One of the best television programs ever made, All In The Family, included teachings that I think are still applicable today. Sally Struthers was one of the actors propelled to popularity by it.
Although the attractive woman with distinctive blonde hair today appears very different, she is still in the industry.
Sally Struthers in 1976 / Flickr / Nesster
A natural talent
For many of us, Sally Struthers’ portrayal of Gloria Stivic in the 1970s sitcom All In The Family will forever be associated with her. The legendary program, which followed a working-class white family in Queens, New York, garnered an astounding 73 award nominations and 42 victories for its existence.
But I’m not sure if those born after the program’s peak can fully appreciate how revolutionary it was. There had been amusing sitcoms before it, but they hardly ever addressed taboos and societal issues. Several of those issues were used in All In The Family and were either made humorous, tragic, or both.
Watching old episodes of the show on YouTube brings back your youth, makes you laugh, and helps you forget current events. Many problems back then are still present, just presented more funnily.
Archie Bunker (Carroll O’Connor), Edith Bunker (Jean Stapleton), Gloria Bunker-Stivic (Sally Struthers), Michael Stivic (Rob Reiner), and Stephanie Mills are the primary characters in All In The Family (Danielle Brisebois). They all interacted magically with one another.
Sally Struthers was a tremendously underestimated and diverse actress, in my opinion. She periodically sang in a few All In The Family episodes, and I could observe her progress during the run of the show.
“At first, I behaved like an idiot on the set. I thought that was the way to get people to like me. I’ve been educated on the set. I’ve learned to be myself. And now, they respect me,” she told Longview Daily News in 1973.
“All in the Family” actress Sally Struthers, 1972. Photo by Jack Mitchell/Getty Images.
Sally was a 22-year-old unknown with little prior TV experience when the series debuted in January 1971. Sally claims that producer Norman Lear, who she calls “the father of us all,” saw the gifted actress dancing on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour.
Sally performed admirably, much like the rest of the ensemble, despite her lack of experience. She was officially recognized as a celebrity six months after the show’s debut when All In The Family rose to the top of the television ratings.
When she was at her most popular, she could hardly leave the house or go out to supper without being surrounded by fans. It was a very difficult situation for a 22-year-old who was innocent.
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Throughout the first few seasons of the program, Sally enjoyed playing Gloria Stivic. Yet, the actress was rarely given a chance to develop the role or employ her excellent performance fully. She informed the producers that she wanted to switch to a more dramatic role while All in the Family was on hiatus.
“When we go on hiatus, I want to do something different,” she said.
” And there are so many ways to represent a woman. I want to play a murderess, an unwed mother, a nun, and an old Jewish mother. At the end of my career, I’d like to have people say that I am as funny as Judy Holliday and to be as revered as Ruth Gordon.”
Being typecast might lead to one’s career failing. How frequently do you see someone gain notoriety from a legendary show, only for everything they do to fall short?
Regrettably, Sally’s experience was somewhat similar.
After leaving All In The Family, she was awarded the lead role in a few more shows and received two Emmy wins for her performance as Gloria. Yet, the reality was that she didn’t receive many offers, and Sally’s employment eventually dried up.
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Sally was a semi-regular panelist on the panel game show Match Game in the 1990s. Some people may be familiar with her from her role as Babette Dell in Gilmore Girls.
She has been a consistent attendee at the Ogunquit Playhouse as of late. At Ogunquit, Maine, the regional theater presents four or more plays each season.
She co-starred as Frau Blucher in Mel Brooks’s Young Frankenstein in 2022 with AJ Holmes at the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts.
The All In The Family actress has also worked hard to promote causes for underprivileged youngsters in underdeveloped nations.
Christian Children’s Fund has used Sally as a spokesman for many years, and she has also appeared in some of its well-known TV ads.
Son of Sally Struthers
Many people already know this, but Sally is a mother of one despite her earlier opposition to having children.
She had a change of heart after meeting renowned psychiatrist William C. Rader. After marriage in 1977, the couple welcomed Samantha, a daughter, two years later.
“Before I met Bill, I never wanted a baby. I was always the first to say that it wouldn’t make me fulfilled, that I didn’t need a carbon copy of myself. Then you fall in love with someone,” Sally told People in 1981.
“And you want to be the mother of a child part of that man, the result of your loving each other.”
Regrettably, she didn’t have a lengthy marriage. William C. Rader and Sally Rader separated in 1983 and started living separate lives.
Instead of following in her mother’s footsteps, their daughter chose to study clinical psychology and now has a private practice.
Samantha Struthers Rader is a very active user of social media, where she uploads pictures from her travels and offers advice.
She has undoubtedly inherited some of her mother’s skills, though. Samantha occasionally displays her tremendous singing ability, and her voice is on par with Sally’s.
Today’s Sally Struthers
Sally Struthers, now 75 years old, resides in Los Angeles.
She has spent the previous 25 years working in theaters and is still very much involved in the entertainment sector. She is, nonetheless, open to trying new things.
“I’m here. I’m a Los Angeles resident. I have been available. I don’t know why I am never asked to audition. I am never offered a job here. But, you give me Texas, you give me Maine, you give me Virginia, you give me New York, you give me Connecticut, and there’s a job for me, always. They clamor to have me back the next year in something else,” she says.
Sally Struthers was seen in Los Angeles, CA, on November 7, 2018.
(Photo by Hollywood To You/Star Max/GC Images)
Sally experienced ups and downs during the years. In 1996, she lost her mother to Alzheimer’s. Two days before Christmas, she passed away while in Sally’s arms. Over the years, Sally has also received derogatory remarks about her appearance and weight over the years, mostly from unidentified social media users.
But the actress has overcome every challenge with grace, honesty, and humor.
She told Spectrum News in 2022, “From the time I could walk and say a few words, my whole aim in life was to make people laugh.”
“And when I hear other people laugh, and I know that some silly face I’ve made or some line reading causes them to double over, I’m transported to heaven. That’s my thing. Laughter.”
I’m not clear why all the profanity and offensive remarks are required. Sally made us laugh for years, gives back to the community by volunteering to help underprivileged kids, and genuinely cares about others.
Sally, thanks for the wonderful memories. You have a terrific appearance and come across as nice, so I hope you can keep doing what you’re doing for a long time.
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