In her memorable roles as the kind yet stubborn Gloria Stivic on All in the Family and the frequently inappropriate Babette Dell on Gilmore Girls, actress Sally Struthers cemented her place in television history. Despite her success, Struthers expressed disappointment with last year’s live revamp of her former series, All in the Family on ABC.
A Lifelong Friendship from All in the Family
Though she played a supporting role on Gilmore Girls, Struthers shone as the wise-cracking, loud, but loving Babette. She told Vanity Fair in 2016 about her deep friendship with Liz Torres, who played Miss Patti on the series. Their friendship began when Torres portrayed the Bunker family’s boarder, Theresa, on All in the Family. They have remained best friends ever since.
“She’s one of my favorite human beings to ever walk the planet,” Struthers said of Torres. “We say things to one another and share things with one another we would never say to anyone else because we know that if it’s not P.C. that we’re forgiven.”
Cherished Memories of Jean Stapleton
For eight years, Struthers starred as the Bunkers’ daughter alongside Jean Stapleton, who played her television mother. The two became close friends, sharing many challenges and life events. The cast of All in the Family truly felt like a family.
Stapleton passed away in 2013, and shortly after her death, TV Guide spoke with Struthers about her friend’s legacy and her one true “Edith” moment.
“On a rehearsal day about three years into the show, we were on a coffee break and I looked over at Jean,” Struthers recalled. “She was reading The L.A. Times classified section and I thought, ‘Why’s she doing that? Is she trying to sell a car?’”
“I saw her face go bright red and then she gasped to herself. I ran across the room and said, ‘Jean, what is it?’ And she said, ‘Sally darling, look at this!’ She turned the paper around toward me. It was advertisements for jobs and she said, ‘This carwash is advertising for Polish men!’ And I said, ‘Jean, it’s ‘polish’. It was her one Edith moment.”
Struthers’ Disappointment with ABC’s Live All in the Family
Struthers has since moved on to voice acting and movies for networks like Lifetime. According to Celebrity Net Worth, her wealth currently stands at $8 million. When ABC announced its intention to “reboot” the series that made her a household name, Struthers didn’t hold back her opinions.
“Why? What is the point? It’s a classic,” she told Delaware Online in 2019. “All in the Family came at a moment in time that somehow turned out to be the perfect moment to put something that quote-unquote radical on TV, and it was the perfect cast. We had the perfect writers.”
“Nobody is going to be Carroll O’Connor,” Struthers said. “Nobody but nobody is going to be another Jean Stapleton. And I honestly don’t see the point.”
Sally Struthers’ candid reflections underscore the timelessness of All in the Family and the unique bond shared among its cast.
