When Carroll O’Connor was first approached to play the role of Archie Bunker on All in the Family, he was far from convinced that the show would ever see success. In fact, he believed the sitcom’s biting humor and controversial topics would be far too offensive for American audiences, and it would be yanked off the air before it could make any real impact.
O’Connor, a seasoned actor with training from New York and Dublin, didn’t just voice his doubts—he made sure they were reflected in his contract. He demanded a specific clause that would secure his quick exit if the show failed as spectacularly as he anticipated.
Norman Lear, the show’s creator and producer, was unwavering in his belief that O’Connor was the perfect Archie Bunker. In his memoir Even This I Get to Experience, Lear recounts how he felt an immediate, visceral certainty during O’Connor’s audition. “When Carroll came in, he was every bit the sophisticated, trained actor. But as soon as he began to read, Archie Bunker just poured out of him,” Lear wrote. It was a moment Lear likened to the infamous quote by Justice Potter Stewart on defining obscenity: “I know it when I see it.” For Lear, O’Connor was the embodiment of Archie Bunker, even if the actor himself had serious reservations.
At the time, O’Connor was living comfortably in Italy with his family. He was so certain that All in the Family wouldn’t last that he insisted on a clause in his contract guaranteeing him airfare back to Italy once the show inevitably bombed. “Carroll was convinced CBS couldn’t keep the show on air,” Lear recalled. “He wouldn’t even give up his apartment in Rome because he was sure he’d be back there in six weeks.”
Much to O’Connor’s surprise
