This book is full of great little gems from the most over the top caricature of a prejudice person in television history. It is very interesting from a 'historical" point of view as a reminder of what was going on in the country at that time. After reading this book, it amazes me how how many things are still the same.
" Dingbat !! " " Meathead !! " Guess to whom I am referring ?? Yes , it is the character of " Archie Bunker " from the hit TV Series : " All In The Family !! " This book is full of quotes from the show , all with " Archie's" own personal " Woids ! " This is just one of the incredible amount of merchandise that the show generated in its long run !! I like this book so much , that I have four copies !! I enjoy this book , and if you are a fan of " All In The Family , " or just an " Archie Bunker " fan , this book is for you !!
The TV show All in the Family was a long time ago, and was unusual for it's comedic focus on racism and other ills of society. There are some real gems in the book, and many amusements. It's a quick read and lots of fun.
Outrageous expressions that helped destroy the very things they supported
When “All In the Family” first appeared, it was truly revolutionary. Gone were the days of the “ideal family” where all the children were polite, the parents were models and no opinions on the great social and political issues of the day could be stated. Archie Bunker was the epitome of the working class bigot, holding and stating derogatory opinions about every type of person other than himself. Carroll O’Conner was superb as Archie, when you saw him out of character it was hard to accept that he was truly not Archie. His role of his wife Edith was overplayed as a mindless housewife to the point that it reached the level of satire. Jean Stapleton was also superb in playing the role. As was the case with O’Conner, when you saw her out of character, you were surprised how intelligent she was. This collection of snippets of dialog from the show is funny and demonstrates how well written it was. No matter how well the actors and actresses perform, it generally comes down to the quality of the scripts and this is a demonstration of how good the writing was for the show. By putting them out in the open, “All In The Family” helped destroy many of the cultural, racial and gender biases that so dominated the American landscape before the 1970s. Many people worked very hard to destroy these barriers, it is ironic but not unexpected that a popular television show did so much to knock them down.
Norman Lear's enduring Bunker family was the prototype that several sitcoms have since built upon to create modern television shows. The most endearing character is said by most to be Archie Bunker and this book gives us some of the fine quotes which Carol O'Connor spoke so well as that character. If you are of the younger set and want to read quotes from the precursor of Peter Griffin, Stan Smith, and to a lesser extent, Homer Simpson, then this is a great introduction. If nothing else, this book is a snapshot of the time when All in the Family ruled the airwaves and went on to set records for spawning spin offs such as The Heffersons, Maude, and others. The writing is what you would expect from a show that followed the well meaning but ignorant and oft bigoted Archie Bunker as the patriarch of the family in the 1970s - the humor is there, again, as you would expect as All in the Family won 22 Emmy awards and was nominated 55 times. Some jokes are dated as political references have aged and Bunker's bigoted nature may not be seen as having aged well for younger viewers unaware of the show and his battles with his liberal son-in-law, but for those who enjoy the show and want a unique throwback, this book is a welcome find.