TV Laugh Tracks

I personally find most American comedy is unwatchable because of the terrible, false, canned laughter. The original MASH series on BBC2 had no laughter track & was great. SWMBO bought me a box set of the series and, to my dismay, it had this horrible stuck-on laughter track that totally ruined it. Somewhere along the line I watched a series of clips from MASH, with the intensity of the laughter dependent on what the broadcasting station considered the intelligence of its target audience.

It always disappoints when the laughter is added, some how you can always tell.

We have been in the audience of a few recordings of comedy shows and it annoys me when they have a "laugh now" light or card, if left to their own devices watchers will tell the producers what is funny or not.

I agree with Tony, M*A*S*H* was ruined by the laughter track, it depended on what channel you watched it as to whether the laugh track was included.

If subtitles,language, signing and commentaries can be selected then why not select for laugh or no laugh?

Sad as it is I don't think we even watch any "comedy" programmes these days, says a lot about our views of modern so called comedians. We do find  some so called serious programmes funny but they tend not to stay on the Sky+ planner.

I have been enjoying the recent growth of variety and stand up filmed in a theatre type of shows that has come up - probably on the back of Britians got talent ". Something old fashioned and played with cod - but enjoyable. Laughter in the background is as contagious as being there for real.

Completely agree about MASH. I remember them well from the 70's of course and when I saw they were doing re-runs many years back I wanted to go through it again. However, the laugh tracks made them absolutely unwatchable for me.

I think the canned laughter disappears providing the show is actually funny, and maybe even enhances it; the sound of laughter can be infectious.  Fawlty Towers, Blackadder, One Foot in the Grave, being among my personal favourites, all have the canned laughter, but it's barely noticeable to me.  In a weak show, I probably would notice.  Certainly canned laughter will never rescue a show that's lame, but need not destroy a good one.

A good point of comparison in the American market is the laugh-tracked Seinfeld and the non laugh-tracked The Simpsons. Both debuted in 1989. Seinfeld had great writing and acting, but when I see it today the laugh track seems dated and incessantly cheesy. A distraction. Can't I decide what's funny to me? Or what's lame? On the other hand, The Simpsons often had double entendre humor. The parents were laughing at one level while the kids at another. The laugh-track just wouldn't have worked there. Both shows were hugely successful, but The Simpsons persists 27 years later, maybe in small part by letting the viewers decide what's funny to them.

Plus, although 27 years older, the Simpsons and other residents of Springfield have weathered their quarter century + remarkably well, remaining quite youthful. (Except Maude Flanders and Miss Krabappel...)

The cast of Seinfeld may not have taken on those years quite so lightly.

Sorry to hear that they added a laugh track to the MASH DVDs. When it was originally made, the actors were adamant that there be no laugh track.

I can't abide laugh tracks--I'll decide what's funny, thanks.

Seinfeld never spoke to me. Maybe the intrusive laugh track made it seem that much more frantic and desperately eager to please. Like Julia LD without a laugh track.

I'm fairly sure on the MASH DVDs I have (various box sets), you can turn the canned laughter off via the Languages menu on each episode.

Just watched 'Mum' on Beeb 2

Unheralded. No laugh track. Wasn't trying too hard.

It was charming and funny however.

JamieWednesday posted:

Why?

Just started watching Upstart Crow. Frankly it doesn't look all that but the ridiculous laugh track heavily pasted all over it and gobbing away at the end of every third line in the script prevents me from sticking with it. It might turn out to be funny but I shall have to remain in ignorance.

I remain totally intolerant of those shows that drone to the metronomic (and moronic) "straight line - funny line - laugh track" triplet for the entire show. One of the most egregious was The Nanny. Big Bang Theory has now replaced that as my most un-watchable (but bafflingly popular) show.

No doubt such sitcoms are full of prattle. Also an obvious "PRaTTLe" - Pace, Rhythm, and Timing, Then Laugh-track.

You know when the laugh line is coming even before it happens.

Keep your smartphone or i-device handy to occupy time during the insufferable commercial intervals. Most of those ads about why you need the latest and greatest smartphone or i-device.