[3] At the beginning of The Jeffersons, he was operating five stores throughout New York City, with another two opening during the following seasons. The Cumberbatches are a Black family moving into the Bunkers' old house in Queens. Archie Bunker's Place extended Archie's role to over twelve years on television. All in the Family was notable for many things including the fact that it spawned seven other TV series. Portrayed by Mel Stewart, Henry got the lines and screen time that would have gone to George. Situation comediesaka "sitcoms"aren't always noted for their complex writing and deeply-imagined characters. The cast commonly visited the bar for a drink or to attend a party. The misadventures of Florence Johnson, a hotel maid who was previously seen serving the Jeffersons. The series gave John Amos and Norman Lear another chance to work together after tensions on set led Amos to leaveGood Times. Checking In is an American sitcom television series and a spin-off of The Jeffersons that aired for four episodes on CBS from April 9 to April 30, 1981. The Jeffersons The Jeffersons was notable because it depicted a Black family as upper-middle class. In the seventh-season finale episode of The Jeffersons, "Florence's New Job", the Jeffersons' maid, Florence Johnston (Marla Gibbs), accepted a job to become the executive housekeeper at the fictional St. Frederick Hotel in New York City. In his autobiography, Even This I Get to Experience, Lear wrote that a relatively small group of agitators, especially when convinced God is on their side, can move corporate America to quake with fear and make decisions in total disregard of the Constitution.. But the moment you read the title you heard its iconic theme song in your head, and no matter your age or background you've probably seen an episode or a dozenand maybe not that long ago. This CBS spin-off of "All in the Family" featured an African-American couple, George and Louise, who rose from their humble beginnings and moved into an expensive high rise. Thanks to Lear and his characters, 70s TV audiences saw and heard things they never had before in primetime. Before the 1970s, there hadn't been any TV shows with majority Black casts in decades, and the Black characters that did appear on television were usually not particularly grounded in reality. The pilot even has the series signature catchphrase, God will get you for that, Walter, which Maude uses to express her displeasure with husband Walter (Bill Macy), owner of an appliance shop. Cully was written out in season 4 due to her death in 1978, from lung cancer. As noted by BET, The Jeffersons was a consistently high-rated showonly the second sitcom with a majority Black cast to land in the Top Five of the Nielsen Ratings, in fact. The conversation resonated with Lear, and he began to conceive of The Jeffersons as an effort to show a Black family having real economic success and living the American Dream. Sitcom following a successful African-American couple, George and Louise Weezy Jefferson as they move on up from working-class Queens to a ritzy Manhattan apartment. All in the Familyprimarily takes place at the Bunker residence on 704 Hauser Street. Checking In, created by Mike Milligan and Jay Moriarty, only lasted for four episodes, one of the few Tandem/TAT sitcoms that wasnt a success. Show Lear and associate Al Burton talked about a possible show in which a Black family is moving on up to the East Side. The series was created by Don Nicholl, Michael Ross and Bernie West, and developed by Lear. Florence Johnston (Marla Gibbs) worked for the Jefferson family on their show, but Checking In focused on her life as the executive housekeeper of the St. Frederick Hotel in New York City. The actors found out through the media reports or when friends contacted them to ask about it. Maude Findlay (Bea Arthur) first appears as Edith Bunker's cousin in a 1971All in the Familyepisode called "Cousin Maude's Visit." Evans and Tolbert appeared in the two-part episode together; Evans made his final appearance in two episodes during the series' eleventh and final season. While the character was initially conceived as a Black antagonist for Bunkerclearly a racistJefferson was also conceived almost from the very beginning as being beyond Bunker. [8] Damon Evans's last episode was "Lionel Gets the Business". Lear said Good Times (created by Mike Evans and Eric Monte) was the first full Black family on television, meaning two parents and more than one kid. We actually enjoy working together." [37] The most common time slot was on Sunday night. Today were heading back to Manhattan, to revisit our favorite family, The Jeffersons. The song was co-written by Ja'Net DuBois, who portrayed Willona on Norman Lear's other show, Good Times, and Jeff Barry. The Jeffersons spawned the television show Checking In. This show followed the Jeffersons maid Florence Johnston as she worked at a hotel in Manhattan. She appeared in seven episodes in 197677, so watch any of those! [26] She appeared regularly in the first two seasons, but made sporadic appearances over the next two years, much thinner due to a severe case of pneumonia. Normally successful shows are allowed to develop in a specific time slot in order to become an anchor for the network, but for some reason The Jeffersons was moved around constantly, forcing viewers to seek it out and figure out how to re-arrange their viewing schedules to accommodate it. George's career as a dry-cleaner began in the first season of All in the Family in the third episode "Oh, My Aching Back" (though the character himself did not appear on-camera). Similar to its parent sitcom, All in the Family, the Jeffersons explored controversial issues such as alcoholism, racism, suicide, being transgender, and much more, certainly making it one of the most importantsitcoms of all time. The Jeffersons 7 Spin-offs, In Chronological Order A top 20 show for most of its 11 seasons, The Jeffersons was canceled abruptly without an official series finale. As noted by The Wall Street Journal, that backstory went back to the Jefferson family's roots in Alabama as sharecroppers, a detail that spoke volumes about George Jefferson's obsession with wealth, status, and the visual signs of both. The Jeffersons spawned the television show Checking In. This show followed the Jeffersons maid Florence Johnston as she worked at a hotel in Manhattan. As progressive as it was when it came to race relations, it hedged its bets in many ways. WebThe Jeffersons: Created by Norman Lear, Don Nicholl, Michael Ross, Bernard West. WebThe Jeffersons had one spin-off, titled Checking In. Norman Lear's 1975 spinoff of All in the Family remains a unique show. The show's time slot, for example, changed a ridiculous 15 times over those 11 years. The show was a spinoff from "All in the Family." With the series' cultural relevance and fandom, it'sno surprise All in the Family,TheJeffersons, andGood Timeswere also revived for a live performance special in 2019. Show Groundbreaking and performed by some of the most talented actors and actresses of its time, The Jeffersons has remained a cultural touchstone for some very good reasons. Spin-off Sherman Hemsley even appeared in the premiere. The show was launched as the second (and longest running) spin-off of All in the Family, on which the Jeffersons had been the neighbors of Archie and Edith Bunker. No episode was centered on Mother Jefferson's death, but it was occasionally mentioned that she had died in future episodes. The patriarch of the Evans family, they noted, had to work several jobs to support his large family, and they noted that Black characters in general were often depicted in cheap clothing and in other negative ways. It was her breakout role; as noted by The History Makers, Gibbs had started taking acting classes when her job with United Airlines transferred her from Detroit to Los Angeles, but prior to being cast as Florence the actress had only appeared in a handful of theater roles and one film, 1973's Sweet Jesus, Preacher Man. The Jeffersons Lionel is introduced in the pilot, and is a core cast member for season one. CBS quickly pivoted, scheduling rebroadcasts of the first 13 episodes that summer. A spin-off of All in the Family. Early seasons of the show used racial epithets for both Black and white characters fairly often, but as time went on Hemsley thought his character should be evolving and stop using expressions like "honky." Checking In lasted only four episodes, after which Florence returned to The Jeffersons with the story that the hotel had burned down in a fire. In the spring of 1981, Paul Benedict left the show for a season and a half, returning in the final two seasons of the series. According to The Washington Post, she'd been working for United Airlines for 11 years when she got the job on The Jeffersonsand she kept working there for two more years, not wanting to give up a good job for an acting role that might disappear at any moment. Variety is a part of Penske Media Corporation. It's unsurprising then that once The Jeffersons aired, it remained on television for almost a decade.The Jeffersons was a spin-off that took the blueprint provided by All in the Family and made minor changes by making the The Jeffersons had many two-part episodes, either over two consecutive weeks, or aired as an hour-long episode. s noted by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, as one of the writers on the show, Jay Moriarty, told The Hollywood Times, In a contemporary review by The New York Daily News. Variety said it underscored that sitcoms this year are treading more realistic areas than the dramatic series., Also in the second season, Maude decided to have an abortion. Lionel is the first Jefferson to be seen onAll in the Family, but his parents become an important part of the show, too. [44] Season 8 was released on August 11, 2015. [24][25] He also became known for addressing the Jeffersons as "Mr. J" and "Mrs. I remember watching Checking In in the early 80s and even remember the theme song. For other uses, see, Learn how and when to remove this template message, List of awards and nominations received by The Jeffersons, "The Jeffersons: A look at life on black America's new 'Striver's Row', "Sherman Hemsley dies: Watch George Jefferson at his finest", "The Jeffersons and Happy Days and Valerie Bertinelli Bio", "Tyler Perry's House of Payne: Paying Homage to Sherman Hemsley", "Are Any of 'The Jeffersons' Cast Members Still Alive Today? 10 Unforgettable Black Sitcom Families - cbr.com It's remarkable that seven shows followed All in the Family and belong to its universe. It became Tandems longest running show, with 11 seasons. Checking In Florence and Elena suspect that a ghost is roaming the building, and Florence decides to spend the night alone in a room to prove that it's not haunted. RELATED:10 Sitcom Characters With Supernatural Abilities, Ranked By Power. It's also one of the more thoughtful and meaningful theme songs in TV history. 704 Hauserflips the Archie/Meathead dynamic by making Ernie Cumberbatch (John Amos) the liberal and his son Thurgood Marshall Cumberbatch (T.E. Mike Evans would leave The Jeffersons to work behind the camera for another show in the All in the Family family tree Good Times. Edith and Gloria appeared occasionally at first, then Jean Stapleton wanted to make a clean break and Sally Struthers got her own show. It was a sort-of spin-off of The Jeffersons, as it featured Lynne Moody as Nurse Julie Williams, the niece of George and Louis Jefferson. Almost as well known, but less controversial was the Nov. 10, 1975, episode of Maude talking to her psychiatrist. She got unlimited passes from the airline. Similar to its parent sitcom, All in the Family, the Jeffersons explored controversial issues such as alcoholism, racism, suicide, being transgender, and much more, certainly making it one of the most importantsitcoms of all time. Shows like Sanford and Son and Good Times had all-Black main casts and made an attempt to depict Black American life more realistically. Lionel is introduced in the pilot, and is a core cast member for season one. And issues like these were also almost never addressed on televisionuntil The Jeffersons came along. Florence Johnston (Marla Gibbs) worked for the Jefferson family on their show, butChecking Infocused on her life as the executive housekeeper of the St. Frederick Hotel in New York City. The Jeffersons This spin-off of The Jeffersons came out about 8 years before Marla Gibbs' second series, "227." A national phenomenon was born. In the 1984-85 season, CBS aired a forgotten comedy called E/R, starring Elliot Gould. 1. For airdates and times, visit theAll In The Familyshow page. [21], Sony Pictures Home Entertainment released the first six seasons of The Jeffersons on DVD in Region 1 between 2002 and 2007. The Jeffersons avoided that by making the titular characters move to a different neighborhood. She reprised her role several times onArchie Bunker's Placeand then took center stage onGloria, the last series to focus on a member of the Bunker family. In that regard,Good Timesis more like a reboot of Rolle and Amoss characters than a spinoff. This page was last edited on 9 December 2022, at 13:35. [8] The Jeffersons' sixth season peaked at No. Sherman Hemsley even appeared in the premiere. WebSynopsis. One of the reasons The Jeffersons remains a pop culture powerhouse when many contemporary TV shows have faded from our collective memory is the theme song. Marla Gibbs was the breakout star onThe Jeffersonsas Florence, George and Louises maid, so it made perfect sense to spin her off. The show was produced by the T.A.T. It was funny and entertaining. Spin-off Maude becomes yet another person for Archie to disagree with politically. [6][20][21] Cully, who had first appeared in the 1974 All in the Family episode "Lionel's Engagement", reprised her role. Florence Johnston (Marla Gibbs) worked for the Jefferson family on their show, but Checking In focused on her life as the executive housekeeper of the St. Frederick Hotel in New York City. Sanford was also the recipient of five of the eight Golden Globe Awards nominations the program received.[48]. Oddly, whenGood Timesbegan in February of 1974, no mention was made of Maude or how the Evanses got from New York to the Chicago. Television historians know that while the character of George Jefferson was introduced on All in the Family in 1971, he didn't actually show up on screen until 1973. Weve both mellowed. Many spinoffs tend to set themselves up for comparison by using the same location as the original show. On May 22, 2019, ABC broadcast Live in Front of a Studio Audience: Norman Lears All in the Family and The Jeffersons, produced by Lear and Jimmy Kimmel and starring Woody Harrelson, Marisa Tomei, Jamie Foxx, Wanda Sykes, Ike Barinholtz, Kerry Washington, Ellie Kemper. If you include those inAll In The Familys grand total and you must, because they wouldnt exist otherwise All In The Familybegat 7 shows, 860 episodes, and more than 400 hours of network television. Factory. Web3. As Black America Web reports, when the show was canceled in 1985 the network didn't even bother to inform the cast. George is an obstreperous, often rude guy who thinks his wealth should get him anywhere he wants to go. We cant talk about the offspring without a few words about the parent. The Jeffersons ended up lasting 11 seasons, beating All In The Family's 9 seasons. Paul Benedict arrived as Harry Bentley, an amiable, kind, loyal yet somewhat obtuse British next-door neighbor,[8] who worked as an interpreter at the United Nations. In the 1996 series finale of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, the Jeffersons made a guest appearance as the buyers of the Banks family house. Dont miss on getTV: Everything, but especially the first episodeMeet The Bunkers(airdate January 12, 1971) and the lastToo Good Edith(April 8, 1979). [5][6] The show was the creation of Norman Lear. 3. George Jefferson (Sherman Hemsley) doesnt make his debut until season four, because Hemsley was committed to the Broadway showPurlie. In 1975, Norman Lear was possibly the most powerful man working in television. [8][21] Lionel and Jenny experienced marital issues as evidenced in a two-part season 8 episode "The Separation", and divorced in the final season two-parter "Sayonara".[8]. Which makes it curious that its network, CBS, treated it as if the show was in trouble. The show was a spin-off of The Jeffersons. Arthur was the only actor seen for the entire half-hour. They were guests in the fictional hotel and their voices were dubbed by Italian actors Enzo Garinei (George) and Isa di Marzio (Louise), who also dubbed their characters for the full series. The series follows Florence's misadventures at the hotel with her co-workers: Lyle Block, her stuffy manager; Elena Beltran, her assistant; Earl Bellamy, the inept house detective; Hank Sabatino, the lewd handyman; Betty, the floor supervisor; Dennis, the bellboy; and Mr. Claymore, the hotel owner.[1]. Hes mellowed. However, Mike Evans appeared for only one more season, along with Tolbert. The Jeffersons CBS was nervous,Rob Reiner(Mike aka Meathead) told PBS in 2016. The Jeffersons After the huge success of shows like All in the Family, Maude, Good Times, and Sanford and Sonin terms of ratings as well as critical receptionhe had the ability to do things other showrunners couldn't. You might think this classic situation comedy is a relic of the 1970s, and in some ways you'd be right. It's unsurprising then that once The Jeffersons aired, it remained on television for almost a decade.The Jeffersons was a spin-off that took the blueprint provided by All in the Family and made minor changes by making the The series is bookended in a very creative way. ), Dueling Detectives: Kojak and Jim Rockford, getTV talks CASEY JONES and 1950s Westerns An Interview with Toby Roan, 10 Times Farrah Fawcett Was an Undercover Angel on CHARLIES ANGELS, 10 Times HART TO HART Was Relationship Goals, TV Like It Used To Be A Guide to Crimetime on getTV, Christmas with the Evans Family Holiday Episodes of GOOD TIMES, Christmas on getTV 10 Holiday Highlights, Alfonso Ribeiro: 10 Facts About the Star of CATCH 21. As New Ravel notes, when his requests for change were ignored he began deliberately flubbing his lines or saying the offensive words too low for the microphones to pick up, forcing the producers to reshoot scenes again and again. Ratings for the first season were poor, and the network didnt exactly shout about it from the antenna-covered rooftops. The Jeffersons In reality, Joey (born 1975) would have only been 19, but Siemaszko was 33. Lear originally intended for George to appear in the first season of the series, however, Hemsley was starring in the Broadway musical Purlie at the time, and Lear decided to postpone introduction of the character until Hemsley was available. In a reversal ofAll in the Family, Ernie is liberal while his son is quite conservative. Many spinoffs tend to set themselves up for comparison by using the same location as the original show. Danny Wells played Charlie, the owner and a bartender of a nearby bar to the Jeffersons apartment building. [38] The show's ratings for the following two seasons placed it in the Top 30, but during the 197778 and 197879 seasons (the show's fourth and fifth seasons), it fell out of the top 30, ranking 52nd in Season 4 and 49th in Season 5. This CBS spin-off of "All in the Family" featured an African-American couple, George and Louise, who rose from their humble beginnings and moved into an expensive high rise. Archie Bunker's Placestarted out with both Archie and Edith, but Jean Stapleton left the show and was killed off shortly after the series began. Over the course of its 11-year run, the series was almost always one of the most-watched on television. Another sparring partner for Archie is neighbor George Jefferson, and the twocriticize one another's race. The character of George Jefferson was conceived of as a mirror image in some ways of Archie Bunker. [18] However, the roles were all recast, with Berlinda Tolbert taking over the role of Jenny, veteran actor Franklin Cover playing her father, Tom Willis, whose first name was changed from Louis, as it was in their first All in the Family appearance, and Roxie Roker as her mother, Helen. Stapleton expressed a desire to distance herself from the role of Edith. Evans Archie is a working-class man who will never go beyond his working day and his easy chair in his modest house, whereas George and his family are destined to move on upand leave the Bunkers behind in a world they'll never escape. In his autobiography, Lear wrote that three members of the Black Panther Party came to his office at CBS, complaining about Good Times: Every time you see a Black man on the tube, he is dirt poor, wears shit clothes, cant afford nothing. Which is why it's easy to forget that George Jefferson actually had a fascinating fictional background story that was more thoughtful than your typical sitcom fare. Over the course of its 11-year run, the series was almost always one of the most-watched on television. Your subscription to our list has been confirmed. In the season two episodeCousin Maudes Visit, Ediths liberal cousin Maude Findlay (Beatrice Arthur) comes to help out when the Bunkers are sick with the flu. Maudealso introducedJohn Amosas Floridas husband Henry later changed to James and established their marital dynamic in preparation for the spinoff. It was funny and entertaining. Almost as well known, but less controversial was the Nov. 10, 1975, episode of Maude talking to her psychiatrist. The series endured for nine seasons, but the show we think of when we think ofAll In The Familyreally ended in season 8 when Gloria (Sally Struthers) and her husband Meathead (Reiner) moved to California. Arthur was such a hit as Maude that Lear developed a series for her, with the second season finale ofAll In The Familyacting as the backdoor pilot for the spinoff. As noted by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, this began to change in the 1970s, especially with the work of Norman Lear. On their own show, the Jeffersons interact with new friends and neighbors while inhabiting a new lifestyle. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. 6. ", was added as a bonus feature on The Jeffersons: The Complete Series 33-disc DVD set issued by Shout! George Jefferson was, in some ways, a black version of the white anti-hero Archie Bunker. All In The Familyfans will recognize Torres as Teresa Betancourt, the hospital worker who rents Mike And Glorias room when they move out. So when he flubbed lines during episode tapings, it's safe to assume it wasn't due to nerves or incompetenceas reported by Fame10, it was a form of passive resistance. The series also featured Danielle Brisebois as Stephanie, the young daughter of Ediths step-cousin who had moved in with the Bunkers in the final season of AITF. Brisebois had been a hit in Broadways Annie. (She later became an Oscar-nominated songwriter.). Sally Struthers was next to get her own show as Gloria Bunker Stivic, Archie and Edith's daughter. It only Larry Linville(Frank Burns on MASH) plays her manager. The Jeffersons