''Checking In'' is an American

sitcom A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

television series and a

spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...

of ''

The Jeffersons ''The Jeffersons'' is an American sitcom television series that was broadcast on CBS from January 18, 1975, to July 2, 1985. Lasting 11 seasons and a total of 253 episodes, ''The Jeffersons'' is one of the longest-running sitcoms in history ...

'' that aired for four episodes on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

from April 9 to April 30, 1981.

Synopsis

In the seventh season finale of ''The Jeffersons'', " Florence's New Job", the Jeffersons' maid, Florence Johnston (

Marla Gibbs Marla Gibbs (born Margaret Theresa Bradley; June 14, 1931) is an American actress, singer, comedian, writer, and television producer whose career spans seven decades. She is known for her role as George Jefferson's maid, Florence Johnston, on th ...

), accepted a job to become the executive housekeeper at the fictional St. Frederick Hotel in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. The series follows Florence's misadventures at the hotel with her co-workers: Lyle Block, her stuffy manager; Elena Beltran, her assistant; Earl Bellamy, the inept house detective; Hank Sabatino, the lewd handyman; Betty, the floor supervisor; Dennis, the bellboy; and Mr. Claymore, the hotel owner.

Cast

as Florence Johnston * Larry Linville as Lyle Block *

Ruth Brown Ruth Alston Brown (; January 12, 1928 – November 17, 2006) was an American singer-songwriter and actress, sometimes referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of R&B". She was noted for bringing a popular music, pop music ...

as Betty * Patrick Collins as Earl Bellamy * Robert Costanzo as Hank Sabatino * Jordan Gibbs as Dennis *

Liz Torres Elizabeth Larrieu Torres (born September 27, 1947) is an American actress, singer, and comedian. Torres is best known for her role as Mahalia Sanchez in the NBC comedy series '' The John Larroquette Show'' (1993–1996), for which she received tw ...

as Elena Beltran * John Anderson as Mr. Claymore

Episodes

Reception

''Checking In'' premiered on

on April 9, 1981, and lasted for only four episodes in the Thursday, 8:00 p.m. ET timeslot. Faced with low ratings, the series was cancelled, and the final episode aired on April 30, 1981. Gibbs then returned to her regular role on ''The Jeffersons'' and it was explained that the St. Frederick Hotel had burned down. ''Checking In'' was the first ''

All in the Family ''All in the Family'' is an American sitcoms in the United States, sitcom television series that aired on CBS for nine seasons from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979, with a total of 205 episodes. It was later produced as ''Archie Bunker's Pla ...

'' spin-off series that was not successful, unlike ''

'', '' Maude'' and Maude spin-off ''

Good Times ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans (actor), Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was televis ...

''. Other failed spin-off attempts were '' Gloria'' in the 1982–1983 season and '' 704 Hauser'' in 1994.

Home media

The third episode, "Whose Side Are You On?", was added as a bonus feature on ''The Jeffersons: The Complete Series'' 33-disc

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

set issued by

Shout! Factory Shout! Factory, LLC, doing business as Shout! Studios (formerly doing business as Shout! Factory, its current legal name), is an American home video and music distributor founded in 2002 as Retropolis Entertainment. Its video releases, issued i ...

References

External links

* {{Norman Lear Shows The Jeffersons 1981 American television series debuts 1981 American television series endings 1980s American black sitcoms 1980s American workplace comedy television series American television spinoffs Television series by Sony Pictures Television Television series set in hotels Television shows set in New York City American English-language television shows CBS sitcoms