All in the Family: Season 1

1971 · 13 episodes · ★ 7.5

What Season 1 of All in the Family

The Bunker family lives in a working-class neighborhood in Queens, New York. Archie, a World War II veteran, is a closed-minded man who distrusts anyone who doesn't think like him. His wife, Edith, is sweet and understanding, though sometimes she seems naive. Their daughter Gloria, a feminist as stubborn as her father, is married to Michael Stivic, a student with sixties counterculture ideas, whom Archie calls "Meathead." Father-in-law and son-in-law live under the same roof and constantly clash over their views. Each episode tests their positions, from a letter to President Nixon to a complaint over a car accident.

13episodes

Jan 12, 1971premiered

Apr 6, 1971Latest episode

5.4 hrtotal runtime

Season 1 Episodes

1x01 Meet the Bunkers
Jan 12, 1971 · 25 min · ★ 6.4
It's Edith and Archie Bunker's wedding anniversary. Edith manages to drag Archie to church. Daughter Gloria and her husband Mike try to whip up a party atmosphere for the parents.
Directed by: John Rich · Written by: Lennie Weinrib, Norman Lear · Starring: Mike Evans
1x02 Writing the President
Jan 19, 1971 · 25 min
Mike writes a letter to President Nixon, protesting everything that's wrong with America, including the state of the environment and the nation's involvement in Vietnam. Archie finds out, and to refute his son-in-law's claims he decides he too will write a letter praising the nation's chief and attempting to explain the Meathead as an ignorant. While penning the letter, Archie pictures the family all standing behind him, dressed in his Sunday best, all supporting his positions.
Directed by: John Rich · Written by: Norman Lear · Starring: Helen Page Camp, Rich Little
1x03 Oh, My Aching Back (aka Archie's Aching Back)
Jan 26, 1971 · 25 min
Archie is convinced he'll collect a large settlement from a petty traffic accident if a Jewish lawyer handles the case.The stylistic minimalism of the Bunkers' sparsely furnished set is on full display in this early episode. According to director John Rich, who grew up not far from Archie's neighbood, the Spartan look of the Bunkers' living room deco was achieved as a result of painstaking efforts. The director remembers personally supervising the cracking of windows and repainting of walls to give the place a run-down, lived-in look. "I told the set designers to take all the color out of it," remembers Rich. "Norman and I wanted to do the show in black and white, but CBS nearly went into a coma. So we decided to do the next best thing and shoot the entire show in muted sepia tones."
Directed by: John Rich · Written by: Stanley Ralph Ross · Starring: George Furth, Salem Ludwig, Mike Evans, Richard Stahl
1x04 Archie Gives Blood
Feb 2, 1971 · 25 min
Archie refuses to donate blood because he's afraid that his vital fluids might get mixed in with those of a different race.
Directed by: John Rich · Written by: Norman Lear · Starring: Mike Evans, James Hong, Jeannie Linero
1x05 Judging Books by Covers
Feb 9, 1971 · 25 min · ★ 5.0
Archie scorns one of Mike's effeminate friends, unaware that one of his own beer-drinking buddies is a well-adjusted gay man.
Directed by: John Rich · Written by: Norman Lear, Burt Styler · Starring: Philip Carey, Billy Sands, Anthony Geary, Billy Halop
1x06 Gloria's Pregnancy (aka Gloria Has a Belly Full)
Feb 16, 1971 · 25 min
Archie's dream of becoming a grandfather is dashed when Gloria suffers a sudden miscarriage.
Directing: John Rich · Writing: Jerry Mayer · Starring: Mike Evans, Holly Near
1x07 Mike's Hippie Friends Come to Visit
Feb 23, 1971 · 25 min
Mike invites one of his hippie friends to spend the night in his living room, despite Archie's strenous ojections.
Directed by: John Rich · Written by: Rob Reiner · Starring: Jenny Sullivan, Corey Fischer, Jack Bender
1x08 Lionel Moves Into the Neighborhood
Mar 2, 1971 · 25 min
Louise Jefferson makes her first appearance, through husband George will remain an offscreen character for another two seasons. Their son, Lionel, had been a regular visitor to the Bunkers since the pilot episode, when the writers discovered how effective the street-smart black youth was at gently letting the air out of Archie's sails.
Directed by: John Rich · Starring: Vincent Gardenia, Mike Evans, Isabel Sanford
1x09 Edith Has Jury Duty
Mar 9, 1971 · 25 min
Edith abandons the kitchen for the courtroom when she is chosen for jury duty, leaving Archie to fend for himself.
Directed by: John Rich · Written by: Susan Harris · Starring: Doris Singleton, Billy Sands, Hollis Irving
1x10 Archie Is Worried About His Job
Mar 16, 1971 · 25 min
No one in the family gets any sleep when Archie spends the night worring that he might lose his job.
Directed by: John Rich · Written by: Norman Lear · Starring: Burt Mustin, Sandy Kenyon, Hollis Irving, Jack Perkins
1x11 Gloria Discovers Women's Lib
Mar 23, 1971 · 25 min
Gloria leaves the house in a rage after Mike refuses to recognize her as an equal partner in their marriage.
Directed by: John Rich · Written by: Norman Lear · Starring: Mike Evans, William Windom, George Savalas, Herbie Faye
1x12 Success Story
Mar 30, 1971 · 25 min
Archie reevaluates his definition of success after he meets an old army buddy who's become wealthy in the used-car trade.
Directed by: John Rich · Written by: Burt Styler · Starring: William Windom, George Savalas, Herbie Faye, Len Lesser
1x13 The First and Last Supper Season Finale
Apr 6, 1971 · 25 min
The Jeffersons arrive for dinner at the Bunkers'--minus husband George, who refuses to socialize with his white neighbors.
Directed by: John Rich · Written by: Jerry Mayer · Starring: Mel Stewart, Mike Evans, William Benedict, Isabel Sanford