Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, April 9, 1994 TAG: 9404090113
SECTION: SPECTATOR PAGE: S-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By JACKIE HYMAN Associated Press
DATELINE: LOS ANGELES LENGTH: Medium
"The whole idea grew up out of an accountant who would call me several times a year asking why I would pay storage for the sets of `All in the Family,' " says Lear, who produced that classic comedy series during the 1970s. The truth was, he says, "I couldn't bear to see them thrown away."
Then, the last time the accountant called, Lear said, "I thought, `I wonder who lives there now?"'
Thus was born "704 Hauser," set in the same house where outspoken bigot Archie Bunker clashed with his liberal son-in-law Meathead.
But this time, there are a few twists: The family is black, the father is liberal, and the son is conservative.
"I thought there's a great conflict inherent in a black father who's a veteran of the civil rights battles and of Vietnam and whose son is growing up to be Clarence Thomas," Lear said, referring to the conservative Supreme Court justice.
The parents, Ernest and Rose Cumberbatch (John Amos and Lynnie Godfrey), are a blue-collar couple married for 25 years. They're so devoted to social causes that they named their son after a liberal black Supreme Court justice, Thurgood Marshall.
Thurgood Marshall Cumberbatch (T.E. Russell) is a right-wing college student who contends blacks should focus on succeeding in business and stop blaming their problems on racism.
His girlfriend, Cherlyn Markowitz (Maura Tierney), is white and Jewish. Her parents don't approve of young Thurgood - not because of his race, but because of his politics. The senior Cumberbatches aren't thrilled about the match, either.
The storylines tackle race-related issues largely ignored by other sitcoms.
One episode, for example, focuses on the discomfort of Rose's sister, a beautiful, successful businesswoman who feels like an outsider in both black and white society. Another deals with young Thurgood's determination to remain chaste until marriage, and a third concerns an overzealous guard in a clothing store who targets father and son on a shopping expedition.
"I enjoy putting a black family on the tube that are talking about important things, important to them," said Lear, 71, whose previous hits include "Maude," "One Day at a Time" and several series starring black performers - "The Jeffersons," "Sanford and Son" and "Good Times."
Does Lear expect controversy?
"I hope so," he said. "Controversy suggests people are thinking about something. But there'd better be laughing first and foremost or it's a dog."
Lear admitted he doesn't expect to change society in any immediate way.
"My grandfather used to talk about pebbles," he said. "If you throw a pebble in the lake, you see ripples, but a scientist could also tell you the level of the lake is rising with every pebble.
"You can stand there forever looking to see if the level of the water's rising. You will see the ripple, but you won't see the water rising. And that's the way it is with life. You've got to be very happy throwing pebbles ... because you're not going to see in a lifetime that much change."
Lear works to change society more directly through two organizations - Business Enterprise Trust, which honors businesses that take a long-term view of their impact on the country, and the better-known People for the American Way, dedicated to promoting tolerance, diversity and a better understanding of the First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech, the press and religion.
Lear said his social activism has a personal motive.
"My concern is directly related to parenting," he said. "I have three daughters, now grown women. Now, I have a 5-year-old son and an 18-month old grandson and I'm directly related to their future, what's good for my son and my grandson.
"In the whole area of family values, it's ridiculous that that's a rightist phrase. It's important to everybody."
Lear also thinks "704 Hauser" is for everybody.
"I've always aimed at everybody," he said. "I don't think little children would be attracted to this, but there's no reason teen-agers wouldn't be. I would assume everybody in American from 12-up would be interested."
But despite Lear's intentions and his honorable pedigree, "704 Hauser" could die quickly if it doesn't score in the ratings.
"I hope it rates quickly, because if it's as good as we think it is and it doesn't have a big rating quickly, it will die as quickly as any piece of dreck," he said. "That's the unfortunate truth about marketing. We need a little luck."
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