Magazine Cover of the Week

 1975

Magazine Cover of the Week

TV Guide

June 2nd 1974

Mike Evans and Carroll O'Connor

(Lionel Jefferson and Archie Bunker of "All in the Family")

Top 10 Memorable Television Characters of the 1970s

All In The Family On TV Guide

May 29th 1971

May 27th 1972

TV Classics

January 12th 1966 

Batman debuts on ABC television

January 12th 1971

All In The Family debuts on CBS television

All In The Family Before It Was All In The Family

Norman Lear filmed a pilot for ABC in 1968, the show was called "Justice For All".  Starring Carroll O'Connor as Archie Justice, it was based on the british tv show "Till Death Us Do Part".   There was Jean Stapleton as Edith Justice and daughter Gloria played by Kelly Jean Peters and her Irish-American liberal husband Richard and his black friend Lionel Jefferson played by D'Urville Martin.
ABC didnt pick up the show for the 1968 season and the pilot never aired.  Norman Lear did a pilot for with basically the same script but this time it was called "Those Were The Days", Archie and Edith were the same but different actors played Gloria and Richard .  Also not picked up by any network, Lear reworked the script a third time with "Justice" gone and "Archie and Edith Bunker" in with 2 other actors as Gloria and renamed husband Michael Stivic (now polish-american) and Lionel Jefferson was played by Mike Evans.  This pilot would be picked up and ultimately aired as the debut of "All In the Family" on CBS in January 1971.

Here is the original "Justice For All" 

Happy 40th Birthday Dingbat!

Today in 1971 CBS television aired the first episode of a show that would go on to change television and sitcoms forever.
This was the premier of "All in the Family" starring Carroll O'Connor, Jean Stapleton, Rob Reiner and Sally Struthers.