'Good Times': 50 years ago, Norman Lear changed TV with a show about a working-class Black family's struggles and joys

(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.)

Angela M. Nelson, Bowling Green State University

(THE CONVERSATION) I loved watching Norman Lear’s trailblazing television shows when I was growing up in Dalzell, South Carolina, in the 1970s.

“Good Times,” my favorite, debuted on Feb. 8, 1974 – nearly 50 years ago. CBS aired the show about the daily struggles and triumphs of the working-class Evans family until Aug. 1, 1979.

Lear, who died at 101 on Dec. 5, 2023, forever changed sitcoms. His characters were more diverse, and their predicaments included situations that had previously been out of bounds for humorous TV programs, such as child abuse, unemployment and alcoholism. As a result, they more accurately reflected modern life in America than their counterparts that predominated through the 1960s.

“Good Times” stood apart from Lear’s other successful comedies because it featured, as Lear put it, the “first full black family on television.”

I have been researching “Good Times” and other shows with primarily Black casts since 1989. Along the way, I’ve developed a deep appreciation for the show’s strong female...