TV shows that have been ruined by having a laugh track:

[Eli]

They've never bothered me, although every once in a while I do notice them.

 

[Childs]

There is a scene in Seinfeld «The Race» episode where one guy in the entire audience laughs longer than others, and just before the next joke he actually starts to laugh in advance. My god, it's actually funnier than the jokes themselves.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YoliGLJT2Y

0:18 to 0:21 and 3:28 to 3:33

I think Seinfeld was actually filmed in front of a live studio audience. I was given a tour of the NBC studios in Rockefeller plaza and there are bleachers in front of the stages. The laughter in that video seem more organic, as people usually dont start laughing when dialog stops, then stop laughing when dialog starts up again.

 

[Mixolydian]

Little to no difference between laugh track and a "live audience", if you ask me.

 

[PatrickBateman]

That show has a live studio. I think it works rather well.

then maybe they serve pot brownies and mushrooms in the reception area...as it seems the laughter is rather excessive and uncalled for a lot of the time..


This is funnier than the actual show:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Ynf44b867I

 

[PlanetJosh]

^^It's bugs me that what if live audiences have applause signs/notices to encouorage them to laugh at certain times. Maybe they don't but I can't know that for sure.

Anyway I thought I'd try The Office since it doesn't use audiences or laugh tracks. And I didn't like it much because the situations got kind of outrageous as in not very believable. Like how often do people do some of those offensive things in a real office and not get transferrred or fired?

Edit: & I'm a Steve Carell fan too, Dan In Real Life, Evan Almighty, Dinner For Schmucks.

 

[Mixolydian]

then maybe they serve pot brownies and mushrooms in the reception area...as it seems the laughter is rather excessive and uncalled for a lot of the time

I always assumed that the audience was given cues to laugh.

 

[MrColin]

Curb Your Enthusiasm is all the same joke formulas sans laugh tracks, sans kid safe filtering. Therefore it is better than Seinfeld, ergo Seinfeld was diminished by laughtracks.

Big Bang Theory isn't really that funny yet it becomes marketable with the laugh tracks, so you could argue that laughtracks have improved the show.

 

[PlanetJosh]

I'll try some defense of the live audience not that I like most of them. Remember All In The Family's live audience? For the older people here I guess. To me it sounded like some of the most sincere un-cued audience laughing I've ever heard. If anyone agrees has there ever been a live audience that real? Maybe some have been effective in some ways as was mentioned earlier. But the sincerity is what I noticed with All In The Family.

 

[QueBert]

I hate Live audiences, Sanford & Son had one and the people laughed too much and way too damn loudly. Throws the show off, at least laugh tracks can be controlled.

 

[cavemanmoron]

Thread: TV shows that have been ruined by having a laugh track:All of them.

I agree, most of them don't need a fake laugh track. Live Audience laughter seems better.

 

[Lounatik]

I'm sure many here remember Police Squad with Leslie Nielsen. It was basically Naked Gun done in 1/2 hour increments. Didn't last one season despite being as funny and goofy as Naked Gun and Airplane. Why? When they asked people why they didnt go for the show, most respnded because it didnt have laughter in the background. Too sophisticated, and required you to actually pay attention to what you were watching (Phil, you have something on your cheek. A whole bushel of bananas falls off the guy who is so tall he cannot fit onscreen. ) Show was so damn funny too.


Peace



Lounatik

 

[Aikouka]

Laugh tracks don't bother me because I typically tune them out.

 

[Fritzo]

I'm sure many here remember Police Squad with Leslie Nielsen. It was basically Naked Gun done in 1/2 hour increments. Didn't last one season despite being as funny and goofy as Naked Gun and Airplane. Why? When they asked people why they didnt go for the show, most respnded because it didnt have laughter in the background. Too sophisticated, and required you to actually pay attention to what you were watching (Phil, you have something on your cheek. A whole bushel of bananas falls off the guy who is so tall he cannot fit onscreen. ) Show was so damn funny too.


Peace



Lounatik

The actual reason is the network execs thought the jokes were too fast paced and people wouldn't be able to keep up. It was a prime example of "our viewers are too stupid for this."

BTW- Police Squad also had the "Greatest Line in the History of Comedy"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRva7z8pvwc

 

[Vaux]

Laugh tracks are dumb. There is not one show I like that uses a laugh track and I am very happy about that.

 

[yuku]

The Carol Burnett show comes to mind when you say this. Although they did edit some. And yea, the heinous M*A*S*H laughtrack nearly ruins that epic show. Live audience's are sometimes ok. Canned laughter NEVER.

Totally agree with you. Sometimes the laughter can influence our judgement on the plot.

 

[darkswordsman17]

Yes I hate laugh tracks and I hate shows that give this elongated pause after every joke to fit the laugh track in, instead of just letting it when it was natural. The Big Bang Theory and I think the IT Crowd both did this and it made them unwatchable for me.

I hate Live audiences, Sanford & Son had one and the people laughed too much and way too damn loudly. Throws the show off, at least laugh tracks can be controlled.

Watching some old Married With Children episodes and there's some season or two where they must have been paying some shithead to be in the audience every single episode as there's this recurring over the top loud laugh. Then again maybe they were doing a laugh track or subbed that one in or something, but it really sticks out and not in a good way.

 

[darkswordsman17]

^^It's bugs me that what if live audiences have applause signs/notices to encouorage them to laugh at certain times. Maybe they don't but I can't know that for sure.

Anyway I thought I'd try The Office since it doesn't use audiences or laugh tracks. And I didn't like it much because the situations got kind of outrageous as in not very believable. Like how often do people do some of those offensive things in a real office and not get transferrred or fired?

Edit: & I'm a Steve Carell fan too, Dan In Real Life, Evan Almighty, Dinner For Schmucks.

D:

My issue with the Office, and shows in general any more, is that they've replaced laugh tracks and the shitty awkward pauses for them with just shitty awkardness that isn't even funny and just makes you cringe.

Curb Your Enthusiasm is all the same joke formulas sans laugh tracks, sans kid safe filtering. Therefore it is better than Seinfeld, ergo Seinfeld was diminished by laughtracks.

Big Bang Theory isn't really that funny yet it becomes marketable with the laugh tracks, so you could argue that laughtracks have improved the show.

By that argument Curb Your Enthusiasm is a worse show since I'm pretty sure its not done nearly as well as Seinfeld financially.

Big Bang Theory just sucks.

You know what show would be better with a laugh track though? Walking Dead.

 

[Fritzo]

There is a scene in Seinfeld «The Race» episode where one guy in the entire audience laughs longer than others, and just before the next joke he actually starts to laugh in advance. My god, it's actually funnier than the jokes themselves.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YoliGLJT2Y

0:18 to 0:21 and 3:28 to 3:33

On a side note, that episode was hilarious. George wanted to impress some old highschool friends so he made up a fake life and staged a chance meeting at the coffee shop:

"So, you're a comedian? You do a lot of that "You ever notice?" kind of stuff?"

"Yeah...yeah. Wow, you REALLY went bald!"

:biggrin:

 

[PatrickBateman]

I love Mallory (with laugh track)

NSFW

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nq10HXpyzg

*includes bulk beef

 

[IGemini]

I don't mind laugh tracks or live audiences for sitcoms. In rare instances it can make it better. But it won't make non-funny jokes funny...like with Seinfeld. :whiste: *flamesuit*

 

[Fritzo]

I don't mind laugh tracks or live audiences for sitcoms. In rare instances it can make it better. But it won't make non-funny jokes funny...like with Seinfeld. :whiste: *flamesuit*

 

[cheezy321]

I don't mind laugh tracks or live audiences for sitcoms. In rare instances it can make it better. But it won't make non-funny jokes funny...like with Seinfeld. :whiste: *flamesuit*

Seinfeld haters are funny.

 

[Oyeve]

I don't mind laugh tracks or live audiences for sitcoms. In rare instances it can make it better. But it won't make non-funny jokes funny...like with Seinfeld. :whiste: *flamesuit*

I agree. Seinfeld had its moments but mostly it was the same old shit with the same lame characters.

 

[IGemini]

gif

I would've gone with

Seinfeld haters are funny.

I aim to please. :biggrin:

 

[Fritzo]

I agree. Seinfeld had its moments but mostly it was the same old shit with the same lame characters.

Yeah, because all of our most beloved characters on TV should act completely different every week.