14
The actor reflects on her freshman year and Topangas famous haircut.
Boy Meets Worldfans may be surprised to hear Danielle Fishel say she peaked in high school.
But she wasnt your average teenager, obviously.
Fishel would spend three weeks working before heading back to regular school for week-long hiatuses between filming episodes.
I had a job and I got to be a normal kid, she tells Bustle.
I felt like I had a good groove.
Fishel, 41, is settling into a new groove these days as a director.
The coming-of-age comedy is written by her husband, Jensen Karp, and stars herBoy Meets Worldcastmate Trina McGee.
Below, Fishel talks about how she met her husband, Topanga’s worst hairstyle, and cast carpools.
Take me back to 1995, when you were 14.
Where was home for you, and how were you feeling about your life then?
I was starting high school in Calabasas.
I loved my freshman year.
I hadnt loved junior high as much, so I was excited to leave it behind.
And I was more established onBoy Meets World.
We were going into our third season, which was when I was going to be in every episode.
I was feeling really good in 1995.
It was also the year I met my now husband.
We went to high school together.
Were you friends or more like acquaintances?
We’d see each other in the halls and be like, Hey, and that was it.
How were your relationships with theBoy Meets Worldcast at the time?
We had wonderful relationships.
Shed drop me off, and theyd drive me into work.
What was that like for you?
That episode was a big milestone in my life.
Id wanted to cut my hair for a really long time, and I wasn’t able to.
What was your reaction once you cut it?
The funny thing is we did that hair cutting scene on a Wednesday.
And the hairdresser, Laurie Heaps, is still my hairdresser today.
Who was your hero at 14?
My mom, for sure.
I wanted to have the life that my mom had.
She met her husband, my dad, in high school.
They got married at 21.
They had me at 23.
I thought that’s what I wanted for myself.
I used to say I wanted six kids.
That’s almost like Topangas life.
She met Cory young, and they got married right away.
I was seeing [that modeled] in my home and work lives.
It was what was being represented to me as the ideal.
Is there any advice now that you would give your 14-year-old self?
Live in the moment.
I spent a lot of time as a teenager wishing I was older.
I spent so much time daydreaming and thinking about when life would really start.
But that’s a hard thing when you’re a teenager.
It’s hard to live in the moment.
This interview was edited and condensed for clarity.
