“Boy Meets World” actress Trina McGee was a recent guest star on the newest episode of “Pod Meets World” created by her former co-stars Danielle Fishel, Rider Strong and Will Friedle. On the show, the three friends reflect on “Boy Meets World” episodes and sometimes interview past cast mates.
While speaking about her time filming the show, the mom of three revealed she was asked to “turn down” her blackness while portraying her beloved character, Angela Moore.
McGee made her first appearance on the critically acclaimed show back in 1997, and managed to move from recurring character to main cast member who stayed until the second to last episode of the show in 2000.
As the four companions discussed MCGee’s experiences on the show as the only Black character surrounded by white co-stars and behind the scenes production, she noted having a “black meter.”
She said, “Coming from black sitcoms I’ve always had to have a black meter. So for Boy Meets World my black meter was probably at about a two.”
McGee; who has appeared in numerous sitcoms such as “A Different World,” “Family Matters,” “Martin,” and “The Sinbad Show,” began to recount an interaction between her and the TV show’s creator, Michael Jacobs, while filming her first centered episode titled “Angela’s Ashes” McGee confessed her “black meter slipped up.”
“I was about a nine right, so Michael comes over to me and his note was, ‘Hey Trina turn down the Thelma Hopkins about eight notches.’ ”
Thelma Hopkins, is an African-American actress and singer who portrayed Rachel Crawford in the ’90s hit sitcom, “Family Matters.”
Laughing while remembering their exchange, McGee confessed, “I knew exactly what he was talking about, and I did.”
McGee noted how lucky her three former co-stars were that they never had to go through experiences such as hers and how those interactions sometimes came to be “too much.”
Before the one-hour-and-23 minute podcast came to a close, McGee also had a chance to speak with Friedle, who portrayed Eric Matthews. In a series of tweets back in 2020, McGee revealed being called Aunt Jemima while on set by Friedle.
During the podcast, Friedle explained he was referencing McGee’s red hat to the Black Mammy on the syrup bottle and further acknowledged his ignorance by comparing the two.
“The mid ’90s I had no idea the cultural significance of the Aunt Jemima character or any of that stuff,” he said. “I was mortified because the last thing you want to think is you’re part of the problem and your ignorance is part of the problem.”
Friedle went on to call McGee patient due to her taking time to explain the importance behind his mistake.
As the podcast wrapped up, Friedle admitted McGee made him a better person, “all the way through.”
