Introduction
On television today, we see people from all walks of life featured. While we see some races more than others, each one is represented in some way. Today, it may seem like the norm to be able to turn on the television and see a show that you believe accurately shows you or your race. However, only a few decades ago, that may have not been the case. The purpose of this essay is to look at three very popular black sitcoms, each from different decades, and compare the wealth status of African American families in those sitcoms with the actual wealth status of actual African American families at the time. I will also analyze their content and tv ratings and seeing whether that reflects the current living situation during the time and a progression of portrayal of black americans as time goes on. I looked at available census records to try and see the average black income for families. The shows that I have chosen are Sanford and Son, The Cosby Show, and Family Matters. I chose these three shows not only for their popularity but also for their varying content, economic class, and portrayal. My rationale and reasoning for this essay was due to the importance of black America today and explore the past representation of black people on television.
I wrote my essay in chronological order of when each of the three shows aired. I gave context in terms of changes in the television world such as new genres being created as well as some background information on the actual creation and context of the show. Through looking at various primary sources and documentaries, I discovered that while some shows were not as accurate and representative of the actual black experience, it didn’t take away from the popularity. In addition, whether or not the economic status of the show matched reality, there seemed to be a disbalance between whether the family came off as too poor or whitewashed. I also looked at the Civil Rights Movement, Black Panthers, and the Rodney King Riots to give further context of the time.
Sanford and Son
In the 70’s television was starting to become more accepted into society and ultimately evolved into what it now is today. There was a shift from the rural television shows that came on such as The Beverly Hillbillies and Green Acres and more into reality and house life, such as All In The Family. In addition, many more types of shows and genres for different types of people were allowed in. Television shows with strong independent women as the main character such as Maude and The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Shows for children such as Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood and Sesame Street sprang up. And of course, shows that were primarily black such as Good Times, The Jeffersons, and Sanford and Son (The Seventies, CNN).
Sanford and Son aired from January 14, 1972 to September 2, 1977 with a total of 6 seasons and 136 episodes. Created by Norman Lear, it was an Americanized version of the British comedy, Steptoe and Son. The show took place in the Watts section of Los Angeles, California, an almost entirely black neighborhood. In it, Fred Sanford, a junk dealer, and his son Lamont lived together. The main premise of the show was Lamont trying to live life with his father who constantly created situations that he had to get himself out of. They were lower class due to Fred being dead set on being the boss despite the low income coming in from the business and Lamont’s ideas on how they could expand and use their working hours better. Other characters in the show who appear frequently are Lamont’s girlfriend Janet, Fred’s sister in law Esther, and family friend Grady. It’s also learned throughout the show that Fred’s ex-wife, Elizabeth, died years ago. The Black Panthers did not approve of Sanford and Son along with Good Times because of the poor situation they lived in. They were tired of seeing black people who weren’t living comfortably economically. Huey Newton, one of the founders of The Black Panthers actually had a conversation with Norman Lear to talk about his television shows concerning black people and what they had a problem with. This led to the creation of The Jeffersons, a show where a black couple move into a high rise apartment and are wealthy.
However, despite its popularity there were many mixed reviews about the show. Some African Americans believed the character of Fred Sanford played into black stereotypes of being lazy and sly as seen in black characters in previous television shows. In addition, the fact that of all people who could of played the role of Fred Sanford it was Redd Foxx only added more fuel to the fire. Prior to starring on the show, Redd Foxx was a stand up comedian known for his racy and profane routine. Although the show did use stereotypes somewhat, they existed for the purpose of comedy and did not appear to take away from the show’s overall popularity.
People who disagreed with the claims of the show ruining the image of black people pointed to the character of Lamont Sanford, who was a honest man and cared for his father selflessly despite being able to exceed economically and socially if he left. Another point made was that Fred’s character was fine because the show also made fun of white stereotypes, pointing out the police officer named Happy, who tried to relate to Fred and Lamont by changing how he talked but ultimately failing. It was also praised for accurately capturing contemporary urban black life. In addition, Fred also disliked their neighbor Julio, off the fact that he was Puerto Rican. According to the 1970 census, the median family income for black people was $6,250 which would value to $41,724 today which could certainly be considered as lower class.
The Cosby Show
In the beginning of the 80s, following the culmination of M*A*S*H, sitcoms were presumed to be dead. For the first time in history there was not a single sitcom in the top ten. However those thoughts quickly subsided when The Cosby Show debuted. The Cosby Show ran on CBS from 1984 to 1992 with a total of eight seasons and 200 episodes. Created by Bill Cosby, the show depicted an upper middle class black family living in New York with professional, stable jobs and a functional household with five kids. Bill Cosby was not new to the television screen as prior to the show he had starred on other shows in the past such as I Spy, a detective show where he was awarded for three Emmys, and was liked by many white people for his stand up comedy. But The Cosby Show was much more unique than his past endeavors. Prior to the show, there was a countless number of black sitcoms where they were portrayed off of stereotypes and living in bad neighborhoods such as Sanford and Son and Amos ‘n’ Andy.
A reason as to why The Cosby Show may have done so well was because it portrayed African Americans in a good light along with more depth. Each of the five kids had unique personalities and all had their own problems and lives. Sondra, the eldest child was attending Princeton, an Ivy league university, was often away and eventually ended up getting married and having children. Denise, the second child, was also very intelligent but also stubborn and independent and after only two years in college, dropped out to make her own mark on the world. Theo, the only boy, was more interested in playing around than schoolwork. Vanessa, the middle child, was the rebellious one and outspoken. An Rudy, the youngest who by the end of the show was a teenager, always felt left out and ignored. In addition to this, both Cliff and Clair Huxtable, the parents, were highly educated and had very upscale jobs while there were many African Americans whose parents didn’t get a full education. Both the parents were portrayed as in charge and being level headed instead of yelling and being physical which was a new thing to see. It was also so relatable and funny that it didn’t matter to people what race they were. Throughout the majority of it’s run on cable TV, The Cosby Show was number one in ratings, pulling in anywhere between 28 and 30 million viewers.
However, the life the Huxtables on the Cosby Show lived was not one that was lived nationally. Being upper class, the Huxtables assumedly did not have the same problems as lower class African Americans may have had such as gangs, drugs, and single parents. In 1985, the estimated median household income of black families in America was 14,280 dollars and the estimated median income for black families was 16,790 dollars. Today, a United States dollar in 1985 would value to $2.29, converting these values to respectively to be $32,741 and $38,496. This is without mentioning that in 1980, only 56% of households had a married couple and 40% with a female present without a husband. The Huxtable’s also lived in a brownstone in Greenwich Village which today, assuming it had 6 beds, would run you out 14 million dollars which is equivalent to 6.1 million in 1985. Although a vast majority of black americans were not able to relate the show economically, they could relate to the strong feeling of family and also have a sense of ethnic pride in seeing such a successful black family on television.
Another huge part of the show to note was that it debuted during a time of high racial tensions in the United States. During the 1980’s, Ronald Reagan served as president and he took a blind eye to racism and racial discrimination. One of the big successes of the Civil Rights Movement was getting the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987 passed, even though President Reagan vetoed it. This act made it law that recipients of federal funds must obey civil rights laws everywhere. In addition, people were angry that the show, taking place in New York City, didn’t show the racism that black people had to live with everyday.
Family Matters
By the 90s, television had evolved even further. New types of humor were created through cartoons for adults such The Simpsons and South Park, where anything could be joked about from politics to modern culture and events. Another new genre that began to pick up was Sci-Fi, with the creation Twin Peaks and The X Files, creating episodic adventures. Along with the boom of the internet, people went crazy on forum boards talking about the contents of television and creating theories on what would happen next. Crime shows became a big hit, with Law and Order, Homicide: Life On The Street, and NYPD Blue. Talk shows such as The Arsenio Hall Show became used as ways to increase popularity, with Bill Clinton coming on as a guest to help himself get more younger voters. Broadcast journalism and news was transformed by what type of stories could get more people to tune in and watch, such as the OJ Simpson Case which was considered the case of the decade. Television networks now more than ever began to compete with each other to see who could create the most black appealing show. Black producers and writers were given free reign to show whatever topics they wanted of being and living black. With shows like Martin, Living Single, and In Living Color, black people made up 25% of Fox’s viewers. And of course, the legendary sitcom genre was still rolling on strong with new shows such as Seinfeld, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Friends, and Full House. But none during this time were quite as authentic to modern day black family life as Family Matters was.
Family Matters took place in Chicago, Illinois where police officer Carl Winslow and his wife Harriette Winslow lived. Carl’s mother lived with him along with his three children, a son named Eddie and two daughters, Laura and Judy. While the show revolved around Carl as the main character trying to deal with his family, he soon shared the spotlight by none other than Steve Urkel, the boy next door. Steve Urkel was immediately spotted for his nerdy get up. His big glasses, Steve was infatuated with Carl’s daughter Laura and was constantly over his house to try and win her over. While the two sometimes feuded, they always came back to the feeling of love they had for one another. Although the show was more about family than race, there were some moments where the black experience played out. An example of this would be the episode “Fight The Good Fight” where during Black History Month, Laura pushes to have black history classes added to the curriculum. However, when she goes to her locker it’s been broken into and has the n-word written across the door. This causes tensions to rise between black and white students and the perpetrators were never caught but the history classes are ultimately added.
In addition to this, Carl Winslow being a black police officer in America made the show all the more interesting as it was something that wasn’t seen often. During the ‘90s, the relationship between blacks and police officers were just as rough as they are now if not worse. One of the main reasons for this was because of the police brutality that happened to Rodney King, a black taxi driver in Los Angeles who was stopped for speeding. He was severely beaten by four officers, three of them white, with batons for more than 15 minutes while more than a dozen other cops just watched. Footage of the brutal attack was taken by a bystander and once played on the news, people were outraged. For five days there were riots throughout Los Angeles, known as the Rodney King Riots, as many people were angered about the economic and racial gap between blacks and whites. To add more fuel to the fire, the police officers were acquitted and did not go to jail. Rodney himself even came out and made a statement pleading with people to end the riots and violence. Eventually things went to normal but not before about 1 billion in damage was suffered.
When comparing the content of Family Matters to the actual black experience of people during the time, it could be seen as very accurate. Although it wasn’t entirely focused on capturing the black struggle, it was able to show the relationship and friendship of black families.
Conclusion
From my research, I conclude that all three of these television shows portray the black experience in different and unique ways, they could be looked at chronologically as a more progressive and realistic. While Sanford and Son played a bit off of stereotypes, it showed the social aspects of black life. The Cosby Show got rid of those stereotypes and did a great job in showing black family life, with an emphasis on education and respect, but failed in showing the actual lifestyle of most black Americans. Finally, Family Matters was a combination of both, featuring a middle class family, which is closer to the and once again showing black family life as well a look of the black experience in terms of race relations.
Some limitations I had with my research was finding government census records that could show the income of black/African-American people for each decade. From my research I was also left with the question of were these three television shows the best ones I could have picked to show progression of portrayal. The number of different black family programs airing on television was rising as time went on.