"All in the Family" (1971) TV series 1971-1979

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | unknown

Release Date:

12 January 1971 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

A working class bigot constantly squabbles with his family over the important issues of the day.

Plot Keywords:

Working Class | Son In Law | Conservative | Meathead | Grandfather Grandson Relationship

Awards:

Won 8 Golden Globes. Another 31 wins & 60 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Mon. Nov. 16	10:30 AM	TVLAND	Edith Gets a Mink	#2.20
Mon. Nov. 16	6:00 PM	TVLAND	Sammy's Visit	#2.21

Cast

Jean Stapleton	...	Edith Bunker / ... (205 episodes, 1968-1979)
Carroll O'Connor	...	Archie Bunker / ... (202 episodes, 1968-1979)
Rob Reiner	...	Michael 'Meathead' Stivic / ... (179 episodes, 1971-1978)
Sally Struthers	...	Gloria Bunker-Stivic / ... (173 episodes, 1971-1978)

Also Known As:

Justice for All (USA) (original script title)
Those Were the Days (USA) (working title)
Arcibaldo (Italy) [it]
Perhe on pahin (Finland) [fi]
Uma Família às Direitas (Portugal) [pt]

Runtime:

30 min | USA:30 min (212 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Singapore:PG | USA:TV-PG

Filming Locations:

Metromedia Square - 5746 W. Sunset Boulevard, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Bud Yorkin Productions

Trivia:

Three pilots were shot, the first under the title "Justice for All", the second under the title "Those Were the Days", and the third as "All in the Family". Different actors played the roles of Mike, Gloria, and Lionel in the first two. The family name was Justice, not Bunker. Meathead was called Dickie, not Michael, and he was originally Irish-American, not Polish-American.

Goofs:

Continuity: From the inside, reading backwards, we see "Kelcy's Bar". In most, but not all episodes, the ending credits spell the name of the Brendon T. Dillon or Bob Hastings character as "Kelsey", not "Kelcy".

Quotes:

Archie Bunker: Wait, you can't escape me in the toilet. Hey, don't do nothing yet. If I was the last man on Earth and you was the last woman, I would go to bed with a bush.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Sanford and Son: Steinberg and Son (#5.5)" (1975)

Soundtrack:

Those Were the Days

The show that broke every television code in America

"All in the Family" may have been one brilliant show,but it was also one of those that broke every TV standardize code ratings system and it was the backbone of such shows(or sitcoms)to follow years later down the line like "Sanford and Son", "The Jeffersons"(which were both under the supervision of producer-creator Norman Lear) "Married:With Children",and etc.

Carroll O'Connor's portrayal of Archie Bunker was electrifying to watch because the show had such a good content of the day's relevant issues(which were strictly taboo from TV before this show ever hit the airwaves) mixed with some slapstick and of course Archie's mouth and logic. It had subjects that were tackled head on including homosexuality,gender roles,racism,war, economy,women's rights,and the choice of abortion(which one episode dealt with that subject),suicide,and birth control, education,child custody and old age.

Even when the commentary of certain items were brought up in the Bunker home,it was always Archie and Micheal(played by Rob Reiner)who quarrel over certain issues in which Archie calls Micheal either a "meathead",or "polark" because of his European heritage,which in turn made Archie one of the most bigotists people ever made for television.

Its very informative that the commentary on life in America is sometimes light-hearted in a sense,but brings out the bigot in all of us,and makes us think very hard on what we're doing to ourselves and each other.

The show itself had some very powerful episodes here,including one where Edith loses a loved one over his gender(which Jean Stapleton won the emmy for that compelling episode),and the part where Archie falls apart over the death of his wife(very emotional and powerful episode in which Carroll O'Connor won two emmys for his work as Best Actor on the show,and one for Sally Struthers and Rob Reiner as well).

During its initial run on CBS(as "All In The Family" from 1971-1979,and as "Archie Bunker's Place" from 1979-1982),the show as a whole has a very strong significance and content that applies still to this day,and one of the most influential shows ever to come out of the golden decade of great TV: the 1970's. Kudos to Carroll O'Connor and Jean Stapleton,wherever you are!

Catch the classics episodes on TV Land and Nick at Nite.