Family Ties: The Real Thing (Part 1)

"The Real Thing (Part 1)" is the first episode of season four of the American comedy series Family Ties and the twenty-fourth episode of the series overall. It was directed by Sam Weisman and written by Douglas Wyman. It first aired on NBC on September 26th, 1985. In this episode, Mallory's boyfriend, Jeff Wakefield returns hom to Columbus, Ohio, much to Mallory's excitement. He confesses to Alex however that he hates going to Princeton and wants to remain at home. He asks Mallory to go steady with him.