Added: 4 years ago
From: LeifisBig
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  • Even the intro music those days must be creative...

  • Family is most ironic title now..

  • This had to be the most WASPy show ever.

  • I never missed this program!  Loved it!

  • There was another theme before this one. It had a slower melancholy tempo

  • everyone was always sad and devastated.

  • I love Kristy McNichol , can you believe I still have picture of her in this opening

    credits in my pocket for more than 30 years ago!!!

  • I loved this show! I wish it were in syndication.

  • Hearing this lovely theme song from "Family" transports me right back to the late '70's. I would be in front of the TV each week for this show. I was mesmerized by it. (Tuesday nights?) I loved this opening credits so much that I set up a tape recorder next to the TV speaker so I could play it repeatedly. Now we can hear and see it anytime. Thanks YouTube! I was SO in love with Meredith Baxter, but there was always something very special about Kate. John Rubenstein was also one of my favs!

  • Every wednsday @ 10:00 PM i watched FAMILY...It was a DAMN GOOD SHOW!!!

  • RIP Sada Thompson

  • RIP Sada Thompson

  • RIP, Sada. I'm 48 years old now, so many years have passed since the show last aired. You were a favorite, and will never be forgotten.

  • I loved this show! Sada reminded me so much of my own mother. She lead a very accomplished life, rest is now yours.

  • REST IN PEACE, SADA! LOVE YOU AS WELL AS YOUR ACTING!

  • I used to love this show, but the parents always seemed to be "acting". They didn't behave like real people. They were like "Stepford" parents. Good show though.

  • This was a great prime time drama. I liked Kristy McNichol in her role as Buddy. There was a girl named Anne in my high school graduating class, who looked just like Kristy. According to I.M.D.B. James Broderick passed away on November 1st 1982 (55) It's sad he was a fine actor and still young. His passing was like 3 years after Family went off the air in 1979.

  • there 3 nancy on family

  • Great television programming. For those of us who were kids in the 70's we truly had great t.v. programs......

  • Does anyone know where the house is/was located in real life? It looks like Pasadena / San Marino area - any help?

  • @951Alpha Milan ave in south pasadena

  • @beerfedway, I had no idea Broderick died at all. I figured he was living the retired life near a golf course in Palm Springs. Can he be considered a character actor? He played his roles to the hilt. Especially, in Dog Day Afternoon. I'm not sure character actor is appropriate. @puppyloveforu, I had a big time crush on McNichol as well. Then Cheryl Ladd and Tanya Roberts joined Charlie's Angels...

  • FYI: A YouTube poster erroneously indicated James Broderick died during the production of the show. He appeared in all of the episodes from 1976-1980. Broderick died in 1982.

  • I used to be so in love with "Buddy", Kristy McNichol, even as I grew older. Then I found out she was lesbian, then my heart was crushed. Oh well.

  • One of the best shows in t.v. history. Miss the heck out of this one!!!!

  • I have always enjoyed that theme song.

  • Loved this show! That's Matthew Broderick's dad - died early on in the show. Sada Thompson's character became a widow, which you didn't see a lot of on television back then. This is back when you actually had theme songs. Nowadays they just pull a song from the radio and slap it on the opening credits because they're too lazy to write a theme!

  • I loved this show! Funny how a successful attorney from Sacramento though would drive a ford maverick and wife Kate was rolling around in a ford pinto wagon. Even the divorced daughter had a mercedes. lol!

  • @genechas My best friend and I were discussing that as well!!! He should have at least had an LTD!

  • I loved this show! Funny how a successful attorney from Sacramento though would drive a ford maverick and wife Kate was rolling around in a ford pinto wagon. Even the divorced daughter had a mercedes. lol!

  • @genechas I never understood why a Ford Pinto wagon had only 2 doors (not counting the rear door) instead of 4 (still not counting the rear door). To me it seems to defeat the purpose of having a station wagon!

  • @snoopy64116 That's not a Pinto, it's a Ford Maverick.

  • @somewhatlongdong I have no idea what they had on the show, but I was referring to genechas' comment about Ford Pinto wagons.

  • Sada Thompson was a classy lady. I miss the days when tv moms actually looked like moms. Today they all look like super models. Totally unrealistic.

  • I would want my mom to be more MILF like than Sada. I wouldn't have minded Meredith as my mom; before she went all Lesbian and shit

  • I always wished Sada Thompson was my mom !

  • I loved this show. It seems it was always carefully lit and acted very calmly and quietly. Rarely was there yelling and everyone was quite intellectual. Unlike today's trash TV...

  • Where's Kristy nowadays?

  • @gotch09 Kristy starred in several movies after "Family" and had a regular role on the successful sitcom, "Empty Nest," but had problems in performing that were eventually linked to bipolar disease. As a result, she retired from acting, got her life under control and has taught acting while doing other things since. She remains every bit as delightful as the characters she portrayed and the girl and woman we all admired.

  • They were the dream family.

  • The opening music reminds me of Ryan's Hope.

    This was essentially a soap opera with better production values.

  • I wonder if Meredith Baxter knew that Kristy McNichol was a lesbian?

  • I wonder if Kristy McNichol knew she was a lesbian ? just kidding. Good question. Either way, they sure were entertaining to watch over the years, with shows such as Family, Empty Nest, Family Ties, etc. They were true TV stars......

  • I loved both Meredith and Kristy. It's a shame on this intro that so much of the time is dedicated to Sada T. Kristy was the real star, as was Meredith.

  • Every time I see Sada Thompson in this show, I think of my Aunt Wilma. They look and sound eerily similar. Even their mannerisms are alike. Her own family had similar trials and tribulations as the Lawrence family did.

  • why was Sada Thompson featured so prominently in the intro? Was she really popular at the time? BTW, James Broderick (RIP) is Matthew Broderick's dad.

  • i used to watch this then the love boat ... I LOVED THIS SHOW .. but no one else in my FAMILY could remember it .... must all have something wrong with their heads

  • where's gary frank these days???

  • I wish I knew where he was...I had such a crush on him as a kid!

  • I was totally in love with Kristy McNichol. I really miss this show, brings back great memories

  • so was I , back in 88 when she was on empty nest....

  • Loved this series! Really wish that the remaining seasons would be released. Does anyone know what happened to Nancy's baby. She tells her father that she is pregnant again in the first episode after she leaves Jeff. Then, we hear no more about the pregnancy.

  • This was one of my all time favorite shows of the 70's...I too wish they would run it on cable.. I have season 1 & 2 on DVD..Hope they come out with more soon!

  • Thanks ( lovemuffin1963) for telling me Kristy McNichol had retired from acting she certainly had screen charisma, she surely helped make `Family ` the show it was of the 70`s even here downunder...

  • I loved this show and man growing up in Australia in the 70`s we got alot of shows from the states, but I always thought this to be typical of southern California the script and acting were all first rate. P.S whatever happened to Kristy Mcnichol??

  • Kristy is no longer acting as of now.

  • My mother and I used to watch this show. I miss shows of this quality and I would love for it to show up on TV Land.

  • I wish somebody would upload some footage of Gary Frank's earlier show "Sons and Daughters". I liked that a lot in high school.

  • always thought it funny that the dad was a lawyer and drove a Mercury Comet!

  • I miss this 70s show! It's a feel good viewing and I hope that they make reruns in any of the cable channels.

  • Krist McNichol rocked, I had such a crush on her during the 1970's.

  • i have a crush on her now

  • i loved Buddy, knew she was a lezbo, but had a huge crush on Gary Frank.

  • Does anyone know who wrote the theme song?

  • John Rubenstein, who played Meredith's ex on the show, and later was a co-star on "Crazy Like A Fox" with Jack Warden

  • @fww44 John Rubenstien wrote the theme. He also played Jeff Maitland on the show.

  • @fww44 If I'm not mistaken, John Rubenstein wrote the intro. I love it just as much now as I did back then. I miss these old classics.

  • @jrewing73 Yes, John Rubenstein wrote both the original score (for the 6 part pilot eps aka s1) and this score.

  • How come there's no pictures of the whole family together setting on the piano -- only individual shots front and center? And how come they chose a picture of Willie looking down? And how come my sister would have had a better chance with Kristy McNichol than I would have?

  • Finally - the opening to this wonderful show. did not know it was out on dvd.  will pick it up - quick!

  • What I loved about this intro is how the parents Sada Thompson and James Broderick actually look like middle age parents.  Today tv parents look barely older than their children

  • I agree with you.

  • ...oh my god.. wonderful.. It´s so damned american (positive), I loved it so much in the 70´s..remembers me in my childhood..

    I´ve been home alone (parents were working)

    with my brother in that time and it was my

    favourite TV Show, good times... Thanks

  • It was my favourite tv-show, too.

    German kids also loved this!

  • I loved this show when I was a child, I'm so glad I finally found this. I never forgot the opening credits, the theme is wonderful. Great memories, thank you very much for putting this on youtube.

  • I remember this as a little kid. Something about the theme music and scenes of the house, really brings warm, homey feelings. Thanks for posting.

  • You speak right from the bottom of my heart..

    We have been home alone in the 70´s every day.. and you so right.. it brings really warm and homey feelings.. I wish I could see it again..

  • great show from the 70's thanks....glad its on dvd!!!!

  • Only season 1 and 2 is out

    The rest is missing

  • Why? It's so cruel! My mother bought me seasons 1 and 2 last Christmas because she used to watch this when I was a baby and thought I would like it. She was right! Now, I can't see the rest of the show. Utter cruelty!

  • We see individual portraits displayed rather than a group portrait, so :

    Is that significant to class (group portrait is maybe lower/middle class and individual portraits are maybe upper or upper middle, class, for example)?

    Is it significant to 70s time era? Is it statement on individualism and fragmentation of the era?

    Or is it simply made-up non-normative device for displaying title credits?

    Also noted -- the son's portrait is "arty" (angle and shadow) and "not like the others."

  • I remember season hubley being on this show. What a fine looking gal she was.

  • Those were my "growing up" years, the 70's.. Ahh, I loved 'em! Very few years have been as good since, and television has but a few wonderful programs as good as Family any more.

    I think Sada Thompson is one great actress with a lot of class!

    Thanks for sharing this, a special piece of nostalgia!

  • Another who loved this show. Brings back so many memories.

  • this was a very good show and I really enjoyed it...wish I could see it, again...the theme song is nice

  • Wow! One of the hardest-to-find theme songs.

    Thanks for posting this!

  • An obvious but largely successful attempt by Aaron Spelling to gain some respectability. Casting the decidedly non-glamorous Thompson & Broderick as the parents lent the show an air of realism which was further bolstered by the consistent treatment of Baxter-Birney's Nancy character as immature & generally unsympathetic. Creator Jay Presson Allen (a woman, BTW) also wrote the acclaimed stage adaptation of Murial Spark's novel "The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie."

  • I rememeber watching this show in the late 1970's That was a LONG time ago. Love the theme song also. I read somewhere that this was Aaron Spellings favorite show

  • It came also in Germany. I loved it. My favorite character was Kristy McNichol.

  • i loved this show as a kid

  • i've always liked the theme song..thank you

  • The last time they reran this was on Lifetime in the mid-1980s. I always dug this show because they were never afraid to tackle the theme of homosexuality (Blair Brown as one of Buddy's teachers and Zeke, one of Willy's friends who got busted in a gay bar and was forced to come out to him). They weren't cowardly about it (as they are today) and they didn't sell out gay characters with stereotyped portrayals (as they do today).

  • I loved this show. It made me feel comforted. I love the mother on the show and the dad. Is he Matthew Broderick's father. Wish they would show this in reruns.

  • Yes, James was Matthew's father.

  • The mother was bitchy, daughter always cried, buddy was gay, brother was hot and nobody looked like they were related-

    otherwise cool show.

  • The mother was BITCHY??? I watched this show as a child precisely because the mother, Kate, was so much more loving than my own: very compassionate and tender, but strong and tough when necessary. I have many episodes on VHS and the DVDs of seasons 1 and 2, and the only times Kate gets what you call 'bitchy' is when her husband or kids are being spoiled, self-centered, self-indulgent, negligent, promiscuous, stubborn or stupid. A good mother DOES take issue with this kind of behaviour!

  • You nailed that one on the head. I am a 39 year old guy who loved this show. My parents let me watch everything and I was very precocious for my age so even at 7 and 8 I knew what was going on in these adult dramas. Sada Thompson's performance was phenomenal and a loving mom she was, and hardnosed when she had to be. Fortunately, I had a loving mother and never had to put myself in the position that you had. Thanks for your opinion. It is spot on,

  • @WARDMAN3 LOL, like you, I got to watch everything I wanted growing up, and "Family" was on the list. Watched it every Tuesday night at 9 CST. I always saw the Mom (Kate) as firm, but loving. She wasn't passive or naive, and didn't always tell her family what they wanted to hear, but she deeply cared for them. They knew this. I still find her portrayal among the most realistic of TV Moms.

  • @gladysormphby I agree with you. Great post!

  • @gladysormphby Totally agree w/ you. Right on target on the issue of good mothering skills. Wish more mothers were like that today.

  • @gladysormphby I had friends whose family called her "constipation face"... But, "bitchy"?!? I don't get it. I always liked her, as far as tv moms go. Growing up in the 70s with a Southern mother, I always thought Kate seemed more "Yankee" than anything else; definitely not bitchy.

  • Wow! Talk about memories. I have been searching for this show on TV but they never run it. I wish they would.

  • Oh,wow this brings back memories.This was my favorite show when I was a kid.

  • Thanks so much for adding this. I've been searching for this opening song for months. It's just a great opening song.

  • I was nine years young, when I saw "Eine amerikanische Familie" on german TV. I loved this "family" with Buddy and Nancy and Willy... At that time I fell in love with the american way of building houses...Thanks for posting!!!!

  • It's great to hear that theme song again!

  • Same here. It gives me chills.

  • I always loved the theme song of this show. It was so soothing.

  • Amazon has the complete first season, have fun!

  • Thanks for posting that. I have been searching all over. I will now check Amazon.

  • Great show. I was a child at that time and I never missed an episode. Great family !!! I miss those years!!!

    Does anybody know where I can buy the complete season????

  • Oh how I LOVED this show as a child! I always wished my family could be more like this family!

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