A Beloved All In The Family Moment Wasn’t Actually In The Script
By WITNEY SEIBOLD
In the "All in the Family" episode "Gloria Sings the Blues" (March 2, 1974), Archie (Carroll O'Connor) wakes up Mike (Rob Reiner) to leave early on a fishing trip.
While Mike idly puts on his shoes, Archie notices that he has put a sock and a shoe on his left foot before putting a sock on his right foot, and he is instantly irritated.
"Don't you know," Archie says, "the whole world puts on a sock and a sock and a shoe and a shoe?" Defensively, Mike says, "I like to take care of one foot at a time!"
They then have a debate about whether "sock-sock-shoe-shoe" is "correct" or if "sock-shoe-sock-shoe" is correct. It's a nitpicking yet hilarious conversation.
Reiner told Sirius XM that he and O'Connor improvised the entire scene before a live audience. The laughter was genuine, and the actors could time their performances accordingly.