Edith Bunker

Edith Bunker (née Baines) is a fictional character on the 1970s sitcom All in the Family (and occasionally Archie Bunker's Place), played by Jean Stapleton. She is married to Archie Bunker, mother of Gloria Stivic, mother-in-law of Michael "Meathead" Stivic, and grandmother of Joey Stivic. Her cousin is Maude Findlay (Bea Arthur), one of Archie's nemeses. While Edith is typically a traditional and usually subservient wife, Jean Stapleton was a noted feminist. Series creator Norman Lear said on All Things Considered that the reason why Archie would always tell Edith to stifle herself was because Lear's father told his mother to "stifle".