What Are The Funniest TV Programs Of All Time?

Me, Myself & I | Today, March 30, 2002 | Hellmouth

[Hellmouth]

What are some of your favorite comedy shows of all time?

For myself, I like Howard Stern's old Channel 9 show, Fawlty Towers, Police Squad, The Young Ones, et al. I'm sure other people have different ideals as to what they consider humorous....

[jennyp]

Mary Tyler Moore Show - great cast, all with perfect timing

Ah yes!

Lou: "You got spunk."

Mary: "Well ... (blushing)"

Lou: "I HATE spunk!"

The Fall & Rise Of Reginald Perrin - more offbeat British humor

I loved that one when I saw a few episodes back in the late 70's! But then later I watched the whole series, and it actually ends up being rather depressing. Reggie wouldn't be happy anywhere - then he'd blame it on society.

[jennyp]

Yeah, Harvey Korman's face would turn purple. I thought he was having a stroke.

Tim Conway was another person who'd make me end up gasping for breath I was laughing so hard.

Then there was Carol as the blackmailing Girl Scout...

[jennyp]

3. SNL The first 3 seasons were great. After that they were just a drag.

Speaking of which - do you (or anyone) remember Fridays? It was ABC's answer to SNL. It was Michael Richards' first break, & also had Melanie Chartoff, who I thought would've gone farther afterwards. Also, IIRC, Larry David, who went on to co-write Seinfeld. Also Mitchell Laurance, last seen announcing women's pool on ESPN, and Mark Blankfield, who I haven't seen since.

[Argh]

I'm so sorry I missed the Carol Burnette compilation. The (apparently extemporaneous, an outtake, if I remember) bit by Tim Conway about elephants kissing by putting the ends of their trunks together, and then one of them sneezed - I almost turned purple myself!

[ArneFufkin]

When "The Simpsons" had Al Jean, Mike Reiss and John Vitti writing .... every show was exceptional. All the subtle stuff:. like a sign on a public library: "We have books about TV!" Great lines and bits just thrown in the background for fun.

[palo verde]

what a fun thread
just read all the posts
my favorite shows ''Andy Griffiths Show'', ''I Love Lucy'', ''Sgt Bilko''
have watched and totally enjoyed all the other shows mentioned by posters above
Love, Palo

[ArneFufkin]

That bandleader on Fernwood was a hoot.

[browardchad]

"Fernwood"

Head 'em up, move 'em out, Rathide! (The looney sociologist who planned to stop the ghetto's rat problem by herding and marketing rodents.)

Funny show -- in the good old days before PC.

[sweetliberty]

In this order:
1. Beverly Hillbillies
2. All In the Family
3. M.A.S.H
4. Northern Exposure

[Argh]

The first five or six broadcasts of Laugh-In

Believe it or not, the funny episodes of the second season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer were a stitch. Especially the episode "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered", where Xander tries to get a love spell put on the lovely Cordelia who's just dumped him. Apparently, this episode was dreamed up at the last second because Miss Gellar (Buffy) was suddenly going to host on SNL the week of the taping, and wouldn't be available for the full week or so of taping. Unfortunately, the humour pretty much petered out during the next two seasons, and they got the politically correct preachiness disease, too bad.

Some funnies:

Sledge Hammer making an arrest (it went roughly like this):"Don't whine at me! I hate whiners! If I'd wanted to arrest a whiner I would have arrested Dick Cavett!"

ALF and Wille looking at Willie's hippie pictures from Woodstock (again roughly):
ALF: "What's with those clothes, Willie?"
Willie: "Oh, well, we were making a statement, you know."
ALF: "Yeah, right. 'I dress in the dark!'" Cute post-mortem for the 60's.

Apparently Hogan's Heroes has been quite popular in Germany lately, although it's apparently pretty surreal there because some of it isn't directly translated from English for the German version. For example, folks aren't allowed to say "Heil Hitler" in Germany anymore, but the German viewers know darn well what's being said when the Nazi salute is given, even if the German words coming out are things like "The lime trees grow THIS high!"

[shattered]

I loved Taxi! Remember the one where Louie thinks that something is going to happen to Alex at midnight with Alex wearing a skirt or something and carrying a baseball bat. "Don't open the door! Death is on the other side of the door!!" And it was a girl selling girl scout cookies. Thats one of my favorite memories of Taxi. Oh, and when Louie and Elaine went out on a date.

[sweetliberty]

There was another one I liked but it only made it through one season. I was really disappointed. It was in the early-mid 70's. I wonder if anybody else remembers it. I thought it weas a hoot.

On the Rocks

[Argh]

Another TV show that was funny when they spat on their hands and got down to it was Maverick.

[PJ-Comix]

This is a no-brainer. SCTV was easily the FUNNIEST TV show of all time. I am still laughing at Nikita Khruschev being reincarnated as a tractor on a commune and giving advice to a lovelorn farmer. And Joey ("I WANT TO BEAR YOUR CHILD!") Heatherington, and the Sammy Maudlin show, and Johnny LaRue, and Woody Allen as a golf partner with Bob Hope, and lots, lots, more.

UZBEK! UZBEK! UZBEK!

[PJ-Comix]

4. Northern Exposure

Which was a Twin Peaks wannabee.

[Mad Dawgg]

"As God is my witness I thought turkeys could fly..."

Man I was watchin' that episode live when it first aired with a bunch of mates and one of the guys laughed so hard he shot spagehtti noodles out his nose!

To me that is the funniest Episode on TV ever and (I love the Pythons) Never has anything come close after that...

[Revolting cat!]

The Star Trek series, unintentionally of course!

[LowOiL]

My faves are the older classics of course...

1. Andy Griffin

2. Little House on the Prairie.

3. Captain Kangeroo (ok, I was raised on it)

4. Samson and Son

5. Adam's Family

6. Funniest videos (hate ABC though)

[Charles Henrickson]

Agree with you on Soupy Sales. Very funny. Adults having fun on a kids show. If you were a kid and "got it," it was even funnier.

[Charles Henrickson]

Agree with you on Steve Allen. I remember especially his show (syndicated by Westinghouse?) in the late '60s. Very witty. Letterman is funny in his own right, but he's basically doing the Steve Allen show (and has properly acknowledged Allen as the originator of that style).