101 Best Written TV Series

Aired: CBS, 1972-1978

Talking about the success of The Bob Newhart Show on the podcast "Bullseye" recently, Newhart told a story about Jack Benny. At the end of a table reading of The Jack Benny Show during which Benny had instructed the writers to parcel out various big laughs to others cast members, guest star Ronald Coleman said to the comedian afterward, "Jack, you gave away your best lines," to which Benny responded, "Yeah, but I'll be back next week." That was evident on The Bob Newhart Show, a shining example of a sitcom at its most functional. The show, created by David Davis and Lorenzo Music, expanded the success MTM had with The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Newhart's standup's persona those one-sided phone conversations for which he was famous, coupled with his droll delivery played off of the eccentrics surrounding Chicago psychologist Bob Hartley, at work and at home.

Credited Writers

Sybil Adelman
Douglas Arango
Earl Barret
Roger Beatty
Charlotte Brown
Frank Buxton
Glen Charles
Les Charles
Dick Clair
Martin Cohan
Martin Davidson
Phil Davis
David Davis
Kathy Donnell
Phil Doran
Lynne Farr
Gordon Farr
Barbara Gallagher
Bob Garland
Lloyd Garver
Gary David Goldberg
Carl Gottlieb
Bill Idelson
Ray Jessel
Patricia Jones
Austin Kalish
Irma Kalish
Arnold Kane
Bruce Kane
Arnie Kogen
Laura Levine
Paul Lichtman
Paul B. Licytman
David Lloyd
Emily Purdum Marshall
Jerry Mayer
Jenna McMahon
Peter Meyerson
Harvey Miller
Coleman Mitchell
Lorenzo Music
Peter Myerson
Geoffrey Neigher
Tom Patchett
Earl Pomerantz
John Rappaport
Donald Reiker
Gerry Renert
Sy Rosen
Susan Silver
Andrew Smith
Ziggy Steinberg
Howard Storm
Eric Tarloff
Jay Tarses
Gene Thompson
Madelyn Dimaggio Wagner
Jeff Wilhelm
Hugh Wilson
George Yanok
Michael Zinberg