Did I Do That? A Look Back At Family Matters

There’s a Real Steve Urkel

When the co-creator of Family Matters, Michael Warren, was trying to come up with an appropriately goofy name for the nerdy neighbor that would become one of the show’s most popular characters, he turned to his real life for inspiration. Warren had a friend named Steve Erkel, so he changed the spelling a little and gave the name to the character he thought would only make one appearance.

Though Michael Warren obviously wanted to honor his friend with a little shout out on his show, the popularity of Steve Urkel had some unintended consequences for poor Steve Erkel. The real-life Erkel was subjected to daily prank phone calls for years. Warren must have thought, “Did I do that?”