Editors' Picks: Celebrating On-Screen Moms15 of 28
"Good Times" | Available to Stream on Starz
Plot: This 1970s sitcom follows the lives of Florida and James Evans and their three kids — J.J., Thelma, and Michael — who live together in a Chicago housing project.
Mom Moment: Florida Evans (Esther Rolle) was the main TV mom who raised us as our real mother was working three jobs as a single parent. As kids, we had never seen a character deal with the loss of their spouse — especially not on a sitcom. And in real life, Esther Rolle's decision to leave the show, citing it had gone in a frivolous direction, was another landmark moment in TV history.
Plot: This 1970s sitcom follows the lives of Florida and James Evans and their three kids — J.J., Thelma, and Michael — who live together in a Chicago housing project.
Mom Moment: Florida Evans (Esther Rolle) was the main TV mom who raised us as our real mother was working three jobs as a single parent. As kids, we had never seen a character deal with the loss of their spouse — especially not on a sitcom. And in real life, Esther Rolle's decision to leave the show, citing it had gone in a frivolous direction, was another landmark moment in TV history.
PeopleEsther Rolle
TitlesGood Times
Photo by CBS Photo Archive/CBS via Getty Images - © 1975 CBS Photo Archive