Matriarch Messages: Moments with Classic TV Sitcom Moms

 

by Michael Lyons

This Sunday is Mother's Day. But every day should be, shouldn't it?

Of all the gifts that moms give us throughout our lives, the greatest may be the gift of laughter. Some of television's best-loved sitcoms have recognized this through the years. Here are just some of the many moments with TV's memorable moms:

 

Leave it to Beaver:

 

June Cleaver (Barbara Billingsley): "Wally, where are you going?"

Wally Cleaver (Tony Dow): "I'm going over to slug Eddie."

June: "That's no way to talk. This is Sunday."

Wally: "You're right, I'll wait 'til tomorrow and slug him in the cafeteria." 

 

The Brady Bunch:

Carol Brady (Florence Henderson): "If you know what you did was wrong, that's more important than any punishment."

 

Happy Days:

Marion Cunningham (Marion Ross): "Your father once even sent me a five-pound box of candy on Valentine's Day. He was a devil."

Howard Cunningham (Tom Bosley): "I never sent you a five-pound box of candy."

Marion: "You didn't?"

Howard: "No, I didn't."

Marion: "Then I must have married the wrong man."

 

Family Ties:

 

Elyse Keaton (Meridith Baxter): "Alex was offended by our political magazines and ripped them up."

Alex P. Keaton (Michael J. Fox): "You have no proof."

Elyse: "Yes, we do. We found your rattle on the floor next to the evidence."

Alex: "It could have been Mallory's."

Elyse: "It was your Nixon rattle."

 

Everybody Loves Raymond

Marie Barone (Doris Roberts): "That's what parents do: they all lie to their kids for their own good."

 

Modern Family 

Claire Dunphy (Julie Bowen): "Your kids don't need to know who you were before you had them; they need to know who you wish you were and try to live up to that person. They're gonna fall short, but better they fall short of the fake you than the real you."

To all the moms out there, those fictional ones on TV, and those real ones in our lives and our memories. Thank you for the laughs and the love.

Happy Mother's Day!

Sources:

IMDb

ScreenRant

If you are looking for more of my articles, or podcast episodes, or for information on my book, Drawn to Greatness: Disney's Animation Renaissance, head over to my website: Words From Lyons