Family Ties
The iconic Family Ties "family painting, used in the opening sequence from 1983 to 1985.
Format	Sitcom
Created by	Gary David Goldberg
Starring	Meredith Baxter-Birney Michael Gross Michael J. Fox Justine Bateman Tina Yothers Marc Price Scott Valentine (1985-1989) Tracy Pollan (1985-1986) Brian Bonsall (1986-1989) Courteney Cox (1987-1989)
Opening theme	"Without Us" by Dennis Tufano and Mindy Sterling (Episodes 1-10) and by Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams (Episodes 11-180)
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	180 (List of episodes)
Production
Running time	approx. 0:30 (per episode)
Broadcast
Original channel	NBC
Original run	September 22, 1982 – May 14, 1989
External links
IMDb profile
TV.com summary

Family Ties is an American television sitcom which aired on NBC for seven seasons, from 1982 to 1989. At the height of its popularity, Family Ties was #2 in the yearly Nielsen ratings, as it aired in the prized time-slot right after the top-rated Cosby Show on Thursday nights. Family Ties was a popular American TV sitcom during the 1980s. ... Family Ties opening screenshot. ... A sitcom or situation comedy is a genre of comedy performance originally devised for radio but today typically found on television. ... Gary David Goldberg (born June 25, 1944 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American writer and producer for television and film . ... Meredith Baxter (born June 21, 1947 in South Pasadena, California) is an American actress. ... Michael Gross (born June 21, 1947, in Chicago, Illinois) is a television and movie actor who plays both comedic and dramatic roles. ... For other persons named Michael Fox, see Michael Fox (disambiguation). ... Justine Bateman (born February 19, 1966, in Rye, New York) is an American actress, born to Kent (a film producer), and Victoria (a Maltese-American flight attendant) Bateman. ... Tina Yothers (born May 5, 1973 in Whittier, California) is a former American child actress. ... Marc Price is a television actor who is best known for his role as Skippy on Family Ties. ... Scott Valentine (June 3, 1958 in Saratoga Springs, New York) is an American actor. ... Tracy Pollan and her husband Michael J. Fox. ... Brian Eric Bonsall (born December 3, 1981 in Torrance, California) is a former child actor. ... Courteney Bass Cox Arquette (born Courteney Bass Cox on June 15, 1964) is an American actress and former fashion model, best known for her role as Monica Geller in the hugely popular television sitcom Friends. ... Mindy Sterling (born July 11, 1953 in Paterson, New Jersey) is an American actress. ... John Royce Mathis (b. ... Deniece Williams Deniece Williams is an American singer, songwriter and record producer who achieved success in the 1970s and 1980s. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... // Category: ... This article is about the television network. ... is the 265th day of the year (266th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... May 14 is the 134th day of the year (135th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... A sitcom or situation comedy is a genre of comedy performance originally devised for radio but today typically found on television. ... This article is about the television network. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... When TV viewers or entertainment professionals in the United States mention ratings they are often referring to Nielsen Ratings, a system developed by Nielsen Media Research to determine the audience size and composition of television programming. ... Photo of the entire cast of The Cosby Show. ...

It starred Michael J. Fox as Alex P. Keaton, the conservative, business-oriented son of liberal parents Elyse and Steven (Meredith Baxter-Birney and Michael Gross). Elyse was a successful architect, while Steven ran a public television station. They lived in suburban Columbus, Ohio with their children: Alex, Mallory ("Mal") (Justine Bateman) and Jennifer ("Jen") (Tina Yothers). Another child, Andrew ("Andy") (Brian Bonsall), was added later. For other persons named Michael Fox, see Michael Fox (disambiguation). ... Michael J. Fox as Alex P. Keaton Alex P. Keaton is a fictional character, portrayed by Michael J. Fox, on the 1980s American sitcom Family Ties. ... Meredith Baxter (born June 21, 1947 in South Pasadena, California) is an American actress. ... Michael Gross (born June 21, 1947, in Chicago, Illinois) is a television and movie actor who plays both comedic and dramatic roles. ... “PBS” redirects here. ... Nickname: Location in the state of Ohio, USA Coordinates: , Country State Counties Franklin, Delaware, and Fairfield Government  - Mayor Michael B. Coleman (D) Area  - City  212. ... Justine Bateman (born February 19, 1966, in Rye, New York) is an American actress, born to Kent (a film producer), and Victoria (a Maltese-American flight attendant) Bateman. ... Tina Yothers (born May 5, 1973 in Whittier, California) is a former American child actress. ... Brian Eric Bonsall (born December 3, 1981 in Torrance, California) is a former child actor. ...

This show began two spinoffs, Day by Day, which lasted two seasons, and The Art of Being Nick, which was produced as a pilot but never picked up as a series. A spin-off (or spinoff) is a new organization or entity formed by a split from a larger one such as a new company formed from a university research group. ... Day by Day was a short-lived television sitcom which starred Douglas Sheehan, Linda Kelsey, Christopher Daniel Barnes, Thora Birch, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Courtney Thorne-Smith. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Premise

The show had been sold to the network using the pitch "hip parents, square kids," and the parents were originally intended to be the main characters. However, the audience reacted so positively during the taping of the fourth episode, in which Alex lost his virginity to a girl who shared his passion for Milton Friedman, that the focus of the show was changed to him (and to a lesser extent, his siblings). Virgin redirects here. ... Milton Friedman (July 31, 1912 – November 16, 2006) was an American Nobel Laureate economist and public intellectual. ...

The majority of the show's humor is derived from the tension between Alex's conservative, Republican mindset, Mallory's uninformed consumerism, and their parents' attitudes as liberal Democrats, who grew up as hippie flower children in the 1960s (as seen in one of the intro themes). Ths article deals with conservatism as a political philosophy. ... The Republican Party, often called the GOP (for Grand Old Party, although one early citation described it as the Gallant Old Party) [1], is one of the two major political parties in the United States. ... Liberalism is an ideology, philosophical view, and political tradition which holds that liberty is the primary political value. ... The Democratic Party is one of two major political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. ... Singer at a modern Hippie movement in Russia Hippie (sometimes spelled hippy) refers to a member of a subgroup of the counterculture that began in the United States during the early 1960s, becoming an established social group by 1965, and expanding to other countries before declining in the mid-1970s. ... Flower child originated as a synonym for hippie, for their custom of wearing flowers to symbolize peace and love. ...

Other characters

In the 1985 season, Elyse gave birth to Andrew; the child "grew" into a pre-schooler (Brian Bonsall) by the next season. This is a list of television-related events in 1985. ... Brian Eric Bonsall (born December 3, 1981 in Torrance, California) is a former child actor. ...

Other characters included the Keatons' socially inept neighbor Erwin 'Skippy' Handelman (Marc Price), who had an undying crush on Mallory, and in later years, Rambo-like budding artist Nick Moore (Scott Valentine), who became romantically involved with Mallory and alarmed various members of the family with how unknowingly crass and unmannered he could be. Marc Price is a television actor who is best known for his role as Skippy on Family Ties. ... Rambo is a trilogy of popular action films based on the characters created by David Morrell in his novel First Blood. ... Scott Valentine (June 3, 1958 in Saratoga Springs, New York) is an American actor. ...

Alex's primary love interest was a college student named Ellen Reed (Tracy Pollan, who later became Michael J. Fox's real-life wife). The final two seasons featured Courteney Cox as new girlfriend Lauren Miller. Tracy Pollan and her husband Michael J. Fox. ... Courteney Bass Cox Arquette (born Courteney Bass Cox on June 15, 1964) is an American actress and former fashion model, best known for her role as Monica Geller in the hugely popular television sitcom Friends. ...

Casting

Cast of Family Ties from a later season. (From left to right) Justine Bateman, Michael J. Fox , Meredith Baxter, Michael Gross, Brian Bonsall, and Tina Yothers

Michael J. Fox almost wasn't cast because the producers felt he was too short compared to Michael Gross. Fox is only 165 cm (5'5") while Gross is 195 cm (6'5"), leading the producers to worry that no one would believe someone as tall as Gross would have a son as short as Fox. Additionally, Fox was viewed as too much of a smart aleck in his first audition, but the casting director liked him and brought him back. The second time, he gave a slightly different pitch, and the part was his. Image File history File links Family_Ties. ... Image File history File links Family_Ties. ... Justine Bateman (born February 19, 1966, in Rye, New York) is an American actress, born to Kent (a film producer), and Victoria (a Maltese-American flight attendant) Bateman. ... For other persons named Michael Fox, see Michael Fox (disambiguation). ... Meredith Baxter (born June 21, 1947 in South Pasadena, California) is an American actress. ... Michael Gross (born June 21, 1947, in Chicago, Illinois) is a television and movie actor who plays both comedic and dramatic roles. ... Brian Eric Bonsall (born December 3, 1981 in Torrance, California) is a former child actor. ... Tina Yothers (born May 5, 1973 in Whittier, California) is a former American child actress. ... For other persons named Michael Fox, see Michael Fox (disambiguation). ...

Several Hollywood stars appeared on the show in the early days of their careers before they became famous, including Tom Hanks as Elyse's immature, alcoholic younger brother Ned, Geena Davis as an inept housekeeper, and Courteney Cox as Alex's girlfriend, Lauren. Thomas Jeffrey Hanks (born July 9, 1956) is an American two-time Academy Award-winning film actor, Emmy-winning director, voice-over artist and movie producer. ... Virginia Elizabeth Geena Davis (born January 21, 1956) is an Academy Award- and Golden Globe-winning and Emmy-nominated American actress and former fashion model. ... Courteney Bass Cox Arquette (born Courteney Bass Cox on June 15, 1964) is an American actress and former fashion model, best known for her role as Monica Geller in the hugely popular television sitcom Friends. ...

Episodes

Main article: List of Family Ties episodes

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Popularity

Family Ties was broadcast on Thursday nights from 1984 until 1987, immediately following the top-rated program The Cosby Show and just before another wildly popular sitcom, Cheers. That period represented the height of all three programs' popularity; they were, for example, the top three most-watched U.S. television programs during the 1986-1987 TV season, when 33% of all U.S. households with televisions tuned in to Family Ties during an average week. The ratings began to decline in 1987, when the show was moved to Sunday nights at the request of Bill Cosby, to make room for A Different World. Producer/creator Gary David Goldberg decided to end the show with the 1988-1989 TV season. In the final episode Alex moved to New York to begin his career on Wall Street. The Cosby Show is an American television sitcom starring Bill Cosby, first broadcast on September 20, 1984 and ran for eight seasons on the NBC television network, until April 30, 1992. ... This article is about the TV series. ... When TV viewers or entertainment professionals in the United States mention ratings they are often referring to Nielsen Ratings, a system developed by Nielsen Media Research to determine the audience size and composition of television programming. ... William Henry Bill Cosby, Jr. ... A Different World is an American television sitcom which aired for six seasons on NBC (from September 24, 1987 until July 9, 1993). ... Gary David Goldberg (born June 25, 1944 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American writer and producer for television and film . ... Elaborate marble facade of NYSE as seen from the intersection of Broad and Wall Streets For other uses, see Wall Street (disambiguation). ...

On The Pat Sajak Show, Michael Gross suggested that the finale episode have the Keatons die in a plane crash. He said the cast wanted to close off any chances of a reunion in the future.^[1] The series finale brought in 36.3 million viewers (35 percent of all viewers watching television at that time) The Pat Sajak Show was an American late-night television talk show which aired on CBS from January 9, 1989 to April 13, 1990. ...

DVD releases

CBS DVD has released the first two seasons of Family Ties on DVD in Region 1. CBS Video Enterprises was the home video entertainment arm of CBS, Inc. ... Size comparison: A 12 cm Sony DVD+RW and a 19 cm Dixon Ticonderoga pencil. ... The following is an excerpt of the article entitled DVD. For the sake of convenience, the terms Region 0, Region 1, Region 2, Region 3, Region 4, Region 5, Region 6, Region 7 and Region 8 redirect to this page. ...

is the 51st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 282nd day of the year (283rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ...

Alternate versions

The Italian version of the sitcom is named "Casa Keaton" ( Keaton's house ).

The German version was first named "Hilfe, wir werden erwachsen!" (Help, we're growing up!), which was changed to "Familienbande" (Family Ties) and again to "Jede Menge Familie" (A whole lot of family).

References

1. ^ Review/Television; Late-Night Chitchat Additions: Pat Sajak and Arsenio Hall. NYTimes. Retrieved on 1989-01-11.

Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... is the 11th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ...

External link

• Encyclopedia of Television