17 Things You Never Knew About ‘The Cosby Show’

7. The Uncola Man choreographed one season opener

The season five opener is the only one that featured all the cast members dancing together with a tropical theme. It was choreographed by Trinidadian-born actor, dancer, director, and singer Geoffrey Holder who you might remember was also a spokesman for 7-Up, often referred to as the Uncola Man.

8. Urkel was almost Rudy

Initially the character of Rudy was written as a boy and Jaleel White was the strong frontrunner for getting the role. But then Keshia Knight-Pulliam came in and charmed everyone and the character was switched to be a girl. Jaleel of course went on to play Urkel in Family Matters, so he did okay for himself.

9. Gordon Gartrelle was a real person

There was a running gag on the show about Gordon Gartrelle, as in Malcolm-Jamal Warner being asked if he’s wearing the designer when he was wearing ill fitting clothes. Gordon G. Gartrelle was actually a writer and a producer on the show.