The Best Episodes Directed By John Rich

Episode Rankings

1. #1 Fan Favorite
   

   8.3/10(4 votes)

   #1 - Oh, My Aching Back (aka Archie's Aching Back)

   S1:E31/26/1971

   Archie is convinced he'll collect a large settlement from a petty traffic accident if a Jewish lawyer handles the case. The stylistic minimalism of the Bunkers' sparsely furnished set is on full display in this early episode. According to director John Rich, who grew up not far from Archie's neighbood, the Spartan look of the Bunkers' living room deco was achieved as a result of painstaking efforts. The director remembers personally supervising the cracking of windows and repainting of walls to give the place a run-down, lived-in look. "I told the set designers to take all the color out of it," remembers Rich. "Norman and I wanted to do the show in black and white, but CBS nearly went into a coma. So we decided to do the next best thing and shoot the entire show in muted sepia tones."

   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A

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   Director:John Rich

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2. 

   8.3/10(4 votes)

   #2 - Mike's Hippie Friends Come to Visit

   S1:E72/23/1971

   Mike invites one of his hippie friends to spend the night in his living room, despite Archie's strenous ojections.

   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A

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   Director:John Rich

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3. 

   8.3/10(4 votes)

   #3 - The First and Last Supper

   S1:E134/6/1971

   The Jeffersons arrive for dinner at the Bunkers'--minus husband George, who refuses to socialize with his white neighbors.

   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A

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   Director:John Rich

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4. 

   8.0/10(1 votes)

   #4 - Sticky Wicket Newkirk

   S3:E201/20/1968

   Corporal Newkirk sneaks into town for a romantic rendezvous with a German girl, one who professes that she is on the side of the Allies. But when Newkirk sneaks her into the camp and shows her the gang's secret setup, she promptly reports her findings to Major Hochstetter!

   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A

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   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A
5. 

   8.0/10(2 votes)

   #5 - Axis Annie

   S3:E232/10/1968

   Hogan must deliver important information to a contact in the nearby town, but the Gestapo has cracked down tight on the camp.

   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A

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   Director:John Rich

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6. 

   8.0/10(3 votes)

   #6 - Gloria's Pregnancy (aka Gloria Has a Belly Full)

   S1:E62/16/1971

   Archie's dream of becoming a grandfather is dashed when Gloria suffers a sudden miscarriage.

   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A

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   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A
7. 

   8.0/10(4 votes)

   #7 - Archie Gives Blood

   S1:E42/2/1971

   Archie refuses to donate blood because he's afraid that his vital fluids might get mixed in with those of a different race.

   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A

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   Director:John Rich

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8. 

   8.0/10(2 votes)

   #8 - Kitty Karry-All is Missing

   S1:E711/7/1969

   When Cindy's doll, Kitty Karry-All turns up missing, she accuses Bobby. This leads to a mock trial with Alice as the judge to determine Bobby's guilt or innocence. Then later Bobby's kazoo turns up missing and he blames Cindy.

   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A

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   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A
9. 

   7.8/10(4 votes)

   #9 - Writing the President

   S1:E21/19/1971

   Mike writes a letter to President Nixon, protesting everything that's wrong with America, including the state of the environment and the nation's involvement in Vietnam. Archie finds out, and to refute his son-in-law's claims he decides he too will write a letter praising the nation's chief and attempting to explain the Meathead as an ignorant. While penning the letter, Archie pictures the family all standing behind him, dressed in his Sunday best, all supporting his positions.

   Director:John Rich

   Writer:N/A

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   Director:John Rich

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10. 

    7.8/10(4 votes)

    #10 - Lionel Moves Into the Neighborhood

    S1:E83/2/1971

    Louise Jefferson makes her first appearance, through husband George will remain an offscreen character for another two seasons. Their son, Lionel, had been a regular visitor to the Bunkers since the pilot episode, when the writers discovered how effective the street-smart black youth was at gently letting the air out of Archie's sails.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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11. 

    7.8/10(4 votes)

    #11 - Archie Is Worried About His Job

    S1:E103/16/1971

    No one in the family gets any sleep when Archie spends the night worring that he might lose his job.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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12. 

    7.7/10(3 votes)

    #12 - Gloria Discovers Women's Lib

    S1:E113/23/1971

    Gloria leaves the house in a rage after Mike refuses to recognize her as an equal partner in their marriage.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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13. 

    7.5/10(4 votes)

    #13 - Edith Has Jury Duty

    S1:E93/9/1971

    Edith abandons the kitchen for the courtroom when she is chosen for jury duty, leaving Archie to fend for himself.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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14. 

    7.5/10(4 votes)

    #14 - Success Story

    S1:E123/30/1971

    Archie reevaluates his definition of success after he meets an old army buddy who's become wealthy in the used-car trade.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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15. 

    7.5/10(2 votes)

    #15 - Dear Libby

    S1:E210/3/1969

    An article in an advice column, Dear Libby, draws Marcia's attention. In the article, an anonymous person is in the same situation as Mike and Carol is in and this particular person is unhappy. This leads Marcia to draw the conclusion that Mike or Carol wrote the letter. She later shows the article to the other kids and they devise a plot to keep their newly formed family together.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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16. 

    7.4/10(27 votes)

    #16 - A Most Unusual Camera

    S2:E1012/16/1960

    Chester Diedrich and his wife Paula, after burglarizing a curio shop, end up with a camera that takes pictures of events five minutes into the future.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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17. 

    7.3/10(3 votes)

    #17 - Archie Goes Too Far

    S3:E171/27/1973

    Edith and Gloria end the latest family brawl when they storm out of the house to spend the night on their own.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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18. 

    7.3/10(3 votes)

    #18 - Class Reunion

    S3:E182/10/1973

    Archie refuses to tag along to Edith's thirtieth high school reunion-- until he finds out that one of her beaus will be attending.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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19. 

    7.3/10(3 votes)

    #19 - Archie in the Hospital (aka Archie Goes to the Hospital)

    S3:E151/6/1973

    Archie befriends the other patient in his semiprivate room, unaware that he's black.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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20. 

    7.3/10(4 votes)

    #20 - The Saga of Cousin Oscar

    S2:E19/18/1971

    Archie is incensed when his sponging cousin Oscar has the nerve to drop dead in the upstairs bedroom.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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21. 

    7.3/10(4 votes)

    #21 - Archie and the Lock-Up

    S2:E310/2/1971

    Archie suffers his ultimate indignity when he's arrested along with a group of radicals at a protest rally.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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22. 

    7.3/10(4 votes)

    #22 - Everybody Tells the Truth

    S3:E213/3/1973

    It's -Rashomon-Bunker-style when the family recounts vastly different versions of the same disastrous encounter with a pair of handyman in the Bunker kitchen.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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23. 

    7.2/10(13 votes)

    #23 - A Kind of a Stopwatch

    S5:E410/18/1963

    The world's biggest bore and most avid talker gets a magical stopwatch that can stop everything except him.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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24. 

    7.2/10(5 votes)

    #24 - The Threat

    S3:E39/30/1972

    Archie can barely contain himself when the attractive young wife of an old army buddy spends an eventful night in the Bunker's household.

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

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25. 

    7.0/10(2 votes)

    #25 - Goodbye Island

    S1:E811/21/1964

    Gilligan discovers a special tree sap that can be used to make a good tasting pancake syrup. Then the professor discovers that the same tree sap also makes a super glue, that may allow the castaways to repair the Minnow. Could it be that the Castaways may finally escape from the island?

    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A

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    Director:John Rich

    Writer:N/A