Release CalendarDVD & Blu-ray ReleasesTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsIn TheatersComing SoonMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysLGBTQ+ Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Family Affair

Original title: Life with the Lyons
  • 19541954
  • 1h 21m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
54
YOUR RATING
Family Affair (1954)
  • Comedy
Ben, Bebe and family move into a new house, but are faced with a problematic landlord.Ben, Bebe and family move into a new house, but are faced with a problematic landlord.Ben, Bebe and family move into a new house, but are faced with a problematic landlord.
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
54
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Val Guest
  • Writers
    • Bob Block(radio series)
    • Bebe Daniels(radio series)
    • Robert Dunbar(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Bebe Daniels
    • Ben Lyon
    • Richard Lyon
Top credits
  • Director
    • Val Guest
  • Writers
    • Bob Block(radio series)
    • Bebe Daniels(radio series)
    • Robert Dunbar(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Bebe Daniels
    • Ben Lyon
    • Richard Lyon
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 3User reviews
    • 1Critic review
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos6

    Bebe Daniels and Belinda Lee in Family Affair (1954)
    Bebe Daniels and Belinda Lee in Family Affair (1954)
    Bebe Daniels, Barbara Lyon, Ben Lyon, and Richard Lyon in Family Affair (1954)
    Family Affair (1954)
    Family Affair (1954)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Bebe Daniels
    Bebe Daniels
    • Selfas Self
    • (as Bebe Daniels Lyon)
    Ben Lyon
    Ben Lyon
    • Selfas Self
    Richard Lyon
    Richard Lyon
    • Selfas Self
    Barbara Lyon
    • Selfas Self
    Hugh Morton
    • Mr. Hemingwayas Mr. Hemingway
    Horace Percival
    • Mr. Wimpleas Mr. Wimple
    Molly Weir
    • Aggieas Aggie
    Doris Rogers
    • Florrie Wainwrightas Florrie Wainwright
    Gwen Lewis
    • Mrs. Wimpleas Mrs. Wimple
    Arthur Hill
    Arthur Hill
    • Slim Cassidyas Slim Cassidy
    Belinda Lee
    Belinda Lee
    • Violet Hemingwayas Violet Hemingway
    Martin Lyder
    • Party Guestas Party Guest
    • (uncredited)
    Arthur Mullard
    Arthur Mullard
      • Director
        • Val Guest
      • Writers
        • Bob Block(radio series)
        • Bebe Daniels(radio series)
        • Robert Dunbar(screenplay)
      • All cast & crew
      • See more cast details at IMDbPro

      More like this

      The Runaway Bus
      6.1
      The Runaway Bus
      Eyewitness
      6.2
      Eyewitness
      Footsteps in the Fog
      7.0
      Footsteps in the Fog
      Blackout
      6.3
      Blackout
      Ruthless
      6.8
      Ruthless
      Messalina
      5.8
      Messalina
      Meet Mr. Callaghan
      6.1
      Meet Mr. Callaghan
      Marie of the Isles
      6.0
      Marie of the Isles
      The Nights of Lucretia Borgia
      5.4
      The Nights of Lucretia Borgia
      The Gentle Touch
      6.0
      The Gentle Touch
      Who Done It?
      5.6
      Who Done It?
      The Big Money
      5.5
      The Big Money

      Storyline

      Edit

      Did you know

      Edit
      • Trivia
        Made its New York TV debut (as "Family Affair") on 10 September 1956 on WRCA (Channel 4).
      • Connections
        Followed by The Lyons Abroad (1955)

      User reviews3

      Review
      Top review
      5/10
      Moving Into TV
      Ben Lyon, Bebe Daniels, and their two children move into a new house. There are still some things to settle: faulty electricity, poor drains, and the owner has neither signed the 75-year lease nor handed over the keys

      Daniels and Lyon moved from the US to Great Britain, at first because their American film careers were drying up, and they had offers in England. Then, when the Second World War started, they were among the few American entertainers to stick it out. They were enormously popular on stage, screen and radio, first with Vic Oliver. They came back to the US after the War, Ben worked at 20th Century-Fox, and Bebe tried producing, but that didn't pan out. So they resettled in Britain and started a new radio program 1951, in a show reminiscent of THE ADVENTURES OF OZZIE AND HARRIET, in which they played broadly comic versions of themselves, and their children did the same. This movie, and THE LYONS ABROAD, was a segue into turning the radio program into a TV show. It was successful, and they didn't retire from regular broadcasting until 1961.

      I can see why. It's an easy, comfortable sort of movie, one in which they pull a few sight gags that wouldn't have played on radio -- Steven Hill, as a singing cowboy, enters they foyer on his horse; a chandelier doesn't work, and when Ben rewires it, the radio plays, and the chandelier flickers in sympathy with the door bell. Bebe plays her role midway between Gracie Allen and Penny Singleton, and Ben is the confident bumbler. It's not great comedy, but as a visual version of the radio show, and a try-out for the TV show, it works just fine.
      helpful•1
      0
      • boblipton
      • Jun 15, 2020

      Details

      Edit
      • Release date
        • 1955 (United States)
      • Country of origin
        • United Kingdom
      • Language
        • English
      • Also known as
        • Life with the Lyons
      • Filming locations
        • Southall Studios, Southall, Middlesex, England, UK
      • Production company
        • Hammer Films
      • See more company credits at IMDbPro

      Technical specs

      Edit
      • Runtime
        1 hour 21 minutes
      • Color
        • Black and White
      • Aspect ratio
        • 1.37 : 1

      Related news

      Contribute to this page

      Suggest an edit or add missing content
      Family Affair (1954)
      Top Gap
      By what name was Family Affair (1954) officially released in Canada in English?
      Answer
      • See more gaps
      • Learn more about contributing
      Edit page

      More to explore

      View list
      List
      The Best Movies Coming This Summer
      See the full list
      Image caption not available
      2:02
      LGBTQIA+ Movies and Shows to Watch This Summer
      Watch the video

      Recently viewed

      Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
      Get the IMDb App
      • Get the IMDb App
      • Help
      • Site Index
      • IMDbPro
      • Box Office Mojo
      • IMDb Developer
      • Press Room
      • Advertising
      • Jobs
      • Conditions of Use
      • Privacy Policy
      • Interest-Based Ads
      IMDb, an Amazon company

      © 1990-2022 by IMDb.com, Inc.