Sanford and Son (TV Series) Steinberg and Son (1975) User Reviews

Art Imitating Life Imitating Art

[richard.fuller1 · 10/10 · 15 December 2006]

Interesting episode here of Sanford and Son.

Fred, Lamont, Bubba and Esther go to see a new show called Steinberg and Son, where the Jewish father calls his grown son 'dummy' all the time and we have a cantankerous sister-in-law.

Hilarious bit as we see Foxx, Wilson and Page all making their way thru what is obviously the real Sanford and Son audience with an actor in place as a disgruntled audience member with their conduct.

So how does the show's producers manage to plagiarize the Sanfords' life so much? Turns out a young producer of the show got the idea from his cousin, . . . . Rollo.

It is funny, as Sanford and Son was modeled after the English comedy Steptoe and Son.

Funniest bit is definitely LaWanda Page, bickering with the usher who tells her to sit down, "I'll sit down when I get to my seat!" Then later, when the Aunt in the program, I think Aunt Ida, forgets her line when she is arguing with Steinberg, what name is she supposed to call him? Esther stands up in the audience and delivers her trademark line "Its Fish-Eyed Fool!"

From Steptoe to Sanford to Steinberg

[kevinolzak · 10/10 · 7 December 2016]

"Steinberg and Son" features the entire gang (except Donna) in an inventive take on the show's beginnings. Sanford and Son learn about a hot new network series that copies their lives, intending to sue for a cool million. Bubba explains the premise: "mean grouchy old father, the dumb son, the ugly sister-in-law, and the stupid bumbling friend" (Grady: "you're too hard on yourself, Bubba!"). The actual set and studio audience gives us a look at what it's like behind the scenes, the emcee warming up the crowd before the taping as Fred's entourage shows up late (Esther: "I'll sit down when I get to my seat!"). The dumb son is Murray Steinberg (John Larroquette), his heart attack-prone father Max Steinberg (Lou Jacobi), the bumbling friend Gabey (Jack Somack), the ugly sister-in-law Aunt Ethel (Jane Lambert). Robert Guillaume plays attorney Albert Brock, carrying the Sanfords' complaint to NBC, where they learn that the idea came from Rollo's cousin Bernie Taub (Albert Hall), a fellow black man who couldn't get a break in television until now. Fred is happy to earn a percentage on the show, before Rollo delivers the bad news that it's been cancelled for poor ratings: "who wants to watch a grouchy old man running across the screen yelling at his son?" Who indeed, with its replacement titled ALL IN THE FAMILY WAY!

Awful and stupid

[richardromano1 · 1/10 · 28 June 2019]

If you really want to know what made this show so memorable, watch seasons 1-2, and parts of 3. The rest is just garbage, terribly scripted, with too many stupid ideas and plots. Fred changes from an innocent, ne're-do-well, to a curmudgeonly big mouth giving pseudo-intellectual speeches. Lamont is no longer the corrective to his father's laziness or ignorance, but a pure patsy, bored and phoning it in. Such a shame, really. Just watch this god awful episode for examples of everything I've said here.