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‘Sanford and Son’ ran on NBC for six seasons in the 1970s
NEED TO KNOW
- Sanford and Son ran on NBC for six seasons in the 1970s
- The show ended after its star, comedian Redd Foxx, accepted an offer to do a variety show on ABC
- Most of the sitcom’s cast members, including Foxx and his on-screen son Demond Wilson, have died
It’s been nearly five decades since Sanford and Son aired its last episode.
The NBC sitcom ran for six seasons from 1972 to 1977, starring stand-up comedian Redd Foxx as cranky junk dealer Fred G. Sanford, who regularly got into verbal tussles with his son Lamont Sanford, played by Demond Wilson.
Despite airing at what was known as the “death slot” at the time — Friday nights at 8 p.m. — the series was a success, rising to #2 in the ratings during its second season and paving the way for future Black-led sitcoms, per the Saturday Evening Post and the Associated Press.
Sadly, most of the show’s beloved stars have died since the show wrapped, including Fox, Wilson and Hal Williams, who played Officer “Smitty” Smith and died in July 2026 at the age of 91.
Here’s everything to know about what happened to the cast of Sanford and Son after the show went off the air.
01 of 07
Redd Foxx as Fred G. Sanford
The raunchy stand-up comedian made his unexpected TV debut playing a junkyard and salvage business proprietor prone to get-rich-quick schemes and faking heart attacks.
According to the Saturday Evening Post, Fred G. Sanford was actually named after Foxx’s real-life brother.
Sanford and Son ended after the actor accepted an offer from competitor ABC to star in his own variety series, which lasted less than a year.
Foxx briefly reprised his role of Fred for Sanford, which ran in 1980, and continued to act in shows like The Redd Foxx Show and films like Harlem Nights, which he starred in alongside his friends Eddie Murphy and Richard Pryor.
Foxx died of a heart attack on Oct. 11, 1991, while on the set of his series The Royal Family. A spokeswoman for the program told the Los Angeles Times that everyone “thought he was joking around at first” before calling paramedics.
He was 68 at the time of his death and was survived by his wife, Ka Ho Cho.
02 of 07
Demond Wilson as Lamont Sanford
For five years, Wilson played Fred’s level-headed son, whom the patriarch often referred to as a “big dummy.”
After the show folded, he appeared in several other popular shows, including Baby... I’m Back, The Love Boat, Today’s F.B.I. and The New Odd Couple. He also starred in films like Full Moon High, The Organization and Me and the Kid.
Wilson took a break from acting in the early 2000s until he returned in 2023 for what would be his final role in the series Eleanor’s Beach.
He died of complications related to prostate cancer on Jan. 30, 2026 at the age of 79. Wilson was survived by his wife, model Cicely Johnston, and their six children, per The New York Times.
03 of 07
LaWanda Page as Aunt Esther
LaWanda Page got her big break being cast as one of the sisters of Fred’s late wife, Elizabeth, during Sanford and Son’s second season.
She played the always grouchy Aunt Esther who often went toe-to-toe with her brother-in-law, telling him to “Watch it, sucker!”
The actress continued to make cameos in sitcoms like Diff’rent Strokes and Starsky and Hutch, and appeared in films like Shakes the Clown and Don’t Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood. In 1981, she briefly returned to play Aunt Esther in Sanford.
Page died at the age of 81 of diabetes complications on Sept. 14, 2002, The New York Times reported. She was survived by her daughter, Clara Johnson.
04 of 07
Whitman Mayo as Grady Wilson
Fred was rarely found without the company of his sidekick and best pal, Grady Wilson.
Whitman Mayo played the role for six years, and even received his own short-lived, self-titled spinoff while Sanford and Son was still airing.
The actor went on to appear in other sitcoms, like Diff’rent Strokes and ER and movies like Of Mice and Men and Boyz N the Hood.
At the time of his death on May 22, 2001, Wilson was teaching drama as an adjunct professor at Clark Atlanta University in Georgia, per The New York Times and CNN.
The actor died of a heart attack following a two-month-long hospitalization for a hernia and was survived by his wife, Gail Reid Mayo, and their three children.
05 of 07
Don Bexley as Bubba Hoover
Fred’s other beloved pal, Bubba Hoover, was played by actor Don Bexley. After Sanford and Son wrapped, he continued to guest star in sitcoms like Cheers and Laverne & Shirley and even reprised his role for the short-lived spinoff Sanford Arms.
The actor also maintained a close relationship with Foxx after their sitcom, appearing in his last show, The Royal Family, and serving as an honorary pallbearer at his 1991 funeral, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Six years after Foxx’s death, Bexley died of heart and kidney failure on April 15, 1997. He was 87 years old and was survived by his two daughters, per The Daily Press.
06 of 07
Hal Williams as Officer “Smitty” Smith
Williams appeared in 20 episodes of Sanford and Son as Officer Smitty, which he described as a “fun show” in a 2022 interview with Tell-Tale TV.
“They used to tell us they didn’t have anything to do that week and to go make up some lines,” he recalled. “So I would go with Howard [Platt] to a hot dog joint or a hamburger place. And we sit in the parking lot. He would want to know how to incorporate Black slang, Black jargon, and stuff.”
The actor became a TV regular following the show’s conclusion and was cast in series like The Waltons, On the Rocks, Private Benjamin and, most famously, 227. He also appeared in the films Hardcore, The Rookie and Flight, among others.
On July 15, 2026, Williams died at the age of 91. He was survived by three children, whom he shared with his first wife.
07 of 07
Nathaniel Taylor as Rollo Lawson
There were a lot of characters in Fred’s orbit on Sanford and Son, but no one irked him like Lamont’s fast-talking friend Rollo. Nathaniel Taylor played the recurring role for all six seasons, appearing in 32 episodes.
Though the actor went on to play many TV and movie roles — including those on Police Story, 227 and Willie Dynamite — his son, Kaedi Taylor, told The New York Times that his dad never got tired of being recognized as Rollo, which he briefly reprised on Sanford.
“It was a time and an era — just to be on TV as a Black man, it was an honor,” he said. “It was an honor for people to remember him.”
Taylor died of a heart attack on Feb. 27, 2019. He was 80 and was survived by his wife, Loretta, and seven children.
Read the original article on People
