Checking In

"All In The Family" had several spin-offs,but none of them was as popular as "The Jeffersons",that became the longest-running of all of the spin-offs that were associated with "All In The Family". One of the reasons why "The Jeffersons" was so successful and wildly popular and one of the great highlights of the show was the wise-cracking maid Florence Johnston,who constantly engaged in disputed battle of wits with her employer George Jefferson,in which Florence always had the upper hand with Mr.Jefferson every time. In this short-lived sitcom that was a spin-off to "The Jeffersons",titled "Checking In",Marla Gibbs' character of Florence Johnston quits her job as the Jeffersons' housekeeper for an executive position at a push Manhattan hotel. The series within itself was very funny and outlandishly hilarious(mostly having Marla Gibbs' character coming up with the wise-cracks and one-liner insults)while having a battle of wits with the owner of the hotel (Larry Linville who was basically in another Frank Burns role that he established on M*A*S*H).

"Checking In" didn't last very long on the CBS schedule since the show lasted no more than four episodes when the network put the show opposite ABC's "Mork and Mindy" which clobbered it in the ratings. I do remember this show coming on after another short-lived series titled "Park Place" which suffered the same fate as this show. "Checking In" provided two brilliant comedic actors(Marla Gibbs and Larry Linville)not to mention some decent writing to boot would have gotten this show to some great places and almost have the notion to last longer on the air. It wasn't a surprise when Gibbs' character went back to her former employer,not to mention CBS dropped it after no more than four episodes from April 9,1981 until April 30,1981. It was a surprise the following season when it was replaced by the action-adventure crime drama series "Mangum P.I." that CBS put onto its Thursday night schedule for the rest of the 1981-1982 season.

I remember when the network gave Marla Gibbs her own show as Florence Johnston who worked in a posh hotel with Ruth Brown and Liz Torres in the housekeeping department. Of course, Marla was much better on The JEffersons and when the show got canceled that Marla was welcome back on the Jeffersons. it proved how much she meant to the cast as wisecracking sidekick to Isabel Sanford and Sherman Hemsley as the Jeffersons in their upscale New York City apartment. Of course, the show never lasted long even with Marla Gibbs as Florence Johnston in her own series. Fortunately, she had gained sitcom stardom on 227 playing straight to Jackee's character. As Florence Johnston, Marla Gibbs was outstanding as the maid that you just love to hate and learn to love at the same time. Florence was never more truthful, honest, or kinder than when she was the with the Jeffersons. Thank God, the show did get canceled and we got Flo back.

Now i know it's a spinoff of the jeffersons, but this is one of the worst spinoffs and tv shows i've ever seen, marla gibbs and larry linville are wasted in this one, the rest of them actors look bore, it's a story about florence johnson taking over an executive housekeeping job at the St. Frederick Hotel in new york city

the gags are not special at all, the teleplay is a boring mess and the rest is just unfunny, thankfully marla gibbs made better success 4 years after this drab was cancelled with the great 227, this should be in the dumps somewhere, is like marla gibbs character said, the hotel has been burned down and for me, so is this show.

In this Jeffersons spin off and Marla Gibbs vehicle, this was a show that could've been good, but it wasn't.

It had a good start and cast with Marla Gibbs as the same wise-cracking Florence Johnston and Larry Linville as Lyle Block; A cross between George Jefferson and a somewhat mellow Frank Burns. The two played well off each other; The problem was, both had very little to work with. The lines hey recited ranged to mediocre at best to bad. One that sticks out was in the pilot, where Lyle Block (Linville) says to Florence (Gibbs), "so in other words, tough noogies", which Florence responds by saying, "isn't it time for you to watch the Muppet Show??" That produced a lot of laughs in the beginning, however, the problem was that was probably the best line uttered on the show; It was repeated on every episode and hearing it got old very quickly.

With two brilliant comedic actors in Gibbs and Linville and some decent writing this show could've gone places, but it didn't have that and it wasn't a surprise when CBS dropped it after 4 episodes.

This spin-off of The Jeffersons came out about 8 years before Marla Gibbs' second series, "227." I remember watching Checking In in the early 80s and even remember the theme song. It was funny and entertaining. There was one episode that was actually sort of scary, involving a flute-playing ghost that haunted one of the rooms in the old hotel. I would like to see this forgotten TV show resurrected on TV Land or Nick at Night, or maybe a special DVD release. Other lost, short-lived classics of the late 70s/early 80s I'd like to see--"It's a Living," about the friends who worked on top of the Bonaventure Hotel in downtown LA; "All's Fair," with Bernadette Peters; "On Our Own," with Bess Armstrong; "Best of the West," an amusing big budget comedy/western series. Sometimes the best, and most intelligent, TV shows never get a chance!