Danielle Fishel

Hello, hello, hello, and welcome to the newest episode of Teen Beat.

I am your adult host, Danielle Fishel, podcaster, TV director, recent ballroom competitor, mom of two, and a former child actor who spent all of her teenage years in front of cameras and a live studio audience as Topanga Lawrence on the 90s TV show, Boy Meets World.

From my first kiss to my first haircut, you saw it all.

Every Friday night on your local ABC affiliate.

And now, more than 30 years later, it's time I turn the tables.

Every week I'm sitting with a celebrity, someone who has made their wildest dreams come true, hoping I can now expose their childhoods to the world in an almost tit-for-tat situation, assuming it will give us a glimpse into the person they are today.

Since their first pimple wasn't also broadcast as part of a TGIF block of programming, the least they can do is share it with me now.

I gave you my childhood.

It's time we hear yours.

And on this episode, as a teenager who spent most of her free time shopping at the mall, carrying a vanilla ice blended, extra vanilla, and complaining about boys, I'm ready to finally walk a little on the wilder side.

My guest was raised in Eugene, Oregon, the youngest of three daughters in a family that was concerned about the environment at a time when most people figured that was just Captain Planet's job.

Her father owned a trucking company, bringing home wild animals he would find injured on the highway in order to nurse them back to health.

And from that moment on, she'd dedicate her life to conservatism and preserving all forms of wildlife, eventually becoming one of the world's most beloved zookeepers.

Her interests and related travels would bring her to Australia at the age of 27, where she would meet her future husband, Steve Irwin, in a chance encounter at a wildlife rehabilitation center.

You know, where we all hang out on vacations.

They would marry eight months later, film their first documentary during their honeymoon, and the rest is history.

They'd have two children, Bindi and Robert, before Steve's death in 1992 from an injury sustained while filming their wildly popular TV series, The Crocodile Hunter.

Overnight, she would become a single mother and single zookeeper, taking over every aspect of the family business, the Australia Zoo in Bear Walk, Queensland, making sure her husband's legacy continued well beyond not only his life, but for generations to come.

Today, I will talk to her not only about her own backstory, but also how she navigated the teenage years of her own children, two absolute gems who have now individually captured the hearts of both Australia and the United States, reminding the world not only of her mission statement on conservatism, but also just pure kindness.

To say she is impressive is a gross understatement.