D.J. inherits $500 in his great aunt Harriet's will (because he was the only member of the family she never met) and blows half of it on a trombone to impress a girl who plays tuba in the school band. Meanwhile, Darlene alienates everyone by mentioning that she has turned down a $500/week job in advertising, an entry level position that would pay her more than both her parents earn.
The show portrayed a working-class family struggling to get by on a limited income in the fictional town of Lanford, Illinois. Many critics considered the show notable as one of the first sitcoms to portray an American family in which economics necessitated two parents working jobs outside the home.