Father’s Day is coming up. Perhaps you have a father or a spouse that you will be celebrating on that day. Unfortunately my father and grandfathers are all deceased, but I have some father figures I can reach out to.
Speaking of fathers, I want to go back and share some of my favorite tv dads with you. I’m technically a millennial. An older millennial; therefore, I can recall shows of these fathers who either possess what I wish I had or identifiable traits in my uncles or grandfathers. Then again, some were just cool well rounded manly characters.
20 Most Memorable TV Fathers
1. Phillip Banks
Father of four. Husband. Uncle. Attorney then later appointed judge during the last few seasons of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. He was smart, stern, and caring. I loved that he was affectionate towards his wife. He treated his nephew Will just like his very own son. He didn’t sugarcoat the effects of being Black in White America. One of my all-time favorite episodes was when Will’s biological father came into his life again, made empty promises, and didn’t show up when he said he would. Will then began to cry to Uncle Phil and asks, “Why he don’t want me.” That has to be the most powerful scene ever! Trust me I felt that. I cry every time. See for yourself if you don’t remember.
2. Heathcliff “Cliff” Huxtable
He was America’s favorite dad. Who didn’t love The Cosby Show? He was a loving husband, father, and nonviolent disciplinarian. Cliff, AKA Dr. Huxtable, instilled the values of going to college and challenged his children on poor decisions. He was very creative in incorporating music and art to help the kids understand culture and changes in life.
3. Carl Winslow
Husband. Father of three. Employed as a police officer. Living in their family home was his own family and his mother, sister-in-law, and nephew on the show Family Matters. Who could forget their neighbor Steve Urkel? Besides being a mentor to Steve, the show captured great father and son moments between Carl and son Eddie. This show focused a lot on morals and values. I’ve cried on a few of those episodes when I was a child too.
4. Ernest Frye
Widower, lawyer, and church deacon on the show Amen. Although his adult daughter Thelma lived with him, he was still giving her advice on life and love. A memorable episode for me is when Thelma joined the Army and had a new love interest played by Richard Roundtree. Thelma’s father along with her former boyfriend Reuben came to the military base dressed as women just so they could see how she was coping with military life. Once Thelma left her father’s nest, she developed confidence that she didn’t have before.
5. Fred Sanford
Growing up, the show Sanford & Son would come on tv in the afternoon. The show was about a father and son duo who owned a junkyard business. Fred G. Sanford reminded me of my great-grandfather. Gramps was an old cool cat and collected all kinds of items (junk) as well. He also had friends in the community who would come over to play cards, gamble, drink, and talk about life. Don’t get it twisted, Gramps knew the Bible too. Most importantly he instilled values in me that I live by today.
6. Randall Pearson
To be honest my man crush is Sterling K. Brown who plays Randall on This Is Us on NBC. However, I absolutely love the husband, father, brother, son, and community leader that Randall is. A White family adopted him as a newborn and raised him with love and affection. Later in life Randall then developed a relationship with his biological father who gave him away at birth. Randall even let him move in with his own family. Now that’s admirable. Plus Randall and his wife, Beth adopted a daughter. He also reminds me of myself in the strive for excellence.
Randall is also managing his mental health. He has a lot of stress and has been dealing with anxiety since he was a teenager. June is Men’s Health Month. Click here to learn about common tests men should have completed.
7. John “Pops” Williams
Pops was from The Wayan’s Brothers. Pops was a huge flirt. He was hilarious, and always giving advice to his sons whether it was good or bad. John Witherspoon played this role. He died last year. The social media tributes were filled with the notorious scene of Pops in his musical group leading the unforgettable song, “My Love Goes Bang Bang Bang.”
8. Joe Carmichael
The Carmichael Show was on for 2 seasons on NBC a few years ago. It was actually a funny show. Joe was the main character Jerrod’s father. The show took place in North Carolina. I’m from South Carolina so the show felt close to home. Joe was good and country. He said what he felt and that was that.
9. Andrew “Pop” Emerson
He was the father to two adult sons and a daughter-in-law. They all lived together. I loved the wisdom that he brought to the show. I can remember Pop saying something like, “Well son, back in my day…” And Roc, his son would roll his eyes, sigh, and say, “Oh Pops.”
10. George Jefferson
How could you forget him? He was a very proud man who defied racism. Definitely not the type to accept any form of disrespect. I absolutely love that. On The Jeffersons, George was an entrepreneur and owner of Jefferson Cleaners, married to Louise “Weezy” Jefferson. Father to adult son Lionel. He didn’t hand his son anything, but reinforced being independent and working hard.
11. Andre Johnson
He’s a modern dad on the show Black-ish. He is married with five kids. The family lives in California in an upper class neighborhood. Andre’s mother and father live with them too. Andre AKA “Dre” is very close with his mother. Often times she interferes with his married life, particularly his wife’s parenting skills. There’s a lot of funny moments, but he keeps an honest relationship with his children. Dre makes it a purpose to teach his children their Black heritage since they are going up in an area with nicer amenities and more opportunities than he did.
12. James Evans
Who can forget the patriarch of Good Times? He is a memorable dad. Definitely a man’s man. Very stern and old fashion. Some may even say he was mean. Needless to say, not my favorite dad. I knew he’d be someone’s fave, so I added him to the list. Unpopular opinion- I’m not a fan of Good Times. I didn’t mind seeing the Good Times Live that aired in December 2019 though.
13. Paul Patterson Sr.
He is the patriarch of the family on Being Mary Jane. He cares for his ailing wife. Still supports his adult children and grand daughters whether it’s emotionally or financially. The one episode that shook me was when we found out that his oldest son, Patrick was not his. I didn’t see that coming. He and his wife were married for about 40 years and they separated after that. Meanwhile, they got back together and became strong again. That was a very vulnerable moment because many times we see where it’s the father who cheats and produces a child from the affair.
14. Michael Kyle
On My Wife & Kids he was husband to Jay and dad to Junior, Claire, and Kady. He was a funny dad who taught valuable lessons to his children. What stands out to me is that Michael and Jay were teen parents, but when Junior became a teen parent they still supported their child even though that’s not what they wanted for him.
15. Eddie Sutton
On Lincoln Heights, Eddie was a police officer married to a nurse practitioner. They had three children. I loved the fact that he was a strong Black man who protected his family. He uprooted his family to move back into the rough community from which he was reared due to the desire to make his hometown stronger and better.
16. Jack Pearson
Jack is actually Randall Pearson’s father. He and his wife lost one of their triplets and adopted a Black baby who was up for adoption. He gave Randall love. Jack always stood up for what was right. He fought for his family to have a better life, despite his own upbringing. And of all things, he ended up dying of a medical complication after trying to save his teenage daughter’s dog while their home was on fire. Jack was dedicated to making his precious girl happy.
17. Frank Mitchell
On the show Moesha, Frank was married to Dee. Father of Moesha and Miles. As a teenager myself, it was cool to see Frank raising a teenage daughter in the 1990s during the height of hip hop music. And towards the end of the season, Frank admitted that he had an additional child, Dorian who was raised as Frank’s nephew. The perfect family didn’t seem so perfect anymore. However, the family still pulled through.
18. David Bryan
Sinbad Show- I don’t remember how long this show lasted, but I thought it was a good show. This was my first time seeing a single Black guy with adoptive kids (a girl and boy). Plus he was a young guy. That was unheard of and unseen before. I was probably 11 or 12 years old when this show aired.
19. Danny Tanner
I’d watch Full House sometimes in the late 1980s. The show was centered around a widowed father raising his three daughters with the help of his brother in law and friend. I was just fond of a village of men coming together to participate in the upbringing of the young girls. They’d play with the them, fix their hair, and talk to them about boys. Stuff a father would normally do I guess.
20. Michael Taylor and Joey Harris
My Two Dads came on in 1987 on NBC. I loved this show! Two guys decided to move in together and raise a little girl who they both thought was their biological daughter although a paternity test was never done. The child’s mother died and the two dads raised her.
I was very young when this show was on and didn’t grasp the concept of what a dad really was. What I will always remember is that my actual dad called our house when this show was playing. I never knew who he was until that phone call. I vividly recall me answering the phone and him asking for my mother. She asked me to find out who it was. I responded, “Who’s this?” He replied, “Your dad.” I relayed the response to her, “He said he’s my dad.” Well folks that began my short intro to who was. Maybe I’ll write a book on what happened next. However this show will always be in my memory bank.
Its not to late to order a gift from Target for you last minute shoppers!
