Architectural Digest recently surveyed folks to find out “The 26 Most Iconic TV Interiors of the Past 100 Years.” Here, a look at what the magazine found to be some of the most popular home-related backdrops.
Perhaps this will spark some fun design tips for your new home! Or maybe you’ll just enjoy reading about these iconic settings.
1. The Brady Bunch (1969-1974)
The Brady Bunch house in North Hollywood is reportedly the second most photographed home in America, after the White House. But the interior, built on a soundstage by art director Bill Ross, is even more iconic.
Mr. Brady was an architect, so the house—with its open living room, wide wooden staircase, exposed stone walls, and orange kitchen—was very groovy, and quite modern for the times.
2. Full House (1987-1995)
The Full House home exterior was one of San Francisco’s Painted Ladies houses, but the interior set was built on a soundstage by art director Lynn Griffin. Many of the set’s most iconic parts are lovably ’90s, like the blue plaid couch in the living room where so many of the show’s “learning moments” happened, the cozy wood-paneled kitchen and Uncle Jesse’s leopard bedding.
3. Sex and the City (1998-2004)
It can be forever debated whether a local newspaper sex columnist could actually afford a roomy Upper East Side one-bedroom with a walk-in closet like the one in the show, but one thing’s for sure: Carrie’s brownstone apartment, with the bohemian rug, row of flower photographs above the bed and desk in front of the window is a symbol of female independence.
Sex and the City production designer Jeremy Conway has said that the “flea market” quality of Carrie’s home also is a depiction of her priorities. “Carrie’s apartment is not about Carrie,” Conway said. “What she’s wearing is where she spends her money, and her apartment is secondary to that.”
4. That ’70s Show (1998-2006)
The Formans’ orange-and-pea-green-stacked humble abode in That ’70s Show was seared into America’s memory “This is a middle-class family attempting to be stylish with the money that they have,” production designer Garvin Eddy has said.
“They have teardrop lamps. They have an organ. They have National Geographics. And for some reason, they have a built-in bar…this is what Middle America was all about.”
5. The Sopranos (1999–2007)
The Sopranos memorialized early-2000s New Jersey in all its gritty glory. Perhaps most memorable among fans was the Soprano family kitchen, with its light wood palette, where Tony was often seen in his robe, rummaging for cold cuts.