Alex Carson
The Mary Tyler Moore Show – Hulu
Featuring one of TV’s most influential female actors, Mary Tyler Moore as Mary Richards, was a fiercely independent bachelorette who spent her time focusing on her career instead of trying to please a man. At the time, she was a symbol of societal change, and as such the show made an unerasable political statement about women’s role in the world.
Moore was also hilarious, witty, warm, and embodied her character perfectly. The show proved to be so successful that it inspired three spinoff series including Rhoda, Phyllis, and Lou Grant. Iconic guest-stars included Betty White, Henry Winkler, Georgia Engel, and Ted Knight.
All seven seasons of the groundbreaking sitcom are available for your viewing pleasure on Hulu at the moment.
The Carol Burnett Show – Amazon Prime
Speaking of shows with an immaculate cast, The Carol Burnett Show starred Burnett, Tim Conway, Harvey Korman, and Vicki Lawerence. Each week, the four-piece would dish out uproarious sketch comedy routines that would leave viewers in tears. The show had a decent run airing for 11 seasons from 1967 to 1978 and established Burnett as one of the finest legendary female comedians to ever grace the small screen.
Amazon Prime members currently have access to all 11 seasons for all their viewing pleasure
I Love Lucy – Hulu
What can be said about Lucile Ball that hasn’t already been said? She helped lay the foundation of situational comedies back during I Love Lucy‘s tenure on the television from 1951 to 1957. Audiences had never seen anything like it. The program broke ground and redefined the way we look at sitcoms. With the help of her husband Ricky – Desi Arnaz – and their next-door neighbors Fred and Ethel Mertz – played by William Frawley and Vivian Vance respectively – they captured our hearts and minds and delivered on the laughs in a big way.
Check out the classic chocolate factory episode as well as all of the 180 other hysterical episodes on Hulu’s streaming service.
Star Trek; The Original Series – Hulu & Netflix
Most people are unaware of the reality that despite the fact that the original Star Trek series inspired an entire franchise of shows, movies, video games, and memorabilia, it wasn’t exactly viewed as a commercial success back during its original run. It was the cult-like following of fans and Klingon speaking devotees that kept the fictional universe it spawned going.
William Shatner played Captain Kirk, then there was Leonard Nimoy as Spock and the rest of the crew that manned the bridge of Starfleet vessel the USS Enterprise as they boldly went where no man had gone before – exploring the universe with the prime directive of not interfering with the development of otherworldly societies and with a scientifically-driven sense of discovery. They praise the series as being one of the most influential science-fiction programs of the 20th century.
You can watch the entire series on Hulu or Netflix along with the equally entertaining series Star Trek: The Next Generation.
M*A*S*H – Hulu & Amazon Prime
The personnel of the fictional 4077 MASH unit cope with the atrocities of the Korean War through humor in this landmark series that ran for 11 seasons on CBS. The series finale is one of the highest-viewed TV shows of its time. Two spin-off series rose from its ashes, namely AfterMASH and Trapper John M.D.
The series dealt with poignant social issues while taking a lighter look at one of the darker chapters of American history.
Cheers – Netflix
Sam Malone played by Ted Danson was the owner and operator of the popular Boston area bar that lent its name to the series. Diane Chambers – played by Shelley Long – was a waitress at the establishment as well as the love interest of Sam – spawning a would-they-or-wouldn’t-they plotline that would keep audiences guessing if they’d ever get together until the end of the series.
The regulars of the hangout in tandem with its employees share bits and pieces of their lives while drinking and working at the bar that as the theme song states -everyone knows their name.
A quintessential piece of American television, Cheers never failed to provide big laughs while earning heaps of awards and critical acclaim.
You can watch all 275 right now on Netflix.
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Also, don’t go anywhere just yet. You’re going to want to stick around if you want to find out where you can watch the classic police procedural drama NYPD Blue, but before we get to that, let’s talk about one of the most famous situation comedies of all time.
The Brady Bunch – Hulu
This classic sitcom has become a cornerstone of popular culture. A dad named Mike Brady and a Lovely Lady, Carol Martin, get married and their two families end up coming together as one. Mike had three boys and Carol had three girls. As a septet, the family grew together over five unforgettable seasons that serve as a time capsule of sorts that give us a peek at the changing look of the American family back in the 70s.
The cast had incredible chemistry and despite the fact that their lives were as pre-fabricated as their AstroTurf lawn, the laughs and pulls of our heartstrings kept on coming each week.
That being said, what ever happened to their family dog, Tiger? After season one he vanishes without explanation. Maybe you’ll be able to unravel that mystery if you watch the series that is currently available on Hulu.
The Andy Griffith Show – Netflix
For eight seasons, we felt as if we were a member of the Mayberry community. Andy Griffith was Andy Taylor, the small North Carolina town’s sheriff. Don Knots played the Barney Fife – Andy’s perpetually bungling deputy.
If you’re looking for a show that takes you back to simpler times – long before pandemic was a part of our daily vernacular – then The Andy Griffith Show is exactly what you are looking for. It’s one of the more idyllic classic comedies to ever air.
The world was going through turbulent change when the series aired from 1960 to 1968, much as it is today, but in Mayberry, there was a sense of innocence and naivete that was perfectly captured by the character Opie, played by a young Ron Howard, that can still be appreciated by modern audiences.
The Golden Girls – Hulu
Bea Arthus, Rue McClanahan, Betty White, and Estelle Getty play four older women who lived together in a house in Miami and despite the fact that doesn’t sound like the most exciting premise for a TV series, it was one of the most entertaining and timely programs of its day.
It’s actually refreshing to give the show another watch. We live in a world that is youth-obsessed and older actresses seldom land any substantial roles. To watch four middle-aged women deal with their complicated love lives while still maintaining a sense of camaraderie is actually a lot more entertaining than it might seem on paper. You can watch the series on-demand right now on Hulu.
Monty Python’s Flying Circus – Netflix
If you’ve enjoyed the films Monty Python’s Holy Grail and Life of Brian, but you’ve never seen the four-season long comedy series that aired on the BBC then you are really missing out. Possibly one of the funniest sketch comedy shows of all time, Flying Circus pushes boundaries and packs in loads of laughs with an impeccable cast.
Magnum PI – Amazon Prime
8 seasons and 162 episodes of Tom Selleck at his finest. Thomas Magnum is a private investigator in the island state of Hawaii. With that epic 80s mustache, white pants, Hawaiian shirt, and with the propensity to get himself into trouble, Magnum PI is one of the finest shows of it’s kind and you can enjoy it now on Amazon Prime.
Designing Women – Hulu
Maybe The Golden Girls wasn’t exactly your cup of tea but you still like seeing empowered women in the spotlight. Designing Women stars Dixie Carter, Jean Smart, Annie Potts, and Delta Burke as hardworking associates of an Atlanta area design firm trying to get by in a cutthroat industry that is constantly trying to put them down. The series is unapologetically political at times but pulls all the punches resulting in one of the smartest and wittiest comedies of the 80s.
The Addams Family – Amazon Prime
Considering the legacy it’s left behind it’s astonishing to find out that The Addams Family was only on the air for 2 seasons from 1964 to 1966. John Astin was Gomez and Carolyn Jones played his wife Morticia. Their children Wednesday and Pugsley alongside Uncle Fester and Lurch their Frankenstein inspired butler round out the spooky, zany, and creepy cast of characters in this oddball family sitcom. The series later inspired two full-length movies but it stands on its own as being a true gem of classic American television.
The Twilight Zone – Netflix
For a little journey into the realm of the paranormal and bizarre, this Rod Serling-produced anthology series is certain to send chills down your spine even all these years later. Each episode tells a different extraordinary tale full of twists and turns with just the right amount of fear-inspiring suspense. Whether you are a diehard Twilight Zone fan or if you’ve seen little of the series but are craving a good spooky escape, it’s worth a watch. All 156 episodes can be found on Netflix for your viewing pleasure.
NYPD Blue – Amazon Prime
Last but not least is this 90s innovative procedural police drama series. Dennis Franz plays Andy Sipowicz, a detective for the 15th precinct detective squad, a troubled alcoholic, misogynistic, homophobic bigot that sobers up and turns his life around after getting shot on the job.
Following his life changes, the show focuses on his interpersonal relationships with the other precinct personnel in addition to the episodic cases that they take on,
The series laid the groundwork for later show’s in the genre like The Shield and Chicago PD but stands on its own and doesn’t feel overly dated.
Here we are, yet again, at the end of another facts-packed video. Hopefully, you now have a few good leads on what your next TV binge session is going to be.
Now we’d love to hear from you. Do you prefer classic TV shows or are you more into modern offerings? Let us know what you think in the comments section.
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