Top 10 TV Families

With three boys, a wisecracking dad, and an equally sharp, but loving mom, this TV family had something for everyone. In addition to Tim “The Tool Man” Taylor’s day-to-day antics and the endless patience of his wife, the three Taylor children developed their own unique identities, with their own unique problems and growing pains. In a household full of testosterone, there is still a great deal of tenderness and nuance underneath all the tough love.

They were the royal family of blue-collar nobility. As a lower-middle class family, their on-screen struggles resonated with a wide demographic. Watching the family persevere through hardships or revel in small triumphs, it was easy to see why the show was so popular. Underneath all the sarcasm and in spite of their various problems, they displayed a bond that can only come from surviving and enduring in the face of adversity.

Many consider them the quintessential example of an “All-American” family: the Cleavers were a safe, suburban bunch with a milquetoast lifestyle. With the adventures of one precocious young boy, Beaver, being the primary focus of the show, the Cleaver family was constantly central to almost every plot. Themes like “working hard” and “education” were primary to the show, making it pretty much a guideline for how to exist in suburbia.

This animated clan has all the makings of a “traditional” American family, with three kids, a housewife and the breadwinning father – but that’s where the parallels end. For the most part, this nuclear family is anything but conventional. Between Homer’s constant bumbling, Bart’s perpetual mischievousness, Lisa’s highbrow intellectualism, and Marge as the steadfast matriarch, the family members have stuck to their roles over the decades.

Three grown men raising three young girls in the hills of San Francisco seems reasonable, particularly when one is a musician and the other is a comedian….right? Although it may have seemed avant-garde, the show’s themes weren’t that unconventional. With the help of his two pals, a widower and his daughters live their lives together, and it’s the love in the household that makes the scenario more believable.

After moving to a high-end suburb to live with his wealthy extended family, Will Smith plays….Will Smith: a street-smart Philly teen. While the show centers on his “fish-out-of-water” adjustment to his affluent, and somewhat sheltered family, the entire Banks clan is grounded in their appreciation – or not – for Will. The family evolves together, and in spite of butting heads, they evolve and grow thanks in part to Will’s presence.

This All-American family had a teen heartthrob, a do-gooder sister, a “con-artist” brother, and an infant that morphed into a 6-year-old within two seasons. Add to that a psychiatrist father with an at-home practice and a busy journalist for a mom, and the show was chock-full of family friendly shenanigans.

Having a blended family on TV was a bold move for the ‘60s. The eight-member family, which included six children and two adults, was comprised of a widower and his three sons and a single mom and her three daughters. Add in their wry housekeeper and the Brady family wasn’t exactly an example of Americana, but it was a glimpse into how the American family dynamic was shifting.

Who knew ex-hippies with a conservative kid would make for good primetime TV? Clearly the producers did, and the relationship of a family politically at odds with their own children is the heart of the series. Despite their differences, however, this TV family manages to stay dedicated to each other, even in the depths of the Reagan era.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:
- The Flintstones “The Flintstones” (1960-66)
- The Bunkers “All in the Family” (1971-79)
- The Arnolds “The Wonder Years” (1988-93)
- The Griffins “Family Guy” (1999-)
- The Wilkersons “Malcolm in the Middle” (2000-06)
- The Drummonds “Diff’rent Strokes” (1978-85)
- The Jeffersons “The Jeffersons” (1975-85)

The Huxtable family forever changed the landscape of American sitcom television. This well-to-do Brooklyn based family set the groundwork for future family sitcoms, representing a wholesome, well-structured and diverse unit. The epitome of charm and baby-soft humor, the Huxtables represented a different version of the American dream with their five kids, attorney mother and physician father in the crazy sweaters.

Do you agree with our list? Who’s your favorite TV family? For more entertaining Top 10s published every day, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.