From Yogi and Boo-Boo to Barney Rubble and Fred Flintstone, the concept of a devoted sidekick thanklessly following around a main character on a TV show dates all the way back to the Hanna-Barbara days. No matter the amount of craziness it entailed, those guys would do anything for their buddies and received little love in return.

That level of extreme devotion is not a phenomenon dedicated solely to cartoon characters -- in fact, it's a concept that's been featured in many a show over the years. After the jump, a look at five of the most hopelessly devoted TV obsessives.

During some of the television obits I've been hearing about the late, great Ed McMahon, one of the most common misunderstandings about the Tonight Show sidekick's career has been perpetuated: that he worked for Publishers Clearing House, handing out big checks to unsuspecting sweepstakes winners.

Well, Ed did work for one of those sweepstakes-and-subscriptions houses, but it was PCH's main rival, American Family Publishers. He often appeared in the AFP's ads and mailings with his Bloopers and Practical Jokes buddy Dick Clark.

Not once did McMahon work for PCH, but as Bob pointed out in his obituary, jokes about his sweepstakes work often kept the mistake alive.