101 Best Written TV Series
I’m a bit late in getting to this party, but recently the WGA announced the 101 Best Written TV Series. Here are the top 25:
1.
THE SOPRANOS
Created by David Chase “A mobster in therapy, having problems with his mother,” was how The Sopranos initially sparked, according to creator David Chase, though he was thinking about the premise for a feature film… READ MORE
2.
SEINFELD
Created by Larry David & Jerry Seinfeld At the end of Seinfeld’s run, Jerry Seinfeld commented that one of the more underrated aspects of his show was the number of its locations and sets, creating a sense of indoor-outdoor movement… READ MORE
3.
THE TWILIGHT ZONE
Season One writers: Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson, Robert Presnell, Jr., Rod Serling No show in the history of television has lingered in the imagination quite like Rod Serling’s anthology series… READ MORE
4.
ALL IN THE FAMILY
Developed for Television by Norman Lear, Based on Till Death Do Us Part, Created by Johnny Speight Asked how he’d been able to be so controversial on All in the Family, creator Norman Lear said in 2009: “I don’t really know how to explain it…” READ MORE
5.
M*A*S*H
Developed for Television by Larry Gelbart M*A*S*H remains the only long-running series, comedy or drama, set around a war zone… READ MORE
6.
THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW
Created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns The MTM brand, under Moore and then-husband Grant Tinker, was responsible for an iconic run of comedies (and dramas) in the 1970s, beginning with The Mary Tyler Moore Show… READ MORE
7.
MAD MEN
Created by Matthew Weiner Matt Weiner wrote the Mad Men pilot nearly a decade before it found a home as the first scripted drama at AMC, where the series debuted in the summer of 2007… READ MORE
8.
CHEERS
Created by Glen Charles & Les Charles and James Burrows The qualities that made The Mary Tyler Moore Show a seminal sitcom in the 1970s gave Cheers the same importance to the ’80s… READ MORE
9.
THE WIRE
Created by David Simon No series, arguably, is more responsible for the novelistic ambitions possible for television writers now… READ MORE
10.
THE WEST WING
Created by Aaron Sorkin “The people who get angry at us on one Wednesday night will be standing up and cheering the next Wednesday night,” Aaron Sorkin wrote in Written By before The West Wing premiered… READ MORE
11.
THE SIMPSONS
Created by Matt Groening, Developed by James L. Brooks and Matt Groening and Sam Simon The Simpsons is as ineffable as American humor gets. Among the show’s landmarks (hitting 100 episodes, then 200, then 500)… READ MORE
12.
I LOVE LUCY
“Pilot,” Written by Jess Oppenheimer & Madelyn Pugh & Bob Carroll, Jr. Though the show won an Emmy as Best Comedy, the writers were never so honored… READ MORE
13.
BREAKING BAD
Created by Vince Gilligan Creator Vince Gilligan said he was joking with Tom Schnauz that the two former X-Files writers might have to rent an RV and cook crystal meth if their stalled Hollywood careers didn’t turn around… READ MORE
14.
THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW
Created by Carl Reiner Carl Reiner has said he based his first sitcom on his experiences as a writer on Your Show of Shows, working for temperamental star Sid Caesar while also trying to be a husband and father… READ MORE
15.
HILL STREET BLUES
Created by Michael Kozoll and Steven BochcoLow-rated in its infancy, Hill Street Blues broke as many TV storytelling rules as its ultimate success helped establish for cop shows… READ MORE
16.
ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT
Created by Mitchell HurwitzMitchell Hurwitz offered a glimpse into his take on the family sitcom when he spoke of his own parents’ refusal to “quietly disappear into their middle age…” READ MORE
17.
THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART
Created by Madeleine Smithberg, Lizz Winstead; Head Writer: Chris Kreski; Writers: Jim Earl, Daniel J. Goor, Charles Grandy, J.R. Havlan, Tom Johnson, Kent Jones, Paul Mercurio, Guy Nicolucci, Steve Rosenfield, Jon StewartIt began as The Daily Show (hosted by Craig Kilborn) in 1996… READ MORE
18.
SIX FEET UNDER
Created by Alan BallAlan Ball pushed dramatic television into uncharted territory with his series about the Fishers and their Los Angeles funeral home… READ MORE
19.
TAXI
Created by James L. Brooks and Stan Daniels and David Davis and Ed WeinbergerPost-Mary Tyler Moore Show, James L. Brooks, Stan Daniels, Ed Weinberger and David Davis left MTM, formed their own company… READ MORE
20.
THE LARRY SANDERS SHOW
Created by Garry Shandling & Dennis KleinHaving lampooned himself — and sitcoms generally — on the meta It’s Garry Shandling’s Show, Shandling this time trained his comedic radar onto the fear and self-loathing backstage at a late-night talk show… READ MORE
21.
30 ROCK
Created by Tina FeyTina Fey’s canny take-off on her former life as head writer on Saturday Night Live, 30 Rock was initially viewed as “too inside” for a mass audience… READ MORE
22.
FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
Developed by Television by Peter Berg, Inspired by the Book by H.G. BissingerPeter Berg wrote and directed the pilot of a show that was the second adaptation of H.G. Bissinger’s non-fiction narrative about the impact of high school football on the hearts, minds and lives… READ MORE
23.
FRASIER
Created by David Angell & Peter Casey & David Lee, Based on the character “Frasier Crane” created by Glen Charles & Les CharlesThe Grub Street Productions team of Casey-Angell-Lee furthered the work they’d done on Cheers by moving psychologist Frasier Crane from Boston to Seattle and giving him a radio call-in show… READ MORE
24.
FRIENDS
Created by Marta Kauffman & David CraneCo-creators Marta Kauffman and David Crane met in the theater program at Brandeis; by the time they created Friends, they had added a third partner, Kevin Bright… READ MORE
25.
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE
Season One: Head Writer: Michael O’Donoghue; Written by: Ann Beatts, Chevy Chase, Tom Davis, Al Franken, Rosie Michaels, Garrett Morris, Michael O’Donoghue, Herb Sargent, Harry Shearer, Tom Schiller, Alan ZweibelIn his 2009 memoir, writer-performer Tom Davis conjures the small gang of writers standing outside Lorne Michaels’ office… READ MORE
No knock on “The Sopranos” which is a great series, but how can you not give the #1 slot to “The Wire”?
Here’s something interesting: 16 of the top 25 are comedies. Yet if I’m not mistaken, the last comedy to win a Best Picture Oscar was Annie Hall in 1978. What’s up with that?!?!
What do you think of this list? Agree? Disagree?
For the rest of the list, go here.
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