Good Times (1974–1979): Season 3, Episode 11 - Florida's Protest - full transcript

♪ Good times Any time
you meet a payment ♪

♪ Good times Any
time you need a friend ♪

♪ Good times Any time
you're out from under ♪

♪ Not gettin' hassled
Not gettin' hustled ♪

♪ Keepin' your
head Above water ♪

♪ Makin' a wave when you can ♪

♪ Temporary layoffs Good times ♪

♪ Easy credit
ripoffs Good times ♪

♪ Scratchin' and
survivin' Good times ♪

♪ Hangin' in a chow
line Good times ♪

♪ Ain't we lucky we got 'em ♪



♪ Good times ♪♪

Mmm, Ma, is the
roast beef ready?

In a few minutes, honey.

Oh, Ma, can't you
turn the oven off?

I can't wait anymore.

It won't be long now, Michael.

All right.

Oh, boy!

I smell meat!

Well, one thing for sure,

there's nothing
wrong with your nose.

And that's surprising
for something

that spends so much
time on your face.

Hello there, roast!



Welcome, you've been
a stranger too long!

J.J., will you get
away from there?

Well, I gotta go now, roast.

Just wanted to introduce
you to my stomach,

because y'all gonna be
meeting later for dinner.

Will you get out of my kitchen

and stop acting silly?

Nobody talks to a roast.

That's right!

Mmm-mm!

Boy, that smell is
driving me crazy!

Roast, baby, what's
happening? Yeah!

That roast is lookin' good!

If you all don't
stay outta here,

that roast is never
gonna get done.

I'm sorry, baby.

Ma, I hope you're
cooking that roast right,

because I like my
meat just like me:

brown on the outside
and rare on the inside!

If that meat
looked just like you,

it'd be all bones.

Well, if the meat
looked like you,

it would've come
with a flea collar.

Junior!

Hey, baby, how much did you pay

for this roast anyhow?

Dollars and 49 cents.

Huh?

Twelve dollars and 49 cents.

Florida, you're just supposed
to buy a piece of the cow,

not the ranch he grew up on.

Oh, now, come on, James.

We had some extra
money this month,

and I don't see any reason why

we shouldn't give
ourselves a treat.

Mama, where'd you buy the roast?

At Borgen's Market.

And I want you all to know

that meat was marked "prime."

That's a switch.

Usually at Borgen's, the
meat is marked "choice,"

which means, "take this,
because you ain't got no choice."

Daddy!

Roast beef?

Sorry, folks, I must have
the wrong apartment.

Oh, come on back here, girl.

How are you doing?

Terrible.

Just came back
from Borgen's Market,

and, girl, is that
place a ripoff!

This is what you get

for one week's paycheck:

one day's worth of groceries.

There ain't a
thing in that place

that ain't expensive.

And getting more
expensive every minute.

Look at this...

Nineteen cents crossed
out and 23 cents stamped on.

Twenty-three cents crossed
out, and 26 cents stamped on.

26 cents crossed
out with a note saying,

"Continued on the
other side of the can."

You're a real mess,
Willona, you know that?

Mama, all this talk about
food is making me hungry.

When are we gonna eat?

Right now.

All right!

Everybody, come on.

Hey, J.J., I better
warn you, man.

I may be your little brother,

but once that
roast hits this table,

it's every man for himself.

Well, I'm gonna go home
and open up a can of hash.

Y'all, uh, enjoy your dinner.

Oh, come on, Willona,

there's enough
food for everybody.

Oh, I couldn't.
I'd be intruding.

Really had to twist
your arm, didn't we?

Ooh, Flo.

That looks delicious
and smells gorgeous.

Mmm, bring it!

Well, if everybody is ready,

I'd like to present
the guest of honor.

Ha-ha-ha!

Okay, J.J., you can
say the blessing,

and take your hat off.

Thank you, Lord,

for taking the time to send us

all this hunk of prime!

Amen! ALL: Amen.

Hey, Ma, if you're taking
orders for breakfast,

I'll start off with
toast, grits, bacon,

waffles, ham, and pancakes.

Right.

One oatmeal coming up.

Mama, if it's all
the same to you,

I think I'll skip
breakfast this morning.

Why, Michael? It's safe to eat.

Thelma didn't make it.

What's the matter,
Michael, don't you feel well?

Not really, Mama.

My stomach feels like I
swallowed my history book.

How about you, J.J.?

I feel fine, Ma. Just great.

As a matter of fact,

I dreamt I was trapped in a
room with a thousand Big Macs

and had to eat
my way to freedom.

Hey, J.J., man, please
don't mention food.

My stomach can't take it.

In that case,

I'll have Michael's
breakfast too.

Oh, Ma!

To tell you the truth, kids...

I don't feel too hot myself.

Good morning, Ma.

Good morning, hon...

Thelma, are you all right?

Oh, Ma... Oh, I
feel like J.J. looks.

Oh, brother, then
she's sicker than I am!

I'd better go and
see how your dad is.

You don't have to
worry about Dad.

He's tougher than nails.

Hi, James. How are you feeling?

Is it any better
than last night?

Honey, do you think
you'll be able to go

to work today?

Uh-uh!

Florida, what happened here?

My stomach feels
like King Kong is inside

tap dancing.

You know, it has
got to be that meat

I made yesterday from Borgen's.

You mean it hit everybody?

Everybody except
for yours truly.

I ate all the roast beef
and slept through the night.

Now you're looking at
a fine and healthy Kid...

Dy-no-mite!

That's because his
stomach is just like his head...

cast iron.

For once, I wanted to serve

a decent meal from
that rip-off market,

and look what happened.

Tsk.

Prime beef, my foot.

Hey, Dad, maybe the trouble is

you don't have nothing
down in your stomach.

Why don't you try and eat
some of this oatmeal in here?

Get some of this down in there.

That's what you need.

Hi, y'all.

Just came over

to thank you for that dinner.

Willona, honey, I am sorry.

As a matter of fact,
I was up all night

thinking of a way to thank you.

It was the roast, Willona.

Everybody got
sick except for J.J.

Oh.

Ooh, child. Ooh, ooh!

James, you look terrible.

Well, ooh, child. Ooh, Willona.

You don't look like
no prom night yourself,

sweetie.

It's that old rotten
Borgen's Market.

Mama, why do you shop
there in the first place?

Honey, we got no choice.

They ran everybody
else out of business.

Now they the only
market around here

that we can get
to without a car.

Well, that's some market.

Made all of us sick.

Cost me a day's
pay at time and a half.

Willona... Hmm?

You know our women's
club have always wanted to do

something about that market.

Yeah, we've been
talking about picketing it

a long time.

Oh, well, I can't think of a
better reason than we got,

nor a better time
than right now.

Right, Ma.

We are gonna let Borgen's know

that we care about
our families too.

Flo, right now?

Right now.

Now, the walk and the
fresh air will do us both good.

Well, it may take
me a little time.

I got two things I gotta do.

One of the things
is get my coat.

You kids look after your
father while I'm gone.

Don't worry, Ma.

Dad's in the good
hands of Allstate.

He means the big
jaws of all-mouth.

James, I won't be long.

Meanwhile, try to keep
the situation under control.

I'll try, baby. I'll try.

I'll try and keep
it under control,

but right now I
ain't all that sure

I'm in control of
the situation myself.

I want to get to go to... Move!

Dad, is there
anything I can get you?

No, baby girl,

I just need some
peace and quiet.

Okay, then I'll keep
J.J. out of here.

Please.

Out of my way, girl!

Uh-huh. How are you doing, Dad?

I thought you might
wanna watch some TV.

You know, this is hard
to believe, Thelma.

I mean, here we are.

We all ate the same thing,

and now we're all better,

and a big healthy guy like Dad

is still laying there like
a wounded sparrow,

like a helpless baby,

like a 98-pound weakling.

Uh, could've happened
to anybody, Dad.

Just shut up your
mouth and plug in the set.

Yeah! Hey.

You heard what Daddy said.

Okay. Hold my peanut butter
and hot sauce sandwich, Dad.

Well... while we're getting
all this together, Dad,

and the set's tuning
up... Oh, thank you.

Uh, I guess we
ought to get something

for you to eat, Dad.

That's the real
thing we got to do.

First we'll start you off

with some of those chicken legs

that Ma got in there.

Then we'll get you
some of that baloney,

which goes great
with this pickle.

Yeah. This is definitely
what you need, Dad.

Get all this down. No...

Yeah. No, Junior, no. No.

Maybe I'll be better
off going to work today.

We shall not be moved!

We will not be moved!

Hey, Junior, look.

Hey, kids come in here quick!

Your mama's on TV! Come in here.

Hey, look at Mama!

Move, Michael!

Don't get in front of the TV.

Well, look at your mama
leading that picket line

with Willona right behind her.

Right on, Ma! Yeah.

Look at my ma.

Yeah, look at Mama strutting.

Go ahead, Mama. Go.

Right, all right.

Yeah, give it to 'em, baby.

Oh, Dad, look. Here
comes the cops.

Ooh, look at Mama
yelling at that cop.

Hey, fuzz, get your
hands off my mama!

One of the cop's yelling at Ma!

Ooh, Mama just said
something heavy to that cop.

How do you know that?

Because look at him
taking your mama away

in a patrol wagon.

Look, they're
taking Willona away.

She's kicking and biting.

Hey, stop that!

Hey, man, watch yourself!

You better watch yourself.

Flo, we got to get out of here.

I go nuts when I'm
cooped up like this.

I can't stand it
anymore. I can't stand it!

Oh, I think I'm
going stir-crazy.

Willona.

We've only been
in here 10 minutes.

Oh, I can't help that.
I've got claustrophobia.

And we locked up in this jail!

Willona, I just told you,
I already called James.

Oh...

He'll be down here to
bail us out any second.

Any second? Yes.

I can't wait that long.

Willona, you're only
making it harder on yourself.

Now, you've got to calm down.

Look, you're right.

Come on, sit over here.

Now, get a hold of yourself.

Everything is
gonna be all right.

I got a hold of myself.

I'm cool.

Flo? Yes.

We gotta break out of here!

Willona... Flo, I'm going crazy.

I gotta get out of here.

I want o-u-t, out!

All right, all right.

All right, I'm going.
I know the address.

I know you do. You've
been here enough.

Come on, this ain't
no Easter parade.

Ooh, let's not get hostile!

Hey, you're making a mistake.

I'm an independent
businesswoman.

I know.

That's what they
booked you for, honey.

Well, well, well, well,
well. Home sweet home.

Say, what you in for?

Well, uh... We were just walking

up and down the
street demonstrating.

Oh, yeah? Uh-huh.

Me too!

I'm afraid you don't understand.

We were carrying signs.

Oh... No wonder you got busted!

Well, I got arrested
for street walking.

You?

Street walking?

That's right.

I saw my husband with
another woman, see,

and I caught up with them,

and I threw her
down on the street,

and I walked up and down on her.

For five minutes.

Five minutes?

Five minutes.

Right on, mama!

Right off!

Evans. Florida
Evans. Willona Woods.

You can leave.
Bail's been posted.

Thank God!

Come on, Flo. Come on, Flo.

- See you later.
- No, you won't!

Florida!

Baby, you all right?

Mm-hmm, I'm fine.

They didn't hurt you, did they?

No, baby, I'm all
right. You sure?

No, James, I told
you. I'm all right.

How about you,
Willona, are you okay?

I'm okay now. Thanks.

James, it cost you some bread.

How much do I owe you?

Forget that. The most important
thing is that you're all right.

Now, are you sure you're okay?

Oh, yeah, I'm fine.

Good. You owe me $25.

James, let's go home.

All right,

but we got to make
one stop first, Florida.

I swear that market
is gonna hear from me.

Oh, James!

Well, y'all can help yourself.

I'm going home and forget
this nightmare ever happened.

I don't even want
to think about it!

They had it on the
TV news, Willona.

Ooh-ee! I hope they
caught my good side.

Child, this could be the
start of something big.

Now, look, James,

if we go to that supermarket,

I want you to promise
me you'll be reasonable.

I don't wanna have to
come back down here

to bail you out.

Baby, I'm not gonna be nothing

but nice and reasonable.

I just wanna talk to the dude.

Then I'm gonna
squeeze his Charmin.

James! Oh, James.

Yes, yes, yes, Mr. Borgen.

Yes. Yeah, there was
a little demonstration.

Yeah, but I called the
police, and they cooled it out.

No, no, no, Mr. Borgen...

Hey, listen, remember
me? I'm on your side.

No, there's nothing to
worry about, Mr. Borgen.

Mm-mm. Everything is... Right.

Well, just a minute.
Someone's at the door.

I'll call you back. Come in.

Are you the manager of
this ptomaine tabernacle?

James!

Yes, I'm Mr. Gage.
Please have a seat.

What can I do for you?

No, skip that, man.

How come you had my
wife thrown in the slammer?

Hey, believe me, brother,

I'll be the last man
to call in the police.

I mean, it was Mr. Borgen.

I mean, I tried to
tell him to cool it,

but no way.

I mean, I really
felt terrible about it,

Mrs., uh, uh... Evans.

And this is my husband, James.

How do you do, sir?

Mr. Gage,

I wouldn't have been
out there picketing

in the first place,

but I bought a
roast here yesterday

that made my whole family sick.

Oh, you don't
know how sorry I am

to hear that, Mrs. Evans,

and I'll try to get
your money back.

Look, Mr. Gage,

you are the only market
that people around here have,

and almost everything
you got in this store is bad.

Mrs. Evans, I'm gonna
lay it right on the line.

You are absolutely right...

And believe me, if I was
the owner of this place,

things would be different,

but you don't seem to understand

that this store is a small
part of a big chain, and me?

Hey, I'm brand new myself.

You are?

Yes, and if I have my way,

there's gonna be
a lot of changes,

and I mean big changes.

Hey, I'm gonna make
improvements all the time,

even if I have to
fight Mr. Borgen

every inch of the way.

Well, you understand

we're not blaming
you personally.

The hell we ain't.

Oh, James.

Please give him a chance.

Hey, man, I feel for you too.

Hey, listen, I'm one of you...

but there's just
so much I can do.

Oh, man!

Hey, I'm working
here 24 hours a day.

Do you know, I don't
know when I had

my last home-cooked meal.

Yeah, well, I can't forget mine.

James, I think he's on our side.

That's what you think, baby.

I think he's piling it as high

as his canned goods.

Oh, James!

Hey, that's all
right, Mrs. Evans.

I can understand your
husband being upset.

I mean, I would be uptight too,

but listen, with good
people like you on the outside

working with me on the inside,

hey, we'll be able to
get something done.

Well, I guess you're doing

the best you can,

and thank you for your time.

Well, I appreciate those
kind words, Mrs. Evans,

and feel free to
come back any time.

You made me feel better.

Oh, that's what I'm here for.

And remember,
hey, I'm on your side.

Look here, man,

you better shape
this store up and fast,

because if you don't,
they gonna find you

stretched all the
way from frozen foods

to canned goods.

Is you hip?

I said, is you hip? Uh-huh.

Then say, "I'm hip." I'm hip!

All right!

James! James.

Come on.

James, how can
you talk like that

to a man that was
trying to help us?

Baby, don't you know a
line when you hear one?

Well, I believe him,

and I don't think we
should leave here

until you go back and apologize.

Well, it's gonna
be awful lonesome

at home without you.

Well, then, I'll
apologize for you.

No, no, no, Mr. Borgen.
No problems.

Yeah, I had a couple
of pests in here,

but I got rid of them real easy,

and if I have any more
trouble out of them,

I'll call the police again.

Hey, everything
is under control.

James... You were
right. He is a phony.

I just heard him talking
to Borgen on the phone.

He was putting on an act for us.

I'm gonna roast
his rump right now!

No, James, please.

Oh, come on, Florida,

let me pound that dude
in his face just one time,

make it look like ground round!

Wait a minute, James.

I think I know another way.

We still have some of that roast

left over, right?

Yeah, so what?

Well it's a shame
to waste it, isn't it?

Are you thinking
what I'm thinking?

Uh-huh.

Uh, come in.

Mr. and Mrs. Evans,
we meet again.

Yes, Mr. Gage,

and this is Mr. Coggins,
an interested friend.

Well, how do you do, Mr. Gage?

Nice meeting you.

Uh, and what can I
do for you this time?

Nothing, Mr. Gage.

This time, we wanna do for you.

Right.

Well, what's happening?

First, I want to apologize

for the way I behaved, Mr. Gage.

I was... really out of line.

Oh, that's okay.

Yeah, and we got to thinking
about what you told us,

you know, about
how hard you work

and not being able to remember
your last home-cooked meal...

So we thought we'd
bring you one of ours.

Oh, you didn't have to
go to that much trouble.

Oh, it was no trouble, Mr. Gage.

It was already cooked.

Yeah, go ahead,
Mr. Gage, dig in.

That's awfully nice of you.

Would you folks care to join me?

Oh, no, son.

You go ahead and eat it all up.

We get our pleasure
out of watching you.

Well, well, here's
to good eating.

Uh, Mr. Gage, before you start,

we've got two little
surprises for you.

One, Mr. Coggins here is from
the Food Administration Office.

And two,

that's leftover
meat from the roast

we bought here in your market.

Uh, uh, hey, man.

Hey, hey...

Oh, no, no, no.
Go ahead and eat.

You know, but I got
a lot of things to do.

I gotta take care of
whole lot of things.

Yeah, well, I'm
sure it can wait.

I, I, I really like
this good food,

but I just can't
neglect the store.

You understand, Mr. Evans.

I gotta work. I gotta
go to places here.

I'm the manager. I've
gotta do what I can.

Oh, well, Mr. Gage,

if you're not going
to eat it, I will.

You know, there's nothing

like a firsthand
taste of the product.

Give me something to report

down at the Food
Administration office.

Oh, no, no, no!

That's nice!

Eat it all up.

Delicious!

Don't it make you feel good

to see a man enjoying
his food, baby?

It sure does.

Well, thank you very much

for coming, Mr. Coggins.

I'm sure you have
other appointments.

Oh, you're right, Mrs. Evans.

Any time.

You know, it was nice
to meet you, Mr. Gage.

I'll be seeing you, Mr. Evans.

Thank you very
much, Mr. Coggins.

All right.

Yummy, isn't it?

Yeah, make a happy plate.

Well, Mr. Gage,
you got to come over

for dinner sometime.

Oh, James!

Any time, Mr. Gage. Any time.

Florida, James,
that was the best!

I tell you.

But you know,

now I've gotta get back to work,

because this food
administrating job

has made me late for
my job at the garage.

I'll see you later, now.

All right, Warren.
Take it easy, man.

Take care. All right.

Well we did it, baby.

Yeah, but you know

Borgen ain't gonna
change nothing

because of that, don't you?

Yeah, I know... but,
Florida, we got even.

Just for once we got even.

Yeah!

♪ Mm-mm-mm ♪

♪ Just lookin' Out
of the window ♪

♪ Watching the asphalt grow ♪

♪ Thinkin' how It all
looks hand-me-down ♪

♪ Good times Good times ♪

♪ Keepin' your
head Above water ♪

♪ Makin' a wave When you can ♪

♪ Temporary layoffs Good times ♪

Good Times is recorded on tape

before a live audience.

♪ Ain't we lucky we got 'em ♪

♪ Good times ♪♪