Laugh Track: Difference between revisions

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{{quote|'''Comic 1:''' Why did the chicken cross the road?

'''Comic 2:''' I dunno.

'''Comic 1:''' [[Anti Humor|To get to the other side]]!|''(Enormously loud blast of screaming laughter from audience).''}}

'''Comic 1:''' [[Anti-Humor|To get to the other side]]!|''(Enormously loud blast of screaming laughter from audience).''}}

{{quote|''See? The laugh track tells you what's funny. [[Viewers are Morons|You don't even need to think!]]''|'''Granddad''', ''[[The Boondocks]]''}}

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The general opinion of the audience held by television executives then (and some would argue now) was [[Viewers are Morons|very low]]. There was serious concern that without a [[Studio Audience]] to "prompt" the home viewer's responses, a comedy would fall flat. The solution was the creation of the [[Laugh Track]] (also known as [[Canned Laughter]]) -- an artificial audience that did nothing but react uproariously to anything and everything.

Naturally, within a few years of its introduction, it was abused and overused. ''Every'' punchline, no matter how lame or subtle, would receive the same tsunami of belly laughs from the virtual audience. It became epidemic, even intruding bizarrely into cartoons (''[[The Flintstones]]'' and ''[[The Jetsons]]'', anyone?). By the 1960s, it had become an annoying intrusion, hated but (in the minds of most producers) mandatory. In the 1970s, however, most sitcoms began to switch from the single-camera, movie-style format to the multi-camera format with a [[Studio Audience]] providing real laughter, which producers found more pleasing because it helped them write better jokes. By the 1980s, the only hit that used a laugh track was ''[[~~M*A*S*H (TV)|~~M*A*S*H]]'', which mostly dispensed with its laugh track toward the end of its run, loosening the laugh track's hold on single-camera television comedies. It's still around, but it's not nearly as prominent or overused as it used to be.

Naturally, within a few years of its introduction, it was abused and overused. ''Every'' punchline, no matter how lame or subtle, would receive the same tsunami of belly laughs from the virtual audience. It became epidemic, even intruding bizarrely into cartoons (''[[The Flintstones]]'' and ''[[The Jetsons]]'', anyone?). By the 1960s, it had become an annoying intrusion, hated but (in the minds of most producers) mandatory. In the 1970s, however, most sitcoms began to switch from the single-camera, movie-style format to the multi-camera format with a [[Studio Audience]] providing real laughter, which producers found more pleasing because it helped them write better jokes. By the 1980s, the only hit that used a laugh track was ''[[M*A*S*H]]'', which mostly dispensed with its laugh track toward the end of its run, loosening the laugh track's hold on single-camera television comedies. It's still around, but it's not nearly as prominent or overused as it used to be.

Although it may not seem so, laugh tracks were surprisingly sophisticated systems at the height of their use. Rather than being just simple recordings of a laughing audience, they were actually carefully generated and mixed, with such discrete components as "the guy who gets the joke early" and "housewife giggles" and "the one who didn't get the joke but is laughing anyway" all precisely blended and reblended to create the illusion of a real audience responding to the show.

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=== Fan Fiction ===

* In [[~~Naruto Veangance Revelaitons (Fanfic)|~~Naruto Veangance Revelaitons]], the author will sometimes put "(LOL)" or some other variant, sometimes with [[Don't Explain the Joke|an explanation of what the joke is]] after some parts he thinks are funny.

* In [[Naruto Veangance Revelaitons]], the author will sometimes put "(LOL)" or some other variant, sometimes with [[Don't Explain the Joke|an explanation of what the joke is]] after some parts he thinks are funny.

=== Film ===

* The DVD of ''[[Seltzer and Friedberg|Epic Movie]]'' actually comes with an optional laugh track.

** As does ''[[Seltzer and Friedberg|Date Movie]]'' -- It actually makes them [[So Bad It's Good|somewhat tolerable]], if only by virtue of being [[What Do You Mean It Wasn't Made On Drugs?|completely surreal.]]

** As does ''[[Seltzer and Friedberg|Date Movie]]'' -- It actually makes them [[So Bad It's Good|somewhat tolerable]], if only by virtue of being [[What Do You Mean It Wasn't Made on Drugs?|completely surreal.]]

* This is also mentioned in the [[Andy Kaufman]] [[Biopic]] ''[[Man On the Moon]]'', when Andy explains why he is not interested in doing a [[Taxi|sitcom]]: "It's just stupid jokes and canned laughter! And you don't know why it's there, but it's there! And it's dead people laughing, did you know that? Those people are dead!" (Interestingly, this rant may have been [[Throw It In|improvised]] by [[Jim Carrey]] since only the first line appeared in the script.)

* This is also mentioned in the [[Andy Kaufman]] [[Biopic]] ''[[Man on the Moon]]'', when Andy explains why he is not interested in doing a [[Taxi|sitcom]]: "It's just stupid jokes and canned laughter! And you don't know why it's there, but it's there! And it's dead people laughing, did you know that? Those people are dead!" (Interestingly, this rant may have been [[Throw It In|improvised]] by [[Jim Carrey]] since only the first line appeared in the script.)

* Used in a segment of the film ''[[Natural Born Killers]]''.

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=== Live Action TV ===

* The first laugh track was used in 1950 on NBC's ''[[The Hank Mc Cune Show]]''.

* ''[[~~Gilligans~~ Island]]'' and ''[[The Brady Bunch]]'' are two good examples of the height of laugh track abuse from the 1960s and early 1970s.

* ''[[Gilligan's Island]]'' and ''[[The Brady Bunch]]'' are two good examples of the height of laugh track abuse from the 1960s and early 1970s.

* The ''[[Twilight Zone]]'' episode "Cavender Is Coming", guest-starring Carol Burnett, featured a laugh track (as it was a pilot for a sitcom). The director was so offended by this that he refused to be in the studio when the laugh track man was present.

* In the 1980s, there was a situation comedy series written and produced by [[Mel Brooks]] (yes, ''that'' Mel Brooks) called ''The Nutt House'' (which was [[Too Good to Last]]). [[Executive Meddling]] resulted in laugh tracks, because the executives felt that [[Viewers are Morons]]. The result was loud, jarring, clumsily dubbed-in laughtracks that often drowned out the punchlines.

* ''[[~~Get Smart (TV)|~~Get Smart]]'', another series with which Brooks was involved, had some especially bad laugh tracks. (Mind you, some of its jokes weren't much to laugh about anyway.)

* ''[[Get Smart]]'', another series with which Brooks was involved, had some especially bad laugh tracks. (Mind you, some of its jokes weren't much to laugh about anyway.)

* See also ''[[I ~~Dreamof~~ Jeannie]]'', ''[[~~Bewitched (TV)|~~Bewitched]]'' and other contemporaneous [[~~Sit Com~~|sitcoms]].

* See also ''[[I Dream of Jeannie]]'', ''[[Bewitched]]'' and other contemporaneous [[Sitcom|sitcoms]].

** Although the Latin American dub mercifully removed it from both shows.

* [[Aaron Sorkin]] used to engage in knock down, drag out fights with ABC execs over the laugh track in''[[Sports Night]].'' He hated it, they demanded it, and for a brief period at the beginning of the show's run there was a laugh track. Sorkin eventually won out.

* The 1980s comedy ''[[Sledge Hammer]]'' had its first-season, early-episodes laugh track edited out for the DVD release. The director's commentary explains that the talking heads at the studio forced the laugh track on him because they felt the show was too violent without it.

* ''[[Little Britain]]''.

* Possibly lampshaded in the "webcast" parts of ''[[~~I Carly~~]]'' (as in, the bits where we're watching the [[Show Within a Show]]) with Sam's remote. Usually [[Once an Episode]], she'll hold it up and press a button, which cues the laughter. It's played straight in the show proper, though.

* Possibly lampshaded in the "webcast" parts of ''[[ICarly]]'' (as in, the bits where we're watching the [[Show Within a Show]]) with Sam's remote. Usually [[Once an Episode]], she'll hold it up and press a button, which cues the laughter. It's played straight in the show proper, though.

* ''[[True Jackson ~~(TV)~~|True Jackson]]'' begins each episode with a narration by Keke Palmer telling us that the show was filmed in front of a live studio audience, but if you listen closely, you can still hear the same stock laughs heard in the rest of the Nickelodeon/Disney Channel [[Kid Com|Kid Coms]]. Filmed before a studio audience it may be, but laugh tracks still came into play ''some''where.

* ''[[True Jackson, VP|True Jackson]]'' begins each episode with a narration by Keke Palmer telling us that the show was filmed in front of a live studio audience, but if you listen closely, you can still hear the same stock laughs heard in the rest of the Nickelodeon/Disney Channel [[Kid Com|Kid Coms]]. Filmed before a studio audience it may be, but laugh tracks still came into play ''some''where.

* Similar to the ''[[Out of Jimmys Head]]'' example below, the laugh track in their ''Brian O'Brian'' shorts actually make them ''less'' funny; it's a pretty poor fit for the shorts' style.

* ''[[That's So Raven]]'' and ''[[Wizards of Waverly Place]]'' are also glaringly obvious because the shows are filled with special effects that could not possibly have been shown to any live audience. It's pretty bad when even the nine year old wonders how the hell the audience could react on the spot to Raven having her visions or when Alex gave one of her spells.

** According to the site audiencesunlimited.com, ''Wizards of Waverly Place'' '''does''' use a live audience. The special effects scenes may be pre-taped and shown to the audience.

** Oddly, these shows and pretty much every [[Disney Channel]] show was [[Follow the Leader|inspired by]] ''[[Lizzie ~~Mcguire~~]]'', which did not have a laugh track.

** Oddly, these shows and pretty much every [[Disney Channel]] show was [[Follow the Leader|inspired by]] ''[[Lizzie McGuire]]'', which did not have a laugh track.

* The laughter in the standup scenes in ''[[Seinfeld]]'' sounds rather jarringly fake compared to the audience response in the rest of the show, presumably because they got a handful of actors in to play the standup patrons.

** Could also be that it was the "warm-up" to the show, shown before the start.

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** The Italian dub edited them out.

* Infamously (at least in Canada), the Canadian sketch comedy show ''[[The Red Green Show]]'' didn't have a [[Laugh Track]]... until it was imported into the United States.

* Referenced in ''[[~~Annie Hall (Film)|~~Annie Hall]]'':

* Referenced in ''[[Annie Hall]]'':

{{quote| "We do the show live in front of an audience."

"Great, but nobody laughs at it 'cause your jokes aren't funny."

"Yeah, well, that's why this machine is dynamite." }}

* In the 1970s, the British pop music show ''Top of the Pops'' used a bizarrely fake-sounding applause track after each performance.

* ''[[~~M*A*S*H (TV)|~~M*A*S*H]]'' had one at the network's insistence, but the producers successfully averted it in the OR scenes, and were able to dispense with it entirely for certain later episodes. (The DVD releases of the show provide an option for the viewer to disable the laugh track on the episodes that have it; [[Your Mileage May Vary|YMMV]] on whether or not doing so improves the show.)

* ''[[M*A*S*H]]'' had one at the network's insistence, but the producers successfully averted it in the OR scenes, and were able to dispense with it entirely for certain later episodes. (The DVD releases of the show provide an option for the viewer to disable the laugh track on the episodes that have it; [[Your Mileage May Vary|YMMV]] on whether or not doing so improves the show.)

* Two Garry Marshall-produced sitcoms (''[[The Odd Couple]]'' and ''[[Happy Days]]'') had laugh tracks in their inaugural seasons, before shifting to a live [[Studio Audience]].

* The live-action segments of the ''[[Super Mario Brothers Super Show]]'', which leads to a humourous [[Mondegreen]] when the laugh track obscures something Mario [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogtjjQ6070U says].

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*** The early ''[[Scooby Doo]]'' series from CBS had laugh tracks [[Edited for Syndication|added for syndication]].

*** The laugh tracks in the first seasons of ''Scooby Doo, Where Are You!'' were there from the get-go. Subsequent shows had the laugh track when first broadcast but the laughs were inconspicuously absent when prepared for syndication.

*** All H-B's prime time animated comedies in the 60s had laugh tracks. Their Saturday morning shows, save for ''Scooby Doo, Where Are You!,'' didn't. The only 1970s series that didn't have laugh tracks were those animated in Australia, the odd drama shows (''Sealab 2020, Devlin'') and their [[~~Tom and Jerry (Animation)|~~Tom and Jerry]] 1975 retool. The laugh track was abandoned in 1980.

*** All H-B's prime time animated comedies in the 60s had laugh tracks. Their Saturday morning shows, save for ''Scooby Doo, Where Are You!,'' didn't. The only 1970s series that didn't have laugh tracks were those animated in Australia, the odd drama shows (''Sealab 2020, Devlin'') and their [[Tom and Jerry]] 1975 retool. The laugh track was abandoned in 1980.

* ''Any'' recent live-action "cartoon" produced by [[Nickelodeon]] or the [[Disney Channel]] (but see Exceptions below) is rife full of this - most of them even use the same laugh track.

** For recent Nickelodeon shows, the 6.8 or 6.2 audio subcarrier sometimes carried a music+sound effect track, with no speech. Handy for catching an instrumental version of the ''[[Danny Phantom]]'' theme, but the live action shows are distinctly disturbing: The show is silent save for gales of repetitive and inappropriate laughter punctuated by the occasional machine noise or dog bark.

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== Parodies ==

=== Anime and Manga ===

* One episode of ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh ~~the~~ Abridged Series]]'' has Tea say that she will prove that women can be equal to men. A laugh track suddenly pops up.

* One episode of ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!: The Abridged Series]]'' has Tea say that she will prove that women can be equal to men. A laugh track suddenly pops up.

** [[Show Within a Show|Zorc & Pals]] also uses it. Appropriate since it's a parody of 50s sitcoms.

* Also appears in ''[[Dragon Ball Abridged]]'' when Vegeta makes an [[Incredibly Lame Pun]].

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* ''[[Monty Python's Flying Circus]]'', which never actually used a proper laugh track (though it was shot in front of a studio audience), featured a few sketches in which canned laughter and applause tracks were triggered by one of the characters -- including the "[[Attila the Hun]] Show" (which parodied American sitcoms) and the "Interesting People" sketch, in which Michael Palin can be seen reaching off camera to turn the applause on and off.

** Taken a step further in their running gag of using obvious black-and-white stock footage of applauding audiences throughout the series.

* Referenced in the ''[[Star Trek ~~the~~ Original Series]]'' episode ''[[Bread and Circuses]]'', where we see a 20th century TV technician turning the canned applause on and off on a programme. Fine, except it's a 20th century ''Roman Empire'' and the programme consists of televised gladatorial fights to the death.

* Referenced in the ''[[Star Trek: The Original Series]]'' episode ''[[Bread and Circuses]]'', where we see a 20th century TV technician turning the canned applause on and off on a programme. Fine, except it's a 20th century ''Roman Empire'' and the programme consists of televised gladatorial fights to the death.

* [[TV Funhouse]] (as [[Spin-Off|its on show]] and on [[Saturday Night Live]] uses parody laugh-tracks, especially for their send-ups of Saturday morning cartoons of the seventies. Their [[Harlem Globetrotters]] parody includes the same staccato baritone "Heh-heh-heh-heh" after every line.

* An episode of ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' shows Servo using a laugh track every time Crow utters his newly adopted "[[~~Sit Com~~]]" [[Catch Phrase]] "You Know You Want Me Baby!" The really old cassette player Servo is using ultimately eats the laugh track.

* An episode of ''[[Mystery Science Theater 3000]]'' shows Servo using a laugh track every time Crow utters his newly adopted "[[Sitcom]]" [[Catch Phrase]] "You Know You Want Me Baby!" The really old cassette player Servo is using ultimately eats the laugh track.

* A certain single-episode show summed up its content by taking the name ''[[Canned Laughter]]''. While the end credits rolled, the same quick laugh track was played over... and over... and over...

* Done during the sitcom segment of the ''Changing Channels'' 5th-season episode of ''[[Supernatural]]''. Of course that episode was a [[Affectionate Parody|riff]] on TV in general...

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'''Dean:''' ''How is that funny''? Vultures! }}

* A [[French And Saunders]] sketch (featuring Dame Helen Mirren and Julia Sawalha) parodying sitcoms had the incessant laugh track constantly interrupting the already terrible punchlines, ruining the timing of the actors by cutting them off when they were speaking, making the whole thing [[So Unfunny It's Funny]], until they got annoyed and basically walked off the sketch.

* In an episode of ''[[30 Rock ~~(TV)~~|Thirty Rock]]'', Tracy Jordan is having a drug induced hallucination which gives him an epiphany moment which gets interrupted by a laugh track, he becomes quite annoyed by them mocking him.

* In an episode of ''[[30 Rock|Thirty Rock]]'', Tracy Jordan is having a drug induced hallucination which gives him an epiphany moment which gets interrupted by a laugh track, he becomes quite annoyed by them mocking him.

* In the Pierce Brosnan episode of ''[[Muppets Tonight]]'', a particularly bad pun from Rizzo provokes no reaction whatsoever, causing Clifford to remark that "Even the laugh track didn't think that was funny."

* Used for the imaginary [[Show Within a Show]] ''Pyro and the Idiot'' in the ''[[~~Corner Gas (TV)|~~Corner Gas]]'' episode "Self-Serving."

* Used for the imaginary [[Show Within a Show]] ''Pyro and the Idiot'' in the ''[[Corner Gas]]'' episode "Self-Serving."

* The short-lived [[Comedy Central]] sitcom ''Big Lake'' featured a laugh track, but its presence was for ironic and sarcastic purposes - the stuff that it triggered on were often [[Cringe Comedy|very uncomfortable]] or [[Black Comedy|dark]] situations - essentially mocking the laugh track by using it incorrectly.

* In the early local episodes of ''You Can't Do That On Television'', Christine says the show has no laugh track because it's both the right thing to do and they can't afford (although they added it in when they went to Nickelodeon). Then they show a clip from the local farm report with a laugh track added in.

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=== Music ===

* Sent up in [[Weird Al Yankovic|Weird Al's]] song, "Ricky," which parodies ''[[I Love Lucy]]'' (to the tune of Toni Basil's "Mickey"):

* Sent up in [["Weird Al" Yankovic|Weird Al's]] song, "Ricky," which parodies ''[[I Love Lucy]]'' (to the tune of Toni Basil's "Mickey"):

{{quote| ''Oh Ricky, what a pity, don't you understand,

that [[Lampshade Hanging|every day's a rerun and the laughter's always canned!]]" }}

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* Used in [[The Nostalgia Chick]]'s review of ''[[Grease]]'' after Sandy says that she now knows that Danny truly respects her.

* In ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-HTqbxYsYwc The Dr. Steel Show, Episode 1]'', [[Doctor Steel]] enters his lab at the beginning of the show to wild applause, which he reacts humbly to... then [[Lampshade Hanging|reaches over and turns a dial which turns off the applause track]].

* [[The Cinema Snob ~~(Web Video)~~|Brad Jones]] uses this in his ''[[~~Eighties Dan (Web Video)|~~Eighties Dan]]'' web series, which is a parody of 80s era sitcoms. He lampshades it in his ''[[Cannibal Holocaust]]'' review as The Cinema Snob.

* [[The Cinema Snob|Brad Jones]] uses this in his ''[[Eighties Dan]]'' web series, which is a parody of 80s era sitcoms. He lampshades it in his ''[[Cannibal Holocaust]]'' review as The Cinema Snob.

{{quote| '''The Cinema Snob:''' Careful with that laugh track; we need it for the next "80s Dan"!}}

* See ''[[Star Trek ~~the~~ Next Generation]]'' turned into [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CrjYpX5M3o "a crappy 80's sitcom with a few sound effects"].

* See ''[[Star Trek: The Next Generation]]'' turned into [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CrjYpX5M3o "a crappy 80's sitcom with a few sound effects"].

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=== Western Animation ===

* In the ''[[~~Aqua Teen Hunger Force (Animation)|~~Aqua Teen Hunger Force]]'' episode "The Cloning", a possessed television used inappropriate laugh tracks in its efforts to scare the people watching.

* In the ''[[Aqua Teen Hunger Force]]'' episode "The Cloning", a possessed television used inappropriate laugh tracks in its efforts to scare the people watching.

* As part of her obsession with regaining her former sitcom fame, Baby Doll from ''[[Batman: The Animated Series ~~(Animation)~~|Batman the Animated Series]]'' carries a laugh track on tape with her everywhere and plays it at moments she thinks are appropriate (along with "Ohhhh..." and "Awww...").

* As part of her obsession with regaining her former sitcom fame, Baby Doll from ''[[Batman: The Animated Series|Batman the Animated Series]]'' carries a laugh track on tape with her everywhere and plays it at moments she thinks are appropriate (along with "Ohhhh..." and "Awww...").

** From the same series, there's ''Christmas with the Joker,'' where he uses a laugh track in grossly inappropriate fashion while discussing violence/terrorism. It's possibly a secondary [[Lampshade Hanging]] that the "audience" he's using is revealed to be cardboard cutouts.

* ''[[The Simpsons]]'' played with this a couple times, as in the "Love-Matic Grandpa" portion of the spinoff episode.

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* In the ''[[South Park]]'' episode "Jakovasaur", the household of the Jakovasaurs is presented as a typical [[Dom Com]], complete with laugh track. When Cartman comes to visit, he wonders [[Lampshade Hanging|where all the laughter is coming from]].

* ''[[The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy]]'': Billy wishes for the perfect dog, but he doesn't know which of the four dogs he should take home. He then convinces Grim to use the magic of his scythe to combine all four dogs into one single perfect dog named Wiggy Jiggy Jed. The dog (who is a parody on Hanna-Barbera characters like Yogi Bear) in question makes quirky jokes that are immedietely met by a disembodied laughing. The cast take note of it right away - Mandy: "Where is that creepy laughter coming from?"

* The ''Justice Friends'' segment of ''[[~~Dexters Laboratory|~~Dexter's Laboratory]]'' uses laugh tracks in parody of live-action sitcoms (of which it borrows a format).

* The ''Justice Friends'' segment of ''[[Dexter's Laboratory]]'' uses laugh tracks in parody of live-action sitcoms (of which it borrows a format).

* One episode of ''[[Rocko's Modern Life]]'' featured two parasite characters living on Spunky, whose adventures were spoofs of typical '60s sitcoms. The scenes with them have laugh tracks, which the rest of the show lacks.

** The [[Show Within a Show]] ''The Fatheads'' also had a laugh track, with the characters mugging for the camera whenever it played.

* An episode of ''[[Chowder]]'' featured some jokes uncharacteristically followed by a laugh track, until Mung finally orders a stop to "the canned laughter." This being "Chowder", it was quite [[Exactly What It Says On the Tin|literal]].

* An episode of ''[[Chowder]]'' featured some jokes uncharacteristically followed by a laugh track, until Mung finally orders a stop to "the canned laughter." This being "Chowder", it was quite [[Exactly What It Says on the Tin|literal]].

* In an episode of ''[[Futurama]]'', the president of the network which airs "All My Circuits" proves how evil he is by saying, "I once put a laugh track on a sitcom that had no jokes in it!"

** In "A Bicyclops Built for Two", Katie Sagal's role on ''[[Married ~~With~~ Children]]'' is parodied when an alien, Alcazar, has Leela dressed like Peggy and Alkazar sitting on his couch with one hand down his trousers ala Al Bundy, with alien rats and pigs as friends of his who contribute the 'live audience' catcalls and whoops.

** In "A Bicyclops Built for Two", Katie Sagal's role on ''[[Married... with Children]]'' is parodied when an alien, Alcazar, has Leela dressed like Peggy and Alkazar sitting on his couch with one hand down his trousers ala Al Bundy, with alien rats and pigs as friends of his who contribute the 'live audience' catcalls and whoops.

* Parodied in one episode of ''[[Danger Mouse]]'' where the title character says "I thought we weren't going to have canned laughter on this show" after a villain laughs and runs off.

* A ''[[Venture Brothers]]'' episode ran flashbacks of Rusty and Pete's college days with a laugh track added to evoke an '80s sitcom.

* ''[[101 Dalmatians ~~(Disney)~~|One Hundred and One Dalmatians]]: The Series'' didn't normally use a laugh track, but included a brief snippet of a laugh track following one of the jokes in "You Slipped a Disk" as well as the second half of the episode, "Chow About That?," apparently as throwaway gags.

* ''[[101 Dalmatians|One Hundred and One Dalmatians]]: The Series'' didn't normally use a laugh track, but included a brief snippet of a laugh track following one of the jokes in "You Slipped a Disk" as well as the second half of the episode, "Chow About That?," apparently as throwaway gags.

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=== Live Action TV ===

* ''[[Scrubs]]'' is a notable exception, all the funnier for a lack of a laugh track in almost every episode (there is one exception in the [[Imagine Spot]] episode which parodies the traditional [[~~Sit Com~~]]) -- the lack of a laugh track allows for innovative use of [[Sound Effects]] instead.

* ''[[Scrubs]]'' is a notable exception, all the funnier for a lack of a laugh track in almost every episode (there is one exception in the [[Imagine Spot]] episode which parodies the traditional [[Sitcom]]) -- the lack of a laugh track allows for innovative use of [[Sound Effects]] instead.

** NBC actually advertised its Thursday night comedy block (which Scrubs [[Channel Hop|was]] a part of) as being completely laugh track free.

* ''[[Police Squad!]]'' was one of the first sitcoms to have neither a laugh track nor a live studio audience.

* A couple of sitcoms made by the Disney Channel actually have ''not'' used a laugh track -- ''[[Lizzie ~~Mcguire~~]]'', ''Even Stevens'', and ''Jonas''. ''Naturally Sadie'', ''Phil of the Future'', and ''Life with Derek'', all of which have been aired on the channel, also do not have a soundtrack.

* A couple of sitcoms made by the Disney Channel actually have ''not'' used a laugh track -- ''[[Lizzie McGuire]]'', ''Even Stevens'', and ''Jonas''. ''Naturally Sadie'', ''Phil of the Future'', and ''Life with Derek'', all of which have been aired on the channel, also do not have a soundtrack.

* The Canadian sitcoms ''[[~~Corner Gas (TV)|~~Corner Gas]],'' ''[[Little Mosque ~~On the Prairie (TV)|Little Mosque On~~ the Prairie]],'' ''[[Made in Canada]]'' and ''[[~~Robson Arms (TV)|~~Robson Arms]]'' avoid [[Laugh Tracks]].

* The Canadian sitcoms ''[[Corner Gas]],'' ''[[Little Mosque on the Prairie]],'' ''[[Made in Canada]]'' and ''[[Robson Arms]]'' avoid [[Laugh Tracks]].

* ''[[The Monkees]]'' got rid of their laugh track in the middle of their second (and final) season, and the non-laugh track episodes have such a different feel it almost seems like they're part of an entirely different show.

* ''[[The Kenny Everett Video Show]]'' on ITV in the late 70s was unique in that there was no studio audience, but the viewer could clearly hear the cameramen, floor manager, writers and other studio crew laughing out loud off screen.

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* Same deal with the ''[[Wizards of Waverly Place]]'' movie.

* ''[[Dinosaurs]]'' initially had this, but the makers didn't want it and it was subsequently dropped. Combined with ''[[The Simpsons]]'' never using one except to subvert it, ''TV Guide'' praised both shows back in the day (the early 1990s) for this avoidance.

* ''[[~~Red Dwarf (TV)|~~Red Dwarf]]'', which was considered by a lot of fans to have a laugh track, was in fact filmed in front of a live studio audience throughout most of its eight-series run, at least the bits that weren't on location or technically complicated.

* ''[[Red Dwarf]]'', which was considered by a lot of fans to have a laugh track, was in fact filmed in front of a live studio audience throughout most of its eight-series run, at least the bits that weren't on location or technically complicated.

** The exception is Series VII. It was not recorded in front of an audience at all, but was screened to an audience in post-production in order to provide a laugh track -- it mostly works, but there are a couple of conspicuous points where the actors pause for laughter and there is none.

** The channel ''Back to Earth'' easter special is filmed on location (or at the Shepperton soundstage), which has no laughter.

*** The pre-recording of ''Red Dwarf'' sequences played back to the audience on screens didn't begin with series VII, though. Long before then, numerous episodes had had lengthy sequences pre-recorded due to their reliance on location shooting or effects work. For example, the series IV episode "Bodyswap" was entirely pre-recorded, due to the actors having to overdub each other's voices.

*** During "Bodyswap", you can hear ''the cast of the show'' on the laugh track. (They were sitting in the audience during the laughter recording.)

* ''[[~~Married With Children|~~Married... ~~With~~ Children]]'' is one of those cases where people bitch and moan about the "laugh track"... and are totally ignoring the fact the series was taped in front of a live audience. Live audiences can provide situation-specific reactions that would be difficult to get from a can; in one episode, a tarantula crawls across Al's face while he sleeps, and as the audience's "Eeeew!" dies down, one voice rises above the crowd to ask, "Is it real?"

* ''[[Married... with Children]]'' is one of those cases where people bitch and moan about the "laugh track"... and are totally ignoring the fact the series was taped in front of a live audience. Live audiences can provide situation-specific reactions that would be difficult to get from a can; in one episode, a tarantula crawls across Al's face while he sleeps, and as the audience's "Eeeew!" dies down, one voice rises above the crowd to ask, "Is it real?"

* Another more recent series plagued by this is ''[[The IT Crowd]]''.

** Also recorded before a live studio audience.

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* ''[[Delta House]]'', a sitcom version of the surprise hit movie ''[[Animal House]]'', went beyond canned laughter to canned wolf whistles, canned villain-booing, etc. in a vain attempt to capture the feel of the movie.

* The current trend of [[Mockumentary]] style sitcoms like ''[[The Office]]'' and ''[[Parks and Recreation]]'' has dealt another blow to the laugh track. Obviously, shows like these ''can't'' use laugh tracks, since that would destroy the illusion that the shows consist of documentary footage. This type of series doesn't use music (except in the opening credits) for the same reason.

* ''[[Glenn Martin DDS]]'', a ''stop-motion'' show, had a laugh track for about 8 episodes until it was removed entirely because the creators claim "it gave the show too much internal thinking".

* ''[[Glenn Martin, DDS]]'', a ''stop-motion'' show, had a laugh track for about 8 episodes until it was removed entirely because the creators claim "it gave the show too much internal thinking".

* Some Nick shows have no laugh track, such as ''[[Zoey 101]]'', ''[[~~Big Time Rush (TV)|~~Big Time Rush]]'' and ''The Troop'', which are somewhat unusual for the channel but are all [[Justified Trope|justified]] by ''not'' being typical [[Three Cameras]] [[Kid Com]] shows ''and'' being shot extensively on location. It also helps than [[Zoey 101]] is a dramedy and [[The Troop]] is an action/adventure show.

* Some Nick shows have no laugh track, such as ''[[Zoey 101]]'', ''[[Big Time Rush]]'' and ''The Troop'', which are somewhat unusual for the channel but are all [[Justified Trope|justified]] by ''not'' being typical [[Three Cameras]] [[Kid Com]] shows ''and'' being shot extensively on location. It also helps than [[Zoey 101]] is a dramedy and [[The Troop]] is an action/adventure show.

** Same goes for some Disney Channel Shows, such as the channel's earliest shows, the show ''[[Lizzie ~~Mcguire~~]]'' and more recently ''Jonas L.A.'' which was shot on location in (you guessed it!) L.A. Jonas L.A. also was Disney Channel's first show with a continuing story in each episode. It too was a drama, so no need for laugh track. It should've lasted longer in my opinion.

** Same goes for some Disney Channel Shows, such as the channel's earliest shows, the show ''[[Lizzie McGuire]]'' and more recently ''Jonas L.A.'' which was shot on location in (you guessed it!) L.A. Jonas L.A. also was Disney Channel's first show with a continuing story in each episode. It too was a drama, so no need for laugh track. It should've lasted longer in my opinion.

* It seems Chuck Lorre got so tired of people thinking ''[[The Big Bang Theory]]'' used a laugh track that he put [http://www.chucklorre.com/index-bbt.php?p=282 this] at the end of an episode.

** The show does frequently set certain locales and scenes that would be difficult to do with a studio audience, but they've said that those scenes are still shown to an audience (recording their reactions) to keep the laugh track consistent. Because of the use of the studio audience (apparently often composed of Caltech students, where the characters in the show work) you will get people who laugh at the [[Genius Bonus|obscure jokes]] and [[Techno Babble]] gags ''before'' they are explained.

** People may think it has a laugh track because the laughter sometimes seems very forced and extremely noticeable, or laughing when nobody has said anything.

* ''[[Malcolm in ~~The~~ Middle]]'' doesn't use a laughtrack either.

* ''[[Malcolm in the Middle]]'' doesn't use a laughtrack either.

** ''[[Malcolm in ~~The~~ Middle]]'''s ultimate legacy is that, along with the British sitcom ''[[Spaced]]'', its considered to be the [[Trope Codifier]] of the single camera, laugh track free sitcom. Since ''Malcolm'' premiered, it's become popular for high-quality, single-camera sitcoms like ''[[Curb Your Enthusiasm]]'', ''[[The Office]]'', ''[[~~30 Rock (TV)|~~30 Rock]]'', ''[[~~Community (TV)|~~Community]]'', ''[[Peep Show]]'', ''[[The Inbetweeners]]'', ''[[~~Its~~ Always Sunny in Philadelphia]]'', ''[[Arrested Development (TV)|Arrested Development]]'' and ''[[Flight of the Conchords]]'' (among others) to eschew laugh tracks entirely. Coincidentally (or rather not) these shows are usually some of the most acclaimed comedies on television.

** ''[[Malcolm in the Middle]]'''s ultimate legacy is that, along with the British sitcom ''[[Spaced]]'', its considered to be the [[Trope Codifier]] of the single camera, laugh track free sitcom. Since ''Malcolm'' premiered, it's become popular for high-quality, single-camera sitcoms like ''[[Curb Your Enthusiasm]]'', ''[[The Office]]'', ''[[30 Rock]]'', ''[[Community]]'', ''[[Peep Show]]'', ''[[The Inbetweeners]]'', ''[[It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia]]'', ''[[Arrested Development (TV series)|Arrested Development]]'' and ''[[Flight of the Conchords]]'' (among others) to eschew laugh tracks entirely. Coincidentally (or rather not) these shows are usually some of the most acclaimed comedies on television.

* Oddly enough, ''[[The Mighty Boosh]]'' was supposed to have a laugh track in its early stage of production, as we can see with the pilot episode (it's included in the DVDs). They actually showed the episode in front of an audience and recorded their laughter. Julian Barratt and [[Noel Fielding]] found the audience overdid it so much that they decided not to keep it. It sounds disastrous indeed, as The Boosh is clearly not a "laugh out loud" type of comedy.

* ''[[All in The Family]]'' was recorded in front of a live studio audience, as announced at the end of nearly each episode. In the later seasons they stopped using live audiences, presumably because they were distractions to the actors; they played back each episode to the audience instead.

** However later seasons, as well as the [[After Show]] ''[[Archie ~~Bunkers~~ Place]]'', used a laughtrack reportedly at Carol O Conner's insistance.

** However later seasons, as well as the [[After Show]] ''[[Archie Bunker's Place]]'', used a laughtrack reportedly at Carol O Conner's insistance.

* Latin American hits, ''[[El Chavo Del Ocho]]'' / ''[[El Chapulin Colorado]]''. It is a long story. These shows were originally abusive of the laugh tracks, but the later sketch show ''Chespirito'' from the same author that often included ''[[El Chavo Del Ocho]]'' and ''[[El Chapulin Colorado]]'' did not have a laugh track and it was explicitly mentioned that it was for respect of the audience. However, it is worth noticing that it actually used certain music tracks that played after each joke.

* ''[[Home Improvement]]'' not only used a live studio audience's laughter, but they also got their extras from audience volunteers. For "[[Show Within a Show|Tool Time]]" the studio audience was the ''actual'' studio audience, and you can see how people are laughing at the gags on the show as though they were at a sitcom taping.

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* Fox's ''[[Titus]]'' also used a live studio audience; episode tapings were performed as if the episode was live, with the show unfolding in the exact manner it would appear on TV (with the cast rehearsing the episode all week for the Friday taping) and capturing the studio audience's laughter as it happened. Even the cutaways towards Chris Titus' narration space were shown to the audience during the moments in the episodes they would occur.

* [[Bill Cosby]]'s first sitcom, the 1969-71 series ''[[The Bill Cosby Show]]'', aired without a laugh track at Cosby's insistence (and over the objections of [[Executive Meddling|NBC executives]]).

* ''[[Saved By the Bell]]'' had a live studio audience - and, like the audience from ''[[Married ~~With~~ Children]]'', it was ''very'' in-your-face and obnoxious. However, predecessor series ''[[Good Morning Miss Bliss]]'' used a conventional laugh track; and since the two shows are part of the same syndication package, it makes for a good education as to the differences between the two.

* ''[[Saved by the Bell]]'' had a live studio audience - and, like the audience from ''[[Married... with Children]]'', it was ''very'' in-your-face and obnoxious. However, predecessor series ''[[Good Morning Miss Bliss]]'' used a conventional laugh track; and since the two shows are part of the same syndication package, it makes for a good education as to the differences between the two.