O’Connor wasn’t worried about being Archie Bunker forever.
Carroll O’Connor had a lot to be thankful for in his career. In an interview with The Associated Press, O’Connor looked back on his long and storied career, complete with characters like Archie Bunker of All in the Family and Bill Gillespie of In the Heat of the Night.
During an interview with The Associated Press, O’Connor remarked on his good fortune. “It’s been kind of miraculous,” the actor said. “I’ve been terribly lucky…I know so many people who are so talented, just as talented as I am, if not more, and they get nothing but bad luck.”
Of course, it wasn’t just luck that led to O’Connor’s fruitful career; he had talent and determination that led him to become a talented actor, in addition to a director, writer, and producer of many television programs.
But such success wasn’t without its mistakes. While All in the Family made O’Connor a star, Archie Bunker cast an incredibly large shadow.
However, O’Connor didn’t seem to see it as a bad thing. “I think the public knew I was an actor who did a lot of things,” he said. “I’ve never been afraid of it.”
O’Connor maintains that he wasn’t particularly fixed over whether a character like Archie Bunker may follow him around for the rest of his career. Furthermore, O’Connor believes that claims that it was true were merely idle gossip furthered by the media.
“I’m not like some people who feel you have to get away and stay away from roles,” said O’Connor, who not only starred as Archie Bunker in All in the Family but the show’s follow-up series as well, Archie Bunker’s Place. “The press always used to say I was trying to get away from the Archie image. I don’t think I ever had an Archie image.”
