The Most Iconic TV Show T-shirts of All Time

There’s nothing like kicking back to watch your favorite TV show. Except maybe bringing it to life on a t-shirt!. You might be a fan of our 100 most iconic t-shirts of all time list, so now we’ve taken a closer look at some of the genres within this list, like TV show tees. From the Max to the Simpsons, our most iconic TV show t-shirts pack a nostalgic punch, and might even inspire you to create a TV show tee of your own.

15. The Max

No restaurant saw more acid-wash jeans, crop tops, or charity dances than “the Max” on the teen TV hit “Saved By the Bell.” This is one of many t-shirts that became real-world iconic because of its fictional prominence in pop culture. Famously worn by Kelly Kapowski, this red tee was her waitress uniform at the favorite campus spot. It’s still such an icon that pop up “The Max” shops still appear in major cities.

14. Rainbow Brite

Isn’t she just adorable? A cartoon about psychedelic color kids, talking rainbow horses, and whatever Twink was. You don’t get much more ’80s than Rainbow Brite. The t-shirt gained fame more from an ironic-teen movement than actual fandom. Owned by Hallmark Cards, the original characters were designed by artist G.G. Santiago.

13. Cookie Monster

C is for COOKIE, that’s good enough for me. T is for T-SHIRT, iconic it will be. Born in 1966, Sesame Street’s Cookie Monster has been craving carbs for 46 years, with no end in sight. Created by Jim Hansen, Cookie Monster, or “Sid” first appeared in a food commercial, and later went on to become one of our favorite mummers. Cookie Monster tees are sold by many large retailers, such as Target and Walmart.

12. Mighty Mouse

Here he comes to save the day! Airing off and on from 1942 to 1987, this super-powered rodent fought everything from alley cats to animated Nazi’s. The story goes that Might Mouse originated from an idea by Izzy Klein, who originally pitched a character named Super Fly. But his boss, Paul Terry, nixed his idea, and later reintroduced Super Mouse. The character was renamed Mighty Mouse since another comic featuring a “Super Mouse” was about to be released. What a mouse. WHAT A MOUSE!

11. Garth’s Aerosmith Shirt

The awkward, soft-spoken member of the dynamic dweeb duo on Wayne’s World gave Aerosmith an extra injection of popularity with this tee. Admittedly, Garth’s was probably a bit more faded and stain-ridden. The t-shirt was thought to be given to members of a special Aerosmith fan club—Aero Force One.

10. Bart Simpson

Don’t have a cow man. It’s just your favorite spiky haired troublemaker (the one and only) Bart Simpson, whose cartoon shirts were owned by just about every 11-year-old in the 1990s. Created by cartoonist Matt Groening in 1989, Bart and his family have become one of the longest running TV series in history. They’ve stood the test of time, as we’re sure this t-shirt will, too.

9. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles! Turtles on the halfshell, turtle power!” How can you not love four butt-kicking turtles named Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael? The turtles were designed by Kevin Eastman and a fellow artist friend, Peter Laird. Likely inspired by Eastman’s summers playing with snapping turtles in Maine, they came up with the characters in their living room one night. Little did they know what a hit it would become!

8. Alvin’s A

Not only are Alvin & The Chipmunks the world’s most prolific rodent singing group, they’re also the longest living. The group made its debut with “The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late)” in 1958. They went on to grow an empire— winning Grammy’s, become a TV series, and most recently, staring on the big screen—all with Alvin donning his iconic “A.” Sorry Simon and Theodore, Alvin’s “A” shirt takes center stage on our list.

7. Thundercats

Spaceships? Check. Cat-like humanoid aliens fighting interstellar battles? Check. Lion-O, Cheetara, and the gang? Check. Created by Tobin Wolf, the Thundercats dominated Saturday Mornings from 1985 to 1989, and produced a sick logo t-shirt to boot. “Thunder! Thunder! Thunder! ThunderCats, HO!”—not to mention an earworm worthy theme song.

6. Bazinga!

In the winter, a t-shirt snug enough to keep warm and yet not so tight to cause perspiration. In the summer, light enough to catch the cross breeze from windows there and there. Sheldon Cooper’s comic genius immortalized in cotton. “Bazinga,” a term said by Sheldon when he’s made a joke, has become a no-joke iconic tee.

5. Legends of the Hidden Temple

Over the moat and through the Steps of Knowledge, to Olmecs head we go! Red Jaguars, Blue Barracudas, Green Monkeys, Orange Iguanas, Purple Parrots, and Silver Snakes marked competitors on Nickelodean’s Legends of the Hidden Temple. While the tees are legendary, host Kirk Fogg has said that the shirts were often stained from the pizza the kids ate at lunch. For those 90s kids who can’t seem to let go, a Legends of the Hidden Temple movie aired in 2016.

4. Mickey Mouse

Arguably everyone’s favorite mouse, Mickey was created by Walt Disney in 1929. Following his popularity, a Miami-based t-shirt company, Tropix Togs, purchased the exclusive rights to print Mickey on a shirt. Emilio Estevez wore one in “The Outsiders” and, boom, it became cool just like that.

3. I Want My MTV

Over 30 years ago, television was like the town from Footloose—void of rock music and ‘80s dancing. Enter: MTV. Over the past three decades MTV revolutionized the airwaves, creating an industry for everything from music videos to bus-based dating shows. Frank Olinsky, one of the designers of the MTV logo back in 1981, says that one of the final revisions to the logo was putting “music television” under the “M”. This was changed in 2010, when the words were removed from the logo for good.

2. Charlie Brown

While it could be easy to argue that all of the Peanuts gang t-shirts are iconic, none has the impact of the jagged look that embodies the spirit and bum luck of Good Ol’ Charlie Brown. The zig zag shirt is an icon now, but hasn’t always been Charlie’s outfit of choice. Until December 1950, he wore a plain t-shirt. But we’re sure glad he gave his look some flare.

1. Ghostbusters

“When there’s something strange in the neighborhood…who ya gonna call? Ghostbusters!” Movies, a couple animated TV series, and a bunch of video games later, the Ghostbusters franchise remains popular to this day—most recently being taken over by an all super funny, all female cast. a href=”http://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2016/06/08/ghostbusters-meet-the-man-behind-the-logo/” target=”_blank”>Michael C. Gross, the creator of the Ghostbusters logo, has said one of the strangest places he’s seen the art is on the side of a B52 nuclear bomber during the Cold War. A war plane is cool but, we’ll take it on a t-shirt.