A Year in the Life
A Year in the Life
TV ShowEnded

A Year in the Life

6.8 / 10
1987
1 season
22 episodes
Drama

Following the success of the three-part miniseries of the same name, the drama series follows the daily lives of Seattle's Gardner family. Joe Gardner is the owner of a successful plastics business and the father of four adult children. The Gardner family includes twice-divorced daughter Anne, who returns home with her two teenaged children; daughter Lindley and husband Jim, parents of a newborn baby daughter; black sheep son Jack; and conservative youngest son Sam, newly married to free-spirited Kay.

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Cast

Seasons

  • Ep 1

    1.Don't I Know You From Somewhere?

    16-09-198760m

    As her divorce proceedings draw near, Anne accepts a date with a co-worker. Lindley and Jim consider candidates for a full-time babysitter. Joe loses a valued employee.

  • Ep 2

    2.Things You Should Know Before and After

    23-09-198760m

    Sunny is embarrassed about her lack of experience with boys. Joe and a neighbor have an unneighborly exchange over the Gardners' dog. Jack awaits news from the Seattle police acade...

  • Ep 3

    3.What Do You Think Love Is?

    30-09-198760m

    A baby-naming ceremony for Ruthie causes dissension. Lindley seems overwhelmed by the commitment to Judaism. A fishing trip causes friction between Jack and David. Sam is in Kay's...

  • Ep 4

    4.What Do People Do All Day?

    21-10-198760m

    Joe assembles his family after mustering the courage to propose to Alice. Anne is a bundle of nerves while teaching Sunny to drive. Kay is pressured into taking her co-worker's adv...

  • Ep 5

    5.Dixie Chicken

    28-10-198760m

    Anne's college boyfriend reenters her life. Guilt takes its toll on working mother Lindley. Sam asks for Joe's assistance in a scheme to help Kay "sell" herself in her real-estate...

  • Ep 6

    6.E.M. 7 Grizzlies Minus 3 1/2 for a Nickel

    04-11-198760m

    Jim's flimflam artist father visits, bringing back feelings of embarrassment and resentment for Jim. David is humiliated by a school bully. Jack paints a house for a bickering coup...

  • Ep 7

    7.Acts of Faith

    11-11-198760m

    Joe believes David's social studies teacher has gone overboard to instill a fear of nuclear disaster in his students. Sam thinks his new mother-in-law is an aging hippie and fears...

  • Ep 8

    8.In Dreams Begin Responsibilities

    18-11-198760m

    Tempers flare during tryouts for a football team that Jack is coaching. A lonely Anne gives in to temptation on a business trip. Joe is reluctant with being selected as treasurer b...

  • Ep 9

    9.So Much Water, So Close to Home

    25-11-198760m

    Sunny becomes a vegetarian after a visit to a turkey farm. Anne and Sam are stuck in Spokane after a storm and struggle to get back home. A blackout forces the Gardners to improvis...

  • Ep 10

    10.I Think You Know Something I Don't Know

    02-12-198760m

    Lindley and Jim's efforts to market the baby walker meet with stumbling blocks. Joe is protective of David after a vagrant attacks the boy. Kay feels remorseful after selling a dil...

  • Ep 11

    11.While Someone Else is Eating or Opening a Window

    16-12-198760m

    Sunny's behavior around the house annoys Joe. Billy Putzi becomes a disruptive force in the Eisenberg home. Kay's classes begin to dominate her life, much to Sam's dismay.

  • Ep 12

    12.The Little Disturbance of Man

    06-01-198860m

    Marketing plans for Jim and Lindley's baby walker take a new turn, with the help of Billy. Anne fails to give up smoking. Sam considers cheating on Kay.

  • Ep 13

    13.Sometimes It's Hard to Remember

    13-01-198860m

    Jack encounters racism on the job. Joe vows to beat an arrogant neighbor in a tennis match. Anne stands up Lindley.

  • Ep 14

    14.At the Last Moment, Enormous Changes

    20-01-198860m

    Joe agonizes over a sudden decrease in company profits. Sunny agonizes over a good friend's hostility. Car troubles get the best of Kay.

  • Ep 15

    15.Goodbye to All That

    03-02-198860m

    Jack may have discovered "the real thing" when he and his wife receive $1000 in prize money. Joe longs to mend his relationship with Alice. David admires a fellow worker at the bow...

  • Ep 16

    16.The Go-Between

    10-02-198860m

    Sunny realizes the consequences of her actions too late when she asks a friend to flirt with David. Joe's erratic behavior has the kids worried, but he thinks the truth would leave...

  • Ep 17

    17.Fathers and Other Strangers

    17-02-198860m

    David tries to be civil around his visiting father. Anne reflects on the bitterness of her first divorce. Joe attends an old Navy buddy's funeral. Kay serves as a juror.

  • Ep 18

    18.Common Ground

    09-03-198860m

    A strike breaks out at Joe's ailing plastics plant. David's school play causes stress for Anne and David. Kay gets her hopes up over the perfect house, assuming Joe will co-sign.

  • Ep 19

    19.Glory Days

    16-03-198860m

    A friend's death causes Jim to worry about his own mortality. A fallen chandelier prompts Joe and Anne to redecorate, An old flame appears at Jack's high-school reunion.

  • Ep 20

    20.The Politics of Being

    23-03-198860m

    Anne risks being fired when she stands her ground before an important ad presentation. Joe's quick thinking in an emergency brings fleeting fame. Lindley can't forgive Jim for an a...

  • Ep 21

    21.Peter Creek Road

    06-04-198860m

    Sunny accepts a date with a boy, unaware of the effect it has on his former girlfriend. Joe's plans for a nostalgic journey are derailed on a train trip to Chicago. Jim decides to...

  • Ep 22

    22.Love Mother

    13-04-198860m

    A journey to visit her ailing mother is a painful one for Alice. Anne refuses to celebrate her thirty-something birthday. Kay learns she's pregnant. A sick baby wearies Lindley.

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