Race, Political correctness and Sanford and Son..... - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

senor boogie woogi · 09-16-2008, 12:51 AM

Howdy!

Sanford and Son ranks as one of my all time favorite programs. I loved it as a child and still watch it today. This show really was a hit, and everyone loved this show, blacks and whites. On "That 70s Show" Bob was saying how much he loved this show. Most whites like myself loved this show. Of course all the blacks I knew watched it and loved it.

No one was offended by it, at least not in 1973. Yet 35 years later, the "Political Correctness" squad has edited and altered this great show. I personally call it censorship. From the Sanford and Son article on Wikipedia, note the CENSORSHIP of astericks denotes the so called "n-word".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanford_and_son
----------------------------------------------------
Some material from Sanford and Son is now considered too controversial to air on network television and is routinely edited in syndication, specifically, derogatory racial references:

The episode "Fred Sanford, Legal Eagle" was edited before being aired on the cable TV network TV Land. In the unedited version, Fred represents Lamont in traffic court as his legal counsel. At the climax of the episode, Fred confronts the white traffic policeman who wrote Lamont the ticket. "Hey, look here", Fred asks the policeman, "why don't you arrest some white drivers?" When the policeman answers, "I do", Fred gestures to the court observers, who are all black, and asks, "Well where are they? Look at all these *****s in here!" Upon uttering this statement, the live studio audience went crazy with laughter and applause. Redd Foxx had to pause for the crowd to settle down before delivering the coup de grâce: "There's enough *****s in here to make a Tarzan movie!" In the TV Land version of this episode, Fred's questioning of the policeman abruptly ends after "What do you have against black people?".

(Note: In my opinion, this was the funniest scene in all of Sanford and Son.)

When Fred returned from St. Louis, his family and friends held a party for him, and at Rollo's request for "cheers", Fred responded, "Bim bam boom, somebody get this ***** outta my room!"

In the episode "Mama's Baby, Papa's Maybe", the show dealt with an old friend called Grip returning to meet Fred and claiming he was Lamont's true father. When he first presented the news to Esther (who had previously enjoyed his company), she jumped up and yelled, "What did you say, *****?" In syndication, the line is altered to "What did you say, sucka?"
In "Here Comes The Bride, There Goes The Bride", Fred also utters that the bride's family looks like a "bunch of jive *****s" (also edited/removed by TV Land).
----------------------------------

Has the sensibilities of Americans really up in the past 35 years where we cannot enjoy the show as it was? How did it come to this? If this show was racist at all, it was black racism against others, with white characters being dunderheads, the Puerto Rican dirty, and an Asian named Ah Chew. If society has become so sanitary now that S&S has to be censored to be shown on TV, then it should not be on TV and just be sold to the millions of fans on DVD.

Would Fred Sanford want to live in a World where you can't say "the n-word" and chase his sister in law with a baseball bat? What's the point?

Senor

catlover79 · 09-16-2008, 01:33 AM

There's no way a show like S&S would survive if it was in production today because it IS so un-PC. Having said that, I think it is one of the funniest shows EVER!!! I was born after it had already ceased production, but thanks to reruns and DVDs, I've caught up with it. It never fails to get me laughing out loud. The scene where Julio takes Fred and Lamont to the Mexican restaurant is still gut-splitting no matter how many times I see it. Beans and disease to you, too!!!

Big Fred Fan · 09-16-2008, 09:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by catlover79

The scene where Julio takes Fred and Lamont to the Mexican restaurant is still gut-splitting no matter how many times I see it. Beans and disease to you, too!!!

"Hey Negro, bring me another pitcher of that Shangrila....and hold the gobbage!"

catlover79 · 09-16-2008, 10:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Big Fred Fan

"Hey Negro, bring me another pitcher of that Shangrila....and hold the gobbage!"

That was my favorite quote in the whole episode!!!!!

MickeyMac · 09-17-2008, 06:07 PM

When Big Money Grip claimed he was Lamont's father, and Fred told Esther that. Esther's repsonse was "What did you say *****".

With all the PC these days, if Sanford and Sonwere around now it would be quite lame.

Back then(and still now)black people will time to time call one another "*****". I dont do it, but some of us do. Just listen to rap music.

catlover79 · 09-19-2008, 02:14 PM

Network TV sure has regressed since the 1970s.

FredFan55 · 09-25-2008, 11:23 AM

As my screen name implies, I was born in 1955, so I'm 53 now and was in my late teens when S&S became a hit. I was also an avid TV watcher in a largely segregated North Carolina (and the whole US, for that matter) in the 1960s.

Only in the late 1960s did it become routine to see black people depicted in TV shows and on commercials. There was a very real excitement, among blacks and whites, to see this develop. We all had few opportunities to absorb one another's culture prior to that. Like it or not, the language used on S&S struck me as 100% authentic, both then and now. As far as I'm concerned, it's a primary reason the show was such a hit then and remains so in reruns, no matter how badly the PC Police at TV Land chop it up and try to alter it.

Somewhere I've seen a listing of the writing credits for the entire spectrum of S&S episodes, and Richard Pryor was the writer of a small handful of the them. I faintly recall "Fred Sanford-Legal Eagle" as one of Pryor's shows. Regardless of who wrote it, it is my favorite episode and favorite line of the entire series.

FF55

Big Fred Fan · 09-26-2008, 12:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FredFan55

I faintly recall "Fred Sanford-Legal Eagle" as one of Pryor's shows. Regardless of who wrote it, it is my favorite episode and favorite line of the entire series. FF55

"Look around you! Look at all these n's in here! There's enough n's in here to make a Tarzan movie!" CLASSIC Richard Pryor style!

JAlanRuss72 · 12-02-2008, 04:08 PM

I believe Richard Pryor also wrote the season 2 episode "Sanford & Son & Sister Makes Three" with Ja'net Dubois (from Good Times):

Dubois' Character: My daughter and I are going to be here for a short while. We have to find a mechanic. Wouldn't you know it, our tail light is OUT.

FRED: Tail light's out? Well you better get it fixed, cause they death on a ****** with one TAIL light. (Audience cracks up for a few minutes) If you only got one tail light around here, you better be on a motorcycle.

LOL

wehotex · 01-21-2010, 01:46 AM

how odd that I do remember the original lines from those quotes and how hysterical they were. I haven't noticed how TV Land has sanitized it b/c I long forgot the original lines. Thanks for reminding me.

Cloud9 Lorraine · 01-21-2010, 07:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wehotex

I haven't noticed how TV Land has sanitized it b/c I long forgot the original lines.

Sanitized, sterilized and neutralized!! You are so right!

catlover79 · 01-21-2010, 10:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cloud9 Lorraine

Sanitized, sterilized and neutralized!! You are so right!

Not to mention neutered!!

MickeyMac · 01-22-2010, 05:32 PM

Blame those crybabies called The NAACP for black TV shows from the 70's being cut up. Instead of doing something useful (which they havent in 50 years), they are going around cying about other black people saying the N word to each other. I dont say it and I dont apporove of it either, but that is simply they way some black people talk to each other. NAACP gets on their high horse and cons the white media and cries racist, they use white guilt to not only get good TV shows cut up(and they cut out some of the funnier lines) but then get money from the white media to spend on themselves. Sad but true.

Marvo301 · 01-22-2010, 06:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by catlover79

Network TV sure has regressed since the 1970s.

Yesterday, watching TV was such a fun game to play
now the P.C. police have taken all my fun away
Oh I believe in yesterday!

Cloud9 Lorraine · 01-22-2010, 07:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by catlover79

Not to mention neutered!!

Yes, ESPECIALLY neutered!!

09-16-2008, 12:51 AM	#1
senor boogie woogi Banned Banned!! Frequent Poster Join Date: Feb 23, 2004 Posts: 107	Race, Political correctness and Sanford and Son..... Howdy! Sanford and Son ranks as one of my all time favorite programs. I loved it as a child and still watch it today. This show really was a hit, and everyone loved this show, blacks and whites. On "That 70s Show" Bob was saying how much he loved this show. Most whites like myself loved this show. Of course all the blacks I knew watched it and loved it. No one was offended by it, at least not in 1973. Yet 35 years later, the "Political Correctness" squad has edited and altered this great show. I personally call it censorship. From the Sanford and Son article on Wikipedia, note the CENSORSHIP of astericks denotes the so called "n-word". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanford_and_son ---------------------------------------------------- Some material from Sanford and Son is now considered too controversial to air on network television and is routinely edited in syndication, specifically, derogatory racial references: The episode "Fred Sanford, Legal Eagle" was edited before being aired on the cable TV network TV Land. In the unedited version, Fred represents Lamont in traffic court as his legal counsel. At the climax of the episode, Fred confronts the white traffic policeman who wrote Lamont the ticket. "Hey, look here", Fred asks the policeman, "why don't you arrest some white drivers?" When the policeman answers, "I do", Fred gestures to the court observers, who are all black, and asks, "Well where are they? Look at all these ***s in here!" Upon uttering this statement, the live studio audience went crazy with laughter and applause. Redd Foxx had to pause for the crowd to settle down before delivering the coup de grâce: "There's enough *s in here to make a Tarzan movie!" In the TV Land version of this episode, Fred's questioning of the policeman abruptly ends after "What do you have against black people?". (Note: In my opinion, this was the funniest scene in all of Sanford and Son.) When Fred returned from St. Louis, his family and friends held a party for him, and at Rollo's request for "cheers", Fred responded, "Bim bam boom, somebody get this * outta my room!" In the episode "Mama's Baby, Papa's Maybe", the show dealt with an old friend called Grip returning to meet Fred and claiming he was Lamont's true father. When he first presented the news to Esther (who had previously enjoyed his company), she jumped up and yelled, "What did you say, *?" In syndication, the line is altered to "What did you say, sucka?" In "Here Comes The Bride, There Goes The Bride", Fred also utters that the bride's family looks like a "bunch of jive ***s" (also edited/removed by TV Land). ---------------------------------- Has the sensibilities of Americans really up in the past 35 years where we cannot enjoy the show as it was? How did it come to this? If this show was racist at all, it was black racism against others, with white characters being dunderheads, the Puerto Rican dirty, and an Asian named Ah Chew. If society has become so sanitary now that S&S has to be censored to be shown on TV, then it should not be on TV and just be sold to the millions of fans on DVD. Would Fred Sanford want to live in a World where you can't say "the n-word" and chase his sister in law with a baseball bat? What's the point? Senor

09-16-2008, 01:33 AM	#2
catlover79 God Bless Val Forum Addict Join Date: May 29, 2006 Location: Bewitched in Ohio Posts: 70,392	There's no way a show like S&S would survive if it was in production today because it IS so un-PC. Having said that, I think it is one of the funniest shows EVER!!! I was born after it had already ceased production, but thanks to reruns and DVDs, I've caught up with it. It never fails to get me laughing out loud. The scene where Julio takes Fred and Lamont to the Mexican restaurant is still gut-splitting no matter how many times I see it. Beans and disease to you, too!!!
	__________________ "Jesus loves you and He approves this message." "I'm alive. I'm feeling good. I'm trying to live every moment as much as I can." - Valerie Harper, March 2013

09-25-2008, 11:23 AM	#7
FredFan55 Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Oct 16, 2003 Location: Raleigh, NC Posts: 48	Some context As my screen name implies, I was born in 1955, so I'm 53 now and was in my late teens when S&S became a hit. I was also an avid TV watcher in a largely segregated North Carolina (and the whole US, for that matter) in the 1960s. Only in the late 1960s did it become routine to see black people depicted in TV shows and on commercials. There was a very real excitement, among blacks and whites, to see this develop. We all had few opportunities to absorb one another's culture prior to that. Like it or not, the language used on S&S struck me as 100% authentic, both then and now. As far as I'm concerned, it's a primary reason the show was such a hit then and remains so in reruns, no matter how badly the PC Police at TV Land chop it up and try to alter it. Somewhere I've seen a listing of the writing credits for the entire spectrum of S&S episodes, and Richard Pryor was the writer of a small handful of the them. I faintly recall "Fred Sanford-Legal Eagle" as one of Pryor's shows. Regardless of who wrote it, it is my favorite episode and favorite line of the entire series. FF55

12-02-2008, 04:08 PM	#9
JAlanRuss72 Eternal Member Eternal Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Nov 22, 2006 Location: Cookeville, TN Posts: 488	I believe Richard Pryor also wrote the season 2 episode "Sanford & Son & Sister Makes Three" with Ja'net Dubois (from Good Times): Dubois' Character: My daughter and I are going to be here for a short while. We have to find a mechanic. Wouldn't you know it, our tail light is OUT. FRED: Tail light's out? Well you better get it fixed, cause they death on a ****** with one TAIL light. (Audience cracks up for a few minutes) If you only got one tail light around here, you better be on a motorcycle. LOL
	__________________ Jeff Russell Facebook Page: http://facebook.com/Jrussell1972

09-17-2008, 06:07 PM	#5
MickeyMac Member Forum Star Join Date: Jun 18, 2008 Location: Kalamazoo, Michigan Posts: 19,008	When Big Money Grip claimed he was Lamont's father, and Fred told Esther that. Esther's repsonse was "What did you say ****". With all the PC these days, if Sanford and Sonwere around now it would be quite lame. Back then(and still now)black people will time to time call one another "****". I dont do it, but some of us do. Just listen to rap music.

09-19-2008, 02:14 PM	#6
catlover79 God Bless Val Forum Addict Join Date: May 29, 2006 Location: Bewitched in Ohio Posts: 70,392	Network TV sure has regressed since the 1970s.

01-21-2010, 01:46 AM	#10
wehotex Member Forum Cub Join Date: Jan 21, 2010 Location: san antonio, texas Posts: 2	how odd that I do remember the original lines from those quotes and how hysterical they were. I haven't noticed how TV Land has sanitized it b/c I long forgot the original lines. Thanks for reminding me.

01-22-2010, 05:32 PM	#13
MickeyMac Member Forum Star Join Date: Jun 18, 2008 Location: Kalamazoo, Michigan Posts: 19,008	Blame those crybabies called The NAACP for black TV shows from the 70's being cut up. Instead of doing something useful (which they havent in 50 years), they are going around cying about other black people saying the N word to each other. I dont say it and I dont apporove of it either, but that is simply they way some black people talk to each other. NAACP gets on their high horse and cons the white media and cries racist, they use white guilt to not only get good TV shows cut up(and they cut out some of the funnier lines) but then get money from the white media to spend on themselves. Sad but true.