All in the Family

ALL IN THE FAMILY
 
 
All in the Family  is an American sitcom that was originally broadcast on the CBS television network for nine seasons, from January 1971 to April 1979.  Produced by Norman Lear and Bud Yorkin and starring Carroll O'Connor, Jean Stapleton, Rob Reiner, and Sally Struthers, All in the Family revolves around the life of a working-class bigot and his family.  The show broke ground in its depiction of issues previously considered unsuitable for U.S. network television comedy, such as racism, homosexuality, women’s liberation, rape, religion, miscarriage, 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 realistic and topical conflicts.  The show is often regarded in the United States as one of the greatest television series of all time.  (More from Wikipedia)
 
 

Probably the best known of the women’s music artists is Holly Near, although she is even more familiar as a left-wing political activist.  Holly Near appeared in several films, including Slaughterhouse Five and The Todd Killings, as well as television shows like All in the FamilyThe Mod Squad and The Partridge Family.  

 

(January 2014)

 

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The omission of Sally Struthers’ Tears is particularly surprising, since it is one of my favorites by the Gynecologists (along with Across 110th Street). After her run on All in the Family, Sally Struthers made a series of commercials for the Christian Children’s Fund charity where she would often be shown crying. Despite the mercilessly mocking tone of the song, Tommy Afterbirth manages to capture the way she would plead for help for these children at a cost of “pennies a day”.
 
(June 2016)
Last edited: March 22, 2021