The Only Major Actors Still Alive From All In The Family
There wasn't a more popular or influential (or controversial) sitcom in the 1970s than "All in the Family." Created by Norman Lear (who was about to go on a Nielsen ratings tear with "Sanford and Son," "The Jeffersons," "Good Times," "Maude," and "One Day at a Time"), the series was a stingingly hilarious satire of American attitudes as the country adjusted to the post-Civil Rights Movement era and coped with the increasingly unpopular Vietnam War.
The genius of "All in the Family" was Lear's ability to make every single one of his main characters behave ridiculously without becoming full-on caricatures. Archie Bunker (Carroll O'Connor) was an unrepentant bigot, his wife Edith (Jean Stapleton) was a well-meaning ditz, his daughter Gloria (Sally Struthers) was a work-in-progress idealist who went from dopey to fairly sharp as the series progressed, and his son-in-law Michael "Meathead" Stivic represented everything Archie hated about liberals in one preachy package. We all saw a bit of ourselves and the people we have no choice but to call family in the Bunkers, and found something close to catharsis in feeling like the whole world is undergoing a seismic change.
"All in the Family" was so popular (it was the top rated show on television for five of its nine seasons) that every single one of its main characters became iconic. This was terrific for the actors' careers in the short term, but once the series came to an end they had to battle to avoid being typecast. While O'Connor and Stapleton never enjoyed the same degree of success after leaving the sitcom behind, but they worked steadily until their deaths in, respectively, 2001 and 2013. How did the surviving members of the Bunker clan fare? Let's take a look!
Sally Struthers
For those who weren't alive during the heyday of "All in the Family" (and its continuation "Archie Bunker's Place"), Sally Struthers is probably best known for her activism on behalf of the Christian Children's Fund (now ChildFund), which raised money to support poor children in third world countries. Struthers' ardent, tearful sincerity in these commercials made her an easy target for mean-spirited parodists like the "South Park" duo of Matt Stone and Trey Parker, but she raised the profile of a well-regarded charity, which can only be viewed as a good thing.
Professionally, you can't have that voice and not make a killing in the animation world. She was the voice of Pebbles Flintstone on "Fred Flintstone and Friends" and appeared on popular cartoons like "Tiny Toon Adventures," "Droopy, Master Detective," and "The Wild Thornberrys." She was also the voice of Charlene Sinclair on ABC's "Dinosaurs."
As for live action, Struthers dropped by "Archie Bunker's Place" on occasion before getting her own short-lived spinoff "Gloria" in 1982. Almost 20 years later, she became a favorite of "Gilmore Girls" fans as the delightfully oddball neighbor Babette Dell. Struthers is still going strong at age 76, so there's every reason to believe she's got another iconic role in her.
Rob Reiner
Whatever happened to this guy? Reiner made a couple of appearances on "Archie Bunker's Place" before trying his hand at directing with "This Is Spinal Tap." All he did was create a comedy classic and usher in the mockumentary era.
Reiner was a hot Hollywood commodity as a filmmaker, and stayed that way for a solid decade. His triumphs include the smarter-than-average teen sex comedy "The Sure Thing;" the coming-of-age classic "Stand By Me;" the beloved comic fantasy "The Princess Bride;" the definitive 1980s rom-com "When Harry Met Sally...;" the white-knuckler Stephen King adaptation "Misery;" the riveting, insanely quotable courtroom drama "A Few Good Men," and the Capra-esque White House fantasy "The American President" (which was preceded by his first flop, "North").
Reiner's subsequent directorial efforts have been a mixed bag, though he did recently knock out an exceptionally entertaining documentary on his buddy Albert Brooks. He still does a bit of acting from time to time (he was excellent as Leonardo DiCaprio's father in "Wolf of Wall Street"), and has branched out into podcasts with the provocative "Who Killed JFK?" (and you can read my interview with Reiner regarding this project right here at /Film). He also turned 77 on March 6, 2024, so happy birthday, Rob! Keep on truckin' (and send my best to your pal Marty DiBergi)!
Danielle Brisebois
"All in the Family" was still in the Nielsen ratings' top 10 when it entered its ninth season, but as many popular television shows did back in the day, the producers decided to inject some new blood into the show to hopefully keep it kicking for a few more years. And so we were introduced to Danielle Brisebois' Stephanie Mills, the daughter of Edith's step-cousin Floyd. Stephanie, who's been left in the Bunkers' care by her drunk father, quickly threw a charge into the series with her sassy attitude and love for song and dance. Brisebois was a hit with the sitcom's fans, so she stuck with the series when it was retitled "Archie Bunker's Place."
You may think Brisebois disappeared, but I guarantee you've heard her music at some point over the last 30 years. She recorded her first album, "Arrive All Over You," in 1994 alongside producer Gregg Alexander. She joined Alexander's New Radicals and performed on their one-and-done platinum smash "Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too," while recording her second solo LP "Portable Life" (which didn't get a proper release until 2008).
Brisebois went on to become a sought-after songwriter, knocking out tracks for the likes of Kylie Minogue, Clay Aiken and Paula Abdul. Her biggest musical success thus far might be "Lost Stars," which she wrote (along with Alexander, Nick Lashley, and Nick Southwood) for Adam Levine to perform in John Carney's "Begin Again." This ditty earned Brisebois a 2013 Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song, so little Stephanie is doing a-ok nowadays.