The bitter feud between "Married. . .With Children" co-stars Ed O'Neill and Amanda Bearse has been revealed — and it was because of a magazine cover.
During an episode of "Modern Family" co-star Jesse Tyler Ferguson's podcast "Dinner's On Me," O'Neill reflected on the point of contention with Bearse, who played Marcy, the Bundy family's neighbor who was the nemesis of Al Bundy (O'Neill) in the hit '80s sitcom.
O'Neill said that for a 1989 issue of TV Guide Magazine, O'Neill, Katey Sagal, Christina Applegate and David Faustino – the four actors who played the Bundy family members – were picked to be on the cover. But, Bearse and another cast member David Garrison – who played married couple Marcy and Steve Rhoades – were not, USA Today reported.
“Her and David Garrison were the neighbors, and they were told they could not be on the cover. Because they had a rule: only so many could be on the cover," O’Neill said. "Now, they violated that for like two shows – I think it was 'M.A.S.H.' and 'Dallas.' That was an exception; weren't doing it for us."
However, O'Neill said that Bearse and Garrison allegedly asked him to use his power to fight for them to also be included on the cover. But O'Neill said he didn't because he feared he would lose out on the opportunity and added that if he could go back in time, he "would have" tried. "That's my regret."
Bearse has not responded to a request to comment, USA Today said.
In 2018, Bearse said of O'Neill that she follows "the Thumper (from 'Bambi') rule. If you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all."
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