Sanford

[JunkDealer]

Someone was telling me that there was a show called Sanford becuase Lemont left for awhile and I saw people talking about it on otehr posts. I was wondering where did Lamount go? How many episodes where made of Sanford, and will they be appearing on TV Land with Sanford and Son? Thanks for the help.

[DarleneIllyria]

They had 26 eps according to epguides.com. They might show Sanford during one of those rare show box sets or something like that. I doubt they'd pick it up for a regular schedule. Anyway, heres a link to an episode guide.

http://www.epguides.com/Sanford/

[TVFactFan]

Originally posted by Jenny
They had 26 eps according to epguides.com. They might show Sanford during one of those rare show box sets or something like that. I doubt they'd pick it up for a regular schedule. Anyway, heres a link to an episode guide.

http://www.epguides.com/Sanford/

I think Sanford was a little more entertaining than Sanford and Son because the guy who took Lamont's place was easier to insult because of his weight. I'm sorry the Fat jokes never became stale but the dummy jokes sure did on Sanford and Son. `

[TMC]

Short-Lived Sitcom Potpourri (IX)

Thoughts: Although I cited this series briefly here many years ago, unlike Sanford Arms (on which my perspective has not changed), I wanted to give Sanford more space, since I lazily didn’t watch it all when I first shared an episode. Now that I’ve seen everything, I have a better understanding of the show and its trajectory. For starters, it was part of Fred Silverman’s effort to raise NBC’s Nielsens by doing what he had done for CBS and ABC — building out its sitcom roster, in part by resurrecting the Peacock Network’s biggest hit of the ‘70s: Sanford And Son. And unlike the misbegotten Sanford Arms, the seminal ingredient was back in play: Redd Foxx. However, having this great comic would not prove to be enough for Sanford, not if it didn’t also have his first series’ smart, simple construction, for the key issue here is, once again, this Sanford And Son spin-off misses the strong emotional connection between Fred and his son Lamont. Knowing this will be lacking, the first season legitimately tries to disassociate itself from the original series — at first anyway — as it makes Fred a ghetto fish in ritzy water, when he quickly falls for a wealthy widow, and stories initially follow his integration into this foreign world, with pushback mostly from her mouthy maid and uppity brother. This is an intriguing notion — an entirely different show — but, sadly, we have no commensurate investment in the central relationship, which develops too rapidly over the course of three initial half hours. What’s more, the girlfriend, Eve, has no personality – she is never made to clash with Fred based on who she is; it’s always him versus the environment or the peripheral characters. And this lack of direct conflict, which he often had with Lamont, is limiting. Speaking of Lamont, Sanford also gives Fred a new business partner in Cal, a white Southerner who, on paper, is Fred’s opposite. But, again, the series shies away from ever leaning into this for direct conflict, and this not only mutes his comic potential, it also never expands their personal bond. So, like Eve, we don’t ever come to care about Fred’s relationship with Cal… even as the latter half of the first season begins to pivot away from the “rich girl, poor man” angle and back to the junkyard buddy comedy, evidenced also by the introduction of Aunt Esther’s son, Cliff.

Both Cliff and Cal are meant to assume the place of Lamont, with the former allowing Fred to take on something of a paternal role, while Cal is Fred’s coconspirator. That especially seems to be the agenda in the second season, which drops everyone from the first year’s main cast except Fred, these two fellas, and Eve, who’s bumped down to a recurring capacity after her relationship with Fred is deescalated (she essentially becomes Donna), and Sanford attempts to fall back into the rhythms of Sanford And Son, as both Aunt Esther and Grady recur. Again, though, the central relationships are relatively weak in comparison to the initial series’, and they can’t carry much story. And while the familiar faces bring laughs (along with some of the show’s best moments), they’re not a reliable gimmick in this self-contained capacity. Unfortunately, the show then has to resort to clichéd stories with predictable structures and/or some super-serious “Very Special Episode” installments that don’t acquit anyone well, even Redd Foxx, who is as capable as ever of elevating material… but finds himself in an uphill battle due to the less sturdy situation and the core issues with the new characters in it. So, Sanford falls well short of Sanford And Son, but now that I’ve seen all of it, there are episodes that stand out as watchable against this series’ own baseline. And for fans of the first show or Foxx, I recommend them.

Episode Count: 26 produced and broadcast over two seasons.

Episodes Seen: All 26.

Key Episodes (of Seen):

• Episode #3: “The Meeting (III)” (03/22/80)
  
• Episode #4: “The Still Of The Night” (03/29/80)
  
• Episode #6: “Younger Than Springtime Am I” (04/08/80)
  
• Episode #13: “Cal’s Diet (II)” (05/24/80)
  
• Episode #15: “Here Comes The Bride (I)” (01/09/81)
  
• Episode #16: “Here Comes The Bride (II)” (01/09/81)
  
• Episode #17: “Fred Has The Big One” (01/16/81)
  
• Episode #18: “Cal The Coward” (01/23/81)
  
• Episode #20: “Cal’s Mom” (05/29/81)
  
• Episode #22: “Freeway” (06/12/81)
  
• Episode #25: “Private Lives” (07/03/81)

Why: Episode #3 is the funniest of the opening situation-setting trio, with an amusing bit where Fred tries to get out of a relationship with Eve by claiming he’s had a sex change operation; #4 tries to build out Cal’s personality and has a comic premise about moonshine; #6 gives Redd Foxx the year’s best chance to clown; and #13 is the funnier half of a two-parter that seeks to expand Cal’s role and relationship with Fred. From Season Two, Episodes #15 and #16 are the series’ best — a two-parter in which Fred and Esther (the amazing LaWanda Page) discover that they’re accidentally married; #17 benefits by using a part of the show’s history — Fred’s penchant for faking heart attacks; #18 feels the most like a Sanford And Son; #20 is the best of the “Very Special Episodes” (VSEs) because it’s more rooted in character; and both #22 and #25 boast Whitman Mayo’s Grady, who’s always a joy (even on his disappointing spin-off.)

[MikeLutton]

i wish it would of lasted another year or two it was funny, also wish Rollo would of stayed on for the hole series could of came up with some funny stuff between him fred and cal