Discussion for article #239358
Perhaps the greatest sitcom ever. And not many people know Carroll OâConnor in real life was quite liberal. Not only that but he butchered the English language on the show, yet he had been an English professor. Brilliant acting by him and Jean Stapleton (along with the others), all done live before a studio audience. Lear and the writers were great as well, may never be a sitcom that good again. Touched almost every social issue, and did it in a way that makes the most impact, using comedy.
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I have little sympathy for Richard âI am not a crookâ Nixon, but I believe itâs possible to describe other men as handsome and virile without being gay or âhaving a problemâ with oneâs sexuality.
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I remember that scene, the coming out to Archie then winning the arm wrestling match. As a young gay boy, it stayed with me to this day. âAll In The familyâ had another lgbt-themed episode in which a good friend of Edithâs, a drag queen, was killed. I canât remember the exact details of the killingâwhether it was random or a targeted killingâbut I truly remember how his death affected Edith. Very powerful.
My father, my sister and I would watch this show together. My sister and I always thought that in many ways, Archie Bunker and my dad had many similarities. We were right, of course, but they differed as wellâas my father was a lot more accepting of othersâ differences. They were a product of that time.
Thank you, Mr. Lear, for all that youâve done for America. I will look forward to seeing Mr. Benderâs film. Thanks for this article, Ms. Sneed.
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My family watched that show religiously. It seems terribly preachy now, but everybody watched it. I even remember visiting Canada in the summer of 72 and they were selling Archie Bunker t-shirts for those who shared the characterâs political leanings (itâs hard to remember now, but, like the Colbert Report, some didnât get the underlying satire). Oh, how I miss the days when we actually had some mildly liberal mass media.
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Most of the episodes were done before a live audience.
However, when Stephanie was added to the show (a child who is a relative of Edithâs whom the Bunkers raise) they switched to doing the show without an audience, and then playing the episode for an audience to capture the audience audio.
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The murder of the man who sang in drag, Beverly, was because he wore womanâs clothing.
Edith says he was murdered âjust because of who he is.â She doesnât say that it was random.
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Thanks! Thanks for the detail of âwhy.â I kinda thought so, but couldnât really remember. Beverly â yes, yes, now that you say it, how could I forget? â Beverly is one of my favorite lady names (this is probably why).
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Correct, frankly the last couple of years of the show were not good, that is the one criticism I have of it. They dragged it out too long, and Archie Bunkerâs Place was even worse. Reminds me of the Andy Griffith Show, brilliant the first few years, but then started to fade, and then Mayberry RFD was just horrible.
The first 5 years of All in the Family were as good as it gets.
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Pat drank heavily and Charles âBebeâ Rebozo, always described as a " Florida banker and businessman," went EVERYWHERE the President went. But, if you need more proof Nixon was a queen check out the âPrisoner of Zendaâ palace guard uniforms he made the Secret Service wearâŚ
http://cdn.billmoyers.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/white-house-secret-service-uniforms-nixon.jpg
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Agreed, actually not being able to say that seems a bit like having some kind of hang up.
Initially Archie had saved Beverlyâs life in his cab by giving mouth to mouth, not realizing it was really a man in drag. Hysterical episode. Beverly was in a couple of more episodes, but then was killed when walking with Mike. Jean Stapleton was as usual amazing in all those episodes.
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I agree with you on both shows. You stole this thought from me this morning as I was thinking about âAll In The Familyâ after Edithâs death, then remembered âMayberry RFD.â Some things should be left as is. Another similar âafterâ show was the one that followed MAS*H.â Just terrible.
I agree. Iâm gay and would not use âhandsome and virileâ to describe a man I thought was hot. Iâd say âheâs hotâ. I think only straight guys use the word âvirileâ. âHandsomeâ is a word Iâd use to describe a good looking straight guy.
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It seemed terribly preachy then.
Iâm glad people were touched by it, but I couldnât abide it.
Edith was a saintly figure reminiscent of Gracie Allen, but every other character was utterly insufferable. I never found any of them the least funny, any more than I found Jackie Gleason funny as a stupid bully of a bus driver. And the moral lessons were so heavy-handed they sucked the joy right out of the show. Liberal, well-meaning, but cringe-worthy.
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Bender said. âI had no idea that Richard Nixon was watching it, too.â
Yeah, Iâm having trouble imagining Dick and Pat and the daughters sitting down to watch TV.
Maybe he did it in secret, just him and some Presidential portraits for company.
These comments are true enough, but I do remember the episode of âArchie Bunkerâs Placeâ in which he wanders through the house alone, trying to come to terms with Edithâs death. It was so powerful for me to watchâIâve never had a television experience seem so absolutely real. Of course, it was due to the impression the characters and actors had left on me (and everybody else.)
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Yeah, I think you are right here. I remember that episode, too. Really hurtful, I felt â and, of course, it was due to my love for Jean Stapletonâs bringing so much life and love to the character ⌠and equally because of the interactions between she and Archie over the years. They conveyed such a loving bond. He argued with her a lot and she gave in most all the time, but they still deeply knew and loved each other. That episode you bring up was probably the most powerful one of the âArchie Bunkerâs Placeâ series. I say that with a grain or two of salt because I wasnât very interested in the new set-up after Edithâs death andâif I remember correctlyâGloria and Mike moved on, as well.
Mike and Gloria moved to California while the show was still called âAll in the Family.â
In the first season of âArchieâs Bunker Place,â Edith made occasional appearances.
At the start of season 2 of âArchie Bunkerâs Place,â Edith had died (off camera) and Archie is dealing with her death.
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I just gotta sayâŚlook how great Norman Lear looks in that picture at 93. Wonderful. Living long and living strong are great giftsâŚand laughter is surely the key to living that long life.
Love Norman Lear. A great American.And anyone that pisses off Nixon is A-OK in my book.
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