A Tribute to the "Neighbor"

[IrishCanadian25]

Sitcoms often have reoccuring themes. Many of them include lovable protagonists, annoying bosses, quirky love triangles, etc. But one has truly stood the test of time - The Neighbor / Best Friend. They show up when least wanted, they never knock, they often frustrate the parents of the protagonist.

This thread is a tribute to the greatest best friend / neighbor supporting characters in sitcom history. Please note - shows like Friends don't count here, as all 6 were neighbors and all 6 were main characters.

1. Kimmy Gibler. DJ's best friend on Full House and the annoying next door neighbor of the Tanner family. Obnoxious and not even hot. Once spent her birthday at Wrestlemania 6. Her one boyfriend on the show rarely said anything beyond "whatever."

2. Steve Urkel. Hardly the original annoying neighbor, but holy hell did Jaleel White's geekly scientist with a mega-crush on Laura Winslow ever take it to a new level. He burned down a local restaurant (which of course led to Rachel's Place), won a basketball tournament with Grandmama, won a rope climbing conest using a rocket pack, and turned down sex with his hot nerdy girlfriend Myra. He brought the Perfect Strangers spin-off to epic success.

3. Vinny Delpino. Doogie Howser's best friend, a clear tribute to Lenny and Squiggy from Laverne and Shirley. SO Italian, SO the opposite of Doogie. Some of the best moments on the show were Vinny talking about women with the doctor, his best friend, "DOOG."

4. Boner Stabone. He would make any list just for the name "Boner." He was loveable and naive; a terrific companion for Mike Seaver on Growing Pains.

5. Wilson. Never annoying, really, but as Tim Taylor's facially obstructed next door neighbor on Home Improvement, Wilson could always be counted on for a lesson - some wisdom - to help Tim (and sometimes Jill) deal with the complexities of life, marriage, family, and kids.

6. Buddy Lembeck. Buddy was as much a prototype for the sitcom best friend as anyone on the list. Not too smart, but endlessly loyal and loveable. His name truly described his character to a T.

7. Ned Flanders. Heydilly didilly! Flanders was Homer Simpson's next door neighbor, and despite his disdain for Ned (you suck didily-uck, Flanders!), Homer and him did have a relationship for the 20 years of the show.

8. Paul Pfeiffer. Josh Saviano played Kevin Arnold's best friend, who was truly an all-out stereotype. A jewish nerd, a terrific student with a mess of allergies, huge glasses, no luck with women, etc. But he was a classic character, and I can still here him telling Kevin that "McCovey is off the table."



I have LOADS more, but I want to allow some of you to post a few as well.

 

[jmt225]

8. Paul Pfeiffer. Josh Saviano played Kevin Arnold's best friend, who was truly an all-out stereotype. A jewish nerd, a terrific student with a mess of allergies, huge glasses, no luck with women, etc. But he was a classic character, and I can still here him telling Kevin that "McCovey is off the table."

Dammit IC, I'm supposed to be the one who brings up The Wonder Years in every single television thread!

Nevertheless, Fred Savage's little brother, Ben Savage, also had an awesome television program that he starred in, and luckily you forgot to mention it.

Mr. Feeny - Ahh yes, Corey's wonderful teacher from Boy Meets World. Maybe with the exception of Urkel in Family Matters, none of the neighbors you listed IC meant more to their show than Mr. Feeny meant to Boy Meets World. I mean, the series finale ended with this guy in an empty class room, after his goodbyes to his favorite students. That's how much that character meant to the show. And there were just so many other great scenes that involved Mr. Feeny throughout the show... funny and dramatic. In fact, I would dare say his relationship with Corey and Eric was consistently the show stealer throughout the series. There were just so, so many laughs and heartfelt moments between Mr. Feeny and those two. What a great character he was.

Marcy D'Arcy - The conservative, horny little devil next door to Al Bundy. Her character changed so much throughout the series from the beginning to the end. She started out as a sweet, perfect housewife with a perfect marriage to Steve, and she ended as a hateful, sex craved woman who only wanted to see Al Bundy suffer at any cost, while also being in a marriage with a man she had to take full care of. But man was she hilarious. And a lot of Al's best jokes came at her expense. She definitely meant a lot to the show.

My honorable mention goes to Ugly Naked Guy in Friends. You never see him, but never has a neighbor in any television program made you imagine as much as he did, lol.