Trivia: Stuart Minkus' name was originally Stuart Lempke. They had to change his name on short notice because through the legal process of name clearance, they discovered there was a real person named Stuart Lempke who also happened to be living in Philadelphia, where the show takes place. Rather than getting the man's permission to use his name or risk being sued by him, they opted to change the name.
Cory's Alternative Friends - S1-E4
Trivia: When Cory has curlers in his hair in an attempt to restore it to its curly state, Eric takes a Polaroid picture of him. Will Friedle revealed on the Pod Meets World podcast that he actually kept the pictures used for the filming of this scene and found them in his childhood bedroom ahead of discussing the episode.
Trivia: Rider Strong revealed that his hair had to be straightened for Shawn's signature hairstyle, as his hair is more wavy in real life. He also stated that he got the look when, ahead of auditioning for the Boy Meets World pilot, Marla Sokoloff, Larisa Oleynik and a couple other girls that lived in the same complex as him decided to "take over his hair," which he believes was to make him look similar to Christian Slater.
Trivia: According to the Pod Meets World podcast, it was thought that one of the reasons that Minkus was dropped from the show after season 1 was because ABC already had a hugely popular nerd character in their TGIF lineup with Steve Urkel, and they didn't want to have an Urkel 2.0. Minkus actor Lee Norris revealed he was in the room when the decision was made, and it was because they were going to age up the child characters closer to their actual ages, and his short stature was problematic.
Trivia: According to the Pod Meets World podcast, the ethnic slur that Linda is called was originally in the episode's script. Ben Savage had never heard the word before and mispronounced it at the table read. The slur was ultimately removed from the script, likely at the request of the studio, though the different ethnic slur directed towards Shawn strangely made into the episode. Cory later mispronounces "antisemitism" later in the episode, and Will Friedle pondered that Ben's mispronounciation of the Asian slur at the table read was the reason for that.
Killer Bees - S1-E5
Trivia: Eric ranting about his parents' behavior at the Aerosmith concert was actually Will Friedle's audition scene.
Cory's Alternative Friends - S1-E4
Trivia: Marla Sokoloff, who has brief appearance in this episode, originally auditioned for the role of Topanga.
Killer Bees - S1-E5
Trivia: The audience reaction to Minkus name-dropping Beavis and Butt-head was so strong that they decided to name-drop them again when filming Cory's Alternative Friends.
Cory's Alternative Friends - S1-E4
Trivia: Shawn's never-to-be-mentioned-again sister Stacey was originally supposed to be the sister of one of Corey's other friends. The actor playing the friend was fired, so the part was transitioned to Shawn. The sister's name was originally Rochelle. Ben Savage suggested to the actor to make a long pause when saying he will consult with Rochelle when Cory asks for help, thinking it would get a big laugh. The actor paused for 30 seconds before delivering the line, getting no laughs in response.
Trivia: Boy Meets World shared a filming studio with Home Improvement. During filming breaks, the child actors of each show would play basketball together.
Trivia: Rider Strong and Will Friedle rarely had any scenes together in the show's early seasons. Rider said this was because he was constantly trying not to laugh when doing a scene with Will, and he would over-compensate by making a very serious face, which in turn would cause Will to lose it.
Trivia: Ben Savage had a nervous tic that would frequently be on screen, which would see him walk into a scene and pull up his pants with his right hand. While rewatching the series for the Pod Meets World podcast, Will Friedle kept a running tally and said he observed the act 10 times in one episode.
Trivia: Rider Strong has said that Ben Savage would imitate him every morning for his performance in the film Benefit of the Doubt after seeing it on TV. Strong freely admits that his performance in the film is bad.
Trivia: William Russ once asked his at-the-time 3 or 4 year-old daughter Georgia if she wanted to be involved in a Christmas episode. She responded by asking him if she was going to direct it.
Trivia: William Russ revealed on the Pod Meets World podcast that he was initially hesitant about joining the show, as he had never done a sitcom before and wasn't comfortable with the format. The show also ended up being his first experience directing.
Answer: I learned the answer to this one today. It is "Tree of Life" by Garé Barks.
Phaneron ★