“Looked at my kingdom, I was finally there/To sit on my throne as the Prince of Bel-Air.”
We all know the opening credits of “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” by heart and it was 25 years ago today (Thursday, September 10) that NBC aired the first episode of the classic sitcom.
Geoffrey’s lightning wit meant that he was granted a strange immunity in the Banks’ residence.
But as he walked up to his Uncle Phil’s (James Avery) mansion, Will Smith’s first challenge as a streetwise kid from West Philadelphia wasn’t to try to navigate the bourgeoisie set of well-to-do Los Angeles, it was to try to outwit the deadpan, whip-smart Banks family butler, Geoffrey (Joseph Marcell) — the man on the other side of the big white door.
Over six seasons, the show’s main characters had fairly well-defined roles; Will was the wisecracking charmer, Carlton (Alfonso Ribeiro) was his preppy, Tom Jones-loving cousin, Hilary was the self-involved airhead, Ashley (Tatyana Ali) was the earnest young lady, Aunt Vivian (Janet Hubert; later Daphne Maxwell Reid) was the compassionate matriarch, and Uncle Phil ruled with an iron first. But Geoffrey was the wild card.
He could be wickedly cynical, but would be seen crying at weddings. He called the Banks family out on their laziness, but faithfully served them in the most stressful of circumstances.
He was the epitome of the British stiff-upper-lip, but also liked to thrown bacchanalian parties. And he was never, ever short of good one-liner.
The many faces of Geoffrey Butler made him the best character in the whole setup, and here are just five examples of how he stole the show.
He cracked the best Uncle Phil gags
Regularly insulting your boss isn’t normally the way to ensure long-term employment, but Geoffrey’s lightning wit (and the fact that he could cook up a storm) meant that he was granted a strange immunity in the Banks’ residence.
And he made a point of taking advantage of it too.
He was a secret lothario
Geoffrey acted buttoned-up during his workday, but there were always suggestions that he knew how to loosen up in private.
In one episode, he’s apparently hosting a Roman-Empire-themed orgy in a hotel room, and in this one, he works that English accent and encourages one of his lady friends to indulge him in his passion for amateur photography. He truly is the darkest of dark horses.
He can get down
One of the regular moral lessons in “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” was to never judge a book by its cover, and that goes double for Geoffrey.
As early as the first season, he showed his ability to get down with the cool kids, including this moment in which he sweeps a young Naomi Campbell off her feet — much to Master William’s annoyance.
He’s got an amazing back story
Before he was Geoffrey Butler the butler, he was Geoffrey Butler the runner. Except he didn’t actually do much running.
It’s something he rarely talks about, but Geoffrey’s murky, Lance Armstrong-esque past is revealed in Season 4, and it’s absolutely hysterical.
He’s an icon for the downtrodden worker
Anyone who has worked at a job they hated will have fantasized about winning the lottery and going out in a blaze of glory.
In one of the most memorable of the show’s 148 episodes, Geoffrey did exactly that, although he soon discovered his big win was actually a prank, devised by Will and Carlton.
Even so, at least for a few minutes, he got to live the dream.