There really are only about a dozen or so great sitcoms.

[Wat_Tyler]

The vast majority of sitcoms are mediocrities. They're pleasant enough, but all they really are is some variation on the original Honeymooners model, or, more recently, variations on Seinfeld. The truly great sitcoms tell society the truth about itself. They document the neuroses and mores of society and make us laugh while confronting uncomfortable truths about our selves. This is why the English are such masters at the form, due to their society's repressed nature, the sitcom can stripmine the comedy of humiliation and embarassment (see Fawlty Towers). You can decide for yourself what that dozen is, but for me, this is the list.

Fawlty Towers - clearly a masterpiece of embarassment, repression, frustration and truth. Basil Fawlty shines a light on a particularly dark part of the English psyche and manages to hit a universal theme of frustration.

The Phil Silvers Show / Sergeant Bilko - an original. So many of the classic sitcom moves come from Bilko.

The Rise and Fall of Reginald Perrin - in its way as shocking as 'A Clockwork Orange', this mid-70's English classic does something very few American comedies ever do - it tells the truth about class, career and family. Reggie is a classic everyman who wakes up one day and realizes the utter futility and ludicrousness of his bourgeois life. Probably the most subtly political television ever. Leonard Rossiter is one of the greatest TV actors to have ever graced the screen.

The Honeymooners - Has to make the list as the granddaddy of American sitcoms.

Father Ted - The greatest sitcom of the past twenty years that isn't called Seinfeld. I can use any superlative I like to describe it, and i'd still be underestimating it.

Seinfeld - obviously.

Black Books - A recent work of genius featuring Bill Bailey and Dylan Moran.

Taxi - another hardy perennial

The Likely Lads / Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads - From the golden age of English television comedy (1967-1977), these two shows documented the male psyche with extraordinary precision.

Porridge - Yeah. Comedy set in a prison. And it works.

The Young Ones - One of the first great pop-culture sitcoms, what would've become of The Monkees if they realized just how much The Man was screwing them.

12 - With any luck, #12 is going into production as we speak. On edit - clearly #12 is M*A*S*H

[teach1st]

1. Dick Van Dyke

For many reasons.

[blondeatlast]

46. That, and the Mary Tyler Moore Show.

Consistently excellent writing.

Find me anyone who can keep from howling at "The Death of Chuckles."

[Randi_Listener]

2. Where the fuck is Sanford and Son?

That's a fucking classic if there ever was one.

[Wat_Tyler]

3. I could be persuaded to put in 'Steptoe and Son'

which 'Sanford and Son' is based on.

[Randi_Listener]

12. Sanford and Son is beter executed.

The fucking cast of characters is a classic from Rollo to Aunt Ester. The fucking Ned the Wino and pair of cops are the goddamn shit as well.

[Wat_Tyler]

14. Like I say, this is my list.

I imagine yours would be different.

[HalfManHalfBiscuit]

6. No shit

Number one.

[miss_kitty]

15. not funny. He said comedies.

JMHO.

:)

[bloodyjack]

4. MASH had its moments

[HEyHEY]

5. M*A*S*H How could you forget mash?

[Wat_Tyler]

9. Yeah, you're right, I can't leave out MASH.

[Kahuna]

7. Har! The Beverly Hillbillies, Married With Children, Barney Miller..

As I recall, when I was a child I used to roar at the Phil Silvers/Sgt. Bilko Show. I need to see if it holds up to my adult taste.

[miss_kitty]

19. He said comedies

only Barney Miller fits that category of your 3 picks IMHO. that was totally funny

:D

[baby_bear]

8. I Love Lucy

...set the bar for those coming later; and All in the Family, which is timely to this day.

s_m

[short bus president]

10. No Diff'rent Strokes???

Whatchoo talkin' 'bout, Wat Tyler?

:P

[Wat_Tyler]

17. I was never a fan.

Mind you, I never liked Cheers or Frasier, so what do I know?

[miss_kitty]

20. Diff'rent Strokes? Ick

JMHO :7

[short bus president]

25. But... but... but...

They had VERY SPECIAL EPISODES! With KIGHT RIDER! And Dudley gettin' diddled by Mr. Carlson - that's quality 80s entertainment, dammit!

[miss_kitty]

41. I forgot to watch tv in the 80s

I was MIA in the latish 70s too.

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

51. What might be right for you might not be right for some

[justgamma]

11. Archie Bunker!!

Soap and Dharma and Greg

[Wat_Tyler]

16. I could put in 'Til Death Do Us Part' / 'In Sickness and in Health'

Which Archie Bunker is a direct translation of.
As for Dharma and Greg, I wouldn't.

[haele]

23. Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman...

Louise Lassiter as the "typical housewife" stuck in a soap opera world.

Haele

[CO Liberal]

13. "He & She"

It starred Richard Benjamin, Paula Prentiss, Hamilton Camp, Kenneth Mars, and Jack Cassidy. Though it only lasted one season (1967-69, and rerun during the summer of 1969), it served as the predecessor for such ensemble comedies as "The Mary Tyler Moore Show", "The Bob Newhart Show", and dozens of other ensemble sitcoms in the '70s and '80s.

[kodi]

43. cassidy was great in that playing over the top as the tv star jet man

it was one of my true favorite tv shows.

[smbolisnch]

18. All In The Family

Hands down, the best.

[Kat45]

22. Absolutely.

"All in the Family" is the best.

[smbolisnch]

42. It doesn't matter how bad my day has been....

If I can catch a rerun of AITF, I will crack up. Same with the parade/float scene in Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Cheers me up every time!

[Wat_Tyler]

28. Yeah, but it was a translation of 'In Sickness and in Health'

It was very weird to see Alf Garnett reborn as Archie Bunker.

[Archae]

21. My Mother The Car

I'm kidding! I'm kidding!

I did enjoy one sitcom that usually doesn't show up on the lists of good ones, "Scorch."

[TroubleMan]

24. The Simpsons is my favorite sitcom of all time

That being said, I don't like sitcoms at all.

The only two I liked are The Simpsons and Seinfeld.

[Wat_Tyler]

26. If we consider The Simpsons a sitcom, it definitely is top 10.

[TroubleMan]

32. Why is it not a sitcom? I've always classified it as such.

nt.

[Wat_Tyler]

33. Fair enough.

[miss_kitty]

27. I loved Black Books

but I am very fond of 'Murder Most Horrid' and 'Absolutely Fabulous'. And 'Rik Mayall Presents'. And 'Made In Canada' I feel was scathingly brilliant, and a shining star of Canadian telly. I feel Rick Mercer is a true comic genius.

The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin-brill. Agree about Leonard Rossiter.

[Wat_Tyler]

29. OK. Absolutely Fabulous is, well, absolutely fabulous.

Consider that #13. Agree about Mercer. I prefer him in the Jon Stewart-esque role as fake newsman, but whatever - he's a genius.

[miss_kitty]

35. but '22 Minutes' and 'Monday Report'

aren't sitcoms.

I wish they'd kill 'Airfarce'

shit. 'The Newsroom' was damn fine too

[Wat_Tyler]

37. Air Farce is an atrocity.

So, do they get the CBC in Seattle?

[miss_kitty]

40. yeah it's my fave channel

I have baby basic cable and it's part of the package. I watch Made In Canada every chance I get even though I've seen each episode at least 3 times. They ran GBH which I saw in 1991 in London. A brilliant drama-comedy by Alan Bleasdale.
It's where I used to watch Rik Mayall and saw Black Books and Ab Fab. ON Edit: Kids in the Hall!

They backed off the British stuff in the late night in the past few years. Disappointing. Not a fan of the French Canadien stuff.

Plus they allow swearing and nekkid people!

[girl gone mad]

34. You brought it up first..

but Absolutely Fabulous was top notch.

I also happen to be a Roseanne fan. I just don't think (lower) middle class America has ever been portrayed as accurately and thoughtfully as in Roseanne. Here were working class people who weren't dopes (Lucy) or bigots (Archie Bunker) or any of the rest.

[Wat_Tyler]

39. Yeah, American sitcoms tend not to represent the working class in reality.

[Ivan Sputnik]

30. Mary Tyler Moore Show

I think most TV critics put it in the top ten.

[Wat_Tyler]

31. I'm not a TV critic. I'm an ill-educated internet blowhard.

[realisticphish]

36. the young ones

i LOVE that show


:hippie: The Incorrigible Democrat

[hyphenate]

38. I dunno

I grew up with sitcoms, but for the most part, I hate them. Yes, there are probably good ones through the years, but there are very, very few I would sit down and watch the fourth or fifth time. Even most of the historically good ones.

Barney Miller--There was just something about it. Can't put my finger on it, but it was always good.

WKRP in Cincinnati--Another one of my favorites. Just made me feel good when I watched it.

Three's Company--I had a big crush on John Ritter, even then.

Fawlty Towers--I did like this one a lot, but nowadays it seems a little forced to me.

Night Court--I just liked it.

Dave's World--Great show. It's not on everybody's radar, though.

M*A*S*H--Loved this series, though more often than not, I don't think of it as a comedy. It had its comedic moments, true, but it was deep down a very serious theme.

Two and a Half Men--I haven't found many good comedies lately, and I hope I don't offend anyone when I say I have watched most of the better known ones of the past five or more years, and can't stand most of them. On the other hand, I love Two and a Half Men. I don't know why, but the characters are lovable, totally hilarious in ironic ways, and the show is just filled with a lot of love.

I have also liked a lot of the 60s and 70s really dipsy comedies, like Bewitched, I Dream of Jeannie, Taxi, The Odd Couple and a unique favorite, Quark.

[DS1]

44. Ahh, you listed The Young Ones. I can put my gun away now

;-)

[terrya]

45. Would you put The Simpsons in your list?

It's an unconventional sitcom, but that's essentially what it is.

[ScreamingMeemie]

47. I don't like Seinfeld. It's a horrid little show, and I have to say

I'm kind of grateful it's over. :hi: MASH was a great show.

[tsakshaug]

48. Police Squad

Short run...but great.

[Dukakis88]

49. "Curb Your Enthusiasm"/"Strangers with Candy"/"The Office"/"Get a Life"

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

50. Man - you left off Who's the Boss!

I don't like you anymore

[terrya]

52. And where in the hell is "It's a Living", that groundbreaking show...

starring Ann Jillian?? That's a GLARING omission. :-)

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

53. And leave it to a foreigner to forget Elizabeth Montgomery!

Have we lost all sense of reason?

[terrya]

57. You would think Canadians would appreciate these fine contributions...

to popular culture. Sadly, you would be wrong.

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

58. More for us!

Woo hoo!!!

[DelawareValleyDem]

54. Odd Couple and Cheers

Best sitcoms of the seventies and eighties, respectively

[NashVegas]

55. Soap

But mainly the first two seasons, before the producers got distracted by "Benson."

[Strawman]

56. Get a Life

Is the funniest ever.

[EstimatedProphet]

59. WKRP

I would rate it as one of the best, by your standards. It was a situation comedy that managed to explore social issues at the same time.

[ALago1]

60. Anybody ever hear of the show "Keeping up Appearances"?

This show was before my time (I'm 22), and I catch reruns of it on BBC or PBS now and then.

It's great social satire, poking fun at the rich and superficial working class who envy them.

I think it was big in England, but nobody I know has heard of it.

[Midlodemocrat]

63. I love that show! We watch every Sat. night.

[XNASA]

61. I'm partial to the original "Bob Newhart Show"

I remember back in the early 70's when "All in the Family", "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and "The Bob Newhart Show" were all in the Saturday night CBS line-up.

For sarcasm and satire of modern life, no one did it better than Newhart.

[Donkeyboy75]

62. I'd put Father Ted above Seinfeld.

For whatever reason, I just don't feel Seinfeld is aging well. I don't laugh too much at the reruns any longer...

[MissMillie]

64. Golden Girls!!!

And All in the Family.

[Phillycat]

65. Where the hell is the Simpsons?