Which TV Dad Do You Wish Was Your Own?

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Updated March 15, 2025 127.1K views 87 items
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Vote on the best TV dads you wouldn't mind being raised by.

List of the greatest and most memorable dads from through television history. Which TV fathers were the most inspirational? Who taught you the most about growing up and becoming an adult? Which TV fathers were just the funniest and most entertaining? Any TV dads who fit these criteria are eligible for this list, an attempt to drill down into the definitive answer to the question: "Who's the world's favorite TV Dad?"

Vote: Favorite TV Moms of All Time

Classic sitcoms revolving largely around the family gave us a ton of Dads to choose from, and for the most part, they were traditionally good fathers. Guys like Rob Petrie, Andy Taylor and Howard Cunningham looked out for their kids, paid attention to their needs and gave them solid life and career advice.

Through the ‘80s and ‘90s, pop culture got a bit a bit more realistic or cynical, depending on who you ask, and TV Dads became more of a hodge-podge of responsibility and immaturity, reflecting the real, complex and often difficult job of being a father. Though there remain the shining examples of great TV dads like Cliff Huxtable from "The Cosby Show" and Dan Conner from "Roseanne," you now had alternative views of fatherhood, like Homer Simpson and the iconic Al Bundy. The most famous fictional dads include Philip Banks from Fresh Prince, Danny Tanner from Full House, and plenty more from some of the most popular shows from the ’80s, ’90s, 2000s, and beyond.

But this list doesn't discriminate! If your favorite TV dads are likely to lose their kids at the mall, ignore them in favor of football and beer or forget their birthdays, vote for 'em anyway! Your old man would be proud.

Most divisive: Ben Cartwright
Over 8.2K Ranker voters have come together to rank this list of TV Dads We Wish Were Our Own
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