Archie Bunker branch of the United States Army. Archie often insisted that he was a member of the Air Corps. He received the Good Conduct Medal, and in the "All in the Family" episode , it is disclosed he also received the Purple Heart for being hit in his buttocks by shrapnel. He married Edith Bunker 22 years before the first season. Later recollections of their mid-1940s courtship do not result in a consistent timeline. On the flashback episode showing Mike and Gloria's wedding, Archie indicates to Mike that his courtship of Edith lasted two years and hints that their relationship was
Archie Bunker patch things up between them. However, in Fred's return trip to visit Archie and Edith, he arrives with a beautiful 18-year-old wife named Katherine. This leads to a heated discussion, which erupts into an argument between Archie and Fred over May–September romances and places another strain on the relationship between Archie and Fred, who storms angrily out of the Bunker home with his teen bride. Archie and Fred apparently are estranged for the next three-plus years. Putting a further strain on the relationship was the 1981 arrival of Fred's 18-year-old daughter, Barbara ("Billie") Denise Miller, who is also upset over