family ties
Michael J Fox's first roll on a television show was in Family Ties. A very typical family sitcom. It was originally intended to be about the adults of the series, with the slogan "hip parents square kids" but when Michael made an appearance, audiences were more drawn to his part. By the fourth episode of the season the show mostly revolved around his part as Alex Keaton. This show exemplified the the move of the United States from liberalism of the 60's and 70's into the Conservatism of the 80's. This switch is easy to see as Fox plays a republican teen, contrasting his baby booming, liberal, "ex-hippie" parents. Set in the early stages of Reagan's term in an up state suburb in Columbus Ohio, we see this family of 5 grow together, they even become a family of 6 by a few later seasons. We see them face the typical challenges of a middle class family on an NBC sitcom. When Family Ties was at it's high points, it was reportedly pulling in one third of American families.
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