The Hottest Sitcom Babes of the 80s

Where the 60's was about fantasy and the 70's gritty reality, the 80's was all about ... well, as a hit song of the day said, "Girls Just Want To Have Fun". So they put on their spandex and legs warmers, teased their tresses into big rooster hair and...wait, let's go back to the spandex part. OK, there was some tight, stretchy fashions on TV, but not enough. Nevertheless, the actresses on sitcoms looked very beautiful, and there were a lot of them. I had a hard time choosing just 25, in fact, I went over a bit. So let's see who they are. Here's my list of The Hottest Sitcom Babes of the 80s.

70s hit Three's Company extended into the 80s, but as the decade began, the show was about to lose it's blonde babe, Suzanne Somers. But the jiggle must go on. So enter her replacement, former LA Rams cheerleader Jenilee Harrison as Chrissy's equally goofy cousin Cindy. She was hot and funny, but probably reminded the producers too much of Somers so she was replaced after two seasons. Priscilla Barnes' smart, sassy, nurse Terri Alden was a totally different type of character and those long legs no doubt helped the series go on a bit longer.

Happy Days was another holdover from the 70s. We watched pretty Irish girl Erin Moran grow up on that show and by the 80s she was dating boys and Chachis. Yes, Joanie Loves Chachi, but only for two seasons. Don't feel bad for him, though. Later on, Scott Baio will star with another one of The Hottest Sitcom Babes of the 80s. Who will it be?

When The Facts Of Life began in 1979, the boarding school was full of pretty girls. But the ratings were awful so a retooling and paring down of the cast was in order for the second season. The only real babe to survive was Lisa Whelchel. The show really took off when Nancy McKeon's tough-talking Jo was brought in to act as a foil to Lisa's stuck-up Blair. In fact, a lot of people imagined there was something else going on between them. TFOL was an issue show, and that would have been quite an entertaining issue!

Too Close For Comfort lasted three seasons on ABC and a little longer as a syndicated series. Inexplicably, it never was that popular. What was not to like? It had a solid premise, the very funny Ted Knight and two smokin' hot actresses playing his daughters - blonde Lydia Cornell as Sara and brunette Deborah Van Valkenburgh as Jackie. In fact, Nancy Dussault as wife Muriel was a gorgeous redhead. A babe trifecta, sounds like a winner to me.

Donna Dixon co-starred in Bosom Buddies with Tom Hanks and another very lucky actor, Peter Scolari, who would later work closely in Newhart with another one of The Hottest Sitcom Babes of the 80s. After BB was canceled, Donna, a former model and beauty queen, didn't star in any more sitcoms but rather married Dan Aykroyd and did at least four movies with him!

Even though this Lithuanian lovely had nearly two decades of film and TV credits by the time she was thirty, it took the sitcom It's A Living to elevate the name Ann Jillian to national prominence. She starred in her own show, Jennifer Slept Here, a few years later. In between, she had become an 80s sex symbol. So much so, that she was cast to portray a sex symbol for the ages, Mae West, in a made-for-tv biopic.  

Justine Bateman, one of my favorites, was material girl Mallory on Family Ties. She had great hair, a thin sexy body and an oh, so pretty face. She was into boys and shopping, not so much into school or politics, though, like her brother Alex P. Keaton, she was conservative in her views. But if you like your chicks more to the left, there was Meredith Baxter. She could have been a Babe in the 70s with Bridget Love Bernie, but she was much hotter as mother and former 60s hippie Elise.

On Silver Spoons, Ricky Schroder's dad was a rich guy with lots of toys. Hey, he owned a toy company. He had numerous arcade video games and a scaled-down train running throughout his mansion. But his favorite toy was no doubt his assistant Kate, played by stunning brunette Erin Gray. 

It was the "greed is good" 80s, but not everyone was working on Wall Street and living large. Some were just trying to make a living. Even beautiful young ladies like Mickey on We Got It Made. But the domestic drudgery didn't last very long, a total of two seasons. After that, Teri Copley went on to something more suitable to her assets... posing for Playboy.

A beautiful young blonde having to resort to working as a hotel maid. Hmm, I notice a trend. When Julia Duffy and that lucky guy Peter Scolari joined the cast of Newhart , they completed the classic cast of quirky people that included the likes of Larry, Darryl and Darryl, and added a quintessential 80s yuppie couple.

A lot of people don't remember the short-lived series Double Trouble, but I remember watching it for one and only one reason. Er, make that two reasons, "Doublemint Twins" Liz and Jean Sagal. The first season saw them hanging out a lot in their father's dance studio. And yes, these cute, real-life dancers in leotards definitely meant "double your pleasure". Older sister Katey starred with another one of The Hottest Sitcom Babes of the 80s. Do you know who?

Even though she was very young on Who's The Boss, you could tell Alyssa Milano would only get hotter and hotter, as her subsequent roles and photos prove. I always wanted to see more of her on the show, but due to major ham bones Tony Danza and Judith Light hogging up most of the screen time, there was way too little babeness on the Boss.

Like Mallory on Family Ties, Denise Huxtable on The Cosby Show was pretty, into fashion and had a lot of young suitors. However, the character more reflected actress Lisa Bonet's free-spirited, hippie nature. In fact, Lisa Bonet free-spirited herself off of that show as well as spinoff A Different World when she posed for a racy mag cover, did a funky sex scene in Angel Heart and got pregnant by Lenny Kravitz.

After two seasons and two public defenders, the third time was the charm when Markie Post became a regular on Night Court. Her beautiful, voluptuous but somewhat naive character, public defender Christine Sullivan, was the primary love interest for Judge Harry Stone. Isn't that a conflict of interest?

"Show me that smile again..." That's nice, now show me those ... bunny ears? That's right. The same year Joanna Kerns began her role as hot mom Maggie Malone (Seaver) on Growing Pains, she portrayed a Playboy Bunny in a TV movie. The star of that movie was another one of The Hottest Sitcom Babes of the 80s. Do you know who?

I happen to believe that smart women are sexy. Apparently, so did the producers of Head of the Class. That must have been why they cast beautiful girls as super-brainy honors students. There was Khrystyne Haje as sensitive art student Simone, Leslie Bega as A-obsessed Maria and Robin Givens as spoiled rich girl Darlene. And that's leaving out cuties Kimberly Russell as Sara and Lara Piper as Viki, as well as Jeanetta Arnette as administrator Ms. Meara. Forget about Rain Pryor and the little kid. A highlight each season was when the class staged the school musical. One year they performed Hair. I don't remember exactly, but I don't think they did the nude scene. What a shame.

 With a father, a friend, an uncle and three daughters all living in a not-so-big Victorian rowhouse in San Francisco, Full House was appropriately titled. But when it comes to a woman like Lori Laughlin as Becky, there's always room for more. Look at those abs. As Uncle Jesse would say, "Have mercy!"

What does a popular series like Cheers do when it loses a main character played by an attractive actress? It replaces her with an even more attractive actress, Kirstie Alley. And it was Kirstie in the starring role as Gloria Steinem appearing with Joanna Kerns in A Bunny's Tale.

Many people remember Nicole Eggert as Summer, one of the hot Baywatch lifeguards. But before that she caught our eye as Jamie, one of Charles' charges on Charles In Charge, starring Scott Baio. Erin Moran then Nicole Eggert. Some guys have all the luck.

And now for one of the all-time greats, Christina Applegate as the iconic character Kelly Bundy in Married With Children. She looked great as the rebellious rocker girl. She looked great as the dumb blonde. And she looks great in everything she does now. And of course, it was the Sagal twins' big sis Katey who starred as Kelly's lazy mom Peggy.

The Wonder Years debuted in 1988 and was set 20 years earlier. That would make Kevin Arnold's sister Karen, played by Olivia D'Abo, TV's all-time hottest hippie chick. Where's Winnie Cooper, you ask? Stay tuned for the 90s!