Watching Unsung Hollywood led me to YouTube old What's Happening!! episodes. I was in preschool and kindergarten during the show's original 1976-79 run on ABC and have only foggy memories of "Rerun" and the gang.
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| Check out What's Happening!! "minisodes" on YouTube at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V_UTHn8TElE |
But rediscovering What's Happening!! is like catching up with old friends. Checking out one of the episodes at bedtime is like emotional comfort food, a glass of warm milk and a plate of chocolate chip cookies before turning in.
As Ernest Lee Thomas, who played lead character Roger "Raj" Thomas, notes in Unsung Hollywood, everyone in the show was perfectly cast. Danielle Spencer was wise beyond her years as Raj's smart-mouthed little sister, Dee. And Shirley Hemphill was so well-suited as the sassy, wise-cracking waitress at the neighborhood soda shop that her character was aptly named after her.
And Mabel King was perfect as the loving matriarch; her character was also named after her. She has such a warm, nurturing presence that it's hard to imagine that she also played the wicked witch, Evillene, in The Wiz.
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My favorite episode: "If I'm Elected." This episode actually doesn't involve the main characters, the Thomas family, but instead focuses on supporting character Dwayne Nelson and his father Lawrence's city council campaign. Lawrence Nelson was played by veteran actor Greg Morris of Mission: Impossible fame.
This episode illustrates what's so great about What's Happening!! - it showed African Americans from all walks of life and depicted a loving father who was a sound role model for his teenage son.
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Based on the classic movie Cooley High (which I hate to admit that I still haven't seen), What's Happening!! was on ABC for only two and a half seasons. As the cast relates in Unsung Hollywood, behind-the-scenes squabbles over salaries and creative control, as well as fast living and drug use by some of the actors, ultimately led to the show's all-too-soon demise.
And Mabel King was perfect as the loving matriarch; her character was also named after her. She has such a warm, nurturing presence that it's hard to imagine that she also played the wicked witch, Evillene, in The Wiz.
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My favorite episode: "If I'm Elected." This episode actually doesn't involve the main characters, the Thomas family, but instead focuses on supporting character Dwayne Nelson and his father Lawrence's city council campaign. Lawrence Nelson was played by veteran actor Greg Morris of Mission: Impossible fame.
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| Greg Morris played Dwayne's father in my favorite episode. |
This episode illustrates what's so great about What's Happening!! - it showed African Americans from all walks of life and depicted a loving father who was a sound role model for his teenage son.
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Based on the classic movie Cooley High (which I hate to admit that I still haven't seen), What's Happening!! was on ABC for only two and a half seasons. As the cast relates in Unsung Hollywood, behind-the-scenes squabbles over salaries and creative control, as well as fast living and drug use by some of the actors, ultimately led to the show's all-too-soon demise.
It's hard to imagine a sitcom like this making it to the air these days. None of the major networks would seem to be interested in a show about working-class black characters dealing with everyday life.
I love how What's Happening!! was set in the South Central L.A. community of Watts, but none of the story lines deal with drugs, gangs or other stereotypical issues commonly associated with poor, inner-city blacks.
Many of the What's Happening!! plotlines could happen in any family of any race, which explains the show's universal appeal. Like any sitcom, a conflict like Raj stealing a blouse to give to his mother for a birthday present, is neatly wrapped up in 22 minutes.
And it's interesting to see cameos and supporting parts with actors who later went on to fame. In a few episodes, Debbie Morgan plays a teen who hangs around the soda shop. Morgan, of course, went on to win Emmys and NAACP Image Awards as Dr. Angie Hubbard on the ABC soap All My Children.
What's Happening!! had some of the conventions of '70s sitcoms. The Fonz from Happy Days would say "aaaaay" whenever he entered; Haywood Nelson's Dwayne would say "hey, hey, hey."
But unlike some shows of the era, What's Happening!! doesn't seem dated at all (except, of course, for the butterfly collars, bell bottoms and huge afros). I feel like I could sit down and watch the show with my young niece and nephews and they would get just as much enjoyment out of the show as I do.
Maybe because What Happening!! didn't use a lot of cultural references specific to the time or refer much to current events in the news, it doesn't seem "stuck" in the '70s. For that reason, and simply because it's a well-written, well-cast show, What's Happening!! is timeless.
Many of the What's Happening!! plotlines could happen in any family of any race, which explains the show's universal appeal. Like any sitcom, a conflict like Raj stealing a blouse to give to his mother for a birthday present, is neatly wrapped up in 22 minutes.
And it's interesting to see cameos and supporting parts with actors who later went on to fame. In a few episodes, Debbie Morgan plays a teen who hangs around the soda shop. Morgan, of course, went on to win Emmys and NAACP Image Awards as Dr. Angie Hubbard on the ABC soap All My Children.
What's Happening!! had some of the conventions of '70s sitcoms. The Fonz from Happy Days would say "aaaaay" whenever he entered; Haywood Nelson's Dwayne would say "hey, hey, hey."
But unlike some shows of the era, What's Happening!! doesn't seem dated at all (except, of course, for the butterfly collars, bell bottoms and huge afros). I feel like I could sit down and watch the show with my young niece and nephews and they would get just as much enjoyment out of the show as I do.
Maybe because What Happening!! didn't use a lot of cultural references specific to the time or refer much to current events in the news, it doesn't seem "stuck" in the '70s. For that reason, and simply because it's a well-written, well-cast show, What's Happening!! is timeless.
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