The American family does exist, but it is extremely rare. That is why shows such as "Family Ties" had great success because, we can not all assocaite with it so we look to the tv family for its rarity. The total and pure American family can only exist the fanatsy worls of television. Their appeal to the audience is high because we want to grow up in that perfect family, but we cant so therefor we just grow up watching them on tv.