The funniest show I ever saw and it isn’t even close is “Amos N Andy”. The same writers also did “Leave it to Beaver”.
Both were among the classics. I new “Amos N Andy” would not be on the list because of PC but Beaver should have been.
Oh Come on!!!! No “Magnum PI”?
What? No mention of the Dean Martin Roasts? The best TV...EVER!!!
Without the shield being in the top 5 I’m going to dismiss this list.
Here are the shows on the list that I saw:
Mad Men
LA Law
House
The Sopranos in reruns.
Monk in reruns.
Deadwood on DVDs.
Breaking Bad now and then on netflix.
The best, for me, was Mad Men.
I don’t watch tv much. Obviously. The new show last season Nashville was wonderful and I look forward to season 2. I don’t even like country music. The two female leads, Connie Britton and Hayden Panettiere were excellent. The men looked interchangeable to me however.
As for the rest, ho hum.
This is weak at best. Where’s Babylon 5?
The interplay between Peter Jurasik (Londo Molari) and Andreas Katsulas (G’Kar) made for some of the best television EVER!
wait... huh?
“Best written” as judged by liberals (who always inject politics)?
just American shows?
for me breaking bad is in the top three.
Sorely disappointed....”The Pretender” is not on the list. My all-time favorite show.
Bob Newhart-41
Carol Burnett-37
These are some I agree with (although that’s not to say I disagree with those on the list I haven’t listed below or some that I haven’t seen):
THE SOPRANOS - very well written, very complex characters and lots of unexpected twists. Sometimes just when you are feeling sympathetic toward Tony, he does something truly vile, and then every once and a while he does something truly vile you are sorta rooting for him.
SEINFELD – Some of the episodes that took real life situations, even if they took it to an extreme were very funny. Like the one where they wander around a big parking garage looking for the car – been there done that. :)
THE TWILIGHT ZONE – enough said.
GET SMART – “Written by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry” I repeat – Mel Brooks! When I call someone into my office to talk about something confidential, I wish I had the “cone of silence”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWtPPWi6OMQ
THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW – my favorite might have been when Chuckles the Clown died and in the middle of the service, Mary can’t stop laughing. I have a story about my Norwegian grandmother’s funeral - my brother and my mother and I had to really restrain ourselves from laughing when a woman from her church, a really big woman who BTW looked like she should have been wearing braids and a horned helmet, sang a hymn, very badly and way out of key but loudly and boldly and verse after verse and just when she took a deep breath and you thought it was over, and the minister started walking back toward the pulpit, she’d start in with yet another verse and the minister would bow his head and walk away. Tears were streaming down our faces but it wasn’t because of our grief but because we were laughing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92I04DkMEps
MAD MEN – like the Soprano’s, it is very well written but has a lot of unsympathetic characters, yet you still want to know what happens to them next (or what they will be wearing as the 1960’s fashion styles change).
CHEERS – great chemistry between the characters especially in the earlier episodes. Loved Coach.
TAXI – great ensemble cast. I think my favorite was when Rev. Jim goes to take his driving test: What does a yellow light mean? Slow down. What…..does…… a……Yellow……Light….Mean? SLOW DOWN….
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvn-tBeLpCk
FRASIER – perhaps even better than Cheers.
HOMICIDE: LIFE ON THE STREET – I’m perhaps prejudiced as I lived in Baltimore when this show was on and they filmed in my neighborhood and a couple of times where I worked, but the writing, the dialogue was amazing, especially any scene with Andre Braugher. And FWIW, I knew a few cops who said it was probably the closest that any TV cop show ever came to reality.
FAWLTY TOWERS – my mother loved that show and so did I.
SOUTH PARK – OK, once you get past the very extreme potty humor – it’s actually well written and makes some very good points, most of them very non-PC but true.
Here are some I don’t agree with and why:
THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART & THE COLBERT REPORT – Really. That’s writing?
FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS – a soap opera about HS football….snooze……
FRIENDS – there were a few moments here and there that were funny but I found the characters mostly highly annoying and not in an over the top Seinfeld sort of so annoying they are funny sort of way. I was really hoping that one day they’d contract e-coli from eating at the Central Perk and die a painful death – especially Joey.
ER – I would agree that the first couple of seasons were good but then…..blah
FAMILY TIES – blech.
STAR TREK – a great show and interesting story lines but totally ruined by William Shatner’s scene chewing.
THE BOB NEWHART SHOW – not a bad show at all actually, really good in fact but the later show “Newhart” was much better IMO. And the way they ended that series was brilliant.
ROSEANNE – barf!
EVERYBODY LOVES RAYMOND – I’m torn on this one. When it was good it was really, really good and funny but too often it was not all that good or funny.
THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW – for some reason, even as a kid, I never liked this show. I know it’s all homey and nostalgic but I could never stand Andy Griffith even before I found out what a lib he was.
HOUSE – While I like Laurie as an actor and his character was interesting, it was way too formulaic. It was the same plot every episode – patient dying from some yet undiagnosed disease – House insults the patient, insults his staff, his staff works hard but go down many dead ends, they argue with each other, they argue with House, House insults them some more, House almost get’s fired, he insults the patient some more, then in the last 5 five minutes he finds the “cure”, he’s the hero and he insults everyone some more but they love him even as he rewards his accomplishment by doing more drugs and feeling sorry for himself and we are supposed to feel sorry for him: rinse repeat, repeat, repeat.
Some shows that didn’t make the list that probably should have:
Green Acres – way ahead of its time perhaps.
Big Bang Theory – but then I’m a geek.
The Waltons – but only the first couple of seasons.
Sons of Anarchy – Breaking Bad on Harley’s
WKRP - “As God as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly”
Designing Women – Dixie Carter was great.
Firefly and Dark Skies
Coach
Mad About You
Becker
The Drew Carey Show
The Adventures of Brisco County Jr.
Wings
Sons of Anarchy
Firefly
Veronica Mars
Angel
Buffy should have been in the top ten.
So no Brit shows like Doctor Who, Doc Martin, New Tricks or Sherlock
Also not reccognising Babylon 5, Veronica Mars, How I Met Your Mother, or Castle for some reason
Yes, Minister; Yes, Prime Minister; MI-5; The Sandbaggers????
This list - as most lists - is bogus.
The Andy Griffith Show. Not in. Come on....
Isis
I Dream of Jeannie
Wonder Woman
Charlie’s Angels
Xena - Princess Warrior
Benny Hill
Get Smart
WKRP
Gilligan’s Island
Sabado Gigante