The Facts of Life

The Facts of Life

1979
The Facts of Life
The Facts of Life

The Facts of Life

6.8 | TV-PG | en | Drama

The Facts of Life is an American sitcom that originally ran on the NBC television network from August 24, 1979, to May 7, 1988, making it the longest running sitcom of the 1980s. A spin-off of the sitcom Diff'rent Strokes, the series' premise focuses on Edna Garrett as she becomes a housemother at the fictional Eastland School, an all-female boarding school in Peekskill, New York.

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Seasons & Episodes

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EP24  The Beginning of the Beginning
May. 07,1988
The Beginning of the Beginning

As the new headmistress, Blair starts whipping Eastland students into shape, and she's particularly challenged by one who seems determined to get expelled.

EP23  The Beginning of the End
Apr. 30,1988
The Beginning of the End

Blair buys Eastland to save it from bankruptcy, and then must find a new headmaster and lots of new students.

EP22  Big Apple Blues
Mar. 19,1988
Big Apple Blues

Natalie's first bite of the Big Apple is hard to digest: she overnights in a Soho loft with ""the four weirdest people I've ever met.""

EP21  On the Edge
Mar. 12,1988
On the Edge

Jo's job at the social services center gets a bit hairy when her supervisor, a suicide prevention counselor, threatens to leap off a building.

EP20  Present Imperfect
Mar. 05,1988
Present Imperfect

Tootie recieves a hideous pendant as an engagement present from Jeff's formidable grandmother, and it's pulverized at Andy and Pippa's wild party just before the woman arrives.

EP19  Till Marriage Do Us Part
Feb. 27,1988
Till Marriage Do Us Part

Rick proposes to Jo in his own crazy way, and everyone anticipates a wedding everyone, that is, except Jo, who still hasn't accepted.

EP18  Less Than Perfect
Feb. 20,1988
Less Than Perfect

One evening, a tired Blair falls asleep at the wheel and has a car accident landing her in the hospital with a gash in her for-head. This leads her to begin worrying about how her once ""perfect"" self will recover from this tragedy.

EP17  Let's Face the Music
Feb. 13,1988
Let's Face the Music

A sponsor of a musical benefit invites Jo and Blair to visit his beauty spa, where they are transformed but not in the way they expected.

EP16  The First Time
Feb. 06,1988
The First Time

Natalie deals firsthand with facts of life as she overnights with her boyfriend Snake, and faces the reactions of her friends and Snake.

EP15  A House Divided
Jan. 30,1988
A House Divided

The fat hits the fire when Natalie and Tootie's boyfriends meet, and Jo blows a gasket over the repair job on her bike.

EP14  Peekskill Law
Jan. 23,1988
Peekskill Law

Blair interns at a law firm that's defending an accused murderer, who seems to be guilty until proven innocent.

EP13  Something in Common
Jan. 16,1988
Something in Common

It's not music to his ears when Jo's dad learns that her boyfriend plays piano at a dinner joint.

EP12  A Thousand Frowns
Jan. 09,1988
A Thousand Frowns

Andy latches on to a ""big brother,"" who's living for today because tomorrow may never come.

EP11  Golden Oldies
Jan. 02,1988
Golden Oldies

Imagine the whole gang the same people the same place, 40 years from now.

EP10  It's a Wonderful Christmas
Dec. 12,1987
It's a Wonderful Christmas

It's holiday time, and Beverly Ann feels unneeded, until a mysterious Santa shows her what Christmas in Peekskill would be like without her.

EP9  Adventures in Baileysitting
Dec. 05,1987
Adventures in Baileysitting

Babysitter Blair leaves her sister with the others while she attends a tea, and returns to find they somehow misplaced her.

EP8  A Rose by Any Other Age
Nov. 28,1987
A Rose by Any Other Age

Blair is dumbfounded when an honor student she invited over ostensibly to study takes a shine to Beverly Ann instead of her.

EP7  The More the Marrier
Nov. 21,1987
The More the Marrier

Tootie's boyfriend says he can't make it to town for the Winter Carnival so Tootie decides to go with someone else.

EP6  Up from Down Under
Nov. 14,1987
Up from Down Under

A new girl arrives at Eastland in the wee hours, claiming to be an Australian exchange student.

EP5  Sweet Charity
Nov. 07,1987
Sweet Charity

Jo takes a job in social work at a community center that, she learns, has no funds to pay her salary.

EP4  Before the Fall
Oct. 24,1987
Before the Fall

Natalie jumps at the chance to do an inside story on ROTC and then learns she'll also have to jump from a plane.

EP3  Rumor Has It
Oct. 17,1987
Rumor Has It

Blair's after-hours visit with a professor reputed to be a womanizer stirs up a storm of vicious rumors on campus.

EP2  Down and Out in Malibu (2)
Oct. 03,1987
Down and Out in Malibu  (2)

Richard Moll returns to the home he left in Jo's care to find it's been flooded: someone left the water running in the hot tub.

EP1  Down and Out in Malibu (1)
Sep. 26,1987
Down and Out in Malibu  (1)

Jo is jobless and apartmentless in Malibu, where Richard Moll just happens to need a house sitter.

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6.8 | TV-PG | en | Drama , Comedy | More Info
Released: 1979-08-24 | Released Producted By: TAT Communications Company , Embassy Television Country: United States of America Budget: 0 Revenue: 0 Official Website:
Synopsis

The Facts of Life is an American sitcom that originally ran on the NBC television network from August 24, 1979, to May 7, 1988, making it the longest running sitcom of the 1980s. A spin-off of the sitcom Diff'rent Strokes, the series' premise focuses on Edna Garrett as she becomes a housemother at the fictional Eastland School, an all-female boarding school in Peekskill, New York.

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The tv show is currently not available onine

Cast

Cloris Leachman , Lisa Whelchel , Kim Fields

Director

Producted By

TAT Communications Company , Embassy Television

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Reviews

meganoenning Being born in '92, I find myself watching sitcoms from older decades. TV was just so much better then. This show has always been a favorite of mine.
mapmanmsl Did you know that Jo was the worst character ever created? Nancy McKeon can't even act very well, and had to resort to so many cosmetic(facial makeup only) procedures just to get the role won for her(examples, {{Green Colored Contacts/Blue Colored Enhancer Contacts to play as green eyed Jo} that's if Jo's eyes were green that is.}, Facial makeup to make herself look more mature, tough, and 16 instead of 13-14, etc.And don't even get me started that Jo has green eyes and Blair's eyes were brown with green and gold flecks crap. Jo/Nancy's eye color is Hazel and looks exactly the same yellow/gold/olive brown/light brown colors as Kelly Clarkson's eyes, Hillary Duff's eyes, Carisma Carpenter's eyes, and Lil Bow-Wow's eyes. And Lisa/Blair's eyes are just plain solid brown colored and her eye color and shade resembles Sandra Bullock's and Captain Spock/Leonard Nimoy's own set of pure/no flecked brown eyes.This whole show with its green/blue tinting makes me sicker than a dog.And yes, I think Nancy McKeon did wear colored contacts on this show.
Brian Washington Like a lot of other people, I thought this show was better in its first season than it was in its later years. In fact, does anyone even remember that future "Brat Packer" Molly Ringwald was a member of the original cast? The character I thought was mildly interesting from the later years was Jo. Nancy McKeon at least played her like a real character and not like a charicature like the other girls were, and the most annoying of them was Tootie. I wonder how Kim Fields, who has gone on to become a successful director and producer, has been able to live down that role. In the beginning she was just an annoying little girl and as the show wore on she became more of a whiney spoiled brat. Thank God this show is not being shown in reruns anymore.
Thornfield2 Although the begining of this show takes place in the 70's, this show is so 80's it hurts. I love this show! This was and still is one of my favorite sitcoms from the 80's. However,I must say I agree with the other reviews in saying that the show was just wonderful until about 1985, when Edna'a Edibles burns down and they remodel the store. Then they add some corny testosterone in the form of two characters; a whiney, conceided 12 year old boy and not even George Clooney's early talent could make up for his lame character either. The show is still, however watchable and even enjoyable, after all this (including Mrs. G leaving), in just wanting to find out what happens to the other girls, especially Jo and Natalie, who are two of the greatest and most real characters in a sitcom. Natalie and Jo were also my favorite characters. The reason why is because they were not glammed-up susperstars with unreal problems. They were down to earth and I could really identify with them and so did many others my age, we being children of the 80's. It's a shame today that sitcoms have become so obsessed with sex, violence and vanity, that many of the children of today feel they must identify with these ideas instead of the show identifying with them. I actually really liked all of the girls. Blair was fun too, but she needed the balance of Jo's character to tame her down a bit. Tootie was a good friend to Natalie. And they both needed each other. They all fit together and the four make for one of the greatest casts in TV history. However, some of my most favorite episodes, focused on Natalie and Jo. Like the one when Natalie doesn't get a job at the Peekskill Press and she needs to learn to share her feelings with her boyfriend (one of my old faves, Casey Siemaszko made an early appearance here) I also love the episode where Jo runs a late night radio station and all the girls come and help her out. I am forever greatful to Nick at Nite for re-running this charming sitcom.