November 5, 2025 • 36 mins
To kick off the podcast, Telma Hopkins (aka Aunt Rachel) and Kellie Williams (aka Laura Winslow) rewatch the pilot of "Family Matters" called "The Mama Who Came to Dinner" and remember how they each got cast on the show.
Leave us a voicemail at thefamilymatterspod.com! Let us know what you think of the podcast and share your own memories of "Family Matters." And if you have any questions, issues, or "family matters" of your own that you need advice on, drop us a line and Telma and Kellie will do their best to help!
Follow us on Instagram @welcometothefamilypod. And follow Telma @telma_hopkins and Kellie @kellieswilliams.
"Welcome to the Family with Telma and Kellie" is an Audiation and iHeartRadio production.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Reminiscence, omission this day and age, Kelly and Thelma and
we're turning the hay. We're talking Family Matters. It's about
those times. Tell them what happened three between the line.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
We're bringing the cast and crew and you and your
family to.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
That's all we need is Kelly and me talk about
the stories of a family.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Drive. We're serving up.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
But taste a bat in the day.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Girls, family, listen to us.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
We've got something to say. Well say, there's plenty of
room and from the Sun to the Moon.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
Family, it's Midnight or no God with Kelly and Me.
Welcome to the fam, Elie.
Speaker 4 (01:11):
Kelly, Welcome to the family, y'all. Welcome, Welcome to.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Yes, I'm Telma and I'm Kelly, and we both starred
in a ninety sitcom you may have heard of, Family Matters.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
Yes, we had nine amazing seasons filled with so much
joy and laughter and memories that will last a lifetime.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
And they have. You know, this series was one of
the only sitcoms at that time centering on a black family,
and it resonated with folks all across the country. In fact,
and I'm so proud of this. Family Matters is one
of the longest running sitcoms with a black cast, with
an amazing two hundred and fifteen episodes under our belt.
(01:56):
Come on, now, you know that's good. Now. I played
Aunt Rachel, Harriet Winslow's crazy, younger sister. She moved in
with the Winslow's with her infant sung Ritchie after her
husband Robert died.
Speaker 3 (02:08):
And I played the witty, smart, sassy and fabulous Laura Winslow,
who was the middle child of the family.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
Oh yeah, you were something else. You know. Most of
the cast members have stayed in touch over the years,
but Kelly and I talk all the time, yes, and
we were thinking that it might be fun to get
together and look back on our time filming the show.
I mean, it took some broad in but we're getting
it done. And I'm so glad because as far as
I'm concerned, the show did more for me than I
(02:37):
could ever imagine. I mean, I raised half of America
and me and you, right, and.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
As a kid actor, the experience of being on a
real sec with legends like yourself was unimaginable.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
Well, the legend was Rosetta ln why Mother Winslow. But
thinking about the start of it all working with you guys,
you were so talented. Everybody came with credits with Reggie
and with Joe, and then with our producers by Boyett
and Tom Miller, it just felt like it was going
to be something special.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
Well I don't know about all that, but I was
just excited to be in the building. Okay, But I
couldn't have imagined that the show would have taken on
such a life, been so impactful to our fans and
to one another, to us.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Yes, absolutely, you know. In thinking about it, we thought
it would be fun to share our experiences and some
of our stories with the lifelong fans of the show
through a rewatch podcast. Yes, So we want to welcome
you all to our family, which of course you're already
a part of.
Speaker 3 (03:36):
Yes Now. In each episode, we'll recount our favorite behind
the scenes stories and share personal reflections about making the show.
We'll bring in the cast and other special guests to
join in on the fun too. So let's get it study.
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Let g let get it study.
Speaker 3 (03:54):
Come on, okay, and welcome to the family.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
Since this is our debut episode of our podcast, we
figured we start with the beginning with the series pilot
entitled The Mama who came to dinner.
Speaker 3 (04:14):
Now, in addition to introducing you guys to the Winslows,
this episode has something for everybody. Yes, well, before we
start all of that, let's take a step back and
talk a little bit about how we all ended up
on the show.
Speaker 2 (04:26):
Now, that's a story in itself.
Speaker 3 (04:32):
Well tell me, you're quite accomplished, so you probably should
go first.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
And yeah, okay, but I didn't start when I was twelve.
You know, nobody hired me for anything back in that day.
I started out with Tony Orlando and Dawn way back
in the day as a singer. I grew up in Detroit,
so I worked at Motown as a kid. I got
to sing with the Four Tops and people like that.
I worked with Isaac Hayes for years for Hot Buttered Soul.
(04:59):
I was a substitute singer, but I managed to work
all the time because somebody was either sick or pregnant
all the time. And from there I met Tony Orlando.
That's when that started, and three years later we got
the show after Ty Yellow Ribbon, which became like a
national anthem, and we did three and a half years
on CBS, went on tour, and I did Oh God,
(05:22):
Buso and Buddies with Tom Eggs and Peter Scalari. I
did a show call A New Kind of Family with
Eileen Brenham, which was the show that I met Bob
and Tom on who produced our show. And when they
decided to do Family Matters, they hadn't even sold it
and they called me and asked me if I wanted
to be a part of it.
Speaker 3 (05:41):
My journey to Family Matters was I was a really
shy kid, so my family put me into theater as
a kid to kind of bring me out before I
started school. And I enjoyed it so much that I
began doing local plays in the Washington, DC area. So
I was doing all kind of stuff, Greek tragedies, the Baki,
and then I did Joe Turner's Coming On with the cast.
And while I was doing that show, I got a
(06:04):
call from my local manager that they were looking for
a girl for a show in Los Angeles. So I
went and I did a home video in my basement,
in my parents' basement, and they sent into California. I'm
sure it's horrible, but I hope they destroyed that tape.
But then I had an audition in New York and
(06:24):
I came to California and I met the cast, and
here we are. I remember when I first got the
show and I first arrived in Los Angeles. I mean
I just was like, this is the most surreal thing.
I mean because until then I pretty much just done
like movie of the weeks and like commercials, but mostly theater.
(06:44):
So I mean this whole I was so nervous when
I showed up on set, because I mean it was
like the Sauny lot. What was it before? Tell me
it was the Loram first Laura Lorimar. So, I mean,
the whole experience was so new to me. I just
remember that I had no sense of what to expect.
(07:07):
Nothing really prepared me to be on like a major
studio lot. It was like so overwhelming, all of the
adults and Darius had done a lot of other things before.
So I just was so nervous. I didn't want to
screw up.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
Couldn't tell it. You may have been trembling inside, but
when that light came on, you did your thing, miss Bossi.
It's so funny. You were such a little bossy thing
in that pilot. And I put in my notes when
I was watching it that you had a thug moment
with little Oh no, who was that girl? Judy? Right? Right?
(07:48):
But you had a moment yet, let's take it outside.
I was like, no, that's because.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
They told me that I should be like a kind
of a mirror of Joe Marie, Like it should be
a mini a junior thug, a mini Joe Marie. So
I've wanted to give it a little spice, a.
Speaker 2 (08:04):
Little So let's talk about did you remember that Judy
was another Judy on the pilot? I was so thrown.
I was like, who's that? I mean, I recognized her face,
but for some reason, I thought she had just been
a guest on the show. I don't know what I thought,
but I certainly didn't know she was.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
This is one of the things that I'm embarrassed to
say I didn't remember until I watched the episode.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
I didn't.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
I was like, who's that?
Speaker 3 (08:30):
Right? Because I was like, oh, my goodness, chiall, you
know we lose children. I mean, going upstairs that second
floor is like don't the Bermuda triangle.
Speaker 2 (08:40):
Go in and at your own risk, don't look at
the library in.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
Chill you out of here. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (08:47):
I was truly shot. It seemed like every actor on
the show had a unique path to getting there.
Speaker 4 (08:57):
You know.
Speaker 2 (08:57):
One of my all time favorites was Rosetta Line, who
played the Winslow family's matriarch Estelle. Her career was not
only legendary, but she's one of the actors who opened
the door for people like me to walk through. She
was amazing. I mean, there were so many things that
just made me giggle. I was so tickled. But what
(09:20):
was one of your favorite moments on the show when
you're finding out.
Speaker 3 (09:22):
That Rosetta knew Bill Bil Jingles Robinson that.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
Was her god Daddy's unbelievable.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
I used to do this. I was a part of
this theater group at Howard University called the Howard University
Children's Theater, and we did plays about different African American
figures and he was one of the people that was
in the play. And I was like that she actually
knew him, that he was her godfather. It was like unbelievable,
the amount of history that she held with her.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
She baby, said James Earl Jones. I mean, she was,
she was in it.
Speaker 3 (09:55):
She was, she baby, said James Earl Jones.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
James Earl Jones, you know, And then there was her
Amas theater that she started, Yes, in her latter years,
but yeah, she was an icon. You know. She didn't
get the recognition that she should have gotten in her time,
but she was an icon for sure. And I'd had
the pleasure of working with her on Give Me a Break,
so I already had that kind of familiar feel with
(10:20):
her and was just so happy that she got a
chance to do our show because she was treated like
the queen she was, and she opened the doors for us.
Speaker 3 (10:31):
Tell them how they made you, like, kind of get
her to do it? Well.
Speaker 2 (10:36):
It was my idea actually, because when I went in
to meet with Bob and Tom, they were still looking
for the mom. And when they told me that, I said, oh,
I know the perfect person, you know. And I told
them about Rosetta and how she had played Nell's MoMA
and Give Me a Break, and so they were like,
she's great. They loved it. They said, you know, I
gave them their number call her, you know, and they
(10:57):
called her and she turned him down. She turned him
down because she had had a tough time on Give
Me a Break. It was not the most fun she'd
ever had, and she really was feeling like she didn't
want to put herself in that position at that age again.
And so they called me, and then I called her
and I told her that I would never bring her
(11:18):
into a situation that I didn't know was going to
honor her. And I said, just trust me this one time.
You're going to get the kind of treatment on this
show that you should get everywhere you go.
Speaker 3 (11:29):
And you knew that because you had done stuff with
them before, right mm hmm.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
I had done with some buddies with them before. So
she trusted me and she said yes. And they treated
her like I said, the way she should have been
treated on everything she did. They just took care of her.
She had a driver, she had her place, she had
an assistant. I mean, they just spoiled her. And it
was really just wonderful to see.
Speaker 3 (11:54):
Did you ever talk to her about how she felt
after accepting the role? Did she did? She loved it, Oh,
she did.
Speaker 2 (12:01):
She was so happy that she had done it, and
she thanked me for it. But she was really happy
working on family matters. And it was I think the
kind of project that she could really sink her teeth
into because she was all about family, right. There was
(12:22):
so many fun things I remember about being on seton
this pilot episode was America being introduced to the Winslows
and witnessing a black modern, multi generational household in action.
That's right. And in this episode, Karl's mother, Estelle is
moving in and he is pretty nervous about how this
might impact the dynamics of the family, not the family
(12:43):
him because he knows she gonna put him on a diet.
Speaker 3 (12:46):
Okay, and as you see, she's quite feisty when she
shows up in Chicago's We're assuming that she had cut
up every other city she had been to with all
the other kids.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
None of the other four sons wanted her, so.
Speaker 3 (13:00):
She walked up in Chicago with Carl and Harriet. Yeah,
and we also get to meet Tiloma's character, Aunt Rachel,
who's a young widow and a single mom. So you
have a strong will grandmother, a wife that's just a
stubborn and a sister who has her own situationship all
in one household.
Speaker 2 (13:17):
You know. Seeing the dynamics between the mom Harriet played
by Joe Marie and Rosetta's character Escelle showed how black
women have always had a core role in the family.
You know, the writers were able to write these characters
in a way that made them seem like our mother, grandmother, aunties,
just like in real life.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
Oh absolutely, And don't forget those adorable babies. Yeah, they
were adorable till they got teeth and bit me. Yes,
there were twins that played the role initially, and I
was just so enthralled with the fact that I got
to play a young mom and I had these juicy
babies to play with, and that I could come back
(13:56):
to their mother and send them home and collect the
check and just keep moving. But I really enjoyed that.
I think one of my most spectacular memories. Just before
we did the pilot, we did the table read.
Speaker 2 (14:09):
And at the time that we did the table read,
I was in Lake Tahoe doing a show with Tony
orlandoing Dawn, and so in order to get to LA
I had to like drive the Reno and then a
good little plane to get on to get to LA
And it's quite a tedious journey. And when Bob found
out they sent a lear Jet for me all by myself,
(14:33):
one whole jet. Two pilots picked me up in Lake Tahoe,
I was just like, this cannot be happening. Flew me
to LA They said, we'll be here on the tarmac
till you finished. I was just like, wow, Okay, got
in the limo, went did the table read, hopped back
in the car, went back and did a show that night.
(14:55):
That was to me. I said, now I'm a star.
This is I'm at the pinnacle. I got a leergit.
Speaker 3 (15:04):
I love that, and I think for me it's you know,
I was just excited to get the pilot. So I
when I got there, I was this theater actor. I
thought I was, you know, doing something. Then I got
there and I was like, oh, oh god, I'm in
a room and everything looking like a new a newbie.
So I just had to like get myself together and
then but everybody was just so warm and warm and fuzzy.
(15:26):
So I had a ball.
Speaker 2 (15:29):
I think too the fact that it was with the
people that were producing him, and they were you know,
tried and true, so we kind of knew that once
we got on the air it was going. It was
that kind of feeling, like the anticipation and the excitement
and the new relationships and me with the babies and
(15:51):
the kids. I was all excited about that. It was
just a wonderful feeling. And then to become part of
that whole tgif Thank God It's Friday, that whole lineup. Oh,
it was just amazing. Not to mention that not many
people know this, but we had one of the best
theme songs ever. Initially it was what a Wonderful World?
(16:16):
It was fabulous, and I remember a TV Guide article
said it was the best theme song on TV that season,
and it lasted for the pilot when it came back.
It's a rare conditions just the age, you know, we
were right back to that.
Speaker 3 (16:33):
We were really experiencing a lot of the things that
were happening on the show, specifically the pipet. Like, I
was just shocked. It usually takes you a long time
to create that kind of rhythm, kind of a dance
that you have like with a good dance partner, But
for some reason, with us, it was just very natural.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
It was They always use the word authentic, but it
was it was There was no having to figure out
how to be family.
Speaker 3 (16:58):
And it wasn't cliche either, you know what I mean.
Like a lot of times when you see sitcoms like that,
it's like really cliche because you don't have a real
connection with people.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
We had that immediately. Well, I think Bob and Tom
knew what they could utilize our talents for and looked
for episodes like the choir episodes, remember those, Kelly.
Speaker 3 (17:20):
But I think they looked.
Speaker 2 (17:21):
For things that showed that talent and allowed us and
we were all basically everybody in there was a performer,
so it wasn't like we were doing something we wouldn't
have done if we were all gathered at my house
or when we were at Reggie's house, or if we
were you know. It was the sort of thing that
was just natural for us. And music is such a
great just integrator. I mean, songs just bring people together.
(17:45):
And we already loved each other and we're creating this relationship,
so things like that, we were finding out what we
could do together because we didn't always know.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
I think this is the thing that people don't get
with the way that television is done now, because you
don't ever get a chance to really find out what
the performers can do. So you don't get to usually
explore those kinds of things because it's so quick that
you don't get to develop a character and to really
let it marinate and really just let it breathe a
(18:17):
little bit. I think through the years and just with
each other, we've found so many great things that just
came organically because we got to spend the time. The
writers got to know us, and we got to know
each other so that you can do a scene and
do what Lucy and ethel scene because I know that
I can go there with you.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
Right.
Speaker 3 (18:36):
It may seem completely foreign to somebody else who's not
familiar with your rhythm, but I know that I can
jump over the couch and be nuts or cry or
sing us all or whatever. But it takes time to
develop those voices, and most times you don't get a
chance to do that because it's so quick and dirty.
Speaker 2 (18:54):
Yeah, and also I think we were allowed even the
time to be vulnerable, because you find so many things
when you feel safe with a performer. We felt safe
with each other, so we could take chances, we could
fall on our face and be okay with it because
we knew we had backup, and we developed that very
early on. I don't know how or why or what,
(19:15):
but the personalities, the things that we enjoyed our relationships,
but even between like Kelly's mom and I hung out
Darius's mom and I hung out. We had relationships that
went beyond the people that were on the stage.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
The connection of the characters in real life was the
thing that I think I was most shocked about, because
usually you'd go there, you do your job. But the
connection that I had with the cast members was so natural.
It made the work so much easier. People never knew
we were working. Like by after the fourth or fifth season,
we were working like twenty hour weeks. We knew what
(19:50):
to do, how to do it. Were you supposed to
stay and get here? If you're taking too much time, Hunty,
you had to go. We're trying to get this done,
you know what I'm saying. We developed rhythm. It worked
like a machine. It's just like a good dance partner.
You know the rhythm, you know how to move when
they move. We got it and we just did it.
We know what we were doing with each other because
(20:12):
I could trust the director, I could trute the other
actors right.
Speaker 2 (20:17):
And remember when we actually got it down to a
four day week where we filmed Tuesday through Friday. I
think we were doing some show and they said, well,
if you can do it, you know, if you can
get it done in four days. Yeah, you can have
the extra day. We got it done in four days,
so we got Mondays off after that.
Speaker 3 (20:41):
When I reflect on the show, I'm in awe of
how impactful the show was. This family had characters that
everybody could relate to, and it.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
Really has stood the test of time because it is
a slice of life and it is relatable. And how
many kids are back home again, how many generations are
once again living under this Yep.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
So true. Because you know, the show was ahead of
his time, so the writers and producers made a big
effort to represent a black family in ways the television
hadn't shown before exactly.
Speaker 2 (21:11):
I think that set up the foundation, first of all
for the show, because it showed these three generations who
were living together and the hierarchy that was in that family.
And then when you add to it a fourth generation,
a grandmother, a matriarch who is used to running things,
and how that affects the family dynamic and how we
(21:33):
deal with it and resolve it.
Speaker 3 (21:36):
I love seeing the hierarchy of the family because I
noticed that my children do that with me now, Like
for some reason, my children can sense when there's a
person that's more adult than me, So they begin to
play on the fact that I'm actually constricted by my
role within the hierarchy. Like when my kids see my
(21:59):
mother and they want something, they appeal to my mother
because they know that I can only go so far
with the no. Their request is ultimately determined by my
mother when she's around, because she has to say so
over me. I thought that was so great in the show.
I mean again, it's just one of the things that
I really loved when I saw that. You know, Eddie,
(22:19):
who lets their kid go out fifteen year old in
Chicago till two o'clock in the morning. Nobody letting their
kid go out that late until grandmother comes and says, so,
what you're gonna do with me? You could tell him no,
you ain't gonna tell me no. Now you go out
and do what you want to do, and it's nothing
you could do.
Speaker 2 (22:33):
I also love just the way that whole thing came
together because she did and Rosette had such a sly
way that she had let that little sly side look
she'd give when you knew she was up to something.
Because even at the dinner table when they were talking
about the party, and she' say, oh, you know, they'll
let drinking and girls and all that. She puts Kyl
(22:54):
into the position of correcting himself almost because he has
the well no there's not gonna be any drain. Well
no there's no girl. Well no, you know their parents
are there. So they take everything that he had said
was law and tossed it out the window with a
look and talking him into contradicting himself. But what I
also loved was when Karl got up the nerve after,
(23:18):
of course Harry had made him go to her. I'd
love that, See where it's your mother, Harry, you need
to go talk to her. It's your mother. Is that
all you got? That's all I need? And she sent
him off. But I loved how when he came in
to talk to his mother, it was no longer that
child mother. I mean, he really came to her as
(23:40):
a father, understanding her role, understanding why she was the
way she was because she has had to fight that
battle for all her kids. But I loved how he
brought the truth to her in a such a strong way,
but very kind the reminding her, And I loved that
immediately she got it, pivot, she acknowledged it, She apologized,
(24:04):
for that, but when he wanted her to apologize for
telling Eddie that his curfew was too early or whatever,
and she said, oh, I wasn't wrong about that. I mean,
she didn't change who she was. She still let him know, Okay,
I'll do things your way as your advisor. But I'm
not apologizing for that because I wasn't wrong about that.
Speaker 3 (24:25):
I love that. But you know what, I didn't notice
mother Winslow and Harriet were similar. That's true. I didn't
notice it because they begin to butt heads in later episodes,
but he married his mom. They were basically the same person.
That's what was so funny. And here, Laura, the character
is the next generation being the same person.
Speaker 2 (24:47):
But even Judy's character was sassy. Yeah, it had harriet
tendency correct, you know, it was really funny.
Speaker 3 (24:54):
But how feisty she was, you know, and then you
see the mother. I mean, they were just battling it out.
I was like, oh, I never knew that that was
a thing until I saw that.
Speaker 2 (25:04):
The scene where Rosette is consoling, We're gonna have to
eat my stomach, I mean, just and Harriet was still
in the mold when this is my mother in law.
I We're gonna love having her here. And she says, well,
dinner's almost ready. You like meat Low, And then it
begins again. I don't know, I don't like me. Maybe
(25:27):
yours is different. And she said, does the hell meet
in it? And Herery said yes. Other than that, we
would call it loaf. And then she turned and the
look on her face, Oh my god, was so real.
She was just like, you know, and that set up
(25:48):
that whole thing to continue, because there was always they
were together, they were button heads, they were together, they
were button heads. But it was really fun to watch.
And I've just gotta say, mister reggievel Johns Man, oh
my gosh, that boy is acting his face, a master
(26:10):
of facial expressions, attitudes. I just enjoyed him so much
on this episode. He has some looks, he does some
stuff with his face. Just priceless, just priceless. And my
favorite out of all of that was when we sat
at the dinner table after mother Winslow had come in
(26:31):
and taking his chair again ahead of the table, when
Harriet says, do you want to say the prayer? And
he goes, let us pray, Oh Lord, right, protect us
from evil? But again, I mean.
Speaker 3 (26:49):
There's so many nods to how I grew up at
my father's house. He has a chair. My husband comes
and sits at my father's chair, a slim. I love,
you got to go, you gotta get up, it's since chair.
I love the fact that that's there because it's a
real thing. Yeah, I think we just wanted to really
give a full picture of what maybe black life is,
(27:10):
where everything's not perfect and there's not like a boat
on every episode, which I mean it kind of wound
up being that way, but you know how people struggle,
but they depend on each other to survive. And so
with the moving end of the grandmother, I think it
was just a way to kind of introduce the family
(27:31):
to people in a way that they could understand how
much it mirrored their own family in real life.
Speaker 2 (27:37):
Really. I mean, I was raised by my grandmother, so
that was really special to me to have a grandmother
in the home. That's how I grew up was with
my grandmother. Yes, So that character just gave such a
richness to the family to me because of that.
Speaker 3 (27:55):
Because I mean, everybody, no matter who you are, you
kind of get that we represent in every family.
Speaker 2 (28:01):
Yeah, we really did that part.
Speaker 3 (28:04):
I love too. I love the fact that people connected
with the show so much that they actually felt like
they knew you in their real life, like you were
a character in their real life. When they see you,
they automatically want to hug you, like you're walking into
their front door, you know, when you're at the grocery store.
It's like they're a cousin of yours.
Speaker 2 (28:21):
I had to get used to people feeling like I
was their family, even though you know, I was on
a show called Family Matters. It took me a minute.
People would call me Aunt Rachel. I wouldn't know what
they were talking about. You know, I'd be living around
to see who Aunt Rachel was, and if they call
me tell me. I was almost taken aback, like I
(28:42):
don't know you, you know, why are you calling me
by my name? And oh I love you on Family Matters?
Oh oh yes, yes, I am her. It took me
a minute to get used to it on that level.
Even though I've been on hit shows before, you know,
it was just a different kind of vibe. And I
think certain shows that I had been on, like Bus
and Buddies was more of an adult type show. This
(29:03):
show just had such a huge range because it was
little kids the old people, so you never knew who
was gonna stop you. I found that a little unnerving.
It took me a minute to get used to it,
but I did love it.
Speaker 3 (29:15):
I think that that let me know that we were
doing it right, that we were actually living in a
way where people could feel something. As an actor, that's
the goal, you want to make it so that people
feel what you are doing. I mean, you want it
to be a literal feeling, like when you watch a
show and you start crying, it's because you're having a
(29:36):
real reaction to what's going on, as if you're inside
the fourth wall and you're one of the characters in
the show. So that's one of the things that I
loved about the show is and it happened almost immediately.
People felt like they were extended family members. From the pilot.
Speaker 2 (29:51):
Even people were telling these stories about how their kid
would have a meltdown if they had to take a
bath when Family Matters was coming on, so they had
to rig up a TV in the bathroom to get
the kid take a bath so he could get in
bed right after the show for school the next day.
But he said if he couldn't see the show, they
(30:11):
would have no peace. And I had got stories like
that all around tgif was real, So that became family
time for a lot of people, a gathering time that
was missing, and a lot of families they didn't have
a reason to be together at eight o'clock.
Speaker 3 (30:26):
Tell them, Yes, what would you have done if I
told you I wasn't going to take a bath, if
I didn't see a particular TV show? What would you
have done to me? I just want to know.
Speaker 2 (30:36):
I can't say it on Mike, but believe you'd have
taken the bath one way or the other. And I'd
called your mama and told her what I did to
make sure that when you got home she did the
same thing. So we were on the same page.
Speaker 3 (30:59):
Look y'all hearing her from her own boys, and she
don't act like she cared that.
Speaker 2 (31:04):
You know this, don't care at all.
Speaker 3 (31:15):
My parents considered Telma a third parent and took me in.
She would bring me to her house every weekend.
Speaker 2 (31:22):
Yeah, a third parent.
Speaker 3 (31:24):
I was a third parent, and I mean that in
the most serious one you are.
Speaker 2 (31:27):
And I think for me, the extension of the show,
especially because I got to have those little chubby babies
on the show. But one of the things that I've
always said was what I did best was being a mom.
If I compare, I love my career, but I think
my best work is my son. So it was for me.
I'm kind of a nurturer, although if you had asked
(31:48):
me then I would have said, no, I'm not because
that reminded me of my grandmother. But I really am
sort of a gatherer, and I immediately took to the kids,
you know. I mean, it was just like an extension
of my own child. The kids were just more family,
more kids to love. I mean, I only had the one,
(32:09):
but I was able to gather up a few more,
and I enjoyed every minute of it.
Speaker 3 (32:12):
To this day, it's like such a fun time in
my life, such a great memory.
Speaker 2 (32:17):
Yeah, we really did have some wonderful times.
Speaker 3 (32:20):
I hope I was that for you too.
Speaker 2 (32:22):
If you give me a moment, I was about to
just brag on you. No, I think, and especially with you. Yeah,
I felt like your mom. I felt like if Pat
wasn't there, if your father wasn't around, they didn't have
to be. I got you, you know, and we watched
out for all the kids like that, you know. We
(32:42):
felt as the adults. Yeah probably, but you know, dirty
job and somebody's got to do it. But we did
it because we loved you and we wanted you to
have the best of this experience and not all the
silliness and craziness that can go along, especially for kids.
Very protective, it still am. I mean, I'm protective of
(33:02):
my relationship with you now.
Speaker 3 (33:06):
I love you too.
Speaker 2 (33:07):
I love you too, I do All right, let's move. Yeah,
we're getting all emotional and stuff. We'll be sniffling.
Speaker 3 (33:21):
It is always so good chatting with you, miss tell
me thank you, babe. You feel like I'm learning so
many new things just talking with you and reflecting back
on the show.
Speaker 2 (33:29):
Yeah, I mean, we have got some stories and it's
so good to be working side by side with you again.
You know, I've just had to watch you grow as
an actress and now you're a mom and an amazing woman.
You are just all that anibola chips.
Speaker 3 (33:43):
Oh you only say it because it's true.
Speaker 2 (33:45):
Yeah, okay, and you're so humble. I forgot to add that.
But there is so much more when it comes to
our experience as creating family matters. Next time we will
be discussing one of the show's more serious episodes, another
one that was ahead of its time but still very
relevant today, maybe even more relevant.
Speaker 3 (34:05):
Yeah, and we'll get to dive deep into those kinds
of episodes. What they did for millions of people are
other family members that were.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
Watching and us. Well, that's it for this week, but
stay tuned.
Speaker 3 (34:19):
Yeah, we're gonna rewatch each episode of Family Matters week
by week, so make sure to rewatch the show right
along with us. You can catch it on Hulu and
TVs and a bunch of other places.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
Welcome to the Family with Telma and Kelly is a
production of iHeart Podcasts and Audiation. It's hosted by me
Tloma Hopkins and me Kelly Williams. Our executive producers are
Sandy Smalling's for Audiation, Adam Rip, J D. Hopkins, who
also happens to be my son and Kelly's Poe bro
and Jonathan Strickland for iHeart Podcasts.
Speaker 3 (34:52):
The show is produced by Telma and I but our
series producer is Irelen Meechen and our theme songs lyrics
were written by JD. Hopp and Adam Rip. The theme
song was scored and mixed by Matt Noble, who's also
our series mixer.
Speaker 2 (35:06):
And we'd like to thank Nikki Etour and the entire
iHeart Podcast team. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 3 (35:12):
Follow us on Instagram and welcome to the Family Pod
for behind the scenes photos and more bonus content.
Speaker 2 (35:18):
And don't forget to leave us a voicemail at our website,
Thefamilymatterspod dot com. We want to hear your thoughts and
favorite memories of the show and let us know if
you need advice, because we're good for some bad advice.
We might be able to help you with your own
Family Matters and make.
Speaker 3 (35:33):
Sure to rate and review us wherever you're listening. We
are so excited to have you guys along for the ride.
Speaker 2 (35:39):
Yes, Welcome to the family, y'all, and we'll see you
next time. Welcome to the Family.
Speaker 1 (35:55):
Audiation
Reminiscence, omission this day and age, Kelly and Thelma and
we're turning the hay. We're talking Family Matters. It's about
those times. Tell them what happened three between the line.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
We're bringing the cast and crew and you and your
family to.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
That's all we need is Kelly and me talk about
the stories of a family.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Drive. We're serving up.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
But taste a bat in the day.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Girls, family, listen to us.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
We've got something to say. Well say, there's plenty of
room and from the Sun to the Moon.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
Family, it's Midnight or no God with Kelly and Me.
Welcome to the fam, Elie.
Speaker 4 (01:11):
Kelly, Welcome to the family, y'all. Welcome, Welcome to.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Yes, I'm Telma and I'm Kelly, and we both starred
in a ninety sitcom you may have heard of, Family Matters.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
Yes, we had nine amazing seasons filled with so much
joy and laughter and memories that will last a lifetime.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
And they have. You know, this series was one of
the only sitcoms at that time centering on a black family,
and it resonated with folks all across the country. In fact,
and I'm so proud of this. Family Matters is one
of the longest running sitcoms with a black cast, with
an amazing two hundred and fifteen episodes under our belt.
(01:56):
Come on, now, you know that's good. Now. I played
Aunt Rachel, Harriet Winslow's crazy, younger sister. She moved in
with the Winslow's with her infant sung Ritchie after her
husband Robert died.
Speaker 3 (02:08):
And I played the witty, smart, sassy and fabulous Laura Winslow,
who was the middle child of the family.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
Oh yeah, you were something else. You know. Most of
the cast members have stayed in touch over the years,
but Kelly and I talk all the time, yes, and
we were thinking that it might be fun to get
together and look back on our time filming the show.
I mean, it took some broad in but we're getting
it done. And I'm so glad because as far as
I'm concerned, the show did more for me than I
(02:37):
could ever imagine. I mean, I raised half of America
and me and you, right, and.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
As a kid actor, the experience of being on a
real sec with legends like yourself was unimaginable.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
Well, the legend was Rosetta ln why Mother Winslow. But
thinking about the start of it all working with you guys,
you were so talented. Everybody came with credits with Reggie
and with Joe, and then with our producers by Boyett
and Tom Miller, it just felt like it was going
to be something special.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
Well I don't know about all that, but I was
just excited to be in the building. Okay, But I
couldn't have imagined that the show would have taken on
such a life, been so impactful to our fans and
to one another, to us.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
Yes, absolutely, you know. In thinking about it, we thought
it would be fun to share our experiences and some
of our stories with the lifelong fans of the show
through a rewatch podcast. Yes, So we want to welcome
you all to our family, which of course you're already
a part of.
Speaker 3 (03:36):
Yes Now. In each episode, we'll recount our favorite behind
the scenes stories and share personal reflections about making the show.
We'll bring in the cast and other special guests to
join in on the fun too. So let's get it study.
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Let g let get it study.
Speaker 3 (03:54):
Come on, okay, and welcome to the family.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
Since this is our debut episode of our podcast, we
figured we start with the beginning with the series pilot
entitled The Mama who came to dinner.
Speaker 3 (04:14):
Now, in addition to introducing you guys to the Winslows,
this episode has something for everybody. Yes, well, before we
start all of that, let's take a step back and
talk a little bit about how we all ended up
on the show.
Speaker 2 (04:26):
Now, that's a story in itself.
Speaker 3 (04:32):
Well tell me, you're quite accomplished, so you probably should
go first.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
And yeah, okay, but I didn't start when I was twelve.
You know, nobody hired me for anything back in that day.
I started out with Tony Orlando and Dawn way back
in the day as a singer. I grew up in Detroit,
so I worked at Motown as a kid. I got
to sing with the Four Tops and people like that.
I worked with Isaac Hayes for years for Hot Buttered Soul.
(04:59):
I was a substitute singer, but I managed to work
all the time because somebody was either sick or pregnant
all the time. And from there I met Tony Orlando.
That's when that started, and three years later we got
the show after Ty Yellow Ribbon, which became like a
national anthem, and we did three and a half years
on CBS, went on tour, and I did Oh God,
(05:22):
Buso and Buddies with Tom Eggs and Peter Scalari. I
did a show call A New Kind of Family with
Eileen Brenham, which was the show that I met Bob
and Tom on who produced our show. And when they
decided to do Family Matters, they hadn't even sold it
and they called me and asked me if I wanted
to be a part of it.
Speaker 3 (05:41):
My journey to Family Matters was I was a really
shy kid, so my family put me into theater as
a kid to kind of bring me out before I
started school. And I enjoyed it so much that I
began doing local plays in the Washington, DC area. So
I was doing all kind of stuff, Greek tragedies, the Baki,
and then I did Joe Turner's Coming On with the cast.
And while I was doing that show, I got a
(06:04):
call from my local manager that they were looking for
a girl for a show in Los Angeles. So I
went and I did a home video in my basement,
in my parents' basement, and they sent into California. I'm
sure it's horrible, but I hope they destroyed that tape.
But then I had an audition in New York and
(06:24):
I came to California and I met the cast, and
here we are. I remember when I first got the
show and I first arrived in Los Angeles. I mean
I just was like, this is the most surreal thing.
I mean because until then I pretty much just done
like movie of the weeks and like commercials, but mostly theater.
(06:44):
So I mean this whole I was so nervous when
I showed up on set, because I mean it was
like the Sauny lot. What was it before? Tell me
it was the Loram first Laura Lorimar. So, I mean,
the whole experience was so new to me. I just
remember that I had no sense of what to expect.
(07:07):
Nothing really prepared me to be on like a major
studio lot. It was like so overwhelming, all of the
adults and Darius had done a lot of other things before.
So I just was so nervous. I didn't want to
screw up.
Speaker 2 (07:23):
Couldn't tell it. You may have been trembling inside, but
when that light came on, you did your thing, miss Bossi.
It's so funny. You were such a little bossy thing
in that pilot. And I put in my notes when
I was watching it that you had a thug moment
with little Oh no, who was that girl? Judy? Right? Right?
(07:48):
But you had a moment yet, let's take it outside.
I was like, no, that's because.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
They told me that I should be like a kind
of a mirror of Joe Marie, Like it should be
a mini a junior thug, a mini Joe Marie. So
I've wanted to give it a little spice, a.
Speaker 2 (08:04):
Little So let's talk about did you remember that Judy
was another Judy on the pilot? I was so thrown.
I was like, who's that? I mean, I recognized her face,
but for some reason, I thought she had just been
a guest on the show. I don't know what I thought,
but I certainly didn't know she was.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
This is one of the things that I'm embarrassed to
say I didn't remember until I watched the episode.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
I didn't.
Speaker 2 (08:28):
I was like, who's that?
Speaker 3 (08:30):
Right? Because I was like, oh, my goodness, chiall, you
know we lose children. I mean, going upstairs that second
floor is like don't the Bermuda triangle.
Speaker 2 (08:40):
Go in and at your own risk, don't look at
the library in.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
Chill you out of here. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (08:47):
I was truly shot. It seemed like every actor on
the show had a unique path to getting there.
Speaker 4 (08:57):
You know.
Speaker 2 (08:57):
One of my all time favorites was Rosetta Line, who
played the Winslow family's matriarch Estelle. Her career was not
only legendary, but she's one of the actors who opened
the door for people like me to walk through. She
was amazing. I mean, there were so many things that
just made me giggle. I was so tickled. But what
(09:20):
was one of your favorite moments on the show when
you're finding out.
Speaker 3 (09:22):
That Rosetta knew Bill Bil Jingles Robinson that.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
Was her god Daddy's unbelievable.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
I used to do this. I was a part of
this theater group at Howard University called the Howard University
Children's Theater, and we did plays about different African American
figures and he was one of the people that was
in the play. And I was like that she actually
knew him, that he was her godfather. It was like unbelievable,
the amount of history that she held with her.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
She baby, said James Earl Jones. I mean, she was,
she was in it.
Speaker 3 (09:55):
She was, she baby, said James Earl Jones.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
James Earl Jones, you know, And then there was her
Amas theater that she started, Yes, in her latter years,
but yeah, she was an icon. You know. She didn't
get the recognition that she should have gotten in her time,
but she was an icon for sure. And I'd had
the pleasure of working with her on Give Me a Break,
so I already had that kind of familiar feel with
(10:20):
her and was just so happy that she got a
chance to do our show because she was treated like
the queen she was, and she opened the doors for us.
Speaker 3 (10:31):
Tell them how they made you, like, kind of get
her to do it? Well.
Speaker 2 (10:36):
It was my idea actually, because when I went in
to meet with Bob and Tom, they were still looking
for the mom. And when they told me that, I said, oh,
I know the perfect person, you know. And I told
them about Rosetta and how she had played Nell's MoMA
and Give Me a Break, and so they were like,
she's great. They loved it. They said, you know, I
gave them their number call her, you know, and they
(10:57):
called her and she turned him down. She turned him
down because she had had a tough time on Give
Me a Break. It was not the most fun she'd
ever had, and she really was feeling like she didn't
want to put herself in that position at that age again.
And so they called me, and then I called her
and I told her that I would never bring her
(11:18):
into a situation that I didn't know was going to
honor her. And I said, just trust me this one time.
You're going to get the kind of treatment on this
show that you should get everywhere you go.
Speaker 3 (11:29):
And you knew that because you had done stuff with
them before, right mm hmm.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
I had done with some buddies with them before. So
she trusted me and she said yes. And they treated
her like I said, the way she should have been
treated on everything she did. They just took care of her.
She had a driver, she had her place, she had
an assistant. I mean, they just spoiled her. And it
was really just wonderful to see.
Speaker 3 (11:54):
Did you ever talk to her about how she felt
after accepting the role? Did she did? She loved it, Oh,
she did.
Speaker 2 (12:01):
She was so happy that she had done it, and
she thanked me for it. But she was really happy
working on family matters. And it was I think the
kind of project that she could really sink her teeth
into because she was all about family, right. There was
(12:22):
so many fun things I remember about being on seton
this pilot episode was America being introduced to the Winslows
and witnessing a black modern, multi generational household in action.
That's right. And in this episode, Karl's mother, Estelle is
moving in and he is pretty nervous about how this
might impact the dynamics of the family, not the family
(12:43):
him because he knows she gonna put him on a diet.
Speaker 3 (12:46):
Okay, and as you see, she's quite feisty when she
shows up in Chicago's We're assuming that she had cut
up every other city she had been to with all
the other kids.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
None of the other four sons wanted her, so.
Speaker 3 (13:00):
She walked up in Chicago with Carl and Harriet. Yeah,
and we also get to meet Tiloma's character, Aunt Rachel,
who's a young widow and a single mom. So you
have a strong will grandmother, a wife that's just a
stubborn and a sister who has her own situationship all
in one household.
Speaker 2 (13:17):
You know. Seeing the dynamics between the mom Harriet played
by Joe Marie and Rosetta's character Escelle showed how black
women have always had a core role in the family.
You know, the writers were able to write these characters
in a way that made them seem like our mother, grandmother, aunties,
just like in real life.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
Oh absolutely, And don't forget those adorable babies. Yeah, they
were adorable till they got teeth and bit me. Yes,
there were twins that played the role initially, and I
was just so enthralled with the fact that I got
to play a young mom and I had these juicy
babies to play with, and that I could come back
(13:56):
to their mother and send them home and collect the
check and just keep moving. But I really enjoyed that.
I think one of my most spectacular memories. Just before
we did the pilot, we did the table read.
Speaker 2 (14:09):
And at the time that we did the table read,
I was in Lake Tahoe doing a show with Tony
orlandoing Dawn, and so in order to get to LA
I had to like drive the Reno and then a
good little plane to get on to get to LA
And it's quite a tedious journey. And when Bob found
out they sent a lear Jet for me all by myself,
(14:33):
one whole jet. Two pilots picked me up in Lake Tahoe,
I was just like, this cannot be happening. Flew me
to LA They said, we'll be here on the tarmac
till you finished. I was just like, wow, Okay, got
in the limo, went did the table read, hopped back
in the car, went back and did a show that night.
(14:55):
That was to me. I said, now I'm a star.
This is I'm at the pinnacle. I got a leergit.
Speaker 3 (15:04):
I love that, and I think for me it's you know,
I was just excited to get the pilot. So I
when I got there, I was this theater actor. I
thought I was, you know, doing something. Then I got
there and I was like, oh, oh god, I'm in
a room and everything looking like a new a newbie.
So I just had to like get myself together and
then but everybody was just so warm and warm and fuzzy.
(15:26):
So I had a ball.
Speaker 2 (15:29):
I think too the fact that it was with the
people that were producing him, and they were you know,
tried and true, so we kind of knew that once
we got on the air it was going. It was
that kind of feeling, like the anticipation and the excitement
and the new relationships and me with the babies and
(15:51):
the kids. I was all excited about that. It was
just a wonderful feeling. And then to become part of
that whole tgif Thank God It's Friday, that whole lineup. Oh,
it was just amazing. Not to mention that not many
people know this, but we had one of the best
theme songs ever. Initially it was what a Wonderful World?
(16:16):
It was fabulous, and I remember a TV Guide article
said it was the best theme song on TV that season,
and it lasted for the pilot when it came back.
It's a rare conditions just the age, you know, we
were right back to that.
Speaker 3 (16:33):
We were really experiencing a lot of the things that
were happening on the show, specifically the pipet. Like, I
was just shocked. It usually takes you a long time
to create that kind of rhythm, kind of a dance
that you have like with a good dance partner, But
for some reason, with us, it was just very natural.
Speaker 2 (16:51):
It was They always use the word authentic, but it
was it was There was no having to figure out
how to be family.
Speaker 3 (16:58):
And it wasn't cliche either, you know what I mean.
Like a lot of times when you see sitcoms like that,
it's like really cliche because you don't have a real
connection with people.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
We had that immediately. Well, I think Bob and Tom
knew what they could utilize our talents for and looked
for episodes like the choir episodes, remember those, Kelly.
Speaker 3 (17:20):
But I think they looked.
Speaker 2 (17:21):
For things that showed that talent and allowed us and
we were all basically everybody in there was a performer,
so it wasn't like we were doing something we wouldn't
have done if we were all gathered at my house
or when we were at Reggie's house, or if we
were you know. It was the sort of thing that
was just natural for us. And music is such a
great just integrator. I mean, songs just bring people together.
(17:45):
And we already loved each other and we're creating this relationship,
so things like that, we were finding out what we
could do together because we didn't always know.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
I think this is the thing that people don't get
with the way that television is done now, because you
don't ever get a chance to really find out what
the performers can do. So you don't get to usually
explore those kinds of things because it's so quick that
you don't get to develop a character and to really
let it marinate and really just let it breathe a
(18:17):
little bit. I think through the years and just with
each other, we've found so many great things that just
came organically because we got to spend the time. The
writers got to know us, and we got to know
each other so that you can do a scene and
do what Lucy and ethel scene because I know that
I can go there with you.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
Right.
Speaker 3 (18:36):
It may seem completely foreign to somebody else who's not
familiar with your rhythm, but I know that I can
jump over the couch and be nuts or cry or
sing us all or whatever. But it takes time to
develop those voices, and most times you don't get a
chance to do that because it's so quick and dirty.
Speaker 2 (18:54):
Yeah, and also I think we were allowed even the
time to be vulnerable, because you find so many things
when you feel safe with a performer. We felt safe
with each other, so we could take chances, we could
fall on our face and be okay with it because
we knew we had backup, and we developed that very
early on. I don't know how or why or what,
(19:15):
but the personalities, the things that we enjoyed our relationships,
but even between like Kelly's mom and I hung out
Darius's mom and I hung out. We had relationships that
went beyond the people that were on the stage.
Speaker 3 (19:29):
The connection of the characters in real life was the
thing that I think I was most shocked about, because
usually you'd go there, you do your job. But the
connection that I had with the cast members was so natural.
It made the work so much easier. People never knew
we were working. Like by after the fourth or fifth season,
we were working like twenty hour weeks. We knew what
(19:50):
to do, how to do it. Were you supposed to
stay and get here? If you're taking too much time, Hunty,
you had to go. We're trying to get this done,
you know what I'm saying. We developed rhythm. It worked
like a machine. It's just like a good dance partner.
You know the rhythm, you know how to move when
they move. We got it and we just did it.
We know what we were doing with each other because
(20:12):
I could trust the director, I could trute the other
actors right.
Speaker 2 (20:17):
And remember when we actually got it down to a
four day week where we filmed Tuesday through Friday. I
think we were doing some show and they said, well,
if you can do it, you know, if you can
get it done in four days. Yeah, you can have
the extra day. We got it done in four days,
so we got Mondays off after that.
Speaker 3 (20:41):
When I reflect on the show, I'm in awe of
how impactful the show was. This family had characters that
everybody could relate to, and it.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
Really has stood the test of time because it is
a slice of life and it is relatable. And how
many kids are back home again, how many generations are
once again living under this Yep.
Speaker 3 (21:01):
So true. Because you know, the show was ahead of
his time, so the writers and producers made a big
effort to represent a black family in ways the television
hadn't shown before exactly.
Speaker 2 (21:11):
I think that set up the foundation, first of all
for the show, because it showed these three generations who
were living together and the hierarchy that was in that family.
And then when you add to it a fourth generation,
a grandmother, a matriarch who is used to running things,
and how that affects the family dynamic and how we
(21:33):
deal with it and resolve it.
Speaker 3 (21:36):
I love seeing the hierarchy of the family because I
noticed that my children do that with me now, Like
for some reason, my children can sense when there's a
person that's more adult than me, So they begin to
play on the fact that I'm actually constricted by my
role within the hierarchy. Like when my kids see my
(21:59):
mother and they want something, they appeal to my mother
because they know that I can only go so far
with the no. Their request is ultimately determined by my
mother when she's around, because she has to say so
over me. I thought that was so great in the show.
I mean again, it's just one of the things that
I really loved when I saw that. You know, Eddie,
(22:19):
who lets their kid go out fifteen year old in
Chicago till two o'clock in the morning. Nobody letting their
kid go out that late until grandmother comes and says, so,
what you're gonna do with me? You could tell him no,
you ain't gonna tell me no. Now you go out
and do what you want to do, and it's nothing
you could do.
Speaker 2 (22:33):
I also love just the way that whole thing came
together because she did and Rosette had such a sly
way that she had let that little sly side look
she'd give when you knew she was up to something.
Because even at the dinner table when they were talking
about the party, and she' say, oh, you know, they'll
let drinking and girls and all that. She puts Kyl
(22:54):
into the position of correcting himself almost because he has
the well no there's not gonna be any drain. Well
no there's no girl. Well no, you know their parents
are there. So they take everything that he had said
was law and tossed it out the window with a
look and talking him into contradicting himself. But what I
also loved was when Karl got up the nerve after,
(23:18):
of course Harry had made him go to her. I'd
love that, See where it's your mother, Harry, you need
to go talk to her. It's your mother. Is that
all you got? That's all I need? And she sent
him off. But I loved how when he came in
to talk to his mother, it was no longer that
child mother. I mean, he really came to her as
(23:40):
a father, understanding her role, understanding why she was the
way she was because she has had to fight that
battle for all her kids. But I loved how he
brought the truth to her in a such a strong way,
but very kind the reminding her, And I loved that
immediately she got it, pivot, she acknowledged it, She apologized,
(24:04):
for that, but when he wanted her to apologize for
telling Eddie that his curfew was too early or whatever,
and she said, oh, I wasn't wrong about that. I mean,
she didn't change who she was. She still let him know, Okay,
I'll do things your way as your advisor. But I'm
not apologizing for that because I wasn't wrong about that.
Speaker 3 (24:25):
I love that. But you know what, I didn't notice
mother Winslow and Harriet were similar. That's true. I didn't
notice it because they begin to butt heads in later episodes,
but he married his mom. They were basically the same person.
That's what was so funny. And here, Laura, the character
is the next generation being the same person.
Speaker 2 (24:47):
But even Judy's character was sassy. Yeah, it had harriet
tendency correct, you know, it was really funny.
Speaker 3 (24:54):
But how feisty she was, you know, and then you
see the mother. I mean, they were just battling it out.
I was like, oh, I never knew that that was
a thing until I saw that.
Speaker 2 (25:04):
The scene where Rosette is consoling, We're gonna have to
eat my stomach, I mean, just and Harriet was still
in the mold when this is my mother in law.
I We're gonna love having her here. And she says, well,
dinner's almost ready. You like meat Low, And then it
begins again. I don't know, I don't like me. Maybe
(25:27):
yours is different. And she said, does the hell meet
in it? And Herery said yes. Other than that, we
would call it loaf. And then she turned and the
look on her face, Oh my god, was so real.
She was just like, you know, and that set up
(25:48):
that whole thing to continue, because there was always they
were together, they were button heads, they were together, they
were button heads. But it was really fun to watch.
And I've just gotta say, mister reggievel Johns Man, oh
my gosh, that boy is acting his face, a master
(26:10):
of facial expressions, attitudes. I just enjoyed him so much
on this episode. He has some looks, he does some
stuff with his face. Just priceless, just priceless. And my
favorite out of all of that was when we sat
at the dinner table after mother Winslow had come in
(26:31):
and taking his chair again ahead of the table, when
Harriet says, do you want to say the prayer? And
he goes, let us pray, Oh Lord, right, protect us
from evil? But again, I mean.
Speaker 3 (26:49):
There's so many nods to how I grew up at
my father's house. He has a chair. My husband comes
and sits at my father's chair, a slim. I love,
you got to go, you gotta get up, it's since chair.
I love the fact that that's there because it's a
real thing. Yeah, I think we just wanted to really
give a full picture of what maybe black life is,
(27:10):
where everything's not perfect and there's not like a boat
on every episode, which I mean it kind of wound
up being that way, but you know how people struggle,
but they depend on each other to survive. And so
with the moving end of the grandmother, I think it
was just a way to kind of introduce the family
(27:31):
to people in a way that they could understand how
much it mirrored their own family in real life.
Speaker 2 (27:37):
Really. I mean, I was raised by my grandmother, so
that was really special to me to have a grandmother
in the home. That's how I grew up was with
my grandmother. Yes, So that character just gave such a
richness to the family to me because of that.
Speaker 3 (27:55):
Because I mean, everybody, no matter who you are, you
kind of get that we represent in every family.
Speaker 2 (28:01):
Yeah, we really did that part.
Speaker 3 (28:04):
I love too. I love the fact that people connected
with the show so much that they actually felt like
they knew you in their real life, like you were
a character in their real life. When they see you,
they automatically want to hug you, like you're walking into
their front door, you know, when you're at the grocery store.
It's like they're a cousin of yours.
Speaker 2 (28:21):
I had to get used to people feeling like I
was their family, even though you know, I was on
a show called Family Matters. It took me a minute.
People would call me Aunt Rachel. I wouldn't know what
they were talking about. You know, I'd be living around
to see who Aunt Rachel was, and if they call
me tell me. I was almost taken aback, like I
(28:42):
don't know you, you know, why are you calling me
by my name? And oh I love you on Family Matters?
Oh oh yes, yes, I am her. It took me
a minute to get used to it on that level.
Even though I've been on hit shows before, you know,
it was just a different kind of vibe. And I
think certain shows that I had been on, like Bus
and Buddies was more of an adult type show. This
(29:03):
show just had such a huge range because it was
little kids the old people, so you never knew who
was gonna stop you. I found that a little unnerving.
It took me a minute to get used to it,
but I did love it.
Speaker 3 (29:15):
I think that that let me know that we were
doing it right, that we were actually living in a
way where people could feel something. As an actor, that's
the goal, you want to make it so that people
feel what you are doing. I mean, you want it
to be a literal feeling, like when you watch a
show and you start crying, it's because you're having a
(29:36):
real reaction to what's going on, as if you're inside
the fourth wall and you're one of the characters in
the show. So that's one of the things that I
loved about the show is and it happened almost immediately.
People felt like they were extended family members. From the pilot.
Speaker 2 (29:51):
Even people were telling these stories about how their kid
would have a meltdown if they had to take a
bath when Family Matters was coming on, so they had
to rig up a TV in the bathroom to get
the kid take a bath so he could get in
bed right after the show for school the next day.
But he said if he couldn't see the show, they
(30:11):
would have no peace. And I had got stories like
that all around tgif was real, So that became family
time for a lot of people, a gathering time that
was missing, and a lot of families they didn't have
a reason to be together at eight o'clock.
Speaker 3 (30:26):
Tell them, Yes, what would you have done if I
told you I wasn't going to take a bath, if
I didn't see a particular TV show? What would you
have done to me? I just want to know.
Speaker 2 (30:36):
I can't say it on Mike, but believe you'd have
taken the bath one way or the other. And I'd
called your mama and told her what I did to
make sure that when you got home she did the
same thing. So we were on the same page.
Speaker 3 (30:59):
Look y'all hearing her from her own boys, and she
don't act like she cared that.
Speaker 2 (31:04):
You know this, don't care at all.
Speaker 3 (31:15):
My parents considered Telma a third parent and took me in.
She would bring me to her house every weekend.
Speaker 2 (31:22):
Yeah, a third parent.
Speaker 3 (31:24):
I was a third parent, and I mean that in
the most serious one you are.
Speaker 2 (31:27):
And I think for me, the extension of the show,
especially because I got to have those little chubby babies
on the show. But one of the things that I've
always said was what I did best was being a mom.
If I compare, I love my career, but I think
my best work is my son. So it was for me.
I'm kind of a nurturer, although if you had asked
(31:48):
me then I would have said, no, I'm not because
that reminded me of my grandmother. But I really am
sort of a gatherer, and I immediately took to the kids,
you know. I mean, it was just like an extension
of my own child. The kids were just more family,
more kids to love. I mean, I only had the one,
(32:09):
but I was able to gather up a few more,
and I enjoyed every minute of it.
Speaker 3 (32:12):
To this day, it's like such a fun time in
my life, such a great memory.
Speaker 2 (32:17):
Yeah, we really did have some wonderful times.
Speaker 3 (32:20):
I hope I was that for you too.
Speaker 2 (32:22):
If you give me a moment, I was about to
just brag on you. No, I think, and especially with you. Yeah,
I felt like your mom. I felt like if Pat
wasn't there, if your father wasn't around, they didn't have
to be. I got you, you know, and we watched
out for all the kids like that, you know. We
(32:42):
felt as the adults. Yeah probably, but you know, dirty
job and somebody's got to do it. But we did
it because we loved you and we wanted you to
have the best of this experience and not all the
silliness and craziness that can go along, especially for kids.
Very protective, it still am. I mean, I'm protective of
(33:02):
my relationship with you now.
Speaker 3 (33:06):
I love you too.
Speaker 2 (33:07):
I love you too, I do All right, let's move. Yeah,
we're getting all emotional and stuff. We'll be sniffling.
Speaker 3 (33:21):
It is always so good chatting with you, miss tell
me thank you, babe. You feel like I'm learning so
many new things just talking with you and reflecting back
on the show.
Speaker 2 (33:29):
Yeah, I mean, we have got some stories and it's
so good to be working side by side with you again.
You know, I've just had to watch you grow as
an actress and now you're a mom and an amazing woman.
You are just all that anibola chips.
Speaker 3 (33:43):
Oh you only say it because it's true.
Speaker 2 (33:45):
Yeah, okay, and you're so humble. I forgot to add that.
But there is so much more when it comes to
our experience as creating family matters. Next time we will
be discussing one of the show's more serious episodes, another
one that was ahead of its time but still very
relevant today, maybe even more relevant.
Speaker 3 (34:05):
Yeah, and we'll get to dive deep into those kinds
of episodes. What they did for millions of people are
other family members that were.
Speaker 2 (34:11):
Watching and us. Well, that's it for this week, but
stay tuned.
Speaker 3 (34:19):
Yeah, we're gonna rewatch each episode of Family Matters week
by week, so make sure to rewatch the show right
along with us. You can catch it on Hulu and
TVs and a bunch of other places.
Speaker 2 (34:31):
Welcome to the Family with Telma and Kelly is a
production of iHeart Podcasts and Audiation. It's hosted by me
Tloma Hopkins and me Kelly Williams. Our executive producers are
Sandy Smalling's for Audiation, Adam Rip, J D. Hopkins, who
also happens to be my son and Kelly's Poe bro
and Jonathan Strickland for iHeart Podcasts.
Speaker 3 (34:52):
The show is produced by Telma and I but our
series producer is Irelen Meechen and our theme songs lyrics
were written by JD. Hopp and Adam Rip. The theme
song was scored and mixed by Matt Noble, who's also
our series mixer.
Speaker 2 (35:06):
And we'd like to thank Nikki Etour and the entire
iHeart Podcast team. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 3 (35:12):
Follow us on Instagram and welcome to the Family Pod
for behind the scenes photos and more bonus content.
Speaker 2 (35:18):
And don't forget to leave us a voicemail at our website,
Thefamilymatterspod dot com. We want to hear your thoughts and
favorite memories of the show and let us know if
you need advice, because we're good for some bad advice.
We might be able to help you with your own
Family Matters and make.
Speaker 3 (35:33):
Sure to rate and review us wherever you're listening. We
are so excited to have you guys along for the ride.
Speaker 2 (35:39):
Yes, Welcome to the family, y'all, and we'll see you
next time. Welcome to the Family.
Speaker 1 (35:55):
Audiation
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