User reviews

When "Good Times" premiered in 1974, it was one the first black family sitcoms. It centered on the poor Chicago-based Evans family and their struggles to make ends meet. Most of the early episodes focused on the parents, James and Florida Evans, and their struggle to provide for the family. John Amos and Esther Rolle were the best part of the show. They were terrific actors and had great chemistry as James and Florida Evans. They had three kids: J.J., Thelma, and Michael. J.J. was the skirt-chasing but well-meaning teenage son who made up for his lack of subtlety with artistic talent. Thelma was an attractive, bright girl who was constantly trading insults with J.J. Michael was a near child prodigy who was well-educated on social issues and was destined to become a lawyer.

In 1976, the producers made a huge mistake by firing John Amos, literally killing off his character. This really changed the focus, and not for the good I might add. The shows began to focus more on J.J. and his buffoon-like behavior which angered black viewers as well as series star Esther Rolle, who left after the next season. Instead of a show that focused on key African-American issues that existed in society at the time, viewers got shows that were overloaded with skirt chasing and fat jokes.

Once Esther Rolle left, the quality of the show suffered even more. Although it was still watchable, it was no longer the great ground-breaking show that it once was.

Although Esther Rolle came back for the 1978 season, it became obvious that the show was on its last legs. All loose ends were tied up during that season and the show quietly faded off the air.

First three season: A. Last three seasons: C+.

Before leaving my own comments about the TV series GOOD TIMES, I feel that I simply MUST comment on the remarks of one Mr. Larry Wall. If you didn't like the show, fine, but some of your reasons for disliking it are totally erroneous. To wit:

1. "Thelma dressed like a slut": These must be the HBO episodes! I was always surprised that, considering the way Bernadette Stanis was built, they kept her covered up most of the time. She hardly showed any cleavage, the hemlines of her skirts and dresses were quite low. Her pants and jeans may have been tight but then again, in the Seventies, WHOSE weren't?

2. "(The Evanses were) living like animals": Not hardly. I can honestly say that our family was a little bit like the Evanses and we DIDN'T live in the projects neither. If, as you say, the head of the household is always losing his job, it's going to be kind of hard to keep a roof over your head and food on the table. It's kind of hard to eat fillet mignon on a hot dog budget.

3. "(James) threatened with violence for everything. I don't remember him sitting down and explaining (anything)": You must have missed those episodes, I can remember numerous times when James sat down and talked things out without yelling or threatening to take off his belt. In fact, there was even one episode when he apologized to Michael, which in turn led to Michael feeling as if he could apologize for acting up in school.

4. "James got in front of white people and did that stupid laugh": Wrong! If you look at the show again, you will see that James would do the laugh (A-heh-heh-heh!) only when he got caught in a lie by Florida. Usually about an old girlfriend.

5. "Michael . . . would get put down (for his militantism) and made to seem foolish . . .": Those scenes were done to show to Michael that everything wasn't as simple as black-and-white, so to speak. Example: Florida's rich cousin announces that he had just been laid off from his high-paying job.

Michael: "I'll bet the only reason you were fired was because you're black." Cousin: "Well, if they did, then they also fired six other men because they were white." Get the picture?

6. "It says we're content to live like . . . animals": You could say a lot of things about the Evanses and Willona, but you can't say that they were content with their lot in life. James was always looking for better paying jobs. J.J. (yes, I will admit that he was a BIT much) kept working at his painting as well as looking for artistic jobs. Thelma wanted to be a dancer (and, no, not a stripper). Michael let a street gang know that he wanted more with his life than to settle for being a ghetto resident. To paraphrase Florida in one episode: there is no such thing as a waste of hope.

For the most part, I liked the show during the "James Years". The humor was believable and came from the heart. After John Amos left, the quality of the show really went down. When Ester Rolle left, it took an even bigger dive. Adding Janet Jackson did NOT help things any. When Rolle returned, the damage had been done too far to repair. Mr. Wall, I hope you will look at the show again and think over your past comments. You will see that they DEFINITELY do not apply to the show that was on then.

On the Maude series, the Findlays up there in Tuckahoe had a maid played by Esther Rolle named Florida Evans. I'm sure a lot of even the most liberal thinking people have no conception of the fact that the help which was what Florida was go home to a whole different world. When Norman Lear who just dominated television in the 70s decided to give Rolle her own series, he took her character and moved them to the south side of Chicago where they lived in the projects.

This was the first black centered comedy series which had its characters in a poor environment. Still the Evans family faced life on the edge with grit. John Amos was the father who was a working stiff raising with Rolle three kids.

Going in ascending order was Ralph Carter who was developing a social conscience and wanted to be lawyer to devote himself to betterment of his people and environment. Bernadette Stanis the middle child was a pretty, but also very intelligent young woman who was going to have a career and marry the man of her dreams. If he was rich or had prospects so much the better.

The heart of the show was the oldest Jimmie Walker. He's a comedian and to him the laughs devolved. He was having a bit of trouble growing up and drove his parents a bit nuts. And he brought that one word catchphrase of his to the English language. When something was good it was Dy-No-Mite.

The show lost something when Amos was killed off. It got even worse when Rolle took a hiatus. The kids were fending on their own with a look in from their neighbor Janet Dubois.

Top show when it started. But as a family show they usually lose something when the family unit is disrupted. Good Times was no exception.

I realize everyone has their own opinion, but, I don't know . . . I think the critics of this show miss the point of the show. I don't find it stereotypical or shuckin'/jivin' at all. This was a family that just happened to be black and live in the projects. They didn't dwell on it. They were actually trying to do everything they could to get out of the projects. JJ wanted to be an artists. Thelma, a dancer. Michael, involved in legal/justice. Seems to me nowadays, the projects or ghetto life is romanticized (see BET videos or MTV videos), whereas the Evans family in "Good Times" was trying to get out and onto something better. Headed by two parents who realized there own shortcomings (lack of education, money), but didn't they try to lead by example by teaching their kids values, strong work ethic and didn't they try to IMPROVE the lives of THEIR children? They tried to show their kids to strive for more in life, DESPITE obstacles. James tried to work several jobs, just so Florida could stay home and tend to the needs of the house/family. Some may find that chauvinistic by today's standards, but, I'm not so sure about that. Seems to me when at least one parent was in the home, children were a bit more manageable. What better representation of a family values can you ask for? A great show! Better than most of the family comedies today!

"GOOD TIMES," in my opinion, is a must-see CBS hit! Despite the fact that I've never seen every episode, I still enjoy it. It's hard to say which one is my favorite. Also, I really love the theme song. If you ask me, even though I like everyone, it would have been nice if everyone had stayed on the show throughout its entire run. Everyone always gave a good performance, the production design was spectacular, the costumes were well-designed, and the writing was always very strong. In conclusion, even though it can be seen on TV Land now, I strongly recommend you catch it just in case it goes off the air for good.

I certainly hope that the phrase "Kid Dynamite" will come back into common usage some day.

This show about a "lower middle class" or "higher lower class" black family was really about J.J., or "Kid Dynamite", as he would call himself.

"Kid Dynamite" was the Laurel to the family of "Hardys". He was as skinny as you could get, and wore a hat that made him the kind of guy all kids would admire, and hope to be some day.

Flo, the mother, was a stereotypical straight force to the comedy of J.J., but she never lost her dignity, and her character was more three dimensional than one would think. It was just very very subtle.

The father and other two siblings were other straight roles to J.J., no doubt about it. It's easy to see why the father left the show. It was a pleasant role that Amos played, but really sort of a block of wood. Playing that role, one would think "why do I even need to be here"? The writers tried to invoke some "thoughtful" ideas into this, but the show was "Kid Dynamite" all the way. And that meant basic comedy. Still, they did a pretty good job of bringing up meaningful topics

I would like to know why John Amos left the show, and how did he die off the show again? I couldn't relate to everything, but sometimes they hit home with the problems they were facing. By the way, did they ever make it out of the ghetto? I think the episode with the black Jesus was my favorite. We got to see them experience a few good times. something they didn't have very often. I wish they would bring the show back. During the daytime so people can actually stay up to watch. I don't think a movie or a new show would work. Especially without the original cast. They are really what made Good Times GoodTimes. These are my questions and comments. Thank You!!

Reading all of the comments Are very exciting. but can someone please tell me the name of the real artist that painted the pictures for the good times broadcast. I realize that everyone refers to j.j. as the artist in the family but, there was a real family that has the real artist, and he hasn't gotten any credit in this sight yet. So if you don't mind if someone can tell the name of the real artist I would also like to tell him "job well done". I know this Sight is for the GOOD TIMES cast but, wouldn't you agree that he has also touched the hearts of us all. I would like to know if he still paints or, if he is still alive. I would like to have some of his work displayed in my home.

I liked Good Times. It was ground breaking for its time. It wasn't great, but it was entertaining and in many cases, it left you contemplating the episode. However, I noted an undercurrent of anger and maybe even hatred. The two main stars John Amos and Esther Rolle it seems, became very embittered and angry as the show started becoming a hit. Their resentment seemed geared at their on screen son Kid Dynamite. Mister Walker, like Henry Winkler and John Travolta went from minor billing to super stardom leaving their fellow cast members jealous and envious. Mr Amos and Ms Rolle were very angry people. I am always perplexed with successful actors who are always angry: they have big salaries (but always feel underplayed), fame, adulation and a beautiful life, yet they are miserable and embittered. I don't feel sorry for them. Anyhow, I got off track. Good entertainment despite the underbelly of hate.

I want to take this opportunity to review the principal lyrics of the show "Good Times"

"Temporary lay offs.

Good Times.

Easy credit rip offs.

Good Times.

Scratchin' and survivin'.

Good Times.

Hangin' in and jivin'*

Good Times.

Ain't we lucky we got 'em

Good Times."

As good as this show was, it was still quite depressing, and these lyrics are an indication why. Tell me what about these situations that we as Black folks learned to accept are truly "good times?"

What I remember most from "Good Times" were a few things.

1.) JJ Evans (Jimmie Walker) was a clown.

2.) James Evans, Sr. (John Amos) was seemingly always angry.

3.) Florida Evans (Esther Rolle) was so serious.

What I'm trying to say is that it didn't seem like anyone but JJ was having a good time which makes me wonder if the song was being ironic.

* The season one DVD box set has the lyric as "Hangin' in a chow line".

However the writers, the Bergmans, confirmed that it is actually "Hangin' in and jivin'.

Esther Rolle must have been the African American equivalent of Lucille Ball-a miserable person of limited abilities who was detested by everyone who ever worked with her. Notice how often her character sabotages every opportunity for the Evans family to better themselves & their circumstances, usually on purpose, for self righteous, holier than thou reasons, whether it's early in the series, with her refusal to act in a lucrative TV commercial ("James, they got me tellin' lies!"), right to the very end when her cousin Raymond's horse playing system enables him to give her a $10000 down payment on a lavish apartment, which she gives back because of her disapproval of gambling. Watch her whenever she delivers a line of dialogue which is supposed to be funny-she acts (?) as if she's about to get a double hernia from laughing so hard. And her leaving the series for a year because of her disapproval of the buffoonery of the JJ character? All well & good, but check out the mannerisms of Janet Dubois sometime. Her shufflin' and grinnin' act would have put Steppin' Fetchit to shame.

An interesting comedy series about a poor black family trying to make ends meet and make a better life in the projects of Chicago. I first saw the reruns once our local WB affiliate took off the weekday morning reruns of Happy Days and began airing this instead. And it made me laugh! The Evans were a real family with real problems, but they also truly loved each other. I think JJ was a precursor to characters such as Horshack, Screech, Urkel, Rerun, etc. The gospelish theme song and title sequences shown over inner-city Chicago only added to the realism. Speaking of theme songs, Ja'net DuBois (neighbor Willona) co-wrote and sang another truly memorable one during this time. What was it? "Movin' On Up" for The Jeffersons, of course.

This was what black society was like before the crack epidemics, gangsta rap, and AIDS that beset the ghettos in the eighties. Decent, hardworking families that struggled to get by and all the traumas and tribulations they faced. Black America was a different group of people in the seventies. Still full of hope and flying high on the civil rights movements of the sixties, times were hard but still worth fighting for. Keepin' your head above water, making a wave when you can, this show showed how black society struggled to work together as people and families, before they started to prey on each other and everyone else in order to survive the horrors of the ghettos. It is heart-breaking to see what the black ghettos were like then and what they have become now.

When people think of downtown Chicago they think of Walter Payton, Ditka and "Da Bears", Ryne Sandberg, The White Sox breaking the curse in 2005 or the immortal Michael Jordan and his six championships (and Finals MVP's) with the Chicago Bulls. Rarely in this generation do people think of the struggling side of Chicago, the ghettos, the drug infested streets and life in the urban housing projects during the 1970's.

One of television's most formidable shows ever and a groundbreaking sitcom was "Good Times", which I remember vaguely as a small child on CBS, and I enjoy regularly now on TV Land.

"Good Times" was another Norman Lear classic, the producer that gave us "The Jeffersons", the best African American sitcom of all time and "All in the Family" the greatest show of all time. "Good Times" brought out the hardships of the ghetto and the urban housing projects, and did so with charm, well written and thoughtful plots, and some wonderful acting especially by the matriarch and patriarch of this struggling ghetto family played by Esther Rolle and John Amos. The children in the supporting cast were also pretty good especially the ever popular Janet Jackson in her early years and Ralph Carter as Florida and James Evans youngest son whose character at a young age realizes that life is unfair, and he has to learn to stand on his own two feet.

The eldest of the children J.J. played by Jimmy Walker is somewhat out of place on this show and is there mainly for comic relief. His emotional age is about 11 or 12 even though he looks like a guy in his early twenties. J.J. gets annoying, and it is a credit to the often nasty James Evans (Amos) that he never tells J.J. to get his own life, get a job and get out of the house. J.J. is an aspiring painter but unlike his younger brother is never serious about getting a college degree, or more important to the family getting a job to help support a household that is just above welfare status.

Two classic episodes of Good Times was the one where the Janet Jackson character is running a fever of 104, and Florida Evans is desperately seeking good medical help for her can't afford anything but a clinic doctor who is very professional yet doesn't want to give a family from the projects any more attention than she legally has to. The other episode is the one where James Evans can't afford the rent a paltry low $104 a month. The Evans are about to get the largest of family setbacks, being thrown out of the projects with no where to go. Florida Evans goes downtown to the board of social services to try to get either a loan or a grant to help her family. But the government doesn't consider her family poor because they have over $4,200 in assets for a family of five which is unfairly but unfortunately legally over the poverty line. James and the kids want to hustle for the money, but Florida is a person of great moral character and doesn't want to do anything dishonest no matter how dire their predicament is. In the end the family does find a solution to keep their heads above water.

"Good Times" a classic show from the 1970's is about keeping you're head above water in a cruel world. James and Florida Evans both work hard in menial jobs to try to bring their children up right and avoid the social stigma of welfare. I was too young to understand the message of the sitcom as a toddler in the 70s in its first airing on CBS, but I really enjoy the reruns on TV Land in 2006. "Good Times" is one of the classic sitcoms from back in the day.

A great concept gone completely bad. One of Norman Lear's many spin offs, from a spin off, of another spin off of All In The Family... and even though this, like all of Lear's other shows, had a blatant political agenda, this show had a great potential. But it failed to deliver it. When it first aired it seemed promising... despite the reverse discrimination and broad sweeping hatred of all whites by the youngest son Michael, who they called the militant midget.

But as time passed, it became a mockery of itself. The crown jewel of catch phrase based comedies. The first step down was killing off John Amos. The second step down was when Esther Rolle left because she felt the show negatively reflected on black youth by how it portrayed JJ Evans as a womanizing self absorbed goof. Then the final blow, after the 2 stabilizing figures left the show, was the addition of the character Penny, horribly played by the young Janet Jackson and the sudden focus on family friend and relentless insult comic, Willona.

Even before then, the script writers had degraded to a formula: write an entire script around JJ's many catch phrases. Without fail, there was always the expected phone call for him to answer and say "Chello!" A compliment for him to respond to with "What can I say?!" or "I Knooooow". Always followed by an extended laugh track.

To add a large anvil to the sinking ship was the addition of Bookman. Someone thought it would be funny to add a fat man to the show for Willona and the rest of the cast to insult. If you watch the pulse of the show, it became a series of insults every few seconds, met by a overwhelming laugh from the "audience". Worst yet, this fat man would do really poor imitations of real celebrities. Particularly, John Wayne. Also met by an abundance of canned laughter.

It's no wonder Esther Rolle left and wanted to have nothing to do with the show. The main character had become a douche that had to get a laugh every few seconds with a worn out catch phrase. The replacement character Willona was basically an insult comic, peppering lame insults between JJ's catch phrases. And Penny was the final nail in the coffin with some of the worst acting to ever disgrace the tube. Hell, years later, we know she can dance and sing with the help of an auto-tuner, but acting, not so much.

This is the most memorable TV series that I saw in my youth and it left a strong impression on me. This series is not only entertaining but instructive at the same time. You get to learn a lot about the hardships of life.

The series shows the day-to-day life of the Evans family. The family is headed by James Evans, Sr (John Amos), who lacks a good eduction and so struggles to find jobs to support his family. His excellent wife Florida Evans (Esther Rolle) looks after James three children: James 'J.J.' Evans, Jr. (Jimmie Walker), Thelma Evans (BernNadette Stanis) and Michael Evans (Ralph Carter).

Florida is a pillar of support to her husband and raises him up when he is down. His children also boost his morale whenever they can. This series shows how a lack of a decent higher education can affect your earning in U.S.A.

The only dream if James is to ensure that "J.J" who has a talented artistic ability, joins Art School, Thelma his daughter becomes a teacher, nurse or doctor and Michael definitely becomes a distinguished lawyer.

Make no doubt about it despite the grim situation Good Times is actually jam-packed with comedy that will bring the tears to your eyes. This is the only series that balances comedy and seriousness.

You also learn a lot from this series: never to give up on life, always be truthful and honest and never steal from someone, always help someone in need, not to let anger get the better of you, keep an eye on your children's education and their activities, giving good advice to your children and always show affection for one another.

In the end every cloud has a silver lining and things turn out well for the Evans Family.

I suggest you buy the entire series on DVD and it will provide you with years of joy and your whole family will really appreciate it.

Email Me Vivekmaru45@yahoo.com for more movie recommendations.

Another Norman Lear hit detailing the problems that African Americans had to go through in the turbulent 1960s and 1970s.

With Esther Rolle and husband along with 3 children living in a Chicago high-rise project in a predominantly black neighborhood, the show depicted what black people were going through with a landlord (black agent Mr. Bookman) as well as prices and the day-to-day problems of just existing.

The 3 children depicted how people seem to face their problems differently- from the comical JJ to the militant Ralph Carter, to their daughter who also aspired to attain success, this show was a perfect description of African-American life.

It actually should have been named Bad Times. The father dies, and the mother leaves the show, too but later returns.