TV's Best '80s Moms!

Totally Awesome Working Sitcom Moms From The 1980s!

My mom is awesome. Back in the '70 and '80s most of my classmates had stay-at-home moms. They attended class trips, daytime performances of our class plays and rescued their kids whenever they left their homework or lunches at home. Oh how I wished I could be Kathy S. as her mom raced into school carrying every kid's dream lunch of a McDonald's Happy Meal while I suffered through my PBJ.

Seriously though, I love my mom. I envy her for balancing a career, a house, two children and various pets. As an adult, I view working moms as Super Moms. Heck, as an adult, I see that just being a mom in general forces a woman to develop these super human powers. Remember, my blog is a retro blog and this post is from my perspective as a kid. Today, I myself am just a measly freelance writer working from home without any children of my own. In other words, please do NOT think this is a dig at stay-at-home moms.

As for my own Super Mom, I've already told you about her here, here, here and here. This Mother's Day, I've decided to profile a handful of my favorite television moms -- you know, moms from old '80s TV shows I thought were super cool. Moms I would have hired to take over for my mom if she suddenly decided to quit on us.

Family Ties - Elyse Keaton 

Meredith Baxter or Meredith Baxter-Birney was one of my favorite moms. This former hippie turned self-employed architect, treated each kid with love, respect and understanding. Aside from her one-week gambling addiction, she was nearly the perfect on-screen mom. I won't lie, I was slightly surprised when actress Meredith Baxter revealed to the world that she is in fact a lesbian. I admire her courage and think she's even cooler now for coming out!

Growing Pains - Maggie Seaver

As an insane Kirk Cameron fan back in the days, I realized I've blogged about this show way too many, many, many times. So much so, that Kirk Cameron is an actual keyword used in my SEO for this retro blog. Pathetic, right? Anyway, Maggie Seaver was the coolest. She's the sitcom mom I most related to. Why? As you may or may not know, like me, the Seavers lived on Long Island. This was a huge thing to me. It was rare for one of my fave shows to take place on my very own stomping grounds. Aside from that, Maggie was a journalist -- this was my dream job as a kid, heck, still is even though I had my own fifteen minutes of fame here and there as a kid reporter for Long Island Newsday and as teen magazine associate editor.

Kate & Allie - Kate McArdle and Allie Lowell 

As a kid, Kate (Susan Saint James) and Allie (Jane Curtin) impressed me big time! I can't put my finger on it, but this show remains one of my all-time fave '80s sitcoms. No, it's not the obvious Ally-name thing, but perhaps the fact that back in those days, I seriously didn't know many single moms. I was fascinated by what I considered two strong women making it on their own and the blending of two families under one roof. Other than the Brady Bunch, you didn't really see that back then. Remember this was before Suzanne Somers' show, Step By Step! Kate & Allie had an awesome brownstone apartment in Greenwich Village (Yey, New York!) and their three kids were New York area child stars in real life. Yup, Ari Meyers, Fred Kohler (he even went to school with NYC friends of mine!) and Annie Broadway star Allison Smith were all east coast kids like me.

Facts of Life's - Edna Garrett

Although Edna (Charlotte Rae) wasn't the traditional biological sitcom mom, she was still an amazing mother figure to all of her Eastland girls. On the rare occasion we were treated to an episode featuring Blair, Jo, Natalie or Tootie's real moms, we most likely found them annoying or judgmental. Edna always offered advice and unconditional love and helped solve problems probably better than most mothers. It's easier to take on that role when the child isn't biologically your own, right? Edna went on to open the famous Edna's Edibles and the girls were able to work for her and continue their mother-daughter roles as they grew into adulthood. 

Roseanne - Roseanne Conner 

I've blogged about Roseanne in the past and loved many things about the way this particular mom ran her household. Roseanne Conner worked low-paying jobs, dealt with jerky bosses and truly represented an entire class of moms we rarely got a glimpse of back in the late 1980s. She wasn't glamorous, she was real. Not to mention, she was chubby like me, and that's something you rarely see with TV moms. They're always these perfect Hollywood thirty-or-forty-somethings. Roseanne was honest, blunt and verbally kicked her kids' asses when they messed up. This late '80s, early '90s mom was a true breath of fresh air and a sign of the times compared to the early 1980s.

How about you? Any sitcom moms you liked best back in the day or today as a mom yourself relate to?