History Trivia / AllInTheFamily

** Long before she became [[Series/LaverneAndShirley Laverne]], Penny Marshall was up for the role of Gloria. Had she gotten it, she could have worked alongside [[RealLifeRelative then-husband]] Rob Reiner.

** Creator/HarlanEllison wrote that he saw the filming of the pilot for the show then called ''Those Were The Days'' and planned for ABC, and it included the famous scene where Archie explains that "God damn it" isn't really swearing.[[note]]That did get used in the show, in "We're Having A Heatwave", after Michael's beautiful "WATERGATEWATERGATEWATERGATE" moment.[[/note]] Ellison said the show had "rare good humor and extraordinarily good taste.", was "adult, funny and presumptuous", and "would have made a dynamite series." When Lear asked the audience for comments, Ellison asked him if, given what happened with NBC's ''Turn-On'', Lear really thought ABC would go for it. Lear was sure they would, and of course they didn't, and Ellison wrote his ''Glass Teat'' column for that week shaking his head regretfully over Lear's "belief in Santa Claus".

** The pilot episode, "Meet the Bunkers", was actually the ''third'' pilot produced (becoming the first show with three separate pilots - a few years earlier, ''[[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries Star Trek]]'' had been the first with two). In both pilots prior to the one that was greenlit, Michael was an Irish-American named Dickie and the Bunkers' last name was Justice. The first pilot, produced in 1968 for Creator/{{ABC}}, not CBS, was entitled "[[PunBasedTitle Justice for All]]" and was actually filmed in New York; the second pilot, filmed in Hollywood in 1969, was called "Those Were the Days". "Dickie" and Gloria were recast twice; the same actor (D'Urville Martin) played Lionel in both original pilots but was replaced for the final 1970 pilot.

* PostScriptSeason: The show wrapped up its eighth season with Mike, Gloria, and Joey moving to California. Creator/RobReiner and Sally Struthers had announced they were leaving the show, and producer NormanLear couldn't imagine continuing it without them, so having the Stivics say goodbye to Archie and Edith was conceived as a perfect TearJerker ending to the show... until CBS executives offered Carroll O'Connor [[MoneyDearBoy $100,000 an episode]] to come back as Archie, and he agreed. Not only did the show continue for a ninth season (without Reiner, Struthers, or Lear), it got an AfterShow in ''Series/ArchieBunkersPlace''.

* SeparatedAtBirthCasting: By all reports, what sealed the casting of Sally Struthers for the role of Gloria (over stronger, more assertive actresses like Penny Marshall) was her strong resemblance to Carroll O'Connor.

** Even Rob Reiner, who became a successful director, has often said that if he were to win the Nobel Prize, all the headlines would read "MEATHEAD WINS NOBEL PRIZE". It was a double trumping as he was first known mostly as Carl Reiner's son.

** According to the actor himself, [[Series/TheMaryTylerMooreShow Murray Slaughter]] was the last considered before the producers went with O'Conner for The role of Archie.

** Carroll O'Connor was absent from several episodes during the show's fifth season as a result of protracted contract disputes with the producers. This was explained within the show as Archie having gone missing while attending a convention. If O'Connor and the producers had failed to renew his contract, he would have been gunned down at the convention and his best friend "Stretch" Cunningham would have moved in to help look after the family. (Cunningham, played by Creator/JamesCromwell at the very beginning of his career, made his first onscreen appearance after years as TheGhost earlier that same season, to anticipate the possibility of his becoming the new lead.)
*** After his contract was successfully renewed, O'Connor, understandably not fond of Cromwell's continued presence on the show, put his foot down and demanded that Cromwell be fired, which eventually resulted in the famous "death of Stretch Cunningham" episode. According to Cromwell, other members of the cast liked him and pushed for him to stay on, but to no avail.
* YouLookFamiliar: Allan Melvin appeared as a cop in one episode (season 1's "Archie in the Lock-Up") before taking on the recurring role of Barney Hefner.

*** After his contract was successfully renewed, O'Connor, understandably not fond of Cromwell or his character suddenly having an onscreen role on the show, put his foot down and insisted Cromwell be fired, which eventually resulted in the famous "death of Stretch Cunningham" episode.

** Two famous casting tidbits: Mickey Rooney was the first choice to play Archie, and Creator/HarrisonFord was actually cast as "Dickie", but both backed out because they found the playing of Archie's bigotry for humor to be too offensive.

** According to the actor himself, [[TheMaryTylerMooreShow Murray Slaughter]] was the last considered before the producers went with O'Conner for The role of Archie.
** Long before she became [[LaverneAndShirley Laverne]], Penny Marshall was up for the role of Gloria. Had she gotten it, she could have worked alongside [[RealLifeRelative then-husband]] Rob Reiner.
** Had O'Connor won the part of [[GilligansIsland the Skipper]] it's very likely he wouldn't have been considered for Archie.

** The pilot episode, "Meet the Bunkers", was actually the ''third'' pilot produced (becoming the first show with three separate pilots - a few years earlier, ''[[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries Star Trek]]'' had been the first with two). In both pilots prior to the one that was greenlit, Michael was an Irish-American named Dickie and the Bunkers' last name was Justice. The first pilot, produced in 1968 for Creator/{{ABC}}, not CBS, was entitled "[[PunBasedTitle Justice for All]]" and was actually filmed in New York; the second pilot, filmed in Hollywood in 1969, was called "Those Were the Days". "Dickie" and Gloria were recast twice; the same actor played Lionel in both original pilots but was replaced for the final 1970 pilot.

** Jean Stapleton was originally considered for the role of Mike Teavee's mother in ''Film/WillyWonkaAndTheChocolateFactory'', but turned it down as it would've interfered with the schedule for shooting the ''AllInTheFamily'' pilot (the role went to Dodo Denney).

** Try to imagine Jean Stapleton as anybody other than Edith Bunker. Just try it.

** Somewhat averted with Carroll O'Connor, thanks to the TV version of ''Series/InTheHeatOfTheNight''.
* SocietyMarchesOn: The show was the first in television history to show a ''toilet'' (aka "a turlet", according to Archie.)

** The pilot episode, "Meet the Bunkers", was actually the ''third'' pilot produced. In both pilots prior to the one that was greenlit, Michael was an Irish-American named Dickie and the Bunkers' last name was Justice. The first pilot, produced in 1968 for Creator/{{ABC}}, not CBS, was entitled "[[PunBasedTitle Justice for All]]" and was actually filmed in New York; the second pilot, filmed in Hollywood in 1969, was called "Those Were the Days". "Dickie" and Gloria were recast twice; the same actor played Lionel in both original pilots but was replaced for the final 1970 pilot.

** Two famous casting tidbits: Mickey Rooney was the first choice to play Archie, and Creator/HarrisonFord was actually cast as "Dickie", but both backed out because they found the playing of Archie's bigotry for humor to be offensive.

* SocietyMarchesOn: The show was the first in television and film history to show a ''toilet'' (aka "a turlet", according to Archie.)

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: The pilot episode, "Meet the Bunkers", was actually the ''third'' pilot produced. In both pilots prior to the one that was greenlit, Michael was an Irish-American named Dickie and the Bunkers' last name was Justice. The first pilot, produced in 1968 for Creator/{{ABC}}, not CBS, was entitled "[[PunBasedTitle Justice for All]]" and was actually filmed in New York; the second pilot, filmed in Hollywood in 1969, was called "Those Were the Days". "Dickie" and Gloria were recast twice; the same actor played Lionel in both original pilots but was replaced for the final 1970 pilot.