Television shows and movies that were made in the seventies that couldn’t be made today.

The 1970’s were an era of facing reality. It was one of clearing the air of things needed to be said. Every stereotype about everyone was openly questioned. People admitted racism and sexism existed and talked about.

I’m not condoning the racist comments made by Archie Bunker but he was saying what is already said behind closed doors.

 

1. Roots– a made for television movie series from the book by Alex Haley.

2. All in the Family-Although the show has more hit spin-offs than any other show in television history it wouldn’t be aired today. Norman Lear seriously push the limit with the show. All in the Family” is touted as the series that brought reality to prime-time TV entertainment. It broke the censorship paving the way for what we see on television today. Norman Lear didn’t care if Archie Bunker made people uncomfortable. He was a racist bigot and that’s the kind of things people like him say in real life. The lead character, Archie Bunker, is a loudmouthed, uneducated bigot who believes in every stereotype he has ever heard about everyone. His wife, Edith, is sweet but not the sharpest pin in the cushion. They and their daughter, Gloria, and her husband, Mike, all live in a working-class home. Unfortunately for Archie, he can’t avoid the people he dislike and disdains: His son-in-law — whom Archie calls “Meathead” — is an unemployed student and of Polish descent; the Jeffersons next door are black; Edith’s cousin Maude is a feminist; and, later, his partners in a local tavern are Jewish.

Spin-offs: The Jeffersons, Archie Bunker’s Place, Maude, Good Times, Gloria, 704 Hauser

None of these shows would have been produced in the present era.

 

1. Foxy Brown-Pam Grier- Strong female characters are not popular nor the norm today as they were in the 1970’s.
2. Good Times- It isn’t grime enough for the stereotypical image portraying black families today.
3. Rocky- There isn’t enough tragic involved in it to appeal to a modern audience.
4. .The Thornbirds.-It talked about the issue of age differences and religion in a relationship. A topic 10,000 years or more over due.
5. On Golden Ponds- It was made in the early 1980’s before the censorship we know today cemented in and choked the life out of creativity and realism.
6. Terms of  Endearment- Another early 1980’s movie following the format set by the 1970’s.
7. Alice.
8. The Godfather.
9. Ode to Billy Jack
10. Shaft
11. Starsky and Hutch
12. Charlies Angels
13. Cagney and Lacey
14. Burning Bed-The first show to publicly depict domestic violence and how difficult it is for the victim to leave. Another early 1980’s movie following the format set by the 1970’s.
15. The Exorcist- because the priest said “By the power of Christ I compel you.”