“It was a very misogynistic show. It was when I really, clearly understood that my job as an actor was to interpret the material. It’s not necessarily my belief system. My belief system has nothing to do with being an actor. You know, I was hired to play a part … The women were portrayed completely exploited on that show. That was part of Al Bundy’s thing — he liked hot women, and they showed them all the time.”And so, people would ask me questions like, ‘Is this what you think? I mean, how can you be on a show like this?’ And I was really clear that I don’t believe in censorship, and I also believe that it’s my job as an actor to interpret the material — it’s not my belief. If you’re asking me, do I think women should be portrayed in a misogynistic way, in an exploited way, of course I don’t think that. But playing Peg Bundy had nothing to do with what I thought. That was my job.
Suddenly, it dawned on us that this is not just a satire to everybody. Some people are really, truly relating to this, and that’s when I would get these very serious questions about a show that was really only meant to be funny. It was meant to be funny and to entertain and to laugh at ourselves. And I always got it as that, but some people took it really seriously.”— Katie Segal, opening up to AOL’s BUILD Series about Married with Children on its 30th anniversary
am_psi
Because nothing’s as misogynistic as a faithful man who works a terrible job to provide for a shiftless wife while she totally neglects husband, children and home.
ChrisK
Ha and spot on. Yeah, no wonder Al was never in the mood to f*ck Peg.
QNetter
You mean, nothing’s as misogynistic as an absurd exaggerated stereotype of a “shiftless, neglectful” wife? You’d be right.
IDoNotHaveToAgreeWithYou
Her character was crappy too. That was the point of the show.
BriBri
Good god, another feminist with a chronic yeast infection. It’s way old.
QNetter
Another tacky queen. It’s even older.
OzJosh
Substitute SS Officer in Auschwitz for actor “just doing my job” and you’ll see how utterly lame this defence is.
Xzamilloh
Yeah, just replace “SS Officer in Auschwitz” for ANYTHING and you’ll see how utterly lame the defense is…. but most people don’t jump to such an extreme because there are a few more steps before you jump to Nazism, you hyperbolic lunatic.
KaiserVonScheiss
One of the best shows ever put on television. I haven’t watched any full episodes in years, but I remember the show making fun of women. So what? It’s a comedy. They made fun of men and women, laughing a life. That’s what comedy is and what it’s for.
It’s so sad that this social justice nonsense has infected everything.
Jonathonz
Yeah it’s so sad our society has a bit of a conscience now and we’re being pressured to be more polite to one another. Anyway, it’s clearly not working for everyone cuz everyone’s just letting it all hang loose these days. Are we better for it? Clearly not.
Xzamilloh
Society doesn’t have a bit of a conscience… what it has is the internet equivalent of Saudi Arabia’s morality police, attempting to force everyone to adopt this pretend show of respect, when in reality, we resent and tolerate each other just as much as we did before, and lesser to some extents because it’s forced, but not really forced… just strongly encouraged.
Chris
News flash: Sons of Anarchy (in which Katey Segal starred and which was produced by her husband) engaged in misogyny as well as gratuitous sex and violence, too.
excusemydust
I always understood the show to be a satire, playing with the misogynist’s worldview. I’m…kind of shocked that there were people who just related to it in an authentic way.
MarionPaige
there has been a “Married With Children” since the days of radio. For the most part, the generation entertained / freaked out by “Married With Children” were too young to remember THAT SHOW about a man threatening to punch his wife to the moon.
Take a look at this recreation of “The Bickersons” https://youtu.be/ruLaC6ueatE
After the ultra PC and mostly unrealistic Cosby Show, “Married” probably seemed revolutionary to a lot of people.
The Bickersons was a radio comedy sketch series that began September 8, 1946, on NBC, moving the following year to CBS where it continued until August 28, 1951
Captain Obvious
Was The Cosby show unrealistic because it wasn’t your life? It mirrored many aspects of my life. The only reason people called it unrealistic was because they were black. 7th Heaven never got that criticism decades later.
The only difference between Good Times and Cosby was class. Why follow the ingrained racism white people try to place on us? There’s a reason The Cosby show caught on and lasted multiple seasons. It’s not because it was unrelatable.
Xzamilloh
Yeah, there’s a bit of revisionist history with her account of the Married with Children. Yes, the show was misogynistic, but was also progressive for its fanbase, especially when you look at the episode with Al Bundy and the husband of Peggy’s male dance partner, and Al seemingly seduced by the fact that this guy was cooking and cleaning for his husband. You had Marcy’s “cousin” on the later season coming out as gay… you had countless episodes of the women having their comeuppance on Al and his No MAAM counterparts. Hell, the episode when Al challenged his old rivals to a game, only to have their old quarterback come back a woman. Granted, it didn’t always handle each topic with social awareness, but it was a freaking comedy, and for the time period in which it came out, it was handled with a heck of a lot of acceptance.
Louis
Yet the truth in real life is that Amanda Bearse and Ed O Neil did not have a close bond .
I remember years ago when she got married to her wife she did not invite Ed nor the actor who played bud and she told them directly why .
The reason she didn’t invite either is because she knew they would laugh at seeing two women in a suit getting married .
I asked the actor whom played Bud years ago on Facebook very kindly and politely if he were gay friendly . The response to that question was complete silence .
Neither Ed nor Faustino have ever been LGBT friendly nor was Married With Children for that matter .
The writers behind the show were misogynistic,sexist,as well as clearly homophobic there were PLENTY of anti gay jokes on the show .
The only people on the show that were genuinely LGBT friendly or supporters in real life were Katey Sagal and Christina Applegate.
Louis
Correction the actor that played Steve was on Broadway many times and I believe he is also LGBT friendly .
Within the Broadway world they normally are .
Rob91316
If “Married With Children” was misogynistic, then women have no one to blame but themselves. Peg Bundy was a more accurate portrayal of the suburban housewife than any of her iconic counterparts (June Cleaver, Carol Brady, Claire Huxtable, et al.). If women don’t like being portrayed like Peg Bundy, then they should stop behaving like her.
william_mcrae
For it’s time, “Married with Children” was edgy and controversial. Now it’s dated and not in a good way. Most of the humor is obvious and groan worthy and the show never went beyond depicting both sexes in the most lazy stereotypical ways possible.
Men were horny misogynist slobs and women were air-headed bimbos/shrills. At first it was amusing but fast forward 11 seasons later and the one note nature of the series by that point had well and truly worn out it’s welcome.
Louis
Nods near the end of the series the jokes were for the most part bad,dull,and repetitive no question.
RedMich89
dddStart making more money weekly… This is a valuable part time work for everyone… The best part ,work from comfort of your house and get paid from $100-$2k each week
…•••••••??/
Bob LaBlah
I don’t care what this now older, fading cast members have to say about the show. I had me rolling all over the floor when it was a hit back in the 1980’s and I still laugh at it in reruns. It was a helluva lot better than the so called comedy Roseanne, which I still can’t figure out how people found Roseanna Barr’s nauseating ass funny. Peg Bundy two thumbs up forever. And I do admit I always wanted to slap Bud across his cute little butt.