Sanford and Son: The best episodes, ranked
Here are the best episodes of this classic 1970s TV show, Sanford and Son.
Sanford and Son is a widely popular show that first aired on NBC in 1972. The show is about a junk dealer named Fred Sanford, who is in business with his son Lamont Sanford. As both family and business partners, they must work together despite Fred’s sarcasm and attempts to quit. This setup leads to many funny moments in the show. The show also doesn’t pull any punches with its jokes. In newspaper interviews, star Redd Foxx attributed the show’s popularity to the fact that it opened people’s minds to their prejudices. Although it’s not easy to choose, let’s take a look at the best episodes of Sanford and Son.
10. S03 E21: Tyrant, your name is Grady
This episode is one of the best because it allows Grady a chance to be in charge. Fred left to go to St. Louis, this made Grady the de facto leader of the family. Grady fulfills his role very well, enforcing strict policies such as not allowing Aunt Esther into the house. He also took active measures to prevent Lamont from bringing any girls home. Grady promises to carry out the requests Fred has left him in each letter, which Lamont is happy about at first. However, Lamont becomes angry after being prevented from going out with the girls. Grady even enlists Aunt Esther to help ruin Lamont’s plans. The episode is filled with funny moments that you rarely see on the show. With Fred gone, Grady got the chance to showcase the show’s humor and did it very well.
9. S04 E13: A little extra security
In this episode, Grady gets a little extra help with money through an extra social security check. However, this help proved to be too good to be true when it turned out that the extra money was due to a computer error that mistakenly sent him this additional check. Grady decided to put those thoughts aside and celebrate the extra money. However, a gentleman from the social security office named Mr. Hastings happened to be on his way to the house. Grady quickly has to come up with a plan to protect himself from this government agency; However, not everyone in the house is on his side. It turns out Lamont may be out to get revenge on Grady, with dangerous results. Grady decided to keep the check even though he knew it was wrong and insisted on gambling the extra check in Las Vegas in one fell swoop. In the 1970s, Las Vegas gained the reputation it had known for decades. It has become a famous tourist trap with many casinos, cheap restaurants and lots of galleries.
8. S02 E22: Lucky Pot
This episode is a classic Lamont episode. Lamont takes advantage of an ignorant customer to buy his Welsh antiques to make money. Out of his greed, he bought it for $20, hoping to sell it for a huge profit. Thanks to Lamont only seeing dollar signs in his transactions, he didn’t realize that he was actually being played by two clever scammers. These scammers, Mr. Osborne and Emile Bonnet, successfully sold him cleverly made counterfeit antiques. When Lamont went to sell antiques, he discovered the true value of the antique when it was returned to him later. Lamont’s deception causes him and Fred to have a heated argument. This causes Fred to chastise Lamont, saying: “You’ve been like that, it’s too bad!”.
7. S03 E11: The house is not a billiard room
This episode is cleverly named and very literal. Lamont decides to buy Fred a birthday present. The gift he decided to give him was a billiard table, which Fred really liked. However, when Fred invites his friends over to play billiards, he can never get them to leave. Lamont immediately regrets buying a pool table for Fred and tries to convince him that a house is not, in fact, a place to play pool. The pool table is also a convenient excuse for Fred to avoid work and his girlfriend Donna. Lamont must come up with a cunning plan to persuade Fred to leave the table and ensure that Fred thinks it was his idea. The episode did a great job of showing the billiards scene accurately. It has many funny moments due to Fred’s quick wit and selfishness.
6. S03 E03: Super pilot
In the episode “Superflyer”, Fred receives an unexpected request from his uncle Leotis. Leotis passed away and left Fred $1500 in St. Louis. The only catch was that Fred had to come pick up the money himself. This problem was a challenge for Fred because he was afraid of flying. He was finally able to overcome his fear and make the journey to St. Louis. However, it was revealed that it was not an inheritance but money spent on Leoti’s uncle’s funeral. Lamont tried to help Fred overcome his fear of flying by accompanying him, and it turned out to be all in vain. They also had trouble at the airport, leaving Fred with a negative opinion of airplanes and flying.
5. S03 E15: Fred Sanford, Legal Eagle
This time, we have another Lamont episode making the list. Lamont received a traffic ticket and felt discouraged about having to pay it. However, Fred summons his legal expertise to persuade Lamont to contest the ticket. Fred’s legal expertise comes from a tailor moonlighting as the lawyer he wants to hire to defend Lamont. Lamont decides to take his opportunity to defend himself, which is the perfect setup for some hilarious moments. However, Fred is not content to let Lamont defend himself and stumbles into the courtroom to create more drama. Somehow, Lamont was sentenced, but Fred and his friends were held in contempt of court. After all was said and done, Fred had to pay a $25 fine. No good deed by Fred goes unpunished.
4. S02 E24: X-rated
In “Rated X”, a misunderstanding about a movie casting call puts Lamont and Rollo in a difficult position. An independent film company puts out a call for black actors. Lamont and Rollo hope to take advantage of the opportunity to become respected black actors. However, it turned out to be a blue film. At first, they just thought the film was experimental, but it was soon discovered to be a pornographic film after they met the director and saw the script. This situation also got Fred into trouble and the place was raided by the police. The boys are forced to seek the help of Aunt Esther to sponsor them. However, Aunt Esther was pleased to see them stay where they were and would release them after reading some Bible verses.
3. S03 E18: Party crasher
Lamont and Rollo meet some of the women they invite to the party in this episode. These women were from Detroit and were described by the boys as “wires”. Lamont tries everything in his power to get Fred out of the way, but in another situation, the girls are actually won over by Fred. Lamont and Rollo try to use fancy gifts to impress the girls, but they prefer Fred’s onion stew. The boys are defeated and decide to take a midnight trip to Catalina, where they were initially trying to bribe Fred, so they can have Sanfrod’s mansion all for themselves.
2. S03 E17: Fred’s Deceitful Heart
In this episode, we see a rare moment when the Sanford family isn’t trying to outwit each other out of greed. The family is really trying to help Fred’s health. When Lamont heard about the dangers of heart disease from a representative of the Heart Foundation, he began to use his plot for a good cause. Lamont tries to get heart attack-prone Fred to the hospital for a cardiac check-up. The next time Fred had a heart attack, Lamont took him to the hospital for a checkup. The episode may be a bit sincere, no pun intended, but it still has its funny moments.
1. S04 E7: Sweet home
Topping the list is the episode “Home Sweet Home”. In this episode, a Japanese company intends to buy and demolish every mansion in the Sanford area so they can build a brewery. The offer from the company was so good that Fred was the only one left on the block. The media covered the situation and declared Fred, a hero for resisting the takeover. However, Fred’s real intention was to make more money from the Japanese company. As usual, Fred’s greed gets him into trouble when the Japanese company actually agrees to his request. Lamont becomes heartbroken when his plan to sail around the world with his earnings fails.
