Father's Day in TV-Land

Happy Father's Day

As a child, television provided me with countless and diverse images of fatherhood; stern but loving family men, widowers, bachelor uncles, hapless but lovable dads etc. So many role models to chose from, and all as far removed from real life as my little house in the suburbs of Long Island was to the Hollywood sound stages where these shows were filmed. My father wasn't quite like any of these men; quiet by nature, he wasn't an overflowing font of fatherly advice and I don't recall having many heart to heart talks with him. This is not to say he wasn't a good and loving father; he definitely was. He just wasn't particularly good at expressing emotions. Also, unlike most TV dads, who seemed to lounge around the house in a tie (except on weekends when cardigan sweaters were the norm), my Dad was a blue collar worker and the only time he wore a suit was to attend a wedding or funeral.

Still, unrealistic representations of fatherhood aside, these two-dimensional (in more ways than one) men present us with iconic images that are hard to forget. Today is Father's Day and in celebration thereof, I present some of my favorite TV Dads...

Being a dad is the single greatest joy in my life. It is also the most nerve-wracking, stress inducing and ulcer-forming part of my life (and I wouldn't trade it for anything). Happy Father's Day!