I was at a wedding yesterday when somebody got a text message that Jean Stapleton had passed away.
One younger person in the mix said, "who?"
Another older person at the next table asked, "is anybody from that show still alive?"
That I could answer myself. I see Rob Reiner all the time at Dodger Stadium. And Sally Struthers? There are probably hundreds of underfed children in Africa who know her every move.
But I was surprised how many folks around me didn't remember Jean Stapleton.
Personally, I will never forget her.
You can't really find "All in the Family" reruns on television these days. The quality of the tape reproductions has faded. The show doesn't look good. And, frankly, the current events that were the topic of so many episodes makes it all very dated in 2013. Especially in light of our American history-deprived society.
But, as I wrote when I proclaimed it #7 on my list of My Top 25 Favorite TV Shows of All Time...
There
have been a few TV shows in history that have grabbed the nation's
attention and held it hostage like "All in the Family."
Truly appointment-driven television that
everybody, and I mean everybody, was watching en masse. I am sure "I Love
Lucy" was like that during the 50s, especially when Lucy Ricardo gave
birth to Little Ricky. "Dallas" was like that in the early 80s right
after J.R. Ewing took some lead to the abdomen.
For me, the very first time I participated in TV
frenzy was during the early years of "All in the Family." And I can
easily recall how everybody, and I mean everybody, was tuned in on a
Saturday night to hear Archie Bunker's latest rantings and ravings.
Of course, when it first came on the air, the
attention wasn't quite there yet. But, for some bizarre reason, the very
unsuspecting duo of my grandmother and me tuned in to one very early
episode to see what this new sitcom was all about. We had no clue what
to expect. It was the show where the Jeffersons first moved next door to
the Bunkers. And Archie let us know with this announcement to his wife:
"Edith, the coons are coming!"
Two mouths
dropped to the floor in a living room on 15th Avenue in Mount Vernon.
And, after about a silence of ten seconds, we laughed out loud.
A lot.
During those first few "AITF" shows, we heard a lot of words we never heard on TV before.
Kike.
Spook.
Pollock.
Dago.
And the always popular Jungle Bunny.
It's not like I hadn't heard the words before. But,
usually at my lily-white, European-based family dining table. Never ever
on the small screen for all to hear.
And laugh at.
Because that's what producer/creator
Norman Lear did with "AITF." By voicing all the things usually kept
inside our homes, we were all treated to realistic glimpses of our own
human frailties. And he did so via the best message conveyance known to
man. Humor.
It wasn't long before all of America discovered what
my grandmother and I caught onto. Everybody, and I mean everybody, was
tuning in to see Archie, Edith, the Meathead, and Gloria every Saturday
night on CBS, which featured perhaps the best nightly schedule of
programming in the history of the medium.
I can remember my parents got
sucked in as well and I rarely remember my mother and father being on
the same page with regard to TV viewing. There was one Saturday night
where they had some friends over. All conversation, smoking, and
drinking stopped at 8PM. There were maybe 20 people crowded into our
living room to watch the episode where Edith went through menopause.
I
have forever framed that moment and the laughter in my mental hard
drive. That didn't happen very often in my house. It did, though, then.
"All in the Family" connected us all in a way that an audience will
never be connected again.
Thinking about that Saturday night and the late Jean Stapleton, here's the closing scene of that episode.
The first five seasons of "AITF" are perhaps the best written TV
comedy scripts ever. But, as good as the first five years are, the last
five are as bad. This is a show that stayed way too long at the fair. As
soon as Mike and Gloria moved out of the house, the main driving
premise of the show was gone. Plotlines meandered as Archie and Edith
adopted a niece, bought a local tavern, etc..
Blah, blah, blah. The fun
was gone and the show essentially became nothing more than any other
crappy sitcom on the air.
Equally disturbing is how much
Carroll O'Connor's acting changed over the same time period. They
stopped doing the show in front of the usual live studio audience and
the lack of energy is really noticeable with Mr. O'Connor. He begins to
mug shamelessly. He adds an annoying whine to almost every line.
Over
the life of a TV series, I know from directors I have spoken to that
actors get bored and start phoning in their performances. Carroll
O'Connor is a classic example of this. By the last year, he is almost
embarrassing to watch.
And, of course, he belabored it all even more by
dragging Archie into that stupid spin-off where Edith is dead and he's
running a bar. If there is a TV God, mercy needed to be implored here.
But,
none of that should diminish at all what "All In the Family" was during
its first five years on the air. And keep in mind that, in today's
frantic political correctness, the show probably doesn't enjoy the life
it did in the 70s. Indeed, I really wish I could see an episode today
with Archie commenting on Barack Obama, Al Sharpton, and global warming.
Because, in its own way, "All in the Family" did more for our social
consciousness than any current leader or journalist could hope to
achieve.
And that, folks at the wedding reception around me, is who Jean Stapleton was.
Dinner last night: Had a big lunch so just a small sandwich.
Sunday, June 2, 2013
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2 comments:
People under 45 or so will never appreciate the reaction that AITF generated in those early years. Yes, the show hasn't held up well (issue and quality-wise) as others, but just the idea that race, religion, menopuase, blockbusting, etc., were being talked about on TV by average-(looking) Americans was incomprehensible.
You are quite correct that the show stayed too long at the fair, And Jean Stapleton's departure killed whatever was left -- Archie Bunker's Place was just the refusal to inter the bones. But for its first few years, it was must-see TV in a way that no show today can emulate.
"Come on. Change!"
Great stuff.
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