In 1972, a television show called Sanford and Son introduced American audiences to Fred G. Sanford, a cantankerous junk dealer played by a comedian who had spent decades honing his craft on records and in clubs. That performer was Redd Foxx, born John Elroy Sanford on December 9, 1922, in St. Louis.

Foxx attended DuSable High School before building a career that stretched across comedy records, television, and acting. Over the course of his lifetime he performed on more than 50 records, working in styles that ranged from wordplay and observational comedy to insult comedy, ribaldry, and black comedy. That body of recorded work laid the groundwork for the visibility he would eventually gain on screen.

His role as Fred G. Sanford on Sanford and Son became his most prominent television credit, and it earned him a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Television Series Musical or Comedy. He also appeared in a spinoff series called Sanford, extending the character's run beyond the original show. Later in his career he starred in both The Redd Foxx Show and The Royal Family, demonstrating a continued presence in television well past his initial breakthrough.

Foxx died on October 11, 1991, in Los Angeles. He was 68 years old. The Golden Globe he received for Sanford and Son remains a concrete marker of the recognition his television work received during his lifetime.