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Questions tagged [sitcoms]

Sitcoms, short for situational comedies, are a genre of TV show in which the character(s) are placed in a set of circumstances (being stuck in an elevator, missing a work deadline, babysitting an obnoxious child) and the humor is derived from their failure or success. This tag is to be used for questions pertaining to the topic of sitcoms in general, not for questions about individual sitcoms.

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6 votes
1 answer
834 views

Who did the animation for the season 1 intros of Caroline in the City?

The first ten or twelve episodes of the sitcom Caroline in the City began with brief animations of the cartoon drawn by the titular Caroline - does anyone know who drew/animated these shorts?
king of panes's user avatar
6 votes
2 answers
526 views

What's the earliest surviving TV sitcom? Key word is "surviving"

I know Mary Kay and Johnny is the first TV sitcom, but I heard none of the episodes survived except maybe one episode from June 1949 that got archived by the Paley Center for Media, but I don't think ...
RKV's user avatar
  • 127
1 vote
3 answers
690 views

Did I Love Lucy and perhaps none of the 1950s or 1960s sitcoms never mention the current year?

I have watched literally every I Love Lucy and I think I can probably say the same thing about several other old shows. I can say that while I recall explicit mention of the year in which a Twilight ...
releseabe's user avatar
  • 3,755
1 vote
0 answers
367 views

How old is Alan Partridge meant to be?

Across the many series that the character of Alan Partridge has featured (from The Day Today, through I'm Alan Partridge and to the current iteration in This Time), one thing that's puzzled me is how ...
Tom Harvey's user avatar
39 votes
11 answers
14k views

How do live studio audiences work when sitcoms can have multiple takes?

When a comedy is filmed in front of a studio audience, the audience laughs at each joke and that laughter is included in the finished episode. But presumably there would be many scenes with multiple ...
komodosp's user avatar
  • 5,339
5 votes
1 answer
1k views

Between Frasier and Niles who can actually afford their lifestyle and dwelling?

So after doing a little digging and taking a look at the possible earnings for both Frasier and Niles I'm still not sure as to who can actually afford the standard of living shown in the show. Frasier ...
JMERICKS's user avatar
  • 307
1 vote
0 answers
145 views

What happened to Sandy from Season 3 Christmas episode?

Sandy was the cook teacher who was dating Alan and started living with him. Her food led to both Charlie and Alan to gain pot bellies. I do not remember the episode number but it was themed around ...
asprin's user avatar
  • 521
3 votes
1 answer
335 views

On a multicam show, who has access to the full script?

On a scripted multicam show that is shot live, such as a sitcom, which members of the production typically have access to the full script? Obviously the writers do, since they created the script. And ...
Psychonaut's user avatar
  • 2,266
1 vote
2 answers
424 views

What's a "Diamond Lane"?

At 18.17, S4 E6, Larry says: I picked her (a prostitute) up so I can use the diamond lane so I can get the stadium in time for the game What does this mean? Why couldn't he have taken the ...
nz_21's user avatar
  • 121
4 votes
0 answers
416 views

Why didn't Gordon Shumway mind being called "ALF"?

Considering how acerbic and sarcastic he is, how come Gordon Shumway was so good-natured with the Tanners calling him "ALF"? If, say, a human went to the planet Melmac and had to hide out in a ...
onigame's user avatar
  • 456
12 votes
1 answer
7k views

What makes a comedy series a sitcom?

What exactly is a sitcom? In particular: what distinguishes sitcoms among the (presumably) broader category of comedy series? It's easy enough to give classical examples of sitcoms. They tend to have ...
Jakub Konieczny's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
2k views

What is the oldest adult animated sitcom? [closed]

What is the history of the genre? What is the chain of works of art, that led to the adult animated sitcoms like Rick and Morty, Beavis and Butt-Head, South Park, etc? Which one was the first? Edit ...
Dimitrius's user avatar
  • 121
5 votes
2 answers
2k views

Are shows with laugh tracks considered a lower form of comedy by the TV industry?

I personally don't like to watch shows with laugh tracks, but we do know that a crowd can be "warmed up" to laugh at almost anything, laughter is contagious, and people can thus enjoy the group ...
feetwet's user avatar
  • 2,354
11 votes
3 answers
2k views

Can a TV sitcom like TBBT be pulled off the air prematurely?

I'm curious as to whether a (once?) hugely popular and liked sitcom that is/was The Big Bang Theory be pulled off the air before its final season. The show's longevity was confirmed in March of last ...
Mari-Lou A's user avatar
  • 1,238
5 votes
1 answer
3k views

Why do sitcoms generally have A-B Story Structure?

Most sitcoms i've watched tend to follow a specific pattern in storytelling. There is a main story (A) involving the principle character(s) and a side story (B) which is interesting but generally ...
Paul's user avatar
  • 911
3 votes
1 answer
2k views

Why is lotion used as a metaphor for masturbation?

I've noticed a theme in sitcoms, more from the 80s/90s than now, that a bottle of hand lotion would be used a sign that a character has been masturbating. I don't get it. I imagine that lotion might ...
billpg's user avatar
  • 1,025
3 votes
2 answers
335 views

Upto what extent do foreign sitcoms/drama shows exhibits 'real culture' of those countries?

Looking at sitcoms like The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother and other ones, up-to what extent do they reflect the culture of America? Is it good to make a statement about other countries' ...
Rishi Prakash's user avatar
72 votes
6 answers
37k views

Why do British sitcoms have much fewer episodes than American ones?

Through Netflix & Amazon streaming, I have recently "discovered" a bunch of really good British sitcoms that I never knew existed. Although I think some of these comedies are as good or better ...
PaulStock's user avatar
  • 3,048
9 votes
1 answer
1k views

Nineties sitcom about small software company [closed]

I am trying to identify an old TV show with the following properties: Was broadcast in the early 1990s in South Africa, but the show likely came from the United States The main characters were a team ...
Judy's user avatar
  • 482