Great Laughs from Ten Top Couples in TV Comedy

Laughter is the best medicine and these 10 couples supplied TV audiences with a huge dose of laughter through the years. Many of these top comedy couples are from totally opposite backgrounds; Their diversity creates an intense comedy appeal.

Ricky and Lucy Ricardo were played by Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz in the I Love Lucy Show, which ran from 1951 to 1957. Lucy and Ricky were quite an entertaining couple: Lucy always coming up with schemes to get into show business with Ricky, and Ricky exploding into a frenzy of Spanish when discovering Lucy's pranks. A favorite classic around the world.

Darren and Samantha Stephens in Bewitched. The marriage between a plain mortal and a witch is the perfect setting for this hillarious sitcom that ran from 1964 to 1972. Pledging to give up witchcraft for her mortal husband was easier said than done for Samantha, as her relatives constantly interfere by casting spells, turning Darren into animals and other inanimate objects and sending him to far off places. In spite of all of the antics of Samantha's relatives, Sam and Darren's love survive and their marriage grows stronger.

Jeannie and Major Tony Nelson in I Dream of Jeannie were another unlikely couple. Watching Jeannie come out of her genie bottle was a creative start to each show. Viewers were kept entertained watching Jeannie try to find ways to keep Major Nelson to herself. At the same time Major Nelson tried to keep the world from finding out that he had a genie living in a bottle. Eventually, Jeannie and Major Nelson fell in love and married.

Mork and Mindy. A truly unique couple: Mork from the planet Ork meets Mindy McConnell, an earthling. Mork has been sent to the planet Earth to learn about human behavior and report back to Orson from the planet Ork. It ws quite entertaining watching as Mork and Mindy learn about each other's worlds. Robin Williams was a natural playing Mork in this early acting role. This sitcom ran from 1978 to 1982.

Fran Fine and Maxwell Sheffield from the Nanny TV sitcom. The setting in this sitcom is instant comedy: A down to earth Jewish woman from Queens is mistaken for a nanny and hired by a rich prim and proper theater producer. Great fun watching as Fran and Maxwell grow to respect each other's differences and eventually marry.

Niles and C.C. Babcock from the Nanny. Niles is the butler for the Sheffield family. C.C. Babcock is Maxwell's business partner. Niles and C.C. spend their time exchanging hillarious insults and sarcastic remarks. It would appear they disilke each other intensely, but as time goes by, they realize they are meant for each other. Quite a surprising, but enjoyable twist of romance to wach.

Oliver Wendell Douglas and Lisa Douglas from Green Acres. Oliver is a rich attorney. He and his wife, Lisa were used to a rich livestyle in New York City. Oliver decides to pursue his lifelong dream of living on a farm and the couple move out of the city onto a farm. Watching these two city slickers adjust to farm life is corny at times, but definitely good for some laughs.

Archie and Edith Bunker from All in the Family. One of the riskiest shows to run in its time (1971-1979), it was a huge success. Archie is a known racist and bigot, while his wife, Edith, is the exact opposite, sweet, loving and understanding, but naive. Archie and Edith struggle through many ups and downs and viewers laugh at Archie's ignorance and bigotry, while at the same time, through Edith's eyes, grow to understand and appreciate his better qualities.

Cliff and Clair Huxtable from the Cosby Show. Watching Cliff and Clair raise their five children brings a lot of laughs, as well as important issues in raising children . One of my favorite episodes is when Rudy takes a drink at a party and Cliff and Clair teach her a lesson. Cliff and Clair Huxtable deserve an A+ in this show for keeping a sense of humor when raising their children.

Raymond and Debra from Everyone Loves Raymond. Raymond and Debra have their hands full raising three kids, and having Raymond's parents live across the street. Laughter is abundant as Ray and Debra deal with Ray's overbearing mother, Marie, at times obnoxious father, Frank, and jealous brother, Robert. The most memorable episode was the final episode when Raymond has a minor surgery. Briefly, it appears that Raymond may not make it. During that short period of time, realization sets in for each family member exactly how much they love Raymond in spite of all their family quarrels and problems. An outstanding finale.