Maude

The first episode of the series was the pilot television movie titled “Maude”. The show was created by Norman Lear and was based on the British sitcom “Till Death Us Do Part” and aired from September 12, 1972 to April 23, 1978 with a total of 6 seasons and 141 episodes.

The show received good ratings and had a loyal fan base, but later in its run it faced competition in the ratings from “Laverne & Shirley”, another popular US sitcom.

The show stars Beatrice Arthur as Maude Findlay and Bill Macy as her husband, Walter Findlay. It was a spin-off of All in the Family, which featured Edith Bunker (Archie Bunker’s wife) telling her cousin about her cousin living in New York named Maude Findlay.

Both leads were nominated for Emmy Awards, but neither won. Maude herself was nominated for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy.

The comedy series was not without controversy due to its strong liberal views, tackling social issues such as abortion, alcoholism, women’s rights and euthanasia. All of these topics were considered taboo at the time.

The theme song to the series is “And Then There’s Maude” performed by Donny Hathaway.

Lyrics

Lady Godiva was a freedom rider
She didn’t care if the whole world looked
Joan of Arc with the Lord to guide her
She was a sister who really cooked
Isadora was the first bra burner
Ain’t ya glad she showed up Oh yeah
And when the country was fallin apart
Betsy Ross got it all sewed up

And then there’s Maude
And then there’s Maude
And then there’s Maude
And then there’s Maude
And then there’s Maude
And then there’s Maude
And then there’s..