Surprising Stories from the Set of One Day at a Time

Long before Bonnie Franklin and Valerie Bertinelli were cast, One Day at a Time was conceived as a star vehicle for Whitney Blake and her real-life daughter, Meredith Baxter. The concept was based directly on Blake’s own experiences raising Baxter as a single mother.

Blake shopped the idea to networks in the 1960s, but it lingered in development limbo for years. By the time producer Norman Lear bought it in 1974, too much time had passed. The project moved forward — but with an entirely different cast.