[Deathwatch] Isabel Sanford, actress, 86

[Deathwatch Central <cdw@slick.org>]

TV's "Weezie" Dead
By Joal Ryan

Isabel Sanford was nearly 60 when she landed her own sitcom, but she
would be nearly 90 before relinquished the fame, if not the role.

Sanford, who played Louise Jefferson, the put-upon, dry-cleaner mogul's
wife known to the pop-culturally literate as "Weezie," in The
Jeffersons, All in the Family and a host of guest spots and
commercials, died Friday at a Los Angeles hospital of natural causes,
her publicist announced Monday. She was 86.

Sanford was admitted to Cedars Sinai Medical Center on July 4. Her
family told the Associated Press her health had been on the decline
since artery surgery in the neck 10 months ago.

The 1981 Emmy winner as Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for
The Jeffersons, Sanford was the first--and, to date, only--black
actress to be so honored.

In all, Sanford earned seven Emmy nominations and five Golden Globe
nominations for a sitcom, The Jeffersons, that, while a pioneering
comedy for black actors, otherwise earned few critical or Industry
accolades.

A spinoff of All in the Family, on which Sanford first played Louise
Jefferson on a recurring basis from 1971-75, The Jeffersons followed
the Archie Bunker school of sitcom comedy, pitting one loud man against
the world.

Where All in the Family had Queens bigot Archie Bunker, The Jeffersons
had Manhattan mouth George Jefferson (Sherman Hemsley), a Napoleonic
figure forever battling stuffy white people, his racially diverse
penthouse neighbors, his own family and his maid (Marla Gibbs).

Keeping a cool head amid the yelling was Weezie, George's loyal, less
easily flustered Edith.

Sanford was 57 when The Jeffersons debuted on CBS in January
1975--nearly 21 years older than her TV spouse.

She was 50 when she made her film debut as Spencer Tracy and Katharine
Hepburn's housekeeper in the 1967 Oscar-winning drama Guess Who's
Coming to Dinner.

Though her screen career was founded in middle age, Sanford was no
newcomer to acting. The New York City native, born on Aug. 29, 1917,
worked in theater for decades before "Movin' on Up," as The Jefferson's
sing-along theme song would put it, to Hollywood.

The Jeffersons was a top 20 show for six of its 11 seasons, remarkably
enjoying its biggest ratings success in the middle of its run. It
topped out as the third-most watched show of the 1981-82 season.

For Hemsley and Sanford, 253 episodes of George and Weezie were not
enough. They appeared in retro-minded Old Navy commercials in 1998-99,
and went to bat for the Denny's Grand Slam breakfast in a series of
spots in 2001.

They guested together on TV shows through the 1990s, appearing as both
as their old TV selves (on a 1995 Fresh Prince of Bel-Air) and as
original characters (on a 1994 Lois & Clark).

As a solo, Sanford appeared in 1972's Lady Sings the Blues, among other
films, and on numerous prime-time series. As recently as last February,
she was heard on a new Simpsons.

In January, she received her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Sanford is survived by three children, several grandchildren and great
grandchildren and a wealth of cable-ready reruns.

A public memorial service is planned.