Original subtitles

* Good times Any time you meet a payment *

* Good times Any time you need a friend *

* Good times Any time you're out from under *

* Not gettin' hassled Not gettin' hustled *

* Keepin' your head Above water *

* Makin' a wave when you can *

* Temporary layoffs Good times *

* Easy credit ripoffs Good times *

* Scratchin' and survivin' Good times *

* Hangin' in a chow line Good times *

* Ain't we lucky we got 'em *

* Good times **

[DING]

Finish that milk.

Mama, don't Thelma look beautiful all of a sudden?

J.J., stop that foolishness.

Tell the truth, Ma.

Isn't this a face only a mother could love?

Only a mother.

Come on, woman! Let's dance.

You got to learn how to shake it, mama.

First time I ever saw

two dummies dancing together.

Mm. Then I'll put down the fake dummy

and dance with the real dummy.

J.J., get out of here.

Jesse Jackson. Yeah.

What are you talking about, Michael?

We have to write a composition in our English class

on the man I most admire,

and I think I'm gonna write about Jesse Jackson

and what he's done for our people.

Well, that's a good choice. He is a great American.

And, Michael, he has done a lot of good for all people.

Oh, Ma. This dress is beautiful.

You're a miracle worker, Ma.

You know, you're better

than those fancy French designers

that sell to the big department stores.

Thanks.

Next week, I'll have a showing of my fall line

down in the laundry room.

You know, it sure wasn't easy to decide.

There's so many great brothers.

I hate to leave out Hank Aaron and Thurgood Marshall.

You completely forgot Elroy Duncan.

Who's he?

He did more for blacks than anybody.

He invented the hot comb.

Oh, Ma...

I can't get over it. How'd you do it?

Oh, it was easy.

The blouse is from your old blue,

the skirt is from your old red,

and the belt is from the old sofa.

Boy, Ma. You don't waste nothing.

I got a feeling

the old bedroom curtains used to be my shorts.

Wrong again, J.J.

They used to be Thelma's old pillowcase.

Good morning, family.

Good morning, Dad.

Good morning, baby.

Dad, you look great.

Well, thank you.

You look real handsome, Dad.

Like father, like son.

There goes another myth out the window.

Listen, kids.

Your father is going on an interview

for a real important job.

Assistant foreman of a van and storage company.

And, James, you gonna get this job.

I just feel it.

Well, baby, since you feel it so strong,

why don't you go out and get the job for me?

Oh, James.

No, I'm just kidding, Florida, but, somehow, baby,

I feel like this just gonna be another door slam.

Oh, honey.

You look so fine, I'd hire you myself.

You know, if I do get this job, Florida,

I got you to thank for it

for giving me all that confidence to go and get it.

Come on, kids.

Let's hear it for your Mama.

KIDS: Yay!

Gimme an "M".

Oh, yeah!

Gimme an "A".

Oh, yeah.

Gimme an "M".

Oh, yeah.

Gimme an "A". Oh, yeah.

What's that spell?

Oh, yeah!

Mama! Yay!

Yeah, right. Mama. Right. Yeah.

Oh, J.J.

Just jiving y'all. Just jiving.

Thanks, kids.

It's nice to be appreciated.

That's all right, Ma.

You want some coffee before you go, James.

No, baby. I don't wanna be late for this one.

It's gonna be a biggie.

Daddy. Do they know you're black?

Michael, they don't ask that on the applications no more,

but the minute I get there, I'll be sure and tell them.

See you later, baby.

Good luck, Honey.

Thank you.

Ma, what do you think?

Do you think I should write about Jesse Jackson?

I think it's a good choice.

You know I kind of lean on him,

because he's the only real important brother

I know personally.

You know Jesse Jackson personally?

Sure do.

Last year, he was coming out of the Sheraton hotel,

and I was passing by,

and he looked me straight in the eye,

and said, "Hello, little brother."

Then he got in the cab and drove away.

In that case,

I know Walter Kronkite personally.

Every evening,

he looks right at me and he says, "Good evening."

Michael, why does it have to be a man that you admire?

Why can't it be a woman? Why can't it be any person?

Because.

All the great any-persons are men.

You know what you are?

What?

A male chauvinist.

Hey, now, don't call my kid brother

nothing to do with Russia.

I said chauvinist, not Communist.

A male chauvinist

is someone who believes that men are superior to women.

In that case,

he's not a chauvinist nor a Communist.

He's right on.

And I think there are a lot of great women

Michael could write about.

There's Shirley Chisholm.

There's O.J. Simpson.

Loretta Scott King.

O.J. Simpson.

Harriet Tubman.

O.J. Simpson.

Why is your needle stuck on O.J. Simpson?

Cause me and O.J. got a lot in common.

Yeah. O.J. Simpson is a great football player,

and all you're good for is one of the goal posts.

You'd better hold on there, little sister.

Name me one major league football player

of the opposite sex.

Just give us time.

But he got a point there, Thelma.

Women weren't exactly built for contact sports.

Yeah, but for some contact sports,

they're built perfect.

There he goes again.

The typical male chauvinist remark.

Making women sex objects.

That's my ambition.

You may be surprised, J.J.

Some day, women may really play football.

I'll tell you one thing, Mama.

I ain't going out with no chick that looks like Dick Butkus.

Then how come you dating Doreen?

'Cause whenever I take her out,

she protects me from muggers.

I'm sorry. I started all this.

Nah, don't be sorry, Michael.

Let's be humble in our superiority.

Now, hold on, Long John.

You're getting too high and mighty.

No, Mom.

I'm not talking about me personally.

I'm talking about men like, uh...

say, Christopher Columbus, who discovered America.

And how about a Queen named Isabella

who gave him the money for the ships?

Tell it like it is, Ma.

And how about this dude, Pasteur,

who discovered how to pasteurize milk.

And how about those dudes

who keep raising the price of milk

so we can't afford to drink it?

And how about women, who, when they have babies,

can make their own milk?

Well, just don't sit there, Michael.

Jump in. Say something.

In the beginning, God created Adam.

Yeah!

And when he started his mistakes,

he improved on the model and called her Eve.

I have a good answer for that.

Tell 'em, Michael.

Look, Michael, there are a lot of great men

and a lot of great women.

Now, if your choice is Jesse Jackson,

you stick to it.

It's a good choice.

Okay, Ma.

Ma, is the dress ready for me to try on yet?

Sure, honey.

Hi, everybody.

Hey, Willona.

Hey. Isn't it beautiful?

That's a real knockout.

Mama just made it for me.

Florida, you are a stone genius.

Gramps, you awfully quiet today.

What you up to?

We have to write a composition in English

on the man I most admire,

and I can't figure out who it should be.

What do you think, Willona?

Well that's easy. Write about John Wayne.

Why John Wayne?

Yeah. What has he ever done for the black people?

He was so busy killing all the Indians,

he left us alone.

Florida, how's my tuna casserole coming?

Oh, it should be ready in about a half an hour.

Whoo-wee. It looks out of sight.

This is one of the best things that you ever cooked

that I ever took credit for.

Willona, I'm curious.

When your guests compliment you on the food,

what do you say?

Well, I play it very modest.

I say, "Thank you. I was up all night cooking it."

Florida, can I help it

if I like to give candlelight dinner parties

and I'm a lousy cook?

Oh, it's all right, Willona.

I love doing it for you.

Thanks, Flo.

You know, there were three things

that led to my divorce.

What was that?

Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

But I will say this for myself.

It took a year and a half

before my husband even noticed how bad my cooking was.

Willona...

Well, thanks again, Flo.

You're welcome.

I gotta go home now and chill my bubbly.

Okay. Bye.

Ma, it's perfect.

This is going to be the baddest dress at the party.

It is pretty, honey.

Oh, Mama, you're the greatest.

I love you.

Isn't it pretty, J.J.?

Hmm. It looked better on the dummy.

I made up my mind.

The man I most admire is right here in this family.

I accept the honor with all humility.

The man I most admire is a person.

She makes clothes for my sister,

sends my father out on job hunting

with a smile,

cooks for her friend.

The person I most admire is my mother.

Now you're talking, Michael.

You couldn't have made a better choice.

Right on.

Oh, children.

I'm flattered, but I'm not famous.

Mama, a person doesn't have to be famous to be admired.

The things you do around here are great.

You keep our family together.

And don't forget your biggest accomplishment--

me.

Every great person

is entitled to one mistake.

And you is it.

"And I was it."

Okay, you two lovebirds.

Mama, you know,

I was going to write about Jesse Jackson,

but I am going to erase his name and put your name in his place.

Not so fast, son.

The person who really keeps it together

is out there clawing and scratching for jobs.

That's your daddy.

No matter how bad things get around here with us,

he never quits.

You know, famous people get written about all the time,

but your daddy is a hero too.

In his own way.

You know, Mama, I never thought of it that way.

The man I most admire is my father, James Evans.

James, what you doing back so fast?

I'm sorry, Florida.

I just couldn't stand

having another door slammed in my face.

I never even went for the interview.

In that case,

I got a feeling he ain't gonna get the job.

What y'all staring at?

Why don't somebody say something?

James, there's nothing to say.

It really isn't all that important.

I know what you thinking, baby.

You thinking I dogged it.

Well, you're wrong.

I just outsmarted that fancy personnel director,

that's all.

I didn't give him a chance

to go into that old put-down routine.

You know how it goes, baby.

"Mr. Evans, as you know,

"we're an equal-opportunity employer,

so your color really isn't important."

Meanwhile, the dude is looking me up and down,

like he's trying to figure out

how many watermelons a day I can knock off.

Then the cat asked me,

he say, "Have you got any van and storage experience?"

I mean, can you imagine

the nerve of that cat asking me a question like that?

Me, the one who moved every stick of furniture

in this house in here with my bare hands and on my back.

That's right, Dad. And you did a great job too.

This house looks professionally vanned and storaged.

Damn right.

But when I tell him that, does it get through to him? No.

Then he says to me,

"Mr. Evans, what is the extent of your educational background?"

I said, "Well, I've got a sixth-grade education."

He said, "Well it doesn't matter."

Meanwhile, the cat is writing on his pad like,

"No way in the world I am gonna hire this dude."

Then he sticks out that four-bit manicured hand,

and says, "Thanks, Mr. Evans. Don't call us. We'll call you,"

which is the same thing

as a preacher pronouncing the last rites.

Well, baby, this is one cat

they didn't have a chance to take through them changes.

No, sir. I fired him

before he had a chance to fire me.

Oh, your daddy's just letting off steam,

and I don't blame him.

Sometimes, he must get the feeling

that the whole world is kicking and it's all aimed at him.

Thelma, can I use your room to do my composition in?

Of course you can, Michael.

Thanks.

You're still gonna write about your daddy,

aren't you, honey?

I'm not sure, Ma.

I have to start all over again.

Thelma, put on some water for some tea.

Maybe your daddy would like some.

Okay, Ma.

Thelma, as the oldest children in the Evans household,

I feel we should do something to lift Daddy's morale.

You can start by running away from home.

Anyway, we gotta make Daddy feel important.

We have to think of something sensible.

The last time you thought of something sensible...

Come to think of it, there was no last time.

Aw, now, come on, Thelma. Who you talking to like that?

J.J., stop the noise.

Hey, I got a way to make Daddy feel real happy.

Oh, Florida, I don't know what came over me.

I guess standing there waiting for that bus,

I just had too long

to think about getting turned down.

Hmm. You know something?

If we had faster bus service, I might have gotten that job.

Oh, James. You'll get the job you want some day.

I just know it.

When I married you, I married the best.

Baby, you're one great lady. You're entitled to the best.

So his headache is gone,

but it's been replaced with conceit.

Don't stop rubbing, Baby. That feels too good.

Wow, I'm a lucky man.

Got my own massage parlor.

Yeah, but this one is rated "G"

for general audiences.

Well maybe we could change that to "PG".

James, it's the middle of the day.

Not in London, baby.

All right, then.

Let's go and have 4:00 tea.

Come on.

I've got some brewing for you.

Come on, James.

All right, but that's one you owe me.

Water boiling, Thelma?

Yes, Ma.

Daddy? Hmm?

Can we talk to you for a minute?

Sure, baby girl.

Thelma and I have been having a discussion.

Hmm. That's like George Foreman

having a discussion with Muhammad Ali.

No, Ma. We were talking real serious.

Daddy? Huh?

We have a problem and only you can help us.

Yeah, we need a man with the wisdom of Isaac Hayes

and the worldly experience of Meadowlark Lemon.

What's the problem, Thelma?

Well, Daddy, J.J. and I are gonna be graduating

from high school this year,

but we don't know what to head for.

I don't know whether to study to become a teacher or a nurse,

or maybe a professional dancer.

What do you think, Daddy?

I can tell you right from the jump

that dancing sounds like a long shot to me.

You gonna need something solid to fall back on.

Now, nursing or teaching sounds good,

but, Thelma, you got the brains to go on and be a doctor.

Oh, thank you, Daddy.

I was confused,

but I knew you'd straighten me out.

No problem, baby girl.

Well, now that you got Thelma on the right track...

here comes another train.

I'm confused too.

Yes.

My problem is that I'm a great artist,

and as you know,

great artists don't become famous

till after they're dead.

Personally, I don't think I can wait that long.

Yeah, you're right, junior.

Selling paints is a long shot.

But you know what you could be?

What?

A commercial artist.

You know, them cats that do the billboards,

and then the magazines and everything.

Man, they make a lot of money.

Dyn-o-mite.

A commercial artist.

Now, how come I didn't think of that?

I can paint those big muscle dudes,

with those seven-foot shoulders,

going down to the four-inch jockey shorts.

He'd sure better paint them,

because he won't ever pose for them.

Boy, Dad, thanks for the advice.

I don't know what we'd do without you.

You're the greatest father in the father business.

Come on, J.J.

Let's not bother Daddy anymore

and let him read his newspaper.

Yeah, I think he's okay now.

Hey, hold it.

What you mean, you think "He's okay now?"

Nothing, Dad. Nothing. Right, Thelma. Nothing.

No, he didn't mean anything, Dad.

Oh, so that's what you meant by that jive, huh?

Oh, no, Daddy. We didn't...

Now, I should have figured it from the jump.

You talking all that, "Gee, Dad.

Thanks for your wonderful advice and all that."

And Junior telling me, "Gee, Dad.

We don't know what we'd do without you."

And, Florida, all that sweet talking

and neck rubbing, and telling me,

"James, when I married you, I married the best."

James, I meant it.

Oh, woman. I don't want to hear none of that bull.

You know the one thing I don't need from none of y'all

is pity.

"The man I most admire by Michael Evans."

"The man I most admire is my father, James Evans."

Boy, y'all really spreading

the fertilizer thick this morning, ain't you?

You even got the militant midget in on the act.

James, that is not so.

I don't wanna hear no more.

Now, Michael, bring your butt out here.

You know, one thing I don't appreciate

is being played for no fool. Yeah, Daddy?

I'm gonna teach you a lesson, that, evidently,

the rest of the family is too old to learn.

Michael, the worst thing you can try and do

is to try to con your own father.

Now, I know who I am.

I ain't much, but I'm the best James Evans I can be,

and I don't need you or nobody else around here

trying to change me into something else, you hear me?

So don't you never try and pull a stunt like this again, hear?

But, Daddy.

Everything I wrote on this paper

is what I really feel about you.

Michael, let me see that.

Florida, I told you,

I don't wanna hear no more of that con now.

But, Daddy, Michael wasn't even in the room

when J.J. and I decided to try this.

And Mama wasn't either.

Daddy, me and J.J. are the ones to blame.

Thelma, now don't go pleading guilty

till we see our lawyer.

Shut up, Junior.

James, listen to this.

"My daddy may not be a famous man,

"but he is great.

"He gets knocked down a lot, but he always comes up swinging.

"Sometimes he gets angry at the world.

"That's only because

"he wants us to have all the things we need.

"That isn't easy the way things are today.

"He doesn't have the best education in the world,

"but he's the best father in the world.

We wouldn't have a family without him."

Oh, James.

Does that sound like a con?

Well, look at your son.

Can't you see he means every word?

Aw, Michael. I'm sorry, son.

I apologize to you for not believing, you hear?

That's okay, Dad.

And, James, about what we were trying to do,

some of it was real and some of it was not,

but we were all heading for the same goal

'cause we all love you.

That's right, Dad.

I should have never listened to Thelma.

She made me do it against my will.

J.J., I'm gonna kill you.

And if you do, I'll sue you for assault and battery

if you touch one hand on this fragile little body.

Most of it was--

I had nothing to do with it.

I don't wanna hear anything about it.

Well, well, well. Now what else could a father ask for

than a loving family, huh?

Michael, I appreciate you

putting my name in your composition, son,

but I think you ought to write about some of the brothers

that are really helping our people.

You know, cats like Thurgood Marshall,

or Mayor Tom Bradley, or Julian Bond,

'cause them cats

are where it's really at, son.

Mama, I don't care what Daddy says.

I'm still gonna write about him.

And you couldn't have made a better choice either.

Right on!

James, where have you been?

I went down to see about that van and storage job.

What happened, Daddy?

Well, I walked in,

and that fancy personnel director said,

"Oh, I'm so glad you're here, Mr. Evans.

"I was about to call you.

We'd like you to go to work for us."

Oh, James. You did it. You did it.

You got the job! No.

While I was standing there

talking to him about that moving and storage job,

another moving and storage company

was taking out all their furniture.

You know what the man said?

"Oh, my goodness. We've gone broke."

I said, "Welcome to the club, baby."

[***]

[***]

* Mm-mm-mm *

* Just lookin' Out of the window *

* Watching the asphalt grow *

* Thinkin' how It all looks hand-me-down *

* Good times Good times *

* Keepin' your head Above water *

* Makin' a wave When you can *

* Temporary layoffs Good times *

ANNOUNCER: Good Times is recorded on tape

before a live audience.

* Ain't we lucky we got 'em *

* Good times **