GOOD TIMES a spin-off of MAUDE

[BestTVever]

Originally Posted by Alan Brady's Hair

What are the other spinoffs where there was a preexisting show and they just dropped a popular character into it? Not the Jeffersons, Maude, Rhoda, Phyllis, Laverne & Shirley, Mork & Mindy, or Frasier.

Laverene and Shirley were on Happy Days so was Mork dressed in the same Mork and Mindy outfit. But its much easier to identify the failed spin offs where characters were inserted and then the network decided not to proceed with the spin off. The Facts of Life had 4 episodes that were going to be spin offs. Characters were dropped in as if they were regulars and never seen again. The episode Nell and the Kid from Gimmie A Break was also supposed to be a spin off. The Kelly Kids episode on the Brady Bunch was also supposed to be a spin off from the Brady Bunch. The Empty Nest episode on Golden Girls was also dropped into the GG episodes. While most of the actors were not cast for the official Empty Nest sitcom, the premise and actor was dropped into Golden Girls for the spin off. We never met any of those characters before on GG and then sure enough they show was created and aired on NBC as them living down the street from Golden Girls.

[stevea]

So, Florida and the family were in Chicago for years, according to the Good Times "bible." But she wasn't.

I think I know how to destroy Chat GPT. Just give it these facts. It'd blow up like Nomad did at the end its Star Trek TOS episode.

[stevea]

Originally Posted by BestTVever

Laverene and Shirley were on Happy Days so was Mork dressed in the same Mork and Mindy outfit. But its much easier to identify the failed spin offs where characters were inserted and then the network decided not to proceed with the spin off. The Facts of Life had 4 episodes that were going to be spin offs. Characters were dropped in as if they were regulars and never seen again. The episode Nell and the Kid from Gimmie A Break was also supposed to be a spin off. The Kelly Kids episode on the Brady Bunch was also supposed to be a spin off from the Brady Bunch. The Empty Nest episode on Golden Girls was also dropped into the GG episodes. While most of the actors were not cast for the official Empty Nest sitcom, the premise and actor was dropped into Golden Girls for the spin off. We never met any of those characters before on GG and then sure enough they show was created and aired on NBC as them living down the street from Golden Girls.

Yes, we can probably agree that back door pilots are pretty easy to identify even when they don't get picked up. Sherwood might have looked back at Kelly Kids and said to himself, what was I thinking? And the original audience probably tuned out in droves.

I remember a few back door pilots going back as far as The Donna Reed Show. That show had at least one and it was also pretty bad.

[Dr. Thong]

Originally Posted by BestTVever

Laverene and Shirley were on Happy Days so was Mork dressed in the same Mork and Mindy outfit. But its much easier to identify the failed spin offs where characters were inserted and then the network decided not to proceed with the spin off. The Facts of Life had 4 episodes that were going to be spin offs. Characters were dropped in as if they were regulars and never seen again. The episode Nell and the Kid from Gimmie A Break was also supposed to be a spin off. The Kelly Kids episode on the Brady Bunch was also supposed to be a spin off from the Brady Bunch. The Empty Nest episode on Golden Girls was also dropped into the GG episodes. While most of the actors were not cast for the official Empty Nest sitcom, the premise and actor was dropped into Golden Girls for the spin off. We never met any of those characters before on GG and then sure enough they show was created and aired on NBC as them living down the street from Golden Girls.

The term for those type of episodes is a "backdoor pilot." It's disguised as an episode of the show, but it's really testing the waters for a potential spinoff series.

[TVFactFan]

Originally Posted by BestTVever

True. But the point is Lear may have stole or bought the idea but he made it a spin off of Maude. When someone had a new idea for a show, it was common to spin off a character or make the new characters appear in the successful show and spin them off.
Indirectly you brought up a really good point. Its very possible Good Times could have been brought to TV not as a spin off from Maude. However Lear was too smart. He saw he had the perfect star for that show on a hit show already. Part of the success of Maude in its first season was the banter between Florida and Maude. It was similar to Archie and Mike. Florida many times but Maude in her place which few people could do. I think this is why there is a debate on this. Its true Good Times could have come to TV not as a spin off. But Lear was so successful in spinning off shows from All In The Family he saw the perfect opportunity to make Good Times work. What if we take the housekeeper from Maude and put Florida in the lead role.
IMHO Maude was never the same without Florida. The show was still good for about 2 more seasons but the first season with Florida was the best. Her limelight carried Good Times into a successful show. Esther/Florida was perfect for that role. She was smart and no nonsense and stood up to her boss and her husband on Maude. She was the perfect mom for such a role on Good Times.

But he couldnt make it a spinoff if he didnt change the location and situation. They are not in NY and poor. That was not the case on maude

[BestTVever]

Originally Posted by TVFactFan

But he couldnt make it a spinoff if he didnt change the location and situation. They are not in NY and poor. That was not the case on maude

You are pointing out inconsistencies on a sitcom? OMG they are everywhere. We could spend all day pointing out the inconsistencies of spin offs and even in withing a series. The Golden Girls has countless inconsistencies with their families, their house, their history, etc. The bottom line that Lear took a very popular character on one of his shows and put her with the same name on another sitcom. Most other things are not connected remotely to the original show. Florida says goodbye to Maude in an episode and reappears living in the Chicago projects. But her character was the same including her name. Her persona was the same and now she had kids too.
If you really want to hurt your head, Mamas Family has the most inconsistencies of any sitcom. Mama even died in a CBS special yet she came back to life. No one can keep track of her kids or grandkids that come and disappear. But that is TV and sitcoms and their fairly tale existence. It definitely is not a traditional spin off. They could have given her another name and different attitude on Good Times. I see it as Lear trying to have the best of both worlds. He wanted Good Times to work and saw the popular character of Florida having the TV following that could transfer into the new show.
Speaking of Maude is it not odd that they always spoke of her grandson on the show yet we never saw him until the later seasons and he was like 12 by then and they acted like he always lived in the house. Thats the creativity license TV land has. It was like Family Ties when the baby comes and the next season he's a toddler already.

[Dr. Thong]

Originally Posted by BestTVever

You are pointing out inconsistencies on a sitcom? OMG they are everywhere. We could spend all day pointing out the inconsistencies of spin offs and even in withing a series. The Golden Girls has countless inconsistencies with their families, their house, their history, etc. The bottom line that Lear took a very popular character on one of his shows and put her with the same name on another sitcom. Most other things are not connected remotely to the original show. Florida says goodbye to Maude in an episode and reappears living in the Chicago projects. But her character was the same including her name. Her persona was the same and now she had kids too.
If you really want to hurt your head, Mamas Family has the most inconsistencies of any sitcom. Mama even died in a CBS special yet she came back to life. No one can keep track of her kids or grandkids that come and disappear. But that is TV and sitcoms and their fairly tale existence. It definitely is not a traditional spin off. They could have given her another name and different attitude on Good Times. I see it as Lear trying to have the best of both worlds. He wanted Good Times to work and saw the popular character of Florida having the TV following that could transfer into the new show.
Speaking of Maude is it not odd that they always spoke of her grandson on the show yet we never saw him until the later seasons and he was like 12 by then and they acted like he always lived in the house. Thats the creativity license TV land has. It was like Family Ties when the baby comes and the next season he's a toddler already.

M*A*S*H is my favorite show of all-time and that show has so many inconsistencies, it's not funny. Well actually, it is funny. You just have to laugh and roll your eyes at it.

I don't let it diminish my enjoyment of the show. I just marvel at the fact that Hot Lips Houlihan's parents are deceased in the early years, but in a later season, her dad visits her at the 4077th. Apparently, he got better.

The inconsistencies on Good Times are minor by comparison. It's a spin off and that's that.

And now, I wait for the inevitable rebuttal.

[Alan Brady's Hair]

that's that.

Norman Lear's All in the Family includes a scene where Mike is unpacking a bag of groceries, and commenting on the items. He pulls out some kind of cleaner, and says, "Look at this label - 'New and Improved'. Everything we buy today is new and improved. What were we using yesterday - old and lousy?"

What Lear's saying is that when someone - like Lear - is selling you something - like a TV show - then you have to be skeptical about what they say about it. So "that's that" doesn't have a place in the discussion.

[stevea]

I think we can all agree sitcoms have inconsistencies. You'll have that with different writers, and a head writer (if there is one) doesn't catch everything.

But setting up a new show? And such obvious things. Hey, Ethel! Didn't Florida live in New York? What's she doing in Chicago?

Also, we all know what a spin off is. It's just that we disagree.

[TVFactFan]

I was going to compare Good Times to Mork and Mindy since one character was taken and put in a different type of Universe. But since Maude never appeared in any time of pilot like Fonzie did on Mork and Mindy and how Bunkers did on Jeffersons and Maude, it will never ever be a spinoff to me

[opus]

2026 and it’s still a spin-off.

Happy New Year

[TVFactFan]

This article from 1974 says it kind of a spinoff and then goes on to say when you factor in the other elements of the show it really doesnt seem like one

[GoldenTV]

Originally Posted by TVFactFan

This article from 1974 says it kind of a spinoff and then goes on to say when you factor in the other elements of the show it really doesnt seem like one

Goodtimes must be the only TV show in history where when it got spinoff, the cast got down graded. The resident moved from upstate NY to Chicago Project. Florida became unemployed housewife and James/Henry got demoted from Firefighter to a dish and car washer.

Like for the spinoff Jeffersons where theme song was "Moving On Up" because the cast moved on to better things, the theme song for Goodtimes should have been "Moving On Down"

[TVFactFan]

Originally Posted by GoldenTV

Goodtimes must be the only TV show in history where when it got spinoff, the cast got down graded. The resident moved from upstate NY to Chicago Project. Florida became unemployed housewife and James/Henry got demoted from Firefighter to a dish and car washer.

Like for the spinoff Jeffersons where theme song was "Moving On Up" because the cast moved on to better things, the theme song for Goodtimes should have been "Moving On Down"

she was plugged into a already written show which means should have a different name

[GoldenTV]

Originally Posted by TVFactFan

she was plugged into a already written show which means should have a different name

Not only that, the show also had a different background as to be perceived as a spinoff. For example in the episode where Alderman Davis mentioned that he knew the Evans family since the children were born-which mean Evans were in Chicago for last 20 years. That indicate that in the world of GoodTimes realm, the show Maude never existed.