It is often said that mothers are the glue that keep families together. That isn’t always the case of course, but overall, most Americans have a soft spot for mom. Sadly, there are many people without fond memories of their own mothers. Instead, they would watch TV and imagine what it was like to have Carol Brady or Claire Huxtable for a mom.
Some moms, real or imagined, have been artists, singers, writers and superheroes. And then there have been women who “adopted” many “children” making a difference in their lives.
Here is a baker’s dozen of some of the best moms in pop culture.
June Cleaver
It is difficult to find a more idealized version of what a mother should be than June Cleaver from Leave it to Beaver.
This seemingly perfect mom and homemaker got a lot of flak for wearing high-heeled shoes and a pearl necklace while doing housework in the TV sitcom. It was hardly practical. But there was a reason why Barbara Billingsley wore these. The necklace hid a surgical scar on the actress’ neck, and the shoes were used to offset her “son’s” growing height.
When it came to the actress, Billingsley enjoyed shedding her Mrs. Cleaver image now and then. An example is when she spoke jive in the movie Airplane.
Whistler’s Mother
While nobody knows for sure, it is often believed that Anna McNeill Whistler had stepped in as a replacement model for her son’s oil painting in 1871.
James Abbott McNeill Whistler had envisioned his model to be standing, but standing was too much of a strain for his mother, so she stayed seated.
Some have considered the painting as a “Victorian Mona Lisa”. The painting is also huge at 56.81” x 63.94” while the Mona Lisa painting is just 30” x 21”.
Fun fact: The painting has been referenced in many movies from Donald Duck shorts to I am Legend.
Carol Brady
Well known for its story of a blended family with three boys and three girls (the youngest one in curls), The Brady Bunch made a cultural significance when it began airing on ABC in 1969.
Mike Brady was a widower, but it is unclear if Florence Henderson’s character, Carol Brady, was divorced or widowed before she married him. Even so, she was determined to love ALL of her kids the same.
In one episode, Carol told her young son, Bobby, “There are no steps in this household.”
Shirley Partridge
Producers for the show, The Partridge Family had always wanted Shirley Jones to play the mom in the series. It was one of the few shows at the time that featured a single mom and certainly the only one featuring a mom who went on a music tour with her kids.
The Partridge Family was inspired by a real-life family band, The Cowsills, who were considered for the roles. However, they didn’t have any acting experience.
Ironically, other than Shirley, none of the other actors actually sang on the show. (David Cassidy was allowed to record his own vocal parts after he proved that he could really sing.)
Mother Teresa
Born in 1910, Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, better known as Mother Teresa, was the founder of the religious congregation, Missionaries of Charity which served the “the poorest of the poor” in Calcutta. They offered hope and comfort for those with leprosy, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS. They also served as soup kitchens, family counseling centers, orphanages and schools.
Mother Teresa died in 1997 at the age of 87, but her work lives on. Today, there are 758 of these houses operating around the world run by over 5,100 sisters.
Mother Goose
Mother Goose has been seen as a symbol of maternal love and nurturing. Some have speculated that the character was based on the wife of King Robert II of France as she was known as “Bertha the Spinner” who liked to tell tales to children. Some also speculate that she is based on Charlemagne’s mother, Bertrada of Laon or the Queen of Sheba. However, it is generally believed that she is not based on any specific person.
Grandma Moses
Folk artist Anna Mary Robertson Moses got the nickname, “Grandma Moses” when she began her budding art career at the age of 77. Her oil paintings were often used to promote holidays. Having been featured on the cover of Time Magazine in 1953, she became more popular than ever.
While she was proud of her work, she stated that she was prouder of her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. By the time she had passed away at the age of 101, it was estimated that she had painted between 1,600 and 3,600 works of art during her lifetime. Go grandma!
Lucy Ricardo
Lucille Ball’s real-life pregnancy was worked into her show, I Love Lucy. One of the most popular episodes of the show was “Lucy Goes to the Hospital.” It was the one where Lucy gives birth to “Little Ricky”. (Back then, TV shows had to be careful not to use the word “pregnant” but rather use the phrase “with child.”)
Having taped the episode much earlier, both the fictional character and Lucy’s real-life son, Desi Jr. were born on the same day!
Helen Parr
You think being a mom is hard? Imagine being the mother of three children with superpowers! Helen, aka Elastigirl from Disney/Pixar’s The Incredibles is the very symbol of a mother trying to do it all. Even so, she’s still not perfect.
Maria Von Trapp
The movie, The Sound of Music was inspired by the very real Maria Von Trapp. In 1926, Maria, a teaching nun, was asked to tutor Maria Franziska von Trapp, one of the seven children of widowed Captain Georg von Trapp. Not long after she became the governess of all seven children.
Seeing how much the children loved her, the Captain asked Maria to marry him. She became their stepmother and matriarch of the Trapp Family Singers. Sort of an early version of Shirley Partridge.
Claire Huxtable
Despite Bill Cosby’s fall from grace, many people can admit that The Cosby Show was a great show. It was one of the rare shows that represented an upper-middle-class black family. Although not completely realistic at times, Phylicia Rashad’s character was a modern mom on TV where she had a career and had time for her family.
Fun fact: Rashad was pregnant in real life during the filming of season 3 of the show. They tried to hide it by using props and elevated tables because, the last thing Claire needed was a sixth child!
Marion Cunningham
Often called “Mrs. C” on Happy Days, Marion Cunningham is considered by many to be their favorite TV mom. As it turns out, Marion Ross got a lot of practice for raising her own kids thanks to the show.
Ross’ son and daughter were just a few years younger than Richie and Joannie. In 2013 she told Parade, “I learned how to get through a parenting crisis with warm, loving humor, and I would talk to little Erin Moran and that would help me deal with my own daughter at home. It was a perfect job for a perfect time in my life.”
Beverly Cleary
Beverly Cleary was the author of over 40 children’s books including Henry Huggins (her first), Two Times the Fun (her last) and Beezus and Ramona (her most popular).
Although Cleary based many stories on her own childhood, her twin children, Malcolm and Marianne were an inspiration for the main characters in Mitch and Amy.
Writing must have kept Beverly young because she died at the age of 104! And just to bring this full circle, she also wrote three novels based on Leave it to Beaver.
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