So get used to this face,
pretty boy.
In the '90s, Black comedy
on TV is enjoying a moment.
There was one point in the '90s
where there was
the largest concentration of
Black sitcoms we've ever seen.
And print. Beautiful, guys.
Dyn-o-mite.
Fox opened the door
to Black performers,
- Black talent, Black producers.
- The Homeboy Shopping Network.
But what's really driving
this transformation?
Mo' money, mo' money...
What matters more
than Black and white?
Green, green. It's good
for your bottom line.
Until boosting the bottom line
leaves one star
at rock bottom...
Everybody knew that Martin
was kind of falling apart.
And an era ends
just as it's getting started.
They used Black culture
to their benefit
until they were profitable
and then deserted it.
♪♪
[ Dial-up modems screeching ]
♪♪
[ Drums beating rhythmically ]
The '90s really was
a beautiful golden age
for Black people on TV.
[ Drums beating rhythmically
There was a seismic shift
in sitcoms, dramas,
or any kind of projects
coming from people of color.
I think the case should be
thrown out
due to the fact
that I'm in insane.
♪ Do the pocket knife,
do the pocket knife, ♪
Man, it was...
It was really exciting.
My mommy say that I doctor.
♪ We'll be coming 'round
the mountain when we come ♪
You knew Sunday at 8:00
is "Living Color."
I don't think so.
Homey don't play that.
You know Monday at 8:00
is "The Fresh Prince."
Back up! Back up!
Mind your business, that's all.
Mind your business.
You know Thursday at 8:00
is "Martin."
I want you out. I don't even
know why you're still here.
Step! Step!
[Squealing]
Gina! Gina! Gina! Gina! Gina!
And we got "Living Single."
You are a virus with braids.
And you're a leprechaun
with a weave.
It was appointment television.
And it was television written
and produced by Black artists
that centered Black characters
and life experiences
in ways many Americans
had never seen.
That's because, before the '90s,
the few Black sitcoms on TV
were written and produced
almost exclusively
by white people.
What you talkin' 'bout, Willis?
'Cause I don't think people
realize how short a history
there is there.
And I'm Naima Cochrane.
I'm a music and culture
journalist,
and I am a Gen X-er,
which makes me
uniquely qualified
to talk about the '90s.
Marcia, Marcia, Marcia!
Prior to the '70s, sitcoms were
still a very white landscape.
Well, come on, everybody.
Eat, eat!
But that landscape changes
with the arrival of prolific
TV producer Norman Lear.
Norman Lear,
although he is a white man,
is the pioneer
of Black sitcom television.
Some white folks are better
than other white folks.
When the socially conscious
and controversial sitcom
"All in the Family"
becomes a ratings success...
- Who the hell is that?
- It's Bob.
Lear earns the freedom
to spin off
other progressive sitcoms
built around Black characters.
Now, look here...
Don't turn your back on me.
"All in the Family"
spun off into "The Jeffersons."
And "Maude" spun off
into "Good Times."
I hope you didn't have
any trouble finding us.
Oh, no, ma'am. I heard you
all the way from the bus stop.
By 1974, three of the nation's
top ten sitcoms
are Norman Lear shows,
starring Black casts.
♪♪
All these shows show
kind of a trajectory
of Black progress and
Black livelihood on television.
My name's Adrien Sebro.
I'm a professor of media studies
at University of Texas
at Austin.
And I teach history of media
and television and film.
These shows were,
from a comedic standpoint,
talking about
what it's like to live
and be Black in America
in the '70s.
But while television is
broadcast in living color,
these Lear sitcoms
are still Black and white,
as in Black actors being told
what to say by white writers.
I mean,
when you have Norman Lear
doing things for Red Fox,
it... it kind of kind of...
Kind of dims it a little bit.
It's a big light right here
next to me.
Let me introduce myself
first of all.
My name is Tone Loc.
Back in the '80s and '90s,
I was singing "Wild Thing"
and "Funky Cold Medina."
We're gonna be free
from the nagging,
persistent pain of taxes.
You know, Red Fox
might not have used
- that particular saying.
- You don't have enough soul...
And the same... in "Good
Times," when they would argue,
I mean, Thelma and J.J...
You could honestly see
that certain words
were written definitely
by a white person, you know.
Handsome? You look
like a string of spaghetti
with a little meatball on top.
Actor John Amos is fired
from "Good Times"
after frequently fighting
with the writing staff
over the show's
caricatured portrayal
of its Black characters.
And Amos is not
the only one upset.
As Lear begins work
on "The Jeffersons,"
he gets a visit
from an organization
looking to dismantle
white power.
Norman Lear tells a story
that the Nation of Islam
shows up
at his production offices
and tells him that they want
to see a Black family
who is not in the ghetto.
So, George and Weezy move to
a deluxe apartment in the sky.
♪ We're movin' on up... ♪
- ♪ Movin' on up ♪
- This is the first time
we're seeing an affluent
Black family on television.
♪ We finally got a piece
of the pie ♪
And the show was really
talking about something,
'cause, again, we're...
We're at a point in time
where this is something
that Black people
are... are going through
in general...
Embracing this access
to this higher level of class.
Louise, you own an apartment
in the building, and she's a maid.
Now, hold it right there,
buster.
Ain't you forgetting
where you came from?
It ain't the question
of where I came from.
It's the question of where I am.
Well, by the time we get
to, like, '84,
the show has lost its bite
because America had changed.
The civil rights gains
of the '60s and '70s
are helped along by massive
economic growth in the 1980's.
Now the Black middle class
has grown.
There's, like, an entire class
of Black professionals
and Black entrepreneurs and
Black kids in private schools.
And one sitcom turns that shift
in demographics
into the biggest hit
of the decade.
[ Theme to "The Cosby Show"
playing ]
Of course, a groundbreaking
show, "The Cosby Show,"
a show about
a middle-class family
that happened to be Black.
While the show is a departure
from many of the stereotypical
Black sitcoms of the 1970's,
the very colorblindness
of "The Cosby Show"
raises its own concerns.
A lot of folks had the issues
with the fact
that it ignored issues
of the Black poor,
didn't talk about the social
justice issues of the time.
Like, there was no real drama
on The Cosby Show ever.
A dozen chocolate devil's food
donuts for breakfast?
There's bran in those donuts.
I would say there was a turning
point when "The Cosby Show"
spins off
into "A Different World."
♪ I know my parents love me ♪
That's when we kind of see
a shift now to, "all right,
let's focus
on the younger generation."
And that younger generation
is increasingly obsessed
with hip-hop.
What began as a uniquely
American underground music genre
has expanded out
of the Black community
and into the mainstream.
[ Crowd cheering ]
Pop rap artists like Tone Loc...
and Kid 'n' Play
topped the charts.
Ooh! In the '90s,
we wore colorful clothing
and had very distinctive
hairstyles.
Hey, what's up, y'all?
My name is Christopher Reid.
I'm known as Kid from the group
Kid 'n' Play.
I'm your auntie's favorite
rapper, all right?
Was that a good enough info?
[ Chuckles ]
More than just
a new kind of music,
the golden age of hip-hop
spreads to all corners
of popular culture.
Who are you?
When I started seeing
Fred Flint stone rapping,
trying to sell me
some Fruity Pebbles...
♪ He loves Fruity Pebbles
in a major way ♪
I'm like,
"Okay, we made it."
And in September of 1990,
the first sitcom built around
a hip-hop star hits the air.
♪ In West Philadelphia,
born and raised ♪
♪ On the playground is where
I spent most of my days ♪
Will Smith at the time
was really known as, like,
- you know, The Fresh Prince...
- ♪ With this much talent... ♪
The very first hip-hop
artist to win a Grammy
for the Hip-hop category.
This is a milestone
in our career,
and it's a milestone
in the... the history of rap.
While hip-hop has many
powerful Black producers,
when it jumps over to TV,
the network execs
put white producers in charge,
at least at first.
So the control of production
came to
a lot of the white producers
at NBC.
So the first season is kind of
more of a traditional sitcom.
And once the second season
came about
and Will Smith's popularity
just skyrocketed,
he himself got
an executive producer credit.
Well, Carlton is not like
you and me.
- You know what I'm saying?
- With those credits,
they're able to hire more
Black writers, more producers,
and that is when
the show took off,
because it actually reflected
a more intimate
Black perspective as well.
I'm not accepting no prep
school, Bel Air bred sellout
into my fraternity.
- Homey, you can stop all that.
- No, wait, Will.
There's, you know,
episodes with absent fathers.
[Sobbing]
How come he don't want me, man?
At one point, Carlton ends up
somehow in g*ng.
Yo, how you playin' me, Prince?
- What?
- Yo, you dissin' me!
Come on, man, stop it!
There's an episode
where they're racially profiled.
- I'm Henry Furth.
- Good news, Mr. Furth.
Your car is safe and sound,
and we've got the perpetrators.
Those aren't the perpetrators.
Those are my partner's son
and nephew.
- Partner?
- Legal partner.
You grow up rich, and you still
have that skin tone,
that melanin in you...
It doesn't matter.
Well, and I think
that's what Will
wanted to represent
and... and was telling Carlton.
We were detained
for a few hours,
Dad clear things up,
and we were released.
The system works.
I hope you like that system
'cause you're gonna be
seeing a whole lot of it
during your lifetime.
It does run the gamut
of real-life experience
and even a Black experience,
even if it's an alternative
Black experience.
And I think you needed
a Black person
at the helm of these productions
in order to tell that story
in a more sufficient way.
People identified with it,
and I think it's one
of those shows to show
that human stories
are human stories.
It didn't matter
if you were Black or white.
And so it brought in this great
crossover audience.
But, man, it was just
a great show, man.
It was... whoo! A great show.
You know, like I said, we didn't
have a whole bunch of shows.
So the ones we had, you know,
we, you know, we clung to them.
- You know what I mean?
- The funniest night
- on television just got funnier.
- Yes, and I'm tickled pink.
The success of NBC's
"Fresh Prince"
doesn't go unnoticed
by competitors.
The recently launched
and struggling Fox Network
sees there's money to be made
with Black programming.
What matters more
than Black and white?
Green, green. It's good
for your bottom line.
From inspiration born of
desperation, Fox ushers in
a new era of groundbreaking
Black television...
- Am I Black or white?
- You're under arrest.
That some people see
as a cynical bid
- to build its brand.
- Well, I guess I am Black.
And they do it on the backs
of Black artistry.
Peace!
These home installed dishes
bypass local TV stations.
By 1990, cable and satellite
are starting
to lure affluent,
mostly white households away
from traditional, over-the-air
broadcast television...
♪ ...from the channels
on cable TV ♪
...leaving a much more
diverse audience
still exclusively watching
network TV.
And Fox said, "Okay, this is
a market that's under served,
so let's give them something."
♪ It's on Fox with you ♪
Their goal wasn't because they
enjoyed Black culture so much.
The goal was profit.
"How can we be different?
How can we get eyes
away from those networks
- onto our network?"
- So where can one go
to find nice women here?
They start
by luring away talent
from their big screen rivals.
We have been to every bar
in Queens.
There was a little bit of a...
What I would call
a Black rat pack happening.
There was Robert Townsend,
Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall,
you know, Damon and Keenen...
Really funny Black guys
who were producing
and doing their own thing.
Keenen Ivory Wayans had just
came off of a film,
"I'm Gonna Git You Sucka."
Only thing you're gonna be able
to handle, soldier boy,
- is a wheelchair.
- Yeah.
Ain't nobody laying a finger
on my baby.
- Ma!
- And Fox said,
"Let's bring these individuals
to television.
That's just money
in the bank for us."
How'd you do that?
[ Grunts ]
Fox had the money, so they
said, "Here, take this money,
do whatever you want with it,
and make us different."
So, you know, they... they gave
Keenen, you know, free rein.
With this creative freedom,
Wayans creates a sketch-comedy
show that will end up
laying the foundation
for Fox's Black sitcom boom.
♪ You can do
what you wanna do ♪
♪ In living color ♪
And what a lot of people don't
know is that we shot the pilot
and it took almost a year,
I think, for Fox to pick it up.
I'm Kim Coles, and in the '90s
I spent time on two shows
that had the word "living"
in the title...
"In Living Color"
and "Living Single," too.
Ding!
And I do my own sound effects.
You know, while we were all
waiting, someone said,
"Oh, I saw your show
'In Living Color.'"
And I was like,
"How did you see the show?
It's not a show yet.
We only shot the pilot."
Someone had taken the show
and bootlegged it,
and they were selling
VHS tapes on the street
in Harlem, in... in Brooklyn,
in Queens.
And so I knew immediately that
this show was going to work,
'cause people were so excited
that they were seeing people
of color
doing these crazy, wonderful,
funny, funny, funny things.
- Say hello to Mike Tyson.
- Hi, Michael.
Hi, Robin.
Now that show
was a funny-a*s show.
Just a boxer from Brooklyn,
and of course, I was
a Harvard medical student.
It was a meshing of talent
that was groundbreaking.
I'm Monica Swann, and I
was a part of the casting
of some of the best comedy
there was in the 1990's.
[Chanting]
Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!
Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!
Even if you watch it now,
you know,
- everything is still funny.
- Not guilty.
It still works.
You just set free the second
most wanted criminal in America!
Strive to be number one,
Roland.
Yeah, yeah!
I want to thank you all
for joining us tonight.
"In Living Color," with
its mostly Black cast
soon draws a passionate fan base
that is rival,
the mostly white sketch show
"SNL," can only dream about.
Homey the Clown!
[ Cheering ]
"In Living Color" had a way
of really bringing people to it
like a cult.
I think you got it backwards,
son.
They had mainstay characters...
You know, Homey the Clown...
That's why Homey
don't play that.
- Fire Marshall Bill.
- Let me tell you something!
They made fun of Black people.
Who are you?
I am the Minister
Louis Farrakhan.
Well, they talked about class.
He's right.
I've been sitting here
for 15 years
with this damn thing in my ear
and ain't got one raise yet.
- They talked about everything.
- Is that all I'm good for?
To be your little secretary
or your occasional
- chocolate fantasy?
- Shh! Shh!
The show deliberately
pushes boundaries.
This one's called "Moby d*ck."
I get goose pimply
just thinking about
that big Mr. Moby.
They did push it far.
They were ridiculous with it,
Which is what happens in comedy.
Mr. Moby is a whale.
I bet he is.
It did what...
What comedy should do.
There were no sacred cows.
And they really embraced
this young, urban, culture
to the Max.
The first couple years,
that's when you see
"In Living Color" really take
form as a cultural phenomenon.
Super Bowl 24 dedicates
its halftime spectacular...
And it became such a phenomenon
that it changed how we watch
America's biggest game.
Prior to "In Living Color,"
the Super Bowl halftime shows
had this kind of edge.
It's the first-ever all-kid
Super Bowl halftime show.
So in 1992,
while CBS was airing
a quaint, Disney-produced
halftime show...
♪ Winter magic ♪
♪ Winter magic ♪
I know what you guys
were thinking.
You were thinking, "Hey, are
these bozos gonna make us
miss any part
of the second half?"
Fox counters with their own
halftime special...
a live 27-minute episode
of "In Living Color."
It'll be coming on later
in the show to let you know
when to switch back
to the second half.
You won't miss any
of the senseless brutality.
The stunt pulls almost 29
million viewers over to Fox
while tanking CBS's
second-half ratings.
People turned it off when it
went... when it went to halftime
and went to watch
"In Living Color."
...looking forward to a great
second half of football.
♪♪
The next year...
[ Crowd cheering ]
Disney princesses are
replaced by the King of Pop.
As for Fox, instead of letting
"In Living Color"
press the attack, the network
goes into a prevent defense.
Fox at one point was like,
"Okay,
we are being taken seriously
now.
We should start to pull back
on certain sketches and stuff."
By the summer of '92,
Keenen is in constant battles
with the network's censors
over what he can
and can't say on air.
I made my Michael Jackson
Potato Head
looked like he looked when
he was with the Jackson 5.
And Keenen Ivory Wayans said,
"You know, this control
is kind of stifling
the creativity."
Something's just not
quite right. I know.
Fox also dilutes
the show's appeal
by syndicating it
to local stations...
A decision made
without consulting Wayans.
To the maxillofaciary fun.
Thereby weakening his ability
to make money
and to make the show
an even bigger success.
How do you put a show in
syndication while it's still on the air?
Like, just, like, aah!
Please welcome
Keenen Ivory Wayans.
In protest,
on the season four premiere,
Keenen Ivory Wayans makes
his last onscreen appearance.
We got some new cast members
for you to meet.
[ Laughter ]
♪ "In Living Color" ♪
Fox keeps it on the air,
but within a year,
the entire Wayans family
has left the show.
First up, we got
Ann-Marie Johnson.
It continued after that,
but just something in it
just wasn't there,
and it's because
the creative force
that started it had left.
Fox cancels "In Living Color"
in 1994 after its fifth season.
But the show's early success
drives Fox's programing
decisions from much of the '90s.
All you needed was the one
comedy that becomes a major hit,
and, you know,
this is a copycat business.
This could hurt.
At the height of
"In Living Color's" success,
Fox was looking
for more of the same.
- Baby, come on out.
- You sure?
Yes, Martin, I'm sure.
And in Martin Lawrence...
Is the swelling going down?
They find their next Black
comedy juggernaut to exploit.
Yeah. A little.
Do you know what this
is all about?
Do you know why we're here?
To be out.
In the early '90s, sitcoms
featuring stand-up comedians
- are taking off.
- To celebrate our success.
My next guest can be seen
in Spike Lee's newest film,
"Do the Right Thing."
And one of the hottest stand-up
acts of the day
is Martin Lawrence.
Some Black woman
went off on me.
"You were out of what?
Hold on, hold on, hold on,
hold on, hold on,
- hold on, hold on, hold on."
- Martin actually is a cousin
of one of the Chrises
from Kid 'n' Play...
he's Play's cousin...
And came up in the industry
with Kid 'n' Play
and Salt-N-Pepa.
They all worked at the same
call center together in Queens.
It was an amazing array
of talent
that jumped up out of that.
The critical
and commercial success
of Kid 'n' Play's movie
"House Party"
provides a step up
for many screen careers,
- including Martin's.
- Switch.
We had a blast at the time,
and these are friendships
and talents that, you know,
that are around to this day.
I mean, who's bigger
than Queen Latifah?
Who's bigger
than Martin Lawrence?
- Yo, Chill!
- You know, Tisha is my girl.
You're pretty chill
your damn self.
Everybody went on to bigger
and better,
but we all worked together.
It was all family.
Mr. Martin Lawrence!
In 1991, Martin Lawrence
signs the deal
to make his self-named sitcom.
Martin was that hot.
You know, if Fox didn't get him,
somebody else was gonna get him.
I'm quite sure there was
a bidding w*r at that time,
and he made the most of it.
But if you keep running off
at the mouth,
I'm gonna have to body slam you.
Now get to going.
Roll with it.
You know, "Martin" is a...
Man, it's a classic show
to this day.
Maybe not necessarily
like a high-brow comedy,
but a very relatable comedy
to a young audience.
You know, romance doesn't
make sense to me, though.
Think about it. It was started
by this little white boy, Cupid.
The "Martin" Show, you know,
a Black man
with a radio show in Detroit?
I don't know. Talk to me,
Detroit. What up?
One of the things
that's really amazing
about the "Martin" show
is that he had the courage
to surround himself
with strong performers
who could hold their own
with someone
who is used to standing
on a stage by himself.
♪ Martin ♪
There was not a weak one
in that bunch,
and then therefore it made
the whole show even stronger.
This hotel is boss a nova.
And he had this ability to
create these other characters.
- It's Bob from marketing.
- Hey, what's happening?
What's happening?
What's ha-a-appening?
He plays nine characters
on the show himself.
And these characters
were great.
Now, let me tell you
how to take care of my Martin.
Plays, you know,
his own mother on the show.
Child, have you lost
your damn mind?!
You ain't too grown
to get a double backs lap.
Or Jerome.
♪♪
Jerome with the, "Ah, eh,
Jerome's in the h-h-h-h-h-h-house.
- Watch your mouth!"
- Watch your mouth!
Still has a broken and missing
teeth and cavities all over,
but still may think he has
a great smile, you know?
Give up the gold tooth,
yuck mouth.
None more famous than Sheneneh.
What do you want, Sheneneh?
Oh, my goodness, if it isn't
Little Miss Attitude.
The episode I was on
was me with Sheneneh.
His first season,
Martin calls me.
He says, "Yo, yo,
I got the pilot.
Let me come through.
I want to show it to you."
[ Knocking on door,
door creaks open ]
So he comes through...
Himself and another gentleman.
It was VHS, all this and that.
Throw it in.
We watch it.
And I'm like,
"Man, this is dope.
You're about to...
You're about to win with this."
And he was like, "Man, you need
to jump on the show with me."
And I'm like, "Of course.
You hot. I'm hot.
Let's go."
And we just start
talking about it.
Like, "I don't know. What if Kid
goes on a date with Sheneneh?"
♪♪
So I'm dating my homeboy.
You know, I got him...
I'm hugging him up every day.
And you know what I mean?
Like...
♪ Forever Sheneneh ♪
♪ Is life a dream? ♪
But it was one of the most
memorable episodes of "Martin."
So it was great for him,
it was great for me,
and it was great for us...
[ Laughter ]
Because if... if one of us
wins, then that might be
an opportunity
for somebody else down the line.
And those opportunities
came quickly.
Encouraged by the success
of "Martin,"
Fox hires Black sitcom creators
like no other TV network.
And we see these shows,
you know, "Roc,"
"South Central,"
"The Sinbad Show,
"Living Single."
You know, these shows made it
hip and fun to be Black,
which it is.
It's already hip and fun
to be Black,
and to let people in, you know,
open the doors
on the culture a little bit.
And all these Black artists
that come
through the Fox Network
are all coming off of huge films
and huge spaces of, like,
Black popular culture.
You know, the hottest artists
of the day are showing up,
- especially on "Martin."
- Hey!
Boy, you didn't tell me
you knew Biggie Smalls?
Come on in here, man.
You know what?
I was just about to cook.
And same thing
with "Living Single."
- I was on an episode.
- You got Henn all up over me.
The class reunion.
And if it makes you
feel any better,
keep on picking
on the homeless guy.
It's something about that era.
Those actors, rappers,
producers, singers, writers...
You know, we were all
looking out for each other.
Bruh, men need love, too.
...and... and how can we help?
- Awwww!
- Awwww!
These off-screen relationships
lead to on-screen performances
- that draw in audiences.
- They felt very authentic to us.
They didn't feel like a version
of us
that a bunch of white people
wrote.
They felt like a version of us
that we wrote
and that we created.
Tuesday,
Sheila gets a boyfriend.
I know how 12 year old boys
think.
- I used to be one.
- "Roc."
By 1993, the once-fledgling
network is now home
to most of the highest-rated
shows amongst Black audiences.
or their audience stream
was African-American.
If you wanted to watch a show
that focused
on Black popular culture,
Fox was the place
to watch that show.
Martin Lawrence!
Martin's popularity
and authentic,
no-holds-barred comedy
lands him the hosting gig
on "SNL."
It also lands him in trouble
with the NBC censors.
But I'm meeting a lot of women
out there,
and, yo, you've got
some beautiful women,
but you got some out there
that I got to say something.
Some of you are not
washing your [bleep] properly.
[ Laughter ]
The monologue is censored
on repeat airings,
and he's banned from
ever returning to the show.
But his fans love it.
The next year, he launches
what will become
a half-billion-dollar
film franchise with Will Smith.
Back up off me.
Man, you don't sit your lanky
a*s down,
bottom line, I will knock you
the... out.
- The... is wrong with you?
- "Bad Boys," of course,
is Martin Lawrence
and Will Smith,
because in early '90s,
they were the two Black men
- that were on top of the world.
- Bad enough?
- Come get some!
- But Martin's fast-rising career
is about to come crashing down.
Thursday, It's an all new "Mad
About You" day at the races.
- Slap me!
- In 1994, NBC is number one
in the ratings on a rebuilt
Thursday night... Must See TV.
It was the lineup
that followed "The Cosby Show"
and "Different World"
leaving the air.
You can't go by the audience
that night.
- It was late. They were terrible.
- It's very white.
I'm... I'm thinking soup,
but...
Basically, you went
from a Black Thursday night,
'cause "Cosby" and "Different
World" was Thursday night
to a very white Thursday night.
Thursday,
can Martin's new sneakers...
Fox counters by creating
a Black Thursday night lineup
anchored by two of
its most popular sitcoms,
"Martin" and "Living Single."
Only one thing stands between
Kyle and a promotion.
It was wildly successful,
and while NBC's Thursday night
is number one overall
in all households,
Fox's Thursday night
is number one
in Black and Brown households.
But television reporters
didn't seem to live
in Black or Brown households.
But that Thursday night anchor
was also like
critics didn't get it.
People were like,
"Who wants to see
a bunch of young Black women,
sitting around,
talking about
men and... and sex?"
With "Martin,"
It's too much, it's slapstick,
it's buffoonery.
[ Barking ]
And even some established
Black actors didn't get it.
Made a great deal of progress.
The most established being the
then sitcom legend Bill Cosby.
Don't get me started
on that dude.
Yeah, I read those quotes
back in the days.
Bruh, there's all different
kinds of... of Black people.
There's all different kinds
of people of color.
You do it your way.
It was very popular.
Loved the sweaters.
But look how you turned out.
[ Helicopter blades whirring,
indistinct shouting ]
So Bill Cosby's
shaking his finger
at those TV shows
and those comics at that time
that idolized him.
They loved him.
Pshh! Got some nerve.
[ Applause ]
Meanwhile, the person
doing the most harm
to Martin Lawrence
is Martin Lawrence.
What makes us so funny,
everyone you see up here...
You know, we work hard.
He was kind of suffering
from the results
of... of... of
a meteoric success.
There was a little bit
of substance abuse there.
What has been known through
tabloids, through papers,
was already that Martin was then
with a lot of... of issues
that came to be known
as either bipolar disorder
or manic depressive.
By all reports, there was
a lot of tension on set.
He was at odds
with most of the cast.
Violent acts,
allegations of harassment,
where cast members,
as well as crew members
were threatened verbally...
Physically, as well, too.
And in May of 1996, his private
demons become very public.
[ Horns blaring ]
Lawrence wanders
into L.A. traffic,
packing a loaded g*n
and ranting incoherently.
[ Horn blaring ]
After fighting with police,
he is restrained
and hospitalized.
[ Police radio chatter ]
More reports of public violence
follow.
Not at all excusing
any of his wrongdoings,
but it is heartbreaking to see
that these mental-health issues
that are happening
came out to violence
and contributed to kind
of the downfall of the show.
The ratings of his show
decline,
along with his mental health.
♪ Living single ♪
But Martin's Thursday night
sibling is soaring.
"Living Single" is a classic,
particularly "in the community."
You know, right, because, as
opposed to a show like "Martin,"
which was, you know,
obviously male lead,
the ladies ran this.
You slept with Kyle?
You hate Kyle.
I can't even believe
you let him touch you.
We used a condom.
We had never had a show
that was just about a bunch
of single Black women...
Hadn't happened.
Wasn't the thing, you know,
and young, single Black women,
kickin' it.
I picked Mary Tyler Poppins,
and that's who we're going with.
They are all just so pretty.
I don't know which one to hit.
[ Laughs ]
I was very aware that we were
the first of our kind.
Might want to back it up,
honey.
And here is a Black show
run by a Black woman.
And Yvette Lee Bowser
did a great job
of bringing
this Black feminist energy
to television where nothing
was like it at the time.
Well, what about
that full house, baby?
I did not come here to get
whacked by these b*tches.
- Who you calling a b*tch?
- All right, watch yourself.
- Set it off.
- No, it's just an expression.
No, man,
it's a jacked-up attitude.
How dare you come in my house
and disrespect my friends?
Man, get out of my house.
The minute the six of us
had our first table read,
I felt that energy of,
"Wow, this is going to work."
All right, look,
let's get to the point.
Y'all are not a couple, are you?
Very quickly, we all became
a family.
- Scarecrow.
- Mop head.
Oh, pay up. I win, I win.
Give me my money.
- Give me my money.
- The show's successful focus
on a family of friends
does not escape the notice
of network rival NBC.
Here's the thing.
It has been said that,
when Warren Little field,
who was the president of NBC
at the time,
was asked, "Are there any shows
that you wish
you had bought this season?"
He said, "I wish I had bought
'Living Single.'"
"Living Single"
premiered in 1993, right?
And that was the show anchored
by Queen Latifah
as the star character
about four Black women
living in New York
and their two Black men friends
who live across the hall
from them.
And then a year later
comes "Friends."
♪ So no one told you life
was gonna be this way ♪
And "Friends" is
a white "Living Single."
And if you go back and look
at the themes side by side,
you will see quite
a few similarities.
Quite a few.
Except in the paychecks.
Just saying.
The all-white "Friends"
instantly becomes a top-ten show
while "Living Single,"
airing in the same times lot
is never able to find
its crossover audience.
You've got your Scooter,
she's got her Darryl,
and you've got your...
And it was... it was hard.
It was hard to see this show
receive money
and support
and marketing dollars.
It's, you know,
it's still a sticky point.
The same year
"Friends" premieres on NBC,
Fox does offer up a huge amount
of money
to secure new, diverse
programing.
Today, the curtain opens
on a new era.
But what attracts Fox
is the promise
of its large, white,
male audience.
- The NFL on Fox.
- And in 1994, they win
the much-coveted broadcast
rights to NFL Sunday football.
And with that right,
they're able to bring in
much more people
to their... to their network.
And now they're no longer
feeling like the little...
Little brother,
little sister network.
Now they feel like
they're competing.
They didn't need narrow casting
in each market anymore.
They had built the network
to where they wanted it to be,
and there was a new
network president that came in
and decided that he wanted
to change the tone.
And by "tone," I mean
"skin tone" of the network.
And that's when you saw,
you know,
all these shows start
to kind of fizzle away.
When the NFL comes to Fox,
the network cancels four of its
six Black prime time comedies.
"Martin" and "Living Single"
are moving to Thursdays.
- Hope to see you soon.
- Hope to see you naked.
Only "Living Single" and
"Martin" survive the culling.
This party's out of control!
Martin Lawrence's battles
with his personal demons,
on and off the set, transform
his once-loved sitcom
into something
fans don't recognize.
The last season of "Martin"
is the season
that nobody wants to talk about.
There was ongoing allegations
of sexual as*ault on set
or sexual harassment.
Campbell walks off the show
mid season.
Then she sues Lawrence
for sexual abuses
endured throughout
the run of the show.
The suit is quickly
settled out of court.
Campbell even agrees to return
for the series finale
with one seemingly
impossible condition,
and she does not appear
in any scenes
- opposite her longtime costar...
- Baby, I'm home! You here?
Setting the stage for a
different kind of Must See TV.
Martin, is that you?
As the series finale
of "Martin"
goes into production,
tensions between the cast
are worse than ever.
Tisha Campbell came back, said,
"I don't want to do
any more scenes with him."
But the crux of the show
is their relationship.
- Martin?
- Hey, Gina, what's up, baby?
Hey. Hey, baby.
How you doing?
The creative team has to make
them look like a loving couple
- on screen...
- Martin, come on, baby.
Let's go.
I'll meet you in the car, okay?
- We're gonna miss our flight.
- Without the two actors
ever appearing in the same room.
And for the show to have been
such a mainstay,
for it to end so poorly
and... and kind of fizzle out
was really sad.
But the same thing happened
with "Living Single."
Fox decided kind of abruptly
to cancel it,
and it just wasn't
wrapped up well at all.
The only thing
that has not changed
is the love I have
for all of y'all.
- Cheers.
- Cheers.
And I remember that we were
replaced with a show
that was wrong, wrong, wrong,
because you weren't catering
to the audience
that had built you up.
Thursday night on Fox
becomes home to shows
where things crash and burn.
And that is kind of
like an analogy
for the trajectory
of Black sitcom altogether.
What a cute little grill,
Carmine.
By the summer of '98,
Fox has dropped
all Black-led sitcoms
from its schedule.
- ...TGIF.
- Ow.
- It's a wild...
- So Fox inadvertently
redefined Black popular culture
and then deserted it.
But rival film studios
like Warner Bros.,
who are just getting
into the TV network game,
see an opportunity to crib
from Fox's playbook.
Fox's upstart strategy
to target a Black demo
and grow their viewer base
was so successful
that, when the WB started...
when UPN started...
Welcome to the first night
of the first network
for the next century.
...they adopted a similar path.
Good behavior, yes.
Initially, this leads
to an even bigger expl*si*n
in Black-led sitcoms.
And there was one point
in '97, actually,
where there's the largest
concentration on Black sitcoms
we've ever seen.
And UPN picks it up
to the point where there was
a joke
amongst Black people
for a very long time
that it stood for
"You Peoples' Network,"
because there was just so much
Black television on the UPN.
So you see shows like "Moesha"
and "The Jamie Fox Show."
- "Sister, Sister."
- "Malcolm & Eddie."
They had
"Homeboys in Outerspace."
They had "The Wayans Bros."
But the revival is short lived.
And once again, typically...
Both those networks did it
as well...
When they feel like these shows
have outlived their usefulness,
then they'll cut them.
By the end of 1997,
just two years after its launch,
the WB network shifts its focus
to white, teen TV.
[ Whistle blows ]
UPN continues
courting Black audiences
a little while longer,
but the balance of power
has shifted.
What changed largely was many
of the shows weren't produced
by Black people,
they didn't have Black writers,
so UPN and WB definitely
satisfied the look
in the search for Black images
on screen,
but they didn't ever have
the same effect
as the shows at Fox
in its Prime.
By the end of the '90s,
the golden age of Black sitcoms
is truly over.
By the time we get
to, like, 2010,
Most of Black programing you see
on television is reality TV.
So we had a dearth of Black
storytelling for about a decade.
Only reinforcing the importance
of the Black-led shows
that did make it to air
in the '90s.
We have the talent,
the production team,
and story writers... everyone.
That is why these shows were
so important to this moment,
because they were giving
Black artists the authenticity
and giving them the leeway
to really construct their shows,
how they wanted
to see Blackness on screen.
And the work was good.
Talking about "Martin,"
talking about "Living Single"...
People busted their a*s
to get home on time
to see "Living Color."
Please! You know what I mean?
That's good stuff.
It all happens Sunday
at 8:00, 7:00 Central.
Fox was really the place
where so much
great African-American talent
got a chance
to work and be seen, because
not very many other places
- were talking to us.
- You know, this decade
was the bridge decade.
And of course,
now the box is open,
and we're all, you know,
going full force into diversity.
Time has also helped heal one
of the decade's biggest stars.
- Yeah, we got to go, though.
- I appreciate that.
Martin Lawrence has now
made amends
with his former cast mates,
and he's gotten his career
back on track.
Meanwhile, the rise of streaming
platforms, hungry for content,
has driven an industry-wide
resurgence
in shows controlled
by Black creatives...
Present tense.
Right down to the
reimagining of a '90s classic.
Welcome to Bel Air.
What the hell is my life?
And as of now,
streaming seems like to be
the best and most free place
to produce Black content
from a Black perspective.
However, at some point,
it's gonna be too much
for streaming as well, too,
so you might just see
the same thing repeat itself.
I think
we're in a better place.
But you could always do more.
I mean, it'd be great if one
day, it wasn't even...
we didn't even have
to talk about it.
You know, it'd just be like...
you know what I mean?
"This is a new show.
Hope you like it."
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