# Who are your 10 favorite male TV sitcom characters of all time? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\ **Created:** [March 27, 2026, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821 "2026-03-27T20:38:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2026, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/101 "2026-03-29T20:38:44Z")
He should have been spaced. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2026, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/102 "2026-03-29T20:45:12Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > He should have been spaced. Then he’d really be lost! ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/103 "2026-03-30T00:48:10Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > He should have been spaced. “Oh, the pain, the pain!” ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/104 "2026-03-30T06:19:14Z")
Here’s my expanded list: Niles Crane (David Hyde Pierce) — Frasier Barney Fife (Don Knotts) — The Andy Griffith Show Archie Bunker (Carroll O’Connor) — All in the Family Frasier Crane (Kelsey Grammer) — Frasier Ricky Ricardo (Desi Arnaz) — I Love Lucy Hal (Bryan Cranston) — Malcolm in the Middle Rob Petrie (Dick Van Dyke) — The Dick Van Dyke Show Robert Barone (Brad Garrett) — Everybody Loves Raymond Dr. Dick Solomon (John Lithgow) — 3rd Rock from the Sun Ed Norton (Art Carney) — The Honeymooners ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/105 "2026-03-30T06:57:44Z")
> [@Tibby](#): > > Ricky Ricardo (Desi Arnaz) — I Love Lucy I’ve submitted by 10 so I guess I’m committed, but this is a worthy choice. There’s a great back story here, too. CBS and the sponsors both objected to Arnaz playing Lucy’s husband because they thought the ethnicity just wouldn’t sit well with American audiences. Lucille Ball was adamant – Arnaz would play her husband, or there wouldn’t be a show. As it turned out, it was a stroke of genius. Arnaz turned out to be a great comic actor, and his thick Cuban accent, constantly mocked by Lucy, was the source of a lot of the show’s humour. This was one of several areas in which _I Love Lucy_ blazed new trails in television. Lucy’s real-life pregnancy, which instead of being hidden was openly celebrated on the show, was another one. ---
**Author:** ![Tibby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tibby/32/17030_2.png) [@Tibby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tibby)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 7:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/106 "2026-03-30T07:29:43Z")
I agree completely. I’ve always thought Desi was the funnier of the two. Lucy had the bigger slapstick moments, but Desi’s reactions, and growing exasperation were hilarious. He was the perfect foil. And he wasn’t just great on screen; Desi also helped pioneer the three-camera sitcom format through Desilu, which shaped TV comedy for a long time. Not too shabby for a guy the network didn’t even want. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/107 "2026-03-30T07:45:36Z")
Another great back story here, for those who haven’t already heard it, was about the filming of _I Love Lucy_. The era of videotape arrived only at the tail end of the series, so it effectively did not exist during the show’s heyday. CBS planned to stage the show in New York in front of a live audience and broadcast it live to the large television audience in the northeast, and then show lower quality kinescopes to the rest of the country. Lucy and Desi didn’t want to leave Hollywood and offered to pay the extra cost of having the show filmed out of their own salaries, in exchange for syndication rights. CBS readily agreed because, they thought, who would ever want to watch a silly sitcom more than once? _I Love Lucy_ became the most syndicated show in television history, boosting the fortunes of Desilu and making Lucy and Desi extremely wealthy! ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 9:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/108 "2026-03-30T09:49:05Z")
Raymond Holt - Brooklyn 99 Jake Peralta - Brooklyn 99 Jack Donaghy - 30 Rock Troy Barnes - Community Jason Mendoza - the Good Place Perry Cox - Scrubs Joey Tribiani - Friends Ron Swanson - Parks and Rec Dan Fielding - Night Court Lieutenant The Honourable George Colthurst St. Barleigh - Blackadder Goes Forth ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/109 "2026-03-30T10:40:48Z")
> [@Tibby](#): > > Robert Barone (Brad Garrett) — Everybody Loves Raymond Outstanding addition, very underrated and overlooked. mmm ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/110 "2026-03-30T16:32:21Z")
Batman/Bruce Wayne (Batman) Sam Malone (Cheers) Reverend Jim Ignatowski (Taxi) Bob Hartley (The Bob Newhart Show) John Clarke (The Games) I’ll be very surprised if Clarke’s nomination is seconded, but I still think that show was brilliant. > [@colinfred](#): > > Douglas Richardson (Cabin Pressure) The OP this time did specify TV sitcoms. I’d have gone for Arthur. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2026, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/111 "2026-03-30T17:08:40Z")
> [@Tibby](#): > > I agree completely. I’ve always thought Desi was the funnier of the two. Lucy had the bigger slapstick moments, but Desi’s reactions, and growing exasperation were hilarious. He was the perfect foil. I also agree completely. No need to splain any further. ---
**Author:** ![cieskokid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cieskokid/32/5374_2.png) [@cieskokid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cieskokid)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/112 "2026-03-31T02:33:53Z")
My 4 additions: Jim Ignatowski - Taxi Stan “Wojo” Wojciehowicz -Barney Miller Ted Baxter - Mary Tyler Moore Show Les Nessman - WKRP in Cincinnati ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/113 "2026-03-31T12:02:58Z")
I had Mr Haney\* on my list but it was really a toss-up between him and Hank Kimball. (Although I suppose I could have listed both but wanted to limit myself to one character per show.) \* I didn’t give a first name because IIRC they actually gave him two different first names at some point. I think one was Eustace? And I forget the other one. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/114 "2026-03-31T12:57:12Z")
1. George Costanza (Seinfeld) 2. Jim Ignatowski (Taxi) 3. Al Bundy (Married w/ Children) 4. Barney Fife (The Andy Griffith Show) 5. Norm Peterson (Cheers) 6. Eddie Haskell (Leave It to Beaver) * * * 1. Arthur Dietrich (Barney Miller) 2. Larry **?** (Newhart) 3. Louie DePalma (Taxi) 4. Ed Norton (The Honeymooners) ---
**Author:** ![colinfred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colinfred/32/21338_2.png) [@colinfred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/colinfred)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/115 "2026-03-31T17:42:09Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > > [@colinfred](#): > > > > Douglas Richardson (Cabin Pressure) > > The OP this time did specify TV sitcoms. I’d have gone for Arthur. OK, not that it will get any traction but I may as well use up all 10 Douglas out, Jimmy Anderson (The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin) in. ---
**Author:** ![psychonaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/psychonaut/32/4655_2.png) [@psychonaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychonaut)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/116 "2026-03-31T18:08:16Z")
- **Richard Richard** (_Bottom_) — Rik Mayall - **Eddie Hitler** (_Bottom_) — Adrian Edmondson - **Maxwell Smart** (_Get Smart_) — Don Adams - **Dick Solomon** (_3rd Rock from the Sun_) — John Lithgow - **Basil Fawlty** (_Fawlty Towers_) — John Cleese - **Cliff Clavin** (_Cheers_) — John Ratzenberger - **Georg Bjarnfreðarson** (_Næturvaktin_) — Jón Gnarr - **Dwight Schrute** (_The Office_) — Rainn Wilson - **Niles Crane** (_Frasier_) — David Hyde Pierce - **Balki Bartokomous** (_Perfect Strangers_) — Bronson Pinchot ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2026, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/117 "2026-03-31T22:09:07Z")
> [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](#): > > Several of these are sketch shows, not sitcoms. > > I wouldn’t consider “Shameless” a sitcom, either. > > mmm ![](https://media1.tenor.com/m/pIJFSZ8goWEAAAAC/america-south-park.gif "America South Park GIF - America South Park - Discover & Share GIFs") ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2026, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821/118 "2026-04-01T01:00:36Z")
Round 1 is [active.](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-great-tv-sitcom-battle-male-characters-round-1-choose-your-favorites/1028924) mmm [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-are-your-10-favorite-male-tv-sitcom-characters-of-all-time/1028821.md?page=5)