Maybe we've just become really desensitized to certain morals, or maybe today's TV moguls are afraid of a backlash reminiscent of the one CBS experienced when it gave Maude an abortion in 1972, but during these messed up times, I feel television as a medium is missing out on an opportunity to teach a life lesson or at least make viewers work their brains again. In fact, the episodes of my favorite sitcoms of my preteen years that dealt with touchy subjects are the ones I still remember the most years after they aired. Here's a few notable ones, as well as some that I personally don't remember, but were still hard hitting:
The Facts of Life - Dieting Episode
Any time you have a show that revolves around the lives of young girls at a boarding school, there's bound to be episodes that confront sex, drugs, and other heady teen topics. The Facts of Life covered all these and more, but one half hour that particularly stands out for me was the "Dieting" episode from 1980. Sue Ann Weaver goes on a crash starvation diet to impress a boy from another boarding school that Blair has set her up with - after implying that she's too heavy to win his heart. Headmistress Mrs. Garrett gets caught up in the dieting hoopla, determined to fit into a size 12 dress. Things escalate when Sue Ann discovers the date will involve being seen in a swimsuit, and she ends up collapsing from eating too little, leading everyone to realize the pressures that society put on young women to be a certain size and to impress others is not the healthiest path to happiness.
Punky Brewster - Just Say No (aka The Temptation of Punky) Episode
Nine year-old Punky and her pal learn about peer pressure at a tender age when they join a girls club called the Chicklets, which is led by a jerk who looks like an extra from Desperately Seeking Susan. She reveals a stash of assorted pills, pot, and even coke (aka "nose candy") which she pushes on the tots, threatening them with some serious street slang: "I put my rep on the line for you two!" But perhaps the best moment in this clip is when Punky's teacher, Mr. Fulton - upon learning of her predicament - breaks into a rendition of James Brown's I Feel Good. Check out the clip below!
All in the Family - Archie and the KKK
There wasn't an ethnic group that didn't escape Archie Bunker's racist zings - he constantly referred to his son-in-law as a dumb polack, and England as a "fag country." However, as the series progressed through the 70s, TV's favorite bigot gradually softened his stance once he actually got to know people. In this two part episode from 1977, Archie is hanging out at his favorite bar, complaining about Mike's inability to agree with him on his political views when two men nearby overhear the conversation. They befriend Archie and invite him to join their secret group, called the Kweens Kouncil of Krusaders, an offshoot of the KKK. Archie soon discovers that his new friends plan to burn crosses on "commie" Mike's yard to teach him a lesson. He threatens the two men against the burning by revealing that he has black blood inside of him from a transfusion he received during his gall bladder operation, and can call on his black brothers to stop them:
One Day At A Time - All the Way
The social issues of birth control and teen sex made their way onto One Day At A Time several times, with Barbara struggling over whether to have sex and eventually decided to remain a virgin until marriage. In this episode, Barbara's older sister is feeling the pressure from her boyfriend of 3 months, Chuck, to go all the way. He claims that only freaks don't act on the urge to have sex. In the end, much to mother Ann's relief, she is happy she stood up for herself and decided to wait - at least for now.
As an aside,you just have to dig Bonnie Franklin's groovy green unicorn dress in these clips:
Happy Days - Hard Cover aka Fonzie Gets His Library Card
This episode didn't tackle a controversial topic, but it did deliver a brief message about the importance of reading. Fonzie takes Richie to a local library near his college after explaining that it's a hot hangout for picking up chicks, and obtains his first ever library card in the process ("Everybody is allowed to read"). For years afterwards, newspapers reported that the American Library Association claimed that there was a huge spike in new library card applications, which Snopes.com refutes.
And those are just a few examples off the top of my head. I know it really isn't up to network television to teach our society some moral values, but it sure would shake things up a bit and make some current shows more interesting. Note that tackling heavy subjects didn't diminish the humor of any of these programs - in fact, it heightened their staying power and credibility as memorable quality programming. If there are shows/episodes that you remember that I've missed here that had an impact on you or made you think, please feel free to let me know!
There wasn't an ethnic group that didn't escape Archie Bunker's racist zings - he constantly referred to his son-in-law as a dumb polack, and England as a "fag country." However, as the series progressed through the 70s, TV's favorite bigot gradually softened his stance once he actually got to know people. In this two part episode from 1977, Archie is hanging out at his favorite bar, complaining about Mike's inability to agree with him on his political views when two men nearby overhear the conversation. They befriend Archie and invite him to join their secret group, called the Kweens Kouncil of Krusaders, an offshoot of the KKK. Archie soon discovers that his new friends plan to burn crosses on "commie" Mike's yard to teach him a lesson. He threatens the two men against the burning by revealing that he has black blood inside of him from a transfusion he received during his gall bladder operation, and can call on his black brothers to stop them:
One Day At A Time - All the Way
The social issues of birth control and teen sex made their way onto One Day At A Time several times, with Barbara struggling over whether to have sex and eventually decided to remain a virgin until marriage. In this episode, Barbara's older sister is feeling the pressure from her boyfriend of 3 months, Chuck, to go all the way. He claims that only freaks don't act on the urge to have sex. In the end, much to mother Ann's relief, she is happy she stood up for herself and decided to wait - at least for now.
As an aside,you just have to dig Bonnie Franklin's groovy green unicorn dress in these clips:
Happy Days - Hard Cover aka Fonzie Gets His Library Card
This episode didn't tackle a controversial topic, but it did deliver a brief message about the importance of reading. Fonzie takes Richie to a local library near his college after explaining that it's a hot hangout for picking up chicks, and obtains his first ever library card in the process ("Everybody is allowed to read"). For years afterwards, newspapers reported that the American Library Association claimed that there was a huge spike in new library card applications, which Snopes.com refutes.
And those are just a few examples off the top of my head. I know it really isn't up to network television to teach our society some moral values, but it sure would shake things up a bit and make some current shows more interesting. Note that tackling heavy subjects didn't diminish the humor of any of these programs - in fact, it heightened their staying power and credibility as memorable quality programming. If there are shows/episodes that you remember that I've missed here that had an impact on you or made you think, please feel free to let me know!
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