User Reviews

The Dowry is one of the more light-hearted and funnier episodes to the series. I wish Richard Pryor and Paul Mooney had written more episodes. Ahead of their time.

"The Dowry" marked the first of two episodes scripted by Richard Pryor, followed by "Sanford and Son and Sister Makes Three," easily two of the most frank, celebrated entries of them all. Fred welcomes his favorite cousin from St. Louis, Grady (Albert Reed), his new bride Margaret (Marguerite Ray), and step daughter Betty Jean (Gladys Perry), who has been dieting with a weight watchers club that meets once a month: "what do they do, eat for 30 days?" "oh no, we talk about what we didn't eat" "I'll bet that was a short conversation!" Sanford and Son have to duck into the kitchen just to laugh themselves sick: "and she say she lost 40 pounds" "if she look behind her, she'll find them!" Fred stops laughing when Grady tells him about the $10,000 dowry that Betty Jean will receive when she gets married, anxious to marry off an uncooperative Lamont so he can use the money to improve the business. Grady figures he can soften the blow: "there's more to her than meets the eye" "there can't be!" And Fred wants Lamont to guess whose feet he fits at the Chinese Theater: "Boris Karloff!" As funny as this one is, Pryor tops it with the next one.