Mother Olivia Jefferson
Portrayed by Zara Cully, "Mother Jefferson" is Henry and George's mother. Her first appearance was in the All in the Family episode, "Lionel's Engagement," where she takes offense at being referred to as "mammy," by Archie Bunker, who thinks the term is a variation of "mommy." Mother Jefferson is a catty, disparaging, and antagonistic mother-in-law to Louise, while appearing to be practically a sweet old lady to everyone else. Mother Jefferson is one of the stereotypical mothers-in-law who think their daughter-in-law isn't good enough for their son. In nearly every episode she was seen in, she is usually tormenting Louise by criticizing her cooking, her age, or her overall character, but Louise frequently came back at her with a witty albeit sarcastic response. (On a couple of rare occasions, however, Mother Jefferson sides with Louise, when she takes offense at George's boorish or sexist behavior.) A long running gag had Mother Jefferson blissfully ignorant of how much alcohol she actually consumes, usually in the form of a Bloody Mary, which she stated she drank "for the vitamins".
Brown had been absent from the first 17 episodes of Season Three due to a serious case of pneumonia caused by a collapsed lung. Upon recovering she returned for a few episodes, noticeably thinner and frail. She died early in Season Four, and the writers decided to eliminate Mother Jefferson's character rather than replace her with a different actress. No special episode was created centering on her death, but it was briefly referenced in the second episode of the Fifth Season, "Homecoming (pt 1)". "Mother Jefferson" is deceased.
Read more about this topic: List Of The Jeffersons Supporting Characters
Famous quotes containing the words mother and/or jefferson:
“However diligent she may be, however dedicated, no mother can escape the larger influences of culture, biology, fate . . . until we can actually live in a society where mothers and children genuinely matter, ours is an essentially powerless responsibility. Mothers carry out most of the work orders, but most of the rules governing our lives are shaped by outside influences.”
—Mary Kay Blakely (20th century)
“Peace, commerce and honest friendship with all nations; entangling alliances with none.”
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)