TV characters have given us some memorable dance moves over the years, long before TikTok influencers cornered the market. Ted Lasso most recently continued a television tradition pioneered by early TV legends like Adam West and Henry Winkler when he gave audiences a signature dance that epitomized his character. So let's take a look back and appreciate the top 10 dances originated by television characters of all time.

Best dances originated by television characters

#10 – The Ted Lasso dance

Ted Lasso's unique, happy spin on the running man dance helped get him hired by AFC Richmond and led to coaching glory, and the same could be said for Jason Sudeikis, who's become just as beloved as his Lasso character for the dance. Sudeikis, who already had some memorable and hilarious dances from his SNL days, tickled the funny bones and hearts of the world with this one — so much so that he had to reprise the dance for the show's season three (and likely series) finale. He's even been seeing doing the dance on the jumbotron at an Iowa women's basketball game.

#9 – The Elaine dance

Julia Louis-Dreyfus has too many memorable moments from her days playing Elaine on Seinfeld to count, but possibly at the top of the list is her signature dance move from a classic season 8 episode “The Little Kicks”. Shortly after becoming the head honcho at J. Peterman, she discovered just how tough it can be to wear the boss pants. At an office party, she first graced her staff with the poetic toast, “Here's to those who wish us well, and those who don't can go to hell” and then hit the dance floor with the oddest mixture of little kicks and thumb flicks imaginable. It was a series of unfortunate yet hilarious maneuvers that had George Costanza and the rest of us saying, “Sweet fancy Moses!”

#8 – Do The Bartman

The Simpsons was becoming a cultural juggernaut in 1990 in the midst of airing its second season on Fox when Bart Simpson's “Do The Bartman” song and dance took it to new heights. A stand-alone music video that followed the premiere of classic Simpsons episode “Bart the Daredevil,” the song featured the moves and dance style you'd expect from Springfield's most lovably mischievous 4th grader. “Do The Bartman” was also later revealed to be co-written by Michael Jackson, a big fan of the show. If you didn't go down to your local Tower Records to buy a copy of the entire “The Simpsons Sing the Blues” album after being introduced to the Bartman, then you clearly weren't a 90s kid — it was a definitive rite of passage.

#7 The Carlton

Alfonso Ribeiro probably owes his current gig as the co-host of ABC's “Dancing with the Stars” to his most famous acting role, playing Carlton Banks on NBC's hit “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.” Ribeiro shined as Carlton, never more so than when he busted out his signature dance moves to perform “The Carlton.” His wild hip and arm swinging motion captivated a nation, not only for its hilarity but also because Ribeiro was an unexpectedly and genuinely great dancer. I've also never been able to listen to Tom Jones' “It's Not Unusual” since without thinking of Alfonso Ribeiro doing The Carlton, while singing into a candle stick microphone.

#6 Arrested Development's Chicken Dance

The chicken dance, one of the funniest recurring gags on Arrested Development, centered on no one in the illustrious Bluth family knowing how to imitate a chicken properly. Every esteemed actor from the star-making ensemble put their own clever, unique spin on an uncomfortably off-putting chicken sound and accompanying physical movement that showed absolutely no resemblance to the run-of-the-mill chicken impressions we're all accustomed to. And nothing beat the entire Bluth family doing their individual chicken impressions all at the same time for one big dysfunctional family chicken dance.

#5 Ally McBeal's Barry White dance

Ally McBeal was a fan-favorite for its carefree mix of humor, romance, office politics and lots of instances of characters breaking out into group dances long before the days of flash mobs. There are far too many dance montages to choose from, but probably the most famous from the show was the Barry White Dance, when Barry White himself showed up to get the entire office on the dance floor for a spontaneous and giddy choreographed number that reflected everything that Ally McBeal stood for in one memorably musical scene.

#4 Ally McBeal's Dancing Baby

I told you there were too many to choose from, so Ally McBeal gets a second spot on the list for her equally famous dancing baby hallucination. Also known as “Baby Cha-Cha” and “the Oogachacka Baby,” the cha-cha type dance was a tongue-in-cheek feminist wink at Ally McBeal's ticking biological clock, set to Blue Swede's Hooked on a Feeling. It was weird, ahead of its time, and became one of the internet's first memes — and for all of these reasons, lands on our list at number four.

#3 The Urkel

Also known as “Do the Urkel”, apparently a catch phrase wasn't enough for Family Matters' Steve Urkel (of “Did I do that?” fame). Clearly inspired by the success of “Do the Bartman,” the Family Matters writers concocted their own signature song and dance for their breakout character not too long after the Simpsons did.

With classic lyrics like — “If you wanna do the Steve Urkel dance / All you have to do is hitch up your pants! / Bend your knees and stick out your pelvis / I'm tellin' ya, baby, it's better than Elvis” — the song wasn't in danger of winning any Grammys or Emmys, but the dance certainly left an impression with viewers.

#2 The Fonz dance

Henry Winkler epitomized cool as “the Fonz” from Happy Days, but wasn't afraid to let loose and show off his unique dance style sometimes. One of the those times was when he improvised his own spin on the Jewish wedding and bar/bat mitzvah dance staple the hora, as Richie (Ron Howard) and his band played the traditional Israeli dance tune Hava Nagila in the background. Henry Winkler's fancy footwork and ability to pop up and down using only his legs could have landed him a lucrative Peloton instructor gig teaching a squats class were it around back then. As is, he'll have to settle for beloved actor who is known to still bust out “the Fonz” dance from time to time even as a senior citizen now.

#1 The Batusi

Adam West's famous Batman dance “The Batusi” started a bona fide craze when he unleashed it in his seminal 1960s television Batman series. It was a very 1960s style go-go dance that spoofed the popular Watusi dance of the time. As Batman made his hands into a V and spread them slyly in a horizontal motion across his mask-clad face, as he shook his tights-wearing hips to the beat, it's no surprise women told him “You shake a pretty mean cape Batman.”

The move has been imitated in countless TV shows and movies since, none more famously than in the Uma Thurman, John Travolta dance scene of Pulp Fiction. This one was a cultural phenomenon, hence its spot at number one on the list.

There you have the ClutchPoints definitive list of the top 10 dances originated by television characters of all time! Hope you liked it and wish us well, but for those who don't… well, you know.