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American Morning
Showbiz Today Reports: Carroll O'Connor Dies at Age 76
Aired June 22, 2001 - 11:15 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: We've been talking about the passing of a television pioneer all morning, Carroll O'Connor, Archie Bunker, passed away, 76 years old.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: A great career, he definitely had. Entertained us for many years.
With more on that, let's check in with Michael Okwu.
MICHAEL OKWU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Daryn and Miles, and hello everyone.
That's right, Carroll O'Connor, TV's curmudgeonly Archie Bunker, has died. The Emmy-winning star of the landmark '70's sitcom "All in the Family" died of a heart attack Thursday in California. O'Connor's career spanned decades, but he was best known for his role as the bigoted, blue-collar patriarch, who rallied against a changing world he no longer understood.
His ignorance and intolerance on that show pioneered a new era of TV comedies that brought sexual, political and racial relations into America's living rooms. O'Connor even co-wrote "All in the Family"'s title song, which he famously crooned with his TV wife, Jean Stapleton. Actor-director Rob Reiner, who played Archie's outspoken and liberal son-in-law in the groundbreaking series, says O'Connor did share one trait with Archie Bunker.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROB REINER, ACTOR/DIRECTOR: His intelligence was very far away from Archie's. Archie was a fairly ignorant person. But he was stubborn just like Archie, but stubborn for good things, for the right things. To push for quality in the shows every week, and to make sure that certain ideas were expressed in a meaningful way. And so he was dogged about that, and stubborn about that. And Archie had that kind of same stubborn quality.
But as far as his -- but he was much more soft-spoken. I mean, he was a much gentler person.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
OKWU: O'Connor returned to TV in 1988 in the CBS police drama "In the Heat of the Night." He won an Emmy for his portrayal of the gruff sheriff on that show, which he also produced. In 2000, he received a star on the Hollywood walk of fame and made his final big- screen appearance in the romantic comedy "Return to Me." Carroll O'Connor was 76 years old.
Jean Stapleton remembers O'Connor as one of the most intelligent and one of the most generous people she ever worked with. If you would like to share your memories of Carroll O'Connor, or read how others are remembering the actor, logon to our Web page at CNN.com/SHOWBIZ.
In New York, I'm Michael Okwu. We'll have more showbiz news for you later in this hour. But for now, it's back to Daryn and Miles in Atlanta.
KAGAN: Thank you so much.
O'BRIEN: Well, those were the days, weren't they?
KAGAN: Those were the days. And, you know, it is sad when someone passes, and yet when it's somebody who's had such a successful career, entertained us so many years as well, I think it's an honor to smile when you think of their memory, as well.
O'BRIEN: And, of course, for many of us, the memory will be this song. Let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEAN STAPLETON, ACTRESS (singing): Songs that made "The Hit Parade."
CARROLL O'CONNOR, ACTOR (singing): Guys like us, we had it made.
STAPLETON, O'CONNOR (singing): Those were the days.
STAPLETON (singing): And you knew where you were then.
O'CONNOR (singing): Girls were girls, and men were men.
STAPLETON, O'CONNOR (singing): Mister, we could use a man like Herbert Hoover again.
O'CONNOR (singing): Didn't need no welfare states.
STAPLETON (singing): Everybody pulled his weight.
STAPLETON, O'CONNOR (singing): Gee, our old LaSalle ran great. Those were the days.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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