Of all the Christmas episodes “The Jeffersons” aired, this one has always been my favorite. Because I couldn’t find any place online showing the entire episode, the bulk of what I’m posting here is from memory. Good thing I have seen this episode several times over the years.

Tom Willis is scheduled to play Santa Claus for some orphans at the Help Center. Unfortunately, Tom has sprained his ankle and can’t do it. So guess who gets coerced into playing Santa by Louise and Helen? George. Of course.

So George and Louise arrive at the Help Center, George dressed haphazardly as Santa, carrying a sack and yelling “Ha, ha, ha” instead of “Ho, ho, ho”. The kids just stare at him and George seems bewildered.

One kid calls George out: Hey, man, you ain’t Santa Claus!

George: See, I told you it wouldn’t work, Weezy. Bye!

Louise steps in and asks the boy, “What makes you think this isn’t Santa Claus”.

To which the child replies, “’Cause Santa Claus ain’t Black, he’s White”.

George replies, “What makes you think Santa Claus is a honky?”

The kid continues saying he’s six years old, he’s lived and he ain’t never seen a Black Santa Claus. The kid does have a point.

Billy, one of the older kids, played by Meeno Peluce, pipes in: “Look, it doesn’t matter what color Santa Claus is. ‘Cause there ain’t no such thing as Santa Claus.”

To which George says “Say what?”

Billy continues, “Hey, man, don’t jive these kids”. He turns to his peers. “Look, every year some jerk in a red suit comes here, tries to pass himself off as Santa Claus. We tell him what we want, he writes it down and we end up getting stuff that other people donate. We never get what we really want. Right?”

George: “Hey, wait a second. Were those other guys White guys?

Billy: “Yeah”.

George: “Well, there you go!”

George goes on to say that he will give the kids what they want and he will be there personally on Christmas Eve to deliver it. All the kids cheer except Billy.

George and Louise start noting what each kid would like and the kid who originally doubted him, Mark, now thinks Santa is “alright”, as he and Santa George share a handshake.

As the children leave, Santa thanks them and then notices Billy sitting alone and as Billy gets up to leave he says, “See ya Santa” but George calls him back, asks him his name and mentions that he never told Santa what he’d want for Christmas.

George: “There must be something you really want”

Billy: “Yeah, there’s something I really want but you can’t get it for me.”

But George insists. Anything he wants.

Billy: “Anything I want?”

George: Anything you want.

Billy: You promise?

George: I promise.

Billy: Okay, Santa. Get me parents.

Oh boy.

Not one to break a promise, George is determined to find Billy parents. Mrs. Thompson, who works with the kids, sets up a meeting between Billy and a couple who may be interested in adopting him. But when Mrs. Thompson calls Louise and tells him that the couple felt Billy was too old, Louise has to tell George that the adoption fell through. George suggests he and Louise adopt him and Louise reminds him you don’t adopt someone just to keep a promise, you adopt to be a parent.

Louise tells George she has bought Billy a remote control car but George is upset that he can’t keep his promise and refuses to go with her to the Help Center, which angers Louise. But George just can’t face Billy. He tells Louise to go and to make an excuse for him.

After Louise leaves, Florence lets into George.

Florence: You owe Billy an explanation but instead of facing him yourself, you’re sending your wife down there to do your dirty work. Now we’ve had our differences in the past and I know I’ve called you plenty of names: shorty, big mouth, airhead…but there’s one name I never thought I’d call you, Mr. Jefferson, and that’s coward.

Down at the Help Center, Louise is talking with Mark, the boy who originally dissed Santa. He’s very happy with his robot and comments that Santa got everyone what they wanted. Billy pipes in, “No he didn’t.”

Mark offers to let Billy play with his robot but Billy refuses, saying it’s for kids and so is believing in Santa Claus. Mark calls him out, saying Santa is for real but Billy notes that if he’s for real, how come he isn’t there right now like he promised. And Mark asks Louise why and she tells him because he had to change the bulb in Rudolph’s nose. Then, just as Louise is about to explain further to Billy why Santa isn’t there, in walks George dressed as Santa.

Mark points out to Santa that he made a mistake because he didn’t get Billy what he wanted. Which makes George feel guilty all over again. Santa goes over to Billy to talk to him and tells him that although he tried, he couldn’t get any parents for him.

As they talk Mark comes over to him with his robot and tells him it doesn’t work. And Santa points out to him that it looks like he already has a family, that all the younger kids look up to him. George tells him that a family is really a bunch of people living together who care about each other. A little girl comes over with her broken doll and asks Santa if he can fix it. Billy offers to fix it.

Then he turns to Santa and says, “It was nice talking to you. I got a family to take care of.”