# Can Ted Danson do it again? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 19, 2006, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396 "2006-08-19T23:46:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![yojimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yojimbo/32/232_2.png) [@yojimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yojimbo)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/21 "2006-08-20T02:38:29Z")
[QUOTE=Struan] David Jason in the UK had two hit (sitcom) shows with Open all Hours and Only Fools and Horses. Both long running and popular, and the characters totally different. Can’t think off-hand about anyone with a succesful trifecta. [/QUOTE] I would argue that it wasn’t really Jason who made Open All Hours. Ronnie Baker was the star. Baker now, he did have two. Fletcher from Porridge and Arkwright from Open All Hours were very different and very successful. Nicholas Lyndhurst has been in three successful sit-coms, Butterflies, Only Fools and Goodnight Sweetheart. Only one playing the lead though. Robert Lynsay has been in My Family and Citizen Smith which were also quite successful. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/22 "2006-08-20T02:43:30Z")
[QUOTE=silenus] If we limit it to leads, and define “hit” to be one that runs at least 5 years, then Ted Danson still wins. [/QUOTE] Arbitrarily starting at 5 seasons elimiates Michael J. Fox, but that just doesn’t make any sense; Spin City was a legitimate hit comedy and lasted six seasons, although Fox himself did only four of them. But he was a legitimate star on two hit sitcoms; nobody doubts “Family Ties” and “Spin City” were hits. And the characters were certainly different. So I think Fox qualifies, at least. One could also make a strong argument, however, that three has already been done; none other than Katey Sagal has played starring roles on three hit sitcoms: Married With Children (11 seasons) Futurama (4 seasons) 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenaged Daughter (3 years and counting) ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/23 "2006-08-20T02:47:16Z")
Bea Benederet played the sophisticated Hollywood neighbor in **The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show** and the country inn proprietor in **Petticoat Junction**. The characters were considerably different. Neil Patrick Harris in **How I Met Your Mother** is nothing like **Doogie Howser, MD**. It’s only been on a year, but the current show is a hit and will eventually reach five. Ronnie Howard was different in **Andy Griffith** and **Happy Days** – older, for one. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/24 "2006-08-20T03:13:05Z")
Sorry, RickJay…I didn’t see your last post when I was composing the above. Fox definitely qualifies. So does Segal, but only for the two live-action in my book. Voice-work opens a whole new can of worms, and she’s part of an ensemble cast there anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/25 "2006-08-20T04:35:29Z")
Any Griffith was SHeriff Taylor on the Andy Griffith Show and Mayberry R.F.D. Years later he became ‘Matlock’. Never having seen an episode, I don’t know if it had any humor in it. ---
**Author:** ![Hoops](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hoops/32/6408_2.png) [@Hoops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hoops)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/26 "2006-08-20T05:00:58Z")
Hmmm . . . this may seem a bit weird, but how about Garry Shandling, for _It’s The Garry Shandling Show_ and _The Larry Sanders Show_? I mean, on the face of it, he’s obviously just being Garry Shandling in both shows. Yet in the former, he’s a good-natured naif living in a stylized fantasy sitcom world, while in the latter, he’s a bitter self-centered cynic in a very realistic milieu. ---
**Author:** ![jackelope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@jackelope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackelope)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/27 "2006-08-20T07:08:56Z")
[QUOTE=Askia] Yeah, I’d say Betty White trumps Ted Danson. [/QUOTE] I would like to point out that this is probably the first and last time in history that this sentence has been/will be constructed. ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/28 "2006-08-20T14:41:42Z")
Oh, I don’t know… I think that Betty White could kick just about anybody’s ass. Don’t judge her by her television personas- that is one tough broad. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/29 "2006-08-20T15:22:06Z")
[QUOTE=EJsGirl] Betty White could kick just about anybody’s ass. [/QUOTE] Playing _Password_, sure. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/30 "2006-08-20T20:52:32Z")
Well, both of these are supporting actors on their earlier series, but the characters they played were pretty major standouts, so I offer… Marla Gibbs - _The Jeffersons_ and _227_, the latter of which helped anchor NBC’s Saturday nights and lasted 5 seasons. The characters of Florence and (uh, whatever the lead character’s name on _227_ was) were pretty different, to my recollection. Both were sassy but Florence was pathetic, bitchy, man-hungry; the _227_ character was settled, a wife/mother, much more sympathetic. (Okay, on _The Jeffersons_ I admit I never liked Florence and kinda rooted for George, as much of a jerk as he was!) Ted Knight - _Mary Tyler Moore Show_ and _Too Close for Comfort_. Again, the latter lasted for five seasons (surprisingly!). Definitely not the same character types on both shows. On MTM he was … well, we all know about Ted, no explanations necessary! On TCFC he was an uptight, overprotective father with a _leetle_ too much of an obsession with his daughters’ sex lives. Just thought of another one: what about Howard Hesseman on _WKRP in Cinncinati_ and _Head of the Class_? The latter had five seasons, though I’m not sure if Hesseman was there for all five. Actually I’m pretty sure he left, so maybe that doesn’t count. (If we’re not allowing Matthew J. Fox, I guess Hesseman shouldn’t sneak in there either.) ---
**Author:** ![Key\_Lime\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/48db29/32.png) [@Key\_Lime\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Key_Lime_Guy)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/31 "2006-08-20T21:03:54Z")
Great discussion, all. So far I’m most persuaded by Michael J. Fox and John Ritter, and some of the other contributions are noteworthy too. Still it seems Danson is a pretty significant figure in TV history. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/32 "2006-08-20T21:38:30Z")
If you’re going to argue about whether Betty White qualifies, then there should be no argument about Bea Arthur. The character she played in _Maude_ (no debating she was the lead, right?) was nothing like the one she played in _Golden Girls._ I could argue for Jane Curtin in _Kate and Allie_ and _3rd Rock from the Sun_ but I’ll concede she was really only a supporting character in the latter. _Soap_ only ran four seasons, but Richard Mulligan’s Burt was \*\*a lot \*\* different than _Empty Nest_’s Harry Weston. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/33 "2006-08-20T22:49:52Z")
**Suzanne Somers** - Three’s Company and She’s the Sheriff ---
**Author:** ![JeffB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeffb/32/188_2.png) [@JeffB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JeffB)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/34 "2006-08-20T23:06:19Z")
[QUOTE=choie] Marla Gibbs - _The Jeffersons_ and _227_, the latter of which helped anchor NBC’s Saturday nights and lasted 5 seasons. The characters of Florence and (uh, whatever the lead character’s name on _227_ was) were pretty different, to my recollection. Both were sassy but Florence was pathetic, bitchy, man-hungry; the _227_ character was settled, a wife/mother, much more sympathetic. (Okay, on _The Jeffersons_ I admit I never liked Florence and kinda rooted for George, as much of a jerk as he was!) [/QUOTE] Since you bring up _The Jeffersons_, how about Sherman Helmsley as George Jefferson and as Deacon Frye on _Amen_? ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2006, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/35 "2006-08-20T23:39:20Z")
I’ve never even heard of Becker. How about Rowan Atkinson? He played a series of brilliant and devious characters in the Black Adder series (well, ok the first series he played an idiot), and then he played Mr. Bean. And I’ve never seen Bob Newhart play any character. I have only ever seen him bumble around as boring old Bob Newhart. ---
**Author:** ![Adoptamom\_II](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Adoptamom\_II](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Adoptamom_II)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/36 "2006-08-21T00:34:40Z")
Buddy Epsen - Beverly Hillbillies and Barnaby Jones ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/37 "2006-08-21T02:07:07Z")
Of course, _Amen_! Yeah, that should count. [QUOTE=spoke-] **Suzanne Somers** - Three’s Company and She’s the Sheriff [/QUOTE] Wait, what? _She’s the Sheriff_? That was a **hit**? :dubious: Wasn’t that on only one or two seasons, tops? However, if you exchange that with _Step by Step_, I think we got a winner. That was a big success for ABC’s TGIF lineup, six or seven seasons I think. ---
**Author:** ![initech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/439d5e/32.png) [@initech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/initech)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/38 "2006-08-21T03:31:20Z")
Depending on your interpretation of “substantially different”: Lucille Ball (I Love Lucy, The Lucy Show) …and allowing for non-lead characters: Don Knotts (Andy Griffith, Three’s Company) Jane Curtin (Kate & Allie, 3rd Rock) …and allowing for popular sitcoms lasting fewer than five seasons: Bob Denver (Dobie Gillis, Gilligan’s Island) Richard Mulligan (Soap, Empty Nest) Of course, the OP is specifically worded to eliminate Kelsey Grammer from the running, but his accomplishment with Frasier Crane is singular, and it eclipses Ted Danson’s by a long shot. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/39 "2006-08-21T05:37:25Z")
[QUOTE=OpalCat] I’ve never even heard of Becker. [/quote] Good lord. > [@](#): > > How about Rowan Atkinson? He played a series of brilliant and devious characters in the Black Adder series (well, ok the first series he played an idiot), and then he played Mr. Bean. Not to mention 14 episodes (2 seasons) of [The Thin Blue Line](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112194/). ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2006, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396/40 "2006-08-21T07:47:12Z")
[QUOTE=yojimbo] I would argue that it wasn’t really Jason who made Open All Hours. Ronnie Baker was the star. Baker now, he did have two. Fletcher from Porridge and Arkwright from Open All Hours were very different and very successful. Nicholas Lyndhurst has been in three successful sit-coms, Butterflies, Only Fools and Goodnight Sweetheart. Only one playing the lead though. [/QUOTE] I can’t say I agree about _Open All Hours_ – or _Only Fools and Horses,_ for that matter. I think both were shows with dual leads, so the first counts for both Barker and Jason, and the second counts for Jason and Lyndhurst. I appreciate that it’s a matter of opinion, though. One indisputable two-show star I’d like to nominate it Leonard Rossiter, for _The Fall and Rise of Reginal Perrin_ and _Rising Damp._ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-ted-danson-do-it-again/369396.md?page=3)