Here are my choices for the top 5 Greatest TV characters.

According to me.








5. Ed Norton

Probably on of the greatest side kicks ever in television history (with a notable nod to Ethel Mertz). The great thing about Norton was that he was the ultimate deflector of Ralph Kramden’s gruff, rowdy exterior. Never one to complain and the first one there for any of Ralph’s get-rich-quick schemes. He was a confident, a supervisor, and a brother to his best friend. He was everything you’d hope your closest pal would be, and he never wanted anything in return except friendship. Ed was simple but far from stupid. He was Ralph’s window into a world of possibility.

Portrayed by: Art Carney

Carney was an extremely underrated actor until many years later. Off screen he couldn’t have been any more different from Ed Norton. Art was sensitive, kind, a charitable man, and a hard working actor. His performances on The Honeymooners, with all this in mind, make it even more astounding. The one thing that always stuck with me was Carney’s physicality. If you watch any episodes, catch the way he practically slumps over when he walks. Also- notice the way he literally will throw his entire body into a scene. Even the way he enters a room, with his signature “Hello, Ralphy!”, his body is involved. Legs, arms, hands, neck; nothing is left to chance with Carney. It’s an amazing performance.

Favorite episode: Ralph tries to butter up the boss and decides to take up golf. He asks Norton to assist him by reading the instructions to him. When Ed addresses the ball, he literally ADDRESSES the ball.

Awards: 6 Emmy Awards; 2 Sylvania Awards; Academy Award, Best Actor (Harry and Tonto), 1974; Best Actor, National Society of Film Critics, 1977.









4. Mary Tyler Moore

She turned the world on with her smile and she paved a way for American single women. Mary left her fiancée flat and never turned back. She wanted to work and she wanted to figure out who she was without the help of a man. It wasn’t that she didn’t like men; it was simply that she wasn’t going to settle. She had career goals, and friends around her that were more like family. Those relationships she was responsible for forming showed all of us that had distance in our lived between people, that a fresh start was possible. That we could make our own sense of home and our own sense of who was important. Mary was lithe, beautiful, smart, savvy, and flawed. Remember her dinner parties? For someone seemingly so perfect, it was by sheer happenstance that when she invited strangers into her home in hopes of sharing her gifts, they ultimately backfired and turned into utter disasters. I loved her and I trusted her. I knew if I had Mary as a friend, I’d have her for the rest of my life.

Portrayed by: Mary Tyler Moore

Moore seemed trapped forever in Laura Petrie Land. It wasn’t until she began to branch out into TV movies and eventually her Oscar nominated role as the mother of all mother’s in Redford’s masterpiece “Ordinary People” that her varied talents came to full fruition. However, as used to playing soft, likeable roles as she was, she could have easily rolled out these performances by the dozen. Phoned them in. But she didn’t. Every one of her performances is direct, precise, and hilarious. Physical comedy wasn’t Moore’s focal point in this show; she concentrated more on relationships and the comedy that grew from there. She never went for the easy joke, and Moore’s unique brand of comedic timing has never been equaled. She created a character that still resonates, even if you weren’t around during the show’s zenith. A brilliant body of work by an extremely capable actress.

Favorite episode: (It’s a tie):

*Chuckles the Clown dies and Mary’s reaction at the funeral is classic Television at its finest.

*Everyone in the newsroom is fired, and Mary finally says goodbye.

Awards: 6 Emmy Awards; 3 Golden Globe Award; 1 Academy Award Nomination (Ordiany People) , 2 Tony Awards, Named to Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame, 1987.








3. Captain James T. Kirk

The protector of the Universe. Is there a higher position? I don’t think so. He was John Wayne in space. He took no prisoners. He left nothing to chance. He used his intellect and his brawn. He was a ladies man and yet gentle and sweet and poetic. He always found time to praise his crew but stood for no disobedience. When it was time to get the job done, and save the planet, or chase the Klingons, or blow up Kahn, he demanded complete professionalism. His creed was American in its morality and democratic in its process. He had people around him that would (and did) die for him. Gladly. And in the same way, he, in turn, would die for them. And his ship. In every impossible situation we were certain of two things: First, Kirk would escape, torn, bloodied, battered, and free, and second, he would end up somewhere, somehow shirtless. The embodiment of what a good man stands for. I searched for him for years.

Portrayed by: William Shatner

Although the series was over the top and camp at its finest, I never had any trouble believing Shatner. It seemed to me he was the pirate on the ship commanding his people to sail harder and faster into the storm ahead. Of course he was melodramatic, that was the style. His overblown ego, his fights with cast mates, and his constant demands for better scripts only seemed to serve the character. Bill’s always been a great, great actor, from his stints on early TV shows (The classic Twighlight Zone comes to mind) to his magnificent turn in “Judgment at Nuremburg”. An now, with his vindicated role on the brilliant “Boston Legal” he is in front of a whole new generation doing what I never doubted for a minute: being wonderfully funny, and technically perfect.

Favorite episode: (It’s a tie):

*Tribbles (various small clumps of multicolored hair) invade the Enterprise.

*Kirk and Uhura share their first and only kiss.

Awards: 2 Emmy Awards, 1 Golden Globe Award








2. Archie Bunker

He was blatant and outwardly indignant. He was prudish, racist, and completely illiterate. He was our greatest nightmare in full regalia. He didn’t care what people thought or what they said as long as they agreed with him. He was the conservatives’ personal bulldog, and I adored him. I always thought although what he was spouting was gibberish, that it was okay to laugh at Archie. I also took great comfort in his marriage. After all, if Edith could love him the way she did, there must be something about him to love. And there was. He was also kind and patient and showed great strength and resilience. He wanted his daughter to marry the President (Nixon, of course) and although he and Mike had deep down conflict and out and out fights, they ended up respecting each other. He was an enigma, and I found him fascinating. He changed television forever. Never again could characters be safe. Now they had to take a stand and say something. He changed all of us. Especially me.

Portrayed by: Carroll O’Conner

O’Conner was already an accomplished actor by the time the plum role of Archie Bunker came his way. Again as with Art Carney, Carroll was a devout and ultra left Liberal. For him to take on this role with such unbelievable conviction was a testament to his great, great acting. He never hated Archie and always found places where he could slip in a little heart and a little kindness. His feuds with the network heads are legendary, and his temper tantrums and frequent walk outs became commonplace, but O’Conner was fighting for the good of the show. “All in The Family” was ground breaking and he knew it/ He knew he was part of something special that it would never happen again. He was a brave actor and it showed in his multi faceted performances. One of the greats. Truly.

Favorite episode: (Another tie)

*Archie finally gets the entire house to himself and them accidentally locks himself in the basement where he begins a brilliant conversation with God.

*Edith passes away. I never forgot this. Archie alone in his room, sitting on the edge of their bed, clutching on to Edith’s slippers and sobbing like a 9 year old boy. It affected me for many, many years.

Awards: 4 Emmy Awards, 2 Golden Globe Awards










1. Lucy Ricardo

I’m always amazed when people talk about how downtrodden Lucy was and what a victim of the 1950’s stereotype she was. These people have only seen a handful of the classic “I Love Lucy” episodes. Think about it for a second: Lucy always got into Ricky’s act. Lucy always won the bets between the two. Lucy always came up a winner. She may have connived, wheedled, sobbed, pleaded, and put on fake mustaches in order to accomplish these Herculean feats, but she always, always succeeded. She was definitely not a victim. Lucy Ricardo also brought me great joy at a time when my life needed something sweet and silly. I needed to see a female overcome her surroundings while still keeping her family and friends in tact. Although certainly a product of the 50’s she was never a slave to it. She was the first female character to disobey her husband every Monday night on CBS. She defied stereotype. She left the house, found her best friend, and off they went on adventures that took them from Hollywood to Paris France. Lucy wasn’t one to stay home and be idle. Take THAT June Cleaver. Lucy Ricardo saved my life, many, many times. She’ll never know how laughter can heal. And it did. Statistics show that every 10 seconds someone in the world is watching an “I Love Lucy” episode. Everywhere in the world someone at one point is being healed by having a good time. Every 10 seconds. Is there any better medicine?

Portrayed by: Lucile Ball

Lucille Ball, as with all great comedic actresses was not, by nature, a happy-go-lucky person. Lucille, as opposed to her whimsical counterpart, was usually a very serious woman. It was her husband Desi Arnaz that was usually the life of the party. This isn’t to say she didn’t have s sense of humor. She did, but it was usually very dry and quick. Lucille had tried for many years to become a movie star and received mild success in such movies as “Stage Door” and her one big hit “Big Street”. To play Lucy Ricardo, she pitched her natural alto up a couple of notes to find that tiny child/soprano. Her physical comedy was meticulous. She would work on scenes to hours studying props, figuring out where the couch was, where to fall, how may steps to take before the Funny peaked, and she and Vivian Vance would haggle over why and how the schemes they concocted would actually make sense. Everything has to make sense to Ball or she wouldn’t play it. Lucile approached each new episode like a drama. Her reasons for doing things were always crystal clear to her, and thus the reason for the show’s continued popularity. I Love Lucy holds up because of the great scripts, the beautiful cinematography and mainly because of Lucy’s stellar and magnificent performance. I wonder if she knew that later on, she would indeed become more than just a legend, but more to the point, an American Icon.


Favorite episode: (Well, this is almost impossible)

*Lucy finagles her way onto Ricky’s Variety show debut and attempts to sell a bottle of health tonic called Vitametavegin.

*Lucy and Viv demand to be treated the exact same as their husbands. Equal rights among the sexes.

*Lucy meets William Holden and trips over a waiter who slaps a pie in his kisser. And then she lights her nose on fire.

Awards: 5 Emmy Awards (9 Nominations), 5 Golden Globe Award Nominations, Golden Globe Cecile B. DeMille Award, Lifetime Achievement Award in Comedy, Living Legacy Award





It was almost impossible to choose the top five, because I hated to rate any of these characters. I tossed and turned about Lucy and Archie It was a tough choice but I decided that since I’ve watched Lucy since the invention of the VCR every single night of my life, I had to go with who was most important to me. Every one of these characters (and actors) on my list have meant something special to me. I love them all. Equally. This was a great, big thank you to all those generous multi talented actors that gave me hours and hours of joy. I’ll never forget any of them, and I’d just like to go on record as saying: “God Bless the VCR.”