Eye-Opening Details About Sitcom Families That Were Concealed From Viewers

The Middle is a show that features some cool hidden trivia in it. For instance, you may have noticed that a house across the street from the Hecks’ home is often shown. This address was used for the ’60s series Bewitched, whilst the house to the right of the family’s abode was used for The Partridge Family. If that’s not enough, the fountain shown across several episodes is the one where the Friends get wet and wild in the opening credits.

With his luscious parted locks, Shawn Hunter made millions of teen girls swoon. But Rider Strong, who played the heartthrob, hated his iconic hairdo. He revealed to Cosmopolitan magazine, “I hated my hair. I came to the audition with that hairstyle, got the part, and the director Michael Jacobs never let me cut it... A bunch of girls at a sleepover told me to wear my hair like that — parted down the center — and I was 12, so I listened.” Boo-hoo!

Remember the episode “Will’s Misery” from Season Five of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air? Well, if you do, you will surely recall the hilarious and memorable moment towards the end, when a blubbering Carlton ran around the entire set. As per website BuzzFeed, that classic scene was not planned at all, but was entirely improvised by actor Alfonso Ribeiro!

Modern Family was designed as a fly-on-the-wall mockumentary with character interviews, sort of similar to The Office. But did you know that, originally, the actual camera crew were going to be a part of the plot? Website January Media revealed that the idea was that a fictional Dutch film-maker named Geert Floortje arrived to live with Jay’s family on a student exchange program. He was gonna have a crush on Claire Dunphy and catch Mitchell’s eye, but the story was binned.

Working with the talented Bryan Cranston is apparently a hoot. Christopher Masterson, the guy who played Malcolm’s older brother Francis on Malcolm in the Middle, spoke to the BBC about Cranston’s on-set antics. He said, “It is absolutely impossible to stop yourself from laughing. These scenes take so long to shoot as Bryan makes everyone laugh over and over.” We bet!

Watching Happy Days, it always seemed like the cast was having a blast. As it turns out, they really were, even forming a softball team for off-set bonding fun. According to Marion Ross, they were good too, and she told Fox News in 2018 the team was invited to compete with U.S. military units abroad. But they had to carry one lame player: that being “the Fonz” Henry Winkler!

All in the Family might have seemed highly original to fans of the show, and in many ways it is. But the Norman-Lear-created ’70s sitcom was actually directly inspired by another from across the pond: the controversial English series Till Death Us Do Part. If you’ve ever watched it, you’d have noticed that some of the edgy humor on display was similar to Lear’s show.

One Day At A Time told the story of a divorced mom struggling to raise two teen girls and have a career. But although Bonnie Franco excelled in the lead role of Ann Romano, it was one of those on-screen daughters who became a star. Indeed as per website Ranker, Valerie Bertinelli became so popular through playing Barbara that actor Pat Harrington said the studio was overwhelmed with the “sacks of fan mail” Bertinelli received.

The Middle has a really impressive ensemble cast, but it could have been completely different. Yes, as per IMDb, originally, Ricki Lake was going to play Frankie Heck, and she appeared in the original pilot. But after that, Patricia Heaton replaced her, and almost all of the cast was swapped out too, except Atticus Shaffer, who played Brick.

Haley Dunphy is really close with her parents Phil and Claire on Modern Family. And it appears that the actors who portray them are just as close off-screen. Indeed, Sarah Hyland told the series-finale documentary, “When my fiancé proposed, he asked my mom and dad for their blessing. Then he also hunted down Julie Bowen and Ty Burrell for their blessing. They really, really are like my second set of parents.” How cool!

Here’s a strange fact about Boy Meets World that you most likely missed. Shawn had a sister — for a brief phone call anyway. Her name is Stacy, and he calls her up in the episode “Cory’s Alternative Friends.” But then she is never mentioned again for the entire series. As per Mental Floss, it was something to do with a botched two-best-friends-for-Cory plot, apparently. Weird!

Everybody Loves Raymond proved to be an extremely popular show. So popular, in fact, that back in 2003 Ray Romano penned a contract to make him the highest-paid actor on U.S. TV: a whopping $1.8 million an episode, no less. Website Screen Rant told how unsurprisingly, Romano’s lesser-paid co-stars — who were taking home a comparatively paltry $160,000 an episode — kicked up a stink. Led by Brad Garrett, they walked out until their money was bumped up considerably.

Here’s a Malcolm in the Middle oddity you may have overlooked: the family’s surname is never spoken. Really, you ask? Well, yes, and according to Frankie Muniz, it’s not “Wilkerson,” which was seen on a name tag in the first season. The whole thing became a running joke, and in another episode Francis holds an employee card that has “Nolastname” written on it!

Happy Days star Ron Howard famously narrates the action in Arrested Development, but the actor/director revealed this had come about by coincidence. As per January Media, Howard basically helped out for the pilot episode, and it was decided his voice fitted seamlessly with the plot. Of course, years later he would become an outright character himself, playing Rebel Alley’s father. Good work, Ron.

The Munsters was a unique family sitcom that followed the travails of a family of good-natured monsters, of whom people were still wary. It was a popular show in the 1960s, running for two seasons. And that popularity led to a commercial, in which the Munsters were seen chomping away on Cheerios. Insert cereal killers joke here.

When Ted McGinley read for the role of Marcy’s second husband Jefferson D’Arcy in Married… With Children, he had a sudden sinking feeling. The character — as far as the script read, anyway — was a bit of a wuss. As per website IMDb, McGinley reportedly complained about this, pushing the writers to turn him instead into a secret agent. Quite the alteration, then!

Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul played arguably the most iconic double act in TV history when they appeared on-screen together as Walter White and Jesse Pinkman in Breaking Bad. But here’s something that’ll blow your mind: the duo almost appeared together years earlier as father and son in Malcolm in the Middle. Yes, Paul later admitted to Mental Floss how he had been “desperate” to audition for the role of Francis. But the producers hired Danny Masterson!

Will Smith can be a bit of a motormouth, but you probably didn’t know that he mouthed others’ lines of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Yes, in an interview with Tidal in 2018, Smith revealed, “I didn’t just learn my lines... If you watch the first six episodes, you can still see I’m mouthing other people’s lines.” Karyn Parsons would eventually be the one to tell the oblivious Smith to stop it!

Tim Allen and Patricia Richardson proved hugely popular with audiences as married couple Tim and Jill Taylor on Home Improvement. So popular, in fact, that ABC dangled big bucks in front of them to do one more season. Website Dipley reported that Richardson was offered $25 million and Allen a mind-boggling $50 million! They both turned it down; imagine the real-life home improvement they could have done with that money!

You may remember that in the third season of Family Ties, Elyse Keaton suddenly disappears without so much of an explanation. Well, the truth of the matter is that actress Meredith Baxter had to go and give birth to twins! Indeed, she was heavily pregnant for the first part of the season, but loose-fitting clothes and various well-placed props were able to conceal this fact.

Fans of The Goldbergs will have noticed how Sean Giambrone’s Adam refers to himself as Adam F. Goldberg, due to there being a namesake at his school. But did you know this was a sly nod to the fact that there is another Adam Goldberg in the Screen Actors Guild? Yes, that one is the guy who appeared in Dazed and Confused and Saving Private Ryan, and of course as Chandler’s creepy roommate Eddie in Friends.

In this spin-off of All in the Family, Isabel Sanford played Louise “Weezy” Jefferson, the wife of George, played by Sherman Hemsley. But Sanford once told the Television Academy Foundation that she wasn’t sure about playing husband to Hemsley, as she was 21 years his senior and didn’t think it would be realistic. Luckily, she was either convinced by producers or carried on regardless, and viewers loved the odd couple.

Before he was Heisenberg, Bryan Cranston was Hal, the hapless dad on Malcolm in the Middle. But Cranston himself proved less hapless than his alter-ego, performing the majority of his stunts. As per website Mental Floss, these included roller-disco skating, and most memorably, wearing a bee suit as 10,000 of the stinging insects buzzed around him. Luckily, the affable actor only got one sting!

All was not rosy on the set of All in the Family. Indeed, as per Screen Rant, actor Carroll O’Connor walked out at one point during filming for Season Five, meaning Archie Bunker went AWOL too for several episodes. O’Connor was engaged in a bitter contract row with show creator Norman Lear. He would eventually sue him for $60,000 in unpaid salary, and although he returned to the sitcom, their relationship never fully recovered. A shame.

Before she starred as Peggy Bundy on Married… With Children, Katey Sagal had pursued a career as a singer-songwriter. Strangely, Sagal dressed in a way so that she wouldn’t be recognized, most notably in a bouffant red wig. Apparently, she was worried that the sitcom would be a flop and affect her promising career in music!

Most of you will know that the family in Everybody Loves Raymond is based on Ray Romano’s real-life kin. However, you might not remember that in the pilot episode, the children are named Alexandra, Gregory and Matthew — the exact names of Romano’s actual kids. But the actor was uneasy about using those names, so Matthew and Gregory became Michael and Geoffrey, respectively, although Ally’s name remained the same.

Fans of All in the Family might recall the character Michael Stivic, the unruly son-in-law of Archie Bunker. But you probably didn’t know that Harrison Ford almost took on the role! Screen Rant revealed that for whatever reason he said no; a decision that ultimately set in motion a legendary film career. Meanwhile Rob Reiner landed the part, and it is now hard to imagine anyone but him as “Meathead.”

The young Olsen girls Mary-Kate and Ashley became big stars off the back of Full House. So, it might shock you that lead actor John Stamos tried to get them booted from the show. Really! He told the Television Critics Association in 2015 how the twins “cried a lot,” and that he said “Get them out!” But the redheaded replacement kids didn’t work. So, the Olsen twins were brought back after all. Oh John, you meanie!

Married … With Children was known for its occasionally edgy humor. But that quality saw it become embroiled in a battle with an obscenity activist named Terry Rakolta. She alleged that the sitcom had “anti-family” values, and appeared on numerous shows pushing her attempts to get the show canceled. Rakolta thankfully failed, and ratings increased. But Fox did move its time slot from 8:30 to 9:00 p.m.

It’s almost impossible to think of Family Matters without the sight of Steve Urkel bursting through the door entering your brain. But did you know the iconic character — who was portrayed by Jaleel White — was originally only slated to appear in one episode of the series? Well, as per website 22 Words, it’s true. Thankfully, though, the producers saw sense, and White would go on to appear in 208 episodes over the show’s nine-year run from 1989 to 1998.

Diehard fans of All in the Family may remember that Gloria Bunker-Stivic goes missing for a couple of episodes, but they probably don’t know the reason why. Well, Screen Rant reported the truth was that Sally Struthers became embroiled in a legal fight with Tandem Productions over her taking a movie role in The Day of The Locust. Unfortunately, her contract stipulated she could only act in the sitcom, and the role she wanted went to Karen Black.

“If Boys Were Girls”, the Season Four episode of Malcolm in the Middle, is a memorable one. It finds Lois dreaming about bringing up daughters rather than sons. But you most likely don’t know that the idea for the episode was from an 11-year-old. Yes, Mental Floss revealed the niece of the sitcom’s costume designer, a girl named Alexandra Kaczenski, came up with the main plot, and creator Linwood Boomer adored it and paid her for it!

The Peter-Boyle-portrayed Frank was renowned as a cantankerous character — and Boyle’s frustrating route to the audition helped land him the role! Screen Rant related how the late actor ran into numerous problems on his way to the screen test. Firstly, the gate guards wouldn’t let him past. Secondly, he struggled to find a parking spot. Lastly, he got lost and wandered into the wrong building. By then he was fuming, and ultimately deemed perfect for the role!

You may have noticed that there are surprisingly few scenes in which Will Friedle’s Eric and Rider Strong’s Shawn appear together. As it turns out, there was a specific reason for this: the actors who portrayed them had too much fun, and delayed shooting. Friedle admitted at a 2013 reunion, “They never let Rider and I do scenes together because we would look at each other and start laughing, so I think over seven years, we had, like, five scenes together.”

Imagine if we’d lost one of the Brady Bunch to a terrible accident. Well, according to Ranker, that almost happened in the Season Five episode “The Cincinnati Kids.” If it hadn’t been for Robert Reed — or perhaps series creator Sherwood Schwartz — insisting that a rollercoaster at Kings Island amusement park in Ohio be checked for safety we could have lost one of them. A test run of the ride with the camera attached to the front saw it fly off at velocity.

For the sitcom’s first five seasons, Lecy Goranson played Roseanne’s eldest daughter Becky. She left to go to college afterwards, and was written out for a while before being replaced by future Scrubs actress Sarah Chalke. Goranson reprised Becky in Season Eight, before Chalke took over again. Anyway, Goranson permanently quit in 1996 and didn’t even tune in to the final season. Amusingly, she told the Today show she didn’t know her screen-dad Dan had died until years later.

One of the most iconic catchphrases on Full House is undoubtedly “Oh Mylanta!” It was often uttered incredulously by D.J. Tanner, who was played by Candace Cameron Bure. But why did she say the phrase? As per website Collider, the reason was actually her devout Christian faith. Cameron Bure refused to say the Lord’s name in vain, so came up with this non-blasphemous cry instead.

Tracie Ellis Ross and Anthony Anderson appear to have good chemistry as the married pair Dre and Rainbow Johnson on Black-ish. But, in reality, they started off very much on the wrong foot. Yes, Ross despised Anderson when he joined the cast — all because of a flatulence joke he made at her expense at the 2005 Vibe Awards. Thankfully, Ross has since forgiven him, and remarked on an Entertainment Weekly podcast how she now loves the man!

Here’s one that you can call fate. As per Diply, Richard Karn only appeared in Home Improvement due to his bad driving. Confused? Well, after the actor made a rolling stop over an intersection, he was forced to attend traffic school. By chance, he met and chatted with an agent there, who revealed there was a show called Home Improvement in the offing. Karn managed to get an audition for the part of Al Borland, and the rest is history.

Incredible as it may seem, Michael J. Fox almost got the boot from Family Ties by NBC president Brandon Tartikoff. Why? Well, Tartikoff “couldn’t see his face on a lunchbox” for the lucrative show merchandise. Fox told Parade that years later, that when he became a huge star via the show and Back to the Future, he made Brandon a lunchbox with his grinning visage plastered on it. Awesome!