Sherman Hemsley
There was a time when African Americans were seldom seen on television. Early on, they were basically backdrops, like the guy in the train station shinning someones shoes while the main characters rushed by to catch the train. This was a time when one of the most influential recording artists in the United States, (Nat King Cole) would have to wait until the last 4 minutes of the Ed Sullivan Show (I’ve heard that Sullivan would have preferred that no blacks performed on his show) to perform or in the case of the iconic Jerry Lewis Telethon, African Americans like Ella Fitzgerald, Lionel Hampton, Count Basie, Sammy Davis Jr. and many others could only be seen “After Midnight” (J.J. Cale), usually around 2AM.
With the exception of Amos ‘n’ Andy, Sanford and Son, Julia and I Spy, early TV in the States was pretty much void of Asian, Latino/Hispanic and the most populous minority, African Americans. We did not exist in prime time. The before mentioned shows had in common a lack of depth and no back story that I can remember. There was little acknowledgement of the true adventure of the African in America, nothing about their hard won contributions or accomplishments that made America be what it became.
Tyler Perry
George Jefferson, as portrayed by Sherman Hemsley, got a lot of heat. (Similar in a way to Tyler Perry). “The Jeffersons” was seen as degrading and a return of the Minstrel Shows. Some of what was overlooked was that the series was a sitcom and Jackie Gleason, Lucille Ball, Gracie Allen, and Dick Van Dyke all played the buffoon and none of them got any heat. The “Jeffersons” in my recollection was the first African American portrayal of an intact African American family on TV, who had achieved the “American Dream” with a well written undertone of “I did it my way”. George Jefferson was black, uppity and funny. This must have been startling to its white viewers, and there were many.
Unfortunately, Sherman Hemsley will never get the credit he deserves for just taking the job and giving it his best. Peace to his family and friends.
Related articles
- ‘Jeffersons’ star Sherman Hemsley dies at 74 (cnn.com)
- The Cultural Impact of Sherman Hemsley on Mainstream American Society (ireport.cnn.com)
