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In today’s TV landscape, few characters have made the kind of comedic and cultural impact as Carroll O’Connor’s Archie Bunker from Norman Lear’s groundbreaking sitcom All in the Family.

The 1970s are often considered a Golden Age of TV comedy, thanks largely to two production powerhouses: Mtm, which gave us The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Bob Newhart Show, and Tandem Productions, the company co‑founded by Norman Lear. Tandem delivered a string of groundbreaking hits — All in the Family, Maude, The Jeffersons, Good Times, and Sanford & Son. Among these, perhaps none resonated more deeply than All in the Family, a...

Image Source: Amazon When Happy Days premiered in 1974, it was trounced in its Tuesday 8pm time slot by another sitcom: Good Times. In fact, Good Times was the 7th most popular show of the season, coming in higher than ’70s classics like The Waltons, Little House on the Prairie, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, and The Bob Newhart Show. Fifty years later, the show was celebrated with a special panel at Gallatin Comic Con, where Bern Nadette Stanis, who played teenage daughter Thelma Evans on the show, shared her memories of working with her on-screen mother, the late Esther Rolle. (Click on the media bar below to hear Bern Nadette Stanis) https://www.hollywoodoutbreak.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/BernNadette_-Stanis-Good-Times_Ester_Rolle_.mp3

Good Times is currently streaming on Peacock and Amazon Freevee and is available on DVD and most digital platforms.

The post Bern Nadette Stanis Reflects On Her ‘Good...

John Amos, a legendary actor who worked on the set of several critically acclaimed shows during the 70s and 80s, recently lost his life. With a career so remarkable, Amos worked as an actor until 2022, and his last publicly known project was Me Time, starring Mark Wahlberg and Kevin Hart.

John Amos as James Evans Sr. in Good Times | Credits: CBS

It all started with humble beginnings, Amos was a budding athlete who could’ve made it big back in his glory days. He played football at Colorado State University before landing opportunities to try out for NFL teams, the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs (via The Hollywood Report). But it was fate that brought him into Hollywood.

John Amos passed away at the age of 84

After having a legendary Hollywood career, John Amos sadly passed away on August 21, 2024, in Los Angeles, California. His son, K.C. Amos reported his...

John Amos was not a man to be trifled with.

The celebrated actor, who passed away on August 21, 2024 at the age of 84, came to the performing arts from the gridiron. He was signed as a free agent by the Denver Broncos in 1964, and caught on with the Kansas City Chiefs in 1967. But, in between those very brief stints, he mostly played semi-pro ball. I do not mean this as a slight. They go hard at that level because they're looking to impress pro scouts. So Mr. Amos took his share of punishment before he started applying makeup to step in front of a camera and portray one of the 1970s most beloved TV dads.

If you watched "Good Times" during its six-season run from 1974 to 1979, or caught it in syndication, you know Amos' James Evans, a hard-working man grinding to raise three children along with his saint of a wife...

John Amos, the actor whose characters in Good Times, Roots and The Mary Tyler Moore Show lent the 1970s a solid share of its too-few portrayals of strong Black male role models, has died in Los Angeles of natural causes. He was 84.

His August 21 death, announced by son Kelly Christopher Amos, had not been disclosed until today.

“It is with heartfelt sadness that I share with you that my father has transitioned,” Kelly Christopher Amos said in a statement. “He was a man with the kindest heart and a heart of gold… and he was loved the world over. Many fans consider him their TV father. He lived a good life. His legacy will live on in his outstanding works in television and film as an actor. My father loved working as an actor throughout his entire life…. most recently in Suits LA playing himself and our documentary about his life journey as an actor,...

John Amos, the TV writer turned Emmy-nominated actor who starred as the stoic father on Good Times before he was fired from the landmark sitcom for objecting to stereotypes and admittedly letting his temper get the best of him, has died. He was 84.

Amos died Aug. 21 in Los Angeles of natural causes, his son, K.C. Amos, announced.

“It is with heartfelt sadness that I share with you that my father has transitioned,” he said in a statement. “He was a man with the kindest heart and a heart of gold … and he was loved the world over. Many fans consider him their TV father. He lived a good life. His legacy will live on in his outstanding works in television and film as an actor.”

Amos, who played football at Colorado State University and had training camp tryouts with the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League,...

Entertainment Squad has acquired suspense thriller Once In A Valentine from Global Genesis Group for the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand.

Entertainment Squad plans to release the film in cinemas on September 13 and will present it to exhibitors at Ind/Ex, the Independent Film Exhibition Conference taking place in Chicago this week (June 25-28). The Conference is a joint venture between Art House Convergence and Film Festival Alliance.

Directed by Javon Johnson, the film tells the story of a woman haunted by past trauma who faces her fears and finds unexpected love. The cast includes Clifton Powell,...

A new generation of the Evans family takes center stage in Netflix's Good Times reboot. The original show focused on parents Florida and James, as well as their children Michael, Thelma, and J.J. The 2024 series follows Florida and James' grandson, Reggie, alongside his wife and three kids.

With a new generation of the Evans family taking center stage in Netflix's animated Good Times reboot, it's essential to understand the entire family tree. The original Good Times focuses on the family in the 1970s, while the reboot opts for a new family with the same name and a distant connection to the original. The first Good Times series is ingrained in pop culture, so using the same character names would probably have set the show up to be a disaster.

The Evans family was introduced in 1972, with Florida Evans first appearing as a housekeeper in Maude. Thanks to the character's success with viewers,...

Fifty years ago, “Good Times” became the first sitcom to depict a two-parent Black American family. Now, Netflix is debuting a present-day animated reboot chronicling the Evanses two generations after the original. Set in Chicago’s Cabrini Green projects in the same apartment from the 1970s dramedy, the series follows Reggie (J.B. Smoove), his wife Beverly (Yvette Nicole Brown) and their children, Junior (Jay Pharoah), Grey (Marsai Martin) and Dalvin (Slink Johnson). Black people aren’t a monolith, and respectability politics certainly aren’t the answer to racism, sexism, bigotry and homophobia. Yet it’s puzzling that this mind-numbing series is how creator Ranada Shepard is paying homage to such a classic show while trying to speak to 21st-century Black people. It’s also very clear why Netflix decided against sending out screeners for review.

In the season opener, “Meet the Evans of New,” we learn about the new occupants of apartment 17C.

The legacy of Good Times continues 50 years on, as Netflix rolls out an animated reboot of the series on April 12.

The original CBS sitcom, created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans and developed by Norman Lear, offered a heartfelt focus on a working-class Black family and starred Esther Rolle as Florida Evans and John Amos as husband James, who were raising three kids in a Chicago public housing project. Rolle and Amos originated their characters on Maude, a spinoff of Lear’s seminal comedy All in the Family.

BernNadette Stanis, who was a teen when she landed her first-ever role as middle child Thelma, tells The Hollywood Reporter that Lear let her improvise audition lines with Jimmie Walker, who was already cast as older bro J.J. “I started in on Jimmie just like I would treat my real brothers,” says Stanis, who recalls stunning Walker when she playfully smacked his shoulder.

Original Good Times cast members John Amos and BernNadette Stanis have reacted to the upcoming Netflix reboot. Both are waiting until watching the show to share their full opinions, but Amos acknowledged the reboot will "have a hard time reaching [the original's] level of entertainment [and] education." The animated Good Times reboot will benefit from the involvement of Seth MacFarlane and a strong voice cast, but it remains to be seen if it will come close to the original's appeal.

The trailer for the forthcoming Netflix animated show Good Times has received a response from the original series' cast members, following divisive viewer reactions. The original show ran on CBS from 1974-79 and received critical acclaim for its humor and exploration of serious issues, as shown through the eyes of a working-class Black family. The animated reboot is co-executive produced by Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane, as well as the late Norman Lear,...

The first trailer for Netflix’s animated reboot of the iconic ’70s sitcom Good Times was released last week, and the reaction has been… let’s say, mixed.

The original Norman Lear sitcom ran for six seasons from 1974 to 1979 and earned praise for its portrayal of a working-class Black family. The animated reboot follows a new generation of the Evans family as they keep their heads above water in a Chicago housing project, but the tone of the trailer, complete with a drug-dealing baby, didn’t exactly rub fans the right way.

While speaking with THR, original Good Times stars John Amos (James Evans) and BernNadette Stanis (Thelma) shared their thoughts on the trailer. Both actors made it clear that they aren’t ready to pass judgment until they’re able to see full episodes. “I really can’t form an opinion, as I’ve not seen any of the episodes yet,...

Stars of the original Good Times are weighing in after the trailer for Netflix’s forthcoming animated reboot led some fans to question whether the new project will indeed be “dynomite.”

Celebrating its 50th anniversary this year after premiering in February 1974, Good Times focused on the Chicago-based Evans family, with the Norman Lear-produced series running for six seasons and earning praise for its realistic portrayal of a working-class Black family. After the first promo debuted last week for Netflix’s animated exploration of the Evans family’s current generation, plenty of social media users expressed surprise that the new series — which appears to double down on stereotypes with such elements as a drug-dealing infant — didn’t highlight the positive themes from the initial show.

The Hollywood Reporter spoke to original Good Times castmembers John Amos, who portrayed patriarch James Evans on the first three seasons, and BernNadette Stanis — known for playing Thelma,...

Exclusive: Carl Weber’s The Family Business New Orleans spinoff is rounding out its cast. Lela Rochon joins previously announced Brandon T. Jackson in a starring role, along with Ben Stephens, Pooch Hall, Quincy Brown, David Banner, Yvette Nicole Brown, Orlando Jones, Nicole Galicia, Erica Hubbard, Sarah Carter, Stan Shaw, Bern Nadette Stanis, Nayirah Teshali, Sacaiah Shaw, Jenson Atwood, AzMarie Livingston, Deric Augustine. Kayla Nicole, and Nicholas Turturro. Stephens, Stanis, Stan Shaw, Teshali, and Sacaiha Shaw guest-starred in the orginal series’ fourth season. Jackson and Rochon also serve as Associate Producers. The spinoff is currently shooting in New Orleans and Los Angeles with a premiere date on BET+ Tba.

Based on Weber’s bestselling crime drama book series, which wrapped its fourth season in October 2022, The Family Business follows the Duncans, an upstanding, tight-knit family led by L.C. Duncan (Ernie Hudson) that by day owns and operates an exotic car dealership in New York.

“Good Times,” which celebrates its 50th anniversary on Feb. 8, suffered from an identity crisis during its six-season run on CBS. So much so, the lead actors — Esther Rolle and John Amos — would leave the popular second spinoff of ‘All in the Family”(Rolle would eventually return) because the sitcom changed focus.

Norman Lear ruled the airwaves in the 1970s. He blew up the conception of a family sitcom in 1971 with the CBS sitcom “All in the Family” which focused on a working class family from Queen lead by the bigoted patriarch Archie Bunker (Carroll O’Connor). During the first season, Bea Arthur guest starred as Maude, Edith Bunker’s (Jean Stapleton) favorite cousin who was the antithesis of Archie-outspoken, much married, ultra-liberal.

And after a second appearance on “All in the Family,” Arthur got her own series “Maude” in the fall of 1972. The breakout performer on that series was Esther...

Netflix’s animated Good Times update from Seth MacFarlane and the late and great Norman Lear is moving full steam ahead.

The streamer has tapped J.B. Smoove, Yvette Nicole Brown and Jay Pharoah to lead the voice cast of the animated and adult-leaning series. Additionally, Ranada Shepard (Family Affair, Lizzie McGuire) has signed on to serve as showrunner, replacing Carl Jones (The Boondocks) in the role.

The animated series follows the Evans family in the present day as they navigate today’s world and contemporary social issues. As the original did, the new show will strive to remind viewers that with the love of family, everyone can keep their heads above water.

Smoove and Brown will play the show’s central couple, Reggie and Beverly, with Pharoah taking on the role of one of their sons, Junior.

The original series starred Esther Rolle and John Amos as Florida and James Evans,...

Norman Lear was a man of modest physical stature, standing a trim 5’7″ on a good day. In terms of his impact on television — comedy primarily, but the medium as a whole — he was a giant, who belongs on any Mt. Rushmore of showrunners. He dominated an entire decade of TV like no one before or since, with hit after hit that expanded the boundaries of what could be done with the old-fashioned multi-camera sitcom format (shot on a stage in front of a studio audience), and what kinds of stories and characters audiences would accept.

Getting fired from Good Times is one of the best things that could have ever happened to John Amos.

After three seasons of fighting with executive producer Norman Lear and the CBS sitcom’s white writers about the stereotypical Black portrayals and dialogue the show perpetuated, particularly when it came to star Jimmie Walker, Amos’ contract to play patriarch James Evans wasn’t renewed at the end of Season 3 in 1976 and his character was killed off.

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Ja’Net DuBois is being remembered by her former co-workers for bringing “light” to the set of Good Times.

DuBois, who played Willona Woods on the 1970s sitcom, passed away Tuesday at her home in Glendale, California. She was 74.

As news of the actress and singer’s death spread, members of the Good Times family — including Janet Jackson who portrayed her adopted daughter “Penny” Woods — shared touching tributes.

“I am so very saddened to hear my longtime friend Ja’Net DuBois has passed away,” Jackson began. “I saw first hand how she broke stereotypes and changed the landscape for Black women in entertainment. I’m grateful in recent years I had a chance to see her and create more lasting memories.”

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I am so very saddened to hear my longtime friend Ja’Net DuBois has passed away. I saw first hand how she broke stereotypes and...

Actress Ja’Net DuBois died on Tuesday at her home in Glendale, Calif. at the age of 74. The actress, known for her role in the 70s sitcom “Good Times” as Wilona, the Evans family neighbor, died unexpectedly in her sleep. She appeared in several other films and shows throughout her career including “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle,” “Roots,” “Home Improvement” and “Sister Sister.” DuBois was a veteran actress who began her career in the 1960s and went on to become the first African American woman who was a regular cast member on a daytime serial for the television soap opera “Love of Life.” She won two primetime Emmy’s for outstanding voice-over performance in 1999 for the series “The PJs” and in 2001 for “The PJs: Let’s Get Ready to Rumba.”

Reps for the Pan African Film Festival, where DuBois was one of the co-founders, said in a statement, “she will be deeply missed.

Ja’net DuBois, best known for her role as Good Times‘ Willona Woods, died on Tuesday at the age of 74, TMZ reports. A cause of death has not been disclosed.

DuBois rose to fame as Florida and James Evans’ next-door neighbor on the aforementioned Norman Lear sitcom, which ran from 1974-1979. She also co-wrote and sang the iconic Jeffersons theme song “Movin’ On Up.”

More from TVLineGood Times Recap: Was Viola Davis 'Dyn-o-mite'? Grade the Live EpisodeLive in Front of a Studio Audience: Patti Labelle and Anthony Anderson Sing Good Times Theme Song -- WatchLive Good Times Cast: Viola Davis, Andre Braugher,...

[caption id="attachment_48521" align="aligncenter" width="590"] (ABC/Ron Tom.)/caption]

Ain't we lucky we got 'em? Check out these photos of the second season finale of the Black-ish TV show on ABC. In "Good-ish Times," Dre falls asleep watching a Good Times TV show marathon. In his dream, the Johnson family goes back to the 1970s and are transformed into the characters of this classic TV show. The episode airs May 18th.

Black-ish stars Anthony Anderson, Tracee Ellis Ross, Laurence Fishburne, Yara Shahidi, Marcus Scribner, Miles Brown, Marsai Martin, and Jenifer Lewis. Guest starring are Peter Mackenzie, Jeff Meacham, Deon Cole, and Catherine Reitman. The cast of the original Good Times TV series includes: BernNadette Stanis, Ralph Carter, Jimmie Walker, Ja'net DuBois, Esther Rolle, John Amos, and Janet Jackson (Miss Jackson, if you're nasty).

Read More…...

The original cast of Norman Lear’s groundbreaking 1970s sitcom Good Times has taken to Kickstarter to fund an original movie the includes the same characters. The Original Good Times Cast Movie brings together all the original stars. The project, which Jimmie “Dyn-o-mite” Walker calls a docu-drama-comedy, is being done to give fans closure on what happened to Lear’s fictional Chicago family. The cast is doing this together outside of rights owner Sony, saying that they are not infringing on the copyright or trademark.

“In the case of Good Times there is going to be a comparison, but it’s not an infringement of copyright,” said Shaun Weiss, who is the attorney for both BernNadette Stanis (who played Thelma in the TV show) and the project. Kevin Fontana is her manager. “What we are doing is bringing a new era into the cast.

Good Times actor Ben Powers has died, according to The Hollywood Reporter. He was 64. While a cause of death has yet to be revealed, an obituary created by his loved ones has surfaced that reveals the actor passed away April 6 in New Bedford, Mass. Powers was best known for his role as Keith Anderson on the '70s sitcom Good Times. His character was married to Thelma Evans played by BerNadette Stanis. "My condolences goes out to the family of Ben Powers who past a few days ago," she wrote on Facebook with a throwback picture of the pair. "He was a great actor and great friend who is gone too soon." She added, "He will be missed by many. Until next lifetime my...

Actor Ben Powers, who was best known for his role as Keith Anderson on the '70s sitcom Good Times, died at age 64 on April 6, Deadline reports.  Powers' character was the football player husband of Thelma Evans (BerNadette Stanis) from 1978 to 1979.  "My condolences goes out to the family of Ben Powers who past a few days ago," Stanis wrote on Facebook on April 16. "He was a great actor and great friend who is gone too soon. He will be missed by many. Until next [...]...

Ben Powers, best known for his role as Keith Anderson on the Good Times sitcom that aired on CBS in the middle to late 1970s, has died. Powers was 64 and died April 6 in New Bedford, Ma. His character was the football player husband of Thelma Evans, who was played by BerNadette Stanis on the hit series from producers Norman Lear and Bud Yorkin. Powers also played the character Moochie on another CBS series, The New Mike Hammer that starred Stacey Keach. He also appeared…...

Ben Powers, who played Thelma's (BernNadette Stanis) husband Keith Anderson on the final season of the classic CBS sitcom Good Times, has died. He was 64. Powers died April 6 in New Bedford, Mass., his family announced. No cause of death was revealed. He joined the cast of Good Times for its sixth and final 1978-79 season, playing Keith, a professional football player. His character and Thelma are wed on the third episode of that year, but he injures his leg while walking out of the church, straining their relationship.  Read More Hollywood's Notable Deaths of 2015 Powers also

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According to The Hollywood Reporter, Sony is currently developing a film based on ”Good Times”, the popular Sitcom that ran on CBS from 1974-1979. Sony has enlisted Scott Rudin and Eli Bush as producers. Phil Johnston (Wreck-It-Ralph, Cedar Rapids) will write.

The original show starred Ja’net DuBois, John Amos, Ralph Carter, Jimmie Walker, BernNadette Stanis and Esther Rolle.

Good Times synopsis from Tvland:

Good Times follows the challenges and joys of the close-knit Evans family — patriarch James, mother Florida, eldest son and accomplished amateur painter J.J. (James Evans, Jr.), brainy and beautiful daughter Thelma, and youngest son Michael, a political and social activist — who live together in a high-rise housing project on the South Side of Chicago.

The show took an honest look at the reality of life in the urban Projects, and tackled social and political issues around race, poverty, unemployment, inflation, crime and addiction — hot button...

After the success of last year's remake 21 Jump Street, Sony Pictures is bringing another classic TV show to the big screen, with a remake of Good Times.

Phil Johnston (Wreck-It Ralph, Cedar Rapids) is writing the screenplay based on the CBS series, which ran for six seasons between 1974 and 1979. The show centered on the Evans family, who lived in a poor, urban area of Chicago. The series was among the first to feature a working-class African-American family, and gave birth to the popular catch-phrase "Dy-no-mite," which was often said by Jimmie Walker's J.J. Evans Jr. John Amos, Esther Rolle, Ja'net DuBois, BernNadette Stanis, and a young Janet Jackson also starred in the series.

Scott Rudin and Eli Bush are producing for Sony and Columbia Pictures. The studio also has remakes of classic shows such as I Dream of Jeannie and Fantasy Island in the works.

New Orleans — Actress Tempestt Bledsoe says she's thrilled to be returning to network television on a show that portrays "a positive black family" similar to the long-running hit sitcom she was part of for roughly eight years – "The Cosby Show."

"That show was my childhood," said Bledsoe, who played middle child Vanessa Huxtable in the NBC show that also starred Bill Cosby, Phylicia Rashad, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Lisa Bonet and Keshia Knight Pulliam. "It did so many things. It greatly influenced the kinds of projects I did. It helped form my core values, like my work ethic."

Bledsoe and actor Anthony Anderson spoke Friday at the Essence Music Festival about the new show they're starring in, "Guys with Kids," which premieres this fall on NBC.

In an interview after their appearance, the co-stars told The Associated Press they were thrilled the show will spotlight a "positive black family on network television.

2nd Annual An Afternoon of Good Times hosted by the National Public Housing Museum honoring public housing luminaries in Chicago.Photo copyright Daniel Locke / PR Photos. Francie Washington attends 2nd Annual An Afternoon of Good Times hosted by the National Public Housing Museum honoring public housing luminaries in Chicago.Photo copyright Daniel Locke / PR Photos. Bern Nadette Stanis attends 2nd Annual An Afternoon of Good Times hosted by the National Public Housing Museum honoring public housing luminaries in Chicago.Photo copyright Daniel Locke / PR Photos. Keith L. Magee attends 2nd Annual An Afternoon of Good Times hosted by the National Public Housing Museum honoring public housing luminaries in Chicago.Photo copyright Daniel Locke / PR Photos. Inez...

In the Seventies, the ABC show "Good Times" was home to one of the hottest women in show business! Brooklyn-born Bern Nadette Stanis played middle sister Thelma Evans from 1974 to 1979, and was one of the fiercest, flyest Black women of the decade...Bern Nadette Stanis will be at the Essence Music Festival, will you?Here's what you had to say:Sheila commented: "I hope she knows that she is loved. She has brought so much joy to two generations of my family."Kiki wrote: "So many years later, her clothes on "Good Times" still make you go "wow."...