There's a fine art to ending a great TV series. Agonizing as it was when "The Good Place" and "Succession" recently packed it in after four seasons, it allowed them to go out with an emotional wallop rather than coasting on fumes past their expiration date. Admittedly, with less story-driven shows, it gets trickier. At what point should a comparatively episodic sitcom call it a day? It often comes down to the people involved in making it.
With "All in the Family," the writing was clearly on the wall at the end of season 8. With yet another impressive batch of episodes in the bag (including all-timers like the emotionally explosive "Edith's 50th Birthday"), creator Norman Lear and his team were ready to wind things down. The last two episodes of the season, "The Dinner Guest" and "The Stivics Go West," saw lifelong East Coasters Archie (Carroll O'Connor) and his wife...
With "All in the Family," the writing was clearly on the wall at the end of season 8. With yet another impressive batch of episodes in the bag (including all-timers like the emotionally explosive "Edith's 50th Birthday"), creator Norman Lear and his team were ready to wind things down. The last two episodes of the season, "The Dinner Guest" and "The Stivics Go West," saw lifelong East Coasters Archie (Carroll O'Connor) and his wife...
- 4/8/2024
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
Before "All in the Family" became one of the most groundbreaking sitcoms of all time, it was a non-starter with two failed pilot episodes and counting. The first, titled "Justice For All," was taped 3 years before the original show's run and featured a cast including Carol O'Conner and Jean Stapleton, who would go on to play married couple Archie and Edith Bunker in the final version of the show. The actors playing the Bunker family's daughter Edith and son-in-law Michael were different, though, played by Kelly Jean Peters ("Cagney & Lacey") and Tim McIntire ("Soap"), whose character was initially named Richard.
O'Conner explained in his memoir "I Think I'm Outta Here" that he largely rewrote the original pilot script himself, and the pilot was recorded in New York in October 1968. According to a Time Magazine 50th anniversary retrospective by Daniel S. Levy, network execs weren't pleased with the casting choices for...
O'Conner explained in his memoir "I Think I'm Outta Here" that he largely rewrote the original pilot script himself, and the pilot was recorded in New York in October 1968. According to a Time Magazine 50th anniversary retrospective by Daniel S. Levy, network execs weren't pleased with the casting choices for...
- 3/17/2024
- by Valerie Ettenhofer
- Slash Film
Rob Reiner and Sally Struthers took the stage at the 2023 Emmys to pay tribute to their former colleague Norman Lear, in addition to other notable television figures who passed away since the previous ceremony.
Charlie Puth and The War and Treaty — comprised of Michael Trotter Jr. and Tanya Trotter — performed the former’s hit 2015 song “See You Again” for the In Memoriam segment. They finished the segment with a rendition of the Friends theme song that coincided with Matthew Perry being featured as the final name in the video tribute.
In keeping with the ceremony’s theme of celebrating television reunions, Reiner and Struthers reminisced about their time together as co-stars on All in the Family, the classic CBS sitcom that debuted in 1971 and ran for nine seasons.
“There’s a Yiddish word that describes Norman’s genius — it’s ‘kochleffel,'” Reiner said. “For all you non-Jews out there,...
Charlie Puth and The War and Treaty — comprised of Michael Trotter Jr. and Tanya Trotter — performed the former’s hit 2015 song “See You Again” for the In Memoriam segment. They finished the segment with a rendition of the Friends theme song that coincided with Matthew Perry being featured as the final name in the video tribute.
In keeping with the ceremony’s theme of celebrating television reunions, Reiner and Struthers reminisced about their time together as co-stars on All in the Family, the classic CBS sitcom that debuted in 1971 and ran for nine seasons.
“There’s a Yiddish word that describes Norman’s genius — it’s ‘kochleffel,'” Reiner said. “For all you non-Jews out there,...
- 1/16/2024
- by Ryan Gajewski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Television pioneer Norman Lear died Tuesday at the age of 101. The TV creator was associated with a bevy of family comedies throughout the 1970s, namely “All in the Family,” “Sanford and Son,” and “The Jeffersons.”
Lear died of “natural causes,” his reps said in a media release shared with IndieWire. A private service for immediate family will be held.
“It is with profound sadness and love that we announce the passing of Norman Lear, our beloved husband, father, and grandfather,” a family statement, posted to Lear’s official social-media accounts, reads. “Norman passed away peacefully on December 5, 2023, surrounded by his family as we told stories and sang songs until the very end.”
“Norman lived a life in awe of the world around him,” the statement continued. “He marveled at his cup of coffee every morning, the shape of the tree outside his window, and the sounds of beautiful music. But...
Lear died of “natural causes,” his reps said in a media release shared with IndieWire. A private service for immediate family will be held.
“It is with profound sadness and love that we announce the passing of Norman Lear, our beloved husband, father, and grandfather,” a family statement, posted to Lear’s official social-media accounts, reads. “Norman passed away peacefully on December 5, 2023, surrounded by his family as we told stories and sang songs until the very end.”
“Norman lived a life in awe of the world around him,” the statement continued. “He marveled at his cup of coffee every morning, the shape of the tree outside his window, and the sounds of beautiful music. But...
- 12/6/2023
- by Kristen Lopez and Tony Maglio
- Indiewire
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