Though acting requires a great deal of imagination, every now and again, an actor may discover that their role is a little closer to their own personality than they’re willing to admit.

While Debra Baron wasn’t a carbon copy of Patricia Heaton, the two were both strong women who were responsible for a few young children.

During the television special, Everybody Loves Raymond: 30th Anniversary Reunion, Heaton said she noticed that she and her character trod similar paths when she was auditioning for the part.

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“I was going through what the Barone family was going through,” said Heaton. “I had a three-year-old and a one-year-old in my life. I had a babysitting issue when I was coming to the audition. I needed to get back. I was cutting out coupons for 50 cents off two packs of ballpark franks, so I needed the gig.”

In fact, Heaton feared that the sitcom audition might conflict with her family life. “I got there, and there was a waiting room with at least eight women,” said Heaton. “I thought I'm never gonna get back in time for the babysitter, and so I went in and I sat there and I just needed to get this audition done.”

Luckily, Heaton was able to pull from her own life during the audition. “I didn’t really have to do research, and I didn’t really have to do acting cause it was what we were all dealing with in our marriages,” said the actor. “Fortunately, we got to monetize it.”

Creator Phil Rosenthal knew instantly that Heaton was the only woman for the role. “We saw 200 women before we found Patty Heaton,” said Rosenthal. “When she came in, she knocked it out of the park.”