"All In The Family" trivia

The "sweater" analogy fits perfectly. It's like when I hear the opening theme for M.A.S.H or All In the Family; I feel instantly comfortable and remain there for the entire episode.

 

One of my favorite episodes - “Archie and the FBI” when Archie gets paranoid after a federal investigator starts asking his neighbors about him.

Archie to Mike: “Don’t be bothering the government with the Constitution!”

 

Isn't that the one where Edith asks Archie, "Why are you talking into the camel?"

 

One of my favorites was the one where somebody painted a swastika on Archie's door. That was a great episode. Gregory Sierra was outstanding. His debate with Mike about the use of violence was thought provoking. Shocking ending for a comedy series.

 

Speaking of Gregory Sierra, does anyone know why he left Barney Miller? He was so good in that.

 

I think he was killed w a car bomb in that very episode.

 

Good question and one that I have asked. His character did not die or anything. He left the series after season 2. Supposedly to star in another show who's name escapes me. That other show did not premiere until a year and a half later and it only lasted 5 episodes. I think it was called A.E.S. Hudson Street. It is too bad he did not come back to Barney Miller when Jack Soo died. He was a natural fit for the show. His character on All in the Family was killed by a car bomb. Quite shocking.

 

He also played Julio Fuentes on Sanford And Son.

 

He died in Miami Vice, right?

 

He was great in that too. Redd Foxx and him had a great chemistry.

 

Yep, that’s the one.

 

I was surprised to learn that a young Harrison Ford was offered the role of Meathead but turned it down. I think he did OK in the long run anyway.

I also read a recent article about these people who bought the house used for the exterior shots. It turns out they hate the show and it drives them nuts when fans are outside singing the theme song. Okaaaay, I don't know what they were thinking when they bought the place...

 

Yep. The chemistry wasn’t there. Edward James Olmos had much more gravitas.

 

So hard to pick a favorite episode. Lots of great cameos on this show. I think my favorite is "Edith Writes A Song". Archie had bought a gun and left it home while the family went out. When they return they find that 2 robbers( Clevon Little and Demond Wilson) have the gun and holds the family hostage for a short while. After the robbers leave Archie says " I hope youse all see the importance of having a gun in the house" LOL.

 

Glad that didn't happen; casting him would've been a disaster. Ford's voice is too monotone. Rob Reiner had that shrillness when he got excitable that made his character "pop". That and Reiner convincingly looked the part of an goofy, middle-class hippie. Ford already had leading man quality showing off in American Graffiti, so couldn't have pulled it off like Reiner did.

 

I did not know about Harrison Ford being offered the Meathead role. The character definitely belongs to Rob Reiner for sure.

 

All in the Family/Thanksgiving trivia: the final appearance of all 4 characters from the original main cast was at Thanksgiving dinner in an Archie Bunker's Place episode.

 

I watched a few episodes of Archie Bunker's Place, but it was quite dull. The show was really all about Archie, but with the rest of the original supporting cast gone, it just was not all that good.

Hmm, I don't think I saw the Thanksgiving one in post #218.

 

I like bits and pieces of ABP but agree it suffered by comparison in major ways:

- Meathead and Gloria divorced. While that's the way of the real world, it was an unnecessary downer after Edith's death, especially the setup. Made you hate Michael with a passion. He was always a little self-centered, but usually that was limited to food. Instead, we discover he's a lecherous scumbag -- a tonal 180 from the character who grew up and embraced his responsibilities over the course of 9 seasons. This alone almost ruined the show for me.

- A lot of people complain Archie was mellow. I don't mind that in itself; he had to after losing his family. Besides, after 9 seasons, I would expect changing him up a bit. However, the Stephanie character makes him way too maudlin. His transformation from a slightly lovable bigot into a big-hearted buffoon was too abrupt.

- The series needed to pick a direction and stick with it. The home scenes were weak since they remind you the original cast was gone. They would've done better to stick to the bar and its patrons, throwing in some guest stars every so often to compensate for the 2nd tier cast... making it a sort of proto-CHEERS.

EDIT - Correcting myself, Mike lost his job in ABP after joining a nude sit-in (still an out of character moment for him for reasons already stated). GLORIA doubled down on the misttep by introducing the sleaze element leading to divorce.... hard to believe that Norman Lear ever okayed all that nonsense.

 

I believe the full episode is on YouTube. It's nowhere near as good as the next to last appearance of them all in the All in the Family Christmas in California episodes. They both seem to set up their eventual divorce.

 

Not sure, but didn't Norman Lear phase himself out of the show? I seem to recall at one point Carroll O'Connor was in charge.

 

Archie Bunkers Place is being shown on Antenna TV lately. I had no idea until this discussion led me to look up the show on Wikipedia and it's mentioned there. Won't be on again until after the Thanksgiving weekend.