The show featured Sada Thompson and James Broderick as Kate and Doug Lawrence, a happily married middle-class couple living in Pasadena, California. Doug is an independent lawyer, and Kate was a housewife (she would eventually go back to school herself). They had three children: Nancy (portrayed by Elayne Heilveil in the original mini-series and later by Meredith Baxter Birney), Willie (Gary Frank), and Letitia, nicknamed "Buddy" (Kristy McNichol). (There was another son, Timothy, who had died five years previous to the series' beginning.) The show raised the profile of all of its featured actors during its run and, in particular, catapulted McNichol to stardom. The show attempted to depict the "average" family, warts and all. Storylines were very topical, and the show was one of the first to feature shows that have recently been termed as "very special episodes." In the first episode, Nancy walked in on her husband Jeff (John Rubinstein) making love to one of her friends. During the second season she and Jeff divorced, but Jeff would continue to appear regularly as an active father, as well as finding himself involved in more of the Lawrence family's affairs. Other topical storylines included Kate having to deal with the possibility that she had breast cancer, as well as Buddy dealing with advances from boys. In the later seasons, there were instances in which Buddy had to decide whether or not to have sex; she always chose to wait, most notably in an episode with guest star Leif Garrett, who was a teen idol at the time. Another topical episode dealt with Buddy's friendship with a teacher who was revealed to be a lesbian. Family also dealt with alcoholism (Doug's sister; Buddy's old friend) as well as adoption, when the family adopted a girl named Annie Cooper (Quinn Cummings). One episode in 1979 (directed by actress Joanne Woodward) guest-starred Henry Fonda as a visiting elderly relative who was beginning to experience senility and memory loss.
| Season | From | To | Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|
| All Seasons | |||
| Specials | 2 | ||
| Season 1 | March 1976 | April 1976 | 6 |
| Season 2 | October 1976 | May 1977 | 22 |
| Season 3 | September 1977 | May 1978 | 23 |
| Season 4 | September 1978 | May 1979 | 22 |
| Season 5 | November 1979 | June 1980 | 13 |
| Unassigned Episodes | 0 |
| Season | From | To | Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unassigned Episodes | 88 |
| Season | From | To | Episodes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 0 | ||
| Unassigned Episodes | 88 |
| Name | Number of Episodes | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| David Jacobs | 7 | 02/08/1977 - 02/14/1978 | |
| Carol Evan McKeand | 6 | 03/30/1976 - 06/04/1980 | |
| Hindi Brooks | 5 | 10/06/1976 - 01/31/1978 | |
| Liz Coe | 4 | 12/07/1978 - 06/11/1980 | |
| Emily Shoemaker | 3 | 11/30/1976 - 01/11/1979 | |
| Diana Gould | 3 | 02/22/1977 - 02/07/1978 | |
| Channing Gibson | 2 | 10/19/1978 - 03/30/1979 | |
| Sally Robinson | 2 | 11/20/1979 - 01/28/1980 | |
| Ron Cowen | 2 | 03/08/1979 - 02/04/1980 | |
| Nigel Evan McKeand | 2 | 03/30/1976 - 04/06/1976 | |
| Leonora Thuna | 2 | 12/07/1976 - 01/11/1977 | |
| Michael Barlow | 2 | 12/21/1976 - 01/04/1977 | |
| Paul Huson | 2 | 05/02/1978 - 01/18/1979 | |
| Lawrence Konner | 2 | 10/19/1976 - 11/30/1976 | |
| Barbara Elaine Smith | 2 | 11/22/1977 - 01/24/1978 | |
| Daniel Lipman | 2 | 03/08/1979 - 02/04/1980 | |
| Gregory S. Dinallo | 1 | 11/08/1977 | |
| Armyan Bernstein | 1 | 03/16/1976 | |
| Richard Kramer | 1 | 05/09/1978 | |
| Loraine Despres | 1 | 01/25/1979 | |
| Geroge Leffets | 1 | 11/23/1976 | |
| Walter Koenig | 1 | 11/09/1978 | |
| Carmen Culver | 1 | 05/16/1978 | |
| Audrey Davis Levin | 1 | 10/04/1977 | |
| Carolyn See | 1 | 01/11/1979 | |
| Jay Presson Allen | 1 | 03/09/1976 | |
| Vicki Zlotnick | 1 | 02/15/1977 | |
| Robert Hamilton | 1 | 12/13/1977 | |
| Tim Maschler | 1 | 11/29/1977 | |
| George Lefferts | 1 | 11/16/1976 | |
| Elizabeth Hailey | 1 | 05/03/1977 | |
| Randa Haines | 1 | 01/03/1978 | |
| April Smith | 1 | 01/14/1980 | |
| Jackie Joseph | 1 | 01/11/1979 | |
| Jack Morton | 1 | 02/21/1978 | |
| Susan Miller | 1 | 10/26/1976 | |
| Anne Howard Bailey | 1 | 01/18/1977 | |
| Elizabeth Clark | 1 | 11/09/1976 | |
| Gordon Glasco | 1 | 04/13/1976 | |
| Bethel Leslie | 1 | 12/28/1976 | |
| Fred Segal | 1 | 03/23/1976 | |
| Oliver Hailey | 1 | 05/03/1977 | |
| Gina Frederica Goldman | 1 | 03/17/1980 | |
| Margaret J. Schibi | 1 | 03/30/1979 | |
| Joan Taylor | 1 | 12/24/1979 | |
| Paul Wolff | 1 | 12/21/1978 | |
| Leah Appet | 1 | 01/03/1978 | |
| Gerry Day | 1 | 12/28/1976 | |
| Luciano Comici | 1 | 11/15/1977 | |
| Hilma Wolitzer | 1 | 09/27/1977 |
| Name | Number of Episodes | Dates | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Kinon | 5 | 10/19/1976 - 12/24/1979 | |
| Edward Zwick | 4 | 03/15/1979 - 06/25/1980 | |
| Edward Parone | 4 | 02/14/1978 - 03/10/1980 | |
| Marshall Herskovitz | 4 | 02/15/1977 - 02/04/1980 | |
| James Broderick | 3 | 03/17/1980 - 06/25/1980 | |
| Glenn Jordan | 3 | 03/16/1976 - 11/23/1976 | |
| Randal Kleiser | 2 | 03/23/1976 - 03/30/1976 | |
| Stuart Millar | 2 | 01/03/1978 - 05/09/1978 | |
| Linda Weintraub | 2 | 11/16/1976 - 11/23/1976 | |
| John Erman | 1 | 04/13/1976 | |
| Gerald S. O'Loughlin | 1 | 12/21/1976 | |
| Alf Kjellin | 1 | 10/25/1977 | |
| Robert Hartford-Davis | 1 | 02/22/1977 | |
| James Sheldon | 1 | 01/17/1978 | |
| Kim Friedman | 1 | 03/01/1979 | |
| Peter Levin | 1 | 11/09/1978 | |
| Peter Werner | 1 | 05/03/1977 | |
| Joanne Woodward | 1 | 11/20/1979 |
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