History Series / FamilyTies

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''Family Ties'' is a rather straightforward DomCom that was created and executive produced by Gary David Goldberg, produced by his company, Ubu Productions, and Creator/{{Paramount}}, and ran on Creator/{{NBC}} from 1982–89.

Former '60s flower children Steven (Creator/MichaelGross) and Elyse (Creator/MeredithBaxter Birney) Keaton [[HappilyMarried are now adults]] living in Columbus, Ohio (where Paramount eventually owned a television station, WWHO, now owned by Deerfield Media and operated by Sinclair Broadcast Group) and raising three kids of their own: hyper-conservative Alex (Creator/MichaelJFox in the role that made him a star), [[TheDitz ditzy]] Mallory (Creator/JustineBateman) and precocious Jennifer (Creator/TinaYothers). A fourth Keaton child, Andrew, is born in the third season and played by Creator/BrianBonsall beginning in season 5.

* TeensAreShort: Alex being only 5'5", exactly a foot shorter than 6'5" Michael Gross. Interestingly, NBC Entertainment's then-president Brandon Tartikoff initially thought Creator/MichaelJFox was ''too'' short to be Michael Gross's son.

* ActorAllusion: The episode where Jennifer forms a GirlGroup and Alex decides to manage them. Their song: "[[MisterSandmanSequence Mr. Sandman]]," which featured prominently in a key scene in ''[[Film/BackToTheFuture Back to the Future]]''.

** Alex and Skippy are [[HeterosexualLifePartners a platonic example]]. Alex is smart, successful, and confident, while Skippy is an unintelligent, clumsy ExtravertedNerd.

* ExtravertedNerd: Skippy Handelman, even though he's not particularly intelligent.

* ChristmasEpisode: In "Christmas Story," the Keatons miss their Christmas ski trip because of a snowstorm. Instead, they spend Christmas Eve at home, looking at a photo album and opening early presents while Steven and Elyse reminisce about the circumstances of each child's birth.

** Oddly happened a decade after the show ended. Michael J. Fox went on to play the lead on ''Series/SpinCity'' and his character on that show eventually had an off-screen [[ActorAllusion run-in with Alex]] -- who is revealed to have become the junior senator from Ohio.

Former '60s flower children Steven (Creator/MichaelGross) and Elyse (Creator/MeredithBaxter Birney) Keaton [[HappilyMarried are now adults]] living in Columbus, Ohio (where Paramount eventually owned a television station, WWHO-TV, now owned by Deerfield Media and operated by Sinclair Broadcast Group) and raising three kids of their own: hyper-conservative Alex (Creator/MichaelJFox in the role that made him a star), [[TheDitz ditzy]] Mallory (Creator/JustineBateman) and precocious Jennifer (Creator/TinaYothers). A fourth Keaton child, Andrew, is born in the third season and played by Creator/BrianBonsall beginning in season 5.

Former '60s flower children Steven (Creator/MichaelGross) and Elyse (Creator/MeredithBaxter Birney) Keaton [[HappilyMarried are now adults]] living in Columbus, Ohio and raising three kids of their own: hyper-conservative Alex (Creator/MichaelJFox in the role that made him a star), [[TheDitz ditzy]] Mallory (Creator/JustineBateman) and precocious Jennifer (Creator/TinaYothers). A fourth Keaton child, Andrew, is born in the third season and played by Creator/BrianBonsall beginning in season 5.

* Always Second Best: The show followed ''The Cosby Show'' during a majority of its run. ''The Cosby Show'' would go on to become a massive success and one of the most watched TV shows in history. ''Family Ties'', while getting very solid ratings, was a distant second. Cosby's success resulted in him requesting his own creation, ''A Different World'', to follow ''The Cosby Show'' on NBC's Thursday night lineup. ''Family Ties'' was moved to Saturdays, where the ratings plummeted.

* Characterization Marches On: Early on, Steven Keaton was much more meek and wimpy. By the time Mallory's boyfriend Nick Moore was introduced, Keaton developed more personality and showed more depth and a range of emotions. Michael Gross, the actor that played Steven Keaton, said he was unhappy at how one dimensional his character became and considered leaving the show because of it, but stayed because the introduction of Nick to the series made his character much more interesting.

** There was also a crossover in the short-lived series ''Day By Day'', which was co-created by ''Family Ties'' creator Gary David Goldberg.

* HeelRealization: Happens in about half the episodes, usually to [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Alex]], though the other characters get their fair share as well.

* PlayingGertrude: In one of the odder bits of TV sitcom trivia, Michael Gross and Meredith Baxter-Birney were both born on the exact same day (June 21, 1947), which meant they are just under 14 years older than Michael J. Fox (born June 9, 1961).
* PopularIsDumb: ,

* BelligerentSexualTension: Alex and Ellen. So much so that, years after she moved to Paris and they broke up, when Alex met Lauren he knew he liked her because "No girl has made me this angry this quickly since Ellen." He gets along much better with Marty (a music student he becomes attracted to while tutoring her), but they too only admit their feelings and kiss after arguing about it.

&&* ParentExMachina,

* BewareTheNiceOnes: Steven Keaton is generally a mellow, understanding person. But if you make him mad, you had best vacate the premises at once.

* AntiAlcoholAesop: In the episode "Say Uncle." Creator/TomHanks guest stars as the Keaton family's Uncle Ned, who turns out to have developed an extreme alcohol problem. In just his first night at their house, Ned drinks all the beer in the fridge and a pint of liquor, and then he raids the kitchen pantry for anything that might contain any alcohol, including a bottle of vanilla extract and a jar of maraschino cherries. He later shows up drunk to a job interview, and Elyse, Steven, and Alex stage an intervention to try and convince him of his addiction before it's too late.

* HollywoodNerd: Alex is the "sexy" nerd, while Skippy is an ExtravertedNerd.