Sanford and Son Was Even More Interesting Behind The Scenes

Demond Wilson Is an Ordained Minister

After Demond Wilson’s breakout role as Lamont Sanford, he starred in the short lived CBS comedy Baby I’m Back, and in the ABC sitcom The New Odd Couple. He’s made a few TV appearances since. However, Wilson left most acting jobs behind to pursue a higher calling.

In 1984 Demond Wilson became an ordained minister, fulfilling a childhood vow he took after his appendix ruptured and almost killed him at age 13. Since becoming ordained, Wilson has focused on religious projects. He’s written several Christian books. In addition to his Christian books, he wrote a memoir that reveals some shocking things that happened on set.

Wilson’s Memoir Reveals Shocking Treatment

Demond Wilson released a memoir called Second Banana: The Bitter Sweet Memoir of the Sanford & Sons Years in 2009. The memoir isn’t meant to be a tell-all or get-even memoir, but Wilson does reveal the truth about how he and Redd Foxx were treated at NBC.

“We were breaking ground, we were making history, [but] when we first came to NBC, we didn’t even have dressing rooms, except on a shoot day,” he wrote. “We were dressing in the men’s room When our first show aired… [the ratings] went through the ceiling and then Redd and I started dealing with them like men. Redd and I were making history and they tried to deal with us like we were third-class field hands.”