""Never try eating nectarines since juice may dispense."" That's how Tom and Joan Bradford remember the names of their childrens: Nicholas, Tommy, Elizabeth, Nancy, Susan, Joannie, Mary, and David.Tir…

Matilda, Mary's very pregnant, unmarriage, friend stays in the Bradford house while she is between apartment, but her attidude toward marriage upsets Tom. She learns the joys of parenthood and paterna…

Tom's chance at managing the newpapers runs into trouble when the printers go on stike. The whole family pitches in to help earn extra money. Nancy is disappointed by a modeling agent but Joan get…

Topsy-turvy at the Bradfords when Tommy has his ""dream girl"" stand him up. Neither David nor Tom wants to go on their annual hunt. Nancy wants to be a cheerleader. Elizabeth gets grounded over…

David learns about his life at a party the family throws to celebrates doctor Maxwell's 25th anniversary, as his date and Maxwell don't get along. David helps an older woman stuck in a traffic jam, …

Togetherness can be really funny when the whole Bradford household is quarantined, including Nancy's blind date,after Mary's boyfriend comes down with a mysterious ailment. David has to run errands…

Tony's sister shows up for a visit and turns the Bradford house upside-down when the encourages the kids to pursue their dreams and goals. David gets laid off and Vivian gets him a job as an archite…

Joannie has a fender-bender with a real developer who is upset with Bradford's column opposing his project. Meanwhile, Elizabeth goes from three prom dates to none when they all show up at the same …

Tom is challenged to a family touch football game by his dentist. He learns that winning is not the only thing that counts. Elizabeth worries about Maria in Columbia.

Dr. Max shows up on Tom's doorstep after a fight with his wife and ends up staying with the Bradfords, driving them crazy with his fussy ways. David tries to borrow money from his brothers and siste…

This episode introduces Betty Buckley in the contract role of Sue "" Abby"" Abbott. At first she was a special guest star. Tommy breaks his ankles at a touch football game and will miss school for f…

David's new roommate romance both Susan and Joannie.Tom decides he has been neflecting Nicholas and drives Nicholas crazy by spending too much time with him. Tommy organizes a family garage sale to…

After Tom and Abby break up, the Bradford children set Tom up with another woman in an effort to make Abby jealous. Nancy enters the Miss Scaramento beauty contest. David and Tommy hang aroung a l…

Tom throws a party to celebrates paying off the mortage on the Bradford house. Unfortunately, the kids get into a melee when Susan punches a heckler at David and Tommy's singing appreance and Tom has …

Mary runs for a seat of the Board of Education and enlists the famil's help on her campaign. Abby is too busy to keep her dates with Tom. Tom proposes to Abby after she and Mary are able to work …

Joannie agrees to do a nude scene in a shakespearean play and is relives when Tom says he can't make it to the show, or so it goes. [Obviously, a sweeps stunt.] Abby's former father-in-law visits an…

After much debate, Tom and Abby decides on November 9th as their wedding date and agree to let the children handle the wedding plans, but it almost does not happen when things get too crazy. Elizabe…

The children get carried away with the weddind plans and nearly cause the wedding to be canceled. Abby asks Elizabeth to be her maid of honor and develop a special relationship.

Tom and Abby take the kids to San Francisco where Tom is scheduled to accept an award for his column anbd the trip doubles as a honeymoon. Mary is upset when she is rejected by a medical school and …

Abby coordinates Spring cleaning at the Bradford house. Mary is upset when the son of Tom's friend comes to Sacramento to open an army recuriting office on campus, which does not please her liberal …

Tom's eccentric sister Auntie V returns for another visit with the Bradfords. She surprises Tom and Abby with a new house as a wedding present. The kids are excited, but as they fix up the house for s…

The Bradfords celebrate their first Christmas without their late mother,Joan. Nicholas mistakenly assumes the man he finds in the house on Christmas Eve is Santa Claus and lets him steal the Christm…

The kids convince Tom to shoiw some Christmas spirit by bailing Sam out of jail and inviting him to the house for Christmas dinner as they celebrate the true meaning of Christmas. Tommy receives a s…

Tom is upset when Abby makes arrangements for Elizabeth to get birth control pills. Tom is drafted into doing a ""Dear Abby"" for the paper. Abby's studies are keeping her busy and leave little ti…

The family gives Tom a day of peace for his birthday, and it drives him crazy. David goes for the weekend and gives Tommy the use of his apartment but Tommy winds up throwing a party. Abby's paren…

With Abby's encouragement, Tom takes a leave of absence to pursue the dream of writing a book about his family. He can't get it published the norman way, but has a special issue done for each member o…

Abby is upset about when David gives Nicholas a BB gun. Tom's column about garbage causes a controverty when he writes a tongue-in-cheek column. That's when his troubles start to pile up, along with…

Joannie, Nancy, and Susan meet new guys at a disco over winter break and love times three drives the Bradford household crazy. David's friend tries to convince him to go on a blind date, so he fixes…

Susan and Tom are jealous when Abby spends too much time with Susan's new boyfriend she brought home for dinner, and Abby strikes up too much connection with her date. Nicholas is appointed water mo…

Frustrated by the transporation arrangements, Tommy, Elizabeth, Nancy, and Susan buy their own car. Tom is upset that Tommy is failing English and pressures him to get a good grade. Tom learns a le…

Abby suffers a concussion when she falls off a ladder. Tha Bradfords take turns keeping Abby awake by telling her stories and sharing memories, which are flashbacks from previous episodes.

Abby convinces Tom to spend the weekend with her parents in Pasadena, leaving the kids alone for the weekend. While they are away, despite a rule against having any non-Bradfords in the house, the kid…

David meets an attractive young woman who is the daughter of a wealthy construction man. Joannie tries to get the family to communicate better using encounter-like truth games. Tom, which helping …

Joannie directs a talent show to raise money, for the orphanage she is vo;unteering at . Joannie tries to get the whole family to enterain. Nicholas believes ha has seen a UFO, but nobody else belie…

Suffering from imsommia and thinking he's going nuts.Tom visits a psychiatrist to find the cause. Tommy develops two personalities, ""disco kid"" and ""mellow man"", to impress the two girls he is d…

Nicholas convinces Tom to coach his little league football team. Tired of having no privacy, the Bradford children have their own phone line installed. Tom resigns as little league coach because …

Abby has her own problems when she thinks sha may be pregnant and is relucant to tell Tom. Tom panics when he finds out he is going to be audited by the I.R.S, and the family pitches in for help. …

Joannie gets accepted into a theater company and her first role is that of gopher and understudy.When the lead actress quits the play, Joannie has 24 hour to learn her lines and is unaware that Tom wi…

Nicholas has a crush on his teacher and buys her self-portrait at her garbage sale, but tries to hide it from the kids, who think there is a valuable painting underneath. The Bradfords because believe…

Tom is chosen to teach a journalism class at the university and is impressed by one student who is working his way throu college. Nicholas and Irving, who are making prank calls,recieve their own from…

Susan struggles to find the right career after she realizes she's not out to be a professional athlete. So she decides to try out to be a cop. Nancy opens a day care center at the Bradford house, but …

Many struggles with medical school and charaviristic professors. Susan, Elizabeth, and Nancy try to reach Tommy to drive is reluctant to do it. Tommu is embrassed top be seen with his teacher, Susan a…

David starts living gangerously after a close friend dies oif a heart attack at a young age. The kids try to help and eventually David cleans up his act. Nicholas tries to help by offering David a kit…

The male Bradfords refuse to attend a speech that Abby was selected to give. War erupts between the Bradfords men and woman when the woman feel they are not respected by the men. Nancy gets a job pump…

Abby's parents are flying in from Pasadena for Thanksgiving.Nicholas is surprised when the Vice-President accepts his invitation to Thanksgiving dinner with the Bradfords. He picks the Bradfords as Am…

The Bradford children plan a party for Tom and Abby's anniversary and Nicholas fell left out. Tom and Abby unknowingly bid against each other for ""A Christmas Line"" tickets for their anniversary. …

In San Diego, Nicholas is taken in by Joe Simmons, an old con man and bum who was a friend of Sam's. He then performs his best scam trying to get Nicholas back to the Bradfords. Believing that Nicho…

Tired of not having time to themselves, Tom and Abby conspire to get rid of the kids so they can spent the weekend alone.They send the kids camping for the weekend. Susan brings a nine year old girl…

Both Elizabeth and Tommy learn that there is no easy way to success. Elizabeth wants to go to an expensive college in Vermont with a good dance program but Tom can't afford the tuition. Nancy takes a …

Tired of Tom's strict rules, Nancy, Susan, and Joannie look for an apartment of their own because Tom has trouble accepting that his daughters are growing up. David buys a new truck and agrees to s…

In an effort to keep the remaining Bradfords at home, Tom repeals all curfews but Abby doubts his wisdom. Tom shows everyone that it is possible to have too much of a good thing. The girls learn th…

Abby's mother arrives for a visit and Abby is upset to learn that her parent are breaking up. Abby's father arrives shortly, and musical rooms becomes the name of the game. The girls want to move b…

On a rainy night in Sacramento, the Bradford house is turned upside-down when the power goes out and leaves the Bradfords stuck at home with Nancy's blind date - a Norman Bates look-alike. Joannie …

Nicholas tries to avoid a young lady who has a crush on him. Tired of saying goodnight to each other every night, David and Janet decide to live together. Tom is nominated for ""Father of the Ye…

Tommy offers to marry a pregnant friend who was a girl, Lori, even though he's not the father of her baby. The Bradfords rally to support Tommy's taking of responsibility. Nicholas and Irving open …

Abby uses the family as subjects in a research project for school. Nicholas's new friend, Bobby, runs away from his foster family because he wants to become part of the Bradford family. They decide…

While substitute teaching at the high school, Abby refuses to pass the star basketball player, and troubles begin for Tommy. It's an awkward meeting when Tom meets Janet's parents. Tommy is pres…

Tom and Abby are surprised to learn that Nicholas is musically talented but Abby is upset when Tom gets him a drum set. Joannie falls for the local drama critic who gave her a good review. Tom thin…

Abby and the children are frustrated when they are trying to study for finals and a youth-oriented article Tom wrote in his column runs into trouble with a senior citizen and inspires a picket line in…

Tom is proud when Elizabeth and Joannie are graduating the same week (Joannie from college and Elizabeth from high school). Joannie doesn't know what to do with her life after graduation. Tom is…

Tom finally realizes his dream of being a published author when a magazine prints his short story, but finds it published in a man's magazine more famous for its ""illustrations"" than its literature.…

David and his traveling companion continue on their cross-country trip and he gets involved in a hang-gliding competition and learn a few lessons about life.

Nicholas and Susan meet Merle the Pearl, a local minor league baseball player. Nicholas is upset that his young girlfriend is moving out of town and wants to introduce her to Merle the Pearl to imp…

David returns and is determined to win Janet back from her new boyfriend. Merle confides to Nicholas that he wants to propose to Susan but Susan is upset when the entire Bradford family knows about…

David and Janet set a wedding date but it turns out to be the same day Merle and Susan decided to move up the wedding day to accomodate Merle's ballplaying career move. Nancy gets a job delivering …

Chaos hits the Bradford house when everyone's activities go around the clock. In order to get her Ph.D. more quickly, Abby attends school full-time and has little time for the family. Tom is ups…

Things are not as they seem at the Bradfords when Merle's sister, Linda Mae, comes from the farm and visits the Bradfords and is shocked at what she finds. Joannie talks Nancy into playing a stripper …

Joannie gets a job in the research department of a TV station. Mary finds a hidden home pregnancy test and tries to find the owner. Joannie ""scoops"" Tom on a story on a porno theater for her new job…

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; N…

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.

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

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 …

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 …

Tom and Abby believe that Susan is depressed because Merle is gone but learn that she is pregnant. The girls try to cheer her up. Joannie meets a psychic and holds a seance to help Susan. Merle arrive…

Tom talks David into hiring Tommy as a construction worker but Tommy has to prove himself to his fellow workers by standing up to them on his own. Nicholas needs to write a speech about Tom and fol…

Joannie tries to convince her boss that she is ready for more responsibility at work. Joannie wants to do a documentary on her family. Mary learns that being an adult can be painful when she falls …

Upset that an all girl band was chosen to play at prom, Tommy protests by running for prom queen. Joannie pushes her boss for some on-camera work.

Tom is upset that everyone is neglecting their household duties so Abby and the kids pool their resources to hire a maid. Tommy tries to help his friend Ernie, who won't admit he has an alcoholic p…

Abby tries to cheer Tom up on his 50th birthday. Tom feels the pressure of teh youth movement at work and believes that the Register wants to replace him with a younger columnist. Merle and Susa…

Tommy is upset when Jill's idea of a commitment is not the same as his and then misinterprets signals from Mary's friend, Kerry, and gets deeper into trouble. Tommy presents Jill with a class ring.…

It's winter break and Joannie, Nancy, and Mary meet strange men that drive Tom and Abby crazy. Tom fixes Tommy up with his boss's niece.

Tom's new temporary secretary is overly attentive. Joe Simons, the con man who helped Nicholas return from San Diego, shows up pretending to have struck it rich in the Yukon and drives the family b…

Ernie misreads Elizabeth's friendly gestures. David is jealous that Janet is working long hours with a male colleague. Tom counsels David and Abby counsels Janet, and they end up happily together. …

Abby needs time to deal with memories of her late husband after a fellow prisoner of war shows up in Sacramento. She works out her feelings and returns to the family. Nicholas goes steady for the f…

Merle recruits the girls for a charity basketball team. Tom is jealous when a publisher offers to publish Abby's thesis and Tom can't get his accepted. They pool their efforts, after competitive fe…

Joannie gets an important assignment at work but Jeffrey believes that the boss will be expecting a favor in return. Joannie blows her chance at a big story. An experienced reporter makes her his part…

Tom is upset that Tommy hasn't sent in any college applications but Tommy wants to be a musician and is not interested in college. Auntie V brings her new fiance to meet the Bradfords. Auntie V …

Nicholas starts a dog-sitting service. Nancy falls in love with the 5-year-old daughter of the young widower she is dating, but doesn't fall in love with her father. Ernie can't find a date for …

Tom and Abby agree to let Tommy and a few friends have the house for a small party after graduation. Nicholas and Irving are working on a school project when Irving gets hurt and Tommy ends up spen…

Nicholas and Tom start boy scouts and Nicholas volunteers Tom to be the assistant scout master. Elizabeth considers moving in with her boyfriend. Susan keeps her pregnancy problems from Merle wh…

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Abby goes to a funeral in San Francisco and returns with her nephew, Jeremy, who has nowhere else to go. His behavior upsets the family, referring the Bradfords as that other family (The Brady Bunch),…

Abby gets a job as a guidance counselor at a rough high school filled with trouble. Tom discovers his driver's license has expired and fails the renewal test. Tom drives his family crazy when they …

Susan brings the baby, Sandra Sue, home from the hospital. When Joan's parents visit the Bradford household to see the family and their great-grandchild, a conflict with Abby occurs as Joan's paren…

Ernie introduces Tommy to a slightly older songwriting woman who has a 4-year old son. When he falls for her, she has second thoughts. The Bradford's convert the garage into an apartment for Susan …

Nicholas and his friend, Melvin, start a messenger service to earn money and get more than they bargained for. One of their first deliveries turns out to be an airline bag full of money to be used for…

Caught up in a newspaper strike and laid-off, Tom tries to bring the feuding parties together thanks to something Nicholas says about giving and compromise. To save everyone money, Nicholas starts …

Tom is nominated for a political post by the governor. A political appointment for him ends up more than he can live with. Joannie goes undercover to do a story on a video dating service. Nichol…

Abby is proud of the progress one of her students has made and invites her to the house for dinner. Jeremy falls for 16-year-old Darlene, who likes to flirt and cause trouble (shades of Melrose Pla…

Joannie is tired of not getting any serious assignments at work and Abby encourages her to take a leave of absence to evaluate her career, and falls for a co-worker. Nancy finds out fame has a pric…

Joannie involves David in the renovation of an old opera house. However, Janet is the legal counsel for the developer who wants to build low-income housing on the site. Nicholas gets a horse from J…

Jeremy meets a new girlfriend at a Fred Astaire film festival. Tom and Abby decide to renew their marriage vows on their 3rd anniversary and they agree to let the kids handle the arrangements. D…

Tommy and Ernie, back from college with a ""preppy"" look, run into Jill, Tommy's old girlfriend. When Jill picks Ernie over Tommy, David helps him realize that reliving the past is not the real world…

Nancy's modeling career is about to take off but she needs to make an important decision as she later finds out she has to pose topless for a jeans ad. Elizabeth is trying to attract Alan Anderson,…

Jeremy wants to manage Tommy's band and tries to get him a gig. Joannie is chosen to organize a charity telethon and tries to get celebrities to appear on the show. She recruits the family to perfo…

This year it's the boys' turn to meet new women. Tommy dates the daughter of a radio station owner in order to get his band some air time. Jeremy runs himself ragged trying to keep up with a beauti…

Just as Tommy's career is about to take off, his old girlfriend returns to tell Tommy she is pregnant after it is announced that his band has been booked for a national tour. Nicholas wins a girl's…

Ellen tells Tommy that she doesn't want to marry him and Tommy isn't sure what he wants to do. At the last minute, they both realize it is not the right thing to do. Joannie is jealous when the sta…

Jeremy is suspicious when he finds a skull while digging in the garden. David and Janet consider getting back together. Nicholas assumes he's a shoo-in for the basketball team when Elizabeth dat…

Merle suffers a career-ending shoulder injury and doesn't know what to do if he can't play baseball. Merle comes upon Nicholas and his friends playing ball. He is offered a job of assistant coach of t…

Finally ready to be a father, Jeremy's father returns for a visit and wants to take him back to Los Angeles. David relives old memories when four of his old high school buddies return to Sacramento…