Norman Lear was brilliant bring us (USA) such comedy. The show revolves around the life of an working-class father and his family (kind-hearted wife, daughter and son-in-law he calls "Meathead." The show broke ground in its depiction of issues previously considered "unsuitable" for a U.S. network television comedy, such as racism, antisemitism, infidelity, homosexuality, women's liberation, rape, religion, miscarriages, abortion, breast cancer, the Vietnam War, menopause, and impotence. Through depicting these controversial issues, the series became arguably one of television's most influential comedic programs, as it injected the sitcom format with more dramatic moments and realistic, topical conflicts. I miss the 70s. People haven't changed much but sadly less Rock N'Roll bands. Thank WISDOM Carol O'Connor was NOTHING like the character he played. But nor was Jean Stapleton who was also brilliant.
@@GOLDENFLYWARRIOR it took me years to figure out that Archie wasn't who that man really was. Thats good acting. Meathead is the same in real life. Most unfortunate. He's not a very good actor.
Love this comedy. Loved George Jefferson saying making fun of whitey. The Willis’s being zebras. Gotta be able to laugh at yourself instead of going into epileptic fits.
Commie and Pinko?. Are you still trapped back in the 50's with Archie?. I'm might be liberal, but that doesn't mean I have to agree with everything that comes out of Mike's mouth. In fact there are a lot of things he has said that I don't agree with but in the end, I'd rather be someone who didn't have a close minded attitude instead of being ignorant and uninformed like Archie. Again not all conversatives are like Archie or liberals like Mike (thank God). If they were, we'd have big problems
You're on point. Mike was designed to be as flawed as Archie only the reverse side of it and that was because Norman Lear wrote the show from a more centrist point of view because while he can't stand bigots like Archie he also can't stand over the top and ignorant liberals like Mike either. That's why the show was well balanced. Everyone had their faults and were called out on it by other characters.
I dont know what episode it was but Archie killed me, lol..a black family moved in to the neighborhood, and he was ok with it..then word got out that another one was coming in, and he went nuts. He said "One black family in the neighborhood makes it a novelty, having two makes it a ghetto." ...lmao..oh the things they got away with.
Carroll O'Connor was such a brilliant actor. No one else could have played Archie Bunker and made him so infuriating, endearing or just plain old real. R.I.P. Mr. O'Connor.
@@jameelagill5408 Whilst that might be true you will notice a seed kernel of truth in Archie’s statements. Don’t forget Jefferson was a mirror to Archie,only black, proving that anyone can hold prejudice views
***** adults know that words are only a collection of letters until u give them that power and I and no one should ever give them such power, because doing so is weak and childish
The only thing I truly like about about this show is I was still a kid and have warm warm memories of me and my loving parents setting around the TV together laughing and talking. with my parents now both dead lord do I long for them days. I would walk through hell just to spend one more day with them.
@lifeisforaseason He was prejudice/discrimeteve aganist anyone who were not the same as he was, be it blacks, latinos, whites polish, gays, feminism, etc...You realize he was making fun of how racists/bigots are right? Quit your crying.
Black people loved the show too. Isabelle Sanford sought out a role on the show because she thought it was so damn funny, and Sammy Davis, Jr. asked to be a guest on the show.
@@StarfieldRailway I am. I just found it disturbing how a white (I assume. I'm 100 percent sure you are based on how you tried deflecting the issue) Can come out of his ass and tell people what black folks like.
@@danielwong5378 hey moron I'm black and know actual black people unlike your dumb ass. EVERYBODY watched and loved this show which is why it was number one for years.
Looking back, A+ for Carol O'Conor's facial expressions and delivery of his lines in every episode. Director, screenwriter,producer couldn't have ever even dreamed they would get a guy to play the character for Archie Bunker's role as good as he did. All four were terrific. Sally Struthers, Rob Reiner, Jean Stapleton and Carrol O'Conor. Edith's part originally was written to be combative with Archie, but Jean Stapleton thought it would be better if she did not act loud and forceful in her delivery like it was first written, but rather more meekly, honestly and innocently. She was an experienced actress already at the time"All In The Family" started, and man was she right.
@@mattslupek7988 I remember Archie couldn't take it, he yelled at Edith to change, already! Something like that so she would stop acting crazy during her change of life menopause time of life. Lol
I admitted that I would never want to be a racist; if you do that says a lot about you. You accused me of not accepting reality, which is absurd. For NPC to work you would first have to be able to think with an open mind.
I am not going with what is socially acceptable; I don't like racism because racism is just another form of hate. Define what is "socially acceptable". Women's rights? Trans rights? Gay rights? Abortion? Term limits? Spanking a child? Democrat? Republican? Pro-gun? Anti-gun? What does society say what is a acceptable among those? I don't know about you but no matter what society says what is acceptable about them I have my own beliefs on each. I decide how I lean on each topic, not wait to see what society says is acceptable. I choose and society either goes along with me or it doesn't, not the other way around. In other words, think for yourself. THAT is having an open mind. Doing otherwise could lead to flip-flopping as well as being controlled by what society says you should believe. Nobody will put you in jail for your racism unless you harm someone or their property due to racism. Archie Bunker wouldn't burn a cross on someone's lawn but he may stop and roast hot dogs on the fire.
One of the many great things about this show is that George and Henry Jefferson were just as racist as Archie, there was no fiction that only white people can be intolerant.
Actually they were not. If someone treats you like an enemy and you recognize them as such that doesn't make them racist. It doesn't even make them bigots. Black people faced slavery, segregation, denial of basic human rights by white people. The sad part is that you won't recognize that. If I come to your home and take you and your family hostage and the government says it's okay, I deny you your right to property and sell it to my black friends and the government says it's okay. Would you think of me and mine as the enemy? Hell we fought a war over the twin towers with a bunch of Saudis and the US declared all non-white terrorist the enemy and most of them had nothing to do with the bomb during 9/11. So exactly how are you going to call black people racist when we neither have the power or the desire to do so?
@@mabrmabr1 Yeah black people standing up and saying that our lives matter and you can't murder us in the street is racist against the white people who are doing it. You people are sick.
You are correct. All in the Family was crafted in such a way to make the "racist" middle-aged White man, Archie Bunker look like a buffoon. Ironically, more often than not, people see Archie as honest, but lovable and see Meathead for the obnoxious 1970" SJW that he is.
Think about it, Archie was a vet, a home owner, worked to support his family Mike was a sjw, living off Archie, but he's the one whom we are supposed to admire!?
The liberals of today do understand how brilliant this show is. Also, people of the time were wise enough to understand that Archie was a buffoon-but also, as the show progressed, as Archie got smarter and met more people, he became a better human being. He stands up to the KKK, he begins to defend POC in his life. You aren't bright enough to see the character arc that happens over the course of the series.
@@cloudstreets1396 nobody cares about whites putting themselves first. The issue is when putting themselves first is combined with an effort to keep others #2 and below.
@@Biggdoom344 - the US was founded as a white country and whites are becoming the minority. The only president that recognized this and was correcting it was Trump. That’s why getting him back in office is so important.
Those jean shorts were not called Daisy Dukes in the 70s, people just took old ratty jeans and cut them short.. I believe they called them cutoffs .. Guys wore them looser
This was back when t.v. was honest and didn't hide behind phony idealized worlds. We all know an Archie, we all know a George, Fred Sanford etc. We also know the rest of the characters. Back then everyone would watch this show, The Jeffersons and Sanford and Son and laugh together. How ironic that we've gone backwards and now damn near everything is censored and that solves nothing.
Idealized nostalgia has you by the short and curlies. All In The Family was groundbreaking for addressing social issues. There was little else that was real about TV back then.
Maybe mike. Gloria was actually in the middle more focused on feminism. If you watched the show she didn’t always disagree w Archie, neither did Edith. They saw racist behavior and acting on it as being mean, but didn’t always disagree with the thoughts. Mike was sympathetic because he was polish. Back in my day polish kids got made fun of mercilessly.
It never occurred to me before (after all these years of being an AITF fan) how Archie says there could only one #1 and one #2 ... but #3 can be broken into (a and (b. Too funny 🤣
Lance Rexington ....your statement is incredibly ignorant especially when you look at what the Donald Trumps and Mitch McConnells have done to this country.
Lance Rexington ....Christ are you ever delusional. I assume you’ve heard of the trade wars with China and how it’s killed American jobs and raised prices on consumer goods, not to mention thousands upon thousands of layoffs by corporations like Ford, AT&T, Sears, Amazon...etc....all corporations that benefited from Trumps huge tax scam.
President Trump isn't racist. Lowest black unemployment rate in history Lowest Latino unemployment rate in history Lowest female unemployment rate in 65 years Lowest overall unemployment rate 50 years Highest consumer confidence in 18 years Climbing GDP Highest stock market in history Got the US out of TPP Got the US out of PCA Withdrew from the Iran Nuclear Payment Deal Renegotiated NAFTA for America's benefit Demanding (and getting) other countries to pay their fair share for America's contribution to their national defense Denuclearization of North Korea as verified by inspections V.A. reform Prison reform Executive Order Protecting Free Speech On College Campuses Pay raises for our troops SPACE FORCE THE WALL ...and this is just an abbreviated list. MAGA
@@michaelasimon8229 It is pretty funny. I agree with Meathead and Gloria here 100%. But i have to agree with Archie on keeping yourself number 1 in general (in whatever you do as effort i mean). Its just whole thing is funny is all with how Archie tries to rationalize it XD
That's not quite right Michael. It was created by a "Stephen Colbert type" to make light of bigotry, racism, and conservatives. Norman Lear: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Lear
did you notice how there's an applause/laughter break after that line? Because that was a main part of the joke and there was nothing subtle about it. I liked the part where Archie says something racist and illogical because it's funny how being that way does not make any sense when you think about it.
These were the days when we could all laugh either at the color of our skin or our own stupidity. I miss Archie “Life made Jefferson number 2 long before I ever came along “ think about it, it’s gold.
@@EastSide-qc5oy He isn't stupid, he's right and Right is RIGHT, as Archie says! That is the way we were taught then. I remember my grandmother saying things like that to us- that is how it was- everyone knew their place.
@@larrywakeman4371 You apparently have no understanding of the origins of the show and the purpose and point of the Archie character. Do a little research on Norman Lear who created the show. Archie wasn’t created to be “right.”
@@EastSide-qc5oy Norman Lear originally created the show to mock, satirize, and criticize the character of Archie Bunker along with the people who shared his thoughts. However, the unexpected outcome was that Archie eventually became the hero of the show. Despite (and in some cases, because of) his views, people related to Archie and cheered for him.
Meathead's shorts!! LMAO 70's fashions were truly hilarious. It's sad that nowadays we live in such an overly PC world that we're too afraid to say anything about other races, for fear we will offend someone. Comedy has certainly suffered for it.
since the intro doesn't give much, here are clips from Magnum PI of Thomas in short shorts: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ePo9xrVRBJ0.html
You know, much to the chagrin of Norman Lear and even Carroll ”O Connor, liberals both, the Archie character was much loved even by communities that we're in Archie’s crossfire. Interesting how much the Micheal Stivic (Meathead) and Rob Reiner’s world view were very much on par with each other, meaning that Rob didn't have to do a lot of acting to bring Micheal to life.
What made this show work was that Archie was nonviolent. Because of his upbringing, he certainly felt that he was genetically superior, which is bad enough, but he didn't feel any animosity towards other people and treated everyone like a human being. Just google the number of times Archie defended racial "minorities." He didn't hate. He was just ignorant.
Yet everyone in the comment section form part of that society... Ironically everyone here says the same thing and doesn't realize how they take offense over other shit in life, apart from comedy.
Boy the way Van Halen played, songs that made the hit parade. Guys like us we had it made. Those were the days. And you knew what you were then, girls were girls and men were men. Mister we could use a mane like Ronald Reagan again. Didn't need no welfare state, everybody pulled his weight. Gee our old Camaro ran great, those were the days!
I wonder why they chose such a terrible president for the theme. Herbert Hoover, by most historians, was one of the worst so I didn't understand why we could use a man like him again.
Around 1976 - 1977. I had a crush on her in my youth. Sally was one of the hot chicks on prime time back then. Have you seen her these days? My friends on South Park have. Oh Why Sally Why!!
I think what people got confused about at some point along the way of entertainment is that at one point everyone understood that a _character_ on a show could be racially prejudiced, as some people in real life are. Nowadays people think if a show has a racially prejudiced character, the whole _show_ is racially prejudiced. The writers, the actors, the producers, the advertisers - all racist unless the prejudiced character in question is clearly portrayed as a thoroughly evil antagonist. The reality is - like the Archie Bunker character - there's plenty of people who have misconceptions and hard feelings about people of another color, nation, language, etc but they are not evil. They have friends, they take care of their kids and parents, they are generous and thoughtful persons. They just have a flaw in their thinking about some groups of people, and that is usually due to very limited life experience with them. So it's up to the rest of us to treat people of all sorts with kindness and impartiality so that the people whose thinking is flawed...can realize that it is.
@@jimmyolsen5897 You're actually proving yourself to be the moron. He's telling the truth because we either have an Archie in our lives or are the Archie and you won't admit it because you're probably the Archie lol.
Racism still exists. Archie Bunker exposed it, put a face and name to it, and got it out in the open for discussion in the Turbulent early 70's. It wasnt real. It was make believe .. But the topics were raw, controversial. But we talked it out. The show helped break down prejudices.
All young people today should watch this show. It is on Antenna TV. My teenage son who is 15 now ABSOLUTELY LOVES IT! And he grew up in this politically correct nonsense.
@todd long Political correctness IS nonsense. It takes away freedom of speech. It has convinced people that they MUST be offended at almost everything and in a way, brainwashed people (that's a metaphor so please don't get upset). Take a look at the old celebrity roasts hosted by Dean Martin in the 70s. They made fun of blacks, Jews, women, Catholics....Everyone. And they didn't get offended and have to find a "safe place" like today. And BTW, Archie Bunker was a "character". "All in the Family" was a comedy sitcom. Made to make people laugh who wanted to unwind for the evening and have a good laugh.
I'd like to see them do a reverse. Have Rob Reiner as the old ex-hippie liberal who butts heads with a conservative young daughter-in-law. Like a Candace Owens type. It's be subversive in the best ways.
@@jonathanfrancesco3305 This. I've been pitching this idea for years. The parents can be the shrieking, reactionary, PC left wing bigots and the kids can be the ones who live in the real world
These actors were all brilliant. Just try and watch the Jimmy Kimmel remakes with Woody Harrelson as Archie. HORRIBLE! They are saying the sane dialog and it's absolutely laugh-free. It's painful. 😬
People would get too mad over a tv character, but the truth is so many of these PC babies cry certain things are racist, white supremacist to hide their racist feelings, the PC babies accuse others of what they are guilty of. Archie was a tv character and he grew and changed, heck I grew up around racism as a kid and I bought into it until about high school, in 3rd or 4th grade I wanted to play kick ball, I didn't care with who and my mom said to me, don't play kickball with the black kids they are all mean and violent, I bought into that lie until high school, because when I was in elementary and junior high there wasn't hardly any black kids in my school, once I got into high school while I had a problem with some black kids, I didn't believe all of them were like my mother said, I only really had a problem with two of the kids one of them hit me in the jaw during P.E. just to show off in front of his buddies, and some people just stood there and watched him do it, the other one was just really mean and threatened me, all the rest of the black men or women never really gave me any problems, another story when I was in my early 20's my grandparents on my dad's side and including his brother said to me, if you ever date a black woman we will disown you, One part of me wanted to just to piss them off, but another side of me was like I don't want to ever just date a woman just to piss off my grandparents and my uncle , because I would have felt like I was using her, she might have been stronger in handling it than I could have at that time, if they were still alive today and I met a wonderful black lady , I would have told them to back off, a coworker at my last job, she married a black man, and to make a long story short, her father disowned her and took his hatred of black men to the grave, he made sure that she , her husband and her kids got nothing in his will. I believe in judging someone by the content of their character and not the color of their skin, I believe there are good and bad people in all races, religions, professions etc.
Fun fact, you guys: In the 60s they couldn't say words like "bathroom" on screen. They literally censored everything. Finally the TV shows began to reflect somewhat real life with opinionated family members like Archie Bunker and hardcore women's rights supporters like Cousin Maude. Essentially, Archie's "racist" comments are not only accurate reflections of the time but they're used to make Archie seem ignorant (which he is) and therefore promote more progressive opinions on social issues.
The sad thing is that a lot of people do not realize that this is a comedy and you are supposed to be laughing at his stupidity. Back in the 70’s everyone knew that Archie Bunker was an idiot. Today, I don’t think he would be looked at that way. He’d probably be the next candidate for president.
This was where Frank & Irene Lorenzo first appeared. When there’s a question of them owning their house, Frank says he’s only looking after number one, Mike turns to Archie and says “you sure you’re number one?”
@@tommytruth7595 nah, racism, fear, and ignorance has always existed. that was archie. pity so many yanks side with him now. thank fuck i don't live in your shithole country.
