The making of Family Ties is a stunning story of 1980s serendipity

I was late falling in love with Family Ties.

I had thought it was some soppy soap drama.

Until, a year late, in 1983 I realized it was hilarious. And a great message show.

I was (and am) exactly Michael J. Fox’s character’s age.

I was in 11th grade in 1982. Just like Alex P. Keaton. (Fox is actually 5 years older than me, he was playing younger).

Well, after all these years I finally logged into our local ‘9Now’ app to stream my ol’ favourite sit-com.

It’s been awesome. Like huge.

I used to have 30 or 40 favorite eps on VHS. Aptly named: the ‘Nick Episode’. The ‘book banning’ ep. The ‘ban-the-bomb’ ep where Steven re-starts his 1960s magazine. The Lauren ep with Courtney Cox.

Wow. To relive those hilarious – and touching – eps. Again.

But have you ever heard about how the show came about? And it’s unique love affair with US and global audiences?

And if you’ve never seen the show? The seasons 3–6 really hold up. And yet are a time capsule of those unique 1980s, a simpler age.

An age when life and politics weren’t so divisive. Michael Gross (Mr Keaton) emphasizes this sad fact about today.

You should all watch this making of Family Ties doco on YouTube. It makes for fascinating nostalgia.

So many of the decisions almost didn’t happen.

Originally the creator Gary David Goldman didn’t like Fox for the Alex part!

The show – like all good shows – was loosely based on Goldman’s own life where his 1960s hippy ideals were being lost on his own kids.

Remind you of something?

And of course the show took on a life of its own.

Half a season in everyone realized that Michael J. Fox was the star.

Baxter & Gross (the Keaton parents) had to take ego drops.

The show wasn’t about the parents.

It was about the kids.

I loved the show so much that I even got to write, act and ‘direct’ a 20-minute 4-act Family Ties-like sit-com to my church cell group of 35 people at a Christmas break-up variety night party back in 1988-ish.

It was a rip-roaring success and I’ve never had as much fun as that week in my entire life.

Directing and script coaching my four best friends, my friend’s girl-friend and one of the mothers.

We had a ball. I’ve got it on tape somewhere.

It was entitled ‘Be Yourself’ and I sold it to our home group leader as a re-telling of the Biblical story of Job getting advice from his four friends.

The Family Ties-like jokes got huge laughs.

None of my friends could believe it.

We rehearsed twice. And I got them all in Family Ties-like voice and timed perfectly, even getting them to wait for laughs.

Just like in a real FT ep.

I got to be a Michael J. Fox-like character of course. Reluctantly setting up a Skippy-like friend.

I must confess that I think it was my life’s best work. It was derivative. But could have been a FT ep.

The dialog was gold.

The 4 acts worked perfectly and the 3 friends of the guy each gave unique and quirky romantic advice to him. The scenes bewteeen the couple and the two girls were awesome too, earning genuine laughs.

I’ve only once since got to do something similar. In the 2000s I was in a research group where my colleagues were near doubles of Seinfeld, Elaine & Kramer. I wrote a script, donned specs and became George to complete the four.

It was funny. We did well.

But the 4 act Family Ties-like screenplay I wrote 20 years earlier was my crowning life achievement.

I wrote it in an inspired 3 hours.

I couldn’t believe how the structure and heart took on a life of its own.

A year after they finished filming Family Ties I got to attend the pilot filming of a new series filmed on the Family Ties sound stage.

It was awesome to be there. Those sound stages are only 8 rows deep but incredibly wide. I recommend the experience.