Characters by debut decade
Sitcom characters who debuted in the 1970s
Two of the biggest hits of the 1970s both looked back in time. M*A*S*H found dark comedy in a Korean War field hospital, while Happy Days served up a warm, nostalgic version of 1950s Milwaukee.
This list covers every character in the library who first appeared on screen between 1970 and 1979, including the M*A*S*H doctors who joined the unit partway through the decade.
12 characters on this list.
M*A*S*H(8)
CBS, 1972 to 1983
- Hawkeye PierceLeadPlayed by Alan AldaThe brilliant, wisecracking chief surgeon of the 4077th MASH, who fights the Korean War with a scalpel by day and jokes, pranks…
- B.J. HunnicuttMain castPlayed by Mike FarrellA gentle, devoted family man and gifted surgeon from California who replaces Trapper John at the 4077th and becomes Hawkeye's best friend and…
- Charles WinchesterMain castPlayed by David Ogden StiersThe snobbish, Harvard-trained Boston surgeon who replaces Frank Burns in the Swamp, matches Hawkeye wit for wit…
- Frank BurnsMain castPlayed by Larry LinvilleThe whiny, rule-obsessed, and famously inept surgeon of the 4077th, who carries on a not-so-secret affair with Margaret Houlihan and schemes…
- Margaret HoulihanMain castPlayed by Loretta SwitThe tough, by-the-book head nurse of the 4077th, nicknamed "Hot Lips," who starts as Frank Burns's ally against the surgeons and grows into one of…
- Maxwell KlingerMain castPlayed by Jamie FarrThe Toledo-born corporal who wears dresses and pulls stunt after stunt to win a psychiatric discharge from the Army…
- Radar O'ReillyMain castPlayed by Gary BurghoffThe shy, teddy-bear-hugging Iowa farm boy who runs the 4077th as its company clerk and somehow hears the choppers, and his commander's orders…
- Sherman PotterMain castPlayed by Harry MorganThe horse-loving, plain-talking career Army colonel from Missouri who takes command of the 4077th in season four and becomes a steady father figure…
Happy Days(4)
ABC, 1974 to 1984
- Richie CunninghamLeadPlayed by Ron HowardThe clean-cut, freckle-faced Milwaukee teenager at the heart of Happy Days, whose dating schemes, school days…
- Arthur FonzarelliMain castPlayed by Henry WinklerThe leather-jacketed, motorcycle-riding mechanic known as the Fonz, the coolest guy in 1950s Milwaukee, who becomes Richie Cunningham's best friend…
- Howard CunninghamMain castPlayed by Tom BosleyThe patient, good-humored father of the Cunningham family on Happy Days, a Milwaukee hardware store owner and lodge man whose kitchen-table advice…
- Marion CunninghamMain castPlayed by Marion RossThe warm, quietly spirited mother of the Cunningham family on Happy Days, known as "Mrs. C" to the gang and the only person Fonzie lets call him…
More character lists
By show
- I Love Lucy
- M*A*S*H
- Happy Days
- Cheers
- The Golden Girls
- Full House
- Seinfeld
- Family Matters
- The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
- Frasier
- Friends
- Everybody Loves Raymond
- That '70s Show
- Malcolm in the Middle
- Curb Your Enthusiasm
- Scrubs
- Arrested Development
- The Office
- How I Met Your Mother
- It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
- 30 Rock
- The Big Bang Theory
- Parks and Recreation
- Modern Family
- Community
- New Girl
- Brooklyn Nine-Nine
- Schitt's Creek
- Superstore
- The Good Place
- What We Do in the Shadows
- Ted Lasso
- Abbott Elementary
- Home Improvement