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Sherman Hemsley - With the death of Sherman Hemsley, 74, TV not only lost a great comedic actor but one of its most beloved fathers. He is famously known for his role as business-minded dad George on the groundbreaking sitcom The Jeffersons. Here are some other dads we fondly look back on.(Photo: CBS /Landov)

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Redd Foxx - Cantankerous but lovable, Redd Foxx's Fred G. Sanford on Sanford and Son (1972-1977) pioneered the humor of Black fatherhood on American television.(Photo: NBCU Photo Bank)

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John Amos - As the stern patriarch of the Evans family on Good Times, John Amos became a father figure for a large segment of Black America growing up without one.(Photo: Courtesy CBS)

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John Witherspoon - On The Wayans Bros., John Witherspoon's Pops Williams — with his ill-fitting paisley shirts and large, loud-colored bow ties — guided his sons (played by Shawn and Marlon Wayans) with humor and down home wisdom.(Photo: The WB)

Photo By Photo: Warner Bros. Television

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Bill Cosby - Playing Heathcliff Huxtable on the smash sitcomThe Cosby Show, comedy giant Bill Cosby not only became America's dad but also helped save a network (NBC) and a TV genre (the sitcom).(Photo: NBC)

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Terry Crews - Terry Crews as Julius on Everybody Hates Chris was a hardworking dad who was also a heavy penny-pincher.  Moreover, he's based on Chris Rock's late father.(Photo: Michael Desmond/The CW Network)

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Robert Townsend - The solidly middleclass Peterson clan on The Parent 'Hood was co-run by Robert Peterson's (Robert Townsend) gentle, joke-laced— yet firm — words.(Photo: Courtesy The WB)

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Reginald VelJohnson - Reginald VelJohnson may have been the head of the Winslow family on Family Matters, but he was never a match for their pesky next-door neighbor, über-nerd Steve Urkel.(Photo: Courtesy ABC)

Photo By Photo: ABC

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William Allen Young - In the role of Brandy's dad on the hit series Moesha, actor William Allen Young, with his nurturing yet stern style, seemed an updated (and middle class) version of John Amos as James Evans Sr. on Good Times.(Photo: Courtesy UPN)

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Damon Wayans - As father Michael Kyle on My Wife and Kids, Damon Wayans may have been quick with a joke when dealing with his children, but he's probably the first TV dad to deal with his own son becoming a teen dad.(Photo: Courtesy ABC)