Fail Again: Failure Matters with Jaleel White

Fail Better with David Duchovny

Grace Cohen-Chen

Society & Culture

4.6 • 534 Ratings

🗓️ 20 January 2026

⏱️ 58 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

This episode originally aired March 18, 2025 To me, there are few sitcom characters more memorable than Steve Urkel on Family Matters. So getting to talk to the actor Jaleel White — about his approach to acting, his take on Hollywood in the ‘90s and now, and what it’s meant to have a character follow him into adulthood — was as illuminating as I’d expected. As a pillar of show business and an astute observer of it, Jaleel is someone whose perspective I deeply appreciate. Plus, his new memoir ‘Growing Up Urkel’ is thoughtful and nuanced, and I’m grateful we could reflect on it together. Follow me on Instagram at @davidduchovny. Stay up to date with Lemonada on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @LemonadaMedia. Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our shows and get bonus content. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	It's morning in New York.
0:02.8	Oh, God.
0:06.2	Hey, everybody.
0:07.3	I'm Mandy Patinkin.
0:08.7	And I'm Catherine Grady.
0:09.8	And we have a new podcast.
0:11.7	It's called Don't Listen to Us.
0:14.1	Many of you've asked for our advice.
0:16.1	Tell me, what is wrong with you people?
0:19.2	Don't listen to us.
0:20.3	Our Take It or Leave a Adv Device show every Wednesday, out now.
0:24.7	A Lemonada Media Original.
0:35.8	I'm David Dukovny, and this is Fail Better, a show where failure, not success, shapes who we are.
0:42.6	Jaliel White is an actor, writer, and producer.
0:45.0	He is most famous for his portrayal of Steve Urkel on the hit 90s sitcom Family Matters.
0:50.6	At just 12 years old, Jalil created an iconic character defined by his nasly voice, high-water
0:56.1	pants, thick glasses, and memorable catchphrases.
0:59.8	Erkel and his alter ego, Stefan Urkel, challenged assumptions about black characters on TV
1:05.7	and came to be cultural touchpoints.
1:08.2	But in his recent memoir, growing up Erkel, Jalil opens up about why being
1:12.8	so defined by that role impacted his identity and career afterwards. Jaliel doesn't hold back
1:18.0	about the downsides of rising to fame at such a young age, and his honesty was super
	...

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