Talk to John, and you might as well be dealing with the Sphinx - 2,500 years of silent certainty. In an excerpt from Good Times‘ creator and head writer Norman Lear’s book, Even This I Get to Experience, he gives the other side to the story, confessing, “By the end of the third season, John Amos was so glum and dispirited that it seemed impossible to go on, and we decided to write him out of the show. I mean, the writers got tired of having their lives threatened over jokes.” Being born in Newark, raised in East Orange, I had a way of voicing my differences against the script that weren’t acceptable to the creative staff. “In other words, I didn’t have the diplomacy that I think I’ve cultivated over the last 10 or 15 years. “I left because I was told that my services were no longer needed because I had become a ‘disruptive element,'” Amos shared, citing creative differences with the show’s writer. However, over two years ago, Amos told Sway In The Morning what was happening behind the scenes.Įddie Murphy Explains Why He Doesn’t Agree With The Term “Blaxploitation Film” (Video) Over the years, rumors surfaced that the show’s producers and Amos could not reach an agreement in their contractual negotiations. Infamously, at the height of the show’s popularity, “James Evans” was killed and left the show open with no closure for the loss of such a beloved character. The 79-year-old actor, along with the late Esther Rolle, were the first Black nuclear family on the small screen, well received by audiences nearly a decade before The Cosby Show dominated TV guide covers. John Amos, who starred as “James Evans” in the early seasons of the series’ original run, made a guest appearance as Chicago politician “Alderman Fred Davis,” a role originated by Albert Reed. John Amos Reveals He Was Fired From Good Times For Trying To Make It More Authentic (Video) However, it was the show’s surprise nod to the original series that received the loudest pop from the audience. Venerable actors like Andre Braugher, Viola Davis, and comedian Tiffany Haddish inhabited the legendary TV roles of “James” and “Florida Evans,” and friendly neighbor, “Willona Woods, respectively. Hosted and produced by Jimmy Kimmel, the second installment of Live in Front of a Studio Audience presented a re-adaptation of the Good Times episode “The Politicians” - which originally aired 44 years ago, in November 1975, as part of the show’s third season. Amid a jam-packed night of television-which included scheduled finales for Survivor and The Masked Singer, as well as the historic impeachment of Donald Trump-tuned in viewers received a special treat on Wednesday night during a star-studded live restating of a classic episode of Good Times.
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