There's One In Every Comedy : 10 of the Silliest Characters in TV Sitcoms

There's One in Every Comedy:

10 of the Silliest Characters in TV Sitcoms

There are many truly dreadful and unfunny comedies throughout the history of television.

Programmes where the jokes are weak, the situations contrived with the actors truly stilted and ungifted in the art of comic timing or delivery.

Plus you usually find that the characters in the show are complete airheads and dumb-bells because they are guaranteed to raise a chuckle.

However I find it interesting that even amongst the best comedies, shows that are genuine classics, there can still be at least one character who is portrayed as completely stupid.

Here are 10 examples neatly divided from both sides of the Atlantic. They are deliberately arrayed in alphabetical order so not to give the impression that I am ranking them according to IQ level. I leave it you to decide who is dumb, dumber or even the dumbest.

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Colin Ball: 'Trigger'

(ONLY FOOLS AND HORSES)

A regular side character alongside Del Boy and Rodney played by Roger Lloyd-Pack. Nicknamed 'Trigger' because he has a face like a horse he was a road-sweeper with the local council in Peckham.

With a deadpan delivery he could be relied upon for the most dense utterances around the table down at the pub and the slowest processing of information.

Throughout the 22 year run of the series he would continually refer to Rodney as 'Dave' for some unexplicable reason and despite evidence to the contrary. Writer John Sullivan found him the perfect vehicle to unearth the old joke about the roadsweeper who had kept the same broom throughout a long career in cleansing, only having to change the handle and the brush-head a few times each in the process. He also revealed that his father “died a couple of years before I was born” when asked about his background.

Woody Boyd

(CHEERS)

A country boy who came to the big city of Boston and worked at 'Cheers' to earn his living while pursuing a career in acting.

So in between attending auditions for commercials and bit-parts in TV shows he was serving drinks behind the bar.

Well-played by Woody Harrelson with natural comic-timing the character plumbed new depths in complete thickery and rustic naivity. He asked Bill Medley “How come you changed your name from Righteous?” when the singer appeared as himself in the show. Portrayed as a unsophisticated hayseed from the backwoods of Indiana, Woody was the perfect foil to balance the sharp-witted and knowing humour of the city folk.

Phoebe Buffay

(FRIENDS)

Played by Emmy winning Lisa Kudrow, the 'Dippy Hippy' from the hit TV series was always guaranteed to completely miss what was going on around her.

This included her dreadful singing and songwriting abilities that were a regular feature of the show in scenes at the Central Perk cafe. She composed songs such as ‘Ode to a Pubic Hair’ and ‘The Double-Double-Double-Jointed Boy’ and many more much worse.

This more than anything else showed her complete lack of self-awareness of people's reactions as she enjoyed an other-worldly existence detatched from reality. She would utter unintelligible sentences such as "They don't know that we know they know we know" or even worse words to that effect. But she had an endearing innocence and kindness of heart that sometimes transcended the infuriating density of the character.

Private Duane Doberman

(THE PHIL SILVERS SHOW)

Always the butt of Sergeant Bilko's most sardonic comments or money-making schemes, Private Doberman, played by Maurice Gosfield could always be relied upon to get things wrong.

The childlike slob of an already ramshackle platoon of goldbrickers, wiseguys and losers all under the thrall of the scheming Sergeant. His remarkable gullibility made him an easy target for his colleagues to take advantage of his easy nature.

He was continually being put upon for favours, duties or errands and rarely showed the gumption to raise a serious voice in protest. He was also at the prey of ruthless conmen or even worse, the manipulative cajoling of his sergeant. At least he could take solace and refuge in his weekly meeting of the local 'Mouseketeers' every Wednesday.

Major Gowen

(FAWLTY TOWERS)

Veteran actor Ballard Berkely was absolutely marvelous in the role of the gin-soaked, ex-army officer permanently resident in the Hotel from Hell.

Obviously suffering from either mild senility or alcohol-related brain damage 'The Major' was a case study in confusion and decrepitude. Completely scatter-brained and always liable to say the wrong thing at the wrong time he added to the chaos that could erupt in the hotel at any minute.

Enquiring about a lady guest's dog she informed him that it was "a little shitzu" to which he replied "What breed?". His conversations with Basil Fawtly were hilarious and much-underrated as the hapless waiter Manuel, played by Andrew Sachs, usually stole the limelight. Completely thick and ripe territory for a cheap laugh he nevertheless helped with the plot twist and turns of this glorious farce.

Reverend Jim Ignatowski

(TAXI)

In a scene-stealing portrayal by the brilliant Christopher Lloyd, the 'Reverend' Jim was a drug-addled, spaced-out remnant of 1960's excess.

He screamed in his sleep, bought multiple TV's for his house as well as a racehorse which he kept in his living room. A madly eccentric character with a shot memory and easily taken advantage of by his unscrupulous boss Louie dePalma played by Danny de Vito.

Preparing for a driving test he asks cab-driver Bobby, played by Jeff Conaway,"What does a yellow light mean?" Bobby replies "Slow down" so Jim says "Whaaat....doessss....aaa....yellowww....lighhhhht....meannnn?" He was a true wild-eyed eccentric, a highly educated drop-out shuffling through life but gentle and vulnerable at the same. Lloyd brought depth and pathos to the part as he fleshed out the character but still remained a hilarious turn whenever he was on screen.

Lance-Corporal Jack Jones

(DAD'S ARMY)

A fondly remembered character from the classic 70's British comedy about a platoon of old soldiers of the Home Guard in World War 2. He was memorably played by actor Clive Dunn who was actually about 20 years younger than the character and was made-up to look older.

Slowing down with age, Lance-Corporal Jones was always a second behind during military drill and a mile off during conversations. He would perplex his commander Captain Mainwaring with his rambling reminiscences about serving in British imperial adventures.

He would also regale the platoon about fighting fierce natives and how “They don’t like it up ‘em” as he brandished his trusty bayonet. He often got himself into unnecessary scrapes through sheer incompetence or lapses in concentration. The inevitable result was his famous "Don't Panic! Don't Panic!" catchphrase erupting from his lips as he lost his head whilst all around were keeping theirs. Jones was the archetypal doddering old fool in khaki but made more dangerous since he had access to loaded weapons. A national treasure in British comedy.

Father Dougal McGuire

(FATHER TED)

Another childlike character played by Ardal O'Hanlon as one of three priests residing in the isolated parish of Craggy Island just off the Irish coast.

These clerical misfits succeeded in landing themselves in trouble with their misadventures both on the island and on the mainland. Unfortunately Father Dougal's promise "Well, Ted, as I said last time, it won't happen again" proved to be totally non-prophetic.

He is arguably unsurpassed in the history of TV comedy as the thickest person to have walked God's Earth and with little real understanding of Christianity or its teachings. Completely devoid of any intellectual capacity, common sense or insight he seemed destined to remain at the mental age of an 8 year old. The only saving grace is that he was cossetted by the head priest Father Ted Crilly who tried his best to keep him out of trouble from the outside world.

Rose Nylund

(GOLDEN GIRLS)

A not so golden girl as portrayed by Betty White, the character of Rose was distinguished by the constant mistake of takings things quite literally. Either through a natural born naivity, simple-mindedness or the early onset of dementia, although never diagnosed.

Rose was usually working at one level below the rest of the girls causing frustration from Dorothy and Blanche or derision from the acid tongue of Sophia, the shrewish Sicilian grandmother.

She was especially exasperating when she entered into one of her nonsensical stories about St Olaf, her hometown. Reflecting back on schooldays she said "We weren't allowed to wear berets at my school, it was against the St. Olaf dress code. They did let me wear a paper cap, though. It was long and pointy" . However, she was mild-mannered and kind of heart, rarely disposed to anger or cruelty. A sweet geriatric version of the classic well-meaning bimbo with no brains.

Ernie Pantusso: 'Coach'

(CHEERS)

Veteran actor Nicholas Colasanto had a distinguished career in TV and movies including a heavyweight role as a Mafia Don in 'Raging Bull' alongside Robert de Niro.

But as 'Coach' the elderly barman in the early years of 'Cheers' he was the fulcrum for the dumbest jokes from a truly great series. Coach looked perpetually bewildered and regularly dazed and confused. Slow-witted and with a terrible memory he shambled along and muddled through the day as best he could.

Chatting with Diane, played by Shelley Long he said "I'm working on a novel. Going on six years now. I might finish it tonight", "You're writing a novel" asks Diane, "No, reading it" came the reply. Sadly Nicholas died in 1985 but the void of the loss of his character in the series was ably filled by Woody Boyd and the dumb routines flowed in an unbroken stream of laughter.

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