23 episodes · 26th August 1996
College professor Franklin Goode is living the good life: his long-awaited ""study"" is almost complete, and he's on the short list for the position of Dean of Humanities at his university. But when the delivery at his door turns out to be his newly-paroled father, Willie, instead of his new desk, things immediately take a comic turn. Willie conspires to win his son the coveted new title and become a permanent member of the household. Will previously estranged father and son grow to become a family?
When Franklin finally realizes his dream of being included in Chancellor Willoughby's weekly card game, Willie seizes the opportunity to do the kind of father/son bonding he regrets not doing when Franklin was a child - he teaches his son to play poker
When Willie takes a job at the TV station where Barbara, his daughter-in-law, is an anchor, it's not long before his expertise as a con man puts him in front of the camera as the stations new consumer advocate. Franklin is thrilled that his father has found a way to use his ""talents"" for good, until the bribes start arriving. To keep the popular new consumer advocate off their backs, businesses will do just about anything - including installing a swimming pool in the Goode's backyard. But Willie's days as an on-air personality may be numbered.
When Franklin convinces Willie to attend therapy sessions to help cure his need for running schemes, Willie devises a plan to run a pyramid scheme out of the therapy sessions and everybody joins in. When Franklin finds out about the plan, he is infuriated and tries to break up the sessions, but with surprising results.
As a dodge to keep from getting sent back to prison, and to keep from having to get a job, Willie enrolls into school in his son's Anthropology class. Meanwhile, Bianca hatches a scheme to sell term papers.
Just before Valentine's Day, Willie develops a crush on a colleague of Franklin's, Dr. Pamela Fordham. Bianca (Bianca Lawson, left) and ""Moesha's"" Countess Vaughn (center) try to offer advice, but to no avail. When Franklin fixes the woman up with another academic, a lovesick Willie decides to pick-up his spirits at Mr. Bobo's Girlie Hut. While there, he asks one of the strippers to be his date at Franklin annd Barbara's Valentine's Day party, but the stripper mistakes Willie's invitation for a job offer.
Willie's helpers at his restaurant all decide to leave, so Willie finally decides to hire someone. He hires the wise talking Raquel, just as he mistakes a food critic for a bum & throws him out. An old prison buddy, Jimmy the Brain, talks Willie into a scheme to sell hair growth tonic.
Wild Orchid (Stefanie Ridel, Renee Sandstrom, & Stacy Ferguson) guest as a trio that Willie ""discovers"" when he decides to audition acts to perk up business as Willie's Chili. Tone Loc, appearing as himself, is the record executive Willie hopes will sign the act and propel them all to fame and fortune.
Willie devises a plan to bring in extra revenue into his new restaurant by claiming to be an indian decendant, and using reservation status, bring in casino equipment with slots & gambling. Barbara gets bitten by the gambling bug.
In this final series episode, the bank threatens to foreclose on Willie's Chilli restaurant, so Willie cooks up a scheme to come up with some money so the bank won't foreclose.
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