History Series / WhatsHappening

* PowerTrio: Raj (Ego), Rerun (Id), and Dwayne (Superego).

* NotWhatItLooksLike: In one episode, Dee's friend Robin wanted to run away from home, but asked Dee to talk to the guidance counselor about it. The counselor ends up thinking Dee was the one who wanted to run away, which results in Raj and Mabel being nicer to her as a result. Dee ends up taking advantage of it to get them to buy her things, only to have her face the repercussions when the matter is straightened out.

* CelebrityStar: The Doobie Brothers appeared in one episode to perform a concert at the kids' high school, Jefferson High. They were established as former students, with one of the band members being a classmate of Rerun's.

** Dee: "Ooooohh, I'm tellin' Mama!"

* CargoCult: One episode had a cult that worshipped a head of lettuce.

''What's Happening!!'' is a sitcom that aired on Creator/{{ABC}} from 1976–79. It was very loose adapted from the movie ''Film/CooleyHigh'' (which was written by the show's creator, Eric Monte).

!! "Trope's Happening!!":

The show started off as a 1976 summer pickup, but was made into a regular series following decent ratings. It downplayed the African-American cast and settings, with most plots featuring typical teen DomCom staples such as dealing with school, dating girls, and planning for the future. It is notable for being the first African-American sitcom to break into the Nielsen Top 30 ratings.

* HypocriticalHumor: Anytime Rerun makes fun of Shirley's weight.

'''''What's Happening!!''''' is a sitcom that aired on Creator/{{ABC}} from 1976–79. It was very loose adapted from the movie ''Film/CooleyHigh'' (which was written by the show's creator, Eric Monte).

* BackToSchool: Mrs. Thomas

* FollowTheLeader: Though it was in development beforehand, ''What's Happening Now!'' only got greenlit after the success of ''Series/TheCosbyShow''.

* RecycledScript : An In-Universe example. Raj wrote a spec script to send in to a TV station involved the teenagers on a show finding a bag of jewels in a garbage can. When an episode featuring the same plot aired, Raj called the station and accused them of plagiarizing him. The TV executive showed him the script from the episode, along with two previously-aired scripts with exactly the same plot.

A revival of the show, ''What's Happening Now!!,'' ran in syndication from 1985 to 1988. Following up with the characters several years later, it depicts Raj and his wife Nadine (Anne-Marie Johnson) living in the Thomas home, while Rerun and Dwayne share an apartment. HilarityEnsues.

* AfterShow: ''What's Happening Now!!''

* {{Spinoff}}:''What's Happening Now!!'': Raj is a successful author and married, Rerun is a used car salesman, Dwayne is a computer programmer, and Dee is in college. Ran for three seasons in the late 1980's.

* LocalHangout: Rob's Place. [[spoiler: in the {{Spinoff}}, it's changed to Rob's Diner and Shirley and Raj own it.]]

'''''What's Happening!!''''' is a sitcom that aired in TheSeventies, a very loose adaptation of the movie ''Film/CooleyHigh'' (which was written by the show's creator Eric Monte). Taking place in the Watts section of Los Angeles, it centered on a African-American teenager named Roger "Raj" Thomas (Ernest Thomas) as he attended school and interacted with his friends and family. Along with Raj, other recurring characters include his friends Dwayne Nelson (Haywood Nelson) and Freddy "Rerun" Stubbs (Fred Barry); his younger sister Dee (Danielle Spencer); their mother Mabel (Mabel King); and Shirley Wilson (Shirley Hemphill), a waitress at the local hangout, "Rob's Place."

The show started off as a 1976 summer pickup, but was made into a regular series by Creator/{{ABC}} following decent ratings, lasting for three seasons. It downplayed the African-American cast and settings, with most plots featuring typical teen DomCom staples such as dealing with school, dating girls, and planning for the future. It is notable for being the first African-American sitcom to break into the Nielsen Top 30 ratings.

''What's Happening!!'' is a sitcom that aired in TheSeventies, a very loose adaptation of the movie ''Film/CooleyHigh'' (which was written by the show's creator Eric Monte). Taking place in the Watts section of Los Angeles, it centered on a African-American teenager named Roger "Raj" Thomas (Ernest Thomas) as he attended school and interacted with his friends and family. Along with Raj, other recurring characters include his friends Dwayne Nelson (Haywood Nelson) and Freddy "Rerun" Stubbs (Fred Barry); his younger sister Dee (Danielle Spencer); their mother Mabel (Mabel King); and Shirley Wilson (Shirley Hemphill), a waitress at the local hangout, "Rob's Place."

The show started off as a 1976 summer pickup, but was made into a regular series by Creator/{{ABC}} following decent ratings. It downplayed the African-American cast and settings, with most plots featuring typical teen DomCom staples such as dealing with school, dating girls, and planning for the future. It is notable for being the first African-American sitcom to break into the Nielsen Top 30 ratings.

* TheCastShowoff: In RealLife, Fred Berry was an accomplished disco dancer and was previously a member of a dance group known as The Lockers. Naturally, Rerun had a few opportunities to show off his dance moves in the show -- most notably in the first-season episode “My Three Tons,” when Rerun auditions to be a part of a dance group called The Rockets (played by the Lockers).

[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/51SZTTQ3Q9L__SL500_AA300__9333.jpg]]

* TheCastShowoff: In RealLife, Fred Berry was an accomplished disco dancer and was previously a member of a dance group known as The Lockers. Naturally, Rerun had a few opportunities to show off his dance moves in the show.

* PutOnABus: Much like Esther Rolle on ''Series/GoodTimes'', Mabel King did not like the direction in which the show was going and left after the second season. Raj and Dee ended up moving into their own apartment in the third season as a result.