How Skateboarding to His Audition Landed Breckin Meyer His Classic Role in 'Clueless'
Everybody skates! Or, at least everybody used to skate. And actor Breckin Meyer is no exception. In fact, his roots in skateboarding are inevitably what ended up landing his role as Travis Birkenstock in the iconic 90s film, Clueless and the story as to why is pretty awesome. Take a look:
In a recent interview on the "Still Here Hollywood" podcast, Breckin Meyer talks about skating miles from his place in North Hollywood to the Paramount Studios for his Clueless audition. But as you'll learn, showing up with that sweaty, greasy hair after pushing all those miles across town actually worked in his favor. They needed a skater, and that's exactly what they got! And let's be honest... could you imagine anyone else playing Travis Birkenstock? I sure couldn't.
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If you're even slightly familiar with that trek from North Hollywood to the Paramount studios, you know it's no small feat. Mr. Horowitz (Cher's dad in the film) might say "Everywhere in LA takes 20 minutes" in that one scene—which is obviously a lie in itself—but as far as the real world is concerned, he was sorely mistaken when it comes to Meyer's audition journey.
I just thought this story was pretty funny, and more importantly, I think it's rad that Breckin was really a skateboarder. Just a kid in Hollywood trying to make his dreams come true! All that pushing paid off, though, you know? From skating the streets to ripping the big screen, let this be a reminder to just go for it—whatever "it" might be. Really, though...let's see some more Travis Birkenstock clips! Dude ripped at vert.
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