Fred G. Sanford

Fred G. Sanford
First appearance	"Crossed Swords"
Last appearance	"To Keep a Thief"
Created by	Norman Lear and Bud Yorkin, based on Albert Steptoe created by Galton and Simpson
Portrayed by	Redd Foxx
Information
Gender	Male
Occupation	Junk/antiques dealer
Spouse(s)	Elizabeth Winfield Sanford (deceased) (1908-1950)
Children	Lamont Sanford (son) (born September 27, 1940)
Relatives	Frances Sanford Victor (sister) Esther Winfield Anderson (sister-in-law) Essie Winfield (mother in-law) Elroy Winfield (father in-law) Leotus Sanford (uncle; deceased)

Fred G. Sanford is a fictional character portrayed by actor/comedian Redd Foxx on the 1972–1977 NBC sitcom Sanford and Son.

Foxx, whose real name was John Elroy Sanford, modeled the character after his real-life brother, whose name in fact was Fred Glenn Sanford (who was the older of two children and died in 1965, seven years before the show premiered). The character Fred is an elderly, widowed, sarcastic, and cantankerous junk dealer. He is the proprietor of "Sanford and Son", a junk and antique dealership which he ran out of his home, along with his son Lamont. Foxx appeared in all but 9 of the episodes of the series, the exception being because Foxx had a contract dispute with NBC in 1974.

In 1999 TV Guide ranked him # 36 on its list of the 50 Greatest TV Characters of All Time.

Fred G. Sanford was born in St. Louis, Missouri on January 20, 1908. (the episode "Happy Birthday, Pop" celebrated his 65th birthday that aired in 1972) In 1946, he, his wife Elizabeth Winfield, and their son Lamont (Demond Wilson) moved to the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. Fred was left with the responsibility of rearing Lamont alone after his wife suddenly died the following year. Lamont dropped out of high school, subsequently joining his father in the junk business. Lamont, as he was known, was actually his middle name. Fred and Elizabeth could never decide on a first name. Lamont was also however known as "Lamont Grady Sanford".

Fred is portrayed as being irritable and wanting everything done his way. He is known for grouchy disposition, his bad cooking, and his innumerable delusions of grandeur. He is bow-legged and walks with an affected stagger, presumably brought on by arthritis or perhaps, given his penchant for the ladies, syphilitic myelopathy, which can cause difficulty in walking. Fred never gives much credit to his son Lamont, believing him to be gullible and unintelligent. He most often refers to Lamont as a "big dummy". Unhappy about his calling as a junk man, Lamont accepts his plight more for the love of his father than the junk business itself. Fred often involves himself in various get-rich-quick schemes, and as such, Lamont has to keep constant watch over his father. When Lamont would express an interest in having a life for himself, Fred would try to convince him of the importance of running the family business (which he referred to as "the empire") after he is gone. Fred often feigned illness in attempt to guilt his son into staying home and taking care of him whenever Lamont had plans to go out. Similarly, Fred often ruined Lamont's efforts to have a quiet romantic night at home with a lady companion (at one point, Fred repeatedly interrupted Lamont's amorous efforts so often that the young lady ended up sneaking away while Fred and Lamont argued loudly in the kitchen).

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