ABC staged its live performance of episodes of “All in the Family” and “The Jeffersons” on Wednesday (May 22), and the online reviews have been relatively positive so far.
The event was hosted by Jimmy Kimmel and the guy who created both shows, 96-year-old Norman Lear, and featured an all-star cast.
But if I’m gonna pick one highlight, it was 87-year-old Marla Gibbs returning in her role as Florence the maid on “The Jeffersons”. Judging by the applause she got, the live audience felt the same way. And to keep it a surprise, the press was told Florence was going to be played by “One Day at a Time’s” Justina Machado.
Jamie Foxx was the only actor from either show to mess up. He played George Jefferson. His flub actually came during “All in the Family” part of the show and the rest of the cast had a hard time keeping a straight face.
He immediately called himself out and said, quote, “It’s live! Everyone’s sitting at home thinking their TV’s just messed up.”
Marisa Tomei and Woody Harrelson handled the “All in the Family” theme song as Edith and Archie Bunker.
And Jennifer Hudson sang the “Jeffersons” theme live, which was also pretty tight.
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