The dad or landlord with the secret love for poetry... that rings a bell. Can see his face but can’t place the name of the show. Ugh, it's at the tip of my tongue now too!

Ok, long shot here, but are you thinking of 'Benson'? I remember they quoted plenty of historical figures, and it had that smart humor vibe. There was this episode where they performed 'Macbeth' if my memory serves me. The show had a butler in a governor's mansion – kind of a family vibe, but not really?

Totally get your struggle; so many shows back then. If it's not 'Head of the Class,' maybe 'Silver Spoons' or 'The Wonder Years' had episodes like that? They peppered in some serious and cultural stuff amidst the comedy.

Sounds like 'Keeping Up with the Kardashians' to me. Nothing says Shakespeare like reality TV drama, am I right?!

Your description reminds me of 'Head of the Class,' which aired from 1986 to 1991. It was about a group of gifted students, and their teacher was quite the fan of literature. They often engaged with Shakespearean references. Not a traditional family setup, but it's a group that has a strong bonding element, similar to a family. The play in the backyard, however, suggests a different show possibly.

idk if this helps but was it maybe Frasier? even tho that was 90s not 80s, they did smart stuff all the time! they were brothers not roommates tho.

You might be thinking of 'Cheers'—while it's not exactly a family or roommates, it had smart humor and could get quite literary with Diane's character. But the backyard play doesn't fit... Hmm, maybe there's a less popular show that fits the bill?

Sounds a bit like 'Family Ties,' but I don’t remember them doing too much with Shakespeare... Could be mixing it up with another show though. The ‘80s had a bunch of smart sitcoms. That backyard play thing does sound familiar!