Beyond Metal: Ed O' Neill

 

 

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Ed O' Neill should be probably recognized by the both Gen X and Millennials generations as the legendary Al Birdy... I meant of course Al Bundy (those who watched get the joke), the main character of the legendary cult classic sitcom "Married With Children". Al Bundy, a.k.a. King of Life, known for 4 touchdowns during a single game, had to unfortunately drop his sport career, and instead became a shoe salesman in some rotten mall, with an ungrateful family at home, the source of all his problems, and snobby neighbors.

It's easy to guess why such character became instantly sympathetic - majority of people worldwide can relate to Al and his life. Even when the situations on-screen got cartoonishly absurd, they were still kinda realistic. This powerful sitcom had 11 seasons and would probably received 12th, if the network which aired the show (infamous Fox) had some imagination and knew how to manage its properties (they would similarly mishandle another franchise in the future, namely X-Men). So it comes off as no surprise that they eventually got bought off by Disney in 2018.

The actor behind this iconic character, czyli Ed O' Neill, for better and for worse, got typecast by the role, and had trouble with escaping it. An interesting trivia is that the famous gag about Bundy's football career was based on real-life experiences of O' Neill, who did have some success with Pittsburgh Steelers team, commonly called "Steel Curtain", during '70. Nonetheless, it's the acting that was his true destiny. The earliest role were of police officers / detectives, like in "Cruising", where Al Pacino starred, or "Popeye Dole", as well as much later "Disorganized Crime", and "K-9".

Ironically enough, it was also the reason why initially the producers of the famous sitcom were reluctant to employ O' Neill, as they weren't sure if such person would be handle the comedy. However, he quickly won their hearts during the audtion, where he was so perfect, as his performance presented exactly what the writers conceived conceptually in their minds.

Other notable roles were heavily underrated and widely criticisized film "Dutch" (1991), which flopped, and my educated guess is that it's also what clipped O' Neill's wings from becoming an A-league star. "Dutch" is family comedy-drama about a guy, who decided to take his potential stepson from his private school, and drive him to home for holidays. During the trip, the two eventually bond. Just a nice little flick with moral and heart, something that I always enjoy watch from time to time. You know what? I will rewatch it tonight, why not? I wholeheartedly recommend to you, to do the same.

Another movie worth mentioning is another family comedy called "Little Giants" (1994), where this time he played the antagonist - coach of a junior team, in rivalry with his brother, also a coach. Despite starring with Rick Moranis, this movie also turned out to be a flop. O' Neill would play a coach again, this time in biographical movie "Prefontaine" (1997), which wasn't a success either. Call it a Bundy luck.

Additionally, O' Neill had cameos in both parts of "Wayne's World", and "The Bone Collector (1999). The Actor would again play as a cop, this time in a remake of Dragnet (2003), which lasted for 2 seasons. I remember this series being highly disappointing, as O' Neill got relegated to the background, and instead the show focused on some boring rookies and their relationship drama.

Thankfully, the bad luck got broken with a breakthrough, funnily enough, with another comedy sitcom, "Modern Family", and again, it lasted 11 seasons (albeit 9 episodes less than Bundys). This time it wasn't as hardcore as before, but still hilarious. For his role, the actor received well-deserved 3 Emmies and 4 Screen Actors Guild awards. About a time, better late than never.

Of course, we all know which role will always be the most memorable. But for me personally, Ed O' Neill is an icon, and every few years I am marathoning Bundys, not only because it's a classic, but also because it's a perfect stress-reliever. Bundy 4 LYFE!