Forgotten TV: 704 Hauser (1994)

Norman Lear thought he could, in a sense, reinvent the wheel.

His groundbreaking All in the Family, based on a British sitcom, was well settled into syndication, and, ultimately, cable reruns by the time Lear decided to return to Queens in 1994 with the short-lived 704 Hauser. That, friends, was the street address of Archie & Edith Bunker back in the day, but in 1994, a new family had moved in.

Ernie Cumberbatch (John Amos, ex-Good Times, The Mary Tyler Moore Show) and his wife have bought the Bunkers' former home, but now, the shoe is on the other foot in terms of political and racial humor. Cumberbatch's son, Thurgood, or, "Goodie", has a white girlfriend, which by 1994 was so very acceptable.

Here's the intro:



T. E. Russell (Goodie) wasn't heard from again after the series ended. Maura Tierney, however, went on to the more successful NewsRadio the very next year. I think this was John Amos' last series.

If Lear hoped to capture the magic of All in the Family all over again, it didn't work.

No rating.