by Moe Zilla

Created on: February 02, 2008

TV Land should learn some TV history. The most glaring omission from their list is Lorne Greene. He lent a special authority to "Bonanza," playing kindly Ben Cartwright for 14 years (on one of the longest-running shows ever). And he returned to create the role of Commander Adama on "Battlestar Galactica" in 1978. Instead, TV Land swapped in Michael Landon, who'd played the handsome son on Bonanza (and enjoyed popularity in another 70s western, "Little House on the Prarie," as well as "Highway to Heaven" in the 1980s.) But I'd argue that Greene's forceful presence made him the true icon.

And how could they forget "Dragnet" star Jack Webb? He almost single-handedly invented the now-familiar image of the investigating police officer. The style became so iconic that it spawned its own catch phrase - "Just the facts, ma'am." And Webb performed that role over nearly 20 years, starting with the "Dragnet" radio show in 1949.

Buddy Ebsen should be on this list. "The Beverly Hillbillies" ran for a whopping nine years on CBS - nearly 300 episodes, at least one of which drew the highest ratings ever recorded for a television sitcom. And after the show ended, Ebsen simply continued his television career as detective Barnaby Jones, appearing on network TV for another 7 years. And even in the 1950s, he appeared in a show so popular it sparked a nationwide phenomenon - the three "Davy Crockett" episodes aired on "The Wonderful World of Disney."

I think Rod Serling should also be in TV Land's "top 50". There are few actors whose style is more imitated than that of Serling. "The Twilight Zone" ran for five years during television's crucial "golden age," giving exposure to hundreds of future famous TV and movie actors (including Ted Knight and Cloris Leachman from "The Mary Tyler Moore Show.") And Serling returned to television in the 1970s with an equally creepy showed called "The Night Gallery,"
which racked up another three seasons of mind-twisting fun!

There's other glaring omissions. TV Land recognized Carroll O'Conner for creating the role of Archie Bunker on "All In The Family." But it was his fluttering wife
Edith, played by Jean Stapleton. that created much of the show's humor. When her character eventually died in the follow-up series, "Archie Bunker's Place," the show lost much of its appeal, and was cancelled within two years.

I also think TV Land gave short shrift to some of the great TV detectives of the 1970s, including James Garner from "The Rockford Files." But it's baffling to me that they've left Peter Falk out of the top 50. He became one of the most familiar "anti-hero" detectives of the entire decade, playing Columbo for over 7 years. The character proved so popular that even after the show was cancelled, there were over a dozen more episodes produced as made-for-TV movies from 1989 through 2003. Peter Falk played the same character over more than 30 years.

If that's not being an icon, what is?

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