Series Description

The Family Ties TV show was a 30 minute comedy series on NBC about two parents and their three children. The Keatons had all of the typical minor problems that all families have, especially since two of the children were teenagers. There were the puberty issues, sibling rivalry, dating, and ... well, you know the score. But the Keatons had one problem that most families don't experience. Mom and dad were bra-burning, draft-dodging, government-despising hippies from the 1960s who had "grown up" but hadn't abandoned their very liberal political views. Their children, on the other hand, had views that were heavily leaning towards the conservative end of the spectrum. Their oldest son Alex was the most conservative and was what we call "right-wing" today. He was a member of the young Republicans, absolutely adored Ronald Reagan, and read the Wall Street Journal daily.

Family Ties Cast

Michael J. Fox .... Alex P. Keaton
Michael Gross .... Steven Keaton
Meredith Baxter .... Elyse Keaton
Justine Bateman .... Mallory Keaton
Tina Yothers .... Jennifer Keaton
Brian Bonsall .... Andrew Keaton
Courteney Cox .... Lauren Miller
Tracy Pollan .... Ellen Reed
Marc Price .... Skippy Handleman
Scott Valentine .... Nick Moore

Family Ties Theme Song

Title: "Without Us"

By: "Jeff Barry And Tom Scott"

I bet we been together for a million years,
And I bet we'll be together for a million more.

Oh, It's like I started breathing on the night we kissed,
And I can't remember what I ever did before.

What would we do baby, Without Us?
What would we do baby, Without Us?

And there ain't no nothing we can't love each other through.

What would we do baby, Without Us?

Sha la la la.

Family Ties Trivia:

Family Ties was based upon serie's creator/producer Gary David Goldberg and his wife Diane's lives as former "flower children" who, like most, made the transition into a typical family life in the suburbs.

Meredith Baxter and Michael Gross were born on the very same day and not just the same day of the year. They were both born on June 21, 1947!

If you didn't watch Family Ties, you may still remember Meredith Baxter as "Nancy Lawrence Maitland" on the TV series, "Family".

Matthew Broderick was the first choice to play the role of Alex but Matthew's father was terminally ill at the time so Matthew turned down the role so he could spend more time with his dad. Then, Gary David Goldberg hated Michael J. Fox's first audition! He thought that Michael played the part too "smart-alecky". Family Ties' casting director, Judith Wiener" saw the possibilities in Michael's performance though and literally begged Goldberg to give him another chance. Michael toned it down just a bit and Goldberg changed his mind. Then on top of all that, Brandon Tartikoff (President of NBC's entertainment division) felt that viewers wouldn't be able to believe that Michael Gross and Meredith Baxter could have such a short son! Apparently, however, Tartikoff also eventually became convinced and hired Fox who would become the main reason that Family Ties lasted for seven wonderful seasons.

Another interesting thing happened at Michael J. Fox's audition. His character was originally written to be named Alex Keaton but during Michael's audition, he ad-libbed and added the middle initial "J.". The writers thought it was a great idea and wrote it into the scripts.

President Ronald Reagan stated that Family Ties was his favorite TV show!

For the first couple of seasons, the Keatons resided in Cleveland, Ohio. Then, all of a sudden, they were living in Columbus, Ohio! There was never any explanation given about how that happened!

Alex P. Keaton's first real girlfriend on Family Ties was Ellen Reed. Ellen was played by actress, "Tracy Pollan". Her first appearance was on episode #75, "The Real Thing - Part 1" which aired on September 26, 1985. Less than three years later, she and Michael J. Fox would become husband and wife in real life!

On the very last episode of another Michael J. Fox series titled, "Spin City", it was mentioned that Alex P. Keaton was a Congressman from the state of Ohio!

Apparently the Cast didn't want anything to do with a possible future reunion show. They actually asked if the final episode could be written with all of their characters dying in a plane crash! Most of us fans thank the producers for, instead, having a 2-part finale where Alex flys away to New York City to start his dream job on Wall Street!