I love this show and I am growing so impatient to own the last three seasons, if Sony will ever release them. Does anyone know how I could get copies of someone's VHS tapes of these episodes? If someone were willing to copy a tape for me and send it, I would be willing to pay a good price.
shareI got sick of waiting, too, so I bought the remaining seasons off of this vendor at ioffer.com:
http://www.ioffer.com/users/noitall1730
I sent her a message and told her that I had seasons 1 and 2, and asked if she could round up the remaining seasons and give me a deal. She offered them at a great price and they were delivered quickly. This was the easiest online transaction I've ever had.
The vendor has collected all but 8 episodes on VHS and then transferred them onto DVD. Because the VHS tapes were quite old, the quality varies, but most were good to very good quality, with only a handful being fair to poor. One of my favourite episodes "Annie Laurie" co-starring a pre-"Alice" Linda Lavin, is about the worst quality one, but I was just so relieved to see it after so many years, I really didn't mind.
I'd recommend ordering from this ioffer vendor, absolutely!
Thanks so much for the tip. I was a young bride (same age as Nancy was) when Family first came out in 1976, and I have such fond memories of being glued to the T.V. in my first house, not wanting to miss an episode. My kids remember watching the reruns in later years and I wish so much that I had recorded them then.
shareI'm curious would you mind telling us what you paid for the rest of the series? If it's a good price I may do it to. Thanks,
shareI think I paid $40.00, certainly no more than that. I had just been laid off and I remembering telling myself I wouldn't pay more than that.
Make the vendor an offer. Like I said, the DVDs have the quality of old VHS tapes, but most are of good to very good quality. But be prepared for a few episodes to be fair to poor: still enjoyable, though. Remember in the '70s and '80s getting bad TV reception during a storm? That's what some of the episodes are like. Also, I forgot to mention previously that a handful of episodes still have the commercials! Personally, I find the old '80s commercials help in the "total immersion" process of re-living the "Family" era! The cheesiness is hysterical:)
Overall, I totally found them to be worth it: I've watched all the episodes multiple times.
I went to the iofer site you reccomended, but the web site is no longer there. I also tried finding another vendor, but the only one I came up with only had the first two seasons and did not know where to get the rest. Any other suggestions would be welcome. Thanks for trying.
shareHmm. That's odd: I just checked the website and it says her last login was two days ago. Everything seems to be up and running: her site looks just as it did when I ordered from her back in February. I'd give it another try if I were you.
Here's another url.
http://www.ioffer.com/i/14067737
It'll take you to a specific page in her inventory. She doesn't have all of seasons 3,4,and 5 lumped together in one package: you have to message her and ask for them specifically and make her a reasonable offer and she'll make you a bundle if she still has all of them. Good luck!
Thanks! I don't know what went wrong the first time I tried the site, but the new address you gave me went straight there. I ordered seasons 3-5 from the nice lady Donna, who gave me a good deal without me even asking. I can't thank you enough for sharing your Family info. My daughter and I are excited to see the new ones, especially those with commercials. I too had some horribly tacky wallpaper in my house when I first married in 1975 (I still get a headache looking at old pictures of my breakfast room in the kitchen) so I really get a kick out of seeing the Lawrences decorating.
shareSo glad to hear it:) You're right, Donna is just great.
You'll have a blast watching Buddy ask too many questions about a black sheep in Doug's family, and giggle as Annie tries to explain to Kate what a "bimbo" is! And check out Kate's face when Doug insists on fixing the plumbing himself and the family ends up lining up to take showers in Nancy's guesthouse: Sada Thompson's silent fury could steam the chrome off a trailer hitch! There are just so many funny little moments and exchanges that I completely forgot about.
You and your daughter are really in for a treat. Be sure to post about any episodes that really strike you, and about things you may have missed or forgotten about since watching them back in the good old days!
I have received the new episodes and I'm really having fun watching them. I just saw the one called "We Love You Miss Jessup" where Blair Brown plays the role of a lesbian teacher that Buddy loves. Buddy actually questions her own sexuality to Kate, which is so weird because I think Kristi McNichol is gay. I also saw "Annie Laurie", which I did'nt remember ever seeing and I really wish the sound quality was better for that one because it was good. I just love Kate - Sada Thompson has that character down pat. I still have a lot more to watch, and I want to thank you again, from one "Family" fanatic to another.
shareGreat to hear it! It is so nice to share my affection and admiration for this show with others: no one I know besides my mother remembers or liked it (Philistines, all of them!)
I couldn't agree more about Sada Thompson's grasp of Kate Lawrence: perfection. Check out "When the Bough Breaks": it's gut-wrenching.
Please keep posting your impressions about subsequent episodes: I can't get enough:)
I will. I made my mother (88 years old) watch the episode where Nancy and Jeff almost remarry,(she's seen the pilot, so she is aware of Nancy and Doug's father/daughter relationship). We talked about how Kate seems to always defend Willie, and Doug is so protective over Nancy and there are many similarities of that situation in my own family. Such true to life situations, and to think the episodes are written by different people. Is it Carol Evan Mckeand that's the story consultant? What a great job she does in keeping everyone in character, with all those different writers and directors.
share"When the Bough Breaks" was the saddest thing! Of course, I loved it. Also, "Smarts" is good, when Annie is cruelly made fun of in school. Her performance in that one is wonderful. The silliest one has got to be "Disco Queen". The hair (especially the men) and clothes are a scream, and the dancing - my daughter and I could not stop laughing.
shareSpeaking of Annie, when I watched re-runs of "Family" in the '80s, when I was a teenager, I found her to be precocious to the point of being annoying. Years later, through my thirty-something eyes, I'm much more fond of her, and very impressed with Quinn Cummings' acting ability.
I do still wish that, if the producers and writers felt they HAD to introduce another child into the mix to fill the "cute" void left by Kristy McNichol, they had made the Annie character more vulnerable and shy and damaged and had taken more than one episode for her to acclimate to the Lawrence household. I think this could have been a very rich, multi-episode storyline and the directors could have had a field day highlighting Sada Thompson's fine acting ability, putting Kate on full-throttle mother/saviour mode, which is what Kate did best. Kate Lawrence as ferocious, protective Mama Bear, committed to loving the hurt out of this damaged little girl. The episode "Starting Over", in which Annie is first introduced to the Lawrences is very well done, but I feel it was too easily wrapped up in the end. The scene where Kate finally gets Annie to break down and cry and admit she misses her parents is so poignant: I crave more.
I've been winding my way through the season 1 & 2 episodes of Family. When it was aired in the 70s I was in my late teens. I recall some of the episodes and how heart touching they were. The show reminded me somewhat of Little House On the Prairies seeing as so many episodes would make me cry. Sada Thompson was my favorite. Not too many people can get their point across with a look, or few words, or no words at all sometimes. What a remarkable woman and actress she is. I grew up in the 60s and 70s and am gay. There was a episode in season 2 that focused on this very issue. This episode is what made me decide to buy season 1 and 2. I didn't realize however, how powerful the other episodes were. I'm so glad I found this gem. I hope Sony does release the rest of the seasons.
I catch myself searching IMDB to see where the characters are now. Most are still alive and many are still in show biz. Today I watched episode 23 of season 2. It was called "Best Friends". Man that was a great episode. Very powerful learning tools in that one. I looked up "Peter Coffield" who portrayed Brian in the episode and noticed that he is dead. He died in 1983 of AIDS. I was shocked. First off, he was so handsome. He reminded me so much of my first crush in high school. Secondly, I never thought for a moment that he was gay. His acting was incredible. I assume he was because back in 1983 most people dying with AIDS were gay men. Especially in show biz. It's so sad. I had to cry.
Now onto episode 24 to uncover another gem no doubt. I'm glad that others have these same feelings. It was one of the better shows on tv.
Great to meet yet another Sada Thompson fan:)
I've mentioned this before in another thread, but perusing other forums and articles regarding "Family" and Sada Thompson in particular, I have noticed a couple of things about her fans: many of them watched the show as children or adolescents, and I've noticed an inordinate number of them are either gay (and were struggling with it in youth) or were abused as children. I think Ms. Thompson's portrayal of Kate Lawrence as strong-but-sensitive über-mother really appealed to abused kids who watched and escaped once a week to the not-quite-perfect but loving and ultimately stable world of the Lawrences. I know I did. And any young man or woman coming to terms with homosexuality would no doubt have experienced relief and surprise when Kate embraced and accepted Willie's childhood friend who was gay, and Buddy's teacher, who was a lesbian. This treatment of homosexuality was very much ahead of its time, and Sada Thompson handled it with elegance and aplomb, as she does everything.
You are correct. When I saw that episode I cried. I wanted to see it again and again. But we had no VCR in 1976. :-) I loved her speech to Willie about he'll be in for a meager existance if he thinks everyone is going to conform to his idea of who they should be. It was so well written and Sada executed the entire sequence with so much excellence that it gave me a huge release of joy to finally hear something like that. I don't know about other gays. Back then I was starving for any form of acceptance. That episode meant the world to me. Brian Byers was quite the heart throb too.
My mother was very similar to Sada in her looks, but not so much in personality. She was an excellent mother born in the mid 1920s. She was plump, but always had her hair and makeup done right. She resembled Sada so much that when I watch it, it feels that I'm watching mom.
My mother wasn't quiet. She let you know verbally what was on her mind. Yet she always had a worried look on her face. Sada also had that worried look. I live in Canada. It amazes me sometimes how similar Americans and Canadians are when it comes to manners, right from wrong, and overall social mores.
I'm also glad to find another Sada Thompson and "Family" fan. I wish the show had not ended when it did, because it would be interesting to see how Kate would have handled life as she and her family aged (I believe James Broderick died a few years after "Family" ended, and Kate as a widow would probably have been Emmy award caliber.) Also, I think Kristy McNickol is gay in real life, and if she came out of the closet on the show, you just know Kate would have embraced her beloved daughter's life style, long before this was the norm in our society. Oh well, it just goes to show you how real these characters are to me. Why won't they release the rest of the seasons? It's crazy, with all the crap on dvd now.
shareNetflix Instant Viewing might be another option. The full run of Adam-12 was available there before the entire series was released on DVD.
shareReally old thread, but I tried to look up that vendor for Season 3 thru 5 and she doesn't seem to be in business anymore. I would appreciate if anyone else knew of a source for these episodes. I need to get my fix for old family episodes. :-)
shareI recently purchased seasons 3 through 5 on www.ioffer.com for $30. The seller had all but 2 episodes.
shareAny contact information would be helpful... I would love to get the other seasons. Family was certainly an escape for me growing up and it would be great to be able to revisit them again in Season 3 thru 5. :-)
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