My 50 Favorite Sitcoms of All Time

Registered User

03-03-15

1.
Roseanne

OK, season nine was crap and Sarah Chalke never really worked replacing Lecy Goranson as Becky, but this was network television's most realistic depiction of a dysfunctional family EVER. The Conners put a humorous spin on events that real families dealt with. We felt Roseanne when she walked out on her job at Wellmann's and then swept hair at a beauty parlor. We felt Dan when his dream of opening a motorcycle shop went down the drain. We understood when the Conners lights were turned off because they couldn't afford to pay their utility bill. We understood Dan and Roseanne's anger when Becky ran away and married her boyfriend Mark and we understood when younger daughter Darlene got pregnant on the family trip to Disney World. We understood these people, we knew people like them, we WERE the Conners and we loved that they allowed us to see the humor in these very human tragedies. Roseanne developed into a plausible actress and not just a standup comedienne reciting funny lines and John Goodman was nothing short of brilliant as Dan Conner, possibly television's best husband and father.

honeykid

MoFo Whisperer

03-03-15

Originally Posted by Gideon58

The creative genius that is Norman Lear brought us this groundbreaking sitcom that broke all the rules .

Well, it's much easier when the original had already run for six years.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Till_Death_Us_Do_Part

I see he also did Sanford & Son... Which had been running ten years.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steptoe_and_Son

Although I suspect that this was very different.

Roseanne was great. I loved that programme, though I stopped watching a season or two before the end, I think. I preferred the new Becky.

I love the end of her first episode, too.

Friends is one of my all time favourite programmes and my favourite sitcom. I watch it every day.

__________________
5-time MoFo Award winner.

Citizen Rules

Noir Time

03-03-15

Excellent job on this! Nice write ups and great choices. You listed many of my favorite shows

I'm on season 2 of your number 2 choice The Mary Tyler Moore Show. I'm surprised at just how good the show is and Valerie Harper is such a naturalistic comedian too. I'll have to watch Rhoda.

I loved what you wrote about one of my all time top favorite shows, Bewitched. It's a great show I could watch it over and over but too bad many of the original cast members had to be replaced. 4 of them were replaced. The 5th one, Aunt Clara was never replaced after she past. I never liked the new replacements as much as the originals. Samantha wears that heart pendant any many of the episodes it was as gift from her husband.

honeykid

MoFo Whisperer

03-03-15

I used to really like Rhoda. I think it was the first time I'd heard that name. Another big US hit that used to be on late night here, tucked away on BBC2 usually.

BTW, congrats on finishing your list, Gideon.

I love sitcoms so this was a good one for me.

Last edited by honeykid; 03-03-15 at 06:22 PM.

Gideon58

Registered User

03-03-15

Originally Posted by dadgumblah

Gideon, I'm loving this list, and loving the reminder of shows I've forgotten. Dear John is an example. I watched that show faithfully but in the ensuing years sort of forgot it. Nice that you remembered it. I loved Jane Carr as the support group leader who was always asking if something was "sexual?" And Jere Burns stood out as the slimy member of the group who never failed to make me laugh.

I guess I'm one of the few besides you, Gideon, that remembers My World and Welcome To It. William Windom was great but I thought his daughter, played by Lisa Gerritsen, was a scene-stealer.

The Dick Van Dyke show is one of the best sitcoms ever. I could list any number of classic episodes but I was particularly enamored of the fifth and final season, which included Dick buying the latest sports car called The Tarantula.

Also included is the episode where Dick takes his ugly dog , named Horrible, to a groomer who is played by the great Billy De Wolfe. He tells Billy, "I want you to make Horrible beautiful," and Billy responds in his famous snobbish way, "And your second choice?" Over-all, one of the best sitcoms ever.

Glad to see Frasier so high on the list. One of my personal favorite shows of all time, be it comedy or drama. Every thing you said about it is true, and I'd like to add Peri Gilpin as the beautiful and earthy Roz, Frasier's producer. Also, Jane Leeves as the sexy physical therapist for Frasier's dad and whom his brother Niles pines away for years. Intelligent humor but not above anyone's head. I love how Frasier and his brother are snooty one moment and then low-brow the next minute as the people they think they're above. I'm currently watching all the seasons in reruns every day.

As the list gets closer to the end, I'm thinking that my favorite comedy of all time will be at the top. Great topic and great entries in the list.

Loved Lisa Gerritsen on that show and on The Mary Tyler Moore Show which, sadly, she got phased out of early on. Glad to share your love for Frasier...if I had done something different with that show, I would have loved to have seen the hate/hate relationship between Roz and Niles go sexual...I thought they had way more chemistry than Niles and Daphne.

Gideon58

Registered User

03-03-15

Originally Posted by Citizen Rules

Excellent job on this! Nice write ups and great choices. You listed many of my favorite shows

I love that photo of Liz Montgomery you posted...is that from an episode? I don't recall it at all.

dadgumblah

Registered User

03-03-15

Loved Lisa Gerritsen on that show and on The Mary Tyler Moore Show which, sadly, she got phased out of early on. Glad to share your love for Frasier...if I had done something different with that show, I would have loved to have seen the hate/hate relationship between Roz and Niles go sexual...I thought they had way more chemistry than Niles and Daphne.

Yes! Roz and Niles were always sniping at each other and it would have been genius to match them up, instead of Roz having all her boyfriends and then "accidentally" hooking up with Frasier and Bulldog. Loved Roz's raspy voice and her facial expressions when she was angry or frustrated. I thought it was interesting that Niles' wife Maris was never seen and on the series that they were spun off from, Cheers, you never saw Norm's wife, Vera, either.

I was hoping that my favorite comedy series, M*A*S*H would be #1. But I know a lot of people that either loved it or hated it. And some people loved the earlier comedic episodes but hated the later seasons when the show tackled the serious side of war. And knew some people that liked it vice-versa. But I can still watch it after seeing all the jokes and still love it, and love the acting. And everytime someone left the show, they always brilliantly brought someone just as talented in as a new character.

But, anyway, great list, with Frasier and The Dick Van Dyke Show being my faves on here.

__________________
"Miss Jean Louise, Mr. Arthur Radley."

Gideon58

Registered User

03-04-15

Originally Posted by dadgumblah

I seriously thought about having MASH in my top ten, but as you said, I'm one of the those people who preferred the earlier seasons to the latter and never really adjusted to some of the cast changes...I had no problem with Mike Farrell replacing Wayne Rogers, but I preferred McLean Stevenson to Harry Morgan and Larry Linville to David Ogden Stiers. I also think the whole tone of the show changed when Alan Alda became executive producer and got a little full of himself. The show was much darker and just wasn't as fun to watch as the earlier seasons.

christine

Dreams is freedom

03-04-15

Very much enjoyed reading your list Gideon! There's quite a lot I've never heard of but must've passed me by as HK says they have been on tv over in the UK. The fact that he was watching them while sagging off school is by the by

In my family we all loved The Beverley Hillbillies, I Dream of Jeannie and Bewitched. The other one we loved was Mr Ed. Me and my mum used to avidly watched Rhoda too, she was gorgeous

honeykid

MoFo Whisperer

03-04-15

Originally Posted by christine

It's probably served me better than going would've.

In my family we all loved The Beverley Hillbillies, I Dream of Jeannie and Bewitched. The other one we loved was Mr Ed.

All those used to be on Channel 4, too. That's why I know them.

Citizen Rules

Noir Time

03-04-15

Originally Posted by Gideon58

I love that photo of Liz Montgomery you posted...is that from an episode? I don't recall it at all.

It's from Bewitched but I don't remember which episode either. I can tell by her hair and make up that it's an early episode. I like her look in the first few seasons better that the latter seasons.

A similar photo, also in a restaurant or lounge. They did a lot of drinking on that show.

Gideon58

Registered User

03-06-15

Originally Posted by gbgoodies

This is one of my all-time favorite TV shows. It was #3 on my TV show list, and the second sitcom on my list, (behind "The Big Bang Theory" and "Castle").

(My first four shows were actually a four-way tie for 1st Place, and it could have easily been my #1 show if I had made my list on a different day.)

I have never been able to get through an entire episode of The Big Bang Theory or Castle.

Gideon58

Registered User

03-06-15

I love the end of her first episode, too.

If you're talking about the show's send-up of the opening of The Patty Duke Show, I totally agree, it was brilliant...I loved the way they never made bones about the fact that a new actress was playing Becky and even addressed it in the script when Lecy Goranson briefly returned for a season. This show spent so much time walking the fine line of breaking the 4th wall and it almost always worked...sometimes the funniest moments on this show occurred during the final tag scene where they rolled the credits...remember when John Gooodman and Dan's poker buddies did a rap version of theme from The Beverly Hillbillies?

Last edited by Gideon58; 03-10-15 at 05:01 PM.

Gideon58

Registered User

03-06-15

They did a lot of drinking on that show.

Wow, no argument on that one...Darren would have one every night when he would come home and the first words out of Sam's mouth whenever Larry Tate would come over were "Would you like a drink?"

gbgoodies

You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.

03-06-15

Originally Posted by Gideon58

I have never been able to get through an entire episode of The Big Bang Theory or Castle.

Well that's sad to hear. Those are two of my all-time favorite TV shows. I can (and do) watch them over and over again.

Gideon58

Registered User

03-06-15

Originally Posted by gbgoodies

Well that's sad to hear. Those are two of my all-time favorite TV shows. I can (and do) watch them over and over again.

And I love Nathan Fillion too...have loved him ever since he played Joey on OLTL, but for some reason, I'm not feeling Castle.

gbgoodies

You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.

03-06-15

Originally Posted by Gideon58

And I love Nathan Fillion too...have loved him ever since he played Joey on OLTL, but for some reason, I'm not feeling Castle.

I'm a big fan of Nathan Fillion too, and I think Castle is his best show, (including Firefly). Richard Castle is great with his crazy theories about some of the crimes, and he acts like such a child sometimes, that he's so much fun.

honeykid

MoFo Whisperer

03-06-15

Usually I can't stand Nathan Fillion, but for some reason he works for me in Castle.

I didn't used to like The Big Bang Theory either, but then I caught a few episodes of much later episodes (once the girls were in it) and I think it's much better. I like them all now, but I still much prefer the later seasons with Bernadette and Amy in them.

gbgoodies

You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.

03-06-15

Originally Posted by honeykid

I became a fan of The Big Bang Theory after watching the very first episode, and I think it just gets better and better with each new episode. There have been a couple of misses, but for the most part, this show is almost perfect.

And I agree that the girls definitely added a whole new level to the show.

90sAce