Funny How Fast Funny Disappears
Every decade has the sitcoms everyone still talks about. I Love Lucy. All in the Family. Cheers. Seinfeld. Friends. Those shows are not exactly hurting for attention. But every decade also had a few genuinely funny shows that somehow slipped into the TV attic and out of the public conversation.
Well, we’re talking about them again. How many of these great shows do you remember?
"The Phil Silvers Show" (1955–1959)
Before sitcom con men became a whole TV category, there was Sergeant Bilko, smiling his way through another scheme like he had already cashed the check. The Phil Silvers Show was fast, sharp, and ridiculously modern for the 50s. It was basically workplace comedy before workplace comedy knew it had a job.
Screenshot from The Phil Silvers Show, CBS (1955–1959)
"Our Miss Brooks" (1952–1956)
This one does not get mentioned nearly enough. Our Miss Brooks had Eve Arden as a sarcastic high school English teacher who sounded like she was already exhausted by everyone in the building. The jokes were dry, the timing was clean, and honestly, half the teachers on TV after her borrowed the attitude.
Screenshot from Our Miss Brooks, CBS (1952–1956)
"The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show" (1950–1958)
Gracie Allen could turn one confused sentence into a full comedy routine, and George Burns knew enough to mostly stand back and let her do it. The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show feels old-fashioned now, obviously, but the rhythm still works. Gracie was basically chaos wearing a nice dress.
Screenshot from The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show, Paramount Global (1950-1958)
"Car 54, Where Are You?" (1961–1963)
This was the kind of show where two cops could spend an entire episode making their own lives harder and somehow make it feel like a public service. Car 54, Where Are You? was goofy, loud, New York in every possible way, and much funnier than its place in TV history usually suggests.
GAC-General Artists Corporation, Wikimedia Commons
"F Troop" (1965–1967)
There are shows that age perfectly and shows that age like a garage sale in August. F Troop is somewhere in the middle, but when it was clicking, it was wonderfully ridiculous. It was less a Western than a parade of cowards, cheats, hustlers, and people who should not have been trusted with horses.
ABC Photo-ABC Television, Wikimedia Commons
"He & She" (1967–1968)
This is the 60s sitcom that feels like it was smuggled in from a later decade. He & She was smart, dry, and a little too clever for its own good, which is probably why it never became a massive hit. But people who know old TV comedy tend to treat it like a secret handshake.
Screenshot from He & She, CBS (1967–1968), Modified
"Barney Miller" (1975–1982)
Some sitcoms need couches, kitchens, neighbors, and misunderstandings. Barney Miller mostly needed a squad room, a few tired cops, and one strange person wandering in with a story. It was quiet, clever, and weirdly humane. Not flashy. Not loud. Just consistently funny in a way TV rarely has patience for anymore.
Screenshot from Barney Miller, Sony Pictures Television (1975–1982)
"Soap" (1977–1981)
Soap was what happened when daytime soap operas got shoved down the stairs and came back as a prime-time comedy. It was messy, outrageous, and constantly flirting with disaster. Some of it is very 70s, but the basic idea still works: make every character ridiculous, then pretend the story is serious.
Screenshot from Soap, Sony Pictures Television (1977-1981), Modified
"Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman" (1976–1977)
Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman was technically a soap opera parody, but it was funny enough and strange enough to belong here. It took suburban life, TV melodrama, consumer panic, nervous breakdowns, and 70s weirdness, then blended it all into something that felt like regular television had been left in the sun too long.
Screenshot from Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, First-run syndication (1976–1977)
"Newhart" (1982–1990)
The final episode gets remembered, because of course it does. But the actual show before that twist deserves more love too. Newhart was dry, strange, and packed with people who acted like they had all been dropped into Vermont by mistake. Bob Newhart barely moved a muscle and somehow controlled the whole room.
Screenshot from Newhart, CBS (1982–1990), Modified
"It’s Garry Shandling’s Show" (1986–1990)
Before every sitcom started winking at the audience, Garry Shandling was already kicking the fourth wall down and walking through it with a grin. It’s Garry Shandling’s Show was self-aware before self-aware comedy became exhausting. It was odd, loose, and way more influential than casual viewers probably realize.
Showtime, It’s Garry Shandling’s Show (1986–1990)
"Sledge Hammer!" (1986–1988)
This show was not subtle. That was the point. Sledge Hammer! took the tough-guy TV cop, gave him the judgment of a broken vending machine, and somehow built a sitcom around it. It was dumb in a very smart way, which is usually the hardest kind of dumb to pull off.
Screenshot from Sledge Hammer!, ABC (1986–1988), Modified
"NewsRadio" (1995–1999)
NewsRadio had one of those casts where you look back and think, wait, this was just sitting on network TV? Dave Foley, Phil Hartman, Stephen Root, Maura Tierney, Vicki Lewis, Andy Dick, Joe Rogan. It was sharp, weird, and never quite got the giant victory lap it deserved.
Screenshot from NewsRadio, NBC (1995–1999)
"The Larry Sanders Show" (1992–1998)
A lot of modern cringe comedy owes this show rent money. And yes, here’s Garry Shandling again—which feels fair, because apparently the man spent two decades quietly redesigning TV comedy. The Larry Sanders Show made show business look petty, needy, insecure, and hilarious, which is probably closer to the truth than anyone wanted to admit.
Screenshot from The Larry Sanders Show, HBO (1992–1998)
"The Drew Carey Show" (1995–2004)
For a while, The Drew Carey Show was everywhere, and then somehow it slipped into that strange TV zone where people remember the theme song more than the show itself. But it was a real 90s sitcom machine: office nonsense, bar jokes, weird friends, Cleveland pride, and Drew acting like life had personally insulted him.
Screenshot from The Drew Carey Show, ABC (1995–2004)
"The Bernie Mac Show" (2001–2006)
The Bernie Mac Show should come up way more often in conversations about great 2000s sitcoms. Bernie Mac did not play a soft TV dad. He played a man trying to survive three kids, his own temper, and the camera itself. The show had heart, but it never begged you to notice.
Screenshot from The Bernie Mac Show, FOX (2001–2006)
"My Name Is Earl" (2005–2009)
My Name Is Earl had one of those premises that sounded ridiculous until it started working almost immediately. A small-time screwup wins the lottery, discovers karma, and tries to fix every bad thing he ever did. It was strange, sweet, trashy in the best possible way, and much funnier than people give it credit for now.
Screenshot from My Name Is Earl, NBC (2005–2009)
"Better Off Ted" (2009–2010)
Some shows are cancelled too soon. Better Off Ted feels like it was cancelled before half the audience even found the remote. A soulless corporation, fake motivational ads, office insanity, Portia de Rossi acting like human empathy was a software bug. This one should have been bigger. A lot bigger.
Screenshot from Better Off Ted, ABC (2009–2010)
"Happy Endings" (2011–2013)
Happy Endings got stuck with the worst possible curse: everyone who watched it loved it, but not enough people watched it while it was actually airing. It was fast, silly, packed with jokes, and much sharper than its “friends hanging out” setup made it sound. This one deserved a much longer run.
Screenshot from Happy Endings, ABC (2011–2013)
"Broad City" (2014–2019)
Broad City was loud, weird, chaotic, and somehow still smarter than half the shows trying much harder to look smart. Abbi and Ilana turned bad jobs, bad decisions, terrible apartments, and ordinary errands into complete disasters. For a while, it felt everywhere. Now it already feels like people should bring it up more.
Screenshot from Broad City, Comedy Central (2014–2019)
"Insecure" (2016–2021)
Okay, maybe Insecure lived closer to comedy-drama than old-school sitcom, but come on—it was funny enough to count. Issa Rae made awkwardness feel almost athletic. The mirror raps, the bad dates, the friend fights, the work nonsense. It had bite, heart, and way more laughs than people sometimes remember.
Screenshot from Insecure, HBO (2016–2021)
"Girls5eva" (2021–2024)
For the 2020s, we are cheating slightly, because some shows do not need 30 years to become weirdly overlooked. Girls5eva had the jokes, the songs, the cast, and the perfect premise: a forgotten girl group trying to claw its way back. Somehow, that was not enough to make everyone talk about it. Except for those of us who've actually watched this hysterical series.
Screenshot from Girls5eva, Peacock (2021–2023) / Netflix (2024)
"Trying" (2020–present)
Trying is the sneaky one. It is sweet, British, funny, and exactly the kind of show people recommend with the tone of someone handing you a secret menu. It never felt like the loudest sitcom in the room, but that is part of the charm. Some comedies do not shout. They just work.
Screenshot from Trying, Apple TV+ (2020–present)
"Resident Alien" (2021–2025)
Alan Tudyk playing an alien badly pretending to be a normal small-town doctor is already funny before anyone writes a joke. Resident Alien is broader and stranger than a lot of 2020s comedies, which is probably why it stands out. It has the very important sitcom ingredient of being completely ridiculous on purpose.
Screenshot from Resident Alien, NBCUniversal (2021–2025)
So, How Many Did You Remember?
If you remembered more than a few of these, congratulations—you have watched a lot of television. Possibly too much. But honestly, we totally respect that.
Screenshot from Insecure, HBO (2016-2021)
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