The laughing track (or laughter track ) is a separate soundtrack for a recorded comedy event that contains the laughter of the audience. In some productions, laughter is a direct audience response; in the United States, where it is most commonly used, the term usually means artificial laughter ( laughter cans or fake laughter ) made for inclusion in the show. It was created by American sound engineer Charles "Charley" Douglass.
Douglass laugh lines became standard on mainstream television in the US, dominating most prime-time sitcoms from the late 1950s to the late 1970s. The use of Douglass laughter declined in the 1980s when stereophonic laughter was given by competing voice companies as well as the overall practice of a single camera sitcom that deprived audiences altogether.
Video Laugh track
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Radio
Before radio and television, the audience experienced a live comedy performance in front of other audiences. Early radio and television producers were recording live performances and then studio-only events attempted to recreate this atmosphere by introducing the sound of laughter or other people's reactions to the soundtrack.
Jack Dadswell (also known as "Travel Reporter" by Time magazine), a former WWJB owner in Florida, created the first "laugh record".
In 1946, Jack Mullin brought Magnetophon's magnetic tape recorder back from Frankfurt Radio, along with 50 tape reels; the recorder is one of the magnetic tape recorders that BASF and AEG have built in Germany starting in 1935. Ribbons 6.5 â € With the introduction of this recording method, it became possible to add sound during post-production. The old pioneer and pioneer recording, Jack Mullin, explains how the laughter song was found in Crosby's show:
"Bobby comedians, Bobbins, have performed on the show, and threw some of his very rich and rough farming stories into the show We recorded them live, and they all laughed big, which just went on and on but we can not using jokes Today these stories will look tame in comparison, but things are different on the radio, so writer Bill Morrow asks us to save a laugh Some weeks later he has a less funny show, and he insists that we putting on a saved laugh, so the laughter was born. "
Live broadcast US television, movies; "Sweet"
At the beginning of the television, most of the programs were not broadcast live using single camera filmmaking techniques, where the show was made by recording every scene several times from different camera angles. While the actors and crew performances can be controlled, the immediate audience can not be relied upon to laugh at the "right" moment; at other times, the audience is considered to have laughed too loudly or too long.
CBS's CBS engineer Charley Douglass noticed this inconsistency, and took it himself to improve the situation. If the joke does not get the desired laughter, Douglass puts an extra laugh; if the audience instantly chuckles for too long, Douglass gradually silences restraints. This editing technique is known as a sweetener, where laughter recordings are used to increase the response of the studio audience actually if they do not react as strongly as desired. Instead, the process can be used for audience reaction "desweeten", soften unwanted hard laugh or eliminate inappropriate applause, making laughter more in line with the preferred method of the producer to tell the story.
While still working for CBS, Douglass built a prototype laughter machine consisting of a large 28-inch diameter wooden wheel with a ribbon roll attached to the outside edge containing a light tape recording. The machine is operated by a rotating key until it presses another detent on the wheel, thus playing a complete laugh. Since it was built at company time, CBS demanded ownership of the machine when Douglass decided to end his time with them. Prototype machines fall apart within months of usage. Douglass expanded his engineering exploits in 1953 when he began extracting laughter and applause from live sound recordings (especially from the pantomime segment of The Red Skelton Show), and then put the sound recordings very large. ribbon machine. This basic concept was then reworked as Chamberlin Music Master, which was replaced by Mellotron.
This recorded laughter can be added to a single camera filmed program. The first American television show to combine laughter was the sitcom The Hank McCune Show in 1950. Other single camera shows filmed, such as Family Pride (ABC, 1953-54) , soon after, though some, such as Problems with Dad (ABC, 1950-55), The Beulah Show (ABC, 1950-52) and The Goldbergs (some networks, 1949-56), not displaying audience or laughter. The Four Star Playhouse, the anthology series, does not take advantage of laughter or audiences on occasional episodes of comedy, with co-producer David Niven calling the song "miracle randomly wild" and stating that "I would make a black ball the idea if it never showed up.Not that it will happen.We will continue without mechanical tricks ".
Multi-camera event
Immediately after the emergence of laughter, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz designed the method of making the film with the audience directly using the settings of some film cameras. This process was originally used for their sitcom I Love Lucy , which uses a live studio audience and no laughter. Multi-camera events with live viewers sometimes use laughter recordings to complete the response. Comedy sketches and variety shows eventually migrate from live broadcasts to videotapes, allowing for editing before the show airs. Physically edit recorded event audiences (then using quadruplex video) before electronic dubbing arrives causing bulges and cracks in the soundtrack; Douglass was then called to bridge this gap.
Both players and producers gradually began to realize the power behind the laughter that was recorded before. While watching the initial post-production editing session, comedian Milton Berle once pointed out certain jokes and said, "as long as we're here doing this, the joke does not get the response we want". After Douglass put a warm laugh following a failed joke, Berle reportedly commented, "Look? I say it's funny". While working with Bob Hope on one of the television shows, the comedian took Douglass's hand and started rubbing it to create the effect of flexing Douglass's fingers, saying "Okay, now, give me some good laughs."
1960s
As the media grows, production costs associated with live television broadcasts increase. Shooting in a studio with audiences, such as I Love Lucy or The Ed Sullivan Show, has its limitations too: half the audience can not see the show from where they are sitting. Douglass was brought in to simulate the reaction from the beginning for the entire duration of the show. The producers soon realized how much simpler it was to film the show without the attendant's attendance and adjust the reaction during post-production. The board did not initially give room to enter the reaction, making the sweetening difficult and causing the dialogue to stop. The audience response card repeatedly said that laughter seemed forced or made up. Writers are gradually becoming more aware of the space needed for laughter trajectories and begin to manage the timing of their scripts around them. The Board of Directors gradually leaves room for an unheard of audience reaction; producers budgeted for post-production so Douglass can edit more easily.
Most television sitcoms produced during the 1950s and 1960s used a single camera technique, with a laugh track that mimicked an absent audience. Manufacturers become disappointed with the multi-camera format; the consensus at the time was the audience instantly tense, nervous and rarely laughed at the cue.
Hogan Hero
Research networks suggest that the laughter track is mandatory for a single camera show brand as a comedy. The experiment to see if a comedy fared better with laughter was tested in 1965 when CBS showed the sitcom of a new camera Hogan's Heroes to test the audience in two versions: one with laughter, the other without. Partly due to the cerebral nature of the show's humor, the no-laugh version failed while the version with laughter succeeded. The show was broadcast with laughter, and CBS made use of the laughing track for all comedies afterwards.
The sitcoms have different types of laughter tracks that are edited onto their soundtracks, depending on the style. Strange or fantasy performances, such as Bewitched, The Munsters, I Dream of Jeannie and The Beverly Hillbillies, are virtual featuring Douglass editing skills. The more weird the show, the more songs that laugh. In contrast, quiet programs, such as The Andy Griffith Show, The Brady Bunch and My Three Sons, have a more modulated laughter. Certain events, such as Get Smart , feature laughter songs that become more invasive as the series progresses, while events like M * A * S * H ​​â € <â € < soften laughter as the series becomes more dramatic (it's entirely absent during the operating room scene).
In the mid-1960s, almost every US sitcom shot a single camera and equipped with laughter. Just a few programs, such as The Joey Bishop Show, The Dick Van Dyke Show and The Lucy Show use an audience in the studio and switch to Douglass for editing or adding a real laugh through the sweetener.
Charley Douglass and the mysterious "laff box"
There is also a 30-second "titter" song in the loop, which consists of people laughing quietly. Track "titter" is used to calm laughter and always play in the background. When Douglass put a warm laugh, he increased the volume of the titter tracks to smooth the last mixture. The track titter was expanded to 45 seconds in 1967, then 60 seconds in 1970, and received improvements in 1964, 1967 and 1970. Douglass made a new recording, making small changes every few months, believing that viewers evolved over time. Douglass also has various audience applauds, "oohs" and "ahhhs," as well as people moving in their seats (which many manufacturers insist will continue to be heard).
Douglass knew the material well, for he himself composed it. He had dozens of reactions, and he knew where to find each. Douglass regularly speeds up laughter to increase its effect. His work is highly appreciated by many people in the television industry. Over the years, Douglass added new footage and revived old ones that had been retired and subsequently retired newer songs. Laughter heard in the early 1960s sitcoms reappeared many years later in the late 1970s. Up to 40 different laughter clips can be combined and layered at one time, creating greater effects, louder reactions when in fact the same laughter is heard individually. Douglass also included examples of people's laughter from other cultures, whose voices felt different from Americans.
Douglas's "Laff box" was purchased, invisibly, at an auction in 2010 when the owner failed to pay the rent at the storage locker where he was stationed. It was then discussed, and shown in the June 2010 episode of the Antiques Roadshow of San Diego, California, where its value is valued at $ 10,000.
Cartoon sponsors and children
Track laughter is also used on some prime time animated television series, starting with The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show (ABC, 1959-61; NBC, 1961-64), but only using it for four series episodes (see controversy under). Hanna-Barbera followed and utilized full laughter songs for prime-time events until 1970, including The Flintstones (ABC, 1960-66), Top Cat (ABC), 1961 -62), and The Jetsons (ABC, 1962-63). Midnight comedy show Hanna-Barbera, Where's Huddles? (CBS, 1970), also uses laugh lines. The midday programming, such as The Banana Splits Adventure Hour (NBC, 1968-70), gradually follows. From 1968 to 1983, most of the comedy cartoons produced for the Saturday morning genre were complemented by laughter, beginning with Filmation's The Archie Show in 1968. Rankin-Bass, DePatie-Freleng Enterprises (DFE) and Hanna-Barbera adopted this practice until 1983; Filmization of Gilligan's Planet (CBS, 1982-83) is the last series to include laughter songs.
Since The Banana Splits is shown noon, Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! CBS, 1969-70) became Hanna-Barbera's first Saturday morning show to use the laughter of Douglass tracking in 1969. Following his success, Hanna-Barbera expanded the laughter to almost all of his performances for the 1970-71 season, including > Harlem Globetrotters (CBS, 1970-71) and Josie and Pussycats (CBS, 1970-71).
The Pink Panther Show (NBC, 1969-1978, ABC, 1978-1980) is an anomaly among his peers. The show consists of previous theater entries compiled into a series of half-hour shows, which include other DFE theater shorts including Inspector , Roland and Ratfink , Ant and Aardvark and The Tijuana Toad (redubbed as The Texas Toads for television as it is considered Mexican racial stereotypes). The original theatrical version did not contain laughter songs, but NBC insisted on inclusion for television broadcasts. The soundtrack was restored to its original form in 1982 when the DFE theater package went into syndication. Repackaging over the years has resulted in both the theatrical and television versions of the available entries. The exceptions are Misterjaw and Crazylegs Crane , manufactured specifically for television and never re-released theatically, which results in a laughter version only.
After Filmasi is producer Sid and Marty Krofft. When production begins at H.R. Pufnstuf in 1969, executive producer Si Rose saw every comedy without laughter as a flaw, and convinced Kroffts to include one at Pufnstuf. After Krofts, Kroffts used the services of Douglass on all the shows produced for television Saturday morning (except for Lost Land , more dramatic in nature), including The Bugaloos , Lidsville , Sigmund and Sea Monsters , The Lost Saucer and Far Out Space Nuts . When transitioning from a high-concept children's program to a live variety show, Kroffts continues to use Douglass to sweeten. Some performances include Donny and Marie, The Brady Bunch Variety Hour, The Krofft Supershow, The Krofft Superstar Hour, Pink Lady and Jeff , Barbara Mandrell and Mandrell's Sisters , Pryor Places , as well as their 1987 sitcom DC Follies >.
Since the use of laughter for the Saturday morning series became more common, Douglass eventually added some child laughter to his library. "Kiddie laughed," as they were known, first saw the use to sweeten for a special 1973 syndicated television, The World of Sid and Marty Krofft at the Hollywood Bowl , but it was soon heard in most of Saturday morning kids 'indicated by 1974, such as Uncle Croc's Block, Sigmund and Sea Monster , The Pink Panther Show , The Lost Saucer > and Far Out Space Nuts .
The comedy shows on the Disney Channel and studio-made laughter tracks were recorded in front of the live audience. Nickelodeon - Disney's top competitor - utilizes laughter tracks for shows like iCarly and Victorious since closing the original studio facility installed for live viewers.
Create your own
In 1970, Douglass laughing business proved so profitable that he decided to raise the tariff for his services. However, unlike sitcoms, cartoons are mainly produced with lower budgets and studios are looking for opportunities to reduce costs. Hanna-Barbera and Rankin-Bass distance themselves from Douglass starting in 1971. They still feel that having a laugh is necessary, so they start taking some laughs of Douglass in various ways and composing their own laughter tracks. This particular laughter track is controversial and contemporaries and historians question the sensibility and realism for the use of this track.
Despite this trend, Filmasi, DePatie-Freleng Enterprises and Sid & amp; Marty Krofft Television Productions still retains the services of Douglass for their Saturday content.
Hanna-Barbera
Hanna-Barbera (HB) is the first cartoon production studio to stop using the Douglass service. They first used laughter paths for their prime-time performances, such as The Flintstones , Top Cats , and The Jetsons . They then expanded using laughing tracks into their daytime rates, starting with The Banana Splits in 1968, which mimicked Filmation's The Archies. A successful series before 1971, like Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! , Harlem Globetrotters and Josie and Pussycats use a full laugh song. This changed at the start of the 1971-72 season, when Hanna-Barbera used their limited laugh line using the MacKenzie Repeater machine, a recording machine that can play up to five repetitive sound effects, causing up to five Douglass to laugh repeatedly.. Mixed with a metallic sound, it included three light laughs and two uncontrollable belly laughter (one containing a woman laughing clearly at the tail end). Hanna-Barbera used this laughter regularly over the next decade at almost all of their Saturday morning rates.
Hanna-Barbera's laughter song affects several television specials as well, many of them from ABC Saturday Superstar Movie (ABC, 1972-74), which serves as a show for a new, hopeful comedy cartoon show. Sometimes, studios slow down the laughter track for greater effect; this is done for the second season of The New Scooby-Doo Movies .
Hanna-Barbera also used a limited laugh line when they produced Wait Until Your Dad Got a Home in 1972. This laugh line, which added an extra stomach laughter into the mix, was noticeably slowed during production ( Wait Until Your Father Got a Home is the only television series produced by Hanna-Barbera including a certain belly laughter song).
Hanna-Barbera laughter track was suspended after the 1981-82 television season. The final production to feature a homemade laughter song is The Flintstones: Jogging Fever , which aired on October 11, 1981.
The Saturday morning show featured Hanna-Barbera laughter:
TV specials/movies:
In 1994, songwriting historian and printer re-recorder Paul Iverson commented on the legacy of the Hanna-Barbera track: "Laughter Hanna Barbera did more to give a bad name track laugh than any of Douglass's work could ever be done using the same five or more repetitive laughs "Iverson added," All it takes is to watch the episodes of Josie and Pussycats with Josie and Pussycats on Outer Space and it's a shame for a company as strong as Hanna-Barbera - who, at its peak, practically owned Saturday morning - thinks so little of their audience by dubbing inferior laughter for so long. "
Rankin/Bass
The Rankin/Bass animation studio, most remembered for their Christmas specials, also experimented with the installation of their Saturday morning animated series of The Jackson 5ive with laughter songs in 1971. Like Hanna-Barbera, Rankin/Bass isolated several snatched laughter snippets from the library of Douglass and put them into the soundtrack. Laughter initially consists only of a loud eruption; a mild joke received an unnatural laugh, while another, a burst of laughter in the middle of a sentence. The studio has improved the process when production began at The Osmonds in 1972, using more laugh modulations taken from Dougel's library from 1971 to 1972. Laughs did not erupt in the middle of sentences like The Jackson 5ive and time was upgraded by Rankin/Bass sound engineers. Unlike the Hanna-Barbera laughter track, Rankin/Bass provides more types of laughter and does not sound like metal.
The studio ended the training when production in two series ended.
Jim Henson & amp; Associates: The Muppet Show
Unlike the first two "silent" pilots, The Muppet Show has included the song in the show, but in a completely different way; because the variety program is modeled after vaudeville, the audience is often treated to a glimpse of theater audiences and their reactions to the antics of The Muppets on stage (though the audience consists of Muppet characters as well).
When the show was produced overseas at the ATV studio in Elstree, England, Jim Henson and his Muppet production team beat Douglass's familiar laugh. New laughter, laughter and applause were recorded for the first few episodes to sound new and fresh. Some of these laughs are given by the cast and crew members who react on the daily episodes; finally, The Muppet Show began recycling the same laughter for the show, building its own laughter track. A by-product of this convincing laughter song is the belief by viewers that The Muppet Show is recorded in front of a live audience, some even asking for tickets to attend the taping; His son Henson, Brian, notes how strangely he thinks that people believe that the show was recorded in front of a live audience. Henson himself knows that having a direct audience is impractical, given the complexity of production (the NBC sitcom ALF is also difficult to produce and use only with the flow of laughter); he also notes that due to the inspiration of the vaudeville series, having the sound of laughter is a necessity, but admitting that it is not an easy task - "I saw some early gigs, I was really embarrassed with them." The sweetening gets better later, but it's always is a difficult thing to do well, and to create the reality of the audience laugh. "Henson also commented on a pilot episode that lacked a laugh track, saying" I did a special drought - without a trace of laughter - saw it, and then tried to add a song laughter into it, and it's very unfortunate, but it makes the show more funny. "
Various Muppet characters or guest stars break the fourth wall and recognize the use of laughter trajectories. In the fourth episode of the series, Kermit the Frog was asked by guest Ruth Buzzi if she felt a joke or a pretty funny routine for the show, which she switched to the camera and replied, "It's up to the laughter song." A two-season episode featuring guest Steve Martin avoided a trace of laughter altogether to support the concept that the show had been canceled that night and support the audition of a new act; the only laughter that can be heard is Muppet's own behavior.
After The Muppet Show ended in 1981, most of the Muppet projects were produced in the US because of the death of a commercial ATV franchise in the UK and Lord Lew Grade, who had paid for the show, was no longer involved. on television. The Post- Muppet Show rates then switched to Douglass for audience reaction; special one-shot shows such as The Fantastic Miss Piggy Show and The Muppets: A Celebration of 30 Years received full attention by the son of Douglass, Robert, who at the time was running Northridge Electronics after his father retired. Robert Douglass also set the audience for a failed reboot, Muppet Show Disney, Muppets Tonight .
1970s
The return of recorded television programs before audiences
Although the use of tin laughter reached its peak in the 1960s, some performances still retain a multi-camera tradition. In 1967, Desi Arnaz produced The Mothers-in-Law (NBC, 1967-69), which was recorded in front of a live audience at Desilu Studios, with sweetening done in post-production. A year later, The Good Guys (CBS, 1968-70) follow the same format. On-site production changes, however, caused the rest of the first season to switch back to a single camera completely, using only laughter tracks. This continued until the second season until the low rank led to the cancellation in 1970.
The year 1970 began with the decline of rural based performances (such as The Beverly Hillbillies, Green Acres and Mayberry RFD) and the awakening of conscious programming social (such as > All in Family , M * A * S * H ​​â € <â € < and Maude ). The resulting change also spurred the immediate return of the audience, starting with Lucy (CBS, 1968-1974), who again starred in Lucille Ball and served as a prototypical impulse to the new subject matter, and finally The Mary Tyler Moore Show (CBS, 1970-77). The series pilot episode, "Love is All Around", was originally filmed using a single camera method. The results were not satisfactory for Moore or the manufacturer, who then decided to switch to some cameras. Because some of the first episodes were recorded at the end of the summer, the pilot's first record was not well received due to poor insulation and poor audio. The second record, however, gives better air conditioning and better quality sound systems to the stage. Critical reception increased, and the show used a multi-camera format afterwards, and became a huge success for seven years.
The awakening of living audiences gradually progresses. More sitcoms are beginning to shift from single camera format, to movie-style, back to multi-camera format with live studio viewers giving real laughter, which producers think is more fun for having better comic rhythms and helping them write better. joke. Norman Lear's creator All In the Family (CBS 1971-1979) followed it in 1971. Directly directed, Lear is more spontaneous; he wants the audience in the studio to act like a player, in the hope that they both develop relationships with each other. Lear is not a fan of a fake audience, so no trace of laughter is used, even during post-production when Lear can have the luxury of sweetening a failed joke (Lear succumbs to the next season, and allows Douglass to occasionally insert a laugh). Lear's decision produced the show to be a huge success, and delivered the audience's immediate return to the mainstream of the US sitcom. To clarify the point, an announcement was announced about the weekly closing credits that " All in the Family were recorded on record before the live audience" or during the final season of the event where the immediate audience no longer attended the taping of the show, " All in Family is played for studio audiences for immediate response. "
Jack Klugman and Tony Randall expressed displeasure during the first season of The Odd Couple (ABC, 1970-75), who used laughing lanes without a live audience. Co-creator/executive producer Garry Marshall also dislikes using laughter tracks, and veteran theater Randall, in particular, is upset with the process of having to wait a few seconds between punchlines to provide enough space for the laughter track to be inserted. The production team experimented with eliminating laughter songs together with the episode "Oscar's New Life"; this episode airs without a laugh, though laughter is added for subsequent views to maintain continuity. ABC relented in the second season, with The Odd Couple filmed with three cameras (vs. one camera the previous season) and performing like a stage play in front of a studio audience. The change also requires a new set of larger to be built in the theater. With the presence of a live audience, Randall and Klugman enjoy the spontaneity that accompanies it; any lost or interrupted lines go by non-stop (they can always be reproduced during postproduction). Additionally, it gives certain edge events that are missing in the first season, though the actors have to give a harder line, as they are on a larger sound stage compared to the quiet studio with only the minimal attendance of the crew. Klugman then commented, "We spent three days practicing the show We sat around the table the first day We tore up the script We took all the jokes and made the characters The only reason we left the joke was to laugh out loud. I watched the show at home, I saw Oscar coming in and she said, 'Hi,' and there was a laugh. 'Hey,' I thought, 'what am I doing?' I hate it; it insults the audience. "
Sitcom Happy Days (ABC, 1974-84) reflects the The Odd Couple scenario as well. His first two seasons used only laughter tracks, and in the third season, switched to the live audience.
However, the show was not entirely alive. With the exception of All in the Family , sweetener is still a postproduction requirement to bridge any gaps in audience reaction. Television historian/laughing Ben Glenn II observed the sitcom Alice (CBS, 1976-85) and noted the need for sweeteners: "The actors keep blowing their lines.Of course, with a third or a fourth, the joke is no longer Funny laugh Douglass was included in the last broadcast version to compensate. "
Some manufacturers, such as James Komack, however, follow the Lear approach. Komack, who is involved in the short sitcom Hennesey, starring Jackie Cooper, is an old critic of Douglass's laughter, believing that laughter is too predictable and can inhibit the effects of sitcom humor. Komack instead uses music to fight a sweet laugh. He experimented with this technique at The Courtship of Eddie's Father (ABC, 1969-72), which featured a quiet laughter song. The multi-camera show produced by Komack, such as Chico and the Man (NBC, 1974-78) and Welcome Back, Kotter (ABC, 1975-79) background music cues during the scene transition (a clear location for sweeteners) and ensures that Douglass laugh songs are rarely used during postproduction. Komack then commented, "If you've ever tried to do a show without a laugh track, you'll see a big difference... [I'm] flat." The only way to get away from laughter is to use music, to show when there's something funny. "To be sweet, he continued," Then it is determined by the taste of the producers - by the morality of the producers... [A] for a while, you learn that it is of no value.On the extreme, people will hear it and say, 'Why are they laughing ? ' and they will shut down your program. "
In addition to The Odd Couple , The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Happy Days , other sitcoms sweetened by Douglass (many of them also sweetened by Pratt the end of the 1970s) was the The Paul Lynde Show (ABC, 1972-73), The Bob Newhart Show
Events that became famous during the 1970s, such as The Carol Burnett Show, The Flip Wilson Show and The Dean Martin Show (and < i> The Dean Martin Celebrity Roast succeeds after that) also continue to use the sweetener Douglass for less interesting jokes done during sketches.
The gameplay was sweetened during the 1970s and early 1980s, often played when the contestant or host said something that was considered funny and only a small reaction coming from the live audience. Douglass laughter songs are especially heard on Chuck Barris' game show (ie Gong Show and The Newlywed Game ), whose show is primarily designed to entertain the audience; "Gifts" are often imperfect or mocking. Game events produced on CBS Television City and NBC Studios Burbank are also sweetened, often to intensify the audience's reaction, including events such as Tap Your Luck (used during the "Whammy" segment). During the closing credits of a typical game show, the show uses a can of cheers and applause to sweeten the audience's applause in the studio directly, a voice not heard by viewers during the credits. This is common in daytime game shows on CBS and NBC and some syndicated game shows from the 1970s to the 1990s. The game show recorded on NBC Studios Burbank uses three different applause songs to sweeten: one with a smaller crowd, one with a medium crowd, and one with a large crowd with cheerful male audience members in the background. However, many children's play events, mostly ABC game shows, and most Mark Goodson-Bill Todman productions, such as Precise Price , Game Match and Family Feud is recorded with a live audience audience, although the sweetener is used on rare occasions.
There are still some producers who either still do not trust the audience directly, making the show too complicated for the audience to attend, liking the single camera method, or not being able to filter it directly into the audience for a response. In this case, Douglass arranged a laugh track from scratch. Comedy situations such as The Brady Bunch ,
In the early years that started with live movies, advanced through video footage and into the studio's production without a live viewer back to live-on-tape, Douglass has changed from just improving or changing the soundtrack, to literally adjusting the whole audience's reaction to every performance. and back again to the enhancement and tweaking of the performances recorded with the live audience.
Carroll Pratt
Although Douglass had a monopoly on laughter lines, he eventually faced competition in 1977 when other sound engineers began offering different laughter songs from the typical Douglass laughter. Especially, engineers and Douglass protà ©  © gÃÆ' © Carroll Pratt started his own company, Sound One. Pratt and his brother had worked under Douglass since the early 1960s, but began to notice that the technique of Douglass lags behind when advances are made in production technology. Pratt commented that after years of constant use, audible hiss can be heard when laughter is being blown as the Douglass tape runs out. Though not stubborn, Douglass loves his machines and techniques so much that he feels no urgency to advance his technology. Pratt split with Douglass after the 1976-77 television season wrapped up, and created a new "laff box," which was easier to use and had a greater capacity than Douglass (Pratt's recording was on cassette, Douglass on an older reel-to-reel ribbon). With the advent of stereo television, Pratt stereo recordings match the sound quality of television shows that are filmed or recorded in audio formats, while Douglass seeks to convert previous mono analogue recordings to stereo. Pratt introduces an innovative laughter song that contains a more realistic (though less typical) reaction. While Pratt's laughter song has a part of laughter that is recognizable as well, they are calmer and smoother than Douglass, who has become so familiar and everywhere that they sound stale. Some of the sitcoms switched to Pratt's laughter song after 1977, including M * A * S * H ​​â € < and The Love Boat (more dramatic in tone). Some live sitcoms, such as Laverne and Shirley , Happy Days , and all post-1978 MTM production like WKRP in Cincinnati (CBS, 1978-82 ) and Newhart (CBS, 1982-90), also chose Pratt on Douglass for sweetening process.
The competition from Pratt led Douglass to retool his library after the 1977-78 television season, drawing most of his classical laughter with a more realistic laugh and saving his almost exclusively extreme reaction. The combination of classic loud noises, mixed with its own less invasive recordings, has considerable results.
1980-present
The idea of ​​a comedy that had no trace of laughter became fashionable in the 1980s. Both viewers and television critics have been conditioned to listen to laughter as part of the comedy television viewing experience. Events like Molly Dodd's Day and Night (NBC, 1987-88), Hooperman (ABC, 1987-89) and Doogie Howser, MD ( ABC, 1989-93) is a comedy-drama that leaves a laugh altogether, gaining pleasant media attention in the process.
Single camera comedy has made a comeback in the US since the early 1990s, but most networks have abandoned the long tradition of laughter tracks for single camera performances. The key player in this revolution is HBO, which allows its one-camera comedies such as Dream On and The Larry Sanders Show to walk without a trace of laughter, and win critical acclaim for doing so. Non-spectator single-camera, direct-song or laughter, has become increasingly common on broadcast networks as well, with critical and popular hits like Malcolm in Middle and The Office.
Other non-laughter comedy shows in the US are as follows:
Animated performances such as The Simpsons , Futurama , Beavis and Butt-head , King of the Hill < South Park , American Dad! , Bob's Burgers , and Family Guy , are also silent, except in rare occassions that canned laughter is used, usually as a parody of the sitcom comedy. Animated performances used to use laughter songs, such as Scooby-Doo , have lost their laughter traces altogether in the 1990s. However, the sitcom comedy created by It's a Laugh Productions, like It's So Raven , uses a laughing track.
Sweetening is a common practice in direct awards events such as Emmy Awards, Academy Awards, and MTV Video Music Awards. The microphone on the stage often does not fully capture the laughter and audience reaction to the monologue because the audience is not monopolized in the event of direct awards due to the number of conversations that took place during the filming. Laughter and applause are often sweetened and edited before watching the public, or if aired live, performed on the spot via a seven-second delay (the same crew is also used to turn off the controversial words and controversial remarks of the award winners).
Holliston , an independently produced multicamera comedy in dead Fearnet, uses laughter tracks to mimic the look and feel of the popular sitcoms of the 1980s and 1990s. Creator Adam Green also expressed interest in using live studio audience in the future.
Controversy, bucking trend
Because laughter has been reduced from television comedies for decades, it is not uncommon for certain markets to erase laughing songs from older comedies for modern reruns and syndicates. This is especially true for animated series - especially those produced by Hanna-Barbera, such as The Flintstones and Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! ; though, not every episode of the series is affected by this (chances are the case includes the main audio track is missing, or in a form that is too bad for tinkering), so it is unexpected for some of these series to include episodes with or without deep laughter tracks their syndication package. This can also affect DVD releases as well; while the theater version of The Pink Panther shorts has been released on DVD in its original format, certain entries (including Pink Punch, Pink Pinkepper and < i> Gong with Pink ) including laughter songs from their television broadcasts.
Certain direct action comedy from the past has also been affected by this. Certain local syndication markets have removed laughs from certain episodes of The Andy Griffith Show (especially the more bleak and sincere episodes like "Opie the Birdman"). In 2015, broadcasters in the UK have removed laughter songs from Hogan's Heroes ; as with their reruns, their reason is to shrink the humor of the series and emphasize whatever serious and dramatic moments the series has.
Maps Laugh track
Outside the US.
United Kingdom
In the 20th century, most of the sitcoms in England were recorded before the live audience to give a natural laugh. The scenes were recorded outdoors, traditionally recorded before studio work, played back to the studio audience and their laughter was recorded for broadcast episodes (sometimes, the entire show has been recorded in this way). Other comedies, such as the Royle Family and Office , which are presented in cinema mode rather than in traditional sitcom format, do not feature any audience laughter.
One exception to direct audience use is the Thames Television The Kenny Everett Video Show, whose laughter consists of a spontaneous reaction to the sketches of the studio production crew. This technique was maintained for four years, even when the event moved into a larger studio facility and the emphasis shifted from music to comedy. Everett's latest series for the BBC ( The Kenny Everett Television Show ) were recorded in front of a live studio audience.
In the early 1980s, the BBC's policy was a comedy program broadcast with laughter, although the producers did not always agree that this suited their program. As a result, the laughing track for the Hitchhiker Guide to Galaxy was recorded for the first episode, but dropped before transmission. The League of Gentlemen originally broadcasted with laughter, but this was canceled after the second series of programs.
The pilot episode of the satirical series Spit Image is also broadcast with a laugh song, apparently in Central Television's insistence. This idea was dropped because the show's producers felt that the show worked better without one. Several later editions, in 1992 (Special Election) and 1993 (two episodes) did use laughter tracks, as this was done directly in front of studio audiences and included spoof Question Time .
Most episodes of Only Fools and Horses feature viewers in the studio; Exceptions, which do not feature laughter at all, are all Christmas specials, "To Hull and Back", "A Royal Flush" and the second part "Miami Twice". For their DVD release, "A Royal Flush" (edited to remove more than 20 minutes of footage) has an additional laughter song, as did the second part of "Miami Twice" (which was merged with the first part to make Miami Twice : The Movie ).
In the 21st century, many sitcoms that were inspired by a new wave of British comedy in the late 1990s have yet to show a laughter or audience in the studio. Although Green Wing does not feature audience laughter, partly because of its surreal nature, it does feature an unusual lazzi technique, in which the episode film is slowed soon after a joke. Mrs Brown's Boys and Still Open All Hours both show the audience in the studio.
Canada
Most contemporary Canadian television comedies do not include laughter, although some programs, such as the sitcom Maniac Mansion <1990> and the children's program The Hilarious House of Frightenstein (1971) has a laughter song added to appear in the US even though it is broadcast in Canada without one.
The children's sketch comedy series You Can not Do That on Television (1979-1990) did not have a laugh song during its first season as a local television program. However, when entering the world of Canadian networks (such as Whatever is On You On ), a laughter song is added which is almost entirely made up of child laughter, with some laughter of adults. Although unique and appropriate for the nature of the show, the use and quality of laugh songs varies from season to season. The 1981 episode featured a variety of different laughs, offering a more authentic sound. The 1982 season, which was the first season of the series produced for the US cable channel Nickelodeon, used less laughter, but also used the Carroll Pratt titter tracks used on US sitcoms such as Happy Days and What Happening !! . The last six episodes in 1982 improved the repetition of the kiddie track by mixing different laughs together, along with the titter tracks. 1983 experienced a real slump, with a poorly muted and edited laughter song. In 1984, the editors corrected the issue, laughing back to 1982 minus an effective titter track. In 1986, a newly used children's laughter song with younger-sounding laughter to match the material, which targets a younger demographic of the previous season. When the series returned in 1989, he used kiddie songs in 1981 and 1986.
China
I Love My Family , the first multi-camera sitcom in mainland China, using live studio audience, Some single camera comedy, like iPartment , using a laughing path.
Track laughs are usually used in various events for comic effects. Examples include Super Sunday , Kangxi Lai Le , Big Brother Variety and Home Run .
Latin America
Some Latin American countries like Argentina change tracks of laughter with the crew of people coming from the big screen who are paid special to laugh at commands whenever comedy situations deserve to be ridiculed. Known as reidores ("laughers"), a senior laugh beckons the others when it comes to laughing. In other countries such as Mexico, comedy without audience reaction is openly expressed as having no laugh track as they respect their audiences, especially Chespirito programs like El Chavo del Ocho .
Effects
To measure the continued relevance of Douglass laughter songs, a study was published in 1974 in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology which concluded that people were still more likely to laugh at jokes followed by canned laughter.. The girl co-creator Sam Denoff commented in 1978 that "laughter is social, it's easier to laugh when you're with people." Denoff adds "in the cinema, you do not need a laugh track, but at home, watching TV, you may be alone or just with a few others."
Dartmouth College psychology professor Bill Kelley measured the importance of laughter, especially in US sitcoms. He stated "we are far more likely to laugh at something funny in front of others." Kelley's research compares students' reactions with Seinfeld episodes, which take advantage of laughter, for those who watch The Simpsons are not. Brain scans show that viewers find the same funny and the same area of ​​their brain turns on whether they hear other people laugh. Nevertheless, Kelley still finds value in the laughter trajectory. "When done well," Kelley commented, "they can give people clues about what's funny and help them, but when done poorly, you see the track laugh and it seems unnatural and out of place."
Inheritance and support
The Rose, executive producer for Sid and Marty Krofft, convinces Kroffts to use laughter tracks on their puppet shows, such as H.R. Pufnstuf , Bugaloos and Sigmund and Sea Monster . Rose stated: "The laughter is a great debate, they (Kroffts) say they do not want to do it, but with my experience with night watchdogs, the night starts to use laughter tracks, and that's the point, because viewers watch the show and there's a big laugh every times because of laughter, and then when you see a funny show and no laughter because there's no laughter, it gets flawed, so I assure them of it. "Good or bad." Sid Krofft commented, "We oppose that [laughter song], but Si Rose - is on the sitcom - she feels that when the show is put together, the kids will not know when to laugh." Marty Krofft adds "the bottom line - it's sad - you have to tell them when it's funny and the track laughs, [it's true.] That's necessary, as much as we always look to have a real trace of laughter, < i> the real audience In comedy, if you do not have it, you're in big trouble, because if you do not hear laughter, it's not funny And that's how the [home] audience is programmed to see these shows. "
In a 2007 interview, film producer/founder of the latest film, Lou Scheimer praised laughter for his use at The Archie Show. "Why are you laughing?" Scheimer asked. "Because you feel that you are watching a program with a group of people, rather than being alone." Scheimer asserts that The Archie Show is the first Saturday morning cartoon to take advantage of the laughter track.
Television historian and laughter colleague Ben Glenn, II, commented that the laughter tracks used today are very different from the quality of the "cheerful" past laughter:
"Today's sitcom is mostly based on funny speeches and no longer rely on strange situations or jokes, as you'll see in the episodes of Mister Ed , The Munsters or > Cursed , and the muffled laughter now reflects that.Generally, laughter is now much more aggressive and more calm, you no longer hear unbridled laughter or laughter.This is a 'smart' laughter - more polite, more sophisticated But certainly not very fun There is optimism and carefree quality in the songs of the old laughter Today, the reaction is mostly 'funny' just by the way they sound.In the past, if the audience really has a good time, it shines through.First member seem less self-conscious and they feel free to laugh as hard as they want. Perhaps it is a reflection of contemporary culture. In the 1950s, the laughter was generally mild and uplifting, albeit somewhat generic, since Douglass has not perfected the ultimate technique his laugh is structured
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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