Parks and Rec aired for seven seasons on NBC and gave television one of it’s best main ensemble casts in sitcom history. Audiences will never forget classic characters such as Leslie Knope, Ron Swanson, April Ludgate, Andy Dwyer, and the many other employees of Pawnee, Indiana’s parks and recreation department.
But what about the characters the show gave us that weren’t around for every episode and were merely some of the citizens that Leslie Knope’s department tried to cater too? Take a look at our list of the top ten recurring characters who made their way through Pawnee more than once.
The Douche
If Pawnee were an actual place (and radio was still popular) we’d all be tuning into 93.7 to listen to Crazy Ira and The Douche! Pawnee’s most prolific and famous radio-host was a constant source of laughter throughout the series as his goofy and obscene form of comedy with Crazy Ira quickly became a running joke of the show.
But even funnier was when the show decided to give The Douche a more detailed backstory and the audience found out that he’s actually very highly-educated and only started ‘The Douche’ persona as satire. Fans are glad he didn’t make a baby with Ann, but they would’ve liked seeing him for a few more episodes.
Dennis Feinstein
Leave perfumery to the real men, like Dennis Feinstein. Guest starring in less than ten episodes on the series, the man formally known as Dante Fiero made a lasting impression on the citizens of Pawnee as a premiere fragrance maker (perfumer).
Two of the funniest scenes of the entire series are when Ben has an interview with Dennis in front of the man he’d be replacing and when Dennis calls for a crossbow when chasing Ben, Tom, and Andy out of his office. Everyone thought you were hilarious, Dennis, so please don’t spray us with Wet Dog.
Bobby Newport
Remember that hilarious recurring character that Paul Rudd played on that hit sitcom from NBC? No, not Mike from Friends, but Bobby Newport, heir to the Newport fortune and Leslie Knope’s main nemesis from season 4.
Bobby was a great addition to one of Parks and Rec’s best seasons and only made the show that much more enjoyable as he stumbled his way through a city-council campaign that he never wanted in the first place. Even better was the fact that Rudd returned for the final episode of the show in a special producer’s cut in which he turned down the position of interim mayor (which was probably best for everyone).
Ethel Beavers
Fans wish all court stenographers were as hilarious as Ethel Beavers since the elderly, no-nonsense woman was a comedic gem whenever she stepped into frame. Her first appearance was when she gave Tom and Andy a tour of the hazardous fourth floor, but that certainly wasn’t her last appearance as audiences quickly fell in love with her dry and witty sense of humor, often backed by her complete lack of caring about anything.
She definitely wasn’t a bitter old-coot, but she certainly didn’t have time to mince words either - and everyone loved it.
Mona-Lisa Saperstein
Whose genius idea was it to give Jean-Ralphio, the most hilarious recurring character a sibling who was almost just as funny? Mona-Lisa may have shown up a few seasons after her twin brother, but she eventually made her way into Pawnee during season five and never left.
Her constant psychopathic tendencies often created laugh-out-loud comedy for the audience, however, she was much more of a brat than Jean-Ralphio and occasionally took her antics a little too far causing her to sneak further down this list than her twin brother.
Joan Callamezzo
For such a small town, Pawnee had quite a bit when it came to entertainment and business. They had their own television station that produced shows such as Pawnee Today, whose host quickly became one of the most hilarious and frequent recurring characters on the show: Joan Callamezzo.
The talk-show host appeared in nearly twenty episodes throughout the series and nearly always had some sort of bone to pick with Leslie about a controversial topic in Pawnee. She was a classic pot-stirrer and often created her own news to report on, but she did have occasional episodes where she interacted with Tom or Ron instead and was just as hilarious.
Perd Hapley
Here we have the second television personality from Pawnee to make their way onto this list. Perd Hapley (or as Ben might call him, Turd Crapley) quickly became a fan favorite on the show because he seems completely witless. Perd is definitely not stupid, but he’s essentially the human version of Drax from the MCU since any jokes go clear over his head and he’s nearly incapable of detecting sarcasm.
The combination of those two traits paired with a television journalist voice that he never seems to turn off makes Perd one of the best recurring characters of the series.
Craig Middlebrooks
One of the most clever things that Parks and Rec did was giving the audience the satisfying feeling of knowing that somebody even crazier than Leslie Knope was going to take the department over once she left, and that lunatic was Craig Middlebrooks.
Introduced in the episode, “Doppelgangers,” Craig made an immediate impact in the Pawnee parks and recreation department since his over-the-top personality and mannerisms made for some of the most hilarious scenes of the series. Honestly, the only reason Craig doesn’t land the number one spot on this list is that he was only around for the final two seasons.
Tammy 2
While Tammy 1 might have been scarier, and Tammy Swanson might have been rougher, Tammy 2 was the most memorable and hilarious Tammy of them all. Ron Swanson was known as the man who could withstand anything, yet when it came to his ex-spouses he was as helpless as could be, especially when it came to his second wife.
Tammy 1 might have emasculated Ron, but Tammy 2 was just a constant source of comedy, always showing up whenever Ron was doing well and trying to mess up his life in any way that she could.
Jean-Ralphio Saperstein
If there were ever a recurring character that needed a spin-off, it would be Jean-Ralphio Saperstein. There wasn’t a single scene throughout the entire series that included Jean-Ralphio that wasn’t loud-out-loud hilarious.
From the Snakehole Lounge where Jean-Ralphio couldn’t finish any of his rhymes and nearly had his head shaven by Ron, to the catastrophe that was Entertainment 720 and faking his own death, there was never a dull moment with Mona-Lisa’s twin brother. Tom definitely could have had a better best friend, but he certainly couldn’t have found a more hilarious one.
