The Jeffersons-The Little Things We Loved

Last week’s passing of Sherman Hemsley – the actor whobrilliantly played the old bigoted yet lovable curmudgeon “George Jefferson” onCBS’s hit sitcom “The Jeffersons” (1975-1985)-has left quite a hole in my retrotv loving heart.  Although The Jeffersonsaired its last show almost thirty years ago, it made such a mark on pop culturethat it is still amongst the most beloved in television history. Like anygreat show, there are a multitude of factors that make it classictelevision-the cast of colorful characters, funny one liners, its infectioustheme song (see my post “Death of the Theme Song"). And no doubt Hemsley’sportrayal of George Jefferson was one very important contribution to the showssuccess. But what had me tuning in every week as a child- and now spending hoursscrambling Youtube for episodes-are the little things.

The original cast of CBSs "The Jeffersons"

The Doorbell- That familiar melody was theaudience’s cue that whoever was behind that door was someone guaranteed to sayor do something to get under George’s hair line. Which brings us to...

George’s hair line- George Jefferson had one of the mostrecognizable receding hair lines ever. His kinky salt and pepper ‘fro puffs werecupped around a shiny bald patch that seemed to pulsate whenever he was onthe verge of flipping his lid, which was often.

Wizzie’s voice- You can’t have some high pitched, lilly soft voice to go face to face with a loudmouth like George. Louise Jefferson’s raspyintonations of “Oh George!", mixed with a tinge of Harlem twang was just what he needed to be brought down to size.

The original Lionel-How Lionel ended up taller thanboth of his short parents is a genetic mystery. But how Jenny fell in love withhim is not-he was socially conscious, handsome, and his ‘fro was tight.  Little known Black TV history fact: MikeEvans, the actor who played Lionel, went on to co-create another beloved retro television gem, “Good Times”.

Mother Jefferson- the quintessential monster in law. Hersnobby insults and contrary objections to anything poor Wizzie said created classic conflict. And she was sogosh darn cute with her silver wig, ostentatious accessories, and convenient amnesia of Harlem ‘hood life.

Bentley’s turtleneck-Bentley was the Jefferson’s Britishneighbor who always needed to borrow something or another. He was, however, wellstocked with turtlenecks, as it was very rare was it to see him not rocking oneunderneath his sports coat. 

The best line of the series- There were gangloadsof memorable lines throughout the entire eleven years that The Jeffersons ran. But perhaps the best, most poignant and era defining line delivered on theshow was by Florence, the Jefferson's wise cracking maid. On the very first episode,Florence, having just been hired by George, and upon realizing that Helen was alsoan Upper Eastside penthouse dweller, innocently asked, “How come we overcame andnobody told me?”

"The Jeffersons" premiere episode

This line set the tone for this show, a maverick amongst black television sitcoms at the time. It was one of the first television sitcoms to feature African-Americans in leading roles since "Amos n Andy" in the 1950s, as well as the first to feature an interracial couple. The Jeffersons was also the first to portray a materially successful African-American family, and eventually became the longest running show with a predominately African-American cast in television history.

References


Dean, P. D. (n.d.). The Jeffersons. Retrieved from http://www.museum.tv/eotvsection.php?entrycode=jeffersonst

Southern, N. S. (n.d.). Mike evans, biography. Retrieved from http://www.aoltv.com/celebs/mike-evans/1958518/biography