Flipboard Culture Desk

The laugh track was once a standard feature of every TV comedy, but it may now be on its final chuckle — the last major show that used one was "The Big Bang Theory," and that finished in 2019. The Atlantic's Jacob Stern writes about the half-century history of the audio irritant, which actor David Niven once called “the single greatest affront to public intelligence I know of,” and whether we'll miss it when it's gone. "For all the ire it incurred, for all the bad jokes it disguised, the laugh track was fundamentally about reproducing the experience of being part of an audience, and its decline is also the decline of communal viewership," says Stern. What's your take on the track? [Story is paywalled]

https://flip.it/3JeN5V

#Television #Audio #Comedy #TV #LaughTracks #Culture #History

I don't mind laugh tracks
6.2%
I find them excruciating
55.6%
It depends on the show
37%
Something else — explain in the comments
1.2%
Poll ended at .
The Last Days of the Laugh Track

For half a century, viewers scorned the laugh track while adoring shows that used it. Now it has all but disappeared.

The Atlantic
Apr 15, 2024 at 5:38pmWeb
Show threadFlipboard Culture DeskApr 16, 2024
No love for laugh tracks in our poll — 53% of voters say they find them excruciating while 34% say that it depends on the show. @philmoscovitch pointed out that "Get Smart" co-creator Buck Henry was annoyed by the decision to use a laugh track on his show, decades after it ended — Larrys Gelbart and David expressed similar opinions regarding "M*A*S*H" and "Seinfeld," respectively. @dbsalk thought our use of the word "excruciating" was a bit much, preferring "I tolerate them because I don't really have any other choice." And both @edwardchampion and @djohngo referenced "The Pink Panther" "I hated the laugh track they added so much to some of the later shorts that I actually created VHS versions where I simply overdubbed the Mancini music over it. And these tapes were passed around in high school!" says Champion.
Show threaddjohngoApr 15, 2024
@CultureDesk I'll remember the distinctive laugh track used on the Pink Panther cartoons for the rest of my life.
Show threadPhilip MoscovitchApr 15, 2024
@CultureDesk In an interview decades after the end of Get Smart, Buck Henry was still annoyed by the decision to use a laugh track.
Show threadFlipboard Culture DeskApr 15, 2024

@philmoscovitch That's interesting! Larry Gelbart believed it cheapened "M*A*S*H" (he says in this video that it was a thorn in his side) and Larry David didn't want it on "Seinfeld."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02m7devejKI

Larry Gelbart on the laugh track on "M.A.S.H" - EMMYTVLEGENDS.ORG

YouTube
Show threadBeeksApr 15, 2024
@CultureDesk watching a show with a laugh track removed is something your brain can't forget. I for one am glad to see them relegated to the dustbin of history.
Show thread♍️ Heather 👩🏻‍🦯Apr 15, 2024
@CultureDesk @DoubleTreble I find it extremely irksome and refuse to watch any show that has one.
Show threadDavid Brent 📚Apr 15, 2024
@CultureDesk I never made a habit of watching sitcoms. When I did turn one on, I found the laugh track irritating, but I think "excruciating" is too strong of a word. You need a poll option for "I tolerate them because I don't really have any other choice."
Show threadFlipboard Culture DeskApr 15, 2024
@dbsalk It's true — we were too caffeinated and only capable of thinking in extremes when we came up with the poll options, but we should have had a "mildly irked" category. We couldn't help but notice that your account name is the lead character of an anti-laugh-track classic!
Show threadDavid Brent 📚Apr 15, 2024

@CultureDesk Good catch! It also happens to be a mere coincidence I wasn't aware of until someone on this platform pointed it out to me not too long ago. I have never seen the original British version of The Office.

"Brent" is actually my middle name, not my surname. My parents almost named me Brent David, but my siblings intervened on my behalf. For that I am eternally grateful. 😉

Show threadAmbient SpongeApr 16, 2024

@CultureDesk Most of the best comedies of the last 20 years haven't had one.

It needs to die.

Show threadRuss_A_MApr 16, 2024
@CultureDesk I thought The Big Bang Theory was filmed before a live audience, so the laughs were from that real audience.
Show threadFlipboard Culture DeskApr 16, 2024
@Russ_A_M Yes, that's right — seemingly live audience reactions and canned laughter both constitute "laugh tracks!"
Show threadRuss_A_MApr 16, 2024
@CultureDesk Fair enough. I always considered a “laugh track” to be the canned laughter added after the fact.
Show threadFlipboard Culture DeskApr 16, 2024
@Russ_A_M Same! But we looked it up after we saw your comment and discovered that it's referred to as a laugh track because it's a separate soundtrack.