6 Iconic TV Episodes That Defined the 1970s: ‘Carol Burnett Show,’ ‘Brady Bunch’ & More
TV Guide magazine has a long and grand history of ranking the best television shows. With so many great dramas and sitcoms over the decades, it’s not always easy to do, but it is always fun!
Carol Burnett descending a grand staircase as “Starlett” wearing an even grander gown that looks suspiciously like a window curtain on The Carol Burnett Show; Mary Richards (Mary Tyler Moore) laughing uncontrollably at a funeral for Chuckles the Clown on The Mary Tyler Moore Show; and Sammy Davis Jr. planting a kiss on Archie Bunker (Carroll O’Connor) on All in the Family, to name a few.
Our editors dove even deeper into these series to choose the outstanding episodes, and even moments, that we all remember and love. Here are six of our favorite iconic episodes from the 1970s:
The Carol Burnett Show
The famous Gone With the Wind parody from The Carol Burnett Show, titled “Went With the Wind,” was such a big hit with audiences that Bob Mackie “curtain dress” Burnett wore for the episode, which looked more curtain than dress, is now sitting in the Smithsonian, rod and all! (TV Guide Magazine also named the dress scene No. 2 in their 1999 “50 Funniest TV Moments of All Time” list.)
The episode follows a similar plot line to the original, with “Starlett” embroiled in various love affairs with “Brashly” Wilkes and “Ratt” Butler throughout the Civil War era — just with far more jokes.
The Mary Tyler Moore Show
When the recurring offscreen Mary Tyler Moore Show character Chuckles the Clown, dressed as Peter Peanut, is accidentally killed by a rogue elephant during a parade, his death is the butt of every joke in the WJM-TV newsroom — causing Mary much consternation in the 1975 episode “Chuckles Bites the Dust.”
Only after exploding into a fit of uncontrollable giggles during the funeral does she understand that it’s an appropriately human response, and perhaps what the poor deceased clown would have wanted. The episode won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series and is often cited as one of the best episodes in television history for its humorous and relatable (but considerate) way of dealing with the weighty subject of death and grieving in a sitcom.
Columbo
NBC/ Courtesy: Everett Collection.
The very first episode of the long-running police procedural Columbo, directed by Steven Spielberg when he was just 24 years old and introducing Peter Falk as the TV detective who would become beloved by millions, “Murder by the Book” (1971) was a bit meta and a lot of fun: When one half of a mystery writing team decides to break away from his less talented partner, fiction becomes reality as he becomes the victim of a real-life murder and investigation. Luckily, Columbo was on the case!
All in the Family
In the 1972 All in the Family Season 2 episode “Sammy’s Visit,” beloved family patriarch Archie, who’s been moonlighting as a taxi driver, gives musical icon Sammy Davis Jr. a ride in his cab, where Davis happens to forget his briefcase. To Archie’s excitement, this results in a celebrity visit to his home, although his wife Edith can’t help but tell everyone they know about it, resulting in half the neighborhood popping over to witness the exchange. O’Connor and Davis were longtime friends, and it was the singer’s idea to appear on the show, which resulted in one of the best episodes of the series.
The Brady Bunch
In the 1973 episode about America’s favorite blended family titled “The Subject Was Noses,” Marcia cancels a date with a boy who is enamored with her after the school’s star football player, Doug Simpson, asks her out on the same night. Stepbrother Greg suggests she use the simple, vague excuse of “Something suddenly came up,” which she does. Unfortunately for her, she gets hit in the nose by an errant football a few days before the date, and when Doug sees her injured face, he cancels his date with her, leaving her all alone on Saturday night. In the end, it was perhaps a great lesson for Marcia, even if a painful one, and the episode ultimately became a fan favorite. The title of this Brady Bunch episode is a reference to the 1968 Martin Sheen film The Subject Was Roses, though the plots share no similarities.
Little House on the Prairie
Written and directed by Little House on the Prairie star Michael Landon, the 1974 two-part episode “The Lord Is My Shepherd” featured a guest appearance by Ernest Borgnine and focused on the guilt little Laura feels when the sick baby brother she refuses to pray for dies, causing her to run away to the mountains. In the end, Pa found her, and all was well in Walnut Grove. The Ingalls family was so beloved by viewers that the show ran for nine seasons and is considered one of the best family dramas of all time.
This is an excerpt from the Iconic TV Episodes issue of TV Guide Puzzler Magazine. You can purchase the full copy below, which is chock-full of puzzles dedicated to our favorite iconic TV Episodes of all time.
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PUZZLER: Iconic TV Episodes
Vol. 5, Issue 2
Enjoy fun trivia and puzzles based around the most outstanding TV episodes and moments we all remember.
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