Kim Fields on Janet Jackson, Her Crush on ‘Facts of Life’ Costar George Clooney & Her First Role
Kim Fields, best known for her breakout role as Tootie on The Facts of Life, appeared on Live With Kelly and Mark to look back on the early days of her career, including meeting Janet Jackson, her childhood crush on pre-fame George Clooney and how she landed her first role.
Fields became interested in acting during childhood after visiting her aunt, who worked on Broadway in shows such as Pearl Bailey and Hello, Dolly! When she was about 7 years old, her family decided to move to Los Angeles to pursue other opportunities. Fields got her first role in a Mrs. Butterworth’s syrup commercial (Kelly Ripa recalled seeing the commercial on TV and begging her mom for the syrup).
“Everyone wanted the talking bottle,” Fields joked. She remembered taking a bus to the audition because they just moved to L.A. and didn’t even have a place to stay yet, and were still crashing with friends.
Fields revealed that Janet Jackson was auditioning for the same commercial role. The audition occurred just after the Jackson family had a special on TV, so Fields thought she could never get the part. Her mom gave her a pep talk and said that she should never let anyone intimidate her, no matter who they are. Fields added that she went on to become good friends with Jackson.
Embassy Pictures/Everett Collection
Fields then talked a little about her time on The Facts of Life, opening up about George Clooney appearing on the show before he was a big movie star. At the time, Fields would always joke with the writers, asking them to create a story where he fell in love with her character because she had a crush on him (I think we all did, right?).
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1970s Fall TV
September 2023
Take a trip back to the ’70s by looking at the TV Guide Magazine Fall Preview primetime lineups.
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