Americans and their lack of a sense of humour

[stephec]

Yes, a lot of US comedies are recorded in front of a live audience - and, point of professional technique here: when performing live you have to wait until the laughter has died down a bit before continuing, or you will not be heard. I've been on stage with experienced TV actors who either don't know this or have forgotten, and who kept effing up the laughs. What happens is, if the audience laughs but you carry on with your line, you train the audience to stop laughing (they want to hear the next line), which impacts on all the rest of the cast WHO KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING. (No names no packdrill.) To be fair it is quite a skill and one which is very well developed in US sitcom actors but it can slow down the action a bit. If you just imagine you are in a live audience it makes more sense.

Can those pauses not be edited out to make it look a bit more seamless?

 

[Ganymede]

Can those pauses not be edited out to make it look a bit more seamless?

No because you'd have to cut the laugh off as well. Then you'd have to edit the laughs and it would be more artificial. I have to say, I don't mind the waits for the laugh - it is exactly what would happen in a theatre after all. It's a genre - it's not like The Thick Of It, which is purely "for-TV", it's crafted to make the audience laugh and the audience is present. Cheers is exactly the same.

 

[AndyRM]

Why restrict it to the last fifteen years, Friends is older than that?

So if we're going back as far as Friends you can have -

Alan Partridge
Rev
Not Going Out, the first few series at least before they started repeating themselves
The Office
The Royle Family
Phoenix Nights
The League of Gentleman
Saxondale

That's just off the top of my head, although on the American side of things I'll give you Married With Children, I always seemed to find that funny.

Father Ted
Still Game
Black Books
Darkplace
Absolutely Fabulous
Red Dwarf
Bottom
Nathan Barley
Mighty Boosh

All fall into the Friends era too I reckon. For me, there is was more miss than hit in American sitcoms. Although we did come up with Mrs Brown and Miranda which is pretty unforgivable.

 

[stephec]

Father Ted
Still Game
Black Books
Darkplace
Absolutely Fabulous
Red Dwarf
Bottom
Nathan Barley
Mighty Boosh

All fall into the Friends era too I reckon. For me, there is was more miss than hit in American sitcoms. Although we did come up with Mrs Brown and Miranda which is pretty unforgivable.

Don't go weakening our defence.

I was going to include Bottom, but thought it was a little earlier.

 

[stephec]

No because you'd have to cut the laugh off as well. Then you'd have to edit the laughs and it would be more artificial. I have to say, I don't mind the waits for the laugh - it is exactly what would happen in a theatre after all. It's a genre - it's not like The Thick Of It, which is purely "for-TV", it's crafted to make the audience laugh and the audience is present. Cheers is exactly the same.

It must just be that style I don't like then, it appears to me as if you're being told when to laugh rather than make your own mind up.

 

[Ganymede]

It must just be that style I don't like then, it appears to me as if you're being told when to laugh rather than make your own mind up.

I see what you mean, but I've been to screenings and it's all genuine. The writing is kinda gag-ridden - that's the style - written by a team for maximum hits - whereas The Thick of It or Alan Partridge is much more nuanced and sometimes you will squirm not laugh. I think of those US sitcoms as being a direct descendant of vaudeville in a way. Make 'em laugh, make 'em laugh... And they are poking you to laugh, so your response seems to be "don't poke me! I don't need to be poked to laugh!" which is entirely legitimate! (as you don't need me to tell you!).

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

Alan Partridge
Rev
Not Going Out, the first few series at least before they started repeating themselves
The Office
.

Mod please!

 

[stephec]

I see what you mean, but I've been to screenings and it's all genuine. The writing is kinda gag-ridden - that's the style - written by a team for maximum hits - whereas The Thick of It or Alan Partridge is much more nuanced and sometimes you will squirm not laugh. I think of those US sitcoms as being a direct descendant of vaudeville in a way. Make 'em laugh, make 'em laugh... And they are poking you to laugh, so your response seems to be "don't poke me! I don't need to be poked to laugh!" which is entirely legitimate! (as you don't need me to tell you!).

That's it, very similar to my choice of stand up's.

One of my all time favourites is Dave Allen, whereas Tim Vine begins to grate after about a minute.

 

[Longshot]

All very personal of course, but I'd take IT Crowd, Green Wing and Thick of It over Friends (which I thought awful) and BBT.

I'll give you the Thick of It.

Why restrict it to the last fifteen years, Friends is older than that?

So if we're going back as far as Friends you can have -

Alan Partridge
Rev
Not Going Out, the first few series at least before they started repeating themselves
The Office
The Royle Family
Phoenix Nights
The League of Gentleman
Saxondale

That's just off the top of my head, although on the American side of things I'll give you Married With Children, I always seemed to find that funny.

As said above, it's personal. There's not one of those I'd rate as better than 'ho hum' with the exception of The Office but i wouldn't strictly call that a sit com.

 

[ComedyPilot]

One of the things I noticed when I was there was how mad the news channels were. Instead of the news anchors reporting facts, they would say their own opinions. Like one guy reported his son was missing, the son was found in the guy's own basement and the news channel told him live on air. Afterwards the anchors were saying to each other stuff like, "did you see his face?? He's definitely guilty as hell". It was unbelievable that they told him live on air let alone act as judge and jury! And then you get stuff like this... No wonder the Americans are messed up LOL ...

View: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lAz-F1QnyCk

I agree, British mainstream journalists would never stoop so low.........



Oh....they would and do......

 

[AndyRM]

I agree, British mainstream journalists would never stoop so low.........



Oh....they would and do......

We're crediting Kay Burley with the title of 'journalist'? Steady on.

 

[hopless500]

And it's humor, not humour.

I think you'll find the proper British spelling has the extra 'U' in it

 

[User169]

Seinfeld - America wins!!

 

[User169]

Oh forgot "Game On" - UK wins!

 

[hoopdriver]

http://fox40.com/2014/10/27/wifi-connection-al-qaeda-free-terror-network-grounds-california-flight/
Made me chuckle.

Going back to the original post, the guy sounds like a complete bozo. How thick can anyone be? It's not funny and I doubt the police or security forces anywhere in the world would find it humorous. Nor would many of the fellow passengers, regardless of where they come from or what passport they hold.