Gloria

Gloria was actually the 6th spin-off of the All in The Family franchise, I neglected to remember Good Times with Jimmy "Dynomite" Walker.That show was a spin-off of a spin-off, Back in 1972- Maude was the first spin-off of All in The Family, then in 1975, Good Times was a spin-off of Maude.Basically it breaks down like this- All in The Family (1971) begot Maude (1972)and the Jeffersons (1975) and Archie Bunkers Place(1981) and Gloria (1982).While the spin-off Maude begot another spin-off Good Times(1975). I would be baffled in anyone else can name another TV series such as All in the Family that had so many spin-offs and a spin-off a spin-off.

The complete summary of the well-read viewer who says this is the sixth spin off is forgetting (understandably) the Jeffersons spin off, "Checking In," which lasted about four episodes. Marla Gibbs as the star--Florence gets a job at a hotel--was perhaps the smartest spun-off actress in TV land... she reportedly had it in her contract that if the show failed she could return to "The Jeffersons."

I loved "Gloria" though wished it could have had a closer connection with AITF/Archie Bunker's Place, but I guess that was nixed by Carroll O'Connor. One idea floating was to have Gloria meet a woman (played by Jean Stapleton) who reminded her of her mother.

Sally Struthers was a gifted actress and had lots of appeal, and it was a fun cast. These short-run series are hard to find, and, if you like them, harder to forget.

Someone here asked if anyone knows why Gloria was canceled. I worked on the show as Burgess Merefith's assistant. The show was canceled because Sally Struthers blew off an interview with TV Guide. Also, Carroll O'Connor was a producer and lost control of his vision for the show which included plans for Archie and Gloria to appear on each other's show on occasion. Though the ratings were healthy, the writing was sub-par. O'Connor and Meredith were best friends and they both were fed up with the show and it's many deficiencies. So, it was canceled for political reasons and artistic shortcomings.

When I acquired a box set of All in the Family, one of the DVD extras was the pilot episode of the Gloria series. Had it not been for this special feature, I would never have known that Gloria ever existed. I don't remember this show ever being on network TV. I watched the pilot episode, out of curiosity. Wasn't impressed. Sally Struthers looked pretty, but that in itself is not enough to carry a show. Carroll O'Connor makes a guest appearance, also to no avail. When Mike and Gloria departed All in the Family, that was not good. Having Gloria as a single mother, supposedly separated permanently from Mike, only gives plausibility to the bad decision which was made in the first place. As I said, Sally looks pretty here, but that doesn't cut it. She also looks pretty on All in the Family, the far superior show.

Ill-conceived spin-off from "All In the Family" that should never have existed. Archie & Edith's "little girl" Gloria is now a struggling single mom, split from husband Mike. That the show wasn't particularly funny was bad enough; what I really object to is the way it ruined our memories of the Stivics. Mike and Gloria were so much in love, I don't believe for a minute they would split up. The spin-off left a bad taste in my mouth before it even aired. So did "Archie Bunker's Place", the mutation of "All In the Family" that had the widowed Archie running a tavern and raising his niece. It's a shame those two shows had to come from an all time favorite-the best way to enjoy those characters is in the original. Edith completes Archie, Mike completes Gloria. The proof? Nobody remembers this spin-off, and nobody wants to remember "Archie Bunker's Place".