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That's My Mama

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TV Series

The Resume

    (September 4, 1974-December 24, 1975)
    Comedy series
    Aired on ABC
    Clifton Davis as Clifton Curtis
    Theresa Merritt as 'Mama' Eloise Curtis
    Ted Lange as Junior
    Theodore Wilson as Earl
    Lynne Moody as Tracy
    DeForest Covan as Josh
    Jester Hairston as Wildcat
    Helen Martin as Laura
    Premise: A single barber in Washington D.C. fields attempts by his zany widowed mother to get him married, while also getting sucked into the misadventures of local friends

Why That's My Mama might be annoying:

    Its original title was 'The Furst Family of Washington.'
    The roles of Earl and Tracy both were played by two different performers over the span of a single season.
    It was basically ABC's answer to Sanford and Son.
    Unlike Sanford, though, it lacked the kind of parent-child tension that made for great comedic situations.
    It failed to register in the Nielsen Ratings' Top 30 and died a quiet death early in its second season.
    It tried to pull a What's Happening Now!! with a reboot pilot titled 'That's My Mama Now!' (it wasn't picked up).
    It was accused by black TV critics of perpetuating negative stereotypes about African-Americans (the mammy, the emasculated black male, the hustler, etc).

Why That's My Mama might not be annoying:

    It was a precursor to the 'Barbershop' movies.
    Its last episode aired on Christmas Eve (it was cancelled the next day).
    It had only 39 episodes (and we all know a show like that can't be any good).
    It showcased the talents of Theresa Merritt, whose career would continue into the late 1990s.
    Its poor ratings showing was largely due to being aired on Wednesday nights opposite the juggernauts Little House on the Prairie and Tony Orlando & Dawn.
    Teddy Wilson and Joan Pringle met each other working on the show, and would marry a year later.
    It launched the careers of Teddy Williams ( Good Times), Ted Lange (The Love Boat), Clifton Davis and Jester Hairston (both on Amen).
    It was one of the earliest sitcoms to center around a strong black matriarch (aside from 'Good Times' which was an ensemble project).
    Its two catchphrases --'That's my mama' and Earl's 'Oo-wee! I got it, I got it, and I've got to ree-port it!' -- have remained staples in pop culture (even if most can't name where the references originally came from).

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 11 Votes: 90.91% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 86 Votes: 44.19% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 11 Votes: 45.45% Annoying