of the early television sitcoms of the fifties, which portrayed stereotypical families, is Father Knows Best. The name says it all. It was a typical patriarchal family. It was composed of a handsome, middle-class father who was the only source of income and brains (i.e., solved all of the problems) for the family; a pretty, young woman who was a loving mother and homemaker; and adorable young kids who never undermined their parents’ authority. Minorities were rarely seen on television. The majority of those who were seen were typecast in roles as low-class, unintelligent subordinates, such as domestic help, and were usually the butt of many of the jokes. A great example of this would be the show Amos and Andy, which did nothing but portray the Black population as uneducated, ignorant fools.
             A groundbreaking show of the time for both minorities and women was I Love Lucy. Lucy was white and Irish and Ricky was Cuban. A biracial marriage was completely unheard of at the time. Lucy was smart, misch
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