laugh track
Prerecorded audience guffaws
A laugh track is prerecorded laughter added to a comedy program's audio, cueing viewers when something is supposed to be funny.
The technique dates to early radio and became standard in television sitcoms.
The jokes weren't landing, but the laugh track kept going.
Shows without laugh tracks are often described as more sophisticated or realistic.
Sealed for preservation
- pre-recordedCaptured beforehand for playback
- syntheticProduced artificially, not natural
- simulatedMade to imitate reality
- manufacturedMade by machinery
engineered · fabricated · inauthentic · phony · ersatz · contrived · forced · mechanical
Episodic TV comedy series
- televisionBroadcast viewing device
- studioCreative professional's workspace
- soundtrackMusic accompanying visual media
- backgroundOne's formative experiences
recording · episode · scene · timing · edit · post-production · mixing · dubbing
Amusing quality
- punchlineHumor's final delivery
- gagMouth restraint or jest
- jokeHumorous statement seeking laughter
- slapstickExaggerated physical humor
timing · setup · payoff · zinger · one-liner · shtick · callback · running gag
Answer to stimulus
- reactionResponse to stimulus
- applauseCollective hand-clapping approval
- liveTo exist or dwell
- studio audienceViewers present during recording
participation · engagement · warmup · cue · prompt · signal · sweetened · enhanced
Fifties domestic comedy series
- 1950sDecade after WWII
- golden agePeriod of peak prosperity
- vaudevilleTheatrical variety entertainment
- variety showProgram mixing different performances
canned
Sealed for preservation
- pre-recordedCaptured beforehand for playback
- syntheticProduced artificially, not natural
- simulatedMade to imitate reality
manufactured · engineered · fabricated · inauthentic · phony · ersatz · contrived · forced · mechanical · sweetening
sitcom
Episodic TV comedy series
- televisionBroadcast viewing device
- studioCreative professional's workspace
- soundtrackMusic accompanying visual media
background · recording · episode · scene · timing · edit · post-production · mixing · dubbing · syndication
humor
Amusing quality
slapstick · timing · setup · payoff · zinger · one-liner · shtick · callback · running gag · sight gag
response
Answer to stimulus
studio audience · participation · engagement · warmup · cue · prompt · signal · sweetened · enhanced · boosted
I Love Lucy
Fifties domestic comedy series
- 1950sDecade after WWII
- golden agePeriod of peak prosperity
- vaudevilleTheatrical variety entertainment
guffaw
Boisterous burst of mirth
chortle · titter · howl · roar · cackle · ha-ha · hee-haw · snort · burst · peal
- comedy termsjokes, puns, wit, sarcasm, irony
- televisionTV, television, broadcast, TV shows, TV series
- TV showsTV shows, sitcom, The Office, cartoon, Modern Family
- Television Historygolden age, broadcast networks, network television, color TV, live broadcasts
- sitcomssitcom, sitcoms, episode, episodic, season
- sound effectssound effects, sound effect, ringtone, boing, crash