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Carroll O'Connor said he was ''relieved'' when his series was cancelled. Here's why
"If I played King Lear," said the actor, "they'd see Archie Bunker in my performance."
Endings can be difficult, but for many people, one door closing means that another one is bound to open soon.
By the time All in the Family evolved into Archie Bunker's Place, Carroll O'Connor had been on the series for roughly eight years. However, the actor helmed the series for another four years before the series was ultimately cancelled.
Although a cancellation may seem like terrible news to most actors, O'Connor confessed that his initial emotion when he had heard the series had ended was relief.
"I was relieved when the show was axed," said O'Connor, according to an interview with The Daily Telegraph. "I'd had a long run, 12 years, and it was time for something new."
O'Connor wasn't nervous about leaving a character behind, perhaps because he was aware that no matter how far he traveled, Archie Bunker would never be too far behind.
"If I played King Lear," said the actor, "they'd see Archie Bunker in my performance."
Of course, his time on All in the Family and Archie Bunker's Place allowed O'Connor a level of influence that very few actors are afforded. Peter Bonerz, who directed O'Connor in Archie Bunker's Place, confessed that he admired the way that the actor utilized his sway in the industry.
"Carroll was at the height of his power," said Bonerz during an interview with The Los Angeles Times. "TV actors don't ordinarily possess a lot of power. You can count on one hand the number of actors who did. Carroll did at that time. I always remarked at how he used his power. He didn't use his power to create an agenda for the show. He wanted to surround himself with actor friends of his, [with] whom he could share the success he had."
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