Her husband was supposely killed in an auto accident I believe. But still, even in those day, she should have gotten something, insurance or not. That way, she wouldn't have to bust her ass working all those hours for mediocre pay.

Depends on what type of company her husband worked for. She should have at least gotten SS widow benefits and Tommy, dependent benefits.

Depends on what type of company her husband worked for. She should have at least gotten SS widow benefits and Tommy, dependent benefits.

This is true. SS would be a benefit she would receive, since her husband was a trucker, whatever earnings he made during his lifetime would entitle Alice to SS death benefits. She would continue receiving that until she married, which she never did while the show was on the air. Tommy would receive it up until he is 18-19 depending upon when he graduates or turns 18.

My youngest daughter was receiving SS benefits from her father's death and she was entitled to it until she turns 19 as long as she was in school full-time. Because she finished school in June at the age of 18 and began working full-time, her benefits were ceased.

I don't know abt pension though, like the poster above stated, depends on the company.

I figure Alice was paying roughly around $200 monthly for rent. Remember when Belle was late on her rent, they mentioned $200 a month rent. Then you have electricity and gas. There was mention of her phone bill when Tommy was calling his girlfriend. Alice referenced her bill was going up because of the constant calling Tommy was doing. However, I know there should not have been charges for local calls. Tommy wasn't calling long distance. Anyways, she had to pay for laundry if there are laundry facilities on the apartment property. Then she has clothing, food, and other essentials for her and Tommy. Bus fare to get to and from work. What else?

Along the same line, wouldn't Florida Evans (Good Times) be entitled to a widow's pension as well? James DID serve in the Korean War.

Along the same line, wouldn't Florida Evans (Good Times) be entitled to a widow's pension as well? James DID serve in the Korean War.
She must have and also SS benefits. Michael would have also received SS benefits. That is why the family had it so damn good after James died. :crazy: Notice how the financial woes seemed to be downplayed after James died? :lol:

Sounds like Don, Alice's husband, did not leave her with anything. But the one thing that was interesting about Alice with what Mel was paying her at the diner she would wear practically designer clothes when she was not in her waitress uniform. That's interesting.

Maybe she got good deals at Goodwill/Salvation Army stores--you'd be surprised at what you can find!

Maybe she got good deals at Goodwill/Salvation Army stores--you'd be surprised at what you can find!
You got that right. I found some nice things at Goodwill. A brand new pair of jeans with the pricetags on for $9.99.

But Alice's clothes were more flashy and styling. I doubt it that they all came from Goodwill/Salvation Army. Just a thought about what she was making at the diner, living in an apartment sleeping on a sofabed in the front room while her son took the bedroom, and to wear the clothes she wore.

You got that right. I found some nice things at Goodwill. A brand new pair of jeans with the pricetags on for $9.99.

But Alice's clothes were more flashy and styling. I doubt it that they all came from Goodwill/Salvation Army. Just a thought about what she was making at the diner, living in an apartment sleeping on a sofabed in the front room while her son took the bedroom, and to wear the clothes she wore.
She must have been cleaning up with tips! :lol:

She must have been cleaning up with tips! :lol:
It wasn't that many people coming into the diner plus word was out that Mel was a horrible cook. Barney's had it going on. I found Alice's wardrobe interesting but she looked sexier in some of the dresses she wore.

She did moonlight from time to time--maybe she used that for the splashy wardrobe :D

Back in the 70's, you could easily find clothes, especially dresses that appeared flashy, but were not that expensive. The disco era gave a lot of opportunity for the ladies to wear dresses that had glitter or gems embroidered on them, the style back then could easily be found in many stores, even the lesser known stores.

There is a particular red long dress that Alice wore a few times on the show, I seen it at least twice during the first season.

I am sure even on her limited income and budget, Alice was able to find a bargain and it showed that she was limited in her style of clothing as we seen that particular red dress a few times. I had mentioned that red dress in a thread and I remember Brian D. had pointed out to me she was on a fixed income and her wearing that dress more than once reminded the audience of that fact. It wouldn't make sense for her to wear a dress once.

I think her Husband was a Truck Driver

I think her Husband was a Truck Driver
He was. But wasn't he killed while on the job? I thought Alice said this. If so, wouldn't she have received some sort of payout from the company?

Regardless, her husband worked, therefore she is entitled to Social Security benefits and so was Tommy.

yes he was killed on The Job

yes he was killed on The Job
Thank you. Ok, that clarifies that for me. I guess we have to assume that whatever payout Alice may have received fromt the company, it wasn't enough for much, probably just the funeral expenses. She must have only received the SS benefits for herself and Tommy, which probably helped her some, but not much, since she was used to her husband's income.

An early season 1 episode deals with the fact that Don had a life insurance policy but the beneficiary was another woman! This led Alice to believe that Don had been unfaithful to her, but it turns out that wasn't the case--I forgot what the exact nature of why he did it, but it wasn't anything scandalous. Of course, this helps to explain partially why Alice and Tommy were in such financial dire straits.

An early season 1 episode deals with the fact that Don had a life insurance policy but the beneficiary was another woman! This led Alice to believe that Don had been unfaithful to her, but it turns out that wasn't the case--I forgot what the exact nature of why he did it, but it wasn't anything scandalous. Of course, this helps to explain partially why Alice and Tommy were in such financial dire straits.

Now that was just poor writing, how the beneficiary is going to be a on the side girlfriend? Alice was legally married to this guy, I guess Alice was stupid enough not to look over the documents when her husband was alive.

The first season episodes really are not the best and that episode cleary shows that!

Her husband was supposely killed in an auto accident I believe. But still, even in those day, she should have gotten something, insurance or not. That way, she wouldn't have to bust her ass working all those hours for mediocre pay.

She should have at least got Social Security to take care of Tommy until he's 18.

Does it ever say if her husband worked for a company, or if he was an owner/operator (owned his own truck)? If he was an owner/operator, then he would be considered self employed, and it gets much more complicated.

It never was mentioned that she did or did not get SS benefits. She should have been entitled and qualified to receive them though. I doubt she would have enough extra cash to go to night school and raise a son, just by working at a diner.

The show has started over on Antenna TV. The pilot was on yesterday. Today, she mentioned her husband was an owner operator - he owned his truck and was self employed, so Social Security gets more complex. He is supposed to contribute on his taxes, but died fairly young and wouldn't have paid much in, and who knows if he did his taxes correctly. It's a TV show, but reality would be more likely for Tommy to receive a small amount, and for Alice to receive nothing, or next to nothing. Today she found out he did have life insurance, but paid it out to someone who loaned him money once.

An early season 1 episode deals with the fact that Don had a life insurance policy but the beneficiary was another woman! This led Alice to believe that Don had been unfaithful to her, but it turns out that wasn't the case--I forgot what the exact nature of why he did it, but it wasn't anything scandalous. Of course, this helps to explain partially why Alice and Tommy were in such financial dire straits.

He had it paid to an old woman who loaned him money once to buy Alice a piano. It aired today.

It was Eileen Heckart from “The Mary Tyler Moore Show”, IIRC. And didn’t Alice pose as “Alice Hyman”, so the woman wouldn’t know it was Don Hyatt’s widow checking up on her? I don’t know why, but I remember the details after all these years.

It was Eileen Heckart from “The Mary Tyler Moore Show”, IIRC. And didn’t Alice pose as “Alice Hyman”, so the woman wouldn’t know it was Don Hyatt’s widow checking up on her? I don’t know why, but I remember the details after all these years.

Alice was asking questions about Don Hyatt, and the woman told her about why he left her the money. She did say that if she thought his family needed it more than her, she'd turn the money over to them, and Alice didn't want that, and I believe said her name was Alice Hyman then. This was just on a week-ish ago, and I think that's what happened.

I figure Alice was paying roughly around $200 monthly for rent. Remember when Belle was late on her rent, they mentioned $200 a month rent.

$200 HA! In Vancouver, rent is like $2000 a month for a basement suite.