Where the Stars Are : * Celebrity seekers might try looking behind the counter at some local small businesses that are owned by big names.

Uncle Ned just arrived from Toledo and demands to see some “bona fide celebrities.” Left on his own, you know Ned will scour 7-Elevens across Van Nuys for the likes of Elizabeth Taylor and Warren Beatty.

Perhaps you could help him out. Why not visit stars where they work? Several area retail establishments are owned by actresses, and while the proprietors may not be on par with Barbra Streisand, their businesses attract real star power--such as Bette Midler, Henry Winkler and Patti LuPone, to name a few.

Scarlet Ribbons in Quartz Hill near Palmdale is owned by Gaylon Bernard and her daughter Crystal Bernard, who plays Helen on the NBC series “Wings.” The gift shop, opened last year, features Victorian and vintage items housed in a replica of an English cottage. Wrought-iron chairs, tables, wine racks and fern stands are also offered. Prices range from $3 to $200.

“It’s a real eclectic shop,” says Gaylon Bernard, who raised her four daughters in Dallas. Daughter Robyn played Terri Brock on ABC’s “General Hospital” for five years, ending in 1990. Daughters Scarlet, for whom the store is named, and Angelique occasionally help out. Crystal often drops by the shop.

Scarlet Ribbons, 42222 50th St. West, Quartz Hill. Open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. (805) 943-9134.

Angela Cartwright, who played Linda, Danny Thomas’ daughter on the “Danny Thomas Show” from 1956 to 1963, opened her Toluca Lake gift shop, Rubber Boots, 17 years ago.

“The shop is a good mix of everything,” says Cartwright, also known for her role as Penny on the 1965-68 TV series “Lost in Space” and for playing Brigitta von Trapp in the Broadway and film versions of “The Sound of Music” (1965).

“Quite a few people recognize me. Fans who go to Universal Studios hear I run the shop, and they’ll stop by afterward.”

Rubber Boots, a name Cartwright plucked from the side of a supply store, sells items “from 10 cents to $300,” says Cartwright. “I try to find stuff when I travel, things that aren’t common in this part of the country.” Items include such things as sterling silver jewelry, candles, etchings, books and soaps.

“If people are looking for actors, a lot come in here since we’re close to all the studios,” Cartwright says. Regulars include Delta Burke, Sally Field, Markie Post, Ned Beatty and Henry Winkler.

Rubber Boots, 10112 Riverside Drive, Toluca Lake. Open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. (818) 766-6666.

Shoppers who walk into Little Feet, a Studio City children’s shoe store, often do a double-take when they spot owner Susan Mullen.

“Parents recognize me, kids recognize me--it happens all the time,” says Mullen, who has appeared in more than 200 TV commercials.

“I always play the ultimate Procter & Gamble mom in commercials.”

Mullen currently plays mom in a Tide commercial--”My TV daughter ruins Aunt Jill’s sweater, and I rescue her with Tide”--and in an Eggo waffles spot, where Mullen and her TV family fall prey to a teen-age son who rigs a toaster to snatch their coveted waffles.

The actress also occasionally acts in TV movies and in 1978 played a character on the one-season network TV “San Pedro Beach Bums,” produced by Aaron Spelling.

“The one Spelling show that didn’t make it,” Mullen says with a sigh. Mullen was also in a children’s film, “Hugga-Bunch” for Hallmark’s Hall of Fame in 1985. A video of the film was recently released.

Stars who shop at Little Feet include Robert Urich, Burt Reynolds, Loni Anderson, Bette Midler and Patti LuPone, Mullen says.

She opened her shop in 1988 after growing frustrated in her search for stores with “trained salespeople, good prices and some kind of concept,” says Mullen, now a board member of the Western Shoe Retailers Assn.

“I didn’t even know how to measure a foot when I started.”

Little Feet, 12215 Ventura Blvd., Studio City. Open 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, till 6 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. (818) 509-9449.

Pamela Galloway, owner of Ferret furnishings in Studio City, is perhaps best known for her recurring role as JoAnne Parker, “the snooty rich lady” in the CBS series “Who’s the Boss?”

Galloway, who played the role in the 1989-90 season, has also been in TV commercials for McDonald’s, Dial deodorant, Kellogg’s cereals, Lincoln Mercury and Bernstein Salad Dressings.

Ferret, open since 1989, offers a variety of antiques, including French country farm tables and hand-painted living room and dining room furnishings.

Vintage needlepoint pillows, lamps, tapestry rugs and small gifts are available. Furniture prices range from $150 to $2,500. Gifts start at $8.

“I don’t think I ever realized how much work this would be,” says Galloway, adding that celebrities often visit her shop. “I can hold up a bottle of deodorant for two hours and make $15,000 in residuals. But the rewards at Ferret are a bit richer.”

Ferret, 12334 Ventura Blvd. Studio City. Open 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. (818) 769-2427.

Cafe Giuseppe in Northridge offers Northern Italian cuisine--and the entertainment of one of its more famous owners, Maureen Arthur, who starred as Heddy Larue in the Broadway and film versions of “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” (1967).

Arthur, who has also appeared in about 40 movies (“Harry and Walter Go to New York,” “The Love Machine,” “How to Commit Marriage”), opened her restaurant with brothers David and Gerald 10 years ago. She also has appeared on such TV shows as “Matlock,” “Sanford & Son,” “Dallas” and “All in the Family.”

Arthur’s restaurant is popular with celebrities.

“Stevie Wonder has dropped in and got up on stage to sing,” says David Arthur. “Magic Johnson, Ernest Borgnine and Valerie Harper also stop by.” Maureen Arthur, who can also be spotted in the kitchen preparing new recipes, doesn’t schedule singing appearances at her cafe, “but sings whenever she drops in,” David says.

Cafe Giuseppe, 18515 Roscoe Blvd., Northridge, offers dancing and entertainment. Entrees range from $13 to $18. Open from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 5:30 p.m. nightly for dinner. Entertainment begins at 7:30 weeknights, 8:30 p.m. weekends. (818) 349-9090.