Amen (1986)
Amen is an American television sitcom produced by Carson Productions that ran from September 27, 1986 to May 11, 1991 on NBC. Set in Sherman Hemsley's real-life hometown of Philadelphia, Amen stars Hemsley as the deacon of a church and was part of a wave of successful sitcoms on NBC in the 1980s which featured entirely or almost-entirely black casts. Others included The Cosby Show, A Different World, and 227.
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Episode 1 - Fear of Flying
Release Date: 1988-10-08While stuck on a discount flight to the Bahamas, with the gang, Thelma has to overcome her extreme phobia of flying. Little does she know that the pilot has turned green from eating a tuna sandwich, and is out cold. Who will fly the plane? Who will land the plane before they run out of fuel? Will Thelma's worst fears be realized? Will the Reverend be able to say anything to Thelma to make her not afraid?
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Episode 2 - Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?
Release Date: 1988-10-22Frye pushes Thelma to give Reuben an ultimatum.
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Episode 3 - Look at Me, I'm Running
Release Date: 1988-10-29Frye campaigns against an imprisoned state senator.
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Episode 4 - Court of Love
Release Date: 1988-11-05The Deacon can't keep his mind on church business when a comely legal assistant (Loretta Divine) is brought in by Rev Gregory to assist him on an insurance case. The church needs to win the court case against the insurance company in order to get a new boiler for heat in the church, during the coldest winter on record. The Deacon is so completely smitten by his new assistant that he may be in danger of losing the case.
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Episode 5 - Get 'Em Up, Scout
Release Date: 1988-11-12To get a recommendation from the church board, the Deacon has to take a scout troop on a camping trip.
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Episode 6 - The Minister's Wife
Release Date: 1988-11-19Thelma tries to snare Rev. Gregory in matrimony, but the lavish church banquet she arranges to lure him turns into a washout thanks to the Deacon's faulty plumbing repairs.
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Episode 7 - The Housekeeper
Release Date: 1988-11-26Thelma moves in with Rev. Gregory, creating a church scandal that threatens to defrock the minister.
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Episode 8 - Thelma's Handyman
Release Date: 1988-12-03Thelma, at age 34, finds herself in a situation where she has to dissuade a 19-year-old admirer from chasing after her. And because everyone thinks they are having an affair, she tries to halt rumors linking her to the young handyman. The scandalous rumors have not set well with the Reverend, or the young man's girlfriend.
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Episode 9 - The Deacon's Donkey
Release Date: 1988-12-10The animals in the congregation's live Nativity scene include a goat that sends Rev. Gregory up a tree and an ailing donkey that finds a place in the Deacon's heart.
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Episode 10 - Matchmaker, Matchmaker
Release Date: 1989-01-07A rich widower is willing to make a substantial donation to the church, if the Deacon can match him up with a devout woman to be his bride. When the deacon invites him to a social at his house to introduce him to the eligible women in the church, he spots Thelma, and decides she is the one for him.
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Episode 11 - I Remember Mama
Release Date: 1989-01-14Certain he is dying, Deacon Frye begins to reminisce about the love he had for Thelma's mother, and how she used to take care of him. He begins to tell Thelma about her late mother, about the day Thelma was brought home from the hospital, and about the day he had to tell her that her mother had died.
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Episode 12 - The Reverend Ernest Frye
Release Date: 1989-01-28Thelma cares for Rev. Gregory, who's felled by the measles, and copes with the Deacon, who has appointed himself the new minister.
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Episode 13 - The Green Card
Release Date: 1989-02-04The Deacon's Swedish housekeeper will be deported unless she finds an American citizen willing to marry her. When her husband-to-be drops out at the last minute, Deacon Frye volunteers to stage a marriage ceremony to fool immigration.
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Episode 14 - The Psychic (1)
Release Date: 1989-02-11The Deacon and Thelma seek advice from a client whose psychic powers came from a bump on the head.
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Episode 15 - The Psychic (2)
Release Date: 1989-02-18Rev. Gregory looks for a way to convince Thelma that Tanya's prediction is bunk, while Thelma goes on an eating binge and Tanya dons a wedding gown. (Part 2 of 2)
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Episode 16 - The Boxer
Release Date: 1989-02-25The congregation thinks the Deacon must be punch-drunk for agreeing to manage boxer Windmill Pearson—until Windmill gets into the ring with a contender.
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Episode 17 - Nothing But the Truth
Release Date: 1989-03-04Rev. Gregory's mother comes to town for a visit, and is smitten by the deacon's charms. So much so, that they get caught in a compromising situation with her taking the deacon's pants off. On the other hand, she disapproves of Thelma because of her large bone structure.
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Episode 18 - Career Girl
Release Date: 1989-03-18Tired of waiting for Rev. Gregory to marry her, Thelma decides to embark on a marketing career.
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Episode 19 - First Community Talent Show
Release Date: 1989-04-01Church members perform in a charity show. Songs include ""Triplets,"" ""Sonny Boy,"" ""I Remember It Well,"" ""Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,"" ""Livin' in America,"" and ""Amen."" Easter Seals poster child Joy Hall appears.
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Episode 20 - The Last Supper
Release Date: 1989-04-08While trying to cook a fancy dinner to impress the head of the church council, Thelma refuses the help of the Hetebrink sisters and decides to cook the meal by herself. After she feeds some of her food to the neighbor's pet hamster, and it dies, Thelma fears she served the church board poisoned food, and they all must rush to the hospital.
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Episode 21 - Sing, Sister, Sing
Release Date: 1989-04-15A record producer wants to make a star out of Amelia, so the Deacon appoints himself her manager and books her in a club, so the producer can hear her sing. But not being an experienced manager, deacon Frye never checked out the kind of club he booked her into. It turns out the club is a dive that features strippers and women mud wrestlers.
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Episode 22 - A Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Waste
Release Date: 1989-04-22The Reverend, Dea Frye, and Rollie try to talk a young man into going to college, and try to give him examples of what their lives would have been like had they not gone to college themselves.