Jaleel White on Family Matters, Portraying Steve Urkel, Child Acting & Fatherhood

Jaleel White, widely recognized for his iconic role as Steve Urkel in "Family Matters," has a career that spans far beyond this memorable character. Starting in the industry as a child actor, he featured in dozens of national commercials and various classic TV shows, including "Mr. Belvedere" and "The Jeffersons." Beyond the screen, Jaleel is deeply committed to his role as a single father. He embraces the challenges and rewards of parenting with a hands-on and thoughtful approach, focusing on being present and observant but knowing when not to intervene and let his daughter figure things out for herself.

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Outline:

[0:00] Jaleel’s start as a child actor

[13:23] Growing up as Steve Urkel

[19:43] Having a child changed everything

[29:10] Why child actors struggle with growing up

[35:12] Parent at the level your child is ready for

[46:23] Always observe, but don’t always intervene

[50:55] How boys and girls make friends

[56:06] Dads need to persevere through custody battles

[1:02:01] If your intentions are good, time is on your side

[1:08:06] Lightning round Q&A

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Watch the video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/7SZWKO1txkA

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Dad Saves America is a channel dedicated to celebrating heroic fatherhood while teaching the next generation of fathers strategies they can utilize in parenting their children. We believe strong children come from a strong family. We’ve had many experts in the studio, including Jonathan Haidt, Dr. Drew Pinsky, Troy Kotsur, John Mackey, Ben Askren, and Adam Carolla.