Demond Wilson Movies

Years before Coma, Jurassic Park, and Twister made him a household name, Michael Crichton co-wrote this amiable drug-oriented comedy, based on a novel Crichton co-authored with his brother Douglas under the pen name Michael Douglas. Peter (Robert F. Lyons) is a shaggy but straightlaced Harvard law student who feels the need for some rebellion in his life (and could use some extra money), so he takes up the offer of mid-level drug dealer John (John Lithgow) to ferry a load of marijuana from California back to Boston. En route, Peter meets Susan (Barbara Hershey), a comely hippie with whom he falls in love. Peter helps Susan avoid a drug bust and she decides to head back to Boston with him, but she finances the trip by arranging to bring back a stash of her own. At the airport, Susan runs afoul of Murphy (Charles Durning), a crooked narcotics cop who steals half the pot and attempts to blackmail her. Dealing featured the screen debut of John Lithgow; Demond Wilson (who later starred in Sanford and Son) and musician Buzzy Linhart also
appear. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

A wealthy young boy is kidnapped by thieves who rob his home, but the crooks are in for a surprise when the kid becomes a pest . ~ John Bush, All Movie Guide

Like his previous smash hit All in the Family, producer Norman Lear's NBC sitcom Sanford and Son was based on a British original, in this instance Steptoe and Son, the story of an elderly, irascible cockney junk dealer and his cloddish bachelor son and business partner. In the initial development stages, Sanford and Son was to have been about a pair of Jewish men, but it was finally decided to transform the characters into African-Americans -- and in so doing, veteran "Chitlin Circuit" standup comedian Redd Foxx was catapulted to superstardom. Debuting January 14, 1972, the NBC series cast Redd Foxx as Fred Sanford, a 65-year-old L.A. junk dealer who ran a ramshackle salvage business in the backyard of his home. The cranky, mercenary Fred was satisfied with his lot in life, which was more than could be said for his 34-year-old son, Lamont (Demond Wilson), who was forever seeking out strategies to escape the junk business and go off on his own -- and, hopefully, to find himself a wife. The wily elder Sanford would have none of this, and devised all manner of schemes and subterfuges to keep Lamont from leaving. His favorite ploy was to feign having a heart seizure, whereupon he would look heavenward and "call out" to his late wife, "I'm comin', Elizabeth! This is the big one! I'm comin'!" Inasmuch as this charade fooled no one -- least of all Lamont -- one wondered if the younger Sanford really was that hepped out about leaving after all, or whether he felt secure in his shabby environs.

Although none of the series' supporting characters appeared on every episode, most were seen frequently enough to qualify as regulars. During season one, Fred hung out with his old buddy Melvin (Slappy White), and throughout the series he palled around with Bubba Bexley (Don Bexley). Beginning in 1973, Whitman Mayo was seen as Fred's crony Grady Wilson, who virtually became the series' star later on during Redd Foxx's frequent defections from the show due to salary and other squabbles with the producers. (Mayo himself virtually disappeared from Sanford and Son during the 1975-1976 season when he was spun off into his own sitcom, Grady.) Other recurring characters included eccentric police officers Swanhauser (Noam Pitlik), Smith (Hal Williams), and Hopkins (Howard Platt); Lamont's friend Rollo Larson (Nathaniel Taylor); restauranteur Ah Chew (Pat Morita); rival junk man Julio Fuentes (Gregory Sierra); Fred's off-and-on lady friend, Nurse Donna Harris (Lynn Hamilton); and Lamont's girlfriend and later fiancée, Janet Lawson (Marlene Clark). The one "standout" supporting character was Aunt Esther Anderson (LaWanda Page), who constantly quoted Scripture and who expressed her disapproval of Fred's shenanigans by giving a good solid punch once in a while (in some early episodes, Beah Richards appeared in a similar role as Aunt Ethel). With the departure of both Redd Foxx and Demond Wilson at the end of the series' sixth season, Sanford and Son was canceled September 2, 1977, to be "reborn" twice, first in the form of the spin-off series The Sanford Arms in the fall of 1977, then as the short-lived 1980 offering Sanford, with Redd Foxx in his original role. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Lamont (Demond Wilson) buys his father Fred (Redd Foxx) a pool table as a birthday present -- and lives to regret it. Before long, Fred and his cronies have transformed the Sanford living room into their own personal pool hall. It's bad enough for Lamont that Fred's buddies never seem to want to leave, but when they begin eating the Sanfords out of house and home, Lamont is really behind the eight ball. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

As a result of "waxy buildup," Fred (Redd Foxx) temporarily loses his hearing. After visiting the doctor, a cured Fred suddenly realizes that his ailment had earned him the undivided attention of his girlfriend Donna (Lynn Hamilton). Thus, Fred plays up his "deafness" to the hilt -- at least until his son Lamont (Demond Wilson) turns the tables on him. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

While on a tour of NBC's Burbank studios, Fred Sanford (Redd Foxx) sets eyes upon "the first lady of his dreams," the fabulous Lena Horne. Wangling a conversation with Lena while she prepares to appear on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, Fred plays upon her sympathies by weaving a tall tale about his "little lame son" Lamont. Agreeing to pay a visit to the Sanford home, Lena has no idea that Fred intends to charge admission to his neighbors when she shows up for her "personal appearance." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Eric Laneuville makes his first appearance as Daniel, newly adopted son of Aunt Esther (LaWanda Page). Upon learning that Daniel is an atheist, the pious Esther throws him out of the house. It is up to Fred (Redd Foxx) and Lamont (Demond Wilson) to convince Esther that Daniel's lack of faith is due to a lifetime of hard knocks. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Hoping to open their own rooming house, Fred and Lamont Sanford (Redd Foxx, Demond Wilson) apply for a loan at the local bank. While our heroes are negotiating, the bank is held up by a pair of dimwitted novice robbers. As the day progresses, all of the bank's customers are allowed to leave except for Fred, who stays behind as a hostage -- and proves more than a match for the inept crooks. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Forced to play host to his unemployed white brother-in-law Rodney Victor (Allan Drake), Fred Sanford (Redd Foxx) is fed up with Rodney's obnoxious practical jokes. Finally deciding that if you can't beat 'em, join 'em, Fred suggests that he and Rodney work up a nightclub routine. The ultimate strategy is to get Rodney to work and out of the house, but things don't quite turn out that way. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

While cultivating their backyard garden, Fred and Lamont Sanford (Redd Foxx, Demond Wilson) apparently strike oil. Their unexpected windfall attracts the attention of an Arabian oil expert named Aram (Ross Martin). Naturally anticipating a huge financial bonanza, Fred begins spending money even before he gets it -- and then doesn't get it. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Shades of "The Handy Housewife Helper" on The Honeymooners! Lamont (Demond Wilson) goes ballistic when he finds that the money he has been saving up for acting lessons has been squandered by his dad, Fred (Redd Foxx), who has purchased the "Watts franchise" for a kitchen appliance called the Whopper Chopper. Stuck with dozens of the useless utensils and with no prospect of selling any of them, Fred decides to exact revenge on the TV host who persuaded him to buy the Choppers in the first place. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Amateur magician Grady (Whitman Mayo) attempts to perform his "famous" Chinese-wristlock trick. As a result, Fred (Redd Foxx) and Esther (LaWanda Page) end up handcuffed together. With Grady unable to decipher the trick's instructions (they're written in Chinese of course), Fred is forced to literally drag Esther along when he goes out on a date. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide