♪ Well, we're movin' on up ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To the East Side ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To a deluxe apartment ♪
♪ In the sky ♪
♪ We're movin' on up ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To the East Side ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ We finally got a
piece Of the pie ♪
♪ Fish don't fry
In the kitchen ♪
♪ Beans don't
burn On the grill ♪
♪ Took a whole lot of tryin' ♪
♪ Just to get up That hill ♪
♪ Now we're up
In the big leagues ♪
♪ Gettin' our turn at bat ♪
♪ As long as we live ♪
♪ It's you and me, baby ♪
♪ There ain't Nothin'
wrong with that ♪
♪ We're movin' on up ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To the East Side ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To a deluxe apartment ♪
♪ In the sky ♪
♪ We're movin' on up ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To the East Side ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ We finally got a
piece Of the pie ♪♪
[DOORBELL CHIMES]
Uh, hello, Mother Jefferson.
Hello, Louise.
So nice to see you.
Happy anniversary.
Oh, why, thank you.
Is that a present too?
Oh, no, I bought this myself
as a surprise for George.
Well, if you wear that,
there won't be much
left to surprise him.
Don't bet on it.
Besides, that thing won't
even keep you warm.
The idea is to keep George warm.
Hmph.
Don't open that.
Wait for George.
Anniversaries are for two.
You're right.
And it was so sweet of you
to remember what day it was.
Oh, Louise, I could never
forget your wedding day.
It's the first anniversary of
my gallbladder operation.
Ah, hello, Momsy-womsy.
Ha, ha. Oh, hello, George.
Happy anniversary, son.
Your mother brought
us a present, George.
Oh, that's wonderful.
Thanks, Mama.
Haven't you opened
it yet, Louise?
Yes, right away.
I'm so excited. I
wonder what it could be.
Uh... just what we
needed, George.
Cuff links.
Hey, they really something, Ma.
Do you really like them?
Yeah. They go with our tuxedo.
As I always say, it's
the thought that counts.
You're so right,
Mother Jefferson.
Uh, can I get you anything?
Yes, an eraser.
You've made a lot of mistakes
in this crossword puzzle.
Oh?
Look at this:
"Large animal with
antlers. E-L-K-E."
There's no E on the end of elk.
I know. George did the puzzle.
Oh, of course. It's the
Old English spelling.
Elke.
Like "Ye Old
English Tea Shoppe."
He's so bright.
I'll make some coffee.
Uh, why don't you come
and help me, George?
What for?
Because I say so, what for.
What's the matter with you?
Does your mother
have to be here today?
Well, you know Mama.
She's like the tide.
You can't stop that
from coming in, either.
I don't mind her coming
in. I just mind her staying in.
I mean, today of all days!
She just came by to wish
us a happy anniversary.
I know your mother, George.
When she starts working
on a crossword puzzle,
that means she's
staying for dinner.
Yeah, you're right.
It's not that I don't
want her, George,
but I thought maybe
today that we could be
you know, alone.
Mm. I hear you.
George...
And I know just how we
can get Mama to leave.
Wonderful!
You can tell her we
got another appointment.
Me can tell her?
Well, I can't tell
her. I got to go out.
What?
Unless you don't
want me to go out.
Of course I don't want you
to go out on our anniversary.
Okay, then I guess it
can wait until next year.
What can wait?
That something special I
was going to pick up for you.
Oh. It can't wait.
Go, go, go.
I'm going, going, gone.
Hurry back, sweetheart.
I got to go get something, Mama,
but I'll say goodbye now
in case you're gone
when I get back.
Oh, I'll be here
when you get back.
What's for dinner
tonight, Louise?
Uh, I don't know yet.
Married all these years
and you still don't
know how to plan meals.
George must be a saint.
Oh, he is.
When he lived at home with you,
everybody used to call him
St. George and the dragon.
I'm not surprised.
Um, no, what I meant was
some friends have invited
George and me out to dinner tonight.
What friends?
What friends?
Uh... the Hendricks.
Joan and Bobby Hendricks.
Well, I'll be thinking of you
while I'm sitting in
my itty bitty apartment
eating my TV dinner.
Here I am. Ready, Weez?
Oh, yes, I'm ready.
Where is it?
Okay. Hold out your
hands and close your eyes.
Oh, George.
Happy anniversary.
Oh, George! It's...
A horn?
That's right. Surprised?
I guess you could
say that, George.
I think it's lovely, George.
Don't forget to show it
to your friends tonight.
What friends tonight?
Louise was just telling me
about your friends, the Hendricks.
The Hendricks?
They're in Honolulu.
Uh, no, George.
Sure they are. We just got
a card from them yesterday.
Uh, no, George, they came back
and they invited
us to dinner tonight.
Don't you remember?
Oh, now I remember!
That's right.
They invited us out to
dinner tonight, Mama.
In Honolulu?
Oh, no.
It's the funniest thing
about this postcard.
You know, the mail
is so slow nowadays.
But the Hendricks actually b*at
their own card back to New York.
Can you imagine that?
That takes a lot of imagination.
Well... Go on, Weezy, honk it.
Huh?
Honk your horn.
Honk my horn?
It's just like rubbing
Aladdin's lamp.
Go on. Honk.
Tra-dah!
What the...?
Ah, hello, Mrs. J.
Aren't they beauties?
Happy anniversary,
Weezy. This is from me to us.
You bought us bicycles?
Yes, I've been keeping
these chaps hidden in my place
all week long.
Mr. Jefferson didn't want you
to know what you were getting.
That was smart, George.
George always knows how
to make a woman happy.
Oh, you must be
having a wonderful day.
Oh, I am.
What more could I
want for my anniversary?
A horn, cuff links, and a bike.
Yes, I'll... I'll never
forget my first bicycle.
A sleek racer with
distinctive red stripes
and a little bell that went:
Ching-a-ding, ching-a-ding-ding.
Ching-a-ding.
I bet you got a big
kick out of riding it.
Oh, no, I never rode it at all.
Why?
It was stolen the
very first day I had it.
Oh...
Yes, I often wondered
what became of it.
And then one day,
five years later,
I was strolling along
the beach at Brighton,
when suddenly I saw a bicycle
which had been washed ashore.
It was all rusted over,
but there were still
flecks of red paint on it.
Don't tell me it was your bike.
Oh, no, it was a lady's bike,
but had it been mine,
wouldn't that have
made a remarkable story?
Yeah. Well, what
do you say, Weezy?
Let's me and you go
bike-riding in Central Park.
♪ Weezy, Weezy ♪
♪ Give me your answer do ♪♪
You are not going
to like the answer.
George, why did
you buy us bicycles?
Oh, everybody's riding bicycles.
Why, even
Mr. Whittendale, the banker,
goes riding in the
park every Sunday.
Thanks for bringing
the bikes up.
Whittendale?! Yeah
We'll see you later, Bentley.
Oh, so... H.L. Whittendale,
the banker who you're
always trying to meet,
happens to go
bike-riding in the park too.
He does? I didn't know that.
Really? I thought you
were the one who told me.
Good pedaling, eh?
♪ Happy trails To you, un... ♪♪
So that's why
we're going cycling.
Weezy, you got it all wrong.
Maybe it did cross my mind
that we might run
into Whittendale.
I don't think it crossed
your mind, George.
I think it parked there.
Okay, okay.
Maybe big deals can
be made on big wheels,
there's nothing wrong with that.
But the main reason is I
want to spend my Sundays
with you
in the park, with the
birds and the bees.
And the muggers.
There ain't no muggers
there on Sunday morning.
Why? Are they all in church?
Come on, Weezy.
I ain't been bike-riding
since I was a kid.
Me neither.
Remember how
we used to show off?
Look, no hands!
Look, no feet!
Look, no teeth!
It would be kind
of fun. Wouldn't it?
Sure, it would.
Okay, wait. Just let
me get my sweater.
Well, since you two are
going out to have some fun,
there's no need of me staying,
so I suppose I'd
better be leaving.
Oh, that's too bad.
Thanks for the cuff links, Ma.
Have a nice ride...
But I think Louise
needs a smaller seat.
No. This is regulation size.
I'm not talking about
the one on the bicycle.
Oh, hi, Mrs. J. Did you
have a pleasant ride?
Well, yes and no.
My goodness. What happened?
Nothing happened!
Is this your bike?
Yes, that's my bike.
I scarcely recognized it.
Are you sure nothing happened?
Bentley, would you mind your...
Oh, George. Mr. Bentley
is only trying to be friendly.
It's not his fault
you were so busy chasing
after Mr. Whittendale
that you got careless.
If anybody was careless,
it was that stupid horse.
Horse?
Yes. George ran into a horse.
It was the horse's
fault, not mine.
Oh, dear. I hope you
called a policeman.
Who do you think
was riding the horse?
You knocked a
policeman off his horse?
[WHISTLES]
That's no laughing
matter, Mr. J.
It was to everybody
else in the park.
Well, was he badly hurt?
No, he just sprained his wrist.
So he used his other hand
to write out the summons.
Yeah. Why'd he want to go
and bust me like that, anyway?
I mean, I said I was sorry.
Will you have to
appear in court?
Yep. On Thursday.
The People of the
City of New York
v. George Jefferson.
And The People of the City
of New York are going to lose.
In what round, Muhammad Ali?
It was an accident that could
have happened to anybody.
Oh, sure.
To anybody who was
pedaling after H.L. Whittendale
right down a flight of steps and
through a rhododendron bush.
Where did the policeman come in?
On the other side
of the rhododendron.
That cop shouldn't have
been sitting on the path.
Before or after you hit him?
Wait a minute.
If the officer was riding his
horse on the bicycle path,
then you're in the
right, Mr. Jefferson.
Of course I'm in the right.
But it's only my word
against the cop's,
and you know they're
going to believe him.
Why?
Because he was black.
If he was white, I could
have claimed prejudice.
Well, don't you
have any witnesses?
Hey, yeah, that's
right. I got you, Weezy.
But I didn't actually
see what happened.
By the time I
caught up with you,
everything was all over,
and even the cop had
stopped swearing at you.
No problem.
All you have to do
is come into court
and tell the simple truth
the way I just explained it.
I suppose you want me to say
he backed his horse
up into your bike?
I knew I could rely on you!
George, I was only kidding.
I can't go into court and
say anything like that.
Sure you can.
Remember, a wife is not allowed
to testify against her husband.
So?
So that means she's got
to testify for her husband.
Ain't that right, Bentley?
Well, this is really
none of my affair.
I think I better be going.
No. Stay. What's your
hurry? Let's have a drink.
Oh. All right, then.
Just tell me, man to
man. I'm right, ain't I?
Uh, man to man, I
think you're wrong.
I think you're right. Oh,
I'm glad you admit it.
I mean he was right,
it's time he was going.
I thought so.
Oh! I almost forgot.
Happy anniversary.
♪ Oh, how we danced
On the night... ♪♪
Now, let's get this straight.
No, let's you get this straight.
I am not going to
court to lie for you.
All you'll get is a fine.
The cop's the one
that ought to be fined.
Why?
Because if he hadn't
gotten in my way,
I'd have caught up to
Whittendale, talked to him,
probably made a big deal.
That cop robbed me, Weezy!
George, when you ran into
the back end of that horse,
did it feel like you
were looking in a mirror?
Look, are you going to
be a loyal wife, or not?
I'm not going to be a lying one.
Weezy, I fought and scratched
my way up the ladder of success.
Here we go again.
Every once in a while,
I had to skip a rung
by lying a little bit.
But I did it for Lionel,
and I did it for you.
Now, I'm just asking you
to do the same thing for me.
I can't.
Sure you can. Anybody can do it.
And it must be okay.
The government does it.
Look at them dudes in Watergate.
Well, it was easy
for them to lie.
They were all lawyers.
You see? They knew their rights.
I'm asking you for
the last time, Louise.
And I'm answering you
for the last time, George.
No. I have to tell the truth.
Hmph!
Where are you going? Out.
But I was just
going to fix lunch.
Then fix it for one,
because I won't be here,
and that goes for
dinner and breakfast too.
George, come back here!
I may never come back here,
and that is also the truth!
Girl, don't blame yourself.
You didn't do anything wrong.
I didn't do anything
right, neither.
I should have done something.
Drink this down, Louise.
It'll help get rid
of your problem.
She got rid of her problem, Tom.
The trouble is, she
wants him back.
It all happened so fast.
For 23 years, I thought
we had a great marriage.
Now I don't have
a marriage at all.
Oh, come on, it's
not as serious as that.
How does this taste?
Huh? Oh.
Too much vinegar.
Ah, ah. I'll fix it.
Maybe I should go to court
and do like he asked me.
After all, $500 is a big
fine, even for George.
Louise.
What am I going to do?
I feel like I've been
unfaithful to him.
Oh, I don't think
extreme truthfulness
is grounds for divorce.
I don't know.
It might be, if you told
the truth about George.
No, George is a good man.
But what would you have done?
I wouldn't have had any
choice. Neither would Tom.
Huh?
You may not have noticed it,
but ours is a rather
special kind of marriage.
I think I've noticed.
We start out with all
our cards on the table.
Especially the spades.
We've had to be
honest about everything.
Everything up
front, all the way.
Otherwise, it wouldn't work.
I know, but... We
can't afford to lie.
Yeah, but George is black.
I know what you mean.
You can't tell no
white lies about him.
But the point I'm making
is, honesty is the only policy
between man and wife.
No matter what?
No matter what.
Tom.
What are you doing
with that bread?
I'm mopping up the vinegar.
I'm sorry I asked.
Look, you may not believe this,
but Tom bumped into somebody
too, a couple of years back.
On his bike?
No, on his way to work.
Ran around the corner
and bam, right into this girl.
Please, Helen, do you
have to bring that up?
I'm just making my point, Tom.
Was she hurt? No.
She was so well
stacked, she bounced.
Don't exaggerate, Helen.
Who's exaggerating?
She had to lean backwards
just to stand up straight.
You're right.
But what is your point, Helen?
The point is, Tom dusted her
off and took her home in a cab,
just to make sure
she was all right.
And he wasn't afraid
to tell me about it.
Imagine if I'd lied
to Helen about it,
and then someone had seen
me with a girl, and told Helen.
You'd have been in big trouble.
Exactly. And I'd
done nothing wrong.
I just bought the girl a
drink and took her home.
Right, Helen? Right.
Then it's not really the same
thing as with George and me.
It could be. Did you
try to reason with him?
With George?
Even with George, don't you see,
if you lie for him,
next thing you know,
you'll be lying to him.
That's right! Why
didn't I tell him that?
That's something
George would understand.
Helen, Tom, thanks.
What are you going to do?
I'm going to pray
that he comes back
so I can tell him.
I'm glad we helped her.
Sort of makes you feel
good all over, doesn't it?
What drink?
Huh?
You never told me you
bought that girl a drink.
Didn't I? I'm sure I told you.
You didn't tell me. Why
did you buy her a drink?
It was just while we
were waiting for a cab.
That was no excuse
for getting her drunk.
What are you talking about?
It wasn't that kind of drink.
It was at a Nedick's stand.
You can't get emotionally
involved with someone
over a glass of orange juice.
You used to take me to Nedick's,
and you got involved with me.
Helen!
Helen!
Helen?
George! Of all the stupid...
You nearly scared me to death!
What's the big idea,
sneaking up on me like that?
I'm sorry, Weezy.
George, you came home!
George, you came home!
There's something I want to say.
Yes, I want to say
something to you too...
Would you let me
say my say first?
Sorry, George.
Well, when I went
out of here before,
I... went over to Mama's.
You went crying to your mother?
I didn't go crying, I went mad.
Oh, I thought was the wife
who was always supposed
to run away to Mama.
Will you cut it out
before I get mad again?
Anyway, she told me
something about you.
Oh, I bet she did.
No, I mean something nice.
Oh?
She knew you were
jiving this morning
about us going out
with the Hendricks.
She did? Mm-hm.
She read it in your face.
So I got to thinking.
No matter how much you
wanted us to be alone together,
you had trouble
making up that story.
That's right. That's like what
I wanted to tell you, George.
You see... Will you hush up?
Anyhow, I can see it plain now.
If you can't lie for yourself,
then I had no business
asking you to lie for me.
Thank you, George.
Now what you got to say?
Oh, it doesn't matter.
I think you nearly said it.
Good.
See, your trouble, Weezy,
is you were born honest.
You know?
I guess that's
one of the reasons
I feel about you the way I do.
Oh, what way is that, George?
Well, you know.
I told you before.
What did you tell me before?
You know. Something nice.
You mean that I'm beautiful?
No. I mean...
You mean I'm not beautiful?
No, I didn't say that.
Well, you better say something.
All right.
I love you.
I love you.
Oh, George.
I love you. Happy anniversary.
Happy anniversary.
You're a good woman.
A very good woman.
You know, you really deserve me.
[♪♪♪]
ANNOUNCER: The
Jeffersons was recorded on tape
in front of a studio audience.
02x06 - Jefferson vs. Jefferson
Watch/Buy Amazon Merchandise
Spinoff series from "All in the Family" is about literal upward mobility of couple George and Louise Jefferson who move into a swanky high-rise building.
Spinoff series from "All in the Family" is about literal upward mobility of couple George and Louise Jefferson who move into a swanky high-rise building.