I have not had an opportunity to sample Archie Bunker's Place since it hasn't been on cable in years but I was wondering how did it pull viewers with Archie being the only original character from AITF? How was he still able to shine?

I can't speak for everyone but I watched back then because the series was a clear continuation of AlTF. AITF had so many viewers -- I would think that their wanting to keep on following their viewing habit was behind their tuning in. Sure I missed the other cast members, but...

I can't speak for everyone but I watched back then because the series was a clear continuation of AlTF. AITF had so many viewers -- I would think that their wanting to keep on following their viewing habit was behind their tuning in. Sure I missed the other cast members, but...


I will get to sample one day

AITF was a great show. ABP was a good show. As long as Carroll O'Connor was in it, it was worth watching. I also enjoyed the supporting cast. It wasn't as good as the original but it was a funny show. CBS should have treated it better.

Yeah it was a testimony to the appeal of O'Connor that everyone who loved AITF just kept watching, at least for a while. Personally, I pretty much watched it for references to the family or on the hope that Mike and Gloria would come back.

I thought it was an OK show and the cast was game. It just didn't have as strong a reason for existing as the original did.

Carroll was wonderful as Archie, that's what did it (like Sonny said) and the nice part of ABP for me was seeing Archie mellow even more. Even though Gloria and The Meathead were great contributions to AITF, I didn't miss them anywheres near as much as I did Edith. That Jean Stapleton is one magnificent actress. My hat goes off to her many times over. The supporting cast on ABP was decent enough, but next to the original show, just not the same. Maybe it was because AITF shook up so much ground; it was a hard act to follow.

Even though I liked ABP I also had a bit of a feeling it was trying to "draw out" AITF for all it was worth. When ABP ended it was time imo. (So much better to end on a high crest like the Mary Tyler Moore, Show, and keep us yearning for more.)

All in the Family was a great show -- I just got finished watching a couple episodes -- but it did go on too long. There were a couple jump the shark moments, the first being when Mike and Gloria moved out of the house. Then when Rob Reiner and Sally Struthers left the cast altogether, the show lost all its energy. Archie and Edith without Mike and Gloria and the conflict they brought, were dull. The main point of the show was the conflict between Archie and "the meathead." With that gone, there wasn't much left to keep it interesting. And the transition to Archie Bunker's Place was a final huge blow. Losing Jean Stapleton from the cast, and bringing in a bunch uninteresting supporting characters, including those kids Archie was raising (which seemed very contrived) was a hopeless attempt to keep a show going that was long past its prime, and absent everything that made it work (with the exception of O'Connor, whose character had become way watered down). I hated Archie Bunker's Place at the time, though we continued watching it just out of habit, I guess. But it never, ever came anywhere close to what All in the Family had been in its heyday.

Another problem, Milt Josefsburg had taken over the writing of the show by that point. Josefsburg was a joke writer, and the dialogue became too jokey: set-up, punchline, set-up punchline. In the early days, the dialogue flowed naturally like real conversations do, so the humor felt spontaneous. But the style Josefsburg brought was very unnatural and you always knew a joke was coming, and usually knew what the joke was before it was spoken.

Another problem, Milt Josefsburg had taken over the writing of the show by that point. Josefsburg was a joke writer, and the dialogue became too jokey: set-up, punchline, set-up punchline. In the early days, the dialogue flowed naturally like real conversations do, so the humor felt spontaneous. But the style Josefsburg brought was very unnatural and you always knew a joke was coming, and usually knew what the joke was before it was spoken.


Yes, I agree with this 100%. AITF became too "physical" in its humor, and in its final couple lost its steam. It seems about the time John Rich stopped directing and Ross and West and Nichols were not on the show anymore the series took a turn. In fact, I always rate the shows where the stars' names appear before the title to be weaker, and I tend to not watch those as much.

And when the show went from taping in front of a live audience to recording in a cold studio the show also lost all its timing and edge. What season did AITF stop taping with an audience? Was it before the 8th season, or was it at the start of the 9th season?

Yes, I agree with this 100%. AITF became too "physical" in its humor, and in its final couple lost its steam. It seems about the time John Rich stopped directing and Ross and West and Nichols were not on the show anymore the series took a turn. In fact, I always rate the shows where the stars' names appear before the title to be weaker, and I tend to not watch those as much.

And when the show went from taping in front of a live audience to recording in a cold studio the show also lost all its timing and edge. What season did AITF stop taping with an audience? Was it before the 8th season, or was it at the start of the 9th season?


Wonder what was the reason for eliminating a live audience