♪ Well, we're movin' on up ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To the East Side ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To a deluxe
apartment In the sky ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To the East Side ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ We've 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 ♪
♪ Well, we're movin' on up ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To the East Side ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To a deluxe
apartment In the sky ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ To the East Side ♪
♪ Movin' on up ♪
♪ We've finally got
A piece of the pie ♪♪
Needs a little more nutmeg.
A little more rum.
Some for my mammy...
some for my pappy...
a little bit more and
we'll all be happy.
Mmm, Satan, turn me loose!
Florence! Yes, ma'am.
Could I borrow your
finger for a minute?
You want one with
eggnog or without?
Without. Okay.
I wanna finish wrapping George's
present before he gets home.
That looks like some present!
Oh, no. I just put it in
a big box to fool him.
See how light it is.
What did you get him?
A fresh supply of hot air?
Every Christmas, George
guesses what his gift is.
But he's gonna need a crystal
ball to figure it out this year.
That ain't gonna do
him no good. Why not?
A crystal ball is for
seeing into the future,
not the present.
Get it? Present, like
a Christmas present.
Okay. What did you get him?
I got him a smoking jacket.
He'll really be surprised.
And I got his
favorite color. Red.
What's red?
Red... ♪ Nosed reindeer ♪
♪ Had a very shiny nose ♪
BOTH: ♪ And if you ever saw it ♪
♪ You would even
say It glows... ♪
Hi, George!
♪ All of the other reindeer ♪
Florence...
♪ Used to laugh
And call him names ♪
Florence, would
you knock it off?
What's the matter with
you? Don't you like singing?
Oh, yeah. I love singing, but I
don't like what you were doing.
Here, Weeze.
I got something for us to
hang on our Christmas tree.
Oh, an angel!
Ain't it nice? It's black.
I can see that.
And I'm naming it
Weezy, after you.
Because you're
my little black angel.
Oh, my. You're
sure in a good mood!
Why shouldn't I be?
It's Christmas Eve.
Would the man of the
house like some eggnog?
Why, thank you, Florence.
What about the lady?
I already got some.
Whoo! What did you put in this?
Brown eggs, baby. The best.
They must have come
from a wino chicken.
Whose present is this?
It's for you, George.
From me. Oh, yeah?
Don't even try, George.
You will never guess
what I got you this year.
A red smoking jacket.
George, how in the world...?
You know you can't
keep secrets from me.
And I thought I had it hidden
where you'd never find it.
Yeah, well, next year,
hide the receipt too.
You charged it to my account.
Oh!
George, you are terrible.
You ruined my surprise!
Well, get me another
surprise. We can afford it.
I mean, this is not like
our first Christmas
together, remember?
Oh, yes.
What happened then?
Instead of giving
each other presents,
we took the last cent we had and
bought ourselves a used toaster.
It was two weeks
before we had any toast.
You mean the
toaster didn't work?
No, we didn't have any
money left to buy bread.
And remember our
first Christmas tree?
We had to wait till
Christmas Eve to buy it
so we could get
it for half-price.
And you know what
we got for half-price?
Half a tree.
We put one ornament
on it and it fell over!
Well, at least y'all
could afford to buy a tree.
When I was a little girl,
my daddy had to go down
to Central Park every year
and chop down
our Christmas tree.
Florence, there aren't any
Christmas trees in Central Park.
Because my daddy
chopped them all down.
[SIGHS]
Yeah, Weez, we sure
have come a long way.
I mean, this place is a
thousand times better
than our apartment in Harlem.
Ten thousand times.
I can remember
Lionel's first Christmas.
The three of us
there in that one room.
The pipes were frozen.
We didn't have any heat.
Yeah, that skinny little turkey.
We had enough turkey
for the three of us.
I don't mean that turkey.
I'm talking about
that jive landlord
that turned off our heat.
Where is Lionel?
Oh, he and Jenny went to
pick up their marriage license.
Isn't it sad?
I've been telling you
that all along, Weez.
I don't mean that, George.
It's just hard to believe
that this is Lionel's
last Christmas at home.
In two weeks, our
little boy will be married.
Weezy!
[DOORBELL RINGS]
And then it'll only be
you and me, George.
Aww! I'll still be here!
Don't remind me
or I'll start crying.
Hi, Florence.
Hi, Mrs. Willis. Come on
in and have some eggnog.
Oh, thank you!
Hi, everybody.
Mrs. Jefferson, get
Mrs. Willis some eggnog.
Why don't you get it?
I can't. I'm coming
down with something.
Yeah, a case of the drunks.
You shouldn't have had
so much eggnog, Florence.
Yeah, this nutmeg will k*ll you.
Well, I'm gonna
take a little nap.
I got a church social
to go to tonight,
and I'm gonna
have to look pretty.
Yeah, well, you're gonna
have to take a long nap for that.
Lord, you know I want
to tell him something.
But I know you don't
want me to talk like that
on the day before your birthday.
Oh, Louise, we got some
more R.S.V.P.s today.
The Stones, the Hutchisons,
the MacPhersons and the Millers
are all coming to the wedding.
I don't know none of them.
They're friends of ours.
Huh! Let me see that list.
Where's Rooster Carter?
I think he still
lives in the Bronx.
I mean, how come
he ain't on this list?
You and Rooster
haven't seen each other
since you had that
fight 10 years ago.
Well, can you think of a
better time to patch things up
than at a wedding?
Bubba Banks
ain't on here either.
George, I asked you to go
over the guest list with me
a couple of weeks ago,
but you said you were too busy.
Yeah, well, I ain't
too busy now.
I just wanna make
sure the Willises
ain't inviting just
all of their friends.
Well, we had to draw
the line somewhere.
The reception hall only
holds so many people.
Oh, that reminds me, Louise.
We found a band to
play at the reception.
The leader's a friend of Tom's,
and he is a marvelous
accordion player.
Accordion player?
At a wedding reception?
You gotta be jiving.
What's wrong with an accordion?
Nothing, if you're
Lawrence Welk.
Are you gonna rent a
bubble machine too?
[DOORBELL RINGS]
Get off it, George.
No, you get off it!
You can't dance to
no accordion music.
I want some music
you can get down to.
This is a wedding reception,
George, not Soul Train.
Ho, ho, ho! Have you
been a good little girl?
Oh, I'm sorry, Santa.
You must have the
wrong apartment.
No, it's me. Tom. Tom?
[LAUGHS]
What are you doing
dressed like that?
Tom was at Children's Hospital
distributing toys to the kids.
He does it every year.
Helen, I couldn't get into
our apartment. I forgot my key.
Why didn't you slide
down the chimney?
Ho, ho, ho! That's
very funny, little boy!
Who you calling "boy"?
Ho, ho, ho, little man!
Tell Santa what you
want for Christmas.
How about your two front teeth?
Oh, what's that you've
got there, little girl?
Your Christmas list? Ho, ho!
Come right over here
and sit on Santa's lap
and tell Santa what
you want for Christmas.
Well, if you really
want to know,
I'd like someone else
to handle the arrangements
for Jenny's wedding.
Oh, are you having problems?
[LAUGHS]
Well, things are pretty hectic,
but there's one bright note.
Leonard phoned from Boston
to say that he'll
be at the wedding.
Leonard can make it?
Oh, that's great, Helen!
Isn't that great, George?
Yeah, sure.
Who's Leonard?
He's the minister who's
gonna perform the ceremony.
Leonard is Tom's
favorite nephew.
Tom's favorite nephew?
Well, I like him too.
That ain't what I mean.
Well, what do you mean?
I mean, is he like you?
No, Leonard's much shorter.
That ain't what I mean neither.
Uh, then what do
you mean, George?
I mean I don't want my son
being married by no h*nky minister.
George, marriages
are made in heaven,
and God doesn't care
what color a minister is.
Okay, when his son gets married,
he can pick whatever
color preacher he wants.
My son is black, and I want
him married by a black preacher.
George... Don't be
George-ing me, Weezy!
I knew you was gonna try
and pull something
like this, Willis.
What are you talking about?
An accordion player,
a white minister...
You've been sneaking
around behind my back
planning a lily-white wedding.
Hmm... Oh, shucks.
We're here already.
Time flies when
you're having fun.
Oh, I hope time flies
for the next two weeks.
Just think, in two weeks
I'll be Mrs. Lionel Jefferson!
I wanna tell the whole world!
Oh, you're gonna
get your chance,
because the whole world's
gonna be at our wedding.
I wish we were having a
small wedding like we wanted.
Yeah. Me too.
But, you know, Jenny,
if a big wedding means
that much to our folks,
we might as well let
them have their fun, huh?
[LAUGHS]
Wait, wait, wait, wait!
They're probably all excited,
waiting for us to come home,
so let's give them
a big entrance.
Yeah!
Ta-da!
I don't wanna hear it!
Call your accordion player
and your white minister
and tell them to forget it.
Oh, no!
This is one thing you
are not going to run.
The bride's parents
make all the arrangements.
It's our responsibility,
not yours.
What's going on?
Your father's trying
to mess the wedding,
but I'm not gonna let him.
Me? I'm not messing it up!
I'm the one who
did all the work!
I'm the one who
did all the planning!
Look, Daddy, please.
You the one who
planned it all wrong!
Now, look, Pop.
The wedding Jenny
and I really want...
You two stay out of this!
This wedding is
none of your business!
Hold on, Pop. What do you
mean this is none of our business?
Jenny and I are the ones
who are getting married.
Yeah, well, who do
you think is paying for it?
I am.
Yeah, well, money
ain't no big thing.
But, Mr. Jefferson...
No buts! You just butt out!
All you and Lionel
have to do is show up.
That's ridiculous. Why can't we
have some say over our wedding?
Have you ever
been married before?
Well, no, of course not.
Then how you gonna
know what to do?
Now, I have been
where you are going.
And I wish you
would go back there.
Pop, why are you
acting like this?
Lionel, look, you
black, ain't you?
Of course, but what...?
And Jenny looks
black, don't she?
Pop!
It's only natural that you
should have a black wedding.
But why does the
minister have to be black?
Well, one reason:
White ministers don't
know how to preach.
What about Oral Roberts?
He's only good if you're sick.
George, my nephew
is a terrific preacher.
He's one of the most
prominent Episcopalian ministers
in the country.
Episcopalian?!
Yes. What's wrong
with Episcopalian?
It ain't Baptist, that's
what's wrong with it.
Oh, so now the minister has
to be black and Baptist, huh?
That's right. You got it.
Why?
Because the Baptist Church
is the one I have
followed all of my life.
Then how come nobody can
ever get you to go to church?
I said "follow," not "go to."
Hey, listen.
♪ Glory to the newborn king... ♪
Oh, it sounds like carolers.
Carolers? What the hell
are they doing here now?
George the Baptist doesn't
even know it's Christmas Eve.
♪ Join the triumph
Of the skies ♪
♪ With the angelic
host Proclaim ♪
♪ Christ is born in Bethlehem ♪
♪ Hark! The herald angels sing ♪
♪ Glory to the newborn king ♪
That was beautiful.
Thank you.
It sounded like a
host of seraphim.
You don't know your Christmas
music too well, Bentley.
That was "Hark, the
Herald Angels Sing."
Let's have another song.
Sure. Yeah, Rev,
that was dynamite.
Oh, thank you.
[BLOWS NOTE ON HARMONICA]
[HUMS]
♪ I'm dreaming Of a
white Christmas... ♪
Do you mind
singing another song?
This happens to be one
of our most requested...
Cut!
Uh, number 16, g*ng.
Mr. Jefferson, thank you.
How'd you know my name?
Mr. Hart told me.
He said you were a very
charitable, generous soul.
Who's Mr. Hart?
At your service, sir.
Ralph! I didn't know
your last name was Hart.
I thought it was Handout.
That's very funny,
Mr. Jefferson.
And it reminds me, sir.
Tomorrow is Christmas...
Yeah, I know, Ralph.
And I won't be here, sir.
Oh. Merry Christmas, Ralph.
I'm sorry I didn't have a
chance to get you a gift, but...
Oh, sir, I wasn't talking
about a gift for me.
Say what?
I was talking
about a gift for you.
Now, don't say no, sir.
I feel very strongly about this.
My gift to you is going to be
that you don't have
to give a gift to me.
That's my gift to you.
Oh, wow, that's really
nice of you, Ralph.
It's too bad, though,
because I was gonna give
you this brand-new $20 bill.
Twenty?
Oh, you don't know how bad
I feel about this, Ralph.
Well, if it means
that much to you, sir,
my feelings are not important.
Thank you, Mr. Jefferson, sir.
Reverend, I'd like
to make a donation.
TOM: Oh, wow.
Oh, that's very
generous. Thank you.
I'll just take my change.
This 5 and this little
10 right over there.
♪ Shepherds quake
At the sight... ♪
Merry Christmas.
LOUISE: Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas.
GEORGE: Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas.
God bless all of you.
Merry Christmas.
ALL: Merry Christmas.
Ho, ho, ho. Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas.
Mr. Willis, you make a
splendid Father Christmas.
A who? Father Christmas.
That's what the
British call Santa Claus.
Yes, isn't it interesting
how each country has
a different name for him?
No.
For instance, in France
he's known as Pere Noel,
while in Italy they
call him Babbo Natale.
Sounds like a boxer.
Yes, it does, doesn't it?
But you'll never guess
what the Danish call him.
That's right, I won't.
Julemand.
Ah, but the most
fascinating of all...
You wanna hear something
fascinating, Bentley?
You know what they call
Santa Claus in the ghetto?
No. What do they call him?
"Absent," because
he's never there.
Merry Christmas,
Bentley. Merry...
Wasn't that singing nice?
Yeah, there's
nothing like carolers
to put you in the
Christmas spirit.
You know, George, maybe we
can compromise on the wedding.
Compromise? How do you mean?
I'll hire a band to play both
regular music and soul music.
Hey, hey, that sounds
like a great idea, Willis.
And just to show you that
I'm willing to meet you halfway,
I just happen to know
a great black minister.
Hold it, George. What
about our compromise?
We are compromising:
You're hiring the band,
I'm hiring the minister.
I've already promised my nephew.
When I look in that altar,
I don't wanna be
seeing no nephews.
I wanna see a brother.
Oh, now, come on, Mr. Jefferson.
Pop, why do you have to
argue like this on Christmas Eve?
This is supposed to be a time of
loving and
understanding, not fighting.
Yeah, you're right.
I'm finished fighting.
Give me that list.
George, what are you doing?
If Willis insists on having
the wedding his way,
then I would just like to
scratch one guest: me.
Now, wait a minute, George.
I wouldn't care if you
painted everybody black
and got Reverend Ike to preach,
I'm not going to the wedding.
George, you're
nothing but a crybaby!
Crybaby? Who are
you calling crybaby?
[YELLS]
Crybaby.
Where do you think you're going?
Where I don't have
to listen to you.
Oh, no, you don't. You're not
running away from me this time.
Get out! Open this door!
This is ridiculous.
Can you believe two
grown men acting like that?
What grown men?
They get upset and
they run to the potty.
You know, I wish
City Hall was still open.
I'd take Jenny
down there right now
and just get this whole
wedding over with.
Then we could all spend a
nice, peaceful Christmas together.
You know, I have an idea
how to get some Christmas spirit
back into this whole affair.
Now, how are you gonna do that?
Lionel, would you
like to stop this fight
between your father and Tom?
Sure. What have
you got in mind, Ma?
[WHISPERING INAUDIBLY]
ALL: Ohh.
Okay, Reverend, are you all set?
I don't know, Mrs. Jefferson.
I've never done
anything like this before.
Oh, Mrs. J, I'm
reporting for duty.
Oh, fine, Mr. Bentley,
come on in.
[GEORGE AND TOM ARGUING]
GEORGE: You come back,
Willis. I'm not through talking to you.
TOM: But I'm through listening!
Oh, Santa! Oh, shut up!
What are you doing here?
Uh, your wife
asked us to come up.
I already gave you my money.
I'll see you next Christmas.
Your wife has been telling me
that the two of you
have been fighting.
I believe she says it had
something to do with a wedding.
A lot to do with a wedding!
It's all his fault!
He's trying to run it!
I'm the bride's father. My
son don't mean nothing!
Wait a minute. Hold
it, hold it! Hold it.
This is Christmas
Eve. It's a time of love.
How do I look, Mr. Bentley?
Absolutely beautiful.
Yeah, I do, don't I?
And arguing about a
wedding of all things.
I mean, a wedding is
supposed to be a celebration
where a group of
people gather together
to join a man and
woman in holy matrimony.
I knew that.
Well, then, what's
the commotion?
Do you have any objections to
your daughter marrying Lionel?
Of course not.
Lionel's a fine young
man, in spite of his father.
Well, do you have any objections
to your son marrying Jenny?
It ain't that.
It's just the kind of wedding
he's throwing I object to.
Well, that's such a silly
thing to argue about.
The basic wedding
ceremony is very simple,
and it's quite beautiful.
You see, all the
minister has to do is say,
"Lionel, do you take Jenny to
be your lawful wedded wife?"
And then Lionel
would say... I do.
And then he would say,
"Jenny, do you take Lionel to
be your lawful wedded husband?"
And then Jenny
would say... I do.
You see? It's all very simple.
And as long as it's
witnessed by two people,
like those over there...
then all the minister
has to do is say,
"By the power vested in
me by the State of New York,
I now pronounce
you man and wife."
Oh, my baby!
Weezy, now, what's
wrong with you?
I always cry at weddings.
What are you gonna
do at the real wedding?
George, this is
the real wedding!
What?!
She's right, George.
Our children are married.
They're what?
You mean, that was it?
Lionel, how could
you do this to me?
Because I love you, Pop.
And, you know, I just
didn't want to get married
without you being there.
Married without a band.
And I love my daddy.
Did you really marry them?
Nope. They married each other.
I just performed the ceremony.
How could you
do a thing like that?
Well, it's part of my job.
I happen to be an
ordained Baptist Minister.
You mean to tell me you walked
into my house and tricked me...
Did you say "Baptist"?
That's right.
Hey, Willis, you hear
that? He's Baptist.
A Baptist!
You wouldn't happen to be
part black too, would you?
Nope.
Well, nowadays you never know.
What are we gonna tell
Leonard about the wedding?
Oh, tell him it was very
nice and to send a present.
Be serious! What
are we going to do?
How about congratulating
your daughter and
your new son-in-law?
They're the ones who count.
You're right.
CHILDREN: ♪ Joy to the world ♪
♪ The Lord is come... ♪
I say, Mr. J, congratulations.
Don't congratulate me, Bentley.
Congratulate the Willises
for marrying into
this divine family.
Congratulations.
♪ Let every heart
Prepare him room ♪
♪ And heaven and nature sing ♪
♪ And heaven and nature sing ♪
♪ And heaven and
heaven And nature sing ♪
♪ Joy to the world... ♪
[♪♪♪]
[♪♪♪]
ANNOUNCER: The Jeffersons was
videotaped in front of a studio audience.
♪ Movin', movin' on... ♪♪
03x12 - The Christmas Wedding
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.