The Show Went Global
It was quite common for popular television shows to be somehow ‘benchmarked’ by other states or countries. Although not exactly the same, the story line of the copycat versions are basically similar, the characters as well. The local versions actually had the same concept as the original, but they had to make it in line with their own culture.
Because of its great success, Married With Children was one of these television shows that spawned local versions in other countries. In 1996, a British version of the show, entitled Married for Life, was released. It was unfortunate for the show, however, that it never did last for life. It ended abruptly seven weeks after it was aired.
Peggy Loved The Oprah Winfrey Show
Both Al and Peggy were actually huge fans of the idiot box, but Peggy had a particular love for watching Psycho Mom and The Oprah Winfrey Show . You could hear Oprah’s name pop up a number of times in the course of Al and Peggy’s conversations during the show. Undoubtedly, Oprah is an integral part of the couple’s marriage.
The character of Peggy was depicted as a typical housewife who adores The Oprah Winfrey Show . Peggy, in one of the episodes, had to work part-time, so she could buy a VCR to tape Oprah. However, she ended up quitting and became a lazy housewife again (for the record, we’re not saying all housewives are lazy, far from it! Peggy was certainly not typical).
Bud's Love Of Rap
The character of Bud Bundy always wanted to become a rapper one day. And, believe it or not, David Faustino, who played the role of Bud Bundy somehow absorbed his character’s wishes and became a rapper himself! To be fair, he probably always had the same dream as Bud. Faustino pursued both his and Bud’s dreams in the world of hip-hop.
The actor’s rapper name was D’ Lil and he did become something of a sensation in the world of hip-hop. Launched by his album, Balistyx , which was released in 1992, Faustino’s music career was actually quite a success. So, then it was a ‘wrap’ for a rap career. We guess dreams really do come true, huh!
"The Body"
Here’s more about the show’s character names, and we’re pretty sure this one will be a fun surprise for you. One of Al’s colleagues in the first season was name Luke Ventura, and this was anything but random. The writers of the show were huge fans of Jesse Ventura, aka “The Body.”
Jesse Ventura was a professional wrestler at the time, whose real name was James George Janos. James was not only a wrestler by profession, he was also a politician. He served the state of Minnesota as the 38 th Governor, from 1999 to 2003.
A Different Peggy
Katey Sagal’s character, Peggy Bundy, was supposed to be Roseanne Barr’s, who was a famous comedian and television producer. Barr was thought of as the ideal match for the hysterical character of Peggy because of her background as a stand-up comedian. However, Sagal wowed the producers and snagged the role. Sagal had a good background in acting and was very familiar with Hollywood because of her father.
Yes, we can’t say that Katey’s luck and hard work was all that got her the role. Her father’s experience and exposure in show business helped her a lot in her acting career, and was a contributing factor to her getting the role of Peggy Bundy. Originally, the producers had chosen Roseanne Barr for that role, but it did not happen for some reason they never revealed. Luckily, the producers did not regret having Sagal instead of Barr, because at the end of the day, who could imagine anyone else as Peggy? Sagal was perfect.