Good Times | |
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Genre | Sitcom |
Created by |
Eric Monte Michael Evans |
Developed by | Norman Lear |
Directed by |
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Starring |
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Theme music composer | |
Opening theme | "Good Times" performed by Jim Gilstrap and Blinky Williams |
Composer(s) |
Dave Grusin Alan and Marilyn Bergman |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 6 |
No. of episodes | 133 (list of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) |
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Producer(s) |
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Location(s) |
CBS Television City, Hollywood, California (1974–75) Metromedia Square, Hollywood, California (1975–79) |
Camera setup | Multi-camera |
Running time | 22–24 minutes |
Production company(s) | Tandem Productions |
Distributor |
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Release | |
Original network | CBS |
Original release | February 8, 1974 | – August 1, 1979
Chronology | |
Preceded by |
All in the Family Maude |
Related shows |
Checking In The Jeffersons Archie Bunker's Place Gloria 704 Hauser |
Good Times is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. It was created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans, and developed by Norman Lear, the series' primary executive producer. Good Times was a spin-off of Maude, which was itself a spin-off of All in the Family.
Florida and James Evans and their three children live at 921 N. Gilbert Ave., apartment 17C, in a housing project in a poor, black neighborhood in inner-city Chicago. The project is unnamed on the show, but is implicitly the infamous Cabrini–Green projects, shown in the opening and closing credits. Florida and James have three children: James Jr., also known as "J.J."; Thelma; and Michael, called "the militant midget" by his father due to his passionate activism. When the series begins, J.J. is seventeen years old, Thelma is sixteen, and Michael is eleven. Their exuberant neighbor, and Florida's best friend, is Willona Woods, a recent divorcée who works at a boutique. Their building superintendent is Nathan Bookman (seasons 2–6), who James, Willona and later J.J. refer to as "Buffalo Butt", or, even more derisively, "Booger".
The characters originated on the sitcom Maude as Florida and Henry Evans, with Florida employed as Maude Findlay's housekeeper in Tuckahoe, New York, and Henry employed as a firefighter. When producers decided to feature the Florida character in her own show, they changed the characters' history: Henry's name became James, there was no mention of Maude, and the couple lived in Chicago.