14THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW

Aired: CBS, 1960-1966

Carl Reiner has said he based his first sitcom on his experiences as a writer on Your Show of Shows, working for temperamental star Sid Caesar while also trying to be a husband and father. Reiner, who occasionally played Alan Brady, the Caesar-ish star of the fictional comedy-variety series for whom Rob Petrie (Van Dyke) worked, told the Los Angeles Times in 1999 that he originally wrote The Dick Van Dyke Show "for a Bronx Jew" to play the lead role. "I starred in a pilot we did in New York, and it was OK, and I'm glad it didn't sell," Reiner said. The show's other writers included Garry Marshall, Jerry Belson, Sam Denoff and John Whedon, father of Joss Whedon.