Boy, the way Glenn Miller played
December 17, 2016 3:43 PM   Subscribe

Sony Pictures Television and Norman Lear are in talks to remake episodes of All in the Family and three other classic Lear sitcoms.
The idea currently being discussed by Lear and Sony executives would be to have new actors recreate classic episodes of the shows, working from the original scripts, and package them as short, six-episode anthologies.
Lear has some experience remaking All in the Family episodes. Three pilots were filmed for the show, only one of which made it to air.

All in the Family was inspired by a British show called Till Death Us Do Part. From its 1965 pilot episode, only a brief clip survives.

Lear bought the rights to the show, and in 1968 produced a pilot for the remake, titled Justice For All. Only Carroll O'Connor and Jean Stapleton, playing Archie and Edith Justice, and D'Urville Martin as Lionel Jefferson would remain for the second pilot in 1969, titled Those Were the Days. A third pilot was produced for CBS, and aired on January 12, 1971. The cast was set, the son-in-law was Polish, and television history was made.
posted by Knappster (26 comments total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
Great, I'm stoked to see Archie Bunker reinvented as a deplorable. There was a lot that was lovable about the original show, but I do not think it is a message for our times.

(It would be pretty interesting if he had to put up with his adorable daughter's big liberal lunkhead wife instead of husband, though)
posted by Countess Elena at 3:47 PM on December 17, 2016 [3 favorites]


I think they should faithfully recreate the episodes but then use CGI to overlay Peter Cushing's visage and voice onto every character.
posted by lagomorphius at 3:58 PM on December 17, 2016 [11 favorites]


However, I think Good Times is the Norman Lear sitcom that needs to be remade now.
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 3:59 PM on December 17, 2016 [9 favorites]


I grew up watching AITF. This could be way cool.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 4:02 PM on December 17, 2016


That 'Till Death Us Do Part clip- you keep expecting Daleks to burst through the wall from the next studio over where they were filming Doctor Who.


They probably used some of the same props, too.
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 4:07 PM on December 17, 2016


IMHO, The Elevator Story episode of All in the Family is for these times: "You got a little boy."
posted by mandolin conspiracy at 4:07 PM on December 17, 2016


That 'Till Death Us Do Part clip- you keep expecting Daleks to burst through the wall from the next studio over where they were filming Doctor Who.

To save money, the set was illuminated by burning early Doctor Who videotapes.
posted by Knappster at 4:17 PM on December 17, 2016 [13 favorites]


Redoing All In The Family would just make it clear 1.) how almost-miraculously well-done it was the first time around, and 2.) how little taste for controversy anybody has now.

If they really want to update it, they should make Archie a mean, hateful liberal oppressing everyone with Political Correctness. That would at least make people turn their heads sideways like dogs do when they hear a weird noise. Remaking the show just for the sake of it is inherently imitative and conservative, which the show was inherently not; it would be copying everything about the show except the spirit of it...

Or it'll be brilliant and I'm completely wrong, but I'm not holding my breath.
posted by Sing Or Swim at 4:19 PM on December 17, 2016 [9 favorites]


It's going to be weird watching Archie watching FOX and posting Breitbart links on Facebook for 24 minutes.
posted by RobotVoodooPower at 4:28 PM on December 17, 2016 [10 favorites]


That would at least make people turn their heads sideways like dogs do when they hear a weird noise.

Haven't they already accomplished that by proposing a new production of All in the Family? I think they should faithfully stick to the script. Years from now, when people start getting tired of the same old annual Sitcom Festival performances, then it will be time to start doing versions where Archie Bunker is cast as a feminist android nurse, the one set in late medieval Denmark, Archie Bunker On Ice, et cetera.
posted by sfenders at 4:36 PM on December 17, 2016 [4 favorites]


Norman Lear is 94 years old, for anyone using this time of year to contemplate their legacy.
posted by Room 641-A at 4:47 PM on December 17, 2016 [2 favorites]


Just Another Version of You is excellent. I knew as a kid Good Times had an issue with the father quitting, but didn't know the details until this documentary, nor did I appreciate why Good Times led to The Jeffersons.

And what Sing or Swim said...
posted by lazycomputerkids at 4:52 PM on December 17, 2016 [2 favorites]


However, I think Good Times is the Norman Lear sitcom that needs to be remade now.

I was flying home from a business trip one time, and I was returning the car at the rental drop-off in Chicago. The way that it was done is that you pull into a huge lot, and you are in a long line of cars until you get to one of the employees of the rental agency who will check your car and send you on your way.

So, I get out of the car, and an employee comes up to me. He says, "Good times."

I say, "What?"

He says, "Good times," and nods his head.

I say, "I'm sorry, I don't know what your are telling me."

Nodding again, he said, "That guy right there, he was in Good Times."

I turn around, and immediately behind me in line was Jimmy "J.J." Walker exiting his rental car.

I don't think about media personalities much, but you certainly don't expect that kind of thing to take you by surprise every day. I grew up watching him at my grandparents house, so it was very surreal.
posted by SpacemanStix at 4:54 PM on December 17, 2016 [7 favorites]


Mister, we could use a man like Sheriff Lobo again...
posted by entropicamericana at 6:24 PM on December 17, 2016 [3 favorites]


Tom Hanks was able to pull off something like this when he did the SNL Black Jeopardy skit.
posted by brujita at 6:59 PM on December 17, 2016 [1 favorite]


The idea currently being discussed by Lear and Sony executives would be to have new actors recreate classic episodes of the shows, working from the original scripts, and package them as short, six-episode anthologies.

I mean, it worked so well for the Gus Van Sant version of Psycho.
posted by tobascodagama at 7:12 PM on December 17, 2016 [3 favorites]


My parents are in their 70's now. And my mom periodically gets very annoyed with the friends from the old neighborhood and ends up scolding them to get over it and recognize it's not their world anymore and either start helping create what their children and grandchildren want the world to be or go ahead and shut up already.

All this constantly remaking the 60's, the 70's, the horrible 80's makes me wish more entrenched old white guys had my mother wagging her finger in their faces,
posted by crush-onastick at 7:17 PM on December 17, 2016 [9 favorites]


They should remake something that, y'know, needs remaking
posted by Ray Walston, Luck Dragon at 8:08 PM on December 17, 2016 [3 favorites]


I wish they could undo some remakes, take it all back and say sorry.
posted by SpacemanStix at 8:11 PM on December 17, 2016 [1 favorite]


Archie Bunker was lovable largely thanks to Carol O'Connor and the fact that you knew he was a relic in a changing world, powerless to stop it. None of that would apply to a remake. At worst it would help to normalize the hate currently running our country.
posted by emjaybee at 6:11 AM on December 18, 2016 [11 favorites]


They could remake Maude, but I'm not sure you can have a protagonist get an abortion on mainstream TV any more.

(I'm convinced this is part of why various plans to remake "Dirty Dancing" end up sputtering - someone looks at the actual plot and slides the script back under a pile of other scripts.)
posted by rmd1023 at 6:44 AM on December 18, 2016 [4 favorites]


I think this is an interesting concept. This particular projet won't be a remake or reboot of All In The Family*, it will be new actors working from the original scripts and presented as a packaged anthology. I think it will be fascinating to see how those scripts work as "new" shows forty years later as opposed to rewatching the old shows now since you can't escape the dated clothing and surroundings.

Personally, I don't need all these current reboots and remakes, either, but I trust Norman Lear's instincts and don't think it's just lazy tv-makimg.

* According to TFA, there was talk about a reboot but Lear decided to remake One Day At A Time instead, which does make more sense for this day and age.
posted by Room 641-A at 7:41 AM on December 18, 2016


Archie Bunker was lovable largely thanks to Carol O'Connor and the fact that you knew he was a relic in a changing world, powerless to stop it. None of that would apply to a remake. At worst it would help to normalize the hate currently running our country.

Also, satire doesn't (always) work in the same way as a form of humor as it once did. It requires mentioning words, ideas, and attitudes out loud that no longer are received well by the public, even as a subversive form of ridicule against bigotry. Unless stirring up controversy is part of the objective, which would actually mirror the original concerns of the creators when Archie Bunker first aired (they were worried that the satire wouldn't translate well to the average audience, and they would be immediately cancelled).
posted by SpacemanStix at 12:58 PM on December 18, 2016


Man, I'm starting to think back on my childhood and recognize how much Norman Lear I grew up watching. One Day At A Time and Good Times and AITF and Archie Bunker's Place and Sanford and Son and Facts of Life and The Jeffersons.

I never watched Maude, and AITF has the isuues with contemporary audience reception mentioned upthhread. But I really think that The Jeffersons and Good Times could really transcend time and work as is in new productions.

"Businessman made good moves the family into upscale digs" and "Hard working, mostly broke family getting by" resonate today as they did back then.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 7:12 PM on December 18, 2016 [1 favorite]


(It would be pretty interesting if he had to put up with his adorable daughter's big liberal lunkhead wife instead of husband, though)

I don't think that would be a good alteration. A reoccurring trait of Michael was that he was a loud liberal who supported every 'correct' policy, but would be threatened whenever Gloria explored feminism or was reminded he isn't the breadwinner. I don't know how you gender flip that. Maybe Michelle would be a social justice warrior who holds a lot of contradictory views?

Hell, if the writers had balls, 2017 Michael would be using his politics as cover to assault women at his university. I don't know to get humor out of that. That's why we're bringing Norman Lear out of retirement.
posted by riruro at 9:14 PM on December 18, 2016 [2 favorites]


I wasn't aware Norman Lear was still alive until I heard him on an episode of Harmontown earlier this year, and he still came off as pretty sharp, so maybe this could turn out ok? It does seems like a weird idea, I would have thought he'd prefer to be involved in something new, even if only in a consulting/hand's-off producer role.
posted by Wandering Idiot at 8:35 PM on December 19, 2016


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