All in the Family (1971–1979)
Every Saturday night from 1971 to 1979, millions of people in America tuned in to CBS to see what came out of Archie Bunker's mouth this time. Some of them would agree with his suburban bigotry, but most would recognize it for what it was: the most brilliant television satire of all time. Created by Norman Lear, All in the Family reinvented what a television show could say and deal with. He went further and turned a modest 30-minute formula into something revolutionary by airing the divisions and wounds of our fractured nation. That may sound heavy, but thanks to Carroll O'Connor's Archie, Jean Stapleton's Edith, Rob Reiner's Meathead, and Sally Struthers' Gloria, All in the Family and its complicated leading man delivered bitter medicine that went down like sugar.
The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970–1977)
Who could give the world a smile? Mary, Lou, Ted, Murray, Rhoda, Phyllis, and Sue Ann, these are the ones that could. This is the largest collection of three-dimensional characters (and character actors) in television history. The script is top-notch. The jokes are perfection. The timing is impeccable. But what makes The Mary Tyler Moore Show better than the sum of its parts is that it showed us a single woman living her life on her own terms. Moore, who showcased her comedic chops on The Dick Van Dyke Show, is an associate producer at a small Minneapolis TV station populated by a gruff boss (Ed Asner's Lou), a screw-up host (Ted Knight's Ted), a sarcastic writer (Gavin MacLeod's Murray) and a happy, horny housewife (Betty White's Sue Ann). Along with her neighbors Rhoda (Valerie Harper) and Phyllis (Cloris Leachman), Mary showed us a woman from the 1970s who, despite having everything against her, would make it through.
Cheers (1982–1993)
How many jokes begin with the phrase: A guy walks into a bar? I have no idea, but it's certainly as many as 11 seasons worth of Cheers episodes, each of which seems to start with a new way of taking that premise and turning it into something unexpected and brilliant. Set in a Boston bar run by former Red Sox pitcher and womanizer Sam Malone (Ted Danson), the show's run can be divided into two parts: the first features the romantic tension between Sam and the arrogant grad student-turned in waitress Diane (Shelley Long); the second features the S- the tension between Sam and the funny and disastrous Rebecca (Kirstie Alley). The fact that it's hard to pick which one is better says a lot about how exquisite this series is and how incredible its supporting cast is (George Wendt, John Ratzenberger, Rhea Perlman, Nicholas Colasanto, Woody Harrelson, Kelsey Grammer, Bebe Neuwirth).
Seinfeld (1989–1998)
How could a "show about nothing" find so much to talk about: the game show, blah blah blah, the soup Nazi... the list goes on. No one will ever mistake Jerry Seinfeld for a great TV actor, but he is one of the great straight men of the medium (who would have thought that the famous stand-up comedian the show is named after would be a straight man?), trying to not to laugh as Elaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), George (Jason Alexander) and dopey maverick Kramer (Michael Richards) sneak in and out of her apartment without warning or even knocking on the door. Seinfeld is, hands down, the best sitcom of the '90s, and while Jerry's faded jeans have certainly gotten old, this classic hasn't.
The Larry Sanders Show (1992–1998)
Back in the '90s, when the biggest news in entertainment was the late-night Leno-Letterman-Arsenio wars, Garry Shandling held up a distorted mirror to behind-the-scenes drama with The Larry Sanders Show. Brilliant, mean-spirited, and introspective, this HBO shows sliced through Hollywood egos without mercy. As the ever-insecure host of the title talk show, Shandling has an almost zen-like self-awareness, a taste for his own jugular. And the supporting cast of the show is perfect, especially Jeffrey Tambor as Larry's clueless partner Hank, and Rip Torn as his producer and whiskey-loving watchdog, Artie. This series started out great, ended great, and was never anything but great in between. In fact, whenever I'm asked who my favorite TV character of all time is, the answer is right on the tip of my tongue.
I Love Lucy (1951–1957)
Lucille Ball remains the alpha and omega of slapstick TV comedians. Even in black and white, her red hair always seems to be on fire. The show's premise couldn't be simpler: Latino gang leader Ricky Ricardo (Ball's real-life husband, Desi Arnaz) has to constantly bail out his wacky, talkative wife Lucy. Will he ever learn his lesson from him? Of course not. Whether she's struggling to keep up with a conveyor belt or stomping on grapes, Lucy is the ever-moving eye of a hurricane of comedy. It's impossible not to adore Lucy. Or, frankly, her intrepid next-door neighbors, Fred and Ethel Mertz.
30 Rock (2006–2013)
Speaking of returning to the stage by popular demand, former Saturday Night Live head writer Tina Fey parodied late-night variety shows, the self-absorbed eccentrics who work them, and the surreal idiocy of network TV politics in this fast-paced series that somehow included more jokes between commercial breaks than most shows in an entire season. As Liz Lemon, Fey beautifully blended antisocial awkwardness with surreal comedy. Orbiting around her dry humor were the perfect Tracy Morgan, Jane Krakowski, and Alec Baldwin, all of whom felt the same collective delight to bite the NBC hand that fed them.
