Why was Esther & Jimmie not in all of the same eps in Season 6?

[Edster2973]

Hello all,

Just a quick question as I finish my Season 6 set of Good Times. Why is it that, in a few episodes, Esther Rolle isn't in the same episodes that feature Jimmie Walker? And why isn't he in the same episodes that feature Esther Rolle? Did they dislike each other that much that they couldn't appear together when one of them was in the spotlight?

I don't know how else to explain it. It's just odd that when one of them isn't around, no explanation is given for their absence. For example, when Florida is lost in the blizzard with the kids on her bus, the family at home is worried sick about her and Penny, but J.J. isn't around, and no mention is made of him (like if he was visiting some relative or something). Wouldn't the family have worried as much about J.J. being out in the blizzard? If not, shouldn't it have been acknowledged where he was so fans wouldn't have wondered?

I guess if the writers felt they could write out Carl without so much as an explanation, then they could also write out J.J. or Florida without explaining where they were. But it doesn't feel right. It's too noticeable a hole, and it makes me less confused as to why the ratings went downhill for the sixth season. Part of it had to have been the shifting of timeslots, but also the musical chairs of J.J. & Florida appearing and disappearing.

It's sad. I think the show could've gone on another season or two had there been more consistency.



-Ed

[TVFactFan]

Originally Posted by Edster2973

Hello all,

Just a quick question as I finish my Season 6 set of Good Times. Why is it that, in a few episodes, Esther Rolle isn't in the same episodes that feature Jimmie Walker? And why isn't he in the same episodes that feature Esther Rolle? Did they dislike each other that much that they couldn't appear together when one of them was in the spotlight?

I don't know how else to explain it. It's just odd that when one of them isn't around, no explanation is given for their absence. For example, when Florida is lost in the blizzard with the kids on her bus, the family at home is worried sick about her and Penny, but J.J. isn't around, and no mention is made of him (like if he was visiting some relative or something). Wouldn't the family have worried as much about J.J. being out in the blizzard? If not, shouldn't it have been acknowledged where he was so fans wouldn't have wondered?

I guess if the writers felt they could write out Carl without so much as an explanation, then they could also write out J.J. or Florida without explaining where they were. But it doesn't feel right. It's too noticeable a hole, and it makes me less confused as to why the ratings went downhill for the sixth season. Part of it had to have been the shifting of timeslots, but also the musical chairs of J.J. & Florida appearing and disappearing.

It's sad. I think the show could've gone on another season or two had there been more consistency.



-Ed

I think that same thing happened during season 3 and 4, when Jimmie was missing, Esther and John wasn't and when Esther and John was on, Jimmy was missing. Yeah I did found it odd that there was no mention of J.J since there was a Major storm going on in that episode.

[Edster2973]

Originally Posted by TVResearcher

I think that same thing happened during season 3 and 4, when Jimmie was missing, Esther and John wasn't and when Esther and John was on, Jimmy was missing. Yeah I did found it odd that there was no mention of J.J since there was a Major storm going on in that episode.

But do you (or anyone else) know whether it was due to their dislike/jealousy of each other, or did the show try to cut costs by not having 2 *big* stars in the same ep? I imagine their salaries depended on which eps the actors appeared in. So if Esther Rolle wasn't in an episode, for example, she wasn't paid for it. Could this be why Esther & Jimmie weren't in some of the same episodes (and John Amos during the early part of the series)?

The optimist in me would like to think it was a way of cutting costs but, as we all know, neither Esther Rolle or John Amos were enamoured with Jimmie Walker at the time, and I imagine he felt similarly about them. Either way, the frequent absences of all of them made the show suffer and probably brought about the show's demise ahead of its time. It could have gone on much longer. The show's new format wasn't that bad and, ironically, some of the new format's better stories were written when the show was airing its last episodes.

Ed

[TVFactFan]

Originally Posted by Edster2973

But do you (or anyone else) know whether it was due to their dislike/jealousy of each other, or did the show try to cut costs by not having 2 *big* stars in the same ep? I imagine their salaries depended on which eps the actors appeared in. So if Esther Rolle wasn't in an episode, for example, she wasn't paid for it. Could this be why Esther & Jimmie weren't in some of the same episodes (and John Amos during the early part of the series)?

The optimist in me would like to think it was a way of cutting costs but, as we all know, neither Esther Rolle or John Amos were enamoured with Jimmie Walker at the time, and I imagine he felt similarly about them. Either way, the frequent absences of all of them made the show suffer and probably brought about the show's demise ahead of its time. It could have gone on much longer. The show's new format wasn't that bad and, ironically, some of the new format's better stories were written when the show was airing its last episodes.

Ed

This is something else for me to add to my research to do List-lol I would love to find this out too.

[comedyfreak]

Hopefully we'll see an unauthorized story of Good Times that will answer those questions for us, I'd like to know myself. As for me, I'd speculate that there was dislike between Jimmy and Esther being the reason for the absence.

[Dwaynew]

Don't forget, there were times when Wilona was missing too. So I think it had more to do with $$$ than them liking each other. They were working a job, and if they can produce a project, I'm sure they would have been act---refusing to work with a co-star?

[TVFactFan]

Originally Posted by Dwaynew

Don't forget, there were times when Wilona was missing too. So I think it had more to do with $$$ than them liking each other. They were working a job, and if they can produce a project, I'm sure they would have been act---refusing to work with a co-star?

Willona was missing a lot because she was a supporting character like Bentey from the Jeffersons and Esther from Sanford and Son and