Man of Many Sweaters, Cliff Huxtable is America`s Favorite TV Dad

Ward Cleaver and Jim Anderson Round out Top Three Dads
ROCHESTER, N.Y.--(Business Wire)--
Whether it was always having time for a game of catch or being able to solve big
problems in just 30 minutes, dads from television shows may have triggered
occasional thoughts of, "wow, why isn`t my dad like that?" The top dad that
Americans would like to have had when they were growing up brings back memories
of sweaters, lots of sweaters. Dr. Cliff Huxtable of The Cosby Show tops the
list. Coming in at number two is the Beaver`s dad, Ward Cleaver of Leave it to
Beaver, followed by Jim Anderson of Father Knows Best at number three on the
list. Opie`s dad, Andy Taylor of The Andy Griffith Show is in at number four
while David and Ricky`s dad, Ozzie Nelson of The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet
rounds out the top five.

These are some of the results from The Harris Poll®, a new study of 2,681 U.S.
adults surveyed online between May 11 and 18, 2009 by Harris Interactive®.

Looking further into the list, it`s a story of a man named Mike Brady of The
Brady Bunch who is at number six while the Fonz`s favorite dad, Howard "Mr. C"
Cunningham of Happy Days is at number seven. Even while tilling fields and
settling western lands, "Pa" Charles Ingalls of Little House on the Prairie had
time for Half-pint, so he`s in at number eight while another Western icon, Ben
Cartwright of Bonanza is at number nine. In at number ten is the accident prone
Tim Taylor of Tool Time and Home Improvement.

Diving a bit deeper on the list of favorite TV dads, at number 11 is D.J.`s,
Stephanie`s and Michelle`s dad, Danny Tanner of Full House and the father-in-law
who gave Meathead problems, Archie Bunker of All in the Family is at number 12.
Rounding out the top fifteen are Steve Douglas of My Three Sons at number 13,
then in a tie for the 14th spot, Homer Simpson of The Simpsons and Al Bundy of
Married with Children.

Favorites Among Different Groups

Normally, different groups all have their own favorite. With television dads,
this isn`t the case as only one group (Matures, those aged 64 and older) did not
pick Cliff Huxtable as their favorite TV dad; for Matures it is Jim Anderson.
Now, for second favorite there are definitely differences, especially in
generation. For Matures, Cliff Huxtable is their second favorite while for Baby
Boomers (those aged 45-63) it is Ward Cleaver. Gen Xers (those aged 33-44) pick
Mike Brady and Echo Boomers (those aged 18-32) say Danny Tanner is their second
favorite television dad.

So What?

Maybe it isn`t a surprise to some due to the number of crime shows, reality
shows and competitions on television today, but there is only one television dad
on the list that is currently on prime-time television, Homer Simpson. While
reruns and fond memories bring these other television dads to mind, the next
generation may not have the same memories of watching prime-time TV and watching
a sitcom father sit down 26 minutes into the show and solve the episode`s
problems. Of the top 15 television dads, seven of them are from shows from the
1950s or 1960s and 2 were set in the 1950s or earlier. Maybe it is the economic
crisis or just a desire for the days of old, but it seems when picking their
favorites, Americans are looking back to simpler times and maybe even happier
times.

The Harris Poll®#61, June 16, 2009

By Regina A. Corso, Director, The Harris Poll

Methodology

This Harris Poll® was conducted online within the United States May 11 and 18,
2009, among 2,681 adults (aged 18 and over). Figures for age, sex,
race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where
necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the
population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents`
propensity to be online. Full data tables and methodology are available at
www.harrisinteractive.com

These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council
on Public Polls.

J36305

Q905

About Harris Interactive

Harris Interactive is a global leader in custom market research. With a long and
rich history in multimodal research, powered by our science and technology, we
assist clients in achieving business results. Harris Interactive serves clients
globally through our North American, European and Asian offices and a network of
independent market research firms. For more information, please visit
www.harrisinteractive.com.

Harris Interactive Inc. 6/09

Press:
Harris Interactive
Carol Fricke, 585-272-8400
press@harrisinteractive.net

Copyright Business Wire 2009