Antenna TV’s 50-Hour Marathon of ‘The Jeffersons’ Celebrates the Iconic Sitcom’s 50th Anniversary

Jeff Pfeiffer January 9, 5:00 pm

image from an early season of — © CBS / Courtesy Everett Collection

Isabel Sanford as "Weezy," Mike Evans as Lionel and Sherman Hemsley as George in *The Jeffersons*

On Jan. 11, 1975, the Jefferson family — George (Sherman Hemsley), Louise, aka “Weezy” (Isabel Sanford), and Lionel (Mike Evans) — said farewell to Queens and their neighbors, the Bunkers, in the All in the Family episode titled “The Jeffersons Move Up.”

One week later, on Jan. 18, 1975, the Jeffersons did indeed “move on up” to the Upper East Side and into their own CBS series, The Jeffersons.

It became one of the longest-running sitcoms, continuing on CBS for 11 seasons until July 2, 1985. It also produced one of TV’s most iconic themes: “Movin’ On Up,” which was cowritten by Ja’Net DuBois (who was also costarring as gossipy neighbor Willona Woods on another classic CBS sitcom of that era, Good Times) and Jeff Barry, with DuBois performing the song, accompanied by a gospel choir:

Sanford and Hemsley earned Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for their performances, with Sanford winning one Emmy. Mike Evans, who co-created Good Times with Eric Monte, left his Jeffersons role of Lionel after Season 1, and the character was portrayed by Damon Evans (no relation) from Seasons 2-4. Mike Evans returned to the character as a regular in Seasons 6 and 7, and on a recurring basis in Season 8.

New characters not seen when the Jeffersons appeared on All in the Family also helped make this series a classic, especially Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Marla Gibbs as Florence Johnston, George and Louise’s sassy and wisecracking housekeeper, who was a recurring character in the first three seasons, then a regular for the remaining run of the show given her breakout popularity.

Some of the Jeffersons’ friends and neighbors also added to the humor, including the Willises, Helen (Roxie Roker) and Tom (Franklin Cover), an interracial couple consisting of a Black woman and a white man, whose situation could sometimes spur the same sort of reaction in George as his old neighbor Archie Bunker would have had. There was also Harry Bentley (Paul Benedict), an eccentric British neighbor in the Jeffersons’ building.

**Antenna TV’s “Still Movin’ On Up: The Jeffersons 50th Anniversary Marathon”**

Exactly half a century after The Jeffersons debuted, beginning on the same date and at the same time as the original 1975 series premiere, Antenna TV is celebrating the groundbreaking sitcom with what it is calling the “Still Movin’ On Up: The Jeffersons 50th Anniversary Marathon” starting Saturday, January 18, 2025, at 8:30pm ET.

Courtesy Antenna TV

This 50-hour, 100-episode marathon kicks off with that very first Jan. 18, 1975, episode, called “A Friend in Need,” and runs over two days, concluding with the series’ final episode, “Red Robins,” on Monday, Jan. 20, 2025.

In between, you’ll see plenty of classic episodes, like the 1979 episode “Every Night Fever,” when George comes down with an intense case of “disco fever”; the 1978 episode “Me and Billy Dee,” featuring guest star Billy Dee Williams; and others.

Antenna TV’s marathon will also include special guest appearances from Gibbs and Ernest Harden Jr. (who had a recurring role as Marcus Henderson, an employee at George’s cleaning business, from 1977-79).

Throughout the marathon, Raven-Symoné will share fun facts about The Jeffersons, including how Weezy got her name, the story behind the theme song and more.

**Episode Guide to Antenna TV’s The Jeffersons 50th Anniversary Marathon — Saturday, Jan. 18-Monday, Jan. 20, 2025 (All Times Eastern)**

Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025

8:30pm: A Friend in Need
9pm: George’s Family Tree
9:30pm: Mr. Piano Man
10pm: George’s Skeleton
10:30pm: Rich Man’s Disease
11pm: Former Neighbors
11:30pm: Like Father, Like Son

Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025

image from the 1978 "Me and Billy Dee" episode of "The Jeffersons". From left to right are Marla Gibbs as Florence, dressed in pink robe and curlers; Billy Dee Williams as himself, dressed in a standard black-and-white tuxedo; and Sherman Hemsley as George Jefferson, wearing a multicolored tux. Florence and George are having a tug-of-war over Billy Dee as the star smiles.

Courtesy Everett Collection

Marla Gibbs, Billy Dee Williams and Sherman Hemsley in the 1978 “Me and Billy Dee” episode of The Jeffersons

12am: Harry and Daphne
12:30am: Uncle Bertram
1am: George Won’t Talk
1:30am: George’s Alibi
2am: Lunch With Mama
2:30am: George vs. Wall Street
3am: Louise’s Cookbook
3:30am: George and Whittendale
4am: Lionel’s Problem
4:30am: Tennis, Anyone?
5am: The Lie Detector
5:30am: The Retirement Party
6am: George’s Diploma
6:30am: The Agreement
7am: Jenny’s Discovery
7:30am: Louise’s Friend
8am: George’s Guilt
8:30am: Bentley’s Problem
9am: Jefferson Airplane
9:30am: Louise vs. Jenny
10am: The Old Flame
10:30am: Jenny’s Opportunity
11am: George the Philanthropist
11:30am: Once a Friend
12pm: George’s Help
12:30pm: George’s Legacy
1pm: Louise’s New Interest
1:30pm: George Needs Help
2pm: The Jefferson Curve
2:30pm: Lionel Gets the Business
3pm: Thomas H. Willis & Co.
3:30pm: Uncle George and Aunt Louise
4pm: Jenny’s Thesis
4:30pm: George’s Dream
5pm: How Slowly They Forget
5:30pm: Harry’s House Guest
6pm: George’s New Stockbroker
6:30pm: George, Who?
7pm: Louise’s Sister
7:30pm: Me and Billy Dee
8pm: The Hold Out
8:30pm: Florence Meets Mr. Right
9pm: The Other Woman
9:30pm: Three Faces of Florence
10pm: Every Night Fever

10:30pm: A Short Story
11pm: Baby Love
11:30pm: Louise’s Setback

Monday, Jan. 20, 2025

12am: The Loan
12:30am: The First Store
1am: Once Upon a Time
1:30am: Marathon Men
2am: Put It On
2:30am: Calendar Girl
3am: Small Fish, Big Pond
3:30am: Louise’s Father
4am: The Separation, Part 1
4:30am: The Separation, Part 2
5am: Florence’s New Job, Part 1 (the storyline in the two-part 1981 “Florence’s New Job” episode served as a transition into Marla Gibbs’ short-lived Florence-led Jeffersons spinoff Checking In, which quickly checked out after four episodes; the intro to that sitcom is below in case you missed it at the time, and you probably did)

5:30am: Florence’s New Job, Part 2
6am: I’ve Still Got It
6:30am: My Maid, Your Maid
7am: The House That George Built
7:30am: A Whole Lot of Trouble
8am: Thammy the Thongwriter
8:30am: My Wife, I Think I’ll Keep Her
9am: Florence Did It Different, Part 1
9:30am: Florence Did It Different, Part 2
10am: A Small Victory
10:30am: Do Not Forsake Me, Oh, My Helen
11am: Social Insecurity
11:30am: The Defiant One
12pm: How Now Dow Jones
12:30pm: My Maid … My Wife
1pm: Father’s Day
1:30pm: Double Trouble
2pm: Designing Woman
2:30pm: The Wheel of Forever
3pm: Personal Business
3:30pm: And the Winner Is …
4pm: The List
4:30pm: Who’s the Fairest?
5pm: Getting Back to Basiks
5:30pm: The Command Post
6pm: Mission: Incredible, Part 1
6:30pm: Mission: Incredible, Part 2
7pm: Mission: Incredible, Part 3
7:30pm: Some Enchanted Evening
8pm: A House Divided
8:30pm: The Gang’s All Here
9pm: And Up We Go
9:30pm: The Unnatural
10pm: Red Robins

image from the 1970s sitcom "The Jeffersons." It is a long shot of stars Isabel Sanford as "Weezy," sitting on the left on a couch, and Sherman Hemsley as George, sitting on the right. Weezy has her hands clasped over her knee as she looks and smiles at George; George is smiling back, and he has his right hand on Weezy's left shoulder, with a newspaper opened on his lap and his feet up on a coffee table.

Courtesy Everett Collection