Famous Pairs

Famous pairs are a big part of the entertainment world.

Sure, we all own pairs of things. Pairs of socks, pairs of shoes, a pair of earrings. And some things that aren’t pairs are called pairs because they have two things in them.

A pair of pants has two legs, a pair of glasses is for two eyes, and a pair of underwear has two holes. Even our food comes in pairs, Peanut Butter and Jelly, Popcorn and Butter, Bacon and Eggs. You get the idea.

But in this article, we aren’t talking about pairs of things; we’re talking about pairs of people. Duos that are considered famous pairs. Many can be identified by just their first names, e.g., Dean and Jerry. They can be from industry, but they all share one thing in common, they’re famous. So, without delay, here is a list of famous pairs.

Table of Contents
    Pair of aces - famous pairs.

    Recognizable Pairs

    1. Ben and Jerry
    2. Mickey and Minnie
    3. Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum
    4. Mario and Luigi
    5. David and Goliath
    6. Bert and Ernie
    7. Donnie and Marie
    8. The Fox and The Hound
    9. Cheech and Chong
    10. Lucy and Ethel
    11. Fred and Wilma
    12. Miss Piggy and Kermit
    13. John and Yoko
    14. Famous Pairs
    15. Anthony and Cleopatra
    16. Tarzan and Jane
    17. John and Paul
    18. Venus and Serena
    19. Romeo and Juliet
    20. Luke and Leia
    21. Bonnie and Clyde
    22. Adam and Eve
    23. Dave and Buster
    24. Barbie and Ken
    25. Sonny and Cher
    26. Fred and Ginger
    27. Sugar and Spice
    28. Batman and Robin
    29. Magic and Kareem
    30. Holmes and Watson
    31. Barrack and Michelle
    Notable pairs.

    Musical Duos

    Duos are very prevalent in the Music Industry. Whether it is a real brother and sister, a couple of guys who bill themselves as brothers, or just two people who perform well together, musical duos are special. Here’s a list of some famous musical pairs.

    1. Hall and Oates
    2. Beyonce and JayZ
    3. Brooks and Dunn
    4. Les Paul and Mary Ford
    5. Ike and Tina Turner
    6. Boyce and Hart
    7. Loggins and Messina
    8. Ashford and Simpson
    9. Greg and Duane Allman
    10. Salt and Peppa
    11. Mill Vanilli
    12. Captain and Tennille
    13. Chad and Jeremy
    14. Simon and Garfunkel
    15. Righteous Brothers – Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield
    16. Edgar and Johnny Winter
    17. England Dan and John Ford Coley
    18. Seals and Croft
    19. Big and Rich
    20. Peter and Gordon
    21. Flo and Eddie
    22. DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince
    23. Dan and Shay
    24. Sam and Dave
    25. Jan and Dean
    26. Everly Brothers – Don and Phil Everly

    Business Partners

    Often, two people will work together to form a successful company. It can be the complimentary talents of two entrepreneurs or two friends encouraging each other to reach a goal. Either way, it can add up to a successful business pair.

    1. Hewlett and Packard
    2. Walt and Roy Disney
    3. Proctor and Gamble
    4. Orville and Wilbur Wright – Wright Aeronautical Company
    5. Bill Gates and Paul Allen – Microsoft
    6. Sandberg and Zuckerberg – Facebook
    7. Oprah Winfrey and Gayle King – OWN Network
    8. Adolphus Busch and Eberhard Anheuser – Anheuser – Busch – Budweiser
    9. Richard and Maurice McDonald – McDonald’s – Ray Kroc came along much later.
    10. Warren Buffet and Charlie Munger – Berkshire – Hathaway
    11. Pierre Omidyar and Jerry Skoll – Ebay
    12. Jerry Yang and David Filo – Yahoo
    13. Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight – Nike

    What’s the Story of Wells Fargo?

    Henry Wells and William Fargo started a successful shipping company that moved materials around the Old West. Eventually, they grew to cover the entire country from the East Coast to the West Coast.

    Wells and Fargo saw an opportunity when gold was found in California. They began offering banking services that could be transferred between locations. The Wells Fargo bank was born as well as American Express.

    Famous Brother/Sister Sibling Pairs

    1. Warren Beatty and Shirley McClane – Warren after his father, Shirley his mother.
    2. Derek and Julianne Hough – Dancing with the Stars TV Series
    3. Maggie and Jake Gyllenhaal
    4. Julia and Eric Roberts
    5. Peter and Jane Fonda
    6. Candace and Kirk Cameron
    7. Jeff and Beau Bridges
    8. John and Joan Cusack
    9. Owen and Luke Wilson
    10. Jason and Justine Bateman
    11. Ron and Clint Howard
    12. Debbie Allen and Phylicia Rashad – Phylicia was married to NFL player Ahmad Rashad
    13. Fred and Ben Savage
    14. Penny and Garry Marshal
    15. Ben and Casey Affleck
    16. Ethan and Joel Cohen

    Notable Pairs in Sports

    Many two-player bonds are forged over sporting competitions. Here are just a few of the famous twosomes that have played America’s games.

    1. Peyton and Eli Manning- The two most successful NFL Professional Quarterback Brothers
    2. Mickey Mantle and Roger Marris – MLB – New York Yankees Combined for 115 home runs in 1961.
    3. Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski – NFL New England Patriots 620 catches and 93 touchdowns
    4. Roger Staubach and Greg Morton – NFL Dallas Cowboys
    5. Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal – 3 NBA Championships
    6. Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez – Professional Soccer – 13 Championships
    7. Steph Curry and Klay Thomson – NBA – Golden State Warriors
    8. Bobby Orr and Phil Esposito – Boston Bruins
    9. David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez – Boston Red Sox
    10. Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier – 4 Championships with the NHL Edmonton Oilers
    11. Jack Lambert and Jack Ham – NFL Pittsburgh Steelers – 4 Championships
    12. Misty May Traynor and Kerri Walsh Jennings – Volleyball – U.S. Olympic Team – 3 Gold Medals
    13. Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale – MLB – Both strikeout pitchers – 3 Championships
    14. Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen – NBA – Chicago Bulls – 10 years together with 6 Championships

    Famous Comedy Pairs

    There have been pairs of funny people on television and in the movies. This list covers comedy teams that performed their acts on film or television but also in front of a live audience.

    1. Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis
    2. Desi Arnez and Lucille Ball
    3. Dan Rowan and Dick Martin – Laugh-In
    4. Mike Nichols and Elaine May –
    5. Bud Abbot and Lou Costello
    6. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy
    7. Penn Jillette and Raymond Joseph Teller – Comedic Magicians
    8. Marty Allen and Steve Rossi
    9. Bob Hope and Bing Crosby
    10. George Burns and Gracie Allen
    11. Dick and Tommy Smothers
    12. Bob Elliot and Ray Goulding – Bob and Ray

    What About Stiller and Meara?

    There was another well-known comedy pair named Stiller and Meara for Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. They were a famous comedy team, but also married in real life.

    You may even know their son, Ben Stiller. Ben has starred in and written movies including Meet the Parents, Zoolander, Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, and A Night in the Museum.

    Well-known Movie Pairs

    Here are some famous movie pairs that you may recognize.

    1. Jake and Elwood Blues – The Blues Brothers
    2. Hannibal and Clarice – Silence of the Lambs
    3. Jay and Silent Bob – Clerks
    4. Han and Chewbacca – Star Wars
    5. Wayne and Garth – Wayne’s World
    6. Doc and Marty – Back to the Future
    7. Harry and Lloyd – Dumb and Dumber
    8. Thelma and Louise – Thelma and Louise
    9. Frodo and Sam – Lord of the Rings
    10. Belle and the Beast – Beauty and the Beast
    11. Woody and Buz – Toy Story
    12. Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan – Rush Hour
    13. Bogey and Bacall – Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall

    Cartoon Character Pairs

    One of the reasons there are so many pairs of cartoon characters is Laurel and Hardy. That’s right, Laurel and Hardy serves as a comedic example for cartoon characters everywhere. Often, one character is meek, dim-witted, and timid and the other can be smarter, bigger, and overbearing. Read on:

    1. Tom and Jerry
    2. Ren and Stimpy
    3. Bevis and Butthead
    4. Aladin and Genie
    5. Pinky and the Brain
    6. Rocky and Bullwinkle
    7. Itchy and Scratchy
    8. Shaggy and Scooby-Do
    9. Garfield and Odie
    10. Linus and Charlie Brown
    11. Barney and Fred – The Flintstones
    12. Archie and Veronica
    13. Snoopy and Woodstock
    14. Yogi and Boo-Boo
    15. Sponge Bob and Patrick
    16. Lady and the Tramp
    17. Wallace and Gromit
    18. Winnie the Pooh and Piglet
    19. Reggie and Jughead
    20. Shrek and Donkey
    21. Tintin and Snowy
    22. Chip and Dale
    23. Heckle and Jeckle
    24. Bart and Lisa Simpson
    25. Donal Duck and Daisy Duck
    26. Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd
    27. Peter and Lois Griffin
    28. Tweety and Sylvester
    29. Boris and Natasha
    30. Hanna and Barbera
    31. The Road Runner and Will E. Coyote
    32. Marge and Homer Simpson
    33. Dudley Do-Right and Snidely Whiplash
    34. Rick and Morty
    35. Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck

    Television Pairs

    Here’s a list of television pairs that may look and sound familiar.

    1. Lorelai and Rory Gilmore – The Gilmore Girls
    2. Frazier and Niles Crane – Frazier
    3. Felix and Oscar – The Odd Couple
    4. Mary Kate and Ashley Olson – Full House
    5. Lucy and Ethel – I Love Lucy
    6. Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock – Star Trek
    7. Bo and Luke Duke – The Dukes of Hazard
    8. Laverne and Shirley – Laverne and Shirley
    9. Bob and Doug Mackenzie – SCTV
    10. Tia and Tamara Mowry – Sister, Sister
    11. Cagney and Lacey – Cagney and Lacey
    12. Hawkeye and B.J. – M.A.S. H.
    13. Will and Grace – Will and Grace
    14. Sam and Diane – Cheers
    15. Richie and The Fonz – Happy Days
    16. Gilligan and The Skipper – Gilligan’s Island
    17. Key and Peele – Key and Peele
    18. Mork and Mindy – Mork and Mindy
    19. Siskel and Ebert – Siskel and Ebert
    20. Norm and Cliff – Cheers
    21. Sheldon and Amy – The Big Bang Theory
    22. Starsky and Hutch – Starsky and Hutch
    23. Mulder and Scully – The X Files
    24. Kenan and Kel – Kenan and Kel
    25. Lenny and Squiggy – Laverne and Shirley
    26. Jonathan and Jennifer Hart – Hart to Hart

    How about that Huntley and Brinkley?

    There have been quite a few famous television news co-anchors over the years, but no pair is as famous as Chet Huntley and David Brinkley. Their show ran from 1956 until 1970. Huntley was based in New York City and Brinkley in Washington D.C.

    The show was initially just 15 minutes but expanded to 30 in 1963 to match Walter Cronkite’s CBS News. Each of the Huntley/Brinkley shows ended with the hosts saying in turn, Good Night Chet, Good Night David, and Good Night from NBC News.

    Wrestling Tag Teams

    A famous pairs list wouldn’t be complete without a list of famous Pro Wrestling Tag Teams, an essential pair. Here is a list of some of the great wrestling twosomes.

    1. Matt and Jeff Hardy – The Hardy Boyz
    2. Team Hell No
    3. Goldust and Booker T
    4. Los Guerros
    5. Ricky Steamboat and Jay Youngblood
    6. Bret and Owen Hart
    7. The Fabulous Ones
    8. The British Bulldogs
    9. Jerry and Jack Brisco
    10. Beer Money, Inc.
    11. The Road Warriors
    12. Mad Dog Vachon and The Butcher
    13. Wild Samoans
    14. Doom
    15. Minnesota Wrecking Crew
    16. The Rock N’ Roll Express
    17. The Brothers of Destruction
    18. The Fabulous Freebirds
    19. Dick the Bruiser and The Crusher
    20. Nikolai Volkoff and The Iron Shek
    21. Mr. Fuli and Tanaka
    22. The Natural Disasters
    23. World’s Greatest Tag Team

    So, even in the words of the old Christmas song, a pair of turtle doves beats a single partridge in a pear tree. The pairs have it. And if you’re feeling hungry, go get some Cookies and Milk, French Fries and Ketchup, Ham and Cheese, Chicken and Waffles, or Spaghetti and Meatballs.

    Nothing beats a pair, well except two pair, three of a kind, a straight, a flush, a full house, four of a kind, straight flush, and royal flush.

    By Tim Moodie and Mike O’Halloran

    Although Tim is not part of a famous pair himself, he did get to work with a famous pair. Tim served as head writer and executive producer of The Wayne’s World Video Game for Mattel. He wrote the script and worked with Mike Meyers and Dana Carvey. He also developed the gameplay.

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    Notable Trios

    Well-known Foursomes

    Famous Fivesomes

    M.L. O'Halloran

    Michael O'Halloran is an Internet publisher, inventor, and author. He has authored four books on coaching and coauthored four kids trivia books. He has been curating quotes for over 15 years.

    He has invented and brought to market over 75 new products - most of which deal with word play.