1977

S4.E1 ∙ Merle the Pearl

Tue, Sep 04, 1979

Susan captures the attention of a minor league baseball player; Nicholas is in the throes of puppy love with a girl on his little league team whose family is planning to move; Tom trades in his sedan for a new car; Tommy conspires to get a sneak peek at a blind date for an upcoming dance.

7.1 /10

S4.E2 ∙ The Cupid Crisis

Tue, Sep 11, 1979

After returning to Sacramento, David sets out to win back Janet, who is engaged to another man; Susan finds Merle's courtship efforts lacking, so Nicholas plays Cupid for them.

6.9 /10

S4.E3 ∙ I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do

Tue, Sep 18, 1979

A tale of two weddings: David and Janet's elopement is derailed by Susan and Merle's plan to tie the knot the same weekend so she can join him on the road; Nancy lacks the necessary skills in her job delivering singing telegrams.

7.7 /10

S4.E4 ∙ Ten Ships in the Night

Tue, Sep 25, 1979

When Abby goes back to school to finish her PhD, Tom turns to the ranks for help in looking after Nicholas; Nancy tries to prove her worth as she goes to work at a stock brokerage.

7.7 /10

S4.E5 ∙ The Night They Raided Bradfords

Tue, Oct 02, 1979

Appearances are deceiving -- or are they? -- when Merle's provincial sister arrives from Arkansas on an average day in the Bradford home, which leads to a comedy of errors -- and a vice raid.

7.6 /10

S4.E6 ∙ The Devil and Mr. Bradford

Tue, Oct 23, 1979

Joannie's investigative research for a stunt journalist implicates Tom in a potential scandal; Mary and Abby search in vain for the owner of the pregnancy test kit Mary finds hidden in the linen closet; Tommy is tasked with teaching Nicholas how to mow the lawn.

7.4 /10

S4.E7 ∙ Big Shoes, Little Feet

Tue, Oct 30, 1979

Three Bradfords struggle to meet the expectations of others: Nicholas turns truant to escape the long shadow of his siblings; Tom's boss pressures him to participate in a father-son golf tournament; Nancy feels compelled to date a stockbroker uniquely positioned to help David's slumping business.

6.9 /10

S4.E8 ∙ Fathers and Other Strangers: Part 1

Tue, Nov 06, 1979

Tom's sister Vivian sweeps into town with an offer to take the entire family on vacation to Hawaii, where she secretly plans to reunite Tom with their estranged father.

7.3 /10

S4.E9 ∙ Fathers and Other Strangers: Part 2

Tue, Nov 06, 1979

Still in Hawaii, Tom and his father contemplate whether they can or should bother to reconcile their relationship.

7.3 /10

S4.E10 ∙ Letter to One Bradford

Tue, Nov 13, 1979

When Tommy is rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery, Mary and Nicholas both feel culpable for different reasons; Merle and Susan adjust to the give and take of married life; Nancy plays travel guide for a visiting colleague from China who doesn't speak English.

7.7 /10

S4.E11 ∙ Separate Ways

Tue, Nov 20, 1979

The furnace is on the blink, causing a cold front in the Bradford house, but Tom dismisses Mary's offer to fix it; Susan's chance for an internship conflicts with Merle's offer to play winter ball in Puerto Rico; Nicholas goes on strike for a raise in his allowance.

8 /10

S4.E12 ∙ Arrivals

Tue, Nov 27, 1979

On the heels of splitting up with Merle, Susan discovers she's pregnant; Joannie is intrigued by a man with extrasensory perception; Tommy uses Nicholas as bait to pick up girls.

7.4 /10

S4.E13 ∙ Brotherhood, Sisterhood

Tue, Dec 04, 1979

Elizabeth has difficulty meeting eligible men on campus; Tommy is hazed by the crew when he goes to work for David, which causes a fallout between the brothers; Nicholas has to write a paper on Tom for a class assignment.

7.6 /10

S4.E14 ∙ Mary, He's Married

Tue, Dec 11, 1979

Mary's friendship with a doctor begins to develop into a romance; Nicholas dabbles in sales with cure-all face cream; Joannie produces a documentary on her family to gain a promotion at work.

7.7 /10

S4.E15 ∙ My Son, the Prom Queen

Tue, Jan 08, 1980

When an all girl band beats out Tommy and Ernie's group for a gig at Senior prom the boys want payback. They decide to nominate Tommy for homecoming queen but when the event gets closer Tommy has doubts.

7.7 /10

S4.E16 ∙ The Courage to Be

Tue, Jan 15, 1980

Overwhelmed and overextended, the family pools its funds to hire a part-time housekeeper; Tommy comes to realize that his best friend has a drinking problem; Nicholas tries to break a world's record.

7.7 /10

S4.E17 ∙ Semi-Centennial Bradford

Tue, Jan 22, 1980

Tom experiences a midlife crisis as he approaches his fiftieth birthday; Nicholas searches for the perfect name for Susan and Merle's coming child; Nancy has second thoughts when the dull stockbroker she dumped begins seeing Elizabeth.

7.2 /10

S4.E18 ∙ The Commitment

Tue, Jan 29, 1980

The Bradfords plan Susan's surprise baby shower; Tommy's frustration with his girlfriend's inexperience leads him to pursue a much older friend of Mary's; Nicholas inadvertently plays Cyrano for a school chum.

7.7 /10

S4.E19 ∙ Seven More Days in February

Tue, Feb 05, 1980

The annual winter break festivities lead to offbeat romances for Mary, Joannie and Nancy; Tom's boss coerces him into setting up Tommy with his visiting niece; Elizabeth's new beau is forced to cancel their date for the Valentine's Day dance.

7.3 /10

S4.E20 ∙ The Return of Joe Simons

Tue, Feb 12, 1980

Nicholas's grandfatherly friend Joe Simons returns to Sacramento under false pretenses; Joannie tries to come up with a TV commercial to boost David's struggling business; Tom is smothered by a temp when his secretary goes on vacation.

6.8 /10

S4.E21 ∙ Bradford vs. Bradford

Tue, Feb 26, 1980

Nicholas learns the meaning of class distinction when he befriends an underprivileged schoolmate; David's jealousy over Janet's work colleague may be justified; Tommy becomes overprotective when his best friend begins seeing Elizabeth.

6.9 /10

S4.E22 ∙ Memories

Tue, Mar 04, 1980

Nicholas is targeted by an assertive classmate who wants to go steady with him; Abby's grief is triggered by the visit of a friend of her late husband; Nancy becomes overdrawn at the bank because of all the money she's been lending her siblings.

6.2 /10

S4.E23 ∙ Official Positions

Tue, Mar 18, 1980

Abby hires the unemployed mother of one of Nicholas' classmates; Merle puts together a women's basketball team comprised entirely of Bradfords; Tom's effort to finish his novel is undercut when Abby gets published first.

7.1 /10

S4.E24 ∙ A Matter of Mentors

Tue, Mar 25, 1980

When Tommy protests Tom's frugality, Tom teaches him a lesson by putting him in charge of the family's finances; Joannie begins to doubt the intentions of the higher-up who gave her a plum assignment; Nicholas dukes it out with the class bully, who happens to be a girl.

6.6 /10

S4.E25 ∙ Roll Over Bradford

Tue, Apr 01, 1980

Tommy decides to forego college in favor of a music career; Tom's sister Vivian returns with her new fiancé; Elizabeth tries out theories from her psychology class on the family.

6 /10

S4.E26 ∙ A Little Triangle

Tue, Apr 08, 1980

Nancy bonds with her boyfriend's daughter; Tommy tries to help Ernie find a date for the prom; Nicholas tries running a dog grooming business.

7 /10

S4.E27 ∙ Finally Grad Night

Tue, Apr 29, 1980

The family makes itself scarce for Tommy's intimate graduation party, but when Tommy is called away to help an injured Irving J. Moore, word gets out that the Bradford house is unoccupied, leading to an all-out brawl for the Class of 1980.

8 /10