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Family Affair is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from September 12, 1966 to September 9, 1971. The series explored the trials of well-to-do civil engineer and bachelor Bill Davis (Brian 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, Mr. Giles French (Sebastian Cabot), also had adjustments to make as he became saddled with the responsibility of caring for 15-year-old Cissy (Kathy Garver) and the 6-year-old twins, Jody (Johnny Whitaker) and Buffy (Anissa Jones).

The show ran for 138 episodes. Family Affair was created and produced by Don Fedderson, also known for My Three Sons.

Premise

William "Bill" Davis, originally of Terre Haute, Indiana, is a successful civil engineer who develops major projects all over the world. A wealthy bachelor, often dating socialites, he lives in a large Park Avenue apartment in Manhattan, and has a quintessential gentleman's gentleman, Mr. Giles French. However, his quiet lifestyle is turned upside-down when his two nieces and nephew move in.

Bill's brother, Bob, and his wife Mary (née Patterson) had died in an automobile accident a year prior to the premiere episode. Their children, teen Cissy, and her young siblings, twins Buffy and Jody, had been dispersed among relatives in Terre Haute, but none wanted to continue raising the children, so they attempt to give the responsibility to Bill, who isn't keen on the idea at first, but becomes endeared by each of them. First Buffy comes along, followed by Jody, and finally Cissy.

The most mortified by the situation is Mr. French, who essentially becomes the children's nanny, in addition to his valet duties. However as time passes they all become a family, albeit an accidental one.

Due to Sebastian Cabot being ill, Giles French's brother, Nigel 'Niles' French (John Williams) works for the Davis family for nine episodes in 1967 while Giles is said to be in England visiting the Queen. In the last season, Mr. Davis hires 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 who were in service (most notably Miss Faversham (Heather Angel), colleagues of Mr. Davis, and friends of Cissy.

Cast

• Bill Davis — Brian Keith
• Giles French — Sebastian Cabot
• Catherine “Cissy” Davis — Kathy Garver
• Jonathan “Jody” Davis — Johnny Whitaker
• Ava Elizabeth “Buffy” Davis — Anissa Jones
• Miss Faversham (Mr. French’s friend) — Heather Angel
• Nigel “Niles” French (Mr. French’s brother) — John Williams (1967)
• Emily Turner (Bill’s maid) — Nancy Walker (1970-71)
• Ted Gaynor (Bill’s business partner) — Philip Ober & John Hubbard
• Miss Lee (Bill’s secretary) — Betty Lynn
• Sharon James (Cissy’s friend) — Sherry Alberoni
• Gregg Bartlett (Cissy’s boyfriend) — Gregg Fedderson
• Scotty (the doorman) — Karl Lucas

Ratings

Production

Like Don Fedderson's other program, My Three Sons, Family Affair used a sixty-day production schedule for Brian Keith. All of his scenes for the season would be shot in two thirty-day blocks, while his co-stars would fill in after the actor's work was completed. This enabled Fedderson to harness actors like Keith and Fred 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 thirty-odd scripts.

The series was extremely popular. Buffy's doll, “Mrs. Beasley,” which she often carried with her, was marketed as a popular toy in the United States.

The series was canceled after the fifth season when CBS began leaning towards more adult-oriented sitcom fare. Family Affair was almost picked up by ABC, but the network instead decided to promote the similarly-themed The Brady Bunch.

Post Family Affair

As discussed by Kathy Garver on the final season’s DVD features, the show’s cast suffered several deaths. Anissa Jones died of a drug overdose in 1976 at age 18. Sebastian Cabot died of a stroke in 1977 at age 59. In 1997, two months after the suicide of his daughter, and having lived with cancer for some time, Brian Keith committed suicide by gunshot.^[2] In 2002, Gregg Fedderson died of cancer at age 53.

DVD releases

MPI Home Video has released all 5 seasons of Family Affair on DVD in Region 1. CBS Paramount Television owns the domestic television distribution rights to the series, while the home video rights are owned by MPI Home Video (under license from the Don Fedderson estate). The DVD sets have the logo for Universal Television Distribution at the end of the closing credits (as successor NBC Universal holds the international television rights).

Awards and nominations

Revival series

A revival of Family Affair by Sid and Marty Krofft aired on The WB Television Network from September 12, 2002 to March 13, 2003. This version was produced by Turner Television and Warner Bros. Television and lasted for 16 episodes (14 of the 16 were aired). It was filmed in the same CBS Studio City lot as the original series. Although the one-hour pilot had good ratings, the subsequent episodes declined against competition such as Friends. Johnny Whitaker and Kathy Garver appeared in the Christmas episode.

Revival cast

• Bill Davis — Gary Cole
• Mr. Giles French — Tim Curry
• Sigourney "Sissy" Davis — Caitlin Wachs
• Jody Davis — Jimmy "Jax" Pinchak
• Buffy Davis — Sasha Pieterse
• Jody Davis (pilot) — Luke Benward

Appearance in other media

In 1970, Gold Key Comics, an imprint of Western Publishing, published a comic book adaptation of Family Affair.

References

External links

• Family Affair (1966) at the Internet Movie Database
• Family Affair (2002) at the Internet Movie Database
• Family Affair (1966) at TV.com
• Family Affair (2002) at TV.com
• Family Affair - Classic TV website with Episode Guide, Theme and Gallery
• Apartment 27A - Family Affair Fan Page - Cast bios, collectibles, links and more on the 1960s television series Family Affair.