Family

1. Pilot (a.k.a. The Best Years)

Air Date: 1976-03-09

Buddy hears Kate say something about her, and isn't happy. Also, Nancy walks in on Jeff with another woman.

2. Monday is Forever

Air Date: 1976-03-16

Kate has to wait until Monday to find out whether she has cancer; Buddy and her friend Laura Richardson have until Monday, when the latter's family is scheduled to move to Detroit.

3. A Special Kind of Loving

Air Date: 1976-03-23

Willie meets, and starts spending lots of time with, Salina -- leading to a tiff with Buddy, right when she needs him to help conquer her fear of diving.

4. A Right and Proper Goodbye

Air Date: 1976-03-30

Kate's mother comes for one last visit.

5. Thursday's Child

Air Date: 1976-04-06

As Timmy Jr.'s christening approaches, the whole family (especially Buddy, who stubbornly refuses to take part) relives the painful memories of Timmy Sr.'s death.

6. Point of Departure

Air Date: 1976-04-13

Doug resents Willie's attitude towards work, the universe, and everything; a string of burglaries sweeps through the neighborhood.

1. Coming Apart

Air Date: 1976-10-06

Buddy gets a job at a bakery, and introduces Willie to her boss, ""Big Al""; Nancy gets involved with Peter, while she's finalizing her divorce from Jeff -- despite the latter's pleas for a reconciliation.

2. Such Sweet Sorrow

Air Date: 1976-10-19

Salina drops by, at a time when Willie is having problems with Alex; Doug is offered a great job in New York.

3. Home Movie

Air Date: 1976-10-26

Willie drives everyone crazy by following them around and filming them; Buddy has difficulty with a school assignment -- writing a speech on the topic of ""How I intend to leave my mark on the world""; Kate runs into a former roommate, who has become a successful author.

4. Coming of Age

Air Date: 1976-11-09

Buddy officially reaches puberty; Nancy is caught between Kate's resentment of her thoughtlessness, Peter's proposal of marriage, and a come-on from a complete stranger.

5. Jury Duty (1)

Air Date: 1976-11-16

Kate is subjected to widespread abuse for being the lone holdout; Buddy captures first prize, T.J.'s heart, and (for good measure) the real killer.

6. Jury Duty (2)

Air Date: 1976-11-23

Kate is subjected to widespread abuse for being the lone holdout; Buddy captures first prize, T.J.'s heart, and (for good measure) the real killer.

7. The Cradle Will Fall

Air Date: 1976-11-30

Buddy completes her orthodontal treatment; Salina returns to town once again, only to be plunged into a custody battle with her daughter's father; Kate finds out that Elaine's husband is cheating on her.

8. Skeleton in the Closet

Air Date: 1976-12-07

Doug must face his sister Emily's alcoholism. Buddy tries to help a senior citizen she spots shoplifting food from the supermarket.

9. On The First Day Of Christmas (a.k.a. The Christmas Story)

Air Date: 1976-12-21

Doug is suspicious when his father introduces his new, and much younger, girlfriend; Nancy and Jeff have a fight over who gets Timmy over Christmas.

10. Rites of Friendship

Air Date: 1976-12-28

A friend of Willie's comes out of the closet; Buddy, after getting invited to the ""Junior Jump"" by a popular boy, asks Nancy to teach her to dance.

11. An Eye to the Future

Air Date: 1977-01-04

Buddy (as ""Diamond In the Rough"") gets heavily into the CB scene; Kate decides to go back to college; Doug does a stint as a judge.

12. Lovers and Strangers

Air Date: 1977-01-11

Willie gets cradle-robbed by a visiting movie director, and takes it much too seriously; Doug gets a dog as a birthday present.

13. Return Engagement

Air Date: 1977-01-18

Maggie Calder, the woman who nearly destroyed Doug and Kate's marriage 20 years ago, is back for a second attempt. Buddy feels she's being treated like a baby.

14. Mirror, Mirror on the Wall . . .

Air Date: 1977-02-01

A daughter whom Elaine gave up for adoption years ago finds her, through Kate; Willie is intrigued by a pretty client at the photo studio where he works.

15. Someone's Watching

Air Date: 1977-02-08

A series of anonymous gifts eventually makes Nancy feel threatened; Buddy's motor-mouth school-project partner uses the Lawrences as his surrogate family.

16. A Safe House

Air Date: 1977-02-15

A former friend of Willie's, now an outlaw, gives him a call; Buddy thinks she has a great scoop for the school paper.

17. Best Friends

Air Date: 1977-02-22

Nancy attends her high-school reunion, meeting the guy she dumped to marry Jeff; T.J. asks Buddy to a formal dance, causing a rift with Audrey.

18. Taking Chances (1)

Air Date: 1977-03-01

When Doug loses his sight after getting hit by a car, opinions are divided as to whether he should undergo an operation that could either restore it, or kill him; in the meantime, Willie has second thoughts about having quit his job.

19. Taking Chances (2)

Air Date: 1977-03-08

After spending an eternity as a blind man whose youngest daughter despises him, Doug finally musters up the courage to have the operation -- and, of course, all's well.

20. Comings and Goings

Air Date: 1977-03-22

Willie and Salina search for an apartment together. Jeff's mother Sylvia is confined to the Lawrence home following a back injury and a quarrel with Jeff's father.

21. . . . More Things in Heaven and Earth

Air Date: 1977-03-29

Kate is shaken by what a supposed psychic says about her long-missing aunt; Nancy lands a prestigious legal assignment, and suspects her looks are the reason.

22. An Endangered Species

Air Date: 1977-05-03

A recently-divorced friend wants to hang out with Kate; Nancy gets upset when a classmate asks to use her place for an affair with a married man.

1. Acts of Love (1)

Air Date: 1977-09-13

While Nancy and Buddy prepare for their parents' 25th wedding-anniversary party, Willie meets, and falls in love with, a physics student named Lizzy -- who, as he soon finds out, has radiation sickness.

2. Acts of Love (2)

Air Date: 1977-09-20

Lizzy dies, but not before Willie convinces her to marry him first.

3. The First Time

Air Date: 1977-09-27

Kate unhappily contemplates her 49th birthday; T.J. asks Buddy to go steady with him, but she's not sure.

4. Change of Heart

Air Date: 1977-10-04

Nancy is jealous of Jeff's new fiancée.

5. Annie Laurie

Air Date: 1977-10-25

Doug gets propositioned by a female lawyer.

6. We Love You, Miss Jessup

Air Date: 1977-11-01

Buddy's English teacher gets outed; Willie suspects Nancy of being a home-wrecker.

7. The Little Brother

Air Date: 1977-11-08

Willie fails to understand a black thing; Buddy develops an interest in genealogy.

8. Childhood's End

Air Date: 1977-11-15

Buddy's friend Laura returns for a visit, and -- guess what? -- she, too, is now an alkie; a friend of Doug's, a divorced father, is apprehensive about seeing his kids again.

9. A Tale Out of Season

Air Date: 1977-11-22

Doug's colleague and protégé turns out to be a child-beater; Nancy finds a puppy; Buddy finally gets into the Thanksgiving spirit.

10. Labors of Love

Air Date: 1977-11-29

Buddy, upset by a lack of attention from T.J., tries to make him jealous by hanging out with a geek; Willie catches the eye of his cute über-boss.

11. A Child is Given

Air Date: 1977-12-13

12. More Than Friends

Air Date: 1978-01-03

Nancy hits it off with Willie's former writing teacher, but things get awkward when he pans Willie's script.

13. Princess in the Tower

Air Date: 1978-01-10

Kate, slightly sick of family life, checks out a model apartment in a brand-new high-rise condo -- and gets trapped overnight, along with a very pregnant younger woman; Buddy has the bright idea of dyeing her hair blonde.

14. Echoes of Love

Air Date: 1978-01-17

Willie can't stop reminiscing about Lizzy, so he hooks up with her former roommate; Audrey is depressed because her parents are splitting up, and angry that Doug is representing her mother in the divorce.

15. See Saw

Air Date: 1978-01-24

Kate volunteers to help a moody (and arithmetic-obsessed) young patient at the Braille institute; Willie works on installing Timmy's new bed; Buddy leaves for a week-end of skiing with T.J. and his parents.

16. Lifeline

Air Date: 1978-01-31

Nancy plays hot-line operator when her classmate attempts suicide, to get back at her married boyfriend for breaking up her; Buddy baby-sits a whiny kid.

17. . . . And Baby Makes Three

Air Date: 1978-02-07

Nancy and Jeff aren't sure whether to get back together; Buddy is disgusted that Audrey has fallen for the cheap ploys of the school Casanova.

18. Crossing Over

Air Date: 1978-02-14

Willie has an appointment with a big-shot film producer, on the eve of his 21st birthday; then, he and Doug make friends with a stripper.

19. The Covenant

Air Date: 1978-02-21

Medical crises abound in the family when James reveals to Doug that he must soon undergo exploratory surgery, and Nancy begins to miscarry Jeff's baby.

20. A Friend of the Family's

Air Date: 1978-02-28

A somewhat unscrupulous former friend of Willie's drops by; Buddy needs driving lessons; Kate and Doug consider taking separate vacations.

21. Fear of Shadows

Air Date: 1978-05-02

Kate has a recurring nightmare about running over a little boy; Buddy gets a pet raccoon.

22. Sleeping Gypsy

Air Date: 1978-05-09

Everyone at school dislikes Buddy's bohemian friend; Kate gives Doug a plaid jacket he doesn't much care for.

23. Counterpoint

Air Date: 1978-05-16

Kate has to go back and repeat a class she flunked the previous semester, and gets picked on by a snobby professor; Doug contemplates early retirement after his tennis partner has a heart attack.

1. Starting Over

Air Date: 1978-09-21

Annie's sole surviving relative dumps her into the Lawrences' lap -- where she doesn't feel quite comfortable, at first.

2. All For Love

Air Date: 1978-09-28

Zack tells Buddy that unless she sleeps with him, he will have to satisfy his manly needs with another girl; Doug thinks of buying a flashy sports car.

3. Changes

Air Date: 1978-10-12

Nancy is all set to re-marry Jeff; Annie, heretofore known as ""Annie Cooper,"" decides to add ""Lawrence"" to her name; Buddy, ever the traditionalist, is bothered by it all.

4. Magic

Air Date: 1978-10-19

Kate, in the hospital for a physical, meets a burned-out former rock star; Annie needs Doug's help to impress her classmates with magic tricks.

5. Just Friends

Air Date: 1978-11-09

Willie considers an affair with a married woman he met in a writing class; Nancy, sick of living in a ""fishbowl,"" decides to move out of the guesthouse and into an apartment of her own.

6. Generations

Air Date: 1978-11-23

The family decides to spend Thanksgiving at Hattie's farm where Kate faces ghosts from the past. Buddy is intrigued by a local boy.

7. Expectations

Air Date: 1978-12-07

Nancy's new boss pressures her to sleep with him; Buddy tries out for the cheerleading squad.

8. Gifts

Air Date: 1978-12-21

Annie, who still misses her parents, can't relate to the Lawrences' holiday cheer, and decides to run away until Christmas is over; Willie runs into his old barber, who is about to close up shop for good.

9. The Friend's Affair

Air Date: 1979-01-04

A colleague and friend of Doug's is cheating on his wife; Annie suspects a next-door neighbor of having murdered his.

10. Exits and Entrances

Air Date: 1979-01-11

After Buddy stars in a high-school play (Shaw's Saint Joan), her interest in acting is strongly encouraged by a friend of Kate's, a professional actress; Annie gets a telemarketing job to pay for a new bike.

11. Moment of Truth

Air Date: 1979-01-18

A man he once helped put in jail threatens Doug; Buddy and Audrey have a fight about who copied from whom on an algebra test.

12. Malicious Mischief

Air Date: 1979-01-25

Nancy considers a marriage proposal from Timmy's daycare provider -- until he gets accused of child abuse; Willie falls in love with a cat.

13. Sleeping Over

Air Date: 1979-02-01

Buddy's invitation to a sorority becomes a sore point in her friendship with Audrey when Audrey isn't invited to join. Willie sleeps with Kate's musician friend, leading to a serious mother-son rift over casual sex.

14. Disco Queen

Air Date: 1979-02-08

Buddy sneaks into a disco club, with the help of an older acquaintance, and finds it more than she bargained for; Annie has a date with a jock.

15. The Athlete

Air Date: 1979-03-01

Buddy, volunteering at a hospital, encounters a star high-school basketball player who is there for a broken leg -- or so he thinks; Annie runs for class president against her nemesis, Emmy Sheldon.

16. The Competition

Air Date: 1979-03-08

Buddy learns the price of competition when an overachieving classmate commits suicide after losing a history competition to her. Annie's cookie-selling strategy is a riot.

17. Ballerina

Air Date: 1979-03-15

Willie has a fling with a ballet dancer; Doug purchases a workout set by mail order.

18. Diversions

Air Date: 1979-03-22

While studying for the bar exam, Nancy's attention is diverted by a charming and seemingly accident-prone neighbor.

19. An Apple For the Teacher

Air Date: 1979-03-30

Kate's teaching career gets off to a rough start, when a student decides to continuously annoy her; Annie borrows Buddy's ""lucky"" ring to help during a spelling bee, and promptly loses it.

20. Prelude

Air Date: 1979-04-20

Buddy has a crush on her swimming instructor, much to Zack's displeasure; Kate is tempted to call an old boyfriend.

21. Going Straight

Air Date: 1979-05-10

Willie hires Bambi Deering, the stripper he met on his 21st birthday. Doug attempts to save hefty plumber's fees by repairing the household pipes himself.

22. From Russia With Love

Air Date: 1979-05-17

Kate acts as escort to, and highly impresses, a visiting Ukrainian composer; Buddy and Annie play Monopoly to determine who gets Willie's old room.

1. Thanksgiving

Air Date: 1979-11-20

Doug's father starts showing his age.

2. 'Tis the Season

Air Date: 1979-12-24

A pre-Christmas argument with Willie nearly gives Doug a heart attack; Buddy invites her school's janitor to her house, where he quickly endears himself to everyone but Kate.

3. Jack of Hearts

Air Date: 1980-01-14

Buddy and Nancy find themselves in a love triangle; Annie dabbles in the occult.

4. When the Bough Breaks

Air Date: 1980-01-21

Kate finds out she's pregnant; a friend of Buddy's, on vacation from her all-girls school, picks Willie as a seduction target.

5. Hard Times

Air Date: 1980-01-28

Two friends of Buddy's who have been going steady for 3 years are having relationship problems -- and when she tries to help, the results aren't quite what she expected; Nancy is having trouble at work, which starts to affect even Timmy.

6. Whispers

Air Date: 1980-02-04

Buddy's friendship with a teacher gives rise to rumors; Annie uses questionable tactics to get Willie to let her interview him for her school paper.

7. Play on Love

Air Date: 1980-03-03

Willie finds the director of his play more interesting than Rachel; Buddy insists on buying an old sports car, over Doug's objections.

8. Daylight Serenade

Air Date: 1980-03-10

Buddy has an ambiguous relationship with a nerdy schoolmate whom Kate is training for a piano recital; Nancy begs Annie to teach her how to roller-skate, so she can go to a party with a handsome fellow lawyer.

9. Such a Fine Line

Air Date: 1980-03-17

A schoolboy has a crush on Kate; Jeff, now an in-over-his-head rock manager, blows into town with his band.

10. The Ties That Bind

Air Date: 1980-06-04

Elaine resurfaces in Kate's life after being dumped by Fred for a younger woman. Meanwhile, Annie experiences abandonment issues, too.

11. Just Like Old Times

Air Date: 1980-06-11

Buddy tries to make everyone think she didn't get into any of the schools she applied to; Doug wants Annie to share his obsession with baseball.

12. Smarts

Air Date: 1980-06-18

Annie gets picked on by her classmates, for being too smart; Buddy, studying for her SATs, worries that she's not smart enough.

13. Letting Go

Air Date: 1980-06-25

Doug is upset when Buddy starts dating a 21-year-old; Annie is jealous of an old friend who has matured much faster than she has.