The star of All In The Family reveals that she had a conflict with Norman Lear.

Sally Struthers, known for her role in All In The Family, revealed that she had a contentious relationship with the show's creator, Norman Lear, stating that she "wasn't particularly fond of him."

Lear died in 2023 at the age of 101, after decades being hailed as a TV legend who deftly wove political issues into situation comedy. 

All In The Family featured Carroll O'Connor in the role of the cantankerous family head, Archie Bunker. His conservative views served as a vehicle for the show's writers to humorously critique right-wing ideologies.

At 77 years old, Struthers portrayed Gloria, the daughter of Archie, who often found herself at odds with her father's conservative views, aligning more with her liberal spouse Michael, a role brought to life by Rob Reiner.

Struthers has claimed that her relationship with Lear was fraught with difficulties behind the scenes, and she even invested $40,000 in an unsuccessful legal attempt to exit his show following the fifth season.

She also claimed Lear once told her he only cast her because of she had 'blue eyes and a fat face,' on the podcast Let's Talk About That!.

In a recent interview with Struthers, Lear was referred to as the mastermind behind All In The Family, to which she promptly disagreed with that description.

According to Struthers' version of events, Carroll O'Connor first came up with the idea of creating an American adaptation of the British sitcom Till Death Us Do Part, on which All In The Family was based.

She mentioned that O'Connor and a 'close writer associate of his' worked together on 'scripts' for an American adaptation of Till Death Do Us Part. However, they lacked the producer influence and funds to bring it to fruition. After pitching it for some time, it eventually landed in Norman's possession, and for the next 52 years, Norman acted as if he was the original creator.

All In The Family had a successful eight-season run on CBS from 1971 to 1979. However, Struthers has stated that throughout this time, she was left out of cast dinners that took place at the residence of Lear and his then-wife, feminist activist Frances Loeb. 

Struthers mentioned that throughout the duration of the show, Lear and Loeb would host dinner gatherings, inviting Carroll O'Connor and his wife Nancy, as well as Jean Stapleton, who portrayed Edith Bunker, along with her husband Bill.

Rob Reiner, known for his role as Struthers' husband on television, was reportedly invited to the dinners alongside his then-wife, Penny Marshall.

Struthers claimed that Reiner received an invitation 'as Rob was the son of Carl Reiner, a close friend of Norman Lear.'

In the meantime, she claimed, "I wasn't invited to his house for eight years," and as the podcast hosts showed their understanding, she continued, "It didn't feel pleasant."