The Goldbergs, which was originally a radio show, became the first popular family series. It became a weekly TV series in 1949, revealing to Americans a working class Jewish family who resided in a small apartment in the Bronx. The show, while warm and humorous, confronted delicate social issues, such as sensitivity due to the Second World War. It is an excellent example of an ethnic family’s status in society.

A classic among classics, I Love Lucy appeared on television on October 15, 1951, (http://www.nick-at-nite.com/tvretro/shows/ilovelucy/index.tin). T

Television’s portrayal of the American family has undergone a significant transformation in the fifty years of its existence, as stated by this essay. The families seen on television today are the diametric opposite of those seen in the early 1950s. The relationship between the parents and the children has gone from perfect to dysfunctional. But, it is the dysfunctional relationships that are better examples of American families. Racial and ethnic lines have been crossed in the fifty years of television’s existence. If anything, television families have been teachers, showing the viewing audiences how to act and how things truly are. Blind folds, previously worn by the American people, have been taken off and thrown away. It is society’s greater appreciation for honesty that has greatly influenced television.

The face of television changed forever in the fall of 1971. Norman Lear’s All in the Family brought a sense of harsh reality to television which previously had been populated largely by inoffensive characters and stories that seemed to have been laundered before the were ever placed on the air. Its chief character, Archie Bunker, was uneducated, prejudiced, and blatantly outspoken. His constant lambasting of virtually every minority group in existence characterized the program as “controversial.” His problematic marriage to Edith was due to their contrasted racial ideas. The relationship that he shared with his daughter, Gloria, was strained after her decision to enter the matrimonial state with a Pole, Mike Stivic. The show became the first notable series to address racial, ethnic, and social issues within the home.

Some topics in this essay:
Ward Petire, , Married Children, Bill Cosby, Ward June, Archie Bunker, Love Lucy, Brady Bunch”, Family Ties, Happy Days, american family, racial ethnic, social issues, depiction american family, depiction american, relationship shared, middle-class family, bill cosby, parents children, american families, family featured,