Following Rob Reiner’s death on December 14, one of the most heartbreaking scenes from All in the Family stands as a testament to the television magic he and Carroll O’Connor created, in a moment that forever changed the relationship between Archie Bunker and his son-in-law, Mike Stivic.
O’Connor once revealed that one scene with Reiner ranked as one of the most emotional of the series. Because of its improvisational moments, the trust between the two actors helped make it one of the most heartbreaking moments in All in the Family history.
In the episode "Two's a Crowd," which aired during season 8, Mike and Archie were left alone to close up Archie's Place when Mike accidentally locked them in the storeroom. The men spent the night sharing a bottle of liquor, setting the stage for an unexpectedly emotional moment between the family members.
As they talked, Archie revealed why he was so prejudiced against people whom he believed were different than him. Archie admitted he learned that message from his father.
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However, Archie maintained he loved his father despite his use of physical punishment, including locking him in a closet for hours, to "teach me to do good." O'Connor said of that pivotal character arc, per MeTV, "I improvised much of my dialogue, and [Reiner] improvised his.”
During the telling scene, Archie explained to Mike that his family was so poor during the Great Depression that he had to wear one shoe and one boot to school, earning him the nickname "Shoebootie." He added, "[Kids] called me that until they found out my name was Archibald and they thought that was funnier."
In a 1999 interview with The Television Academy, O'Connor later revealed that many of Archie's preconceptions "kept him from enjoying life. He never smiled, he never had anything nice to say, everything was poison in life."
"His father had passed it on to him," the actor continued. O'Connor explained, “Rob has some line about, ‘I don’t understand how you get to feel this way about people.'"
"I told him that (Archie's father) told him these things. That's the guy who taught you how to play ball. He took you on your first walk and held your hand. The father who loved you, he ain't gonna lie to you."
This moment forever changed the way Mike looked at Archie. Moving forward, he tried to be more sympathetic toward his father-in-law's behavior now that he understood his past.
All in the Family ran on CBS from 1971 through 1979. Carol O'Connor died in 2001. Rob Reiner and wife Michele Singer were found dead in their Los Angeles home on December 14, 2025. An investigation is ongoing.
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