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Family Ties

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Family Ties
Family Ties-Cast.jpg
Premiere September 22, 1982
Finale May 14, 1989
Creator Gary David Goldberg
Network/Provider NBC
Style 30-minute sitcom
Company Ubu Productions,
Paramount Television
Seasons 7
Episodes 176 + 1 TV Movie
Origin USA

Family Ties is a sitcom that aired on NBC.

Set in suburban Columbus, Ohio during the Reagan administration, Steven and Elyse Keaton (Michael Gross and Meredith Baxter-Birney) are baby boomers, liberals and former Hippies, raising their three children: ambitious, would-be millionaire entrepreneur Alex (Michael J. Fox); fashion conscious, gossipy Mallory (Justine Bateman); and tomboy Jennifer (Tina Yothers). Married in 1964, Elyse is an independent architect and Steven, a native of Buffalo, New York, is the station manager of WKS, a local public television station.

Much of the humor of the series focuses on the cultural divide during the 1980s when younger generations rejected the counterculture of the 1960s and embraced the conservative politics which came to define the 1980s. Both Alex and Mallory embrace Reaganomics and exhibit conservative attitudes: Alex is a Young Republican and Mallory is a more materialistic young woman in contrast to her feminist mother. Mallory was also presented as a vacuous airhead, who was fodder for jokes and teasing from her brother. Jennifer, an athletic tomboy and the youngest child, shares more the values of her parents and just wants to be a normal kid. Steven and Elyse have a fourth child, Andrew, born during the third season, whom Alex doted on and quickly moulded in his conservative image.

Contents

Cast

Actor Character Duration
Main Cast 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Meredith Baxter Birney Elyse Keaton * * * * * * *
Michael Gross Steven Keaton * * * * * * *
Michael J. Fox Alex P. Keaton * * * * * * *
Justine Bateman Mallory Keaton * * * * * * *
Tina Yothers Jennifer Keaton * * * * * * *
Brian Bonsall Andy Keaton * * *
Supporting/Recurring Cast 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Marc Price Skippy Handleman * * * * * * *
Scott Valentine Nick Moore * * * *
Tracy Pollan Ellen Reed *
Courteney Cox Lauren Miller * *

Seasons

Season  Premiere Finale #
NBC
Season One September 22, 1982 April 11, 1983 22
Season Two September 28, 1983 September 20, 1984 22
Season Three September 27, 1984 March 28, 1985 24
Season Four September 26, 1985 May 8, 1986 24
Season Five September 25, 1986 August 13, 1987 30
Season Six September 13, 1987 May 1, 1988 28
Season Seven October 30, 1988 May 14, 1989 26

Telefilms

Title Network Airdate
Family Ties Vacation NBC September 23, 1985

In-Depth

DVD Releases

Title Release Discs
Complete Series  (Region 1)
The Complete Series (Limited Edition) November 12, 2013 purchase 29
The Complete Series November 11, 2014 purchase 28
Season Sets  (Region 1)
The Complete First Season February 20, 2007 purchase 4
The Second Season October 9, 2007 purchase 4
The Third Season February 12, 2008 purchase 4
The Fourth Season August 5, 2008 purchase 4
The Fifth Season March 10, 2009 purchase 4
The Sixth Season April 9, 2013 purchase 4
The Seventh and Final Season August 13, 2013 purchase 4

External Links