The George Jefferson Effect By Raymond Tyler

Remembering Sherman Hemsley

...or Mr. Jefferson To You and I!
Words By Raymond Tyler

Sherman Alexander Hemsley

February 1, 1938 – July 24, 2012

The world lost an under appreciated veteran actor yesterday July 24th, 2012 when Sherman Hemsley passed away.

However the iconic character of George Jefferson, will forever inspire people of all races, colors and genders to MOVE ON UP. 

As a kid growing up in the 1970's it was easy for me to write off the character of George Jefferson as merely an antagonist for Archie Bunker. There was a time before I worked for a living I viewed George as a short motor mouth armed with little more than a blistering array of "Whitey's" and "Honkey's"

 As I moved into my teen age year however, I began to admire Hemsley's brilliance as an actor and the writers who made George Jefferson one of the most complex black men we have ever seen on TV.

I am sure that even today you would be able to find real people with thriving businesses who could point to the story that Hemsley and The Jefferson's brought to the 1970's and 80's TV.

I know I was inspired by Jefferson's move from the poverty of being a share croppers' son, then opening a small dry cleaning business in Harlem, eventually moving his family to the middle class where we first meet The Jefferson's as neighbors of The Bunkers on the show ALL IN THE FAMILY. Ultimately Jefferson was able to open several stores in most of the five burroughs and gain wealth for himself and his family.

Hemsley's Jefferson is the only Black man on television who we saw make those moves in class. Likewise, he can be credited as a fore-runner of  Bill Cosby's "Dr. Huxtable" and James Avery's "Uncle Phillip Banks."  Although in the case of Phillip Banks we were able to tune in as he moved from a lawyer to a judge.

 George Jefferson was most complex  as a character when trying to fit in the world of wealth. His charachter never apologized for his achievements and almost always shined the light on the fact that everyone should have an opportunity to live like human beings.

However as in the clip above he often was brought face to face with the life and the people and friendships he left behind when moving to the "DEE LUXE Apartment in the sky."

I don't know of many other characters besides The Jefferson's that repeatedly have to find a way to live in one world where every one wants what they have and yet another world where very few people can relate to where they came from.

By the time I was 25 I gained a healthy respect for each of the core cast members of The Jeffersons and the roles they created.

I had marveled at Miss Isabel Sanford's range as an actress.

I thoroughly enjoyed her small role in Guess Who's Coming To Dinner.

I so respected her as "Weezy" Jefferson watching her grow into a woman who earned the right to enjoy her wealth. Then really proud that her character became such a vital role in helping other people down at the "health center."

I had always respected Mike Evans as an actor on All In The family but was delighted when I found out that he was a co-creator of the show Good Times with Mr. Eric Monte.

On The Jeffersons his character who was already wealthy went on to finish college and make his dad proud. He made a lot of young cats like me kind of proud too.

There is not enough internet to explain the impact that George Jefferson and Jefferson Cleaners had on me.

I can say this. My first business was making and selling mix tapes in the 1990's and my very first one was titled LIVE FROM JEFFERSON CLEANERS. I recorded the mix tape as if I were a radio personality hosting a live remote from their original Harlem location.

Sherman Hemsley did great work before George Jefferson playing Purly Victorious in the hit stage play Purly. Hemsley went on to create another iconic TV role as Deacon Earnest Frye on Amen, which was set in his home town of Philadelphia.

While the core cast of The Jeffersons have all passed beyond our ability to touch them.

The characters they brought to the small screen will influence my life as long as I have a business to put my name on.

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