“Those were the Days” (Theme to All in the Family) by Archie and Edith Bunker
“Those Were the Days” was designed to represent the worldviews of the television characters Archie and Edith Bunker, who were a married couple. Archie in particular was a bigot who cleaved to traditional American values despite the fact that during the 1970s (the decade in which the television show “All in the Family” aired) the nation was going through major ideological changes due primarily to the aftereffects of the 1960s.
So this song finds the couple reminiscing affectionately about times past, stating that “those were the days”, as in a better era then the one they were currently living in. And in the process, they seem to make veiled attacks against homosexuals and perhaps even feminists by advocating deadset gender roles.
They also may have criticized racial minorities in a roundabout way, as such people are often perceived to be the main beneficiaries of “welfare states” in America.
And the past decade they seem to be particularly fond of is the 1930s, as they reference Herbert Hoover (US President from 1929-1933), Glenn Miller (a musician who peaked in the latter part of that decade) and LaSalle (a Cadillac that was produced from 1927-1940) in a positive light.
Facts about “Those Were the Days”
- This song was written by Charles Strouse and Lee Adams specifically for All in the Family, presumably in 1971, the first season the show aired.
- In fact the original title of that television program was actually Those Were the Days.
- The characters of Archie and Edith Bunker were played respectively by Carroll O’Connor (1924-2001) and Jean Stapleton (1923-2013).
- Carroll O’Connor and Jean Stapleton actually performed this song (in character) before every episode of All in the Family throughout most of its run when it was filmed in front of a live audience. Indeed Strouse and Adams are best known for writing theater music (i.e. for Broadway).
This story is predictably amusing. Girls were girls and men were men at the most suggests traditional parental roles. No one can deny the results of schools and daycares to raise the last three generations of children. Lack of discipline; disrespect of elders; violence, sex and shootings. And homosexuals? How about sodomites? Drag queens? These groups recruit the weak minded, the lonely. The fact that these gay groups have been fighting to remove shame or sin from their practices is directly related to the soaring child pornography industry. Welfare State? The greatest domestic policy failure in history. Once upon a time people were too proud to accept charity. People were embarrassed if anyone suspected they couldn’t stand on their own. Now Welfare was created to chain minorities to federal assistance. Know anyone who has broken loose from welfare? I’m certain you don’t. It’s a cycle that is passed from one family generation to the next. You lack the wisdom of perspective and the discovery of truth.
Exactly correct! This country has turned away from God, and it is more evident each day.
Yup. Couldn’t agree more.
If the show were rebooted, Archie would be a trump supporter. He’d be a thoroughly heartless, vile, immoral Republican who wants his hypocrisies and hate to reign supreme. He’d be too stupid to knew gender is not nor never has been binary. Mike and Gloria would affirm that Black Lives Matter, the police need to be defunded and billionaires need to be taxed out of existence. Perhaps in the reboot, Archie would be able to see the immoral errors of his fantasies and see the light and never vote Republican again.
You are an Idiot!
Agreed. O’Connor, a liberal himself who understood the character he played, likely wouldn’t have any problem with that at all.
Hmmm, I really didn’t think I would read the comments and find a coherent comment by a snowflake moron, that didn’t prove the education system in the US is failing. I was wrong thinking that.
You are correct
….Watched the show in the 70’s when I wasn’t even 10 years old yet….hated Meathead then…still can’t stand him now….
The “idiots” and “morons” are those who are blinded by the true agenda of the globalists. Those who stand against their vision are considered outdated, religious fanatics who are quickly being seen as enemies of the coming “new age”. Thats ok, strong delusion is coming to a world that rejects real truth. It was prophesied long ago. We are close boys and girls.