Best TV Sitcoms of All Time

Though in recent years television networks have shifted their focus to reality shows and crime dramas for years the sitcom made up a big part of their viewing schedule, and audiences tuned in weekly to laugh along with their favorite characters for 30 minutes (minus commercials). Coming up with a list of the top 20 best sitcoms was a challenge, simply because there have been so many funny sitcoms over the past 5 decades of TV. I’ve done my best to separate the wheat from the chaff, and come up with a truly definitive list that covers a broad range of eras and themes, and this is what I narrowed it down to. Here are my picks for the funniest sitcoms of all time:

20 – The Flintstones - Though certainly not as risqué as Family Guy or even The Simpsons this cartoon was a breakthrough for network television as it was the first prime time animated show that targeted an adult audience. The Flintstones was like The Honeymooners of the Stone Age and fans of Jackie Gleason’s Ralph Kramden found plenty of similarities in Fred Flintstone. The show enjoyed immense popularity during its original run on ABC in the 60s and spent an additional 3 decades in syndication.

19 – South Park - Though many parents may not agree this groundbreaking series by Trey Parker and Matt Stone has been one of the best animated shows on television for better than a decade now. Following the daily adventures of Eric Cartman and friends the series goes where no other shows have gone before and often push the boundaries of decency. Still, if you get the humor there is no doubt this is one of the funniest TV shows of all time.

18 – The Office - This applies to both the UK and the US versions of the show as I believe they are equally as good. The show revolves around a manager at a paper company and his relationship with his employees. Where Ricky Gervais played the manager in the UK version, Steve Carell fills that role in the US version. Both are equally funny and will make you cringe with their ill thought out attempts to impress their staff. Arguably the wittiest show on television after the disappointing cancellation of Fox’s Arrested Development.

17 – Curb Your Enthusiasm - Another HBO show makes the list of the best TV sitcoms of all time. Starring Larry David, the co-creator of Seinfeld the show plays a lot like an R-rated version of Seinfeld with Larry David’s character comprised of elements of both Jerry and George. If you are a Seinfeld fan and are looking for humor in a similar vein then definitely check this one out.

16 – The Honeymooners - One of the very first sitcoms, this hugely influential show first aired way back in October of 1955. It lasted only 39 episodes on its own, but the characters continued to be featured (as they had prior to 1955) on the Jackie Gleason Show.

15 – The Cosby Show - If you were making a list of the best TV shows of the 80s this one would definitely get consideration for a high spot. Comedian Bill Cosby starred as Dr. Cliff Huxtable, the patriarch of the family teaching his children moral values while making the audience laugh hysterically.

14 – Three’s Company - The late great John Ritter starred as the clumsy  girl-crazed cook Jack Tripper in this series about a young man who pretends to be gay so the apartment building’s landlord will allow him to live with and split the rent with two young women. This show would make you cringe as you watched Jack try to extricate himself from embarrassingly awkward situations. Oh, and Mr. Furley (played by Don Knotts) has to be one of the best characters in sitcom history.

13 – Gilligan’s Island - A show about a group of tourists who get stranded on an island doesn’t necessarily sound like the makings of a sitcom, however the stellar casting, particularly in the case of Bob Denver as Gilligan, made sure the cast had instant comedic chemistry, and audiences ate up the goofy humor for 3 seasons back in the mid 1960s.

12 – Arrested Development - Another show that sadly lasted only 3 seasons, Arrested Development is one of the smartest, funniest shows to come along in years, and only poor promotion by Fox kept it from being a huge mainstream hit. With comedic actors like Jason Bateman, Michael Cera, David Cross, Will Arnett and Jeffrey Tambor all among the cast it is easy to see why the show was so funny. Thankfully for the many fans we haven’t seen the last of the show. An Arrested Development movie is in the works and should hit theaters some time in 2010.

11 – Blackadder - This unique show stars Rowan Atkinson of Mr. Bean fame and is actually a set of several series and sketches that follow the Blackadder family through several centuries of their history. Uproariously funny the show is one of the best British shows of all time in any genre.

10 – Cheers - Well, here we are now in the top 10 TV sitcoms of all time, and this cornerstone of NBC’s vaunted must-see-TV lineup is well deserving of its high spot on the list. Set in a Boston bar it is hard to believe the writers were creative enough to milk enough content for 11 seasons. However, it was the characters – some of the most iconic in television history – that really made the show. Sam, Diane, Norm, Cliff, Carla, Coach, Woody and Frasier were just so well-acted and so well-written that they kept audiences coming back for more. A true sitcom classic that holds up today, despite the fact that it has been 16 years since the final episode aired.

9 – The Andy Griffith Show - Set in the idyllic town of Mayberry, Andy Griffith stars in the lead role as Sheriff Andy Taylor. Don Knotts is his well-meaning, but ridiculously inept deputy, Barney Fife, and a young Ron Howard stars as his son Opie. One of the most wholesome shows in television history, the sitcom preaches family values and Mayberry is about as far to the other end of the spectrum from South Park as one can get.

8 – Happy Days - If there is another sitcom that produced more spin-offs than Happy Days I don’t know what it is. Ron Howard stars as Richie Cunningham, a teenager growing up in Milwaukee. The action shifts between his home life with parents Howard and Marion and his sister Joannie and his time hanging out at local restaurant Arnolds with Potsie, Ralph and The Fonz. Filled with some of TV’s most iconic characters the show was one of the most popular on television until that fated episode when Fonzie jumped the shark in his leather jacket.

7 – Fawlty Towers - You know that a sitcom with legendary Monty Python funnyman John Cleese is going to be hysterical. Though it only lasted 12 episodes in total it is the absolute pinnacle of television humor and is, in my opinion, the best British sitcom ever made.

6 – Frasier - Hard to deny the most decorated comedy show in television history a high spot on the list of the funniest sitcoms of all time. Spun off from the hit show Cheers, Frasier following Dr. Frasier Crane’s life after moving from Boston to Seattle, looked to be nothing more than a cash grab for NBC at first. However the spectacular casting of David Hyde Pierce as Frasier’s brother Niles really gave the show some added comedic punch, and helped the show succeed where most spin-offs fail, raking in 37 Emmy awards over its 11 seasons.

5 – M*A*S*H - Based on the hit 1970 movie of the same name, M*A*S*H, a sitcom about a group of surgeons, nurses and clerks operating a mobile surgical hospital during the Korean War showed that humor can be found in any situation. The show, starring Alan Alda in the lead role as Hawkeye Pierce was one of the most popular sitcoms of the 70s and 80s, and the 105 million viewers that tuned in for the final episode in 1983 were the most ever for a television episode.

4 – The Simpsons - The longest running sitcom and the longest running animated show in television history The Simpsons has been on the air for 20 seasons, with 441 episodes broadcast in that span. The yellow cartoon family has influenced popular culture as much as any show in TV history, has spawned a movie, and has millions of fans worldwide. Some of Hollywood’s biggest names have made cameos on the show, lending their voices to guest characters, and the show is not only popular with fans but with critics too, earning 24 Emmys during its run to date. Easily the best animated show of all time.

3 – All in the Family - Though Homer Simpson might be the most iconic character on a sitcom today, back in the 70s that title belonged to one Archie Bunker. Carol O’Connor starred in the lead role as the grouchy Archie Bunker, and might have been one of the least likeable but most genuine main characters to ever appear on television. The show dominated the Nielsen ratings for most of its run, staying at #1 from 1971 to 1976, and was one of the most socially conscious shows of its era, tackling many topics from homosexuality to racism that were previously deemed unsuitable for prime time television.

2 – I Love Lucy - Some old-timers are likely aghast at the notion that I could put any show ahead of their beloved Lucille Ball’s I Love Lucy. Co-starring Desi Arnaz as Lucy’s husband Ricky Ricardo the show was a massive hit in the 1950s, and was the most watched program in the United States in 4 of its seasons. The show obviously ended too soon as it was the first show in any genre to end its run #1 in the ratings.

1 – Seinfeld - Though this show has its detractors I don’t think there is any question it belongs at in the #1 spot on the list of the top 20 best sitcoms ever. The best TV show of the 90s, Seinfeld was pure comedic genius. Popular stand-up comedian Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David co-created the show about a stand-up comic named Jerry Seinfeld and his goofy, neurotic, often downright mean group of friends, George, Kramer and Elaine. The show followed the group as they turned ordinary humdrum situations into extraordinary events. The show dominated the Nielsen ratings during the bulk of its run, and to this day is arguably the most quotable show in television history.