Within a few minutes of showing up in the first episode of Amazon Prime Video sitcom Clean Slate (February 6), George Wallace drops a signature “… and whatnot,” and a little later he namechecks fellow Las Vegas headliner Carrot Top. Clean Slate is set in Mobile, Alabama, but the comedic persona familiar to anyone who’s seen Wallace perform in Vegas over the past 25 years is fully intact in his character, car-wash owner Harry Slate.
Wallace co-created the series with writer Dan Ewen and co-star Laverne Cox, a real-life Mobile native who plays Harry’s daughter Desiree. After 23 years away, Desiree returns to her hometown and the father she hasn’t spoken to since she left, who’s surprised to discover that his son is now a proud trans woman. Produced by the late Norman Lear, Clean Slate follows in the footsteps of Lear’s 2017 One Day at a Time reboot, applying the legendary producer’s keen social conscience to modern issues, within a reliable sitcom format.
While Harry is initially taken aback by Desiree’s emergence as her true self, he’s not an Archie Bunker-style reactionary. He commits to being a fully supportive parent, defending Desiree against their church’s bigoted pastor and putting money into a “pronoun jar” whenever he accidentally misgenders her. Clean Slate doesn’t shy away from depicting prejudice, but it also surrounds Desiree with a loving, uplifting community. Sitcom veteran Telma Hopkins (Family Matters) is an especially warm, welcome presence as the busybody mother of Desiree’s childhood best friend.
There are gentle sitcom misunderstandings and plenty of hug-it-out moments, and Wallace fits in perfectly as the crotchety but kindhearted dad. He’s honed his distinctive presence over thousands of Vegas performances, and Harry is tailor-made for his particular strengths as a comedian and actor and whatnot.