The main characters are the focal point of any production, but supporting, recurring, and guest characters also help the show survive. Norman Lear’s Sanford and Son is the same, revolving around episodes about father and son Fred and Lamont Sanford. However, their friends, extended family and visitors brought the show’s storyline to life.
Otherwise, just watching this duo bicker in the junkyard/their house would be boring and repetitive. When you think about Fred Sanford’s friends, although he had a few, Grady Wilson was the one who got the most attention. Played by Whitman Mayo, the recurring character became Fred’s best friend, even moving in with Lamont while Fred was away.
This role had a huge impact on the film and you might think it must have been a lifelong dream for Mayo when he got the role – it wasn’t. In fact, he didn’t even want to participate.
According to an article in The News Tribune in 1974, the summer before the show aired, Mayo was an artist manager and literary agent who rode with a friend to Los Angeles to look for work. do for your customers. “It was a free ride so I thought I’d try to get some work for my clients,” he told the publication.
Before he settled down, a casting agent from Sanford and Son called and asked him to read for the role of Grady, and Mayo said, “But I don’t want to be an actor.” Anyway, after being convinced to audition, he went and they offered him the role. Shocked by their decision, he said, “I can’t understand this. I came to get parts for my customers.”
Mayo then began looking at the opportunity as a way to stay in Los Angeles longer to help his clients find jobs. However, he fought back when Sanford and Son’s production team asked him to stay for more episodes. “No. Absolutely not. I have to go back to my company (Nasaba, Inc.),” Mayo added.
He couldn’t escape the role and found himself playing Grady multiple times. Finally, he stopped fighting and looked on the brighter side. His business partner runs the company in New York while Mayo shines in front of Hollywood cameras.
“I have learned to stop resisting and do what fate has decided. I still don’t want to be a star. Many actors do other jobs to make a decent living; I only act temporarily for until you achieve your goals.” business where I want.”
Mayo would go on to guest star on various shows, even having the spin-off series Grady, which lasted one season.
