Casa Keaton

Two former 1960s left-wing hippies (Michael Gross and Meredith Baxter) try to rear their children (Michael J. Fox, Justine Bateman and Tina Yothers) in the 1980s and naturally have problem after problem in "Family Ties", one of the more memorable television successes of that impressive boob-tube decade. The show ran from 1982 to 1989 and even added another child (youngster Brian Bonsall) by the middle of its run. When the show premiered in 1982 it just could not generate any substantial interest ("Cheers" had the same problem during its initial year). After that though it was all peaches and cream as the series dominated on Sunday evenings and was consistently a top 5 or 10 show each week until they exited quietly (of its own free will after eight years). Fox and Bateman were definitely the two who dominated the show. Fox was a Republican-styled teen who seemed to only care about money and social status while Bateman was a polar opposite. She was a ditsy teen who seemed to care more about makeup, clothes, boys and being popular (in other words she was a normal youngster). Every cast member had their moments, but the series was not all fun and games. It consistently had "special" episodes where life crept into the family's crazed television world. Another of those NBC products from the 1980s that survives due to its performers and its intelligence. 4 stars out of 5.

I love this hilarious sitcom and catch it on re runs whenever I chance upon it. I think it is one of the funniest family comedy series ever, with some entertaining and unusual character portrayals.

The series revolves around the Keaton family, with liberal parents Steven (a TV station manager) and Elyse (an architect). The couple have three children...a financially savvy, politically conservative son Alex, his shopaholic teenage sister Mallory, and a younger tomboy sister, Jennifer. Later Elyse gives birth to a fourth child, baby Andrew. Along the way, Alex develops love interests, first in the form of Ellen (played by the actor's future wife, Tracy Pollan) and later, Lauren, a psychology major. Mallory acquires a boyfriend herself, the motorcycle riding high school drop out, Nick, who incurs the disapproval of her parents and of course especially brother Alex.

The acting is stellar with Meredith Baxter and Michael Gross portraying the parents and Tina Yothers the kid sister, Jennifer. However, it is really Michael J. Fox's show with his hilarious depiction of Alex P. Keaton, who has a tendency to wear shirt & tie everyday around the house and introduces little brother Andrew to the Wall Street Journal while he's still in diapers! My personal favourite is Mallory (charmingly played by Justine Bateman); she is so amusing and endearing as his dim witted, academically slack, clothes obsessed sister who cannot get enough of the mall and talking about cute boys. Of course her contrast with the smart, serious, & focused Alex could hardly be greater.

It's a reverse generational tale to the expected. Normally the parents are the conservative ones, with the teenage offspring liberal rebels and rabble rousers. However, the Keaton parents are the left wing family members, former political activists back in their college heyday. Son Alex, on the other hand, is a die-hard and very vocal card carrying Republican who eventually finds his niche on Wall Street. The sparring between Alex and his parents (as well as with Mallory) makes for some wonderful comedy in this warm hearted family sitcom.

I get nostalgic about television shows like Family Ties. It was based around two parents who graduated University of California at Berkeley in the sixties. It was wise to have their eldest son, Alex P., to be on the opposite fence of politics. ALex with his tie and pictures of Ronald Reagan and Nixon. His younger sister, Mallory, played well by Justine Bateman cares more about fashion than grades or Alex's politics. It's great watching these two in action. The younger sister, Jennifer, develops from a young girl to an independent adolescent. There were always two story lines going on in every episode. Marc Price's SKippy is priceless for a thankless job. Scott valentine plays Mallory's boyfriend, Nick, a painter who never finished high school. Some of the best moments in this series happens after Nick enters the Keatons lives and his relationship with them. The mixture of great characters with witty dialogue. You can't stop laughing when Mr. Keaton tries to apologize to Nick in a ladies' shoe store. He comes across as a former gay lover than the father of Mallory but it's full of laughs. Despite the witty dialogues, this was a believable family who introduced Andrew, the youngest and fourth child. What do the children think when they find out. "I was talking about closet space" Mallory says to Alex. Oh, this is truly a family show for everybody. I can't say how I miss a family centered show on such a wonderful family like the Keatons.

"Family Ties" creator Gary Goldberg didn't like Michael J. Fox on his first audition, thought he played Alex a little too smart-assish. But on his second try, Fox approached it a different way and won the part that shot him to stardom. He quickly became the focal point of the show as the money obsessed teenager Alex P. Keaton. You could understand Meredith Baxter-Birney's disappointment, as the show was to be geared toward her character as the mother. But she and the rest of the cast pretty much faded into the background behind Fox. Not that he wasn't supported by a great group of performers. Michael Gross as the easy going father, Justine Bateman as the typical phone hogging, boy troubled teenage daughter, and Tina Yothers as the tomboyish younger sister. In later years some nice additions were Scott Valentine as Bateman's weirdo boyfriend, and making numerous appearances over the years was Marc Price as the nerdy next door neighbor, Skippy. High point episodes over the years were the Alex turns 18 one, the Alex rents out the rooms of the house one, and also the 4(!) part heartattack episode with the focus being on Michael Gross' father character, Steven. Shows major misstep occured during their final year when they tried to become too socially concious. Episodes dealing with book banning, oil spills, toxic fumes from household products, and racism seemed a bit out of place and more importantly, took away from the comedy. The last hurrah was a decent episode that saw Alex move to New York to be an investment banker. But most recommended from the series would be the shows middle years, where the writing was at its best. Show also must of set some sort of record with at least 6 or 7(!) of those flashback type episodes featuring clips of the past stories. But no harm done.

I often watch old sitcoms that I use to love as a kid. A lot of times, I'm disappointed because they are not near as good as I remembered, and in some cases they are just plain bad, when seen through my now-adult eyes. Family Ties is NOT one of those sitcoms! It's more impressive now than it was then. And of course, there are things that I pick up on now that I didn't when I was 10 years old. (politics/ hippies)

I also never realized how FUNNY Michael Gross was until I started watching it again recently. I have no idea how that slipped by me! He is hilarious. Micheal J Fox is very funny too, of course. He had a lot of funny lines, but I've only recently noticed how much physical comedy he did as well. It's really sad to watch how quick and nimble he use to be; the way he could jump up onto the kitchen counter in one quick motion and slide all the way across it.

There was always a moral lesson, too. I think all '80s sitcoms had those, but Family Ties pulled it off w/o being too cheesy about it. It's such a great show for both kids & adults. Every time I watch it, I find myself thinking "what ever happened to good, quality TV!?"