Host: Let's roll all around if we have it.

Crew: We're rolling.

Host: Okay, have a seat there. How you doing, brother man? This show is called The Me I Used to Be. It's about looking back at your life. Not just what happened, but how those moments shaped you and what you believe about the world, about people, and about yourself. And all we want is your honest take on what you were thinking back then, how you were feeling back then, what these images meant to you, how you see it now, and why. You ready?

Jaleel White: Oh my gosh. It seems like the world protected in that Urkel character. Like you just don't want to... Yeah.

Host: Let's queue our Act One reel.

Jaleel White: [laughter] I was raised in Los Angeles, California. My dad was a bus driver in Los Angeles for many, many years. I have very vivid memories of my mom taking me as a toddler and putting me on my dad's bus route. And I would sit behind my father while he drove. I was very, very proud to talk to all the strangers to let them know my dad is the bus driver.

Host: [laughter]

Jaleel White: My mom worked at the post office. She could always vanish from her job, take me on a commercial, and get back to her job without getting fired.

Commercial Clip: Oh boy, I think I'm going to have to give you something for this. Hey.

Jaleel White: I got into acting as a kid to make money to go to college. That was my mother's number one goal and priority. I did approximately 50 national commercials. Oreo cookie, Apple Jacks, Pepsi, you name it. I did so many of them. I still know the song. But as a black kid in 1989 and before, it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that you would be the best friend. You would have a line here or there, and the residuals would come in, and hey, mom could use that to pay for some summer camps, and the rest goes to a trust. The ambition wasn't that deep. But, somehow, when it was time to perform for a group of people behind the camera, I was acutely attuned to how others were seeing my performance. You have to hear the audience yourself telling you how you should tweak who you are.

Commercial Clip: "Can I play?" "Got any money?" "Times are hard." "Good timing."

Jaleel White: That's where all the people-pleasing came from.

Host: You've told this story a million times, but if you can just tell the concise version of how you got into Family Matters, our audience is going to want to hear it.

Jaleel White: [snorts] I know. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

Host: I love the story. It's a beautiful story. But, I want more. I think there's more context around this story.

Jaleel White: You don't have to tell the story. AJ found me 12 years old. I go on an audition for Family Matters. I land the gig. It was only supposed to be for 1 week. I stay.

TV Clip: "Hi, Mr. Winslow. I'm Steve Urkle." "No idea when you started. Who knew you were a little kid it would run this long? Believe it or not, a real person does exist underneath that costume. You know when people are yelling, 'Hey, Urkle!' and stuff like that."

Jaleel White: It was a balancing act for me that I made look as natural as possible, but it's uncomfortable if you're in a public space and somebody comes up to you almost like a coin-operated machine and go ahead, say it. It's like, "I'm actually on a date right now." And they're like, "Yeah, say it." I obliged that request a lot actually.

Show Clip: "Good evening Miss Oprah." "Good evening Mr. White." "Crank up the music. It's time to do the Urkel."

Jaleel White: You do come to realize that you are living off the validation of others. Like external validation is becoming your motivating factor to just get through a day. Yeah. Wow. You really look at it that way. I'm sure it being a people pleaser probably affected how I dealt with rejection. And I did not like dealing with rejection. When I look at the Keenen Ivory Wayans interview, I was very much looking forward to making my own decisions.

Interview Clip: "Tonight, you're making a statement tonight. What statement am I making?" "Well, this is the real you." "For the first time, uh I want to be a free agent in my life. At the end of this season, uh I won't be under any contract. My parents won't make the decision. I'll make the decision uh as to what I want to do. And so, I'm really kind of excited."

Jaleel White: But really my mom told me to do something. That's what I was going to do. I was faking taking the reins. I got an opportunity after 2 years in school as a writing EP with my own show.

Grown Ups Clip: "Say goodbye to childhood. Be grown-ups. Grown-ups."

Jaleel White: That was such a rare opportunity to show people the different sides of me. And instead of immersing all of myself in that opportunity, my mother leaned on me hard to not drop out of college. I played the one foot in, one foot out. Knowing what I know now, I was a one-and-done. It just pierces my heart. Cuz I just know what a missed opportunity that was. After Grown Ups got cancelled, it was definitely a lonely period for me. Um I definitely became far more reclusive than I am naturally. Far more reclusive. And I found a lot of projects that I ultimately did take.

Clip: "How many times have I told you not to call me or but..." "Try the roast."

Jaleel White: and I just felt lost and not aligned with my purpose in the business. My identity still rested too much in the business.

Host: So, how did you evolve beyond that frame of mind?

Jaleel White: Oh my gosh. The job was called Mega Shark versus Crocosaurus. I was going through a lot as a father, a single father at that time. So, it just meant making a living. And perhaps a more decorated actor for their awards would be ashamed of doing that. And I'm like, oh no, no, no, no, no. No, that job helped me keep my medical benefits that year. That job helped me keep paying the fight for my daughter.

Host: The thing that I love so much about you is you're such a girl dad. You are such a great father to your daughter Somaya.

Jaleel White: That's right.

Host: [applause]

Jaleel White: My daughter was a huge driving force in changing my perspectives. I came to the conclusion that I work. I just work. I work steady. I'm fortunate in my life that I've always worked steady. Have I always worked on the dream projects that I always imagined, you know? Not necessarily. But I've worked. And so now that I don't necessarily see my work as my identity I'm just grateful, motivated, and thrilled that I get to keep working. My daughter just... She cleaned all that stuff up for me. Can't let her down. Can't stop, won't stop, can't let her down. When you're young you don't understand the many steps that add up over time. Old Jaleel was impatient. The new Jaleel understands that what goes up fast comes down fast. What's built slowly over time has a better chance of being indestructible.