The PJs

The PJs
Title card
Genre	Situation comedy
Format	Stop-motion
Created by	Eddie Murphy Larry Wilmore Steve Tompkins
Developed by	Fox Studios
Voices of	Eddie Murphy Loretta Devine Ja'net Dubois Kevin Michael Richardson Jenifer Lewis Pepe Serna Michele Morgan
Theme music composer	George Clinton Quincy Jones III
Composer(s)	Setup
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	43 (List of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)	Eddie Murphy Will Vinton Ron Howard Brian Grazer
Running time	22–24 minutes
Production company(s)	Imagine Television Touchstone Television (1999-2001, 2001 2 episodes) Eddie Murphy Productions Will Vinton Studios Warner Bros. Television (2001) Charged Productions (2000-2001)
Broadcast
Original channel	Fox (1999–2000) The WB (2000–2001)
Picture format	4:3 SDTV
Original run	January 10, 1999 (1999-01-10) – July 1, 2001 (2001-07-01)

The PJs is an American stop-motion animated television series, created by Eddie Murphy, Larry Wilmore, and Steve Tompkins. It portrayed life in an urban public housing project, modeled after the Brewster-Douglass housing projects in Detroit that once housed Diana Ross and Lily Tomlin. The series starred Eddie Murphy, and was produced by Imagine Entertainment by Ron Howard and Brian Grazer, The Murphy Company & Will Vinton Studios in association with Touchstone Television (seasons 1 and 2) and Warner Bros. Television (season 3 only).

The original run of the series debuted on Fox on Sunday, January 10, 1999 in the time slot, following a divisional conference football playoff game. Two days later, the second episode aired in its regular Tuesday night time slot, following King of the Hill.

Summary

43 episodes aired during the show's 3-year run. Each took over 2 months to produce, owing to the laborious stop-motion process. After 2 seasons on Fox, the show moved to The WB in 2000. Its high budget and declining ratings led to its cancellation in 2001; the final 2 episodes weren't aired until 2003. The show aired in syndication for a time on Trio and Cartoon Network's Adult Swim, and now can be seen on TV One.

The PJs won 3 Emmy Awards and one Annie Award during its run. Some social activists (including director Spike Lee) accused the show of depicting negative racial stereotypes of life in the projects. Quincy Jones' son QD3, along with George Clinton, produced the theme music for the show.

Characters

Main characters

• Thurgood Orenthal Stubbs (also known as The Super or simply Super) (Eddie Murphy) - the superintendent of the Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs projects and the main protagonist. Thurgood is short-tempered, impatient, not very bright, and suffers from a variety of health issues. He wears a white short-sleeved shirt, blue overalls, and brown shoes. He also has salt and pepper hair, which changed from an afro to its current style following a dance accident the day he and Muriel were married. Thurgood is terrified of black rats, as revealed in "Fear of a Black Rat." Much of the show's humor is derived from Thurgood's unwillingness to repair the dilapidated projects or deal with the many frustrations of leading a community of the urban poor. Despite his laughably poor education, he is shown to be kind and a natural leader when the situation calls for it. His diet is another source of humor, as he prefers fried foods, red meat, and Forties. Thurgood throughout the series has used a variety of interjections in reference to African-American icons. Such interjections are "What on Eartha Kitt?", or "Mother Marion Barry!".
• Muriel Stubbs (née Warren) (Loretta Devine) - Thurgood's wife and the voice of reason. She wears a pink sweatsuit with the word "Paris" on it (which she got on a trip to Paris with Don King) and light pink shoes. Muriel has a sister named Bebe Ho who is married to another tenant. Muriel and Bebe were likely raised in Alabama during the era of school desegregation, as evidenced by Muriel's having met her state's governor when she attended an all-white high school. However, Muriel attests that the only reason she got to meet the governor was because he was blocking the school door.

Other main characters

• Florence Normandy Avery (Mrs. Avery) (Ja'net Dubois) - a senior citizen who antagonizes Thurgood throughout the series. She, like the other tenants, hates him with a passion because he never fixes her run-down apartment. A retired con artist, Mrs. Avery often tells random and inappropriate stories of her past as a grifter. She suffers from numerous ailments and has had multiple strokes. She keeps a loaded shotgun with her named "Mrs. Jones", which she used to shoot Thurgood, the garbage man, the mailman, a helicopter, as well as using it as a general threat to get her way. She also has a dog named Lucky who was originally a stray and given to her by Thurgood to get out of taking care of her after he caused her to fall down an elevator shaft. It was later revealed she had not become impaired by this fall, but was lonely and seeking companionship.

Portrait of most of the major characters

• Calvin Banks (Crystal Scales) and "Juicy" Hudson (Michele Morgan) - two children, who are best friends and idolize Thurgood. Calvin is a thin and intelligent boy, while "Juicy" is overweight and slow-witted. Juicy's parents are morbidly obese shut-ins, leaving Calvin and Thurgood as a surrogate family. He is often made to wear a sign stating "Do Not Feed" when he leaves his apartment. In late episodes they are rival admirers of Sharique.
• "Smokey" (Shawn Michael Howard) - a homeless crackhead, whose antics often anger Thurgood. His real name is Elister, but was referred to as "Mr. Crackhead" and "Mr. Crack" in the first 3 episodes of the series. In one episode, it is revealed that "Smokey" used to train fighting rats under the name, "Ratman Crothers". He is often insulted with the phrase, "You damn stupid crackhead!" by Thurgood. (This phrase results in a stand-up comedy act with Smokey and Thurgood in one episode) "Smokey" later quits drug use by season 3, but is still homeless. Despite his homelessness, as well as his tendency to steal from tenants whenever possible, Smokey is considered a part of the projects community by most residents.
• Jimmy Ho (Michael Paul Chan) - a Korean tenant, who considers himself part of the African-American community. He is married to Bebe, making him Thurgood's brother-in-law. Jimmy frequently uses urban or "ghetto" phrases (colloquialisms) when he speaks, and also speaks of himself as a black person, much to Thurgood's frustration.
• Bebe Ho (née Warren) (Jenifer Lewis) - Muriel's loud and obnoxious sister. She extremely dislikes Thurgood, and has a jealous feud with Muriel. Bebe appears to have had an active dating/sex life, having slept with most of her high school teachers and an exotic dancer the night before her wedding. Jimmy Ho is her fifth husband.
• (Mambo) Garcelle Dupree aka "Haiti Lady" (Cheryl Francis Harrington) - She is the resident Voodoo queen of the Hilton-Jacobs Projects and a Haitian immigrant. Her powers, though highly potent and proven in the episode, "U Go Cart", are rarely seen in action. She often incurs Thurgood's anger for regularly clogging her toilet with paper towels. He is generally unfazed by the animal parts and voodoo accessories she flushes with the paper towels, however.
• Emilio Sanchez (or just simply known as Sanchez) (Pepe Serna) - Thurgood's luckless Cuban friend. He speaks with an electrolarynx because of years of smoking, but it was implied in the episode "Haiti Sings the Blues" that Haiti Lady may have used her voodoo powers to cause that. He once wanted to become an Opera singer. He often expresses sadness over his dead wife, Esperansa. Sanchez wears a blue and white trucker hat with "Nevada" written on the front, which he actually bought in California.

Recurring characters

• Walter Burkett (Marc Wilmore) - the neighborhood parole officer with a past as a crooked cop. His past is regularly alluded to, as many people around the projects owe him favors or are subject to his blackmail. In the Christmas episode, "How the Super Stole Christmas," Walter arrested a thug for stealing an old woman's purse, but kept the thug locked in his trunk rather than call the police. He also once helped Thurgood get into prison for free dental care, and is shown to be willing (and able) to blackmail judges and business owners. He is also portrayed in many episodes (such as "Haiti and the Tramp") to be a sexual deviant, most likely a result from admitting to growing up in a whore house (revealed in "Bougie Nights")
• Tarnell (James R. Black) - the local street corner hustler, who Thurgood usually turns to when he needs something unusual. He speaks almost entirely in street slang, which Thurgood usually misunderstands, leading to Tarnell delivering the wrong items.
• Rasta Man (Kevin Michael Richardson) - A Jamaican resident and a stereotype of a marijuana smoker. He is seen in early episodes as a walking smoke cloud, and then absent from most later episodes.
• Papa Hudson and Mama Hudson - Juicy's parents. They are morbidly obese and confined to their apartment. Because Papa Hudson is so fat, we usually only see his arm and stomach through his door or window. In the episode "Bougie Nights," Poppa's face is shown for the first time. In the episode "What's Eating Juicy Hudson?", Papa leaves the apartment for the first time. In the episode "Boyz N the Woods", Papa is confirmed to weigh more than half a ton. Because of the Hudsons' obesity, Juicy is tasked with performing most household functions for the family.
• HUD Lady (Cassi Davis) - is the receptionist at HUD, always seen through frosted glass, who always refuses to give Thurgood what he wants. Despite her unwillingness to help Thurgood do his job, she is surprisingly friendly to Muriel and is willing to grant Thurgood's requests after hearing them from Muriel. Her trademark phrase is "Next!," which she yells at the end of most sentences directed at Thurgood. Her son's name is Chevron, her sister's name is Latrine, and her daughter's name is Lasagna. She represents the stereotype of faceless, underfunded and uncaring bureaucracy upon which HUD residents depend for supplies and guidance.
• Sharique (Wanda Christine) - in late episodes, a beautiful teen runaway who comes to the projects after her uptown parents are jailed for investment fraud. Beloved by Calvin and Juicy, she moves in with Mrs. Avery.
• Babs and De-Shawn (N/A) - Babs and De-Shawn are also addicted to Crack and living on the streets like Smokey. Even though whenever Babs speaks, it always seems to be sound like an animal screaming, but Smokey is the only one that can understand her. Bab's is also portrayed as a hooker (in "He's Gotta Have It" Smokey announces to Bab's she has a customer when Thurgood brings up sex). De-Shawn never speaks and is usually seen with Babs and Smokey. Smokey also mentioned that De-Shawn has Tuberculosis in "U Go Kart" and has a diet of rats in "Fear of a Black Rat". Also, whenever Smokey forgets to say something, either Babs or De-Shawn whisper to him what to say (seen in "U Go Kart", and "Let's Get Ready to Rumba").
• Nula - a girl that probably is Calvin and Juicy's classmate which Juicy has a crush on (although Nula doesn't approve of his crush on her)
• Lucky - Mrs. Avery's beloved pet dog that is seen in a lot of episodes. He got his name from being shot three times by Mrs. Avery's shotgun, one time because Thurgood let him in, and then two more times to be sure he is lucky. Lucky is probably the only person that Mrs. Avery shows constant affection and love to.

Note: Because of a rumored dispute between Eddie Murphy and the Fox network (apparently over unfavorable scheduling of the show), Mark Moseley (an impressionist known as Eddie Murphy's voice double; Moseley can be heard scattered throughout almost PJ's episodes covering re-written Thurgood dialogue that time did not allow Murphy to re-record) and Phil Morris took over the role of Thurgood in several late episodes.^{[citation needed]} Some sources indicate that Murphy was actually busy on a movie role at the time.^{[citation needed]}

Locations

• Thurgood and Muriel's Apartment - A below street-level apartment near the front of the building.
• Front of the Building and Courtyard - Most outdoor scenes take place here. Thurgood and Sanchez occasionally play chess at the table in the corner of the courtyard.
• Boiler Room - The room where Thurgood comes to plan ideas or relax with a Forty and his collection of Jet Magazines. It was briefly a beauty salon for Muriel and Bebe in "Weave's Have a Dream." In one episode, it also features a nuclear reactor that powers the projects.
• The Roof - A variety of events and activities take place here, including the community garden (as seen in "Haiti Sings The Blues") and a gumbo cookoff in "Operation Gumbo Drop."
• Street Corner - This is where Thurgood usually meets Tarnell and gets the items he's after.
• HUD Building - This is where Thurgood comes to get equipment for the building. The front sign features a number of cynical HUD "slogans" that change in each episode.

Episodes

Season 1 (Fox): 1999

No. in series	Title	Original airdate	Production code
01	"Hangin' with Mr. Super"	January 10, 1999 (1999-01-10)	PJ-103
Calvin decides that he wants to be just like Thurgood. But after getting yelled at by Calvin's parents over the phone, Thurgood must change Calvin's mind, and in turn remind himself of how great he is.
02	"Bones, Bugs and Harmony"	January 12, 1999 (1999-01-12)	PJ-107
Thurgood assumes the worst when he finds Mrs. Avery eating dog food.
03	"The Door"	January 19, 1999 (1999-01-19)	PJ-101
Thurgood gets a thug-away door from HUD but is soon stolen by a gang.
04	"Journal Fever"	January 26, 1999 (1999-01-26)	PJ-104
Thurgood decides to take care of Muriel when she gets the flu.
05	"Rich Man, Porn Man"	February 2, 1999 (1999-02-02)	PJ-102
When Thurgood stumbles across an old movie theater, He calls on the help of his tenants to fix it. But he ends up making it a porno theater after accidentally bringing in a dirty movie on opening night.
06	"Bougie Nights"	February 9, 1999 (1999-02-09)	PJ-105
Thurgood discovers a secret penthouse apartment after trying to find the source of a leak and moves into it, making everyone around him think that Thurgood has gone "bougie".
07	"A Hero Ain't Nothing But A Super"	February 16, 1999 (1999-02-16)	PJ-108
When the Stubbs get robbed, Muriel comes to the rescue and catches the burglar. But Muriel becomes jealous that Thurgood gets all the credit.
08	"He's Gotta Have It"	February 23, 1999 (1999-02-23)	PJ-109
Thurgood's libido increases when he takes a prescription drug to stabilize his blood pressure.
09	"Boyz' N The Woods"	April 6, 1999 (1999-04-06)	PJ-110
When Thurgood is too late to sign Juicy and Calvin up for a camping trip, he decides that he could give them a better camping trip.
10	"Operation Gumbo Drop"	April 13, 1999 (1999-04-13)	PJ-111
When Thurgood enters a gumbo cooking contest, Juicy reveals his secret recipe and Thurgood decides to sabotage Juicy's gumbo in order to win the contest.
11	"U Go Kart"	May 4, 1999 (1999-05-04)	PJ-112
Thurgood builds the boys a go-kart which mysteriously disappears.
12	"House Potty"	May 11, 1999 (1999-05-11)	PJ-113
Thurgood decides to renovate the housing project, but not by fixing the problems the tenants have, but by adding a space-age toilet that takes care of his main problem of fixing toilets, and forces him to resign.
13	"Haiti Sings The Blues"	May 18, 1999 (1999-05-18)	PJ-106
Haiti Lady attempts to put a curse on Thurgood which fails, and she must deal with the loss of the tenants respect over her having no voodoo powers.
14	"How The Super Stoled Christmas"	December 17, 1999 (1999-12-17)	PJ-210
When Thurgood can't afford to get Muriel a computer for Christmas, he makes a deal with the owner of the pawn shop to repo the items the other tenants can't make their payments for. Unbeknownst to Thurgood, they were skipping their payments to buy Thurgood a Christmas present.

Season 2: (Fox): 2000

No. in series	Title	Original airdate	Production code
15	"Home School Dazed"	May 30, 2000 (2000-05-30)	PJ-201
Thurgood goes back to school with the boys to get his diploma.
16	"The Postman's Always Shot Twice"	May 30, 2000 (2000-05-30)	PJ-203
Mrs. Avery accidentally shoots at the building's postman and is sent to a nursing home.
17	"The Preacher's Life"	June 6, 2000 (2000-06-06)	PJ-202
Thurgood decides to become a preacher after being shocked while fixing the Church's electrical problems.
18	"The HJs"	June 13, 2000 (2000-06-13)	PJ-205
Thurgood reopens the radio station and he and Smokey suddenly become a comedy team.
19	"Haiti and the Tramp"	June 13, 2000 (2000-06-13)	PJ-204
Haiti Lady and Walter start falling in love, but when Walter announces they're getting married, it's up to Thurgood to stop the wedding.
20	"Smokey the Squatter"	June 27, 2000 (2000-06-27)	PJ-207
He and Smokey end up on the run from the law after Thurgood tries to frame Smokey for theft of his TV.
21	"Weave's Have A Dream"	June 27, 2000 (2000-06-27)	PJ-208
Thurgood sets up a hair salon for Muriel and Bebe.
22	"Let's Get Ready To Crumble"	July 4, 2000 (2000-07-04)	PJ-218
Thurgood wrestles with the Governor when they want to tear down the projects and relocate the tenants.
23	"Who Da Boss"	July 4, 2000 (2000-07-04)	PJ-212
Thurgood is pleased when he finds out that Muriel is going to become his boss, however he gets frustrated when he finds out that she wants to make him work.
24	"Fear Of A Black Rat"	July 11, 2000 (2000-07-11)	PJ-213
Thurgood fights against Don King, Muriel's first husband, in the local rat fights.
25	"Ghetto Superstars"	July 11, 2000 (2000-07-11)	PJ-209
Thurgood becomes the boys' rap star manager.
26	"What's Eating Juicy Hudson?"	July 18, 2000 (2000-07-18)	PJ-215
Juicy rebels against his parents.
27	"Cliffhangin' With Mr. Super"	July 18, 2000 (2000-07-18)	PJ-222
Bebe thinks she's pregnant after unintentionally spending a night with Thurgood.
28	"The Jeffersons"	July 25, 2000 (2000-07-25)	PJ-206
Thurgood runs for political office after finding out that he's related to Thomas Jefferson.
29	"Robbin' HUD"	August 1, 2000 (2000-08-01)	PJ-216
When HUD fails to provide the Hilton Jacobs Projects with a new water filter, Thurgood and his posse resort to burglary and discover a distinct absence of honor among thieves.
30	"The Last Affirmative Action Hero"	August 29, 2000 (2000-08-29)	PJ-214
Thurgood is made responsible for protecting the area's image in the movie.
31	"Parole Officer and a Gentleman"	May 9, 2000 (2000-05-09)	PJ-217
Walter helps Thurgood go to jail to get dental care.

Season 3 (The WB): 2000–2001

No. in series	Title	Original airdate	Production code
32	"Boyz Under The Hood"	August 9, 2000 (2000-08-09)	PJ-219
Calvin is jealous of Juicy knowing more about cars than him.
33	"Scarthroat"	December 31, 2000 (2000-12-31)	PJ-211
Sanchez lords over the distribution of victuals after New Year's Eve brings a power outage and food shortage to the Hilton-Jacobs Projects.
34	"Smoke Gets In Your High-Rise"	April 2, 2001 (2001-04-02)	PJ-301
Thurgood makes a deal to place a cigarette advertisement on the side of the Hilton-Jacobs building in exchange for free air-conditioning.
35	"National Buffoon's European Vacation"	November 2, 2001 (2001-11-02)	PJ-302
Juicy develops a crush on Muriel and starts leaving gifts for her anonymously, but Thurgood claims the gifts are from him.
36	"Cruising For A Bluesing"	June 2, 2001 (2001-18-02)	PJ-303
Thurgood tries to get to a Blues gig, but he gets trapped in on the South South Side.
37	"It Takes A Thurgood"	January 2, 2001 (2001-25-02)	PJ-304
Thurgood discovers a homeless teen named Sharique living in the boiler room.
38	"Miracle Cleaner On 134th Street"	May 4, 2001 (2001-29-04)	PJ-305
Thurgood tells Sharique about a miracle cleaning product he created and how a corporation tried to exploit it.
39	"Survival: In Tha Hood"	June 5, 2001 (2001-06-05)	PJ-306
The projects split into two factions for a televised competition called "Survival: In Tha Hood."
40	"Let's Get Ready To Rumba"	January 5, 2001 (2001-13-05)	PJ-307
Mrs. Avery makes it through a heart attack and decides to enter a dance contest.
41	"A Race To His Credit"	August 5, 2001 (2001-20-05)	PJ-308
Thurgood gets a credit card and, thinking that it's free money, spends it on anything and everything he wants—until he realizes that credit card users have to pay back what they buy.
42	"Red Man's Burden"	Unaired	PJ-221
Jimmy cashes in on his American Indian ancestry when he opens a casino in the projects.
43	"Clip Show"	Unaired	PJ-220
Thurgood talks about his life making the show to an interviewer, with clips from past episodes used to illustrate his points. This episode is done from a lack-of-fourth wall perspective and features a different voice actor for Thurgood.

DVD releases

Lionsgate Home Entertainment has released all 3 seasons on DVD in Region 1.

DVD Name	Ep#	Release Date
The Complete First Season	13	May 3, 2011 (2011-05-03)
The Complete Second Season	18	July 5, 2011 (2011-07-05)
The Complete Third Season	12	October 4, 2011 (2011-10-04)

Soundtrack

Main article: The PJs (soundtrack)

External links

• The PJs at the Internet Movie Database
• The PJs at TV.com
• The PJs at TV One