getTV Blog

The 1970s was the Golden Age of Sitcoms. The witches, Martians, and talking cars of 1960s primetime were gone, replaced by sharply written comedies that reflected the social upheaval of the day. Much of the credit for this new era of TV sitcoms goes to producer Norman Lear, who kickstarted the revolution with All In The Family in 1971. But it was Sanford And Son, based on the British sitcom Steptoe And Son, that broke even greater ground — and was an immediate hit.

“It’s good to see the Evans family again,” John Amos said, as he made a surprise appearance on Live In Front Of A Studio Audience: All In The Family and Good Times, a primetime special celebrating two of producer Norman Lear’s most iconic sitcoms.

What was your first job? Babysitter? Newspaper deliverer? Protector of the world’s most magical and awesome antiquities?

When Good Times debuted in February of 1974, it was a television first: a sitcom about an African American family in an inner-city housing project. And now, 45 years later, audiences will have a chance to revisit the Evans family — or meet them for the first time!

Life is good for Hal Williams. The veteran actor — who turns 81 on December 14 — is healthy, still working, and better-known than ever. “I get more recognition now than when I did Sanford And Son,” he recently told getTV. “They don’t care what else I’ve done. ‘You played Smitty!’”

At an age when many actors slow down — either by choice or by circumstance — Clifton Davis is more in-demand than ever. The 74-year-old has recurring roles on two TV shows: Madam Secretary on CBS and Godfather of Harlem on Epix. He recently completed a four-year run as the Sultan in Disney’s Aladdin, his eighth Broadway show. And he has a role in Jane Austen’s Pride, a musical version of Pride And Prejudice that he hopes is destined for Broadway.