Workplace sitcoms to binge on Labor Day!

Today (5 September 2022) is the Labor Day holiday in the USA! Most people won’t be at work this Monday to honor, well, people who go to work (just go with it 😉 )!

Much of life takes place a work. Do the math: if you count your working hours, most people working about 9 to 5 (plus commute) probably spend more time awake at work than they do at awake at home. They may have regular interactions with more people at work than they do outside of it, and there can certainly be particular demands on them.

TV knows that. Since the very beginning of broadcast TV (really establishing itself in homes in the late 1940s, following and intially overlapping “Old Time Radio”), comedies set in workplaces have been popular. Sure, there have also been workplace dramas, but comedies are a great way to deal with stress and let’s face it, work can be stressful. I’ve taught the use of humor to trainers: laughter is a sign that there is apparent danger but no real danger, so it’s a way to psychologically disempower threats.

There are also certainly a lot of domestic comedies (domcoms) that take place mostly at home. I’m considering something a workplace comedy if a significant portion of the action, characters, and what drives plots happens at a place where someone earns a living (or conceivably, volunteers, but that’s not common). That doesn’t mean nothing happens outside work! Some shows have work/life balance…er, humor. The Dick Van Dyke Show, still my favorite TV series, is one of those. There are episodes that focus on Rob’s home life, but a lot of it takes place in the Writers’ Room for and on the Alan Brady Show itself. Buddy, Sally, and Mel are as important as Laura, Ritchie, and the Helpers. Some shows even switch: we’ve been watching The Doris Day Show. In the first season, Doris didn’t work regularly and it was really a rural sitcom. In the second season, she started working in San Francisco, and McLean Stevenson playing her boss gets more screen time than the family.

I’m just listing a few here. I have more than 100 sitcoms of all types listed in my TV sitcom streaming guide & with information about where you can see them free (ad-supported) or NAC (No Additional Cost from a subscription service):

TMC Streaming Guide: TV Sitcoms

A couple of notes:

  • I’m not going to count kids in school as a “workplace”. However, the teachers and other adults in a school, if they are a major focus (Our Miss Brooks; Welcome Back, Kotter…) would count
  • I’m also going to leave off military comedies (milcoms) (McHale’s Navy; Hogan’s Heroes…). I debated with myself about this: people are earning a paycheck, they have “bosses” and “coworkers”, but it just seems like they are a different category. You can certainly see them at the streaming guide, though
  • I don’t cover current shows: I stop about 20 year ago. I list them chronologically…

Now, on to the shows!

Our Miss Brooks (1952-1956) | Tubi (last checked 8 August 2022)

  • The hit radio show starring Eve Arden as a wisecracking high school teacher became a hit (& Emmy winning) TV series. Gale Gordon plays the Principal, & Richard Crenna plays student Walter Denton

Mister Peepers (1952-1955) | Tubi (last checked 8 August 2022)

  • Wallly Cox played bespectacled, mousy Junior High science teacher, Robinson J. Peepers. Other members of the cast included Tony Randall as hunky (married) history teacher Harvey Weskit; Marion “Aunt Clara” Lorne as the English teacher; Jack Warden as the athletics coach; and Patricia Benoit as love interest and school nurse Nancy Remington

Car 54, Where Are You? (1961-1963) | Crackle, IMDbTV, Pluto, Roku, Tubi

  • Joe E. Ross is married police officer Gunther Toody; Fred Gwynne is his partner, confirmed bachelor Francis Muldoon. Among the supporting cast are: Al Lewis as Officer Schnauser (Lewis & Gwynne would work together again on The Munsters); Charlotte Rae as Schnauser’s wife; and notably, Ossie Davis & Nipsey Russell were regulars

The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961-1966) | Hulu, IMDbTV, Plex, Prime, Roku, Tubi

  • Based on Carl Reiner’s life as a TV comedy writer, Dick Van Dyke stars as Rob Petrie. Mary Tyler Moore plays his wife Laura. Rose Marie & Morey Amsterdam played Rob’s writing partners, Sally Rogers & Buddy Sorrell. A strong supporting cast, physical and situational humor, and forward-looking & inclusive elements make this (still) Bufo Calvin’s favorite TV series

The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970-1977) | Hulu, Pluto

  • Mary Tyler Moore stars as Mary Richards, a single, independent woman who initially becomes an Associate Producer at a TV news show in Minneapolis. A rich ensemble cast (three would get spinoffs: Ed Asner as Lou Grant, Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern, and Cloris Leachman as Phyllis Lindstrom), and lauded writing and directing, would result in 29 Emmy wins and a Peabody

Barney Miller (1975-1982) | Crackle, Plex, Prime, Roku (last checked 4 August 2022)

  • Captain Barney Miller (Hal Linden) heads a New York police office (the 12th Precinct). He’s a good guy, but world weary, especially dealing with bureaucracy & the frustrations of the job. His officers include “Wojo” (Max Gail), earnest but simple, Harris (Ron Glass), a sharp dresser who is also an author, Fish (Abe Vigoda), nearing (and eventually during the show, reaching) retirement, Yemana (Jack Soo), quietly philosophical, “Chano” (Gregory Sierra), passionately involved with social issues, Dietrich (David Landesberg), an intellectual, and Wentworth (Linda Lavin), an enthusiastic newbie who has to deal with sexism. We see many other characters as well, including neighborhood regulars. The show was groundbreaking in representation of LGBTQ characters & dealt with cutting edge issues. Won Emmys, Golden Globes, and a Peabody

Taxi (1978-1983) | Hulu, Paramount+, Pluto

  • 18 Emmy wins out of 31 nominations, multiple Golden Globe wins for Best TV Series – Comedy or Musical, this ensemble workplace comedy set in a taxi company n New York is one of the most lauded sitcoms. The cast includes: Judd Hirsch (2 Emmys), whose Alex is a stabilizing force; Andy Kaufman springboarding off his standup act as mechanic Latka Gravas, & Carol Kane (2 Emmys) as his wife, Simka; Marilu Henner as Elaine, who is struggling to make it economically (most of the taxi drivers are); Tony Danza as boxer Tony; Christopher Lloyd (2 Emmys) as bizarre Reverend Jim; Jeff Conaway as Bobby, who is a low level actor still trying to establish himself; and Danny DeVito (Emmy) as dictatorial boss Louie De Palma

Cheers (1982-1993) | Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock

  • One of the most awarded shows (over 100 Emmy nominations, for one thing), and one of the most highly-rated, Cheers is set in a bar in Boston. The recognition was spread among many of the performers

Night Court (1984-1992) | IMDbTV

  • Goofy but caring Judge Harry Stone (Harry Anderson) hears a wide variety of cases (often involving quirky defendants). Markie Post plays public defender Chrstine Sullivan, & John Larroquette (four consecutive Emmy wins: he withdrew his name from consideration after that) is the prosecutor. Richard Moll (as Bull Shannon) & Marsha Warfield (Roz Russell) are two who played bailiffs

Hope that helps you celebrate workers today! I continue to update my streaming guides (in particular, this TV sitcom one and TMC Streaming Guide: Geek-Friendly (SF/F/H) TV).

Enjoy!

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