JB Gaynor Meets World

Summary

Podcast Summary: Pod Meets World – "JB Gaynor Meets World"

Episode Information:

• Title: JB Gaynor Meets World
• Host/Author: iHeartPodcasts
• Release Date: May 5, 2025

---

Introduction

In this heartfelt episode of Pod Meets World, hosts Danielle Fishel, Will Friedle, and Ryder Strong welcome former child actor JB Gaynor. Known for his memorable role as Tommy in the iconic 1990s sitcom Boy Meets World, JB shares his journey from early fame to his life beyond the entertainment industry. The conversation delves into his experiences on set, his relationships with co-stars, and his passion for golf, offering fans an intimate glimpse into his life.

Early Acting Career

JB Gaynor recounts his introduction to acting, influenced heavily by his sister's involvement in the industry.

JB Gaynor [22:14]: "Honestly, it was my sister. My sister got into acting first and she was actually on Wonder Years. So it was super crazy because then I was onboarding at twelve then."

He highlights the dual life he led as a child actor, balancing public school with acting commitments.

JB Gaynor [22:57]: "I was pretty much in public school all my life. Until like maybe fifth grade through seventh grade, I was working a lot. So I was homeschooled. But yeah, I was in public school. I lived pretty much a double life."

Boy Meets World Experience

JB shares insights into his role as Tommy Matthews and his interactions with the main cast, particularly Will Friedle.

JB Gaynor [24:16]: "I remember Michael [Jacobs, the show's creator] liked me because I looked kind of like his son. That's the reason why I got the part."

He reflects on the dynamics on set and his camaraderie with co-stars.

JB Gaynor [25:55]: "We got along really well. You were fun to hang out with. And I knew you were kind of a comic book nerd, a little bit of a superhero nerd. So we would talk about stuff like that."

Life After Acting

Transitioning from acting, JB discusses his decision to step away from the spotlight and focus on personal passions.

JB Gaynor [42:46]: "It was a tough transition for me, from a child actor to getting older. Once you start thinking about criticism and what you’re doing wrong, it starts to hurt a little more as you get older."

He reveals his deep-seated love for golf, which became his primary pursuit post-acting.

JB Gaynor [43:27]: "I fell in love with golf, and I just wanted to spend all my time doing that. I just went into, I just wanted to spend all my time doing that."

Reunion and Return to Acting

JB discusses his return to acting with Girl Meets World and the challenges and joys that came with it.

JB Gaynor [49:22]: "Honestly, my agent just called me and she was like, I think they want to bring me back for Girl Meets World. I was like, all right. So I went. I auditioned for it."

He shares memorable moments from the reunion, including the first interactions back on set.

JB Gaynor [54:48]: "I told everyone I'm going to be on Girl Meets World. It was almost 20 years later."

Current Life and Future Plans

Currently, JB balances his work in the printing industry with his passion for golf, contemplating teaching the sport in the future.

JB Gaynor [60:21]: "Pretty regular boring life. I work for my dad, but I go golfing, go to comedy shows. That's about it."

He expresses his contentment with his current lifestyle and the decision to prioritize personal well-being over the pressures of the entertainment industry.

JB Gaynor [46:55]: "I miss being on set. I don’t miss auditioning. I just go on auditions when casting directors ask for me."

Notable Quotes

• JB Gaynor [18:58]: "This week on Pod Meets World, we talk to the former actor who may have been the true love of Eric's life. It's forever, R. Tommy, J.B. Gaynor."

• Will Friedle [40:15]: "Do you think Eric should have adopted Tommy?"

• JB Gaynor [40:19]: "Of course. Of course. You don't want to go to California at that time."

• JB Gaynor [42:50]: "I fell in love with golf, and I was just... I just wanted to spend all my time doing that."

Conclusion

The episode serves as a nostalgic yet insightful exploration of JB Gaynor's contributions to Boy Meets World and his life thereafter. The hosts and JB reflect on the enduring legacy of the show, the impact of early fame on child actors, and the importance of pursuing one's passions. JB's candidness about his challenges and triumphs offers listeners a meaningful perspective on the realities of life after childhood stardom.

Key Takeaways:

• JB Gaynor's early entry into acting was inspired by his sister.
• His role as Tommy left a lasting impression on fans and co-stars alike.
• Transitioning away from acting allowed him to cultivate his love for golf.
• His return to acting with Girl Meets World was a fulfilling yet challenging experience.
• JB emphasizes the importance of mental health and pursuing personal happiness over external pressures.

---

Notable Timestamped Quotes:

• [22:14] JB Gaynor: Discussing his introduction to acting through his sister.
• [24:16] JB Gaynor: Recalling how he landed the role of Tommy.
• [46:55] JB Gaynor: Talking about missing being on set but not the auditioning process.
• [49:22] JB Gaynor: Explaining how he was approached to join Girl Meets World.
• [60:21] JB Gaynor: Detailing his current life balancing work and golf.

---

This comprehensive summary encapsulates the essence of the "JB Gaynor Meets World" episode, providing listeners and fans with a rich overview of JB's journey, contributions, and personal growth since his time on Boy Meets World.

Transcript

[Danielle Fishel]

Lets face it, with travel come curveballs. From flight delays to lost luggage, they put even the best laid plans at risk. Thank goodness for Avis. With them you know your rental car will come through and your plans are protected at all costs because it turns out Avis is here for your plans and they'll do whatever it takes to ensure you keep them, which is a big deal. And speaking of deals, you can save 20% when you pay now. Go to avis.complanonus to learn more Avis Plan on Us. It's Danielle Fishel, Ryder Strong and Will.

[Will Friedle]

Friedle from Pod Meets World.

[Danielle Fishel]

Are you a small business owner launching a company or dreaming of starting one?

[Will Friedle]

Then check out season three of Mind the Business Small Business Success Stories from Ruby Studios and Intuit QuickBooks.

[Ryder Strong]

Join hosts Austin Hankwitz and Janice Torres as they talk to small business owners about how they've grown and maintained their businesses.

[Danielle Fishel]

You don't want to miss these inspiring stories of small business journeys.

[Ryder Strong]

Listen to Mind the small business success Stories on the iHeart app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Danielle Fishel]

As a parent whose nearly four and six year olds can't be stopped, they can only be contained, I need more than a stroller. Which is why Wonderfold is an absolute game changer. It combines the convenience of a stroller with the freedom of a wagon, creating a brand new hybrid every mom or dad has been hoping for. It gives kids the independence they need while still maintaining safety and making parents lives easier. They've got a two seater, a four seater like I have and a six seater so every family has an option. I know you'll be seeing me with a Wonderfold at the mall or the zoo, but probably the mall because we go there nearly every 12 hours. Join me in this stroller revolution with Wonderfold. You can visit wonderfold.com that's www.wonderfold.com introducing new Caesar Warm Bowls an exciting feeding experience for dogs and pet parents that only takes 10 seconds to prepare in the microwave. Warm Bowls are made with fresh vegetables and real chicken as the number one ingredient and can be served as a complete and balanced meal or used to enhance kibble as a topper. With culinary flavors and ingredients like slow cooked chicken, sweet potato, cranberry and fresh vegetables, Warm Bowls are an exciting new way for pet parents to elevate everyday meal experiences. Shop New Caesar Warm Bowls online and in stores today.

[Will Friedle]

Is your team still running on yesterday's tech? Time for an upgrade. The ThinkPad X1 carbon is ultralight, ultra powerful and powered by Intel Core Ultra processors so you can work, create, and boost productivity all in one device. Need security? Lenovo's ThinkShield helps protect your business from modern threats. Need smarter performance built in AI features keep things running fast and efficiently. And if you're looking for perks, Lenovo Pro gives you exclusive business benefits, extra savings, and access to essential tools. Stop hitting snooze on new tech. Win the tech. Search for business [e-mail]. first of all, I apologize for my voice. I'm sick again. Or still. I should say still. It's been, like, six weeks. I. Whatever Ryder had, that was never going away.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah. You now.

[Will Friedle]

I got it. I actually got it on a plane, and I think when you get something on a plane, it just socks in.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah.

[Will Friedle]

And doesn't go away.

[Danielle Fishel]

It's a clinger.

[Will Friedle]

It is, but that's neither here nor there, depending which of those you look at. I have another etiquette question.

[Danielle Fishel]

Did somebody else break into your house?

[Unknown]

No.

[Will Friedle]

No. That was. I think. I think we've heard from many people that I was, in fact. Right. And that was a breach of etiquette. I'm gonna start calling this little section Will's Etiquette Corner.

[Danielle Fishel]

Okay.

[Will Friedle]

I'm not gonna do that at all. Etiquette. Etiquette.

[JB Gaynor]

Etiquette.

[Will Friedle]

Etiquette. Sunday. Sunday.

[Danielle Fishel]

Please and thank you.

[Will Friedle]

See, that's a good one. No, I just want to hear a butler go, you're welcome. How many free samples? Are too many free samples?

[Ryder Strong]

I think if you have to go for, like, multiple toothpicks, like, you should just take one toothpick. You can't, like, you know, if it's set out on, like, a plate and there's. Yeah, you can only take one.

[Danielle Fishel]

Okay, but at a time. What if you take one and you.

[JB Gaynor]

This is where the discussion starts.

[Danielle Fishel]

And you go back and then you do more here.

[Ryder Strong]

At what point do you feel shame?

[Danielle Fishel]

Well, do you buy the thing or not?

[Will Friedle]

Because that's another question.

[Ryder Strong]

Yeah, that's what I'm saying.

[Danielle Fishel]

I think there's lots of factors to this.

[Will Friedle]

Here's the question. So Susan and I, you know, are redoing our kitchen, and there is a big sale up the street at a big appliance store.

[Danielle Fishel]

And you were eating tile.

[Will Friedle]

Oh, it gets even worse than that. Once a year, they do this big samples, this big sale, and there's all this food around. I mean, plates of everything you can imagine from.

[Danielle Fishel]

What store are you at? I mean, you don't name the store.

[Will Friedle]

It was. It was. It's an appliance. Store.

[Danielle Fishel]

An appliance store. And they sell samples of food.

[Will Friedle]

Once a year, they do this massive private sale, quote unquote private sale that everybody knows about. And people literally line up and, like, to the point where when we first walked in, there's a guy handing out pieces of filet mignon.

[Ryder Strong]

Wow.

[Danielle Fishel]

What?

[Will Friedle]

And we're like.

[Danielle Fishel]

Because they've grilled them on their grills. Yes, correct.

[Will Friedle]

So they use the big green egg to make it. And so the guy's like, hey, would you like some filet mignon? And I was like, yes. So sue and I, of course, eat that. Then we walk in, and there's people walking around with platters. There's cookies. Now, something else you need to know about my wife. She cannot say no to free food.

[Danielle Fishel]

I know.

[Will Friedle]

To the point where there's times I will look over at her and she looks green and she's eating something, I go, babe, what are you doing? She's like, it's free. I can't. I can't not. But we were talking to the guy at this place who said that he. That several people come to this thing every year with bags in their purses to load up the free food and walk away.

[Danielle Fishel]

Too much.

[Will Friedle]

Too much free samples. This is where I'm asking, where do you go? Is it. When you start bringing bags in, are you in a whole different level?

[Danielle Fishel]

How do you put a toothpick with toothpick with a piece of steak on it in a bag?

[Will Friedle]

They had sandwiches, they had pieces of pizza, they had desserts, cookies.

[Danielle Fishel]

Mix them together in a bag of Tupperware.

[Will Friedle]

That's not a bad idea, bringing Tupperware.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah, I'm a little. I don't know. I think that's. I think that's. I mean, honestly, it sounds like you may need it. Like, if you have to bring a bag to a sample sale to load up, then you might need the food. You might need the food. And I'm not. I am not here to judge that. No, absolutely. If you do not need the food and you're just like, well, they offer it for free, and here's my chance to take advantage. Yes, that.

[Will Friedle]

That's what he alluded to. It was more that than they needed.

[Danielle Fishel]

So we were having a normal discussion, which was like, what if I wanted three. Three samples of the same thing and.

[Will Friedle]

Then you're wearing a Costco sweatshirt. I mean, that's the best part of going to Costco is the sample.

[Danielle Fishel]

One of the best parts of going to Sam of Costco is the samples Another best part is that I can get my pap smear, I can get my eye exam, I can get my tires rotated, and you can buy a.

[Will Friedle]

Coffin.

[Danielle Fishel]

At the same time. So that's. That's the other best part of Costco. Big supporters of Costco here. Two of. Two of the three of us.

[Will Friedle]

Two of the three of us, exactly. We want to sell our show in bulk. That's what we want to do.

[Danielle Fishel]

Did you end up buying any appliances for your kitchen reno?

[Will Friedle]

We bought all the appliances for our kitchen reno yesterday. We're officially in it now. We bought. It was. It was a little crazy pants. We got everything, and then you can take home.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah. You're allowed to.

[Will Friedle]

We were able to. Yes.

[Ryder Strong]

No.

[Will Friedle]

We got a. We got a fridge, we got a stove, we got a dishwasher. We got an, uhoh.

[Ryder Strong]

Bring the Tupperware.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah. We. And. And we got a new. A new hood vent for our thing. Like, we're redoing my. Our kitchen is almost 30 years old.

[Danielle Fishel]

Wow.

[Will Friedle]

To the point where when you go and open a cabinet, the. The door will come off in your hand if you don't open it the right way.

[Danielle Fishel]

Susan must be so excited.

[Will Friedle]

Oh, she's ecstatic. She's ecstatic. Yeah.

[Danielle Fishel]

How did it go? There was also a little brouhaha with your contractor and the. The bids. How did that change?

[Will Friedle]

Which was the bruja.

[Danielle Fishel]

We were at dinner in Vegas, and you got the bid back, and it had, like, jumped up significantly.

[Will Friedle]

Well, that's. It's. It's like. Oh, wait, you. You want us to actually do it? You don't just want to talk about it? Well, you want the Jewel feed that category? Yeah, we got. We did our due diligence because we don't normally do that. We got five different bids from all from recommendations from people that we know that have used them, and we ended up going with producer Tara's guy. Wow. Which is great. So we're very happy. We're excited to have. It's everything. We always joke in our house, whenever anything is done, built, put in any of that stuff, you will invariably hear from the other room, the plumber, the electrician, somebody go, huh? Never seen this before. So. Because the guy who built our house just did it himself, so there's not really a right angle anywhere. So it's gonna be interesting to see. This is what we say it's gonna cost, but now that we're in there, it's like, oh, wow. You used live ducks to make this wall. I've never seen this before.

[Danielle Fishel]

So live ducks is insulation.

[Ryder Strong]

Yeah, exactly.

[Will Friedle]

So we're gonna see, see how this goes.

[Danielle Fishel]

I can't wait for this to be the reason you end up hating Tara. You know, one of the many goes wrong and you just get to blame Tara. Yeah, that's what's gonna happen.

[Will Friedle]

I think so too.

[Danielle Fishel]

Whole podcast will explode.

[Will Friedle]

I think so too. Well, we'll have to see, but as long as we have access to free samples, I'm good, so we'll be fine.

[Ryder Strong]

So you're gonna have a sample sale when, like when you're finished, right? We can come over and get.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah, you guys can go bring back, taste all the food, do all that kind of stuff. Yeah, no, I, I figure I'm getting ready because Ryder hosted the last Pod Meets World party.

[Danielle Fishel]

Uh huh.

[Will Friedle]

I'll, I'll host the next one.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah, so I'll do the next Pod Meets World. Do it.

[Ryder Strong]

Amazing.

[Will Friedle]

We'll get there.

[Danielle Fishel]

Welcome to Pod Meets World. I'm Danielle Fishel.

[Ryder Strong]

I'm Ryder Strong.

[Will Friedle]

And I'm Will Friedle.

[Danielle Fishel]

It's almost time to go back on the road. Are you ready? Are your bags packed?

[Ryder Strong]

On the road again? No, I actually have no plan yet.

[Will Friedle]

I don't.

[Ryder Strong]

Driving around in the van again or I mean like, yeah, wow, this is.

[Danielle Fishel]

Late in the game.

[Will Friedle]

Wait, you might plan the van?

[Ryder Strong]

Well, for certain parts, you know, like what, you know what's funny is like San Francisco, like I already have like 10 people coming. Like, yeah, all like everyone from my hometown. You know, all old friends are going to be around. So I got a lot of people want to come to the San Francisco show, which will be great. Portland I'm super excited about. I know a lot of people there too, but. Yeah, those, but that section, like the west Coast, I, you know, I'm already going to be in Portland for a period before that, so. Yeah, so we might just end up banning it again for the west Coast. The. Yeah, the Pacific Northwest.

[Danielle Fishel]

Will and I will travel buddies it up again.

[Will Friedle]

Yep, absolutely. I just want to kick this cold because I don't want to be on the road with these allergy cold thing because.

[Danielle Fishel]

No, you've got to get that. You've got to get, get rid of that.

[Will Friedle]

I'm doing my best.

[Ryder Strong]

Six weeks.

[Will Friedle]

Okay, where are we going exactly?

[Danielle Fishel]

Okay, so first we start in Denver, Colorado on June 4th. Then we are in Phoenix, Arizona on June 5th and June 6th we are in Austin, Texas. And then gosh, right back in June. June 19th and 20th we are in Columbus, Ohio. And then Las Vegas, Baby at the Palazzo. You know me gonna be so excited. And then in July, July 11, we are in Portland, Oregon. July 13, Seattle, Washington. So excited about that little Pacific north leg. Pacific Northwest leg. And then we finish it off in July, July 25th and the 27th at San in San Francisco and then in Sacramento. So very excited about that.

[Will Friedle]

I'm sorry, I can't get the phrase Pacific north leg out of my head.

[Danielle Fishel]

Pacific north leg.

[Will Friedle]

I just want to know what a Pacific like I get. Dude, I gave her a Pacific north leg the other night. It's awesome.

[Ryder Strong]

Why is it gotta go so dirty?

[JB Gaynor]

Always does.

[Will Friedle]

Always does. Hi, I'm Will.

[Danielle Fishel]

It's a good chicken order. Pacific north leg. I'll take the Pacific north leg. Thanks.

[Will Friedle]

Danielle always goes for food.

[Ryder Strong]

Of course it's a crab leg, right? Like just a Pacific north leg.

[Danielle Fishel]

We'll take a Pacific north leg. Thank you. So anyway, if you have not already gotten your tickets, you can go to pod meets world show.com and click the city you are interested in seeing us in. I highly suggest Vegas. Cuz you, you want to come to all of them?

[Ryder Strong]

No, I want some costumes. Come on west coast. Let's bring out the costumes. Got some stiff competition from the rest of the country. You got to bring it. I, I.

[Will Friedle]

It's going to be fun. It's going to be, it's going to be fun to be on the road again. It really is. It's going to be we, we. It's a lot but it's, it's all, it's mostly laughing. So that's what I.

[Ryder Strong]

Laughing and travel on stage.

[Will Friedle]

Laughing, laughing and travel.

[Danielle Fishel]

That's bringing you on stage to join us for laughing.

[Will Friedle]

Oh, I gotta get my scripts out. I gotta bust out the scripts for people who win.

[Danielle Fishel]

You gotta get those original Boy Meets World scripts out that we sign. Those are the prizes for whoever wins the costume contest. We also have some BTS footage we share and some, you know, funny stories. So yeah, it's a really good time. Come out and meet us. Tickets available now@pod meets world show.com.

[Ryder Strong]

This show is sponsored by Better Help.

[Danielle Fishel]

I remember back in the 90s when we were just kids navigating the rough waters of childhood stardom. I don't think anyone ever mentioned therapy as an option to work through the heavy issues we were facing.

[Ryder Strong]

Oh no way. But lucky for everyone now, whatever taboo that was associated with seeing a therapist, it started to disappear over the years. And that's a good thing because being able to talk out whatever's bothering you or just develop methods of self help to become the best you is crucial.

[Danielle Fishel]

But even with all that acceptance of therapy, a recent study said 26% of Americans avoid seeking mental health support due to fear of judgment and May is.

[Ryder Strong]

Mental health Awareness month. So let's encourage everyone to take time out of their busy schedules to take care of their well being and break the stigma. Because that's where BetterHelp can help you.

[Danielle Fishel]

BetterHelp has assisted over 5 million people worldwide over their 10 years of experience. They are fully online, affordable and convenient, able to work with your schedule no matter how busy you are.

[Ryder Strong]

You just fill out an online survey and get matched with a therapist best suited for your needs. And if you don't feel a connection, you just change therapists at any time. No charge.

[Danielle Fishel]

I have been in therapy now for about two years and it has helped me in so many aspects of my life from learning that my quest for unachievable perfection will be easily handed down to my children if I'm not careful to just learning new coping techniques for when things become a little too stressful. Therapy has been there for me and I am so appreciative and now BetterHelp.

[Ryder Strong]

Can be there for you.

[Danielle Fishel]

We're all better with help. Visit betterhelp.com meets world to get 10% off your first month.

[Ryder Strong]

That's BetterHelp. H-E-L-P.com meets world do you like control.

[Danielle Fishel]

But also travel a lot? And after enough weather cancellations, security bottlenecks and in flight wi fi issues, you stop expecting to be in control when you're traveling until you reach the Avis counter. Avis has been renting cars for over 75 years and it shows like clockwork. They will have the car you want ready for you exactly as you had planned. Because it turns out plans are their thing, specifically keeping them. In fact, they have a special way of making you feel like your plans are the only ones in the world that matter. Just like they do for all their customers. They will stop at nothing to get you on your way on time so you can go about your business and yes, regain control. And for a limited time you can save 20% on your car rental when you pay now. Go to Avis.com planonus to learn more Avis Plan on us moms and dads out there. This one is for you. With my two boys, strollers can only do so much, whether at the zoo or the mall. Our outings require more freedom and space and that's why Wonderfold is a total game changer it has the convenience of a stroller, but room for your kids to move around and feel like big kids, which, let's be honest, is all they want to do. I love this new hybrid so much. Let's call it a stroller wagon. It is still safe and contained, yet more fun and independent, making life easier for parents and comfortable for kiddos. They've got a two seater, a four seater or a six seater options for every family. Trust me, if you see me at the mall with my family, which is quite possible considering how much we go, you're gonna see me with wonderfold and my 4 and 6 year olds having a blast with Wonderfold. You can visit wonderful.com today. That's wonderfold.com Summer is right around the corner and you know what that means.

[Ryder Strong]

Barbecues, Sunny days by the pool with my shirt on.

[Danielle Fishel]

No unwanted hair. No one wants that. So we're here to remind you about Nair, the number one hair removal brand, the gold standard in the field.

[Will Friedle]

You can't go wrong with any of their products. They have the new luxe Wax for Less. Wait time in between waxes or the.

[Ryder Strong]

Dermatologist tested body and shower creams free of dyes, parabens, phthalates and sulfates.

[Danielle Fishel]

But we're focusing on my favorite, the wax strips. It makes for the easiest wax ever and it lasts up to four weeks, all while minimizing hair regrowth and most importantly, saving me time. I have a podcast to record, a little league practice to watch and a bedtime of 8.30pm Nair is an actual lifesaver.

[Will Friedle]

You can achieve salon quality results at home, leaving you with stress free, soft, silky skin. Or as I like to call it.

[Ryder Strong]

The Triple S. You heard the man. Get ready for summer. Buy Nair wax strips at Walmart, Walgreens or cvs.

[Will Friedle]

Hello, it is Ryan and we could all use an extra bright spot in our day, couldn't we? Just to make up for things like sitting in traffic, doing the dishes, counting your steps, you know, all the mundane stuff. That is why I'm such a big fan of Chumba Casino. Chumba Casino has all your favorite social casino style games that you can play for free, anytime, anywhere with daily bonuses. So sign up now@chumbac casino.com that's chumbac casino.com no purchase necessary vgw group void where prohibited by law 21 + terms and conditions apply.

[Danielle Fishel]

Over the past few seasons of our rewatch, we have waxed poetic about the relationships of the show. Whether it's Cory and Topanga, Shawn and Angela, Alan And Amy, even Corey and Lauren. But we've noticed and rightfully pointed out the disappointment of Eric never having a companion of his own. Sure, he couldn't stop talking to girls on the phone in season one, and we all like to point out that Jack and Eric were actually together in subtext. But that golden retriever of a human being had a big heart and he should have been able to share it with a real storyline. But maybe we've been looking at it all wrong. Maybe Eric was given someone to express that love to. And unfortunately it was just a three episode arc that involved the possible adoption of a young orphan. Eric may have been too young and inexperienced to accept that possibility then, but this week we reunite Tommy and Eric for one last shot at family. Our guest made his TV debut appearing on legendary sitcoms Frasier and Mad about YouTube, then making stops on Party of Five in Veronica's closet before he landed on Boy Meets World at just eight years old. He may not have been on the show for long, but he became a cult favorite for fans to wonder, what if Eric did take the jump and adopt a son? He'd act for a few more years, popping up on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, grounded for life, Touched by an angel to name a few shows. But then he'd retire, dropping out around 2005, walking away from Hollywood for good. Well, kind of for good, minus one constantly posted appearance on Girl Meets World over 15 years after he first originated the character. So what is Tommy up to now? What's life been like since he walked away from the industry? It's time to find out. This week on Pod Meets World we talk to the former actor who may have been the true love of Eric's life. It's forever. R. Tommy. J.B. gaynor.

[JB Gaynor]

There we are. What's up everyone?

[Will Friedle]

How are you?

[JB Gaynor]

I'm doing good.

[Danielle Fishel]

So good to see you, man. It seems crazy that I guess it was decade wait.

[Will Friedle]

Was it? Come on, that can't be 10 years ago that we did.

[Ryder Strong]

Yeah. Indy wasn't born yet, man. Like that.

[Will Friedle]

No, come on. That's wrong on so many levels. I can't believe that.

[Danielle Fishel]

I know. It's so. It's so crazy. GB we are so happy to have you here for the podcast.

[JB Gaynor]

I heard I was hard to find.

[Danielle Fishel]

You were one of the more difficult people for us to track down. And I would like to take this moment to give a special thank you to Barbie Block, who is. Is the reason we were able to find you. She. I sent her an email and she was like, let me look into it. And eventually, within like 48 hours, I think we had. Had reached out to you.

[Will Friedle]

She's good. She's good.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah, she's the greatest. So thank you, Barbie. So we just watched your first episode of Boy Meets World, Santa's Little Helper. But by that point in your life, you had already been on quite a few classic TV shows. Frasier, Mad about yout. Party of Five. How did you get into acting at seven years old?

[JB Gaynor]

Honestly, it was my sister. My sister got into acting first and she was actually on Wonder Years. So it was, it was super crazy because then I was on boarding 12 then. But yeah, she was on. She was on Wonder. She was on an episode she's on. I forgot what episode it was like. I forgot. I think he was dating some girl and she was one of the sisters or something.

[Danielle Fishel]

Okay, and so how much older is your sister than you?

[JB Gaynor]

She's eight years older.

[Will Friedle]

Oh, okay.

[Danielle Fishel]

Oh, okay. Eight years older. So you were seven. She was like 15.

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah. So she was my lines. She would always read me my lines and stuff like that.

[Danielle Fishel]

Fun. And were you going to a traditional school at the time or were you homeschooled? What was your schooling situation?

[JB Gaynor]

I was pretty, I was in public school pretty much all my life. And. Okay, until like maybe fifth grade through seventh grade, I was working a lot. So I, I was homeschooled. But yeah, I was in public school. I was. I lived pretty much a double life. I would go out there in Hollywood and then I would come back here and I would just play with my friends. Play sports outside.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yes.

[JB Gaynor]

I was living like two. Double. Double life.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah, you were the, you were the OG Hannah Montana.

[Will Friedle]

Just put on a wig. Jb. No one will even know it's you.

[Danielle Fishel]

No one will know.

[Ryder Strong]

He takes off the glasses.

[Will Friedle]

Who is he?

[Ryder Strong]

That's funny.

[Danielle Fishel]

What was the set of Frasier like for a 7 year old? I don't think of that show as being a show that had a lot of kids.

[JB Gaynor]

It was not. That one was not very welcoming, really. It was a lot of. They didn't have kids, so.

[Will Friedle]

Right.

[JB Gaynor]

It was a lot of cussing, a lot of. A lot of, you know, it was just very high intensity. And I just went in there. I'm glad I just had a little part because I just went in there, I did it, I got out. But yeah, that was one. That was the more unenjoyable sets that I was on. But I mean, it's still Frasier, so.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah, still one of the greatest shows of all time. But wow. Not. Not exactly a warm and fuzzy memory for you.

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah, for sure.

[Danielle Fishel]

Do you remember your audition for Boy Meets World?

[JB Gaynor]

I honestly, I don't remember my audition, but I remember everything else. I just remember Michael Jacobs liked me because I looked kind of like his son.

[Will Friedle]

Okay, that's funny.

[JB Gaynor]

He said, yeah, you look kind of like my son. That's the reason why I give you the part.

[Will Friedle]

That sounds about right.

[Ryder Strong]

I love that he just said that to you.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah, Y.

[Ryder Strong]

It's not your talent.

[JB Gaynor]

It's just.

[Will Friedle]

You're not that great.

[JB Gaynor]

It's just you look like my son.

[Will Friedle]

Now, do you remember when. When you first auditioned, was it supposed to be just a one off or were you.

[JB Gaynor]

It was a one off, but I watched Boy Meets World when I was younger. Like, we watched tgif. Like, that was one of my shows. And so I was so, like. I don't know, I think it was just kind of the vibe, right? And I just went into it, like, with a good energy and they. They wanted me back, I guess. So. That was. That was awesome.

[Danielle Fishel]

So you were a fan of the show even before you auditioned, which is amazing. Do you remember if the connection that your sister had been on Wonder Years and now you weren't. Was that discussed? Was that talked about?

[JB Gaynor]

It was discussed when. Because remember, Fred had the TV show on at the same studio.

[Danielle Fishel]

Right. And on. On the PBS lot, Right?

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah. And he. Yeah, cbs. Radford.

[Ryder Strong]

Right?

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And he's. So he came over and he said hi to my sister and stuff like that. But yeah, that was funny. It was pretty crazy. Small world.

[Danielle Fishel]

Do you remember the first time you met Will?

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah. Honestly, it was like. It was like meeting my big brother. I remember we did everything together. We would go out to lunch, we would go eat. We would do everything. I was following you around, like, a little.

[Will Friedle]

Well, we got a lot. I just remember we got along really, really well.

[JB Gaynor]

Really well.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

And then. And then you were Batman. Batman's Forever or Batman Beyond. Right?

[Will Friedle]

Batman Beyond. Yep.

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah. And so that was like my. One of my favorite shows too, so I was like. It was cool.

[Ryder Strong]

You were living the dream.

[Danielle Fishel]

Wait, so explain to me when you. Let's talk about you guys going to lunch together.

[JB Gaynor]

Was.

[Danielle Fishel]

It was. Who was on set with you? You mentioned your sister.

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah, my mom would always be there. My mom. My mom was my angel. She would take me everywhere. She was. She was always there for me. So. Yeah.

[Danielle Fishel]

So you, your mom and then sometimes your sister.

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah, yeah, my sister would come and read lines with me and stuff like that. She always helped me out. But yeah, you know that. Yeah, we'd always get lunch at that. You know that cafeteria that was on.

[Danielle Fishel]

The CBS Radford Lab.

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah. But it was. It was pretty cool. That was super fun.

[Danielle Fishel]

Will, do you remember thinking, like, this is a character. This is a kid I'm supposed to have a close bond with. I want to, in our downtime, also develop that bond. Do you remember thinking that or did you just.

[Will Friedle]

No, I wish I was the actor at that point. He was like, that's true. I need to develop the bond. Yeah. No, to me it was like, well, I'm getting lunch and he's getting lunch. You know, Come on, kid. Come on.

[Danielle Fishel]

Let me show you what.

[JB Gaynor]

I guess. Come on, kid.

[Ryder Strong]

No, just a rubber cigarette.

[Will Friedle]

We got along very. Very. Exactly. Yeah. Not quite, but. No, we got along really well. And you were fun to hang out with. And I knew you were kind of a. Like me. You were kind of a comic book nerd, a little bit of a superhero nerd. And so we would talk about stuff like that. And. Yeah, it was also just. It was very strange because you didn't know what Eric was going to be from week to week. And so now it was like, yeah, Michael's like, yeah, Eric might adopt a kid. Like, what? So you just. You never knew when. It's like, okay. Now all of a sudden, he's like, you know, I remember him specifically telling me, like, oh, it's going to be an emotional arc and it's going to be, you know, a good. A kind of run for you. And I was like, great, no problem. And Eric is a kid, so Eric with a kid just works. I mean, it just. It's one of those things. We saw it also with the. The Single mom episode. I can't remember the name of that episode.

[Danielle Fishel]

Uncle Daddy.

[Will Friedle]

Uncle Daddy. But though, I mean, it just worked. And then JB came in and I didn't. That's why. Because we saw the first one with the. With the. Where Eric Was Santa Claus, your first episode ever. And that's why I was. When I rewatched it, I was like, huh, I wonder if this was supposed to be the only episode with you.

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah, it was. It was only a one off, which.

[Will Friedle]

Is so strange because it's what two episodes later is the. Is the arc. So had they not arced out the season? Had they not written two episodes ahead already? And they. They just rewrote everything. I'm curious to know how that came about, because that's A pretty massive change, because I think we're the A story in at least one, if not two of the upcoming episodes. Yeah. So if they hadn't planned that, I'm really curious to see how they were able to pull that off so fast.

[Danielle Fishel]

It was possible that it was only gonna be a second episode, and it wasn't gonna involve the kid again. It was just gonna be Eric determined to adopt a child, and it was gonna be Eric having those conversations. But maybe we weren't gonna see Tommy again, but once he was. Once JB was so good, and your chemistry was so great. It was like, we've gotta have.

[Will Friedle]

I think it was a Blut. It was a Blutman Bus Gang episode, wasn't it? When the. Not. Not Uncle Daddy, but. Or not the. The Santa Claus one, but I think the next one. Because then Mark is the one who brought the Tommy character back for Girl Meets World.

[Ryder Strong]

No, I think Blutman and Buzz gang were gone.

[Will Friedle]

Were they gone by this point? Okay, then. I wonder why it was Blutman that brought Tommy back. Because he. He called me. He's like, I'm bringing Tommy back. I'm so excited.

[Ryder Strong]

Oh, that's great, jb.

[JB Gaynor]

I thought he was there because I remember seeing him. I remember seeing Mark.

[Ryder Strong]

Yeah.

[Will Friedle]

I don't know. I don't know. Very strange. But yeah. When they told me you were coming back from Girl Meets World, I was.

[Danielle Fishel]

Like, we're gonna get to Girl Meets. I'm not ready to jump ahead that far. We're gonna get there. It'll be giving me a chance.

[Will Friedle]

Do you remember.

[Danielle Fishel]

Do you remember meeting any. Any of the other cast members or. What are some of your favorite memories from the week?

[JB Gaynor]

I remember I liked Ryder, but Ryder was very, very quiet, you know, so angsty. Angsty cordial. I just always said hi to him. But you were. You were one of the people that. That I gravitated towards, too, because you're just so sweet.

[Danielle Fishel]

And I actually. I was very maternal.

[JB Gaynor]

I actually have a picture. I don't know if you can see it. And it's the same sweater that you're wearing in that episode.

[Danielle Fishel]

Oh, yeah, it is.

[Ryder Strong]

Look at that.

[Danielle Fishel]

Aw, that's so sweet. I loved, loved, loved kids. And so anytime there was a young kid on the set, I took it upon myself to be. It was my duty to make sure I was their little friend. So I remember having a blast with you, for sure. Do you remember, jb? Did you watch your episodes when they aired? Did you have a watch party?

[JB Gaynor]

I didn't watch it when it aired, but I've watched it a lot growing up because all my friends always say, hey, look, did you see this episode? They always do it at. Whenever they meet new people, they're always like, this guy was on tv. And I'm like, oh, my God, that's so cute.

[Danielle Fishel]

But you were a fan of the show before you were cast on it, so why. Do you remember why you didn't.

[JB Gaynor]

I don't. I didn't like watching myself.

[Danielle Fishel]

Oh, even that young.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

Because I was a very nervous person. So I would see things that I would do that. That. It was like my nervous little twitches. Yeah, I can. The new episode, I would play with my hand. In the second episode, I would play with my hands, and they kept that on screen. So I was like, I don't want to watch that. I would do, like, little things that. That I knew that wasn't right, and so I didn't like watching myself.

[Will Friedle]

It's such an actor thing. You pick up on these little things, Ryder, and conversations about this all the time. Little facial ticks or I always do this when I'm gonna. Or something like that.

[Ryder Strong]

My hair thing.

[Will Friedle]

Hair. Had the hair thing two seasons.

[Ryder Strong]

I'm just tapping my.

[Will Friedle]

Tapping a soda can every time. I. I mean, we have all these little ticks that we do that you just. And. But again, I. I think it adds to the character.

[Ryder Strong]

Frankly, the audience doesn't even notice it's your nervous tick.

[Danielle Fishel]

They just think it's part of the character.

[Will Friedle]

Absolutely.

[JB Gaynor]

That's.

[Will Friedle]

That's so amazing, though, that even at 8, you were already self conscious to the point where you were like, I don't want to watch myself.

[JB Gaynor]

Well, I started when I was five, so, like, I was already in it pretty for like four or five years.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah, you were like, I've been here for a while.

[Will Friedle]

Who is this Frasier guy anyway?

[Danielle Fishel]

Come on. Do you remember what the process was for you? Learning your lines or memorizing your lines?

[JB Gaynor]

Honestly, it was so easy back then.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

And when I did Girl Meets World, it was so much harder.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

I had that monologue and I was like, oh, my God, I don't know.

[Will Friedle]

How to do it.

[JB Gaynor]

I was like. And then poor Rusty was trying to coach me through it, and I was like, I can't do it.

[Danielle Fishel]

Can't do it.

[Will Friedle]

I can't do it.

[Ryder Strong]

Yeah, it's a muscle. You lose it. You know, like, I was thinking about that because my son's doing plays now and he memorizes things so quick, and I'm like, wow. That's right. When you're younger, your brain just does it and like, wow. Yeah.

[Will Friedle]

So then why didn't that, why did that not translate to me in school? Why could I always remember dialogue but I couldn't remember math?

[JB Gaynor]

Same thing with me.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah. It's like it was so strange. Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

I could remember lyrics to every songs and then I can't remember a history lesson.

[Will Friedle]

Exactly.

[Danielle Fishel]

So strange. Do you like control but also travel a lot? And after enough weather, cancellations, security, bottlenecks, and in flight, wi fi issues, you stop expecting to be in control when you're traveling until you reach the Avis counter. Avis has been renting cars for over 75 years and it shows like clockwork. They will have the car you want ready for you exactly as you had planned. Because it turns out plans are their thing, specifically keeping them. In fact, they have a special way of making you feel like your plans are the only ones in the world that matter. Just like they do for all their customers. They will stop at nothing to get you on your way on time so you can go about your business and yes, regain control. And for a limited time, you can save 20% on your car rental when you pay now. Go to Avis.com planonus to learn more Avis Plan on us moms and dads out there. This one is for you. With my two boys, strollers can only do so much. Whether at the zoo or the mall, our outings require more freedom and space. And that's why Wonderfold is a total game changer. It has the convenience of a stroller, but room for your kids to move around and feel like big kids. Which, let's be honest, is all they want to do. I love this new hybrid so much. Let's call it a stroller wagon. It is still safe and contained, yet more fun and independent, making life easier for parents and comfortable for kiddos. They've got a two seater, a four seater or a six seater. Options for every family. Trust me, if you see me at the mall with my family, which is quite possible considering how much we go, you're gonna see me with wonderfold and my 4 and 6 year olds having a blast with Wonderfold. You can visit wonderful.com today. That's wonderfold.com Summer is right around the corner and you know what that means.

[Will Friedle]

Barbecues, sunny days by the pool with my shirt on.

[Danielle Fishel]

No unwanted hair. No one wants that. So we're here to remind you about Nair, the number one hair removal brand, the gold standard in the field.

[Will Friedle]

You can't go wrong with any of their products. They have the new Lux Wax for less wait time in between waxes or.

[Ryder Strong]

The dermatologist tested body and shower creams free of dyes, parabens, phthalates and sulfates.

[Danielle Fishel]

But we're focusing on my favorite the wax strips. It makes for the easiest wax ever and it lasts up to four weeks, all while minimizing hair regrowth and most importantly, saving me time. I have a podcast to record, a Little League practice to watch and a bedtime of 8.30pm Nair is an actual lifesaver.

[Will Friedle]

You can achieve salon quality results at home, leaving you with stress free, soft, silky skin or as I like to.

[Ryder Strong]

Call it, the Triple S. You heard the man. Get ready for summer. Buy Nair Wax Strips at Walmart, Walgreens or cvs.

[Danielle Fishel]

The name of this product is the Active Cash Credit Card from Wells Fargo. That's a lot of name, but it's also a lot of card.

[Will Friedle]

It earns unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases. Whether it's buying tickets to the game with your mom or grabbing a coffee with your dog. Purchases big and small earn unlimited 2% cash rewards.

[Ryder Strong]

No limits, no categories to track, just straightforward rewards that keep adding up.

[Danielle Fishel]

So you might stumble a bit while saying it, but paying with it will make you stumble upon so much more. Shopping, dining, cooking, gardening. You get the idea.

[Will Friedle]

Let's say it together.

[Danielle Fishel]

The Active Cash Credit Card from Wells Fargo earns unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases. You know what? It does have a ring to it. No, seriously, try saying it out loud. The Active Cash Credit Card from Wells Fargo.

[Will Friedle]

Ooh, that sounds nice.

[Ryder Strong]

Learn more@wells fargo.com ActiveCash terms apply what's.

[Unknown]

Good fam the Black Effect Podcast Festival is back and taking over Pullman Yards in Atlanta on Saturday, April 26 and it's gon be a whole vibe. Doors open at 11am so you already know it's an all day celebration of black excellence and we're partnering with Nissan to bring you an event you won't want to miss. Cause it's all going down in the Nissan Lounge. If you haven't seen the all new 2025 Nissan Kicks or the Nissan Rogue yet, this is your moment. From available Intelligent around view monitor to available Bose Personal plus sound system, the all new Nissan Kicks is ready. Whether you're cruising through the city or hitting the highway, the Nissan Rogue S is more affordable than CR V and RAV4 with available HD enhanced intelligent around view monitor with moving object detection and a standard VC Turbo engine. So pull up to the Nissan Lounge to explore their cutting edge features. Snap some epic pics and see which ride matches your energy, music, love, culture, and community all in one place. So come through, show out, and make some memories. Tickets are on sale [e-mail] podcast festival.

[Danielle Fishel]

So the episode we have seen of yours, the Santa's Little Helper episode, you are dealing with Will or Eric as Santa Claus. Was that at all confusing for an eight year old?

[JB Gaynor]

No, because I already knew Santa Claus wasn't real when I was.

[Danielle Fishel]

Spoiler alert.

[Will Friedle]

What?

[Ryder Strong]

Whoa.

[JB Gaynor]

Oh, my bad.

[Danielle Fishel]

What?

[Will Friedle]

Oh, yeah. So somebody else puts all the gifts under the tree, jb.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah. Who then does it?

[Will Friedle]

It's Superman.

[Danielle Fishel]

Santa. Jeez. Okay, so that. Thankfully, no one had to explain that to you. Yeah, yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

But no, it was. You know, I think I did. I already did another. Another show where I was. It was a Christmas episode and I had to sit on Santa's lap in that. In that episode, too. No, that was Frazier.

[Danielle Fishel]

Oh.

[JB Gaynor]

Was it really the exact same thing? Kelsey Grammar was actually Santa Claus.

[Danielle Fishel]

Oh, a bit of a different Santa, I'm sure.

[Ryder Strong]

The lap kid.

[Will Friedle]

Who's gonna play the lap? Get me JB Gaynor.

[Danielle Fishel]

Since the time that you had been on Boy Meets World, Tommy has lived on and become a bit of cult folklore.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah.

[Danielle Fishel]

Was Tommy always the character you were most recognized for or has it just been that way over the last couple of years?

[JB Gaynor]

It was that one and George Lopez. Those are the two. Those are the two ones that I would get recognized for.

[Danielle Fishel]

What did you play on the George Lopez Show?

[JB Gaynor]

I was Ricky. I was actually supposed to be in a one off for that one too. And I was in like four or five episodes.

[Danielle Fishel]

Oh, wow.

[JB Gaynor]

I was like the bad kid. Yeah, the bad kid. Yeah. I blew up the garage and what?

[Will Friedle]

You were the Sean Sweet.

[Danielle Fishel]

How on earth were you cast as the bad kid?

[JB Gaynor]

I know, right? That was my only bad role. I was always the sick kid or the. Or that orphan or.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah, you were always tugging at heartstrings and now. Now you were blowing up garages.

[Will Friedle]

Oh, man.

[Danielle Fishel]

Okay, serious question here.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah.

[Danielle Fishel]

Do you think Eric should have adopted Tommy?

[JB Gaynor]

Of course. Of course. You don't want to go to California at that time.

[Danielle Fishel]

What about you?

[Will Friedle]

No, no, Eric wasn't ready. Of course Eric wasn't ready. And I think that that's one of the things. I don't remember the actual dialogue of the episode, but I remember specifically the episode. I think it's your last episode, jb, where I remember thinking that it was really well written. Again, maybe it doesn't hold up. I think it does, though. Where it was. That's the whole point is, it's like, I know you love the kid, but a family wants to move him to California and start a family. I mean, it just, it was the right thing to do, was let him go. And for the first time in Boy Meets World, they did what was right and not what love dictated, which was.

[Danielle Fishel]

The universe didn't win out.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah, exactly. So, no, I, I, Yeah, I mean, it would have been great, but Eric, God, Eric wasn't ready. Eric wasn't ready. By Girl Meets World time, Eric wasn't ready.

[Ryder Strong]

Could have been a spin off. Could have been a spinoff.

[Danielle Fishel]

Also, the family was the Mansons. So, you know. Exactly, exactly.

[Will Friedle]

In all fairness, they were very close.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah.

[Will Friedle]

So. Yeah, no, yeah, that's. That was. I, I, I distinctly remember that episode. And I remember having to say goodbye to jb, too, because we bonded over the three weeks we were together, and we had a lot of fun together, and it was.

[JB Gaynor]

I actually cried in that episode, kind of, because I was actually just so sad to leave the. It wasn't even in the script, but I just, I was sad. Yeah, it was a sad episode for me.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah, well, you were able to cry. I was not. And I remember Michael came up to me and he went, hey, can I talk to you for a second? I want to eat it. You can't cry, huh? And I went on cue, like that. No, he's like, all right, just try to sell it. Like, okay, I'll never forget that. Can't cry, huh? No. It was not in my repertoire at the time.

[Danielle Fishel]

Made of stone.

[Will Friedle]

Seriously. I don't. I just. Yeah, so. But, yeah, I'll never forget that. It's just like, okay, all right, fine. Just sell it.

[Danielle Fishel]

All right? Just sell it. Best you can.

[Will Friedle]

Best you can. There we go. Action.

[Danielle Fishel]

Well, after being on three episodes of Boy Meets World, you continued to work quite a bit. You were on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, nine episodes of Grounded for Life, George Lopez, and then you retired around 2005. Tell us about that decision. And what led to was, it's just.

[JB Gaynor]

A tough transition for, From a child actor to, like, getting older.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah, you think?

[Will Friedle]

We have no idea what you're talking about, jb. Yeah.

[Danielle Fishel]

What hu.

[JB Gaynor]

Like, once you. When you're younger, it's easy to get all that criticism.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

It's so much easier to just let it roll off. Then when you get older, you start thinking about that criticism and what am I doing wrong? What's making.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

Like, who am. Like, why am I getting said no all these times, you know? And it just kind of hurts you a little. A little more as you get older. And I. I fell in love with golf, and I was just. I just went into. I just wanted to spend all my time doing that and so tell us about your.

[Danielle Fishel]

Your love of golf.

[JB Gaynor]

I honestly, I started playing when I was 10, and I just loved it. It's. It's just a nice getaway. You go out there, you have four or five hours just to. Just to clear your mind and just. It's just fun. It's just. I played in college, and I played in high school. I played in the high school golf team. I played in college golf team. It was. It was just. It's just a fun time.

[Will Friedle]

So are you gonna go pro?

[JB Gaynor]

Nah. Pro. It's. I'm. I'm close, but I'm not. I can't be that. I'm not that good.

[Will Friedle]

See, that's what. What is not. What's not good. Like, what's your head? Do you even handicap or. You don't even handicap. You're a scratch golf. You're a scratch golfer, okay? That's why you can say golf's just fun, because you're a scratch golfer when you're somebody like me. I, I. It's the, the old saying that golf is a nice walk ruined, which is exactly what it is. It's like, you know, you hit the ball as far as you can. Once you find it, put it in your pocket. Congratulations, you found it, and then you got to hit it again. Come on.

[Danielle Fishel]

Where did you go to college, jb.

[JB Gaynor]

I went to Citrus. A lot of my friends actually. A lot of my friends actually saw you at. When you went to college, and they were like, I'm sitting here.

[Danielle Fishel]

Fullerton.

[JB Gaynor]

Hi. Newer. Yeah, Fullerton. Because I live right around there, so.

[Danielle Fishel]

That's so fun.

[JB Gaynor]

They were like, I'm so scared to say hi to her. I was like, dude, she's nice. Go say hi.

[Danielle Fishel]

Oh, my gosh. Do you know how amazing it would have been if somebody had come up to me and been like, hey, just want you to know I'm friends with jb. Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

I said, you got an in. Say hi.

[Danielle Fishel]

Reason. Go say hello.

[Will Friedle]

Danielle, when did you. When. When you went to college, where were you on the golf team?

[Danielle Fishel]

I. I have a two handicap.

[Will Friedle]

Do you really?

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah, it's great.

[JB Gaynor]

That's great.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah. Yeah. And by that, I mean I only handicapped two people with my golf clubs.

[Will Friedle]

I was Gonna say you're head, your two handicaps are your swing and that you don't own go golf clubs.

[Danielle Fishel]

No. You know what's funny is that I actually love golf and I golf for years every weekend and I loved it. I never got anywhere close to being a scratch golfer. But I, I do understand the appeal of being outside for that long, of just it being your, you know, you're competing against yourself week after week and even minor improvements that you see become bigger big deals and feel you feel really accomplished. So.

[Will Friedle]

Well, they say you can have the worst round in the world. You get to the 18th hole, you hit one great shot, you're like, I'll be back tomorrow. It's really insanity. Yeah, it's nuts.

[Danielle Fishel]

What did your parents think when you made the decision that you wanted to back away from the entertainment industry?

[JB Gaynor]

My mom loved me and in acting, but she didn't, she wasn't, she didn't force me to do it. So she would always say, do you still want to do this? Like every year she'd be like, do you still want to do this? And I'd be like, yes, yes. And that was the year that I said, nah, I'm done. And I still, I still auditioned a little bit, even up until like my mid-20s, but, but I didn't, I only got like, I think one commercial when I was 18 and then that's, that's about it. I just, I just would go on auditions when casting directors would like ask for me. Something like that.

[Danielle Fishel]

Right.

[JB Gaynor]

That's, that's all I did.

[Danielle Fishel]

Did your sister continue on?

[JB Gaynor]

Nah, she was out when she was out early, like, probably because it's harder for girls. It's way harder for girls. Boys is a lot easier. Girls. It's, it's a lot tougher when you get, when you get a little older, you know.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

When she was like 13 or 14 or something like that.

[Ryder Strong]

Oh, wow.

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Danielle Fishel]

Do you, at this point, do you ever look back on it and miss it or are you perfectly comfortable with the choice?

[JB Gaynor]

I miss, I miss being on set. That's.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

I don't miss auditioning.

[Danielle Fishel]

I know.

[JB Gaynor]

And especially nowadays because one of my friends got into acting later and he was having to tape himself and I was like, I don't know, that would be super awkward. I don't know if I could do that.

[Danielle Fishel]

I know now with self tape, you, like, actors have to be casting directors, lighting technicians. You have to have a, a nice spot to record yourself in. You have to be an editor. It's like the amount of stuff you have to do, it feels.

[Will Friedle]

It's easier to be a golfer.

[Danielle Fishel]

You can record. You can put yourself on tape once, or for four or five hours. You can play a whole round.

[JB Gaynor]

Exactly.

[Danielle Fishel]

What do you want to do?

[Will Friedle]

Yeah. Geez.

[Danielle Fishel]

How many people in your life now, jb, know that you were Tommy from Boy Meets World?

[JB Gaynor]

Most of my friends, because I. I keep around the same crew that I've been with since I was younger. Like, I've. I have the same friends group, and they love to say that I was on tv. Whenever we go out.

[Danielle Fishel]

Does it ever help you guys? Do you ever. Do you forget anything? You ever get. Hey, you ever seen Boy Meets World? You know who he is?

[JB Gaynor]

Some free golf rounds here and there.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yes. Yes. Let's get this guy some clubs. Yeah, let's get this guy a new set of clubs for sure. Will you have to do a signing with jb?

[Will Friedle]

I would be happy to. I've just signed tiny little golf balls all the time.

[Danielle Fishel]

Just the whole thing?

[Will Friedle]

Yes. Are you kidding? I want to get my own set of clubs so I can really show you how to golf, jb. Yeah, I'll show you. What's up, my friend? I'm a scratch golfer, too. I'm just in the woods looking for my ball scratching because I'm being bitten by all the things. Thank you very much.

[JB Gaynor]

Thank you, Will.

[Danielle Fishel]

All right, I think it's officially time that we talk about something very near and dear to our listeners hearts. Your return to Tommy on Girl Meets World. It was directed by the one and only writer Strong and his brother, Shiloh Strong. How did that episode come together? What was the first. What did you first hear, jb, about them wanting to bring you back?

[JB Gaynor]

Honestly, my agent just called me and she was like, I think they want to bring me back for Girl Wings World. I was like, all right. So I went. I auditioned for it. I, like, auditioned to see if I was fine, you know.

[Will Friedle]

Auditioning to play yourself.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah, we gotta get this kid on the.

[Ryder Strong]

Did you audition? That's funny.

[JB Gaynor]

It's not like they just wanted to see if I could read lines, you know?

[Will Friedle]

Right.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah. Okay.

[JB Gaynor]

I guess I did. I guess I did. Okay.

[Danielle Fishel]

That is so crazy. What a weird business. What if.

[JB Gaynor]

If.

[Danielle Fishel]

Let's just say, what if he had a quote unquote bad audition? Were they just gonna scrap the whole idea?

[Will Friedle]

Or they would have recast him. They would recast.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yep.

[Will Friedle]

They would have recasted with somebody else. Yep. Who said he was Tommy? That's absolutely.

[Danielle Fishel]

Imagine 100 uproar yeah. If they had put, like, Timothee Chalamet in JB's spot.

[Ryder Strong]

I mean, we did it all the time on Boy. We would recast people all the time. So, like, you know.

[Danielle Fishel]

Well, sure. On Boy Meets World. I'm talking about, though, to like, bring someone back in girl to be like, look at this. We got the person we were doing it with all the other characters, like, you know, everyone coming back.

[JB Gaynor]

I wouldn't mind to get cast about to Michelle.

[Will Friedle]

Seriously, though, by the end of Girl Meets World, we had both Lily and Lindsay on the show at the same time. So I think it was just like it at that point. So, I mean, come on.

[Ryder Strong]

Yeah, because we, you know, we also. We brought Josh back. Right?

[Will Friedle]

The.

[Ryder Strong]

The little brother and the little.

[Will Friedle]

Either that complete.

[Ryder Strong]

Yeah. And it was. But he was right. He was like, on the show a bunch. They had a whole love story on Chromy Tour.

[Will Friedle]

I remember that.

[Ryder Strong]

But it was. But it was, you know, recast. It was a different actor than. Because Josh was played in the final episode by Michael's kids. Right.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah.

[Danielle Fishel]

The one who reminded him of J. Or jb.

[Will Friedle]

There you go. Probably. Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

That was. I was just really tough because I remember when they all came in and they were like, we don't like this. We don't like this. That's the only time I got, like, yelled at. They're like, you're not doing it right. I was like, oh, I know.

[Danielle Fishel]

I don't remember again, just even 10 years ago. I don't remember the details, but I remember that it was so stressful.

[Will Friedle]

It was a stressful, rough week because.

[Ryder Strong]

He had a whole monologue. Like, I remember it was like a big speech. Yeah. Big reveal. Big speech. And like, you know, it was supposed to be all this emotional stuff. And it was like, wow, okay, we're going right into the deep end of the pool here.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah. But it was also.

[Will Friedle]

It's like, hey, you know, sorry. You haven't been acting in years. You haven't done this in a while. Here's your three page monologue.

[Ryder Strong]

Go.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah, So I remember we were all. Cause I was kind of in the same boat. I hadn't done it in a while either. So you and I were kind of like, all right, let's figure this out.

[Danielle Fishel]

Well, this was the first episode back or second episode back. Okay.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah, this was the.

[Danielle Fishel]

And you were. Can we refresh my memory on the episode you were. It's Mr. Squirrel Goes to Washington.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah. So Eric is a senator who's running for present no, Eric. Eric is a mayor. Is that. He's the mayor of Saint Ubid Town, and he's now running for Congress or senate.

[Danielle Fishel]

Okay, Senate.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah. He's gonna be a senator.

[Danielle Fishel]

Okay.

[Will Friedle]

And then. And his. His. The guy who says, I'll take you under my wing as your political advisor turns out to be Tommy.

[Danielle Fishel]

Right, right. And it's a big reveal that it's Tommy, and Tommy's sitting in the audience.

[Will Friedle]

And it's always Danielle's reveal. That's always on the social media machine.

[Danielle Fishel]

The amount of people who think I was legitimately surprised.

[JB Gaynor]

Yes.

[Will Friedle]

That shows how good an actor you are.

[JB Gaynor]

I was like, I mean, all week.

[Danielle Fishel]

How good? No, what I remember. And apologies to Ryder and Shiloh, because I'm back there chewing the scenery. I remember. The thing I remember the most is that we were trying. And by we, I mean us as a production. We're trying to get the background actors to give a facial reaction of, like, because they wanted the oh, my gosh. Reveal. And so I remember there being so many guys when he says, I can die, give us a big reaction. And I.

[Ryder Strong]

And you went for it.

[Danielle Fishel]

I just was like, I'll take everyone's big reaction. I'll do it. Watch this. Here you go. And I'm like, right over the shoulder.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah. She's shocked, I tell you.

[Danielle Fishel]

I just need you all to know. It would have been impossible for me to not know because I had been there all weekend rehearsing.

[Ryder Strong]

I had to find this clip. Now where can I find this clip?

[Will Friedle]

You'll be able to find it.

[Danielle Fishel]

Let's play it. Let's see if we can find the clip and play it.

[Will Friedle]

Play the clips. It's awesome. But I also do the. I love how it's also, though, like, they're like, all right. Everybody's got to be so shocked that this is Tommy. The. The. You don't supposed to know that Eric almost adopted a kid 25 years ago. I know. It's like, how are they? How are we shocked? I don't get it. Yeah. If you can find it. Danielle is. It's. She's. She's acting. It's awesome.

[Danielle Fishel]

It is so over the top. But people. People believe it.

[JB Gaynor]

People have asked me that too, and I was like, no, no, she knew.

[Will Friedle]

Everyone knew. Everyone knew.

[JB Gaynor]

That's good acting. Everyone knew.

[Ryder Strong]

I can't find it. Everything online. What do I search for?

[Danielle Fishel]

We'll find it.

[Will Friedle]

We'll find it.

[Ryder Strong]

I really want to see it.

[Danielle Fishel]

Okay, so did you tell your friends and family when you found out you auditioned for yourself.

[JB Gaynor]

Oh, yeah.

[Danielle Fishel]

And you found out you got the job again.

[JB Gaynor]

Oh, yeah. I told everyone.

[Danielle Fishel]

Did you?

[Will Friedle]

Oh yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

I told everyone else I'm going to be on Girl Meets World.

[Danielle Fishel]

Oh, my gosh.

[Will Friedle]

So wait, it was. How old were you when you came back for girl meets world?

[JB Gaynor]

25.

[Will Friedle]

And you were eight when. Oh, my God. So it was almost 20 years later.

[Danielle Fishel]

It was 17. Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah.

[Danielle Fishel]

And now here we are 10 years past that. Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

Right now we're all old.

[Will Friedle]

It's insane. We're all old. You're still a child, sir.

[JB Gaynor]

No, I just use good moisturizer.

[Danielle Fishel]

Tell me the details, please.

[Will Friedle]

Oh, God.

[Danielle Fishel]

Did you. I mean, you mentioned it was a stressful week and you remember being yelled at.

[Ryder Strong]

Not by me.

[Will Friedle]

No. Not by Rider. No, not by Ryder. This was tough for. I remember this being tough for you, Ryder.

[Ryder Strong]

Oh, yeah.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah.

[Ryder Strong]

It was a stressful week for all of us. It was like. Yeah, there was a lot of pressure for some reason, you know, like.

[JB Gaynor]

And then it came out good.

[Danielle Fishel]

Do you remember, was that the first time you remember being yelled at?

[JB Gaynor]

Yeah.

[Danielle Fishel]

You never yelled at on boy?

[JB Gaynor]

I never yelled at on boy Miss World.

[Danielle Fishel]

Okay.

[Will Friedle]

You were too young.

[JB Gaynor]

I. I guess. But yeah, I. I was fine on Boy Meets World, but yeah, that was the first time I got yelled at. I was like, ah, like, I don't want to do this.

[Danielle Fishel]

I'm sure that this maybe already answers the question then, but did it give you the itch to go back to acting at all?

[Ryder Strong]

Did you getting yelled at and told you're doing everything wrong make you want to keep acting?

[JB Gaynor]

I think it gave me the itch to go back, but it made it gave me good memories to. To look back at.

[Ryder Strong]

Yeah.

[Danielle Fishel]

Okay, good. Did you feel like it was a nice button on the arc you started on Boy Meets World? Did it feel like there was a nice little bit of closure for Tommy?

[JB Gaynor]

Definitely. I, I really, I really did. I'm. I'm glad that they brought me back just for, you know, even though my. I was only in like, what, two episodes? Three. Two.

[Danielle Fishel]

Three episodes. Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

Three episodes. Like, it was nice to feel part of the whole series.

[Will Friedle]

Well, you did. I mean, the, the. The Tommy Eric storyline to this day, at conventions and stuff like that, when people are talking about Eric, they talk about the Feeny call, they talk about plays with squirrels, and they talk about Tommy, me. I mean, those are the three things I get more than anything else. So there was something about the relationship between those two characters and that three episode arc that just stuck with people for 30 years.

[JB Gaynor]

She just, like, showed.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah, yeah, I think so, too. It was. It was good. And it was also. Danielle was talking about this in the. In the introduction. By this point, Eric was almost on an island. Like, he. They. They never really gave him a relationship of any kind. And so the one time that they do give him somebody to play off of, really, in any sort of. Sort of relationship is like the son, younger brother kind of vibe. And there was something to, you know, by this point in the series, we. We've talked about how the show is really separated by. By the A story and the B story. There was really Corey, Sean and Topanga and Angela, what's going on in the A story, and then Eric and Jack and Rachel and whatever's going on in the B story. And it's kind of. Maybe we have a. A scene in the student union where everybody's sitting together, but for the most part, they're separated. So we haven't seen Eric and Corey together in kind of a brother capacity in a while now.

[Ryder Strong]

God, that's true. It's like you almost forget that they're even related.

[Danielle Fishel]

Right? Yeah.

[Will Friedle]

So. And people really liked the dynamic of Eric and Corey together, especially when Corey was very young at the, you know, season one and season two. So to kind of see Eric back in that older brother role with another young man is something I think people really gravitated towards because that's what people loved about Eric was the heart that he had when he was with Corey. So I think Tommy, for three episodes, kind of became the Corey surrogate, where it was. It's like, oh, you're the older brother again.

[Ryder Strong]

Right. It was also just a chance for Eric because, I mean, that B story that you were a part of was so goofy most of the time, you know, comedy. And so to have a real. Any sort of real moment, it's powerful. You know, it was kind of shocking, I think, for people, and great in a great way.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah, I think so, too. It was still mentioned all the time. People loved it.

[Danielle Fishel]

Well, we found the Girl Meets World clip.

[Will Friedle]

Excuse me.

[JB Gaynor]

My name is T.J. murphy. Thomas Jonathan Murphy.

[Will Friedle]

Eric Matthews once known me as.

[JB Gaynor]

Everybody else.

[Danielle Fishel]

No, everyone's.

[Will Friedle]

Everyone's.

[Ryder Strong]

My God.

[Will Friedle]

Danielle's like, I'll take this entire crowd on my shoulders.

[Danielle Fishel]

Listen, by the way, he's not that big. Danielle, I am the only one who should know who Tony is. The only one. Everyone else is like, have a reaction.

[Ryder Strong]

Dude, in the audience. Why are you talking about.

[JB Gaynor]

That's actually right.

[Will Friedle]

I love all the kids, too. Just like, I remember them. They're like, you got to film it. You got to film it, because this is going to go viral. And that's what gets Eric collected. I'm like, okay, all right. That's a stretch, but that's all right.

[Ryder Strong]

Oh, my God.

[Will Friedle]

God, so funny.

[Danielle Fishel]

Oh, my gosh. I have seen that clip so many times because people are like, they tagged me, Danielle. Were you really surprised?

[Will Friedle]

And I'm like, are you kidding me?

[Danielle Fishel]

I was.

[Ryder Strong]

The reality show that is World.

[Will Friedle]

Like, we even surprised Danielle.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah. Oh, my gosh. Jb, please. What. Tell us, what are you up to now? What are you doing? What is what. What do you do for work? Honestly, Tell us about your life.

[JB Gaynor]

Pretty regular boring life. I go to. I. I work for my dad, but I go. I go golfing, go to comedy shows. That's about it.

[Danielle Fishel]

What do you do? You work for your dad, but what do you do?

[JB Gaynor]

It's in the printing industry, but nothing too crazy. But, yeah, because I'm gonna probably start teaching golf soon. But I want to play golf.

[Will Friedle]

Oh, that's good.

[JB Gaynor]

I want to get all my good swings out before I start teaching when I get a little older, but I can't swing right.

[Danielle Fishel]

Then teach.

[Will Friedle]

Can you print, like, I'm trying to get giant posters of myself all over the country. I'm talking several hundred feet high. Is that okay? Good.

[Danielle Fishel]

Is that good?

[Will Friedle]

I just want to start hanging them everywhere. So we'll talk. Great.

[Danielle Fishel]

Oh, my gosh. Well, jb, we could not have been any happier to have stalked you, tracked you down, begged you to come on our podcast. Because truly, it's impossible to discuss the legacy of Boy Meets World without talking about you and without having you be a part of it. You were an indelible part of the show. As Will mentioned, you're one of the most memorable parts of the show. Show for so many people. You. For. Whether you consider it to be a short time or a long time, the time you spent in the entertainment industry, at the very least on our show, made a ginormous impact on the people who watched. So thank you for your contributions to the industry and to our show and now our podcast, and thanks to your mom and Barbie Block who helped get you here.

[Will Friedle]

Thank you so much. I appreciate that.

[Danielle Fishel]

It was really wonderful reconnecting with you. Are you. Your. I was gonna say, are you on social media? The answer is, is there anything I.

[Ryder Strong]

Would have been able to find you a lot.

[JB Gaynor]

I'll get one back. I. I got it hacked, so.

[Danielle Fishel]

Okay. Yeah.

[JB Gaynor]

Oh, okay.

[Will Friedle]

You don't need to. Well, you don't have to do that.

[Danielle Fishel]

When you do start teaching golf, send us your information and we will put it out there for people who are interested in taking golf lessons from you. We'd love to help support you in any way we can. So great reconnecting. See you. Yeah, exactly. 2035 Bab.

[Will Friedle]

Oh, man.

[Danielle Fishel]

See you. Bye. Oh my gosh. He's exactly the way I remember him from Girl Meets World time. And I remember at Girl Meets World too, thinking like, it's not that far off from the sweet little boy we worked with in the 90s. Like, you are who you are, who you are. You know, it's also the thing that's.

[Will Friedle]

Amazing that he had in common with the little kid that was from Liar Liar and Uncle. The thing I remember most was how professional they were.

[Danielle Fishel]

Yeah.

[Will Friedle]

I mean even at that age, you think that you're gonna be. They're gonna be running around and, oh, we gotta, there's kid wranglers on the set. We gotta do. It was never like that with him. He was always fun and still a kid. But when work came time to work, he'd work. You know, it was one of those things people like, don't never work with kids and animals. Well, there's some kids that are pretty darn good even at that age.

[Danielle Fishel]

Oh yeah.

[Will Friedle]

And he was one of those where it was not, it was never like, oh man, I gotta go do a scene with a seven year old. It was like, okay, cool, what are we gonna do in this one? It was, it was great. So he was a lot of fun to work with as a. And, and grew up to be a pretty, pretty special man. So.

[Ryder Strong]

Yeah, yeah, cool guy. So healthy to like recognize as a teenager. Like, I'm not, I'm not cut out for this. Like, this is not, you know. Cause there's a lot of pressure to be like, to keep it going. And like, you know, it took me a long time to come to basically the same realization. It's like, I love acting if I have the job, but like, auditioning makes me feel really bad about myself. And like that was, you know, I was, was 30 by the time I was like, I think I need to just for my mental health, take a break and like take a step back, you know, because there was so much, there's so much momentum. There's so much like, you have to keep doing this, you have to prove it. But you, you know, part of being an actor sometimes is that you're a sensitive person. You're Emotional.

[Will Friedle]

You're.

[Ryder Strong]

And like, you have to have like a thick layer of skin to really be a professional adult actor because you're constantly getting rejected. And I, like, you know, I'm just. It's so great that he realized that at a young and then had something else that he loved, like golf. You know, he was able to like, nope, this is not. Not who I.

[Danielle Fishel]

And apparently got out early enough with that realization that then when they offered him the part on Girl Meets World, his feeling wasn't, oh, no, I cannot do that again. It was, oh, fun. Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. If you're going to give me the job. Yeah, exactly. That, that, that'd be good.

[Will Friedle]

Yeah. He never once said anything like, yeah, I really thought this was going to be my foray back into the business. He was just like, yeah, it was cool. Came out, hung out on the set, got yelled at, you know, happy to.

[Danielle Fishel]

Go back to golf.

[Will Friedle]

Happy to go back to hit the links again. Thank you very much, but.

[Danielle Fishel]

Well, 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@podmeets world showmail.com and we have merch.

[Will Friedle]

I'm not going to buy you any merch, Tommy. Jeez.

[JB Gaynor]

There you go.

[Danielle Fishel]

Can't cry, huh? Can't cry.

[Will Friedle]

I can't cry. No. Just sell it.

[Danielle Fishel]

Sell it the best you can. Pod meets world show.com writer. Send us out.

[Will Friedle]

Out.

[Ryder Strong]

We love you all. Pod dismissed. Pod Meets World is an iHeart podcast produced and hosted by Danielle Fischl, Wilfred L And Ryder Strong, executive producers Jensen Karp and Amy Sugarman, executive in charge of production, Danielle Romo, producer and editor, Tara Sugbash, producer Matty Moore, engineer and Boy Meets World superman Easton Allen. Our theme song is by Kyle Morton of Typhoon. Follow us on Instagram odmeatsworld show or email us at podbeatsworldshowmail.com.

[Danielle Fishel]

Let'S face it, with travel come curve balls. From flight delays to lost luggage, they put even the best laid plans at risk. Thank goodness for Avis with them. You know your rental car will come through and your plans are protected at all costs because it turns out Avis is here for your plan and they'll do whatever it takes to ensure you keep them, which is a big deal. And speaking of deals, you can save 20% when you pay now. Go to avis.complanonus to learn more. Avis plan on us introducing new Caesar Warm Bowls, an exciting feeding experience for dogs. And pet parents that only takes 10 seconds to prepare in the microwave. Warm bowls are made with fresh vegetables and real chicken as the number one ingredient and can be served as a complete and balanced meal or used to enhance kibble as a topper. With culinary flavors and ingredients like slow cooked chicken, sweet potato, cranberry and fresh vegetables, warm bowls are an exciting new way for pet parents to elevate everyday meal experiences. Shop New Caesar Warm Bowls online and in stores today. When you travel with Amex Platinum, the stops on your bucket list come with a room upgrade when available. Look at that view and guaranteed 4pm checkout at fine hotels and resorts properties booked through amextravel.com so you have enough time to check out the pool and the spa and anything on the menu. Ceviche sounds good before flying off to what's next. That's the powerful backing of American Express. Terms Apply Learn more@american express.com withamiccst1022318 this podcast is supported by BetterHelp, offering licensed therapists you can connect with via video phone or chat. Here's BetterHelp head of clinical operations Hesu Jo discussing who can benefit from therapy.

[F]

I think a lot of people think that you're supposed to be going to therapy once you're like having panic attacks every day. But before you get to that point, I think once you start even noticing that you feel a little bit off and you can't maintain this harmony that you once had in relationships, that could be a sign that maybe you want to go talk to somebody. There's always a benefit in talking to someone because we can all benefit from improved insight about ourselves and who we are and how we behave with other people. So if you're human, that's like a good indicator that you could benefit from talking to somebody.

[Danielle Fishel]

Find out if therapy is right for you. Visit betterhelp.com today. That's betterhelp.com this is an ad for.

[Will Friedle]

The Active Cash credit card from Wells Fargo. Whew, that's a mouthful.

[Danielle Fishel]

But that's because it packs a lot in. Earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases with it, big or small.

[Ryder Strong]

So whether it's buying tickets to the game with your mom or grabbing a coffee with your dog, earn unlimited 2% cash rewards on purchases made with it.

[Danielle Fishel]

Let's say it together the Active Cash.

[Ryder Strong]

Credit card from Wells Fargo.

[Will Friedle]

Learn more@wells fargo.com ActiveCash terms apply.