10 Best Norman Lear Shows, Ranked

Norman Lear changed the face, tone, and breadth of TV comedy with acclaimed and hugely popular breakthroughs in the 1970s including All in the Family, Maude, The Jeffersons, Sanford and Son and Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. Veering from the safe and antiseptic sitcoms of the past, Lear’s shows tackled the issues of the day with wit, passion, and blunt, often controversial realism.

Here’s a ranked listing of his most notable shows, which have stood the test of time. “If you want them laughing from the belly, you stand a better chance of achieving it if you can get them caring first,” he wrote in his memoir, Even THIS I Get to Experience. Believe me, we cared.