Telma Hopkins Said She Slipped During 'Family Matters' Food Fight
'I'm Not Joking!' —'Family Matters' Alum Telma Hopkins Reveals Food Fight With Jaleel White Sent Her To The Hospital
Family Matters star Telma Hopkins, who portrayed Rachel Crawford on the hit sitcom, opened up about a slippery situation that happened while filming a memorable 1990 episode of the show. During a Feb. 4 episode of the Welcome to the Family podcast, Hopkins and former co-star Kellie Williams (Laura Winslow) looked back on the fan-favorite episode “Baker’s Dozen,” which followed the Winslow family as they scrambled to complete a massive order of Carl’s (Reginald VelJohnson) lemon tarts in under 48 hours.
While the chaotic kitchen scenes appeared lighthearted on screen, Hopkins revealed that things took a dangerous turn behind the scenes. According to Hopkins, she and Jaleel White, who famously played Steve Urkel, were injured during the episode’s over-the-top food fight sequence.
Telma Hopkins says she and Jaleel White slipped and fell while filming the episode’s food fight scene.
The set had become slick with tart dough, creating hazardous conditions around the safety mats.
“Boy that food fight was fun,” Hopkins told Williams, before explaining that the fun quickly gave way to a frightening accident.
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“You know all that tart dough we had all over the mats and all that? Steve, I mean, Jaleel slipped and fell, and somehow when he fell, I hit him and went over him, but on all fours,” she recalled of the scary moment. “Managed to miss all of those mats and landed on the cement.”
“Are you joking,” Kellie Williams said, shocked by the story.
“Oh, I’m not joking,” Hopkins replied.
What initially seemed like a minor slip turned out to be far more serious. Hopkins later learned she had torn her meniscus and went straight to the doctor after filming wrapped. The injury caused major swelling.
“My knees looked like I was smuggling grapefruits,” she joked, during the Welcome to the Family podcast.
Despite the severity of the injury, Hopkins ultimately decided against surgery after speaking with someone who had undergone the procedure at a young age and advised her to reconsider. Reflecting on her sacrifice, Kellie Williams told her:
“For your craft, you’ve sacrificed your body. And we appreciate it so much.”
Here’s another fun fact about the episode. “Baker’s Dozen” aired during Season 1 on Jan. 12, 1990 and interestingly, Urkel wasn’t originally written into the episode. According to the show’s fan site, Jaleel White’s character was later incorporated into the storyline once he arrived on set, a move that proved fitting, as he would soon become the breakout star of the series.
Here’s another fun fact about the Family Matters “Baker’s Dozen” episode.
This episode also served as a remake of Family Matters’ parent series, Perfect Strangers, specifically the February 1988 episode “Just Desserts.” In that storyline, Larry Appleton, played by Linn Baker, tells his cousin Balki that a local restaurant is eager to purchase Balki’s beloved tart dessert, Bibbi-Bapka, a specialty from his homeland of Mypos. There’s just one major challenge: Larry and Balki must produce 2,000 of the pastries in just two days.
Notably, Family Matters originated as a direct spin-off of Perfect Strangers, linked through the character Harriette Winslow. Before centering her own family sitcom, Harriette appeared on Perfect Strangers as the elevator operator at the Chicago Chronicle.
What do you think about Telma Hopkins’ funny but shocking story on the Welcome to the Family podcast? Thoughts?
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'I'm Not Joking!' —'Family Matters' Alum Telma Hopkins Reveals Food Fight With Jaleel White Sent Her To The Hospital was originally published on madamenoire.com
