''Family Affair'' is an American sitcom starring Brian Keith and Sebastian Cabot that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966, to March 4, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do engineer and bachelor Bill Davis (Keith) as he attempted to raise his brother's orphaned children in his luxury New York City apartment. Davis's traditional English

gentleman's gentleman A valet or varlet is a male servant who serves as personal attendant to his employer. In the Middle Ages and Ancien Régime, valet de chambre was a role for junior courtiers and specialists such as artists in a royal court, but the term "vale ...

, Mr. Giles French (Cabot), also had adjustments to make as he became saddled with the responsibility of caring for 15-year-old Cissy ( Kathy Garver) and the six-year-old twins, Jody ( Johnny Whitaker) and Buffy ( Anissa Jones). ''Family Affair'' ran for 138 episodes in five seasons. The show was created and produced by

Edmund Hartmann Edmund L. Hartmann (September 24, 1911 – November 28, 2003) was a film and television writer and producer from the 1930s to the 1970s. He was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He attended Washington University in St. Louis. He later married and ...

and

Don Fedderson Donald Joy Fedderson (April 16, 1913 – December 18, 1994) was an American executive producer who created a number of television programs including '' The Millionaire'', ''My Three Sons'' and ''Family Affair''. Career Fedderson was born April 1 ...

, also known for '' My Three Sons'' and '' The Millionaire''.

Storyline

Indiana native William "Bill" Davis is a successful

civil engineer A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing ...

who develops major projects all over the world. A wealthy bachelor, Bill lives in a large apartment in Manhattan's Upper East Side, and has a British manservant, Giles French (usually called "Mr. French" or just "French"), as his valet. A year prior to the series, Bill's brother Bob and his wife Mary were killed in a car crash in Indiana, orphaning their three children – teenager Cissy, and younger twins Jody and Buffy. His other relatives believe that Bill is the one most capable of supporting them, so the three move in with him in New York. Consequently, Bill's solitary lifestyle gets turned upside down. Initially, "Uncle Bill" is none too pleased to have the three youngsters living with him, but he soon grows fond of them. Mr. French, who effectively becomes a nanny in addition to his valet duties, is also flustered by the erratic situation at first, but he, too, develops an affinity for them. Over time, the bachelor, the butler, and the three orphans find themselves becoming a close-knit family.

Other characters

When Sebastian Cabot became ill, Giles's brother, Nigel "Niles" French (

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who wa ...

) was introduced. He worked for the Davis family for nine episodes in 1967, while Giles was said to be touring with the Queen in the Commonwealth countries. In the final season, Bill hired a part-time housekeeper, Emily Turner ( Nancy Walker), to assist Mr. French. Various other characters were also seen regularly, including several acquaintances of Mr. French's who are

in service A domestic worker or domestic servant is a person who works within the scope of a residence. The term "domestic service" applies to the equivalent occupational category. In traditional English contexts, such a person was said to be "in service ...

(most notably Miss Faversham, played by Heather Angel), colleagues of Bill's, and friends of Cissy's.

Production

Family Affair Anissa Jones Johnny Whitaker 1967

Due to

's strong track record, ''Family Affair'' was sold to CBS even before the pilot had been filmed. As Fedderson's other program, '' My Three Sons'', had done for

Fred MacMurray Frederick Martin MacMurray (August 30, 1908 – November 5, 1991) was an American actor. He appeared in more than one hundred films and a successful television series, in a career that spanned nearly a half-century. His career as a major film le ...

, ''Family Affair'' used a 60-day production schedule to accommodate Brian Keith. All of his scenes for the season would be shot in two 30-day blocks, while his co-stars would fill in after the actor's work was completed. This enabled Fedderson to harness movie stars like Keith and MacMurray into television commitments, while still enabling each to make motion pictures. As a result, each season had a single director for each of the 30-odd scripts. Since the show's child actors (Whitaker and Jones) could only legally work eight hours a day, scenes with them were shot first, and as a result the cast and crew were often filming as many as four episodes at the same time. Due to the popularity of the series with girls, Buffy's doll, "Mrs. Beasley" (which she often carried with her), was marketed as a Mattel talking toy in the United States. Mattel went on to produce two additional dolls, as well, patterned after Buffy: the "Tutti"-sized Buffy and larger "Small Talk Buffy" (talking doll), both of which featured accompanying miniature Mrs. Beasley dolls.

Opening

The theme song was composed by veteran television composer Frank DeVol. The opening featured credits appearing over a kaleidoscopic view of a multicolored array of gems and precious stones, suggesting "family jewels". Most of the episodes in the fifth season opened with either Sebastian Cabot or the twins saying, "Good evening, so nice of you to join us," and closing the episode saying, "It's been very good of you to watch and we do hope to see you again next week on ''Family Affair''."

Cast

* Brian Keith as Bill Davis - The part was first offered to Glenn Ford, who turned it down. Keith also held part ownership of the show. * Sebastian Cabot as Giles French * Kathy Garver as Cissy Davis - Garver was cast at the last minute, in the middle of shooting the pilot, after the actress originally cast for the part gained 15 pounds on a trip to Europe. No scenes were filmed with Garver's predecessor. * Johnny Whitaker as Jody Davis - Keith suggested Whitaker for the role. Jody and Buffy were originally supposed to be different ages, but after seeing how good Whitaker looked with Anissa Jones, who had already been cast, the producers decided to change them to twins. * Anissa Jones as Buffy Davis * Heather Angel as Miss Faversham, Mr. French's friend *

as Nigel "Niles" French (season 1) * John Hubbard as Ted Gaynor, Bill's business partner (season 1) *

Betty Lynn Elizabeth Ann Theresa Lynn (August 29, 1926 – October 16, 2021) was an American actress. She played Thelma Lou, Deputy Barney Fife's girlfriend, on ''The Andy Griffith Show''. During the 1940s and 1950s, she appeared in many films, including ...

as Miss Lee, Bill's secretary (seasons 1–2) * Sherry Alberoni as Sharon James, Cissy's girlfriend (seasons 1–3) *

Karl Lukas Karl Lukas, born Karol Louis Lukasiak (August 21, 1919 – January 16, 1995) was an American film and television actor. He was best known for playing Pvt. Stash Kadowski in ''The Phil Silvers Show''. Lukas guest-starred in numerous television ...

as Scotty Parker, the doorman (seasons 1–3) * Gregg Fedderson (producer Don Fedderson's son) as Gregg Bartlett, Cissy's boyfriend (seasons 2–5) - While working on the show Fedderson started dating Cissy actress Kathy Garver in real life. * Nancy Walker as Emily Turner (season 5)

Notable guest stars

* John Agar (episode 1.28) * Herbert Anderson (episode 4.1) * Dana Andrews (episode 4.2) * Joan Blondell (episode 2.13) *

Lynn Borden Lynn Marie Freyse (March 24, 1937 – March 3, 2015) was an American film and television actress. She was known for playing Barbara Baxter in the final season of the American sitcom television series '' Hazel''. Life and career Borden was bor ...

* Richard Bull as the apartment manager * Terry Burnham (episode 2.15) as Ingrid, (episode 4.4) as Rita Stone * Veronica Cartwright (episode 3.27) *

Jackie Coogan John Leslie Coogan (October 26, 1914 – March 1, 1984) was an American actor and comedian who began his film career as a child actor in silent films. Charlie Chaplin's film classic ''The Kid'' (1921) made him one of the first child stars in the ...

(episode 2.7) * Henry Corden (episode 1.8) * Brian Donlevy (episode 1.15) * Jamie Farr (episode 3.27) as a hippie *

Paul Fix Peter Paul Fix (March 13, 1901 – October 14, 1983) was an American film and television character actor who was best known for his work in Westerns. Fix appeared in more than 100 movies and dozens of television shows over a 56-year career be ...

(episode 4.15) *

Leif Garrett Leif Garrett (born Leif Per Nervik; November 8, 1961) is an American singer, actor, and television personality. He worked as a child actor, then in the 1970s became famous as a teen idol in music. He later received much publicity for his drug ...

(episode 5.15) * Linda Kaye Henning (episode 5.9) * Kathleen Richards (episode 5.20) * Sterling Holloway (episode 1.19) as Mr. Frack, the window-washer *

James Hong James Hong (; born February 22, 1929) is an American actor, producer and director. He has worked in numerous productions in American media since the 1950s, portraying a variety of roles. With more than 650 film and television credits as of 20 ...

* Clint Howard (episode 5.10) * Martha Hyer (episode 2.14) *

Kym Karath Kym Karath is an American former actress, best known for her role as Gretl, the youngest of the Von Trapp children in ''The Sound of Music''. Career Kym Karath was born in Los Angeles, California, and started her career at the age of 4, when s ...

(episode 5.22) as Wynn Cartter * Andrea King (episode 1.17) * Patric Knowles (episode 2.3) * Anna Lee (episode 2.3) * June Lockhart (episode 3.5) * Myrna Loy (episode 1.20) as a maid candidate * Keye Luke (episode 1.18) * Ida Lupino (episode 4.12) * Ann McCrea *

Lee Meriwether Lee Ann Meriwether (born May 27, 1935) is an American actress, former model, and the winner of the Miss America 1955 pageant. She has appeared in many films and television shows, notably as Betty Jones, the title character's secretary and daughte ...

* Erin Moran * Butch Patrick (episode 3.2) * Larry Pennell *

Eve Plumb Eve Aline Plumb (born April 29, 1958) is an American actress, singer and painter. She is best known for portraying the middle daughter Jan Brady on the ABC sitcom ''The Brady Bunch''. A native of Southern California, Plumb began appearing in com ...

(episode 3.7) as Eve, a terminally-ill girl *

Robert Reed Robert Reed (born John Robert Rietz Jr.; October 19, 1932 – May 12, 1992) was an American actor. He played Kenneth Preston on the legal drama '' The Defenders'' from 1961 to 1965 alongside E. G. Marshall, and is best known for his role as the ...

(episode 1.14) as professor Julian Hill *

Pippa Scott Philippa Scott is an American actress who has appeared in film and television since the 1950s. Personal life Scott was born in Los Angeles, California. She is the daughter of actress Laura Straub and screenwriter Allan Scott; an uncle was th ...

(episode 2.30) *

Doris Singleton Dorthea "Doris" Singleton (September 28, 1919 – June 26, 2012) was an American actress, perhaps best remembered as Lucy Ricardo's nemesis/frenemy, Carolyn Appleby, in ''I Love Lucy''. Early life and career Singleton, born in New York City, ...

(episode 2.29) * Ann Sothern (episode 2.17) * Vic Tayback as a police officer * Joyce Van Patten (episode 5.11)

Post-series

Anissa Jones (who played Buffy) died of a drug overdose in 1976, aged 18. Sebastian Cabot (who played Mr. French) died of a stroke in 1977, aged 59. Brian Keith (who played Uncle Bill) died by gunshot suicide in 1997, aged 75, two months after the suicide of his daughter, and an undetermined amount of time after he was diagnosed with cancer.

Episodes

Home media

MPI Home Video MPI Media Group is an American producer, distributor and licensor of theatrical film and home entertainment. MPI's subsidiaries include MPI Pictures, MPI Home Video, Gorgon Video, and the horror film distributor Dark Sky Films. The company is l ...

has released all five seasons of ''Family Affair'' on DVD in Region 1 by

(under license from the Don Fedderson estate).

Awards and nominations

Remake television series

A remake of ''Family Affair'' aired on The WB from September 12, 2002 to March 13, 2003. The remake was produced by Sid & Marty Krofft Pictures, Pariah Films, and

Turner Television Turner Entertainment Company is an American multimedia company founded by Ted Turner in 1986. Purchased by Time Warner in 1996 as part of its acquisition of Turner Broadcasting System (TBS), the company was largely responsible for overseeing th ...

. Gary Cole played the role of "Uncle Bill" Davis and Tim Curry played Mr. Giles French. Fifteen episodes were produced, including the one-hour pilot, but only thirteen episodes were aired by The WB.

Planned spinoff television series

A Travis Hunt production titled ''Aunt Cissy'' and starring Cissy actress Kathy Garver was announced in the second quarter of 2019 as "a new family comedy that is not exactly a sequel to ''Family Affair''... but it has elements of the premise of that classic TV series, plus a few surprises." Several episodes were shot in late 2019.

Appearances in other media

Gold Key Comics, an imprint of Western Publishing, published four issues of a ''Family Affair'' comic book series from January to October 1970. Merchandising efforts centered on Anissa Jones' "Buffy" character. Several books were published, including the 1970 hardback ''Family Affair: Buffy Finds a Star'' by Gladys Baker Bond and ''Buffy's Cookbook''. There were dolls (Mattel's "Small Talk Buffy" and Mrs. Beasley, Buffy's doll on the show) and various other toys. A Mrs. Beasley doll, with her glasses missing, appears in the music video for the song "California Tuffy" by the Geraldine Fibbers. In '' Police Academy 2: Their First Assignment'', gang leader Zed ( Bobcat Goldthwait) is seen tearfully watching the show in his hideout.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title, 0059982, Family Affair'' (1966)
Behind-the-scenes production photos
Collection of crew member Stephen Lodge. 1960s American sitcoms 1970s American sitcoms 1966 American television series debuts 1971 American television series endings CBS original programming English-language television shows Television series about families Television series by CBS Studios Television series by Universal Television Television shows set in New York City