Hillary Tuck Meets World

It’s always fun for the gang to reconnect with a guest star, but this week they’re getting a 3 for 1 deal. A rare member of the 3-timers club, Hillary Tuck is ready to reminisce on all the BMW characters she played - and the romantic history she has with one of the Strong boys. 
 
We get more perspective from the historic Disney World episode and some new insight into the many ups and downs of being a child actor.
 
From being found at “Camp Nowhere,” to growing up on “Honey, I Shrunk the Kids,” to shooting hoops on “Hang Time,” we’re covering it all with Hillary Tuck on a brand new Pod Meets World!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:18):
Okay, I want to talk about something that just occurred
to me, and I just want to hear you guys
describe it, because it suddenly struck me as a little
odd and it didn't quite make sense, but it was
something that was just a huge part of our lives,
and I want to hear it described because I think
it's a little weird outside of Hollywood. Where did we park.

Speaker 2 (00:40):
On the lot?

Speaker 3 (00:41):
Yeah?

Speaker 1 (00:41):
Like, how did that work?

Speaker 2 (00:44):
We had to signed parking spaces that like basically circled
the stage. They were very close to the stage. We
didn't have to walk far.

Speaker 1 (00:52):
So nobody else in the crew had parking spots like that.

Speaker 2 (00:57):
No, but I think some of the writers did.

Speaker 1 (00:58):
Children We're given parking spots where we didn't have to
walk the what how far? Like two hundred yards from
the park. But isn't that kind of bizarre when you
think about it? Why were we granted great parking spots?

Speaker 2 (01:14):
Here's what I'll tell you. The argument is the same
reason we all have anxiety around dressing and it needs
to be done fast because the show's very tight schedule
revolves around expediency. They need to make sure that if

(01:34):
our call time is nine and we show up at
eight fifty nine or on the dot nine that we
are then parking our car and immediately on set in
a short amount of time. And I don't think this
will shock people that. I think most actors have the
reputation for not being super timely or good at managing time,

(01:58):
and so the idea that somebody would have to say, well,
my call time's nine, but that means on set at nine,
I have to walk fifteen minutes. So I'm going to
have to get there at eight forty five, and I
have to allow for traffic. So I, like a human
being a job like, they try to take all of
that out the situation for actors because we are catered

(02:21):
to exactly.

Speaker 4 (02:22):
I think it's also one of the perks.

Speaker 3 (02:24):
It's one of the perks of getting there because I
remember the first time driving up on set, the first
thing I took a picture of was my parking space.

Speaker 4 (02:30):
With my name.

Speaker 3 (02:31):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (02:31):
Yeah, that was the coolest thing in the world.

Speaker 1 (02:33):
But that's the chair kind of ridiculous, Like doesn't that
mean to me? It created It contributed to a culture
that exacerbated two different tendencies. One we cared about our cars,
like the presentation of a car was important, which is like,
like no other aspect of my life has that ever,

(02:54):
But I remember like what people drove like and how
they pulled up because we'd see it, you'd pull up
in front of it. And then the other thing that
it contributed to is beam late, Like there was this
sense of like, yeah, you could just pull in fifteen
minutes late and everybody would be waiting for you and
you'd pull up into your parking spot and jump out.
And like I loved even like Kevin Kelton when he
was like rider would drive this car. He like our

(03:18):
our like culture revolved around like the fact that we
had these parking spots, which is just so weird to me.
And it's still like.

Speaker 5 (03:26):
That for actors.

Speaker 2 (03:27):
Oh yeah, I don't.

Speaker 3 (03:28):
Think it's just the directors, but I think it's it's
I think it's also if you're the manager of the bank,
you're gonna get a.

Speaker 2 (03:34):
Park number of parking spots you should they go to
they go.

Speaker 4 (03:39):
To the piece.

Speaker 1 (03:39):
So why do we have parking spots and the like
there should not be cars on the lot at all
because that's super dangerous, Like you should be parking on
a garage and then cars not drive cars driving on lots.
It makes no sense. It is purely to cater to
the egos of the people that you're giving those that
access to. It's like it's like having an extra bathroom

(04:00):
for executives. It's so weird.

Speaker 3 (04:02):
Do you remember when we started at Disney, we were
next to Home Improvement and there was always some amazingly
cool car or two in Tim Allen.

Speaker 4 (04:11):
Spot, That's what I mean. And it was like, yeah
it was.

Speaker 3 (04:14):
And I remember one time, so he's got a he
I pull in and there's a brand new Porsche in
his parking spot with a license plate that said Claus one.
And it was because he had just done the Santa
Claus and it did so well that Disney bought him
a Porsche and had to me though.

Speaker 4 (04:32):
To this day, that's still the pinnacle.

Speaker 3 (04:33):
I want to do subthing where it's so good, where
somebody's like, here's a Porsche, thanks for being on the show.

Speaker 4 (04:39):
It's great. It's only in Hollywood.

Speaker 1 (04:42):
My friend weird to me, and like I totally bought
into it and like never questioned it. It was just like, oh,
I'm at sixteen, I have my own or even before that,
I have my own parking spot and like everyone knew
what car I was driving. Like it's so I remember,
like I bought because all I wanted was an old convertible,

(05:03):
like I wanted like a Karma Gia, and my parents
wouldn't let me get it because they were like, that's
an unsafe car. But I wanted like an old little convertible.
And then will You were like, you got to get
a BMW because that was like and so like I
at seventeen, Yes, I at seventeen bought a BMW convertible.
And then I was like driving around and I like,

(05:23):
it's so weird, like I just don't like care about
cars at all, like and I even then I don't
think I did that much, but it became part of
the thing. And then I remember I had an agent
who joined the Savage agent. This woman joined the Savage
and State, and I remember I pulled up in my
car at one point she was like, why do you
you really like you care about your car? And I

(05:44):
was like, well, yeah, I got a BMW. She was like,
I just never I never saw you as that type
of person, like it seems like a lot of money
to like wait, and I remember being like, am I
that type of person and like, yes, that's what it was,
just this part of this culture and like I've never
been that person since, like, but it was. It's so
like La and.

Speaker 2 (06:03):
I s a Toyota four Runner as my first car.

Speaker 4 (06:06):
I still have my first car.

Speaker 1 (06:08):
Having an suv in LA is already a little ridiculous,
especially at sixteen. That's a little and at that time
that was the pinnacle of like cool and like, you
never you don't need an.

Speaker 3 (06:18):
Suv, But having a parking space makes way more sense
to me, Like caring about it's close to the set,
I can get there on time. All this set makes
way more sense to me than actors caring about where
their name is listed in the credits, right, Like I
would always get that my agent call me, going.

Speaker 4 (06:35):
Well, you're fourth on the call sheet. Are you okay
with that?

Speaker 3 (06:37):
And I would always remember thinking to myself, why the
hell do I care where my name is listed?

Speaker 4 (06:42):
I mean, performance speak for itself. I do not care
where my name is.

Speaker 1 (06:46):
I would actually argue, I mean I think we might
have hit on this a little bit. I feel like
the opening credits of the first season of Boy MutS
World were actually very good.

Speaker 4 (06:54):
For us, right They introduced you, but I don't care
where I was.

Speaker 1 (06:57):
But being able to see your name with your picture
was that the deal? And that doesn't happen anymore, no,
And I actually think that that really it is good
for actors, Like I like actors getting recognition. Like even
now you think it's so cheesy at the end of
like a movie or whatever when they like showed the
actors and list them, But in reality that's cool. It's
like a curtain call, you know.

Speaker 3 (07:16):
It's like when you have where you're listing shouldn't matter.

Speaker 4 (07:20):
It should be the performance that you're doing. So if
you're listed.

Speaker 3 (07:22):
Second or seventh, you shouldn't be calling your agents based
seven on the call sheet.

Speaker 1 (07:27):
But that's usually just based on the sides of your part, right,
I mean, isn't that.

Speaker 2 (07:30):
Alsoways Like I also wonder how much of it is
to a certain extent safety, Like I know, I was
followed from the stage of Boy Meets World where it
was after a live studio audience taping, and people parked
outside of the gate where I exited. They watched me
pull out and they followed me home.

Speaker 4 (07:49):
Yeah, and then you got out of your car.

Speaker 2 (07:51):
I did. I got out of my car and yeah,
that's crazy.

Speaker 1 (07:54):
Yeah, I don't know. I just I just had this
memory of like, and I think we told that will
You told that one story when Dusty hits the car
with the ball, and I was like, it is so
weird to have these cars lined up in front of
a stage, and yet we just totally that was our
late second. And like, you think about how many crew
members had to had to park like a normal human

(08:15):
being and walk to work and be there on time.

Speaker 4 (08:18):
This makes so much sense. This is why every house
you buy has no parking.

Speaker 1 (08:26):
That's just because I like houses that are slightly removed
from like from parking, or from just from normal.

Speaker 3 (08:32):
Like rider can't dress without anxiety and doesn't want an
he doesn't want park he wantsn't.

Speaker 4 (08:38):
Work to be as difficult as possible. It makes so
much sense.

Speaker 2 (08:42):
You should have to hike a mile to my.

Speaker 3 (08:44):
House, and if you're backing out half your car should
slam over this thing and we should have to call
in tow trucks.

Speaker 1 (08:51):
I think there's truth to that. I think there's truth
to that, because you know, the most beautiful wilderness experiences
I've ever had, or when I've had to hike multiple
days to get somewhere. You know, it's like if you
can get there easily. We've talked about Grand Canyon. It's
anti climactic. Like, so ease of access is is not great? Like, yes,
I think I think having difficulty is good for us.

Speaker 2 (09:11):
Well, I like my parking space and I'm not giving
it up.

Speaker 3 (09:14):
Thank you.

Speaker 2 (09:14):
Welcome to Pod meets World. I'm Daniel Fishel.

Speaker 4 (09:16):
I'm righter, strong, and I should be the first one
to say my name.

Speaker 1 (09:22):
From now on.

Speaker 4 (09:23):
Now on, I'm wilfred Ell. Now you guys say you're.

Speaker 5 (09:28):
My god.

Speaker 2 (09:28):
I love it so much.

Speaker 1 (09:29):
Oh my god, I love you guys.

Speaker 2 (09:44):
There is a very elite and small club when it
comes to Boy Meets World, and for all intents and purposes,
let's call it the Trifecta Gang. These are the actors
who appeared on the show three times, but as three
different characters.

Speaker 4 (09:58):
There's more than one of the Steve.

Speaker 5 (10:01):
There are.

Speaker 2 (10:03):
True inductees into this illustrious crew. First is the beloved
Willie Garson, who played Leonard Spinelli Mervin from Merrill Lynch
and the minister who married Corey into Panga in season seven.
Second is Jonathan C. Kaplan, who played Herbert Simon and Alvin,
which sure does sound a lot like the Chipmunks, it does.

Speaker 1 (10:23):
He was always the nerd character, Yes, they just kept
changing which nerd name he.

Speaker 4 (10:28):
Yep, that's exactly.

Speaker 1 (10:29):
Give the kid the same name.

Speaker 4 (10:30):
And make it Mancus because they forgot.

Speaker 2 (10:33):
Also, it's worth noting that technically Phil Broccoli Leads could
also fall into the but he plays two characters named
Phil and one named Milton, So we'll leave it up
to different correct because one of them is not the
same soup pill.

Speaker 4 (10:52):
No, and then there's broccoli flap. Fill this broccoli flap Phil, right?

Speaker 1 (10:56):
So wait, okay, all right, sorry, gone on interest.

Speaker 2 (10:59):
So we'll leave whether or not he falls into this
category up to you, our dear podcast listeners, to make
that decision. I'm talking to you, specifically Melissa, but the
third for sure member in this week's guest who you
can call Samantha, Sarah or Kristen. In addition to this
trio of characters on Boy Meets World, she is best
known as Amy Zelinski in the Disney TV show for Honey,

(11:21):
I Shrunk the Kids, or Betty Stoller in a pod
meets World favorite film Camp Nowhere. She also appeared on
the Saturday morning basketball sitcom Hangtime, Roseanne House, Gray's Anatomy,
and the theatrical play with the Brothers Strong. She's a
name that's already come up dozens of times on the podcast,
and now we are honored to have her stop by.

(11:42):
It's time to talk to Hillary Tuk. Hi, you got same?

Speaker 1 (11:48):
Oh my god, you haven't aged?

Speaker 5 (11:50):
Oh my god. Flattery is so wonderful, isn't it true?

Speaker 3 (11:55):
Another one who has a painting of themselves someone they're attic?

Speaker 4 (11:57):
How do you do it? Unbelievable you have not aged?

Speaker 5 (12:03):
Oh my gosh, I'm so happy to see you guys. Hi,
my old friend. My gosh, it's forever.

Speaker 1 (12:12):
Know how you do it.

Speaker 5 (12:13):
I'm I'm doing well. I'm hanging in. How about y'all?

Speaker 1 (12:17):
Where are you in the world? Are you in Texas
or you.

Speaker 5 (12:20):
No, I'm in Okay so much like Texas, so much
like we call.

Speaker 2 (12:26):
We call in the Texas.

Speaker 1 (12:32):
That's far enough away that it takes three days and
a lot of cows to get there. But yeah, all right,
Oh my god. We have no excuse to have not
stayed in touch.

Speaker 5 (12:42):
No excuse.

Speaker 1 (12:43):
I assumed you'd left l a long ago, or you know,
but I know, Okay, No.

Speaker 5 (12:48):
We're all We're all here, yeah, live in, Live in
the Dream, right, Wow?

Speaker 2 (12:54):
Yeah, I going You guys have a friendship that goes
back decades. But I would like to start with Finishing Touches.
It has two one act plays in nineteen ninety five.

Speaker 1 (13:06):
Why touches?

Speaker 5 (13:08):
Right?

Speaker 1 (13:09):
Can you can we pull up the image the Finishing Touches?

Speaker 5 (13:12):
I was like, did we do some sort of corn
thing that I didn't.

Speaker 1 (13:18):
You don't remember Finishing Touches? No, that's what we called
the evening of one act You were in Women in Wallace.

Speaker 5 (13:30):
Yes, I could not remember the name of the and the.

Speaker 1 (13:33):
Tom sisters, Heather and Nicole Tom, and we just recently
reconnected with Nicole Tom and it was so fun to
like hang. And so Shiloh posted on Instagram the poster
which yes, yes, wow, you signed it to Nicole. This
is Nicole's copy apparently and you signed it. Yeah.

Speaker 3 (13:54):
God, why did Shiloh look like he was just kicked
out of the school for fame?

Speaker 1 (13:58):
Totally?

Speaker 2 (13:59):
Oh?

Speaker 1 (14:01):
Yeah, So I was describing what Charlotte was like because
because Jensen, our producer and Danielle's husband, was like, Shiloh
had quite a quite a look going, oh yeah, you
don't even know the half of it. Because back then
he was wearing a fishing vest ye ye, with all
the pockets, and he would have a thermos full of
special tea that he would get at Earth Earth, get
the and I remember the smell of this. And then

(14:23):
he was always juggling.

Speaker 2 (14:25):
And the hackey sack.

Speaker 1 (14:26):
Yes, yes, he was like the goofiest, coolest guy ever.

Speaker 5 (14:31):
Like I wanted to get my hand into every single
one of those pockets of his.

Speaker 4 (14:36):
I thought you wanted to get your hands on Shilo.

Speaker 5 (14:39):
I did. I mean, I did get my hands on Shiloh.
But I'm saying like I was. I had, Yeah, I
was had such a he was dreaming it, such a
crush on him. Was this the play that.

Speaker 3 (14:50):
You did that you guys wrote that was about magic,
the gathering.

Speaker 1 (14:52):
Magic the gathering and oay, yeah, you guys all came
at something. I don't know if Daniel wouldn't remember, but yeah,
you guys all came. The entire cast of The Babysitters
Club came, which because Larissa brought they were working they
were making that movie, and so like a year later,
year and a half later, when I met Rachel, she
was like, oh, I saw you in your play, and

(15:15):
she remembered coming to see because like everybody came. It
was like all of Diane Harden's, like all the actors,
like everybody would come because it was like the thing
that we were doing. But yeah, it was a play
that Shiloh wrote called Shades of Blue, which is only like.

Speaker 2 (15:27):
And how old was Shiloh?

Speaker 1 (15:30):
Sixteen?

Speaker 2 (15:30):
Okay, I'd like to read you the tagline just so please.
An exploration of relationships between friends and lovers from a
touching and often hysterically funny point of view. It feels
much more evolved than my mom taking a hundred pictures
of me and Andrew Koga.

Speaker 3 (15:48):
Like you, it was not as hilarious as often as
you thought.

Speaker 1 (15:52):
Women and Wallace was. It was a pretty great play
and it was just Shiloh and five actresses, and it
was like the whole idea, if I remember, was that
he was like a teenager and it was all these
different women playing different versions of like or his mom
commits her suicide and then like they're all the same girl,
but they're played by different actors. It was like a

(16:13):
really cool play and that was like a one act,
and then Shiloh wrote this other one act that was
like twenty or thirty minutes long, Shades of Blue, Shades
of Blue, which she ended up winning the Drama Logue
Award for, which was about me. I was a character
who was spending like I was like really sad, and
like my mom comes in and says, like, you're late,

(16:33):
and then I like sit there and I'm like freaking
out and I'm really sad and you don't know why.
And then a friend of mine shows up and we
like spend this time talking and hanging out, and then
he literally disappears and you realize that he's killed himself
and that the whole play was me trying to like
come to terms with him having died. Yeah, It's like
it was like really intense. Yeah, wow, so much that

(16:54):
William of Wallace whatever, that one Women in wa Yeah.

Speaker 3 (16:58):
Yeah, that was a play that would often be shown
at high schools, because I show I saw that play
ten times at a high school before I saw it
at Shiloh, and and I was like, oh, this one,
so I'll never forget that. I know there's a famous Linemkers.
I know how big my head is. So you can't
shrink my head because he's supposed to be the head shrinker, right,
He's like, you can't shrink my.

Speaker 4 (17:15):
Head because I know the side of my head. And
I was like, oh, this is high school play.

Speaker 1 (17:19):
Yeah, yeah, well I think it was a great play
that involved high schoolers.

Speaker 3 (17:24):
This was like the perfect age actor play for people
our age at that time.

Speaker 1 (17:28):
That's like you always the other everybody does at some point.
I remember that's what I did scenes for in our
acting class, and y'all, Rachel, Rachel and I did scenes
from out of Gas at Lovers Leap because it's like
again again suicide by the way, it's like to two
characters on their graduation night parking their car and like
talking about their life with like lots of Springsteen references,

(17:51):
and then they jump off the cloe.

Speaker 4 (17:53):
Yeah yeah, so tragic.

Speaker 5 (17:55):
Sorry, let's get back to but that actually, can I
ask a question because when in when y'all and Shiloh
reached out to me and I started watching the episodes
that I was in, I can't remember the timeline right, like, well,
we in we were in an acting class with that

(18:19):
like sort of jolly but also in retrospect, creepy guy.

Speaker 4 (18:24):
Bruce Bruce our manager Bruce yep, yes, oh he.

Speaker 5 (18:29):
Was your manager. Oh sorry, the creepy.

Speaker 1 (18:33):
He directed the play and that's why he directed the play.
So yeah, I couldn't remember how we met you except
from being on Boy Meets World. I'm assuming when you
were because you were on the first, first or second season.
You were on an early episode and that's why when
I saw you pop up, but I was like Hillary,
and then you only had like one line. I was like, wait,
I thought she was a I thought she was like
a bigger part. And then of course you've since.

Speaker 4 (18:54):
Come back on more episodes, right, Well.

Speaker 1 (18:58):
We did. We did the play, I think. I think
probably during the second or third season of Boy the World.
I had met you, Yes, so we had met any
but then but then either you just got cast in
the play or did we you say we did acting
class before the play.

Speaker 5 (19:15):
I don't know, But don't you remember the acting class
in Bruce's living room and it was you and me
and Tom sisters and I don't know who else. It
was like a collection of like up and coming young actors.

Speaker 1 (19:33):
Danielle ended up coming and will you came to and
then I used to do it in my once I
had my own apartment. We used to do like acting
classes in my apartment too. Yeah, it was just like
this revolving door of like let's all get together and
the actor, Yeah, take ourselves really seriously and do.

Speaker 4 (19:50):
But that's what that's the thing is. But that's the
thing that's so amazing.

Speaker 3 (19:53):
That's what I was saying about it being a high
school play is having seen it in high school with
the kind of high school actors and then seeing the
exact same play with actors the same age that are professionals.

Speaker 4 (20:05):
It's night and day.

Speaker 3 (20:06):
And so that's what I mean by it's like I
sat there going like, oh, that's this play Because you
do see actors that are now fifteen, sixteen years old,
but that are professional compared to like you're in some
small high school somewhere. It's pretty amazing to see how
the material is so different when you've got vessels that
know what they're doing, you know.

Speaker 4 (20:22):
What I mean. It was It was odd. Yeah, it
was a hillary.

Speaker 2 (20:25):
How did you get into acting as a child. I
think we both got started similarly with commercials.

Speaker 5 (20:31):
We did get I think we have that in common.
We probably don't have. I got into acting sort of.
I grew up in a small town in Texas, and I,
is it in Sinoes.

Speaker 1 (20:50):
In Texas, Texas?

Speaker 5 (20:52):
Oh?

Speaker 4 (20:53):
Was it? Colleen?

Speaker 5 (20:54):
You have not lost your comedic time. So small town
in Texas, raised by a single mom who also was
bipolar schizophrenic, so it made for a very very interesting,
colorful childhood. And we my freshman year of high school,

(21:18):
I went to a military boarding school by choice to
sort of, I think my family, to sort of.

Speaker 2 (21:29):
Give yourself some space.

Speaker 5 (21:31):
Yeah, but my aunt lived out. You may remember her,
writer Kelly. She was like my Yeah, she was my
guardian and she was my everything. So her and I
were very close. And she said, why don't you come
out to LA for the summer and act? And my

(21:54):
parents were like, sure, go to LA for the summer.
And I got an agent, Ruth Devron, and she said, well,
if you book something, you have to say through pilot season.
And pilot season at that time, you guys, remember it
was September and October. So I booked a dark repor commercial.

(22:17):
And I think up until that point it wasn't acting
that I really loved. I think it was the idea
of getting out of my circumstances and like this was
a vehicle to do that. But then I did the
commercial and I was like, oh, this is so cool.

(22:39):
So I got to stay for pilot season, didn't book anything,
and I was supposed to come home, and however my
boarding school would not take me back in the middle
of the semester. Oh save, So I got to stay
through January, and like right before Christmas, I auditioned to
play this like very sad, see straightforward bitchy character in

(23:05):
Camp Nowhere, and I auditioned for it and nothing happened.
So I moved all of my stuff home, and I'll
never forget. Like four days before Christmas, I get a
phone call at my grandmother's house and it is Jonathan Prince,
the director of Camp Nowhere, calling me directly to say,
what is this. I hear you moved home. You've got

(23:27):
to come and do my movie. It's such a Hollywood
like oh, and so I moved on my Yeah, I
moved all my stuff back. And then but in order like,
in order to keep doing this and being on set,
I we told my parents we needed to have guardianship.

(23:48):
My aunt needed to have guardianship, and so they signed
my guardianship over to her thinking it was just for
the movie, and I never came back and I just
day Yeah. Yeah, So working kept me out there. The
deal was always like I had to support myself. They
weren't going to send me any money. But it worked

(24:09):
out that I was able to support myself, and so
then I just I stayed and I kept I kept working,
and not long after Camp Nowhere I did Boy Me Swirrels.
It was one of my first jobs.

Speaker 4 (24:20):
I'm sorry. How old were you when all this was
going on with Camp Nowhere?

Speaker 2 (24:23):
It was nineteen.

Speaker 5 (24:24):
I moved out here when I was fourteen. I did
Camp Nowhere. I think when I was right when I
turned fifteen.

Speaker 1 (24:32):
Wow, yeah, young, you were like already doing the full
on adult thing by yourself.

Speaker 5 (24:40):
I think they had grown up very quickly by.

Speaker 2 (24:45):
You were probably apparent in your home.

Speaker 5 (24:48):
Yes, yes, I like I remember recently like telling my
kids I was annoyed at what they weren't doing, and
I was like, you know, so when I was your age,
when I was nine, I was waking up to the alarm,
waking my mother up, then making breakfast, then putting a

(25:10):
load of laundry, and then you know what I mean.

Speaker 1 (25:13):
Like right, so put your goddamn shoes on. We're late
for school. Goddamn, I need breakfast for you. Oh dude,
this is what I I've already caught myself telling Indy
was like I already had a job. I was already
doing my miss what are you doing?

Speaker 4 (25:31):
Oh my gosh, Oh my.

Speaker 1 (25:34):
God hates it already does already hates that I was
a kid actor because I could throw that in his face.

Speaker 2 (25:39):
Yeah, that's right, man. Well let's talk a little bit
more about camp nowhere. It was nineteen ninety four. It's
like who's who of kid actors at the time. Jonathan,
Really it was.

Speaker 1 (25:51):
Yeah, it was like the movie everybody wanted apart because
there were like fifty parts in it. And I think
I went back like multiple times like no, you're gonna
be Ronnie, No, you'll be this. You know. She just
kept like mixing and matching all of young Hollywood.

Speaker 5 (26:04):
And now I wish you would have didn't get it.

Speaker 1 (26:06):
I've seen it.

Speaker 2 (26:07):
Jonathan Jackson, who ended up being on Boy Meets World
for an episode recent Yeah, he played He played the
guy who takes Topanga on a date after Corey cheats
on Topanga. He's in the Starry Night episode. Recent guest
of the on our podcast Andrew Keagan, Alison Mack, Jessica Biele,

(26:28):
and also in it, Heather DeLoach, best known as the
Bee Girl in Blind Melons.

Speaker 5 (26:36):
No Way, that's incredible. Wow, I remember I remember her
being it was like such a coupe was on set,
like she was were she was the most famous person.
She was the most famous kid of course for the
Bee Girl. Yeah, uh yeah, it was. It was such

(27:00):
an incredible unique experience because we shot on the Disney ranch,
so you're out in the middle of nowhere literally and
it was just all these young actors. I was one
of the oldest. I remember that that. I was. Me
and Devin Oatway were two of the oldest, and it

(27:21):
was just you were either in a classroom goofing off
I mean you know how yeah, not set school school,
but it's not really school doing. There's like goofing off
and doing school, or we were filming being in a
summer camp. Yeah, it was just incredible. It was I'm going.

Speaker 2 (27:42):
To assume that wasn't the same experience you had at
boarding school, and we've already heard that it wasn't the
experience you had at home where you were very much
the adult in your household. So what was it like
for you to be in a rather protect did, super
fun place surrounded by like minded kids your own age.

(28:06):
Was that like a very freeing experience. It feels like
it would be life changing.

Speaker 5 (28:12):
You ask good questions, Danielle, Yeah, it was, you do.

Speaker 4 (28:16):
Yeah, that's why would just keep our mouth shut.

Speaker 1 (28:18):
Yeah, it was.

Speaker 5 (28:20):
It was very It was wonderful. I think one of
the things that made me fall in love with being
on set is the schedule, the predictability of it. Yeah,
the people telling me what to do, what to wear. Obviously,

(28:42):
the gratification and the oh you're funny, you're pretty, you're good,
or whatever. But I think this schedule of it, and
I think that what my childhood did prepare me for
is when you are a child actor, you you are.

(29:05):
It is a real asset to be mature and professional
and to be able to handle yourself. Yes, I was.
I was very practiced in that, so that was a
really sharp tool that I had in my toolbox. And
I think, I think, I do think it is is
an aspect of why I worked very quickly and very steadily,

(29:30):
because I think producers or sets or whoever recognize that
and it and it behooves them.

Speaker 3 (29:38):
They want an adult in a child's body. Yes, that's
that's what they're looking for. They want a little adult
in a child's body. And it's so funny because the
things you're mentioning about the structure and everything is exactly
what you get at a military boarding school.

Speaker 4 (29:49):
Yeah, I mean, but it is. It's that same thing.

Speaker 3 (29:51):
It's you're going to eat this time, You're going to
wear this when you're there, You're going to do these
chores you're going to do. It sounded like that's what
you were looking for, was more of the structure that
you know.

Speaker 2 (30:00):
I find so fascinating is that, like Hillary just mentioned,
for most kids, the feeling you have if you started
working as a child is a lot of times you
look back and you think, but needing to be so
mature made me miss out on a true childhood. I've
been an adult since I was so long, for so long,
since I was so young. And in her case, she

(30:20):
was like, oh, you're going to tell me when to
show up. I don't have to make the schedule myself
and do the work of it. So, if anything, the
fact that it was set up for you allowed you
more of an opportunity to be a kid than you
had ever had before. You were like, yeah, the maturity
I'm going to bring no matter what, because it's all
I've known. But now you set the schedule, you tell

(30:43):
me what to wear, you do my hair and makeup,
and then when I do a good job, you tell
me I'm doing a good job.

Speaker 5 (30:49):
Yeah, and I get to play a kid who's playing right?

Speaker 4 (30:55):
You know?

Speaker 5 (30:56):
So yeah, it was. It was a really special I've
been so blessed to have a few really special experiences,
but Camp Camp Nowhere was really one of them for sure.

Speaker 2 (31:08):
Wow, I love it.

Speaker 3 (31:10):
So if we do a rewatch, will you of Camp Nowhere?
Will you come back and watch it with us?

Speaker 5 (31:14):
Oh my god? Yes? And if you have, like your
son is is how old?

Speaker 3 (31:21):
Nine?

Speaker 5 (31:21):
Nine? Yeah, it's the perfect time to watch the movie.
It's it like I don't I don't want to go
so far to say it holds up, but it holds up,
and it holds up for a nine year old, it
holds out. It's really fun. It's definitely the time to
watch it.

Speaker 3 (31:36):
I should do that. I haven't seen that. I haven't
seen it either, so I'd like to watch that. I've
now heard so much about this movie.

Speaker 5 (31:42):
And I would have to make fun of it with you.
We should have to have a whole like me and
Andrew and whoever.

Speaker 1 (31:49):
Yeah, do it?

Speaker 4 (31:50):
Oh it sounds great.

Speaker 2 (32:02):
Can we talk hangtime for a second.

Speaker 5 (32:05):
Yeah, okay.

Speaker 2 (32:07):
So you appeared in thirteen episodes as team manager Samantha
Morgan and it has really built like a niche cult
following as the spiritual TNBC sister of Saved by the Bell.
So it's so nostalgic now, especially among basketball fans. And
I would just like to name some of the other

(32:27):
guest stars Anthony Anderson, Jay Hernandez, dick Butt, Kiss Screech
in a crossover episode, Muggsy Bogues, Lizza Leslie Florence, Griffith Joyner,
and an eighteen year old NBA rookie named Kobe Bryant. Yeah,
I love Do you remember what you were up?

Speaker 4 (32:48):
And Tom was a great show. It was.

Speaker 5 (32:51):
It was a really fun show. I remember. So I
want to say that I want to say this begare
does it relate? I want to go back to the
first episode that I did of Boy Meets World, because
I think it does relate to Hangtime because did I
do Boy Meets World first, or did I do Hangtime first?

(33:13):
I did Boy Meets World first. I don't know.

Speaker 2 (33:17):
I think boy meets were yeah, boy meets Yeah, boy
Mee's World was ninety five.

Speaker 4 (33:20):
Yes, yes.

Speaker 5 (33:21):
So what I remember about the first episode of Boy
Meets World is that I started watching it and I
didn't remember I had been in it. I had conflated
the first and the second episode together, because in the
first episode I only have one line. What is interesting
is that when I watched it, I remembered two things. One,

(33:44):
I was deathly afraid I was going to get fired
because Michael Jacobs. All I have is this like look
up and over and I say my line high corey
or whatever. And I can remember him basically giving me
a line, reading a physical line, reading like like no no, no, no,

(34:05):
no no, like this, and he showed me what to do,
and luckily I was able to be a puppet and
do that.

Speaker 3 (34:15):
Well, that's acting, right, everyone knows, everyone knows.

Speaker 4 (34:20):
Ignore your instincts and just parrot what you yourself.

Speaker 1 (34:23):
Don't make any choices, just do exactly what this man wants.

Speaker 5 (34:27):
And I can remember being like terrified that I wasn't
going to do it the way he wanted, and that
I was going to get fired. And the other memory
that I have is that what was crazy to me
is as I'm watching the rest of the episode I
knew probably thirty percent of y'all's lines as they were
about to be said. And why I remember this is

(34:49):
my aunt would have me sit in the stands when
I wasn't doing homework, way in the back, and she
would have me study y'all. Wow, And because I was
so new to it, and so she was like she
wanted me to study and notice not only like the
comedic timing and set up, set up, punchline and yes

(35:13):
and and all of those things, and also how do
series regulars behave on set? Right? What is the like? What? How?
What does it look like? And so she would have
me just sit back there and just watch them. And
the feeling that I remember because I remember she said

(35:35):
to me, is this what you want? Do you want
something like this? And I remember having the thought that
it And I don't know if this was y'all experience.
My impression of y'all is that it seemed like y'all
had a lot of pressure on you, like there was
there was a lot writing on the four shoulders of

(36:00):
the minors, right, and and that I also wanted.

Speaker 2 (36:05):
It, and that it was fun.

Speaker 5 (36:07):
Yeah, and it was fun. Yes, it did seem like
it was. There was a lot of it. I don't know,
it just seemed like a lot of pressure. So when
I got hang time and I was a series regular,
I think, like, I can't tell you specifically what I
gleaned from y'all, but I definitely was a case study

(36:31):
and I definitely use some of that in like being
a professional and how to be a series regular, because
you know, being a series regular is different than being
a guest star, so and your job is different.

Speaker 4 (36:43):
So uh yeah.

Speaker 5 (36:45):
It was a great thirteen episodes until I got fired
after the first season off. Yeah, I'm only in the
first season. I was fired.

Speaker 4 (36:56):
What happened? And we asked, what happened?

Speaker 1 (36:59):
They just write you off?

Speaker 5 (37:00):
They just wrote me off. Samantha Morgan, lead team manager.
I think they wanted to retool the show they make it.
By the way, I was not the only one fired.
I think they let go of a third of the cast,
and I was one of them. And there was never

(37:22):
like a like Warren Littlefield was not calling me up
and be like, Hillary, we love your work, we've decided
to go in a different direction. It was none of that.
It was my agent saying you're not coming back on
to the next and then I was, I was, I
was devastated. But you know then I then I booked

(37:45):
another series and it was meant to be. But yeah,
it was. It was fun for those thirteen episodes. We
had a lot of hijinks.

Speaker 2 (37:53):
Well, let's talk about your three characters on Boy Meets World.

Speaker 4 (37:57):
You're rafied. You're in a rarefied club.

Speaker 5 (38:00):
Thank you. Did anyone else have that? Have you had
guest stars who come back because rent?

Speaker 2 (38:05):
Yeah? So, Phil Leads also played three different characters, Willy Garrison,
Willie Garson played three different characters, and one of our
nerdy characters from the beginning, Jonathan Kaplan Jonathan C.

Speaker 5 (38:20):
Kaplin Exactly so, and so did any of them have
an idea as to why they were given different character names?

Speaker 2 (38:28):
Well, we haven't been able to ask Phil Leads. He's
he's died in like ninety eight.

Speaker 5 (38:33):
He died.

Speaker 2 (38:34):
Oh sorry, he's been unavailable since unavailable. Willie Garson is
also unavailable, and we haven't talked to Jonathan Kaplan, I think.

Speaker 1 (38:43):
You were probably just a favorite of Michael and the
and the casting team, you know, like they just must
have Sally and Barbie just must have loved you. And
they were like, well, let's just bring Hillary back and
they were like, yes, did you?

Speaker 4 (38:56):
Did you have to audition all three times?

Speaker 5 (38:58):
I auditioned for the first two and like what I
remember of what I remember of the second episode, like
Barbie Blair was such a was such a fan of mine,
and I'm sure you guys have had this too, Like
there's just certain casting directors who have been instrumental, even

(39:19):
if they didn't hire you in something of just making you,
reminding you of your value. Yea, and Barbie Block was
one of those for me. And uh so, yeah the
second episode. I did audition four and it was should
we talk about the second episode now?

Speaker 3 (39:40):
Yes?

Speaker 4 (39:41):
That great?

Speaker 5 (39:42):
Okay, I did audition four. What I remember about it
is it was my favorite of the three, yes, because
I got, like I remember experiencing in that booth with
you and Ben like a really playing being allowed to

(40:02):
play a little bit and it wasn't so micro managed
and having fun and I was funny. I mean, yeah, yeah,
I got jokes, which is always nice. And I can
remember going from it was such a one eighty moment

(40:25):
for me because the first episode, Michael was to me,
he didn't seem like someone who always knew how to
talk to a child, very gradius. Oh okay, okay, so
this is something that you've talked about before. Wonderful yes,
And I was. I was really afraid of him. And

(40:47):
then after we did the second episode me I remember
coming off and I was walking around the ramp to
the backside, and he stopped me. And I don't know
who he was talking to, somebody, an executive or someone,
and he was like, this, this is a funny girl.
We need more of this. She gets it. And it

(41:10):
was I've had like that moment and then a moment
with Rose and Barr of these like paradigm shifts of
me going, oh, I'm funny, I can do this. I'm enough,
you know I And it was it was like a

(41:31):
huge boost of confidence for me of like being giving
myself permission, of like I'm on the right track, my
instincts are good. Whatever. So yeah that I remember it
being a really fun episode. And even when I saw it,
there's plenty of things that I see twenty years later

(41:53):
and I'm not I have to just go Well, I
was young and I've learned a lot, but I'm still
proud of that. I thought it was a fun, it
was a fun character.

Speaker 2 (42:03):
It was super fun. And so then you auditioned for
those first two and then you get asked back to
do the absolutely iconic, not necessarily incredible, but iconic Disney
World episode.

Speaker 1 (42:15):
And it's a character.

Speaker 5 (42:18):
Yeah yeah, right, yeah, So they Barbie Block called and
said they want to have you back one more time.
We can't have you back more than three times because
then we have to pay you recurring character rate.

Speaker 4 (42:33):
Really, so I did not know that at all.

Speaker 5 (42:36):
Yeah, so this will be your last episode. But because
it's your last episode, we want to take you. We
want you to be in the Disney World episode. Wow,
you do know, which was so lovely. The first time
i'd been off for a role, I didn't have to
audition for it. It's the first time that I got
to go anywhere and someone, and you know, traveling on

(42:59):
your our own is very different than the network traveling you. Yeah,
and I felt really special. And then I got the
script and like, oh, I'm going to play a soon
to be stalker and like this characters learning how to
be a stalker awesome, and it was it was thankless.

(43:21):
It was one note, but I had so much fun.
I mean, it's just that.

Speaker 1 (43:25):
And by that point we had already done the play.
We were already friends, like yeah, it was so.

Speaker 5 (43:30):
Yeah, we we it was, it was, it was, it
was great. It was have we done the play by then?

Speaker 1 (43:37):
And we must have? Yeah, because that was ninety six,
yeah yeah, and we've done the play in ninety five,
so yeah. Yeah. So I wonder if if it was
because of your second Boy Meets World appearance that you
were in the play like I won, Yeah, And I
wonder if it was just like, oh we should just yeah,
I don't.

Speaker 5 (43:56):
My guess is that Bruce and get Kelly connected because
Bruce was around, Kelly was around, and Kelly probably got
me in Bruce's acting.

Speaker 1 (44:05):
Class, right, so then we were just in acting class.
We were like, let's put together a play. Wow.

Speaker 5 (44:10):
Yeah yeah. And then I got to go up and
and visit Writer and Shiloh and their their Shire house,
which was incredible.

Speaker 2 (44:20):
The best.

Speaker 3 (44:22):
Yeah, did he show you his grappling hook?

Speaker 5 (44:27):
Is that some sort of.

Speaker 4 (44:30):
He literally grappling hook.

Speaker 1 (44:34):
I hadn't made it yet, guys. Okay, well, actually maybe
I have lost it, but lost it was.

Speaker 2 (44:41):
The tree somewhere.

Speaker 5 (44:42):
Yeah, I don't remember the graph. I remember them teaching
me magic. I remember playing magic with with Writer and
Shiloh and Nate. I remember like just coming to I
remember being so enchant with your family because I came

(45:03):
and it was more the lifestyle, Like I grew up
in the country, but this was like a decidedly hippie lifestyle,
which coming from Texas, I was not used to. And
like coming in and meeting miss Lynn and mister King
in this shire of redwood forest trees they like he
built with his bare hands, and and like your mom

(45:27):
was like so loving and nurturing, and I just remember
like just falling in love with the family like that
sort of like it felt so normal to me. And
I'm sure like every family is quirky and not as
normal as they seem, but to me, it was like

(45:48):
this house full of dependability and everyone was so unaffected
by and you and your brother.

Speaker 1 (45:57):
It's still there. It's still there, and it's still he
was lovely and welcoming. No, it's way more beautiful than
it used to be like my dad just kept building stuff.
I mean now he's eighty one, but yeah, I mean
the place is gorgeous and like, yeah, we go up
all the time. It's it's lovely. It's so you got
to come up, bring your kids, it's.

Speaker 5 (46:13):
Yeah, it was many kids have super special I have too.
How old are seven and nine? Amazing?

Speaker 2 (46:22):
Oh my gosh, Indy will have a blast.

Speaker 1 (46:25):
Yeah, you got to come up, come up to the Shire.

Speaker 5 (46:28):
Yeah, they and was your I remember mister King being
like very mister King.

Speaker 1 (46:35):
He's healthier than me right now, like he could still
still at eighty one. He has more fit than me.
He could kick my ass.

Speaker 5 (46:43):
Right because I remember me like the peak of fitness.

Speaker 2 (46:46):
He's amazed, like a specimen of a man.

Speaker 4 (46:48):
Yes, exactly, it still is.

Speaker 3 (46:52):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (46:52):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (46:53):
So going back to Florida episodes taking us from the
Shire back to Florida. Do you have no no, no,
we the detour. Do you have any like specific behind
the scenes memories or on the scenes memories about being
in Florida? Did you ride any rides fifty times?

Speaker 5 (47:12):
Oh? Oh so I remember thinking I was like I
had made it. This was the pinnacle, the zenith of
my career, like screw oscars.

Speaker 1 (47:27):
This backstage at Disney World.

Speaker 5 (47:31):
Yeah, that we had and I think, now you can
pay for these, but at the time you could not
pay for these. No have a personal.

Speaker 1 (47:43):
Guide, guest relations, gest.

Speaker 5 (47:46):
Relations, and I just remember it would be like, okay,
now we're going to move to this other set and
all of us would run to this guide and he
would take us to the front of the line to
a right Yeah. And I was with like I wasn't recognizable,
but all of you were recognizable. So there was It

(48:08):
was like my first brush of this is what fame is.
No photographs, please, you don't know.

Speaker 1 (48:19):
Terror one more time, let's go we could.

Speaker 5 (48:21):
Just really I remember that. And I remember there being
a cast dinner at a new restaurant at Cot the
like whatever. The coolest one was.

Speaker 1 (48:32):
The Italian one? Was it?

Speaker 4 (48:34):
Okay?

Speaker 5 (48:34):
And I remember a very long table with all of us.

Speaker 2 (48:38):
Remember I remember that dinner too.

Speaker 3 (48:40):
Yeah, So these all sound like amazing story his career.
Not I'll get there eventually, but this is it sounds
like you guys had a blast.

Speaker 4 (48:54):
We did, we did.

Speaker 5 (48:55):
It was it was really fun. Will. What I remember
about you is like one he's an adult like don't
talk to him, but like also just your uh you
were so sharp on set, Like that's what I remember, like,
I remember you being sharp. I remember I remember you

(49:18):
seeing watching you do scenes, and like you would do
it again and again and again. And what was incredible
about was that you you had the underpinnings of the comedy,
like you understood the comedy of it, but you were
able to play within that musicality. And I remember that.

(49:38):
I remember being very impressed by that. Thank you.

Speaker 4 (49:43):
Yeah, I'll trade it all to go to Florida. Sounds
like it would have been fun once in an.

Speaker 2 (49:49):
Italian restaurant with all these great young child actors as
opposed to uh, just taco bell at home and being funny.

Speaker 5 (49:58):
Do you do you think they still because what I
I remember about those what was special about the restaurants
is you could go to a different world. Yeah, different
like you could go to China or you could go
to Italy. And what I remember is that in the
world I would probably they don't have it because it
would be like this weird appropriation thing of like them
dressing in cartoonish Italian get garburb and cartoonishes like Japanese

(50:26):
it's probably.

Speaker 1 (50:26):
Not actually hired people from those countries to work there.
That was always Is that still the way it works, like.

Speaker 4 (50:32):
I hope. So I haven't been to Epcot in forever.

Speaker 3 (50:34):
Did they still gay?

Speaker 4 (50:36):
Yeah, they give you that passport.

Speaker 3 (50:38):
I still have my Epcot passport and you get it
stamped at every every country you go to. And then
when you got older, Epcot was the only place at
the time on Disney property where you could buy alcohol.
So when you hit twenty one, then you would do
called drinking around the world, and you saw how many
times you could make it around having a drink in
each country, and you know, there's people that.

Speaker 4 (50:56):
Are like my third time around the world.

Speaker 3 (50:58):
That are just hammered it Disney World. Yeah, was that
it was much different when you were over twenty one
by that point.

Speaker 5 (51:04):
Oh, that's so interesting. That feels very in Disney like
it is.

Speaker 4 (51:08):
I'm not sure you can do that anymore. I don't
think they I'm not sure they allow it anymore.

Speaker 2 (51:12):
Yeah, who was your like, who was your crew? Who
was your group of friends in Los Angeles?

Speaker 5 (51:21):
Well around that time, truly, I think writer and and
and Shiloh and the Tom sisters, like that was a
part of it.

Speaker 1 (51:29):
And then and used to come to our house and
scene I remember we had a house in Encino, I
mean Texas.

Speaker 5 (51:34):
Yeah, yeah, I mean Texas, that's right.

Speaker 1 (51:37):
And with the pool yeah, so that would have been yeah.

Speaker 5 (51:41):
And then I think that sort of ended when Shiloh
when I brought Shiloh home to meet my family, and uh, he.

Speaker 2 (51:54):
Tell us the details he was when did you guys?
Do you guys dated?

Speaker 5 (51:58):
Yes, we dated. That's why I would go up and visit.
That was another thing that I remember, like, how cool
how miss Lynn and mister King they're letting us sleep
in the same room together while I visit.

Speaker 1 (52:11):
Likes basically in our family, you were grown up at
eleven years old?

Speaker 3 (52:15):
Just right?

Speaker 5 (52:16):
No, no, no, when you were older? I was, I was,
but yeah, and then I made the dire mistake of
bringing him home to visit my family, which is have
you guys ever seen did you guys see this last
season of The Bear?

Speaker 4 (52:35):
Yeah?

Speaker 5 (52:36):
So the flashback episode, Danielle, you.

Speaker 2 (52:38):
Know what, I've never seen it even Oh.

Speaker 5 (52:41):
God, okay, well when you see it, the flashback episode
of them growing up? That was my family, so not
different for Shiloh. And so.

Speaker 1 (52:54):
I can't wait to ask about it.

Speaker 5 (52:55):
Yeah, and so I was there. It's been two guys
in my life who had like really like broken my heart,
and truthfully, Shilah was one of them. Because we were
in Texas, Nate and his girlfriend came down to visit.
We went and saw the bat Caves. I thought everything
was going well, and then Shilah woke up and he
was like, Hey, I'm gonna go because I don't I

(53:19):
don't want to do this, and I think you think that,
like I'm your boyfriend and I'm not.

Speaker 2 (53:28):
Okay.

Speaker 5 (53:30):
Yeah, And I remember driving in silence the hour to
go from Kerrville to the UH to San Antonio to
drop off off of the airport. My mom's radio did
not work, so it was just us in silence.

Speaker 4 (53:45):
Oh my god.

Speaker 1 (53:48):
Yeah, I remember. I just remember being I remember being
sad because I was like, oh, you're not dating Hillar
and he was like no. I came home and I remember,
like what.

Speaker 5 (54:00):
In retrospect, I can't believe he hung out as long
as he did. Like Shiloh and you were both old souls,
but in this retro in this situation, you guys were
he was way too ginger to be thrown it. I mean,
I don't know what it was.

Speaker 1 (54:17):
I think it might have just been commitment in general.
I don't think, because I don't remember any him saying
anything negative about Texas or you or your family at all.
All I remember is him just being like, oh, I
don't want to be in a relationship. I'm not ready here.

Speaker 5 (54:30):
Let's be clear. It was my family, not me. Don't
ruin this for me.

Speaker 1 (54:35):
It was the commitment, is what I'm saying. It was
commitment and nothing to do with He was just like, oh, wait,
we're like dating now. Oh And it was like, yeah,
dumb ass, you're going to visit her in Texas. Of
course you're dating. But I think he like woke up
and was like what she live? Boyfriend? Girlfriend? No, which
is just like being whatever eighteen seventeen and being like

(54:56):
I don't have to be in a relationship with somebody,
what an idiot? No, never about you or no, like yeah, no,
he just freaked out about commitment and like being dating somebody.

Speaker 5 (55:06):
I I hold so much love for Shiloh.

Speaker 1 (55:11):
I think, yeah, you guys just recently talked. He was
like that he brought you up, and I was like, wait,
we would try to get. We should have her on
the podcast. Yeah, that's so much.

Speaker 2 (55:20):
Yeah, fear of commitment was something he had in his
fisherman's vest. Who could have seen it coming.

Speaker 1 (55:26):
Deep in one of those pottle back hidden pocket.

Speaker 5 (55:31):
That's right, that's right.

Speaker 2 (55:32):
To his pipe and smoking and then jump up pipe.

Speaker 5 (55:40):
Oh my god, he smoked a.

Speaker 1 (55:41):
Pipe, isn't it ridiculous? With a bowling hat, with a
bowler hat smoking a pipe and hacky sacking and and
and juggling and cycles he could he learned how to
use cycles. I mean, this man and he was still cool,
Like that's what's amazing. You take the accumulation and you
described Shiloh at sixteen and you're like, what a dorky,
weird theater to and instead it was like and effortlessly

(56:05):
cool and him when you were like, wow, this got Yeah,
it's it's a very strange vibe, like it is. I
guess in a way it would be like a burning
man vibe now, but it wasn't then. It was just
cool in its own sort of way.

Speaker 3 (56:17):
It's like a whole bunch of really bizarre ingredients that
somehow still make a really good dish. Yeah, it's like,
how did those five things equals something amazing.

Speaker 1 (56:27):
Ninety six. It's a good vintage fun can't commit, don't commit,
don't take him home.

Speaker 2 (56:36):
I want to get to you. Starring in the TV
version of Honey I Shrunk the Kids, which was massive
because the movie was so popular. The promotional tour for
this must have been insane for you. Was this a
fun experience considering all the effects and Peter Scillari playing
your dad? Like, was it an overall great experience?

Speaker 5 (56:55):
Oh? My gosh, it was. It was the best experience.
It was. We were I left. I left my sophomore
year of college to go up there and shoot it.
It was Peter Sclari who I worked on in Camp Nowhere.

Speaker 4 (57:14):
Oh, he was in Camp Nowhere too.

Speaker 5 (57:16):
Okay, Yeah, and then Barbara Allan Woods who played my mom,
who ended up very quickly we became best friends. We
moved in together for about three months into the first season.
We loved each other so much.

Speaker 1 (57:32):
Where were in Canada or Yeah?

Speaker 5 (57:35):
We were shooting in Calgary, which is like Texas. It
is the Texas of Canada. And I'm you know, I'm
the god daughter to her oldest daughter. I stood at
her wedding like and we were we were family really

(57:56):
and Peter. I feel like my real education and comedy
came from Peter, Like he taught me. He taught me comedy,
and he taught me how to be a number one
on the set, like what is it like how do
you lead a ship as an actor? And he was
a consummate professional and he like really showed me how

(58:19):
do we keep it loose on the set? How do
we allow and like create a space for play. And
the guests are you know, like you guys have had
an incredible guest star and me too. I'm actually watching
the series with my kids right now and I haven't
seen it in twenty five years, and I cannot believe
the guest starters we've had, just like what So, yeah,

(58:44):
it was, it was it was fair. We shot nine
months out of the year on film Wow, so we
were shooting a nine month movie every year, So it
was it was really intense hours. You know, twelve fourteen
hours is not a little little more than the than
the multi camp.

Speaker 6 (59:03):
Yeah, a little differently, and the visual effects were a
lot that I have, like, you know, fell in love
like really hardcore for the first time lived.

Speaker 2 (59:16):
I hope he didn't have a commitment phobia.

Speaker 5 (59:18):
He did not have a commitment good. Yeah, yeah it
turned out I did. But but but could he juggle?

Speaker 2 (59:27):
Was he an actor?

Speaker 5 (59:30):
He was not? No, he did. He did the he
did the storyboards on the show.

Speaker 2 (59:35):
Wow.

Speaker 5 (59:36):
So yeah, it was like it was a it was
a family. We would all have Thanksgiving together, we would,
I mean it was it was a real family. And
I have such good memories and what I learned on
that show was just so much. It was my Yeah,
it was my education in comedy for sure.

Speaker 4 (59:57):
Well he was.

Speaker 3 (59:58):
Peter Scalari was one of I mean the show obviously
the subject matter of the show people would have a
problem with nowadays, But Buzz and Buddies is one of
the greatest comedies ever on TV. Him and Tom Hanks
as roommates, and they were killing it week after week.
I mean, they were so good. So yeah, he was
one of those guys who just had that innate comic

(01:00:21):
timing inside of him and then you'd go see him
do something dramatic and he was incredible. So he was
just one of those actors, just one of those consummate actors. Yeah,
he's one of my favorite of all time. He really is.

Speaker 5 (01:00:32):
Yeah, and just one of the kindest, most generous humans
I ever met. You know, he's the one who taught me.
He's the one who taught me like when I end
a show, like if I guest star on a show,
I'm writing thank you notes to everybody at the end
of the show. You know, he was every year we

(01:00:55):
would I would send out thank you notes to every
single person in the crew and cast because he taught
me to do that. You know, things that are just
like the generosity was. Yeah, yeah, he is messed.

Speaker 4 (01:01:10):
I'd love to hear that.

Speaker 2 (01:01:11):
Yeah, he sadly passed away in twenty twenty one.

Speaker 4 (01:01:14):
Yeah, another another unavailable actor.

Speaker 2 (01:01:16):
Yeah, yeah, that's right. Do you ever get recognized for
Boy Meets World?

Speaker 5 (01:01:33):
I didn't recognize for Boy Meets World. Truthfully, it has
been a while since I have been recognized at all.
It's usually it's usually like yeah, it's like usually in
the airport and they're like, oh my god, you were
you were at the Johnston's wedding this weekend, right, I'm like,

(01:01:55):
oh no, no, oh, oh, so you went to Michigan. Yes,
that's how I know you. Yes, No, I didn't go
to Michigan.

Speaker 3 (01:02:03):
No.

Speaker 5 (01:02:04):
And I've even had times where I will be with
like my embarrassing father who is so quick to be
like she's she's an actress, she's been on everything to
literally said no, no, that's not it, like okay, yes.

Speaker 1 (01:02:19):
I had people argue with me. They're like, we went
to high school together. I'm like, no, no, no, we really didn't.
I didn't go high school.

Speaker 5 (01:02:26):
I went to eight children go to high school on TV.

Speaker 1 (01:02:32):
But it was not our, like, it was not your
It's like I get argues like, that's not it. Okay.
I don't know what to tell.

Speaker 4 (01:02:38):
The I don't know what to tell you.

Speaker 5 (01:02:39):
Yeah, yeah, I don't think. I don't remember if I've
been recognized. I do know. That is the question that
I always get. It's my favorite question, Oh you're an actress.
What have you been on? Because like, well, I'll decide
if you're an actress, prove it right, And I.

Speaker 1 (01:02:58):
Heard of the finishing touches, right, yes, and.

Speaker 5 (01:03:03):
If they are between thirty and forty five fifty, I
know I can say. I've often said like a quick
thing is boy meets were like ooh, like because you
want to like what can I what is the what
is the quickest way that I can validate what I
do to you so that I don't have to run

(01:03:24):
through my resume because.

Speaker 1 (01:03:26):
If you say, honey, I shrunk the kids, they're like,
I love that movie, and you're like, not the most
god like there was a TV show.

Speaker 4 (01:03:34):
And then you're like why why why.

Speaker 1 (01:03:39):
Amazing.

Speaker 2 (01:03:40):
So you have two kids, as you mentioned, yew, would
you feel if they wanted to act? Do they act?

Speaker 5 (01:03:48):
I one of my daughter I think is going to
be more creative. My son is like all sports all
the time, which is great because that's his dad's deal.
So I think I'm trying not to push it. But
she does seem she has to take piano lessons. She

(01:04:12):
asked to take singing lessons, so I think she may
do something creative. As far as if she wants to
do something in the creative arts, I'm totally cool with that.
As far as being a professional actor before she's an adult,
I don't know. I guess, you know, as Ted Kennedy

(01:04:34):
would say, we'll drive off that bridge when we come
to it, I don't think we'll go over that. I
don't know. Yeah, that's how I don't know. I would
want to. You know, it's such a big part of
who I am. I don't know. Yeah, that's not an answer.

Speaker 2 (01:04:52):
But I appreciate the honesty because I really think so
much of parenting is being able to admit. I don't
have the answer for that yet, but I know I'll
come to the conclusion when the situation presents itself. And
you know, I only had all the answers about parenting
before I was a parent. I knew everything then. I

(01:05:14):
was a fantastic parent. Before I had children, we were
not gonna have screen time. There were no screen time
at meals, all the things you like.

Speaker 5 (01:05:25):
Your kids have screen time.

Speaker 2 (01:05:27):
I know, honestly, it's amazing they're alive, but yes I do.
And they've also occasionally eaten a fruit snack. It's what
now I know. Well, in our doing of the research
of you that we did before you came on the show,
we found out that you help coach young actors now

(01:05:49):
paying it forward with all of the years of experience
you had, Can you tell us about that?

Speaker 5 (01:05:54):
Yeah? I do. I I would say that now my
main my my career is the CEO of my family.
I don't want to say that. I mean, I still
have reps, but I would say I'm probably I would
consider myself certainly semi retired at least, you know, the

(01:06:17):
pandemic hit and I'm such a cliche, but it really
made me re examine my life and like what was
what was enough? And I think the I think the
whys of why I was acting, which before were to
prove to others and to myself that I was enough,

(01:06:41):
that I was worthy, that I was I had risen
above my station. All of those things they just didn't
apply anymore, and I don't think they'd applied for a while.
But acting was all that I knew, and so I
think I was able to let a lot of that

(01:07:01):
sort of go during the pandemic and just like sit
and go, Okay, well what buckets? I only have the
bandwidth for two or three buckets in my life. What
do I want to fail? And I had I had
been certainly before teaching at a studio called Warner Laughlin Studios,

(01:07:24):
which I still I teach the masterclass there now, And
that's sort of my that's my love, Like that's where
I exactly what you said, like being of service sort
of helping to guide or remind these these actors that
they don't have to suffer for the craft. And that

(01:07:48):
it can be fun and play, and so I do that,
and then I also do some some training like mindset
work for for actors, as far as is helping them
with pre performance and post performance so that they can
I don't know, I just I noticed there's this sports psychologist,

(01:08:13):
Michael Gervay who says you can only train three things
your mind, your body, and your craft. And a friend
of mine and I found that everyone in Hollywood, which
is like the Olympics of acting, everyone was training their craft,
everyone was training their body, but no one seemed to
be training their mind. And we just started looking at

(01:08:37):
the science of sports psychology and like, how do you, like,
how do you level up when you can't do any
more reps and you can't you know, do any more
whatever they do in practices. I'm not a sports fan,
but the science, it's all just performance science. And so

(01:08:58):
we just sort of took that and like, how do
we apply that to actors performing? Like why is no
one training? Why is no one training their mind? Before?
Because it what they were all the training they were
doing in their craft was not showing up in the room,

(01:09:18):
and we wondered why. So we just started being interesting definitely.

Speaker 1 (01:09:24):
Yeah, Hillary, it is so good to see you, and
you it's so awesome to talk to you, because it's like,
not only do you look the same, you are the same.
You were like the coolest, most mature, unflappable, like you
were a full grown woman when I knew you back then,
and you you are now. It's so cool. I just

(01:09:44):
I love you. It's so great to see you.

Speaker 5 (01:09:45):
I'm so glad I was changed. I was so nervous,
I think especially for Danielle and will because I was like,
how do I how did I come off when I
was fifteen? Because my uh at fifteen, I think my
fifteen in sixteen, my sort of one I felt insecure.
My roat thing was to get like very stone cold

(01:10:06):
and sort of intimidate and be sort of stand offish,
which luckily I.

Speaker 4 (01:10:14):
Don't remember that at all. I just remember you being
I mean, you and I didn't work together.

Speaker 3 (01:10:17):
I don't think ever, no, But but I just remember
you being very nice and fitting in and getting along
with everybody.

Speaker 4 (01:10:22):
I mean, that's kind of the only thing I remember.

Speaker 5 (01:10:24):
Really.

Speaker 2 (01:10:25):
Yeah, I don't remember I don't remember feeling like you
were stand offish, but I definitely knew that you were
very close to the Strong family and it felt like,
you know, the friendship was with them, and so there,
I do remember feeling like there isn't room for friendship
with me, even though I was friends with writer too.
But it did very much feel like Hillary belongs to

(01:10:46):
the Strongs.

Speaker 5 (01:10:47):
And so interesting because I felt the same way about
you and Andrew.

Speaker 2 (01:10:51):
Right, well, Andrew and I did belong to each other.

Speaker 5 (01:10:53):
That's no way that Disney It.

Speaker 4 (01:10:56):
Was like you'll were right.

Speaker 1 (01:10:58):
We all did the Disney World episode together, of course.

Speaker 2 (01:11:01):
And that that is absolutely true. Andrew was mine there,
like Andrew was my friend who was there, and I
felt very protective over him, like you know, so yes
to you are spot on.

Speaker 3 (01:11:13):
I wasn't anybody's and I wasn't a Disney and I
wasn't at Disney World.

Speaker 1 (01:11:17):
And you're not coming again.

Speaker 3 (01:11:18):
I was just alone time by myself and I will
eat by myself.

Speaker 4 (01:11:22):
You had Pops the world.

Speaker 2 (01:11:24):
You got it.

Speaker 5 (01:11:25):
You got the week off.

Speaker 1 (01:11:26):
Yeah, yeah, got pay for a week do nothing.

Speaker 4 (01:11:29):
That's the same.

Speaker 2 (01:11:30):
Sorry, So Hillary, Sorry, looking back now thirty years later,
looking on your at your work as a child in
the nineties, with everything that you went through and now
all of the teaching and helping to train the minds
of other actors. What do you feel when you watch
young Hillary on screen.

Speaker 5 (01:11:51):
Oh, that's so good. I think I am. I would
say I'm ninety percent, like just really, I think I'm
proud of her. I think she did, like she rose
above her station. She had some really cool friends, she

(01:12:12):
had some really good times. I think she proved herself
to be an actor, you know, who could hang, who
could hang with other good actors. Like, you know, she
wasn't a she took it seriously, she wasn't a hack.

(01:12:32):
You know. I wish I could tell her now, you
were worth it, even if you didn't book it, you
were worth it, even if you weren't as good as
you were, you know, like you were worthy of all
of that. But mostly I think it brings back like

(01:12:55):
that was fun, that was a special thing. Not every
fifteen year old gets to do those kind of things.

Speaker 2 (01:13:01):
So yeah, yeah, and not every fifteen year old is
able to rise to the occasion and come out the
other side of it with positive stories and able to
make a positive contribution continuing and moving forward. So not
only were you worthy, but you are in the top

(01:13:22):
tier of people who were ever able to do it,
and your life now is evidence of that. So thank
you so much for being here with us and spending
this time with us and reconnecting. I want to give
you a big hug or close the screen I know
and see.

Speaker 4 (01:13:39):
No like I can reach out.

Speaker 2 (01:13:41):
I think it's about a three hour flight, so we should.
We could probably be there this weekend.

Speaker 3 (01:13:46):
You know we're thinking of Andcino Calgary totally.

Speaker 2 (01:13:53):
Let's please get together.

Speaker 5 (01:13:54):
I would love that you guys anytime. You guys would
love if any of you want to come in and
uh co teach my masterclass with me. We could do
a multi cam night. What a what a wonderful How
lucky these these actors would be to get you to
be so much?

Speaker 2 (01:14:13):
That would be cool, That would be fun.

Speaker 5 (01:14:15):
I would love to you guys.

Speaker 3 (01:14:16):
There's an Italian place in Encino with a giant long table.

Speaker 4 (01:14:19):
We can go see that called Buka Deo right there.

Speaker 2 (01:14:22):
But do they have people dressed in Italian?

Speaker 5 (01:14:31):
That's what I remember is they would talk. But like
we thought it was great, but now I'm in retrospect.

Speaker 2 (01:14:41):
Hillary, thank you so much for being here. Can't wait
to see you again soon.

Speaker 5 (01:14:44):
Yes, y'all take care. I have a great day.

Speaker 2 (01:14:46):
Bye bye. Man is she incredible?

Speaker 4 (01:14:52):
She sucks?

Speaker 1 (01:14:53):
Oh my gosh, it's just the worst, horrible, horrible interview,
just like she's the best I like I It was
so funny. The second her face appeared on screen, I
was filled with longing, like I just missed her, and
you know, and it's one of those things, like I
guess in a weird way, we probably it's because she

(01:15:13):
and Shiloh that they broke up and we lost our
friendship as a result, right, which is the bummer?

Speaker 5 (01:15:18):
Right?

Speaker 1 (01:15:18):
I mean that, but that happens with with siblings.

Speaker 2 (01:15:20):
And you know, I didn't even know they dated. I
mean I gathered it from at the beginning, and I.

Speaker 1 (01:15:25):
Realized, now that's why we lost touch. Otherwise we never
would have lost touch. I loved Hillary, like it's so
good to see her.

Speaker 4 (01:15:30):
I just love hearing that they got to share a
bed in my family. Literally, even if you were engaged,
you could not. When you were married, you could share
a bed.

Speaker 2 (01:15:39):
Listen at Ryder's house. YEA tie your own shoes.

Speaker 5 (01:15:43):
You were in.

Speaker 4 (01:15:44):
Adult, allowed to be in bed with whoever you are.

Speaker 2 (01:15:47):
What you need to tie your shoes because no one
was wearing sho exactly add to the woods with this
knife see you later.

Speaker 1 (01:15:59):
Yeah, wow, that's true.

Speaker 2 (01:16:03):
I really loved talking to her and hearing about her
life that I knew absolutely nothing about before the sun.

Speaker 1 (01:16:09):
I've never read that about her mom. That's super interesting
and actually, you know, makes a lot of sense. The
way you analyze d Daniel was acts exactly right, and
the way she's talked about like maturity being almost more
important than talent at that age, and it's so true,
Like you see that, you see that the child actors
that end up working a lot, especially under ten, have
a preternatural like maturity level almost more than they can act.

(01:16:31):
Like the important part is can you be cool on set?
Can you be cool with memorizing lines?

Speaker 5 (01:16:36):
You know?

Speaker 2 (01:16:36):
Are you so smart handle the blocking?

Speaker 1 (01:16:38):
Can you handle the blocking? Like all that is almost
more important than your ability to like be present in
the moment or make choices honestly, which is what so
much of acting is, you realize as you get older.

Speaker 2 (01:16:48):
But yeah, interesting, God, so cool to see her. Thank
you all for joining us for this episode of Pod
Meets World. As always, you can follow us on Instagram
pod Meets World Show you can send us your emails
Pod Meets World Show at gmail dot com, and we
have merch.

Speaker 4 (01:17:02):
Shiloh can't commit to.

Speaker 2 (01:17:03):
March Podmeets Worldshow dot com. Poor Shiloh, he's taking We
have to Shiloh, come by, tell us his side of
the story, will send us out.

Speaker 4 (01:17:17):
We love you all, pod dismissed.

Speaker 3 (01:17:19):
Podmets World is nheart podcast producer and hosted by Danielle Fischel,
Wilfredell and Ryder Strong executive producers, Jensen Carp and Amy
Sugarman Executive in charge of production, Danielle Romo, producer and editor,
Tara Sudbaksh producer, Maddy Moore, engineer and Boy Meets World
super fan Easton Allen. Our theme song is by Kyle
Morton of Typhoon and you can follow us on Instagram

(01:17:40):
at Podmeets World Show or email us at Podmeets World
Show at gmail dot com.