The man who taught life lessons as Mr. Feeny just tried to give Donald Trump one of his own.
William Daniels, 98, the beloved Boy Meets World actor, took aim at the President’s massive White House renovation — blasting Trump’s decision to tear down the East Wing to make way for a $300 million ballroom project.
In a post shared Monday, Daniels didn’t mince words as he recalled performing for President Richard Nixon inside the very part of the White House now facing demolition.
Sharing a throwback photo of himself dressed in full costume from the hit Broadway musical — in which he famously played John Adams — Daniels wrote: ‘We performed “1776” in the beautiful East Room when Nixon was in the White House. He was very gracious even though none of us had voted for him.’
But he saved his sharpest words for Trump, adding, ‘The current president has ripped a piece of history from our lives and we mustn’t take this lightly.’
The East Room, where Daniels and his fellow performers once took the stage more than half a century ago, isn’t believed to be among the demolished sections.
William Daniels, 98, the beloved Boy Meets World actor, took aim at the President’s massive White House renovation — blasting Trump’s decision to tear down the East Wing to make way for a $300 million ballroom project; (Daniels, Ben Savage in Boy Meets World – 1993)
In a post shared Monday, Daniels didn’t mince words as he recalled performing for President Richard Nixon inside the very part of the White House now facing demolition; (pictured 2022)
Still, reports suggest Trump has long complained that its roughly 200-person capacity was too small for the grand events he envisions.
His planned addition — a 90,000-square-foot ballroom capable of hosting up to 999 guests — would dwarf the historic space and could even be connected directly to the East Room.
Construction crews have already bulldozed offices once used by First Ladies to make way for the expansion.
The controversial makeover has sharply divided Americans.
Critics have slammed it as a blatant erasure of history, while supporters insist every president has the right to leave their own mark on 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
Daniels’s comments sparked a similar split online.
‘I always knew I could trust Mr. Feeny to be on the right side of history,’ one fan wrote.
Another added, ‘Of course Mr. Feeny would be on the correct, decent, dignified and sane side of history. That’s not a shock at all.’
Daniels saved his sharpest words for Trump, adding, ‘The current president has ripped a piece of history from our lives and we mustn’t take this lightly’
Critics have slammed the renovations as a blatant erasure of history, while supporters insist every president has the right to leave their own mark on 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue… and Daniels’s comments sparked a similar split online; (Will Friedle, Betsy Randle, Lily Nicksay (front), Ben Savage, William Russ (top), Daniels, Lee Norris, Rider Strong)
The East Room, where Daniels and his fellow performers once took the stage more than half a century ago, isn’t believed to be among the demolished sections.
But not everyone agreed. ‘What did he rip down? The end of a building erected in the 1940s? Oh our treasured past!!! Spare me the feigned outrage, Feeny,’ one user shot back.
Before becoming America’s favorite TV teacher, Daniels built his career on stage, playing John Adams in both the original Broadway production and 1972 film version of 1776.
He won two Emmys for his work as Dr. Mark Craig on the acclaimed medical drama St. Elsewhere, and appeared in a string of classic films, including The Graduate — in which he played Dustin Hoffman’s father, despite being only ten years older — and the romantic comedy Two for the Road alongside Audrey Hepburn and Albert Finney.
But he may be remembered most fondly today for Boy Meets World, the hit ABC sitcom that ran from 1993 to 2000.
The coming-of-age favorite followed Ben Savage’s Cory Matthews from awkward middle schooler to college graduate, with Will Friedle and Rider Strong as his loyal best friends and Danielle Fishel as his high school sweetheart, Topanga.
As George Feeny — the wise, ever-patient neighbor who became Cory’s teacher, principal, and later college professor — Daniels anchored the series.
His real-life wife, actress Bonnie Bartlett, joined him on the show later in its run as Mr. Feeny’s new bride — a fan-favorite addition that mirrored their decades-long marriage off screen.
Daniels would go on to reprise his beloved role for guest appearances in Girl Meets World, the 2014 Disney Channel sequel that centered on Cory and Topanga’s daughter, played by Rowan Blanchard.
Construction crews have already bulldozed offices once used by First Ladies to make way for the expansion.
Earlier this month, he reunited with Fishel on Dancing With the Stars, joining her onstage as she dedicated her dance to him — proving that even at 98, Mr. Feeny still knows how to make an entrance.
Meanwhile, Trump said that the East Wing building was ‘never thought of as being much’ and ‘was not particularly nice’.
Speaking to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, he added: ‘We determined that, after really a tremendous amount of study with some of the best architects in the world, we determined that really knocking it down [was best].’
Trump showed Rutte displays, pictures, and drawings of his latest redesign as he highlighted some of its grandest features.
Speaking about some of the images of the demolition, he said: ‘The way it was shown, it looked like we were touching the White House. We don’t touch the White House.’
