Mama's Family
Character Actor Years character rank Description
Vinton Harper Ken Berry 1983-1984 1986-1990 Regular character The youngest of Thelma 's three children . Dopey , buffoonish , and accident prone , Vint regularly makes a fool out of himself , particularly when he attempts to be assertive or knowledgeable . Vinton is a nice guy and he is very childish . Works at Kwik Keys as a locksmith . Vinton was color-coded in tan in a short-sleeved button-down shirt and pants
Naomi Oates Harper Dorothy Lyman 1983-1984 1986-1990 Regular character Vinton 's lascivious , demonstrative , and maritally flirtatious second wife , who is often at odds with Thelma over his loyalty , also in part for her salaciousness . Naomi works as a checker ( later becoming the assistant manager ) at Food Circus , a local supermarket . Vinton 's nickname for her is Skeeter while Mama 's nickname for her is tramp . While Naomi had straight hair in the first life of the sitcom , she had curls by the show 's second life . Naomi was color-coded in yellow-colored , off-the-shoulder or strapless dresses , which Thelma often referred to as gaudy
Vinton Buzz Harper , Jr Eric Brown 1983-1984 Regular character Vint 's teenage son with his first wife , Mitzi . Buzz is very cheerful , spirited , patient , and obliging . Buzz was last mentioned in Farewell Frannie
Sonja Harper Karin Argoud 1983-1984 Regular character Vint 's teenage daughter with his first wife , Mitzi . Sonja starts out moody , whiny , lazy , and rather oblivious , but later becomes interested in boys and blossoms into a young lady interested in civic affairs . Like her brother , she later moved out , presumably going off to college . She was also crowned Miss Rayteen 1984 during the second season of the show 's run . Sonja was last mentioned in Farewell Frannie
Ellen Harper-Jackson Betty White 1983-1984 1986 Recurring character The eldest of Thelma 's three children . Ellen is a pretentious social elitist who avoids fraternizing with the rest of the family unless it suits her purpose . Her birthday is June 30
Eunice Harper Higgins Carol Burnett 1983-1984 Recurring character The second of Thelma 's three children . Seemingly never changing her outfit and always layered in tattered green rags , Eunice is tempestuous , antagonistic , and quarrelsome , constantly bickering with everyone in the family ( especially her mother ) . Her birthday is December 19
Ed Higgins Harvey Korman 1983-1984 Recurring character Eunice 's mild-mannered , browbeaten husband . The Ed character was toned down from his appearances in The Family sketches , formerly a fiercely ill-tempered man that had no qualms with regularly quarreling with his mother-in-law and Eunice , at one point permanently leaving Eunice . In Mama 's Family , however , the two remained married
Bubba Higgins Allan Kayser 1986-1990 Regular character Ed and Eunice 's teenage son who is forced to live with Thelma upon being released from juvenile hall , after his parents had moved to Florida . Although initially depicted as a frisky , hyperactive , and eccentric teen with a penchant for playing instruments along with friends Dwayne and T-Boy , he over time evolved into a calm , mature , and commonsensical teen , though still with a robust interest in the opposite sex . The character always wore extremely tight-fitting jeans and in the early going suspenders as well . This later progressed into tight-fitting jeans and conservative sweatshirts . Bubba was color-coded in green
Frances Marie Crowley Rue McClanahan 1983-1984 Regular character Thelma 's younger uncomfortable and uptight spinster sister . Works as a newspaper reporter and free-lance writer . She later died by choking on a toothpick at the Bigger Jigger . McClanahan was unhappy with the role
Iola Lucille Boylen Beverly Archer 1986-1990 Regular character The Harpers well-meaning but obnoxious , nice , chipper , quirky , and prissy neighbor . She is a spinster like Thelma 's sister Frannie . Among her quirks , she constantly bestows the family with peculiar handicraft items , predominately wears pink , and calls knock knock upon her every entrance into Thelma 's home . During her first appearances on the show , a running gag existed that saw her having loopy temper tantrums at odd intervals , described as spells . She lives with her overbearing and aging parents , whom she seeks to escape by spending as much time at Thelma 's home as possible . Iola is best friends with Thelma ( her only friend ) . In her first couple of seasons , she was secretly infatuated with Vint ; the two had known each other since their youth , which caused her and Naomi to have an adversarial relationship . Iola was color-coded in pink , usually gingham , shirtwaist dresses
Cast and characters -- Family members and friends
See also : List of Mama 's Family characters
Mama's Family is an American television sitcom starring Vicki Lawrence as Thelma Harper (Mama). The series is a spin-off of a recurring series of comedy sketches called The Family featured on The Carol Burnett Show (1974-78) and Carol Burnett & Company (1979). The sketches led to the made-for-TV movie Eunice, and finally the television series. The show's theme song is Bless My Happy Home by Peter Matz (music) and Vicki Lawrence (lyrics). The show's producers chose to use an instrumental version. Mama's Family originally aired on NBC, debuting on January 22, 1983. After several timeslot changes and a subsequent drop in ratings, the network canceled the series after two seasons; the final episode from this two-season era of the series aired on April 7, 1984. NBC broadcast reruns until September 1985. Two years after its cancellation, original series producer Joe Hamilton Productions (JHP) revived Mama's Family for new episodes in first-run syndication on local stations across the United States. The modified revival, produced by JHP and distributed by Lorimar-Telepictures, premiered on September 27, 1986. The modified series revival garnered substantially higher ratings than its original version, eventually becoming the highest-rated sitcom in first-run syndication. The revived run lasted four seasons and did not end by cancellation, but rather voluntarily on February 24, 1990.