Norman Lear, who along with partner Bud Yorkin changed prime time TV forever, has died. Lear was 101.
Lear was the creative force behind All In The Family, which took viewers where TV had never been before. The show, about a working class man named Archie Bunker, lived in New York with his wife, and his activist daughter and son-in-law.
Archie was a man of traditional values, with little tolerance for minorities or the changing American culture. Son-in-law Mike Was an anti-war protestor, out to change the world, that was so comfortable for Archie.
The frequent tension between the two made for great TV and the show became a hit on CBS. Lear was also responsible for shows like Maude and Good Times, as well as a few other comedies.
It also paved the landscape for MASH and Mary Tyler Moore, also hits for CBS.
Great post Mike. Lear was the greatest TV comedy producer ever.
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