JT
05-31-2002, 12:15 PM
I was looking through an old Biography Magazine of mine from April '02 and I found this sitcom-related article in a section about Christina Applegate.Here ya go:
"Seeking the Fun in Dysfunctional"
Married... with Children was hardly the first sircom to feature parents and children not exactly cut from the same cloth as the families on Leave It to Beaver or Father Knows Best. Several other TV sitcoms, past and present, have been notable for their wacky and flawed family characters:
ALL IN THE FAMILY (1971-79): Some have called it the show that changed television. Archie Bunker (Carroll O'Connor) was the working-class family man always arguing with his family-especially daughter Gloria and son-in-law Mike "Meathead" Stivic-over his bigoted views of the world at large. But even though Archie kept telling wife Edith (Jean Stapleton) to "stifle yourself!" love always conquered.
MARY HARTMAN, MARY HARTMAN (1976-78): Louise Lasser was the title character of this controversial, satirical show, playing a housewife in braided pigtails who lived in fictional Fernwood, Ohio. Besides her troubled marriage, Mary Hartman was obsessed with the waxy yellow buildup on her kitchen floor. She eventually had a nervous breakdown.
ROSEANNE (1988-97): A suburban blue-collar couple just trying to make ends meet, Roseanne and Dan Connor (and their three kids) were an accurate reflection of life for many Americans. Roseanne Barr won an Emmy for her role as one of the strongest-and sassiest-mothers ever portrayed on TV.
THE SIMPSONS (1990-present): A doofus dad; a long-suffering supermom; an underachieving, smart-mouthed son; a brainiac daughter; and an eternally pacifier-sucking baby have all added up to a mantel full of Emmys for this satirical cartoon that practically defines pop colture, and is still going strong in its 12th year.
THE FAMILY GUY (1999-present): Brian, the sarcastic dog, is the smartest resident of the Griffen household in this animated show. One-year-old Stewie is an evil baby bent on eliminating his parents and siblings, and for some reason, he has a British accent.
MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE (2000-present): The members of the Wilkerson family seem to thrive on their eccentricities. Dad Hal is a manchild who'd rather get into trouble with his sons than teach them better behavior. Genius middle child Malcolm (Frankie Muniz) takes the brunt of the sibling rivalries as mom tries to maintain the household with guerilla strategy.
THE BERNIE MAC SHOW (2001-present): Stand-up comedian Bernie Mac and his TV wife Wanda are happily childless, but suddenly find themselves parenting his sister's three kids. Bernie's learning as he goes but beneficent he's not; his verbal threats to the children have raised an eyebrow with some critics.
I think it's well-done.
"Seeking the Fun in Dysfunctional"
Married... with Children was hardly the first sircom to feature parents and children not exactly cut from the same cloth as the families on Leave It to Beaver or Father Knows Best. Several other TV sitcoms, past and present, have been notable for their wacky and flawed family characters:
ALL IN THE FAMILY (1971-79): Some have called it the show that changed television. Archie Bunker (Carroll O'Connor) was the working-class family man always arguing with his family-especially daughter Gloria and son-in-law Mike "Meathead" Stivic-over his bigoted views of the world at large. But even though Archie kept telling wife Edith (Jean Stapleton) to "stifle yourself!" love always conquered.
MARY HARTMAN, MARY HARTMAN (1976-78): Louise Lasser was the title character of this controversial, satirical show, playing a housewife in braided pigtails who lived in fictional Fernwood, Ohio. Besides her troubled marriage, Mary Hartman was obsessed with the waxy yellow buildup on her kitchen floor. She eventually had a nervous breakdown.
ROSEANNE (1988-97): A suburban blue-collar couple just trying to make ends meet, Roseanne and Dan Connor (and their three kids) were an accurate reflection of life for many Americans. Roseanne Barr won an Emmy for her role as one of the strongest-and sassiest-mothers ever portrayed on TV.
THE SIMPSONS (1990-present): A doofus dad; a long-suffering supermom; an underachieving, smart-mouthed son; a brainiac daughter; and an eternally pacifier-sucking baby have all added up to a mantel full of Emmys for this satirical cartoon that practically defines pop colture, and is still going strong in its 12th year.
THE FAMILY GUY (1999-present): Brian, the sarcastic dog, is the smartest resident of the Griffen household in this animated show. One-year-old Stewie is an evil baby bent on eliminating his parents and siblings, and for some reason, he has a British accent.
MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE (2000-present): The members of the Wilkerson family seem to thrive on their eccentricities. Dad Hal is a manchild who'd rather get into trouble with his sons than teach them better behavior. Genius middle child Malcolm (Frankie Muniz) takes the brunt of the sibling rivalries as mom tries to maintain the household with guerilla strategy.
THE BERNIE MAC SHOW (2001-present): Stand-up comedian Bernie Mac and his TV wife Wanda are happily childless, but suddenly find themselves parenting his sister's three kids. Bernie's learning as he goes but beneficent he's not; his verbal threats to the children have raised an eyebrow with some critics.
I think it's well-done.