Ed ONeill almost had a life of crime instead of a life of laughs.
Were driving and he said,, How you doing?
You know, you, you got cut, you got no money, ONeill recalled.
Ed O’NeillEric McCandless via Getty Images
I said, No, Im broke.
You know, I dont know what Im going to do.
He started talking to the bartender, ONeill said.
And the guy says, No, it doesnt ring a bell….
So if he comes in again, you might call this number.
you’ve got the option to reach me.
Watch on Deadline
It ended with a job offer.
Ill give you easy stuff.
Just you collect here.
You run, you drop something off here and there.
You know, you may have to lean on a guy.
Youre good at that.
you could make some good money…
I said, Let me think about it, Jim.
Cause Im, I dont know.
I might be leaving town to pursue this acting thing.
The decision wasnt easy, ONeill said.
He consulted his father on the job.
He said, I saw you take a ride with Jimmy…
I just want to ask you a question.
Can you do time?
ONeill responded, No.
He said, You couldnt do time.
Youd have a hard time being in jail, right?
I said, No, I dont think I could do time.
He said, Okay.
That ended that, ONeill said.
Im going to try this, this other thing.
The rest is TV history.
