A Family-Friendly List of TV's Top Moms

In Honor of Mother's Day

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[Note: This article is an edited excerpt from the book, RETRO ACTIVE TELEVISION: AN IN-DEPTH PERSPECTIVE OF CLASSIC TV’S SOCIAL CIRCUITRY.]

There are several key classic TV moms in the history of pop culture, across all decades. In celebration of Mother's Day, here's a focus on just a few.

Bea Arthur (Maude Findlay, Maude, 1972-79)

The lyrics to the show's theme song say it all about Bea Arthur on Maude: "Lady Godiva was a freedom rider, she didn't care if the whole world looked. Joan of Arc, with the Lord to guide her, she was a sister who really cooked. Isadora was a first bra burner, ain't ya' glad she showed up? And when the country was falling apart, Betsy Ross got it all sewed up. And then there's Maude...That uncompromisin', enterprisin', anything but tranquilizin', right-on Maude!"

Bea Benaderet (Kate Bradley, Petticoat Junction, 1963-70)

As the widowed mother of three beautiful daughters, who also happened to run her own countryfied, family-oriented hotel, Bea Benaderet's Kate Bradley delivered the goods as one of TV's most understanding moms.

Lucille Ball (Lucy Ricardo, I Love Lucy, 1951-57; (Lucy Carmichael, The Lucy Show, 1962-68); (Lucy Carter, Here's Lucy, 1968-74); Lucy Barker (Life With Lucy, 1988)

Lucille Ball was a TV mother across many sitcom thresholds, first to Little Ricky on I Love Lucy, then to , played by on The Lucy Show, which was followed by Here's Lucy, on which Ball's real-life children played her TV kids Kim and Craig, and finally on Life With Lucy, in which Ball not only played a mother to Ann Dusenberry but a grandmother.

Rosanne Barr (Rosanne Connor, Roseanne, ABC, 19)

She may have been booted off the reboot, but Rosanne Barr made a comic killing on the original version of Rosanne. With wit, sarcasm, and a massive straightforward approach, O'Connor was "Queen of the Regular TV Moms" for a good stretch of her time.

Barbara Billingsley (June Cleaver, Leave It To Beaver, 1957-63)

Those pearls! That dress! Barbara Billingsley's June Cleaver was by far one of the best-dressed stay-at-home moms in the history of television. As a mother to little Beaver Cleaver (Jerry Mathers) and Wall Cleaver (Tony Dow), she also played the loving wife to devoted husband Ward Cleaver, played by Hugh Beaumont). Into the mix, of course, she also had to deal with the challenges of Wally's somewhat overly eager-beaver to please with baloney, Eddie Haskell, played by Ken Osmond.

Jean Byron (Natalie Lane, The Patty Duke Show, 1963-66)

Kind, sophisticated, and elegant with her portrayal of Patty Duke's TV mom, Jean Bryron's Natalie Lane was a runner-up to Barbara Billingley's June Cleaver in the class of distinction and sophistication category.

Dihann Carroll (Julia Baker, Julia, 1968-1971)

A ground breaker across the board, Dihann Carroll's Julie Baker showcased a list of firsts, breaking all kinds of racial and mainstream stereotypes. She was the first female African-American lead in a sitcom, and in a general TV show. As a nurse, she was the first female African-American professional on TV; She was the first African-American widowed, single-parent character on TV (to Marc Copage's little Cory Baker).

Pat Crowly (Joan Nash, Please Don't Eat The Daises, 1965-67)

Based on the feature film of the same name, Please Don't Eat The Daises allowed Pat Crowley to bring her uncommon sensibility, likability, and affability to a character first played by Doris Day (in the 1960 feature film of the same name).

Doris Day (Doris Martin, The Doris Day Show, 1968-73)

A big screen legend for decades, Doris Day brought to the small screen her down-to-earth charms in a TV show that most likely has the most format changes of any TV show in history, sitcom, drama, or otherwise. She started in the country with two children, a father, and a farmhand. Then she moved to the big city with the family, and no farmhand, and then finally, in the last few years, her father and kids disappeared altogether. So, technically, she was only a mom in the first three seasons of the show. And that's okay because she was Doris Day!

Estelle Getty (Sophia Petrillo, The Golden Girls, 1985-93); The Golden Palace (1993-94)

Picture it: One actress, in Estelle Getty, plays the mother of another actress, that being Beatrice Arthur, but both are around the same age. In fact, Bea Arthur was solder. Such is the magic of television.

Florence Henderson (Carol Brady, The Brady Bunch, 1969-74)

For many, Florence Henderson is the Mother of All TV Mothers. With her portrayal of Carol Brady, she was the most understanding small-screen female parent since June Cleaver on Leave It To Beaver. Even more so, as June had only two kids. On The Brady Bunch, Carol had six: three biological girls from a previous marriage (whose husband was never mentioned), and three adopted kids (with Robert Reed's Mike Brady, whose wife and biological mother to the boys we also never heard about).

Bonnie Franklin (Ann Romano, One Day at a Time, 1975-84)

While Vivian Vance's Vivian Bagley was TV's first divorced single mom on The Lucy Show, Bonnie Franklin brought it all home with an edge on Norman Lear's sitcom that was ignited by an idea from actress Whitney Blake (who played Bobby Buntrock's mom on Hazel, and who was the real-life mom to Meredith Baxter Birney (who was a TV-mom first on Family, 1976-1980, and then on Family Ties, 1982-1989).

Elizabeth Montgomery (Samantha Stephens, Bewitched, 1964-72)

As Samantha Stephens, the magical "witch with a twitch" mom to young Tabitha and Adam (played by twins Erin and Diane Murphy, and twins David and Greg Lawrence) on Bewitched, the multi-Emmy-nominated Elizabeth Montgomery has charmed and continues to charm generations of TV fans.

Mary Tyler Moore (Laura Petrie, The Dick Van Dyke Show, 1961-66)

Before she became the trailblazing single-career woman Mary Richards on The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Mary Tyler Moore wore the (capri) pants in the family on The Dick Van Dyke Show. There, she was the groundbreaking home engineer Laura Petrie, wife to Van Dyke's Rob Petrie, and mother to their little son Richie Petrie (Larry Mathews).

Harriet Nelson (Harriet Nelson, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, 1952-66)

Sweet, smart, and sassy. That best describes Harriet Nelson's TV version of herself on The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, in which she co-starred with her real-life husband Ozzie, and their two real-life children: David Nelson and Ricky Nelson.

Donna Reed (Donna Stone, The Donna Reed Show (1958-66)

She was funny, wise, sweet, intelligent, bright, attractive, and devoted to her TV family. Her name was Donna Stone, as played by Donna Reed on The Donna Reed Show, which also starred Carl Betz as her TV husband. Together they supervised their TV children, as played by Shelley Fabares, Paul Petersen, and later, Petersen's real-life sibling, Patti Petersen.

Esther Rolle (Florida Evans, Good Times, 1974-79)

She made such a grand impression with her periodic role as Florida Evans on Maude, that Esther Rolle and her iconic character got her own spin-off series with a new TV family. Based on a concept from actor Mike Evans (the original Lionel on The Jeffersons), Good Times when on to break ground for African-Americans sitcoms, and made a star out of Jimmie "J.J./Dynomite" Walker in the process.

Jean Stapleton (Edith Bunker, All in the Family, 1971-1979), Archie Bunker's Place (1979-83).

She may have been known as "Dingbat" to Carroll O'Connor's ignorant, bigot husband Archie Bunker, but according to what showrunner Norman Lear once said Jean Stapleton's Edith Bunker was more akin to Jesus.

Sada Thompson (Kate Lawrence, Family, 1976-1980)

As the optimum television mother, Sada Thompson looked and fit the part to a "t." With her portrayal of Kate Lawrence on Family, one of executive producer Aaron Spelling's rare, more dramatic turns (as opposed to The Love Boat, Charlie's Angels, etc.), Thompson was the show's guiding force, heart, and soul.

Jean Vander Pyl (Wilma Flintstone, The Flintstones, 1960-1966)

How can you not fall in love with Wilma Flinstone, as voiced by Jean Vander Pyl on The Flintstones, TV's first animated, prime-time hit sitcom? Wilma is an attractive, fiery redhead, with a no-nonsensability, who is loosely based on the live-action Alice Kramden, TV wife to Jackie Gleason on The Honeymooners.,

Jane Wyatt (Margaret Anderson, Father Knows Best, 1954-60)

Jane Wyatt presents one of the most realistic TV mother portrayals not just of the 1950s and early '60s when Father Knows Best initially aired, but overall throughout every decade. Too often dismissed as the stereotypical, syrupy, and doting television mom, Margret Anderson is far from that in a household that she runs with her TV hubby Robert Young. Together, they corral their small-screen children Elinor Donahue, Billy Gray, and Lauren Chapin. Like all the characters in the acclaimed series, Margret cries and gets angry. In one episode, she calls her kids "brats."

Honorable Mentions

Several other classic TV moms deserve honorable mentions, including:

Meredith Baxter (Family, 1976-79; Family Ties, 1982-89), Whitney Blake (Dorothy Baxter, Hazel, 1961-66), Yvonne DeCarlo (Lily Munster, The Munsters, 1964-66), Carolyn Jones (Morticia Addams, The Addams Family, 1964-66), Marla Gibbs (227, 1985-90), Shirley Jones (Shirley Partridge, The Partridge Family, 1970-74), Julie Kavner (Marge Simpson, The Simpsons, 1989-Present), Mabel King (Mabel "Mama" Thomas, What's Happening!!, 1976-78, What's Happening, Now!!, 1985-88), Karen Grassle (Carolyn Ingalls, Little House on the Prairie, 1974-83), Hope Lange (Carolyn Muir, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, 1968-70), Linda Lavin (Alice, 1976-85), Michael Learned (Olivia Walton, The Waltons, 1972-1981), Judith Light (Who's The Boss?, 1984-92), June Lockhart (Ruth Martin, Lassie, 1954-74; Maureen Robinson (Lost in Space, 1965-68), Theresa Merrit (Elloise Curtis, That's My Mama, 1974-75), Alley Mills (Norman Arnold, The Wonder Years, ABC, 1988-92), Jo Marie Payto (Harriette Baines Winslow, Family Matters, 1989-98), Patricia Richardson (Jilly Taylor, Home Improvement, 1991-99), Marion Ross (Marion Cunningham, Happy Days, ABC, 1974-84), Isabel Sanford (Louise "Weezie" Jefferson, The Jeffersons, CBS, 1975-85), Penny Singleton (Jane Jetson, The Jetsons, 1962-63), Vivian Vance (Vivian Bagley, The Lucy Show, 1962-68), and many more.