all of you i am sure are well aware of the theme song (it is fabulous) however ... when the sing a man is born he's a man of means mr.drummond is shown getting in his limousine right? well then they show arnold and willis playing basketball and the song goes along come two they got nothin but their jeans/genes? any thoughts? it has troubled me for a long time. thank you

(unknown poster)

(forwarded from old message board)

I have often felt about that dilemma my myself.

It could be "jeans" indicating Arnold and Willis were from Harlem and poor and owned nothing but their "jeans" and the shirt on their backs or...

nothing but their "genes" indicating Arnold and Willis' parents had both died and they had no relatives..

VOTE NOW! Jeans or Genes??

-Todd

(forwarded from old message board)

genes jeans nobody gets it you are fooling yourselves just look at what has happened conrad bain is in hiding! gary is the only one who will speak the truth

benny D'angelo

(forwarded from old message board)

My God!! How dare you shun the greatest TV theme song of all time!! I know Alan Thicke wrote it.....and he sucks!; but who said that he couldn't have his moment? I don't believe that there is any hidden message in the song.....it just so happens that Mr. Drummond was probably just a sick, old PEDOPHILE!!!!....besides Alan Thicke DOES NOT have the mental capacity for creating such an offensive lyric....hell!, if he did, then why is he so damn pathetic!

Don't be calling them maker of the theme song pathetic. This is like a genius creation. Just listen to the backround sounds and all. I get all happy whenever I hear that....

Well about the jeanes\genes..... I'll go with jeans... When they say that you see them both playing in theyre jeanes, i think..
thanks

I gotta go with "jeans" as well. Either one of them makes sense, but I doubt Thicke (did he really write the theme song?) was implying "genes".

The "genes" implication in the Diff'rent Strokes title theme is refering to the fact that Philip Drummond and the Jackson kids are of differnt race, therefore their genes would be different. Also, Philip has got money and power but all that Willis and Arnold have got is what they were born with. I gotta say, when I was younger I didn't understand it either but it makes sense if you think about it!

No no no no no
Back when the song was written knowledge of genetics wasn't nearly as widespread as it is now. If you meant "genes" you would have to had made that absolutly clear. Everyone would simply assume you meant "jeans." If they even knew what "genes" were they would never have thought of it on their own.
And this is Alan Thicke we're talking about.

:d The show is an awesome show; as is the theme song.....and lay off of Alan Thicke, too! What do you guys really know about him for yourselves, anyway??? He's obviously talented enough to have produced several successful sitcoms and sufficiently gifted to write theme songs and commercial jingles; maybe you're just a little jealous!

------------------

We've all seen him on Growing Pains....I'd hardly classify him as some kind of theatrical genius. He's more of a legend in his own mind than anyone else's....

When Alan was first given the assignment to write the song, he was writing it based on the *ORIGINAL* show concept, which was supposed to be a sci-fi drama show. Mr. Drummond built weapons for the government, and had been working on Gennetic Engineering when he realized that not everyone had the proper genetic makeup to be modified into a genetic killing machine. He searched and fianlly found two children with the proper genetic material for modification, and "arranged" for the two to become orphans. Hence the reference to "Genes" in the theme song.

C'mon... I thought *EVERYONE* knew that!

Kids, "Facts of Life" was a spinoff from DS as Mrs. Garrett let to monitor Eastland. Mrs. Garrett was not the sole nanny for the Drummonds. The original caretaker was Willis and Arnold's mother. Mr. Drummond took in the kids as a tribute (no, not because of sex!) to their mother, his valued housekeeper.

I vote genes. Arnold and Willis had items of clothing other than jeans. If Thicke had been thinking about jeans, he would have to have written "They got nothing but their jeans, shirts, shoes, and underwear". And, that would be just wrong!

I think it is genes. If they say "But They've Got Nothing but their jeans", I'd say they would'nt wear sweatpants, shorts, etc. Only jeans. See ya!

- Brett Ferino

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Florida: Now, the first week'll be on a trial basis:
Maude: Oh, Florida, dont be ridiculous, you're not on trial.
Florida: I *know*, you are!

Alan Thicke is evil.

Thicke of the NIght... the DS theme song... the Facts of Life theme song... growing pains... you name it, if Thicke has been involved with it, it has been annoyingly peppy/cute/evil.

However, that youngest daughter from Gropwing Pains did grow up to be a real hottie, so I guess Thicke's creations haven't been all bad. heh.

You people are all crazy. I can't believe you would argue over something so lunatic and trivial. Get out of the house more. Seriously. It's JEANS, for ****sake! Don't go getting any secret eugenics messages out of ****ing DIFF'RENT STROKES, dammit! It's a cheesy sitcom, that's all, not Mein Kampf or a KKK manifesto!


Originally posted by The Obsolete Man:
Alan Thicke is evil.

Thicke of the NIght... the DS theme song... the Facts of Life theme song... growing pains... you name it, if Thicke has been involved with it, it has been annoyingly peppy/cute/evil.

However, that youngest daughter from Gropwing Pains did grow up to be a real hottie, so I guess Thicke's creations haven't been all bad. heh.

"They've got nothing but their genes/jeans"

I always took it to mean that all they have is each other, and they are family, so they have the same genes. At the same time, it's a play on the saying that when you're poor that you've only got the "shirt on your back," so they only have their jeans.

Some people try to be offended.

I think it means both.



------------------
Andy: C'Mon Ms. Garrett, throw us a song.

Ms. G.: Born in the U.S.S.R.

If the lyrics are written somewhere then this debate could easily be over.

I think it's jeans. On the this Diffrent Strokes Website. If you go to Sounds Library/Video Clips. You if you move all the way to Lyrics of theme song it will say
Then along come two, they got nothin' but their jeans. http://www.sitcomsonline.com/ubb/cool.gif
It also makes more sense http://www.sitcomsonline.com/ubb/confused.gif

Hey, let's compromise. It's either "jenes" or "geans". http://www.sitcomsonline.com/ubb/biggrin.gif

I also think that the jeans/genes thing had a double meaning.

------------------
^***C@z***^

Hi i just want to say that I loved this show; about the lyrics; did any one consider that the line is " they have nothing but their dreams" , it does rhyme with means. Thank you for your time!!!!

The song refers to genes. As the story goes, Arnold and Willis' mother was Mr Drumond's house-maid. She passed away with the dying wish that Mr D would look after the two lads. Hence the connection between Arnold and Willis, and Mr D is that the boys possess the genes of Mr D's late house-maid. It's all so bleedingly obvious you bunch of bafoons!

------------------
Inspector Gadget

It's jeans. They didn't exactly show a beacon, did they. Besides even with the lab thing, the scientist would have picked up kids with "nothing but their jeans."

------------------
Janet(talking about buying Roper's car): Chrissy, it's the answer to ourprayers.
Chrissy:That's not true. Nobody prayed.
Janet:Okay, then let's start. Please, God, make Chrissy change her mind.
Jack: Or better yet give her one!