white girl [in the novels]. Dorinda, who is a foster child, was of color and uncertain of her exact origins." For the movie, Dorinda became white. "I thought it was really important that visually all girls saw that they were included in the Cheetah Girls. It's a state of mind. It's an attitude. Everybody, no matter the color of your spots, can be a Cheetah Girl."