Cheapening Good Times

Many of you might remember the show "Good Times" by Norman Lear. Norman Lear made great, thought provoking shows that also did well with ratings. He promoted thoughtful citizenship.

The people he hired in Good Times were also thought provoking people. Notably John Amos and Esther Rolle (James and Florida Evans). They found that J.J's catch phrase "Dy-no-mite" cheapened the premise of the show and they were not tolerant of it. Of course the producers thought that catch phrase and the buffoonery of J.J. was what the American audience wanted. Maybe in the short run, but in the long run by removing the strong black father and the understanding mother the sitcom quickly fell in ratings. It turned out American actually did want a strong and conscientious storyline.

Here is what John and Esther said before they got fired (John) /left the show (Esther):

1975 interview with Ebony magazine--Rolle:

"He's eighteen and he doesn't work. He can't read or write. He doesn't think. The show didn't start out to be like that...Little by little--with the help of the artist, I suppose, because they couldn't do that to me--they have made J.J. more stupid and enlarged the role. Negative images have been slipped in on us through the character of the oldest child."

From Amos:

"The writers would prefer to put a chicken hat on J.J. and have him prance around saying "DY-NO-MITE", and that way they could waste a few minutes and not have to write meaningful dialogue".

Now think of the integrity it took for these actors to make these statements. They have a hit show and they were being paid very well, however, they would not sell out their integrity for it.

The whole thing about Good Times is that they had a very strong father figure who would never leave no matter how hard the times got and a very strong mother figure who was also a devout Christian. They got written off by killing the father when he finally got a permanent job and by having Florida Evans run off and leave the family in AZ to marry an atheist man. She found this against the very character of Florida Evans. She returned in later seasons as the show was failing and they asked her back. She insisted that she would have a greater say in the storyline, JJ would be more respectable, and that the whole running off the AZ and marriage storyline be erased as if it never happened.

One thing I liked about the early episodes of Good Times is that they always took the high road even though it meant staying poor and living in the projects. Like when James could have gone to Alaska for a year for a very large salary but it would mean leaving his family to pursue the money. In the end, he realized the family needed a father. I think of the shows like Keeping Up with the Kardashians and TMZ and wonder if there is a place for Norman Lear productions today? Is the power of choosing integrity completely lost in the media today? Has "everything can be bought" become a real value or a truth?