'90s Teen Idols Just Revealed That They Secretly Dated During Their Show
Christine Taylor and David Lascher starred on Nickelodeon's Hey Dude over 30 years ago.
They kept it a secret for over 30 years, but two stars of a Nickelodeon classic have finally revealed that they had a romantic relationship in real life. From 1989 to 1991, Christine Taylor and David Lascher starred on the teen comedy series Hey Dude playing summer staff members at a dude ranch. When fans inevitably asked whether any of the stars ever got together off-screen, they would lie. But Taylor and Lascher opened up about their young love on a recent podcast episode, and it sounds like it was pretty serious.
Read on to see what the former teen idols shared about their early relationship and why they decided to talk about it now.
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Hey Dude was one of Nick's most iconic '90s shows.
Hey Dude ran for five seasons over three years. At the time that the show started airing, Taylor and Lascher were both 17. Taylor played Melody Hansen, who was a dance teacher and lifeguard at the ranch, and Lascher played Ted McGriff, another staff member.
Now, the two have reunited to host a podcast all about '90s pop culture called Hey Dude… The '90s Called!. On the first episode, which was released Dec. 12, Taylor and Lascher reminisced about working on Hey Dude together and revealed their romance.
They were each other's first love.
During the episode, Taylor and Lascher said that they had been in love with each other when they were filming the show.
"You were my first real love and it was full of teen angst and all you can imagine," Lascher said. He remembered being asked if anyone had dated when the cast reunited for the 25th anniversary of the show in 2014—and saying no.
Taylor added, "It was total infatuation for sure. He was my first love and I was so infatuated with you, and loved you so much."
Of their fun times together, Lascher shared, "You and I bonded over humor and laughter. I just remember, we would just make fun of everything and everyone—in a lighthearted way. We just laughed for two years straight." He added that he would save up the per diem money he was given to buy Taylor jewelry with rubies, since it was her birthstone.
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They had to keep working together after they broke up.
Lascher and Taylor's relationship ended when they show was still going, so they needed to continue working together, which Taylor said was "not fun." She also said that she didn't handle the breakup well. "I was terrible. I was so non-confrontational," she said. "I probably had no idea how to talk or deal with it. So, how great is it that we can now unpack it all?"
The Arrested Development actor shared why she thinks the relationship ended. "I think it probably was the fact that we were working together and living together in this hotel. We were with each other 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and that's not how young love thrives," she said. "You need space to be your own person." She also had an on-and-off high school basketball player boyfriend around the same time, who she was still drawn to.
Lascher added that they realized they were better as friends. "You and I had a friendship that was above and beyond anything else," he said. "I think the friendship was more important, looking back on it, right? We had such great times together that whatever went on outside of that was less important."
They're both married.
Many years have passed since the actors were teens starring on Hey Dude, and they're both married and have children. Taylor, now 51, has been married to Ben Stiller since 2000, and they have two kids. Lascher, 50, married Jill London in 1999, and they have three children.
It was Lascher's wife who convinced him and Taylor to finally reveal to fans that they once together.
"Jill, your wife, was like, 'You guys should talk about this, you should talk about the fact that you dated while you were shooting the show,' which we've never talked about before," Taylor said. Lascher added, "I was nervous to even ask you if you wanted to talk about it, but we're both happily married and we're adults."
