Good Times is a Black American sitcom created by Mike Evans and Eric Monte that ran for six seasons from 1974-79. The show centered around Florida and James Evans played by Esther Rolle and James Amos and their life in the Cabrini Green projects of Chicago. Their characters debuted on the Norman Lear-created TV show Maude and Evans’character was originally named Henry. The Evans Family also consisted of Michael (Ralph Carter), J.J.(Jimmie Walker) and Thelma (Bernadette Stanis) and their lives dealing with poverty and various social issues. The show was popular in part because of Walker’s famous phrase, ‘Dy No Mite’ that flexed his skills as a comedian. Janet Jackson would later appear on the show in the role of Penny. Jim Gilstrap who had a hit with “Swing Your Daddy” in the ’70s and Blinky Williams sang the theme song co-written by Dave Grusin, Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman. Paul Mooney, Louis Gossett Jr., Jay Leno and John Witherspoon were some of the notable names that guest-starred on the show. Good Times went off the air in 1979 but the show lives on as a cult favorite.
