A situation comedy, usually referred to as a sitcom, is a genre of comedy programs which originated in radio. A genre (ˈʒɑːnrə also /ˈdʒɑːnrə/ from French "kind" or "sort" from Latin: genus (stem gener-) is a loose set Comedy (from the Greek κωμωδίαkomodia has a popular meaning (any discourse generally intended to amuse especially in Television, Film, and Radio is the transmission of signals by Modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible Light. Today, sitcoms are found almost exclusively on television as one of its dominant narrative forms. Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic A narrative or story is a construct created in a suitable format (written spoken poetry prose images song Theater, or Dance) that describes a sequence of Sitcoms usually consist of recurring characters in a common environment such as a home or workplace.

Characteristics

As opposed to "standup" comedy, or the telling of jokes, the situation comedy has a storyline plot and is basically comedic drama. The comedies of Aristophanes in Ancient Greece, Terence and Plautus in Ancient Rome, and Shakespeare and Moliere in post-Renaissance Europe were essentially situation comedies. Aristophanes (Ἀριστοφάνης ˌærɪˈstɒfəniːz in English ca The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca Publius Terentius Afer (195/185&ndash159 BC better known as Terence, was a Playwright of the Roman Republic. Titus Maccius Plautus (c 254–184 BCE commonly known as Plautus, was a Roman Playwright. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC William Shakespeare ( baptised Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, also known by his Stage name, Molière, ( January 15, 1622 – February 17 1673) was a French The Renaissance (from French Renaissance, meaning "rebirth" Italian: Rinascimento, from re- "again" and nascere The essence of the current, modern situation comedy on television is that the characters remain in the same situation from episode to episode. The situation is usually that of a family, workplace, or a group of friends. The term was adopted to distinguish the sitcom from other comedy formats: sketch comedy, which generally featured new characters and situations each outing, or the humorous monologue or dialogue, which did not feature characters. Sketch comedy consists of a series of short Comedy scenes or vignettes called "sketches" commonly between one and ten minutes long Often these other formats were presented within a variety format mixed with musical performances, as in Vaudeville. Vaudeville was a Genre of variety entertainment prevalent on the stage in the United States and Canada, from the early 1880s The emerging mass medium of radio allowed audiences to return to programs over and over, which allowed programs to return to the same characters and situations each episode and expect audiences to be familiar with them. Thus, while the humor in sitcoms varies, it is usually character-driven, which may result in running gags during the series. The running gag is an often amusing Joke or reference that appears repeatedly throughout a work or series of works

Due to the need to retain the same situation over many episodes, in many sitcoms characters remained largely static. Events of individual episodes typically resolve themselves by the end, and are rarely mentioned in subsequent episodes. This episodic nature is mirrored in many dramas as well, but there are also many sitcoms that feature story arcs across many episodes, where the characters and situations slowly change over the course of their run.

History

Comedies from past civilizations, such as those of Aristophanes in Ancient Greece, Terence and Plautus in Ancient Rome, and numerous examples including Shakespeare, Moliere, the Commedia dell'Arte and the Punch and Judy shows from post-Renaissance Europe, are the ancestors of the modern sitcom. Aristophanes (Ἀριστοφάνης ˌærɪˈstɒfəniːz in English ca The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca Publius Terentius Afer (195/185&ndash159 BC better known as Terence, was a Playwright of the Roman Republic. Titus Maccius Plautus (c 254–184 BCE commonly known as Plautus, was a Roman Playwright. Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC William Shakespeare ( baptised Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, also known by his Stage name, Molière, ( January 15, 1622 – February 17 1673) was a French Commedia dell'Arte ( Italian: "the comedy of artists" is a form of Improvisational theatre that began in Italy in the 16th century Punch and Judy is a traditional popular English Puppet show featuring the characters of Punch and his wife Judy The Renaissance (from French Renaissance, meaning "rebirth" Italian: Rinascimento, from re- "again" and nascere Some of the characters, pratfalls, routines and situations as preserved in eyewitness accounts and in the texts of the plays themselves, are remarkably similar to those in earlier modern sitcoms such as I Love Lucy and The Honeymooners. I Love Lucy is an American Situation comedy, starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance and William Frawley The Honeymooners debuted as a half-hour series on October 1 1955.

1930-2008 the history of sitcoms In the early 1930s and 1940s

Radio

The situation comedy format was born on January 12, 1926 with the initial broadcast of Sam 'n' Henry on WGN in Chicago. Events 475 - Basiliscus becomes Byzantine Emperor, with a coronation ceremony in the Hebdomon palace in Constantinople Year 1926 ( MCMXXVI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Sam 'n' Henry was a radio series by Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll which aired in 1926 and 1927 WGN (720 AM) is a Radio station in Chicago Illinois, USA. It is owned by the Tribune Company, which also owns the flagship Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. The 15-minute daily program was revamped in 1928, moved to another station, renamed Amos 'n' Andy, and became one of the most successful sitcoms from this period. Amos 'n' Andy was a situation comedy based on Stereotypes of African-Americans and popular in the United States from the 1920s through the 1950s It was also one of the earliest examples of radio syndication. Like many radio programs of the time, the two programs continued the American entertainment traditions of Vaudeville and the Minstrel show. The minstrel show, or minstrelsy, was an American entertainment consisting of comic skits variety acts dancing, and Music,

The Jack Benny Program was another important and formative sitcom, beginning in 1932 and lasting until 1955 on radio, then continuing for a number of additional years on television. The Jack Benny Program, starring Jack Benny, was a radio-TV comedy series which ran for more than three decades and is generally regarded as a high-water mark in 20th-century For a few years before 1955, the show had versions on both radio and television. The storyline was often built around a fictionalization of Benny's getting his show ready for its next airing, with his worries and troubles in getting it prepared. Although a generous man in real life, Benny's radio and TV persona was a stingy, self-centered narcissist interacting with his program's cast which included Mary Livingstone (his wife in real life but a lady friend on the show), bandleader Phil Harris, singer Dennis Day, Benny's butler Eddie (Rochester) Anderson and announcer Don Wilson.

Fibber McGee and Molly was one of the most successful sitcoms of all time, airing on radio from 1935 to 1959. Fibber McGee and Molly was a radio show that played a major role in determining the full form of what became classic old-time radio. The show starred vaudevillians James "Jim" and Marian Driscoll Jordan and also had its roots in Chicago.

In 1947, Beulah became the first radio sitcom featuring an African-American in the lead role. For other uses see Beulah. The Beulah Show is an American situation-comedy series that ran in radio on CBS African Americans or Black Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have origins in any of the black populations of Africa

Television

In the late 1940s, the sitcom was among the first formats adapted for the new medium of television. Most sitcoms were a half-hour in length and aired weekly. Many of the earliest sitcoms were direct adaptations of existing radio shows, such as Amos 'n' Andy or The Jack Benny Program, or vehicles for existing radio stars such as Burns and Allen (The Burns and Allen Show) and film stars such as Abbott and Costello (The Abbott and Costello Show). Amos 'n' Andy was a situation comedy based on Stereotypes of African-Americans and popular in the United States from the 1920s through the 1950s The Jack Benny Program, starring Jack Benny, was a radio-TV comedy series which ran for more than three decades and is generally regarded as a high-water mark in 20th-century Burns and Allen, an American comedy duo consisting of George Burns and his wife Gracie Allen, worked together as a comedy team Burns and Allen, an American comedy duo consisting of George Burns and his wife Gracie Allen, worked together as a comedy team William (Bud Abbott and Lou Costello (born Louis Francis Cristillo performed together as Abbott and Costello, an American comedy duo whose The Abbott and Costello Show, a half-hour television sitcom starring the popular comedy team of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello that originally aired Early sitcoms were broadcast live and recorded on kinescopes or not recorded at all. Kinescope (ˈkɪnɨskoʊp originally referred to the Cathode ray tube used in Television receivers as named by inventor Vladimir Zworykin in 1929

The television adaptation of Beulah in 1950 became the first TV sitcom with an African-American lead.

An early innovator in the history of sitcoms is Desi Arnaz who is credited with the first successful use of the multiple-camera setup, where three cameras shoot the action on stage simultaneously and the best shots from each of the cameras are later edited together. Desi Arnaz (born Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III) ( March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986) was a Cuban American The multiple-camera setup (aka multiple-camera mode of production is a method of shooting films and television programs I Love Lucy, the extremely popular show that Arnaz and his wife Lucille Ball created and starred in together, was also among the first to record all episodes on film, and he is thus also credited with foreseeing the viability of the rerun. I Love Lucy is an American Situation comedy, starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance and William Frawley Lucille Ball (August 6 1911 – April 26 1989 was an American comedienne, film television stage and radio Actress, model, film A rerun or repeat is a re-airing of an episode of a Radio or Television broadcast.

Eventually, sitcoms began to divide themselves into two distinct groups: the domestic comedy, which focused on a family or a married couple in their home, and the workplace comedy, which focused on the employees at a workplace. The earliest domestic comedies include The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, The Honeymooners, and Make Room for Daddy. The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet was a long-running American Television series, airing on ABC from October 3, The Honeymooners debuted as a half-hour series on October 1 1955. The Danny Thomas Show (known as Make Room for Daddy during the first four seasons is a Sitcom which ran from 1953 to 1957 The earliest workplace comedies include Our Miss Brooks and Mr. Peepers, both set in high schools, and The Phil Silvers Show, which was set on a US Army post. Our Miss Brooks, an American Situation comedy, starred Eve Arden as a sardonic High school English Teacher. Mr Peepers is an American Television sitcom that aired on NBC from July 3, 1952 to June 12, The Phil Silvers Show (originally titled You'll Never Get Rich) was a comedy Television series which ran on CBS from 1955 to 1959 (Although Jackie Gleason's The Honeymooners consisted of only 39 original episodes, these have been airing in nearly continuous rerun cycles over and over again, on various channels, for more than 50 years since their production in 1955-56. Herbert Walton Gleason Jr, baptized John Herbert "Jackie" Gleason ( February 26, 1916 – June 24, 1987) was an The Honeymooners debuted as a half-hour series on October 1 1955. )

The animated sitcom was born during this period with Hanna-Barbera's The Flintstones and The Jetsons. The Flintstones is an animated American television sitcom that ran from 1960 to 1966 on ABC. The Jetsons is a prime-time animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The latter show was the first example of the science fiction sitcom subgenre. The science fiction sitcom genre is a relatively new one having started significant growth only during the last few decades of the twentieth century

By the mid-1960s, sitcom creators began adding more fantastical elements to live action sitcoms. Monsters and ghouls were featured as regular characters in The Munsters and The Addams Family created from a series of cartoon comics. The Munsters is a 1960s American television Sitcom depicting the home life of a family of Monsters. The Addams Family is an American Television series based on the characters in Charles Addams ' ''New Yorker'' cartoons. Genies and witches featured in I Dream of Jeannie and Bewitched, respectively. I Dream of Jeannie is a 1960s American sitcom with a Fantasy premise Bewitched is an American Situation comedy originally broadcast for eight seasons on ABC from 1964 to 1972. Sherwood Schwartz created the somewhat implausible Gilligan's Island. Sherwood Charles Schwartz (born November 14 1916) is an American television producer. Gilligan's Island is an American TV sitcom originally produced by United Artists Television. Also popular were the spy and superhero parodies Get Smart and Batman. Get Smart is an American comedy television series that satirized the secret agent genre Batman is a 1960s American Television series, based on the DC Comic book character of the same name. Many of these shows returned to the practice of the single camera filming style, which was more practical given the visual effects used in these shows. The single-camera setup (aka single-camera mode of production is a method of shooting films and television programs Overall, the late 1960s was a period of greater production values for sitcoms. This allowed for the careful creation of special effects and sharp editing, features which were not possible with the same finesse in a multi-camera production. Many of these programs were not filmed before live audiences, yet featured a laugh track.

Another trend beginning in the 1960s was the expansion of the domestic comedy beyond the nuclear family or married couple. The Andy Griffith Show and My Three Sons featured widowers and their children. The Andy Griffith Show is an American sitcom first televised by CBS between October 3 1960 and April 1 My Three Sons is a Situation comedy about a Scots/Irish-American family (Douglas/ O'Casey that ran from September 29, 1960, to August The Partridge Family concerned a widow and her children. The Partridge Family was a successful American Television sitcom about a widowed mother and her five children who embarked on a music career One notable sitcom from this period is Sherwood Schwartz's The Brady Bunch, which centered on a blended family, perhaps the best-known domestic comedy in US television history. The Brady Bunch is an American Television Situation comedy based around a large blended family.

The musical sitcom become an important and popular sub-genre of sitcoms in the mid 1960s through early 1970s with The Monkees, which played off of the success of The Beatles, and with The Partridge Family. For the group's self-titled album see The Monkees (album. For the TV series see The Monkees (TV series. The Beatles were a pop and rock band from Liverpool, England formed in 1960

In the early 1970s, advances in commercial TV ratings techniques began to demonstrate a fundamental flaw in the simplistic "show of hands" ratings systems used up until then. The realization was that, even though the simple wholesome sitcoms of the 1950s and 1960s attracted the largest number of viewers, in general this demographic tended to have the lowest disposable income. Demographics or demographic data refers to selected population characteristics as used in government Marketing or opinion research or the Demographic profiles

The desired target was the newly-emerging "yuppie" sector, better educated and with higher disposable incomes. Disposable income is Gross income minus Income tax on that income To tap into this market, the emerging sitcoms began to address controversial issues in a serious way, and largely returned to the three-camera shoot before live audiences. Many programs began to be recorded to video, as opposed to film, during this time as well. In the US Norman Lear is largely credited with the social issues development through his sitcoms All in the Family, based on Johnny Speight's Till Death Us Do Part in the United Kingdom, and its spin-offs Maude, The Jeffersons, and Good Times, all in the US. Norman Milton Lear (born July 27 1922 in New Haven Connecticut) is an American Television writer and producer who produced such popular All in the Family is an American Situation comedy that was originally broadcast on the CBS television network from January 12 1971 to April Johnny Speight ( 2 June, 1920 &mdash 5 July, 1998) was a TV scriptwriter of many classic British Sitcoms. Till Death Us Do Part is a British sitcom that aired on BBC1 from 1965 to 1975 The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Maude is an Emmy and Golden Globe -winning half-hour American Television Sitcom that was originally broadcast on the Good Times is a American sitcom that originally aired from February 8, 1974, until August 1, 1979, on the Also in Britain was Ray Galton and Alan Simpson's Steptoe and Son, which also had a US remake in Sanford and Son. Ray Galton OBE (born 17 July 1930) and Alan Simpson OBE (born 27 November 1929) are British scriptwriters Steptoe and Son is a British sitcom written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson about two rag and bone men living in Oil Drum Lane a fictional street Sanford and Son is an American Sitcom that premiered on the NBC Television network on January 14 1972, and was broadcast for

In 1971 El Chavo del Ocho was released, in Mexico. Based around characters in a little neighborhood called "la vecindad" it was the most popular sitcom in Latin America and Spain of the period.

Women's liberation was the backdrop in a series of female-led sitcoms produced by Grant Tinker: The Mary Tyler Moore Show, and its spin-offs Rhoda and Phyllis. Grant A Tinker (born January 11, 1925) is the former chairman and CEO of NBC from 1981 to 1986 co-founder of MTM Enterprises, and The Mary Tyler Moore Show is an American Television sitcom created by James L Rhoda is an American television sitcom starring Valerie Harper. Phyllis is an American television sitcom and the second spin-off of The Mary Tyler Moore Show (the first being

The topic of war was addressed in the popular and long-running sitcom M*A*S*H. M*A*S*H was a Medical drama / Black comedy produced by 20th Television Fox for CBS. The producers of M*A*S*H did not want a laugh track on the show, arguing that the show did not need one, but CBS disagreed. CBS Broadcasting Inc ( CBS) is an American radio and Television network. CBS compromised by permitting the producers of the show to omit recorded laughter from scenes that took place in the operating room, if they wished. When it was shown in the United Kingdom, episodes were broadcast without the laugh track. Also the dubbed German version lacks canned laughter. Ross Bagdasarian also refused to use a laugh track in his production of The Alvin Show. Ross Bagdasarian may refer to Ross Bagdasarian Sr (1919-1972 creator of Alvin and the Chipmunks Ross Bagdasarian Jr The Alvin Show was the first American Animated television series to feature the singing characters Alvin and the Chipmunks, although

Also during this time, Bob Newhart adapted his deadpan club act for television in sitcom format, which was at once a throwback to the early vaudevillian origins of sitcoms and a harbinger of the 1980s - 1990s stand-up comedian sitcom trend. George Robert "Bob" Newhart (born September 5, 1929) is an American stand-up comedian and Actor. Vaudeville was a Genre of variety entertainment prevalent on the stage in the United States and Canada, from the early 1880s

In the mid-1970s, Garry Marshall had several huge hits in the US with his trio of sitcoms Happy Days, Laverne and Shirley, and Mork and Mindy. Garry Kent Marshall Happy Days is an American Television sitcom that originally aired from 1974 to 1984 on ABC. Laverne & Shirley was a popular American television Situation comedy that ran on ABC from 1976 to 1983 Mork & Mindy is an American Sci-fi -based Sitcom broadcast from 1978 until 1982 on ABC. Nostalgia for the 50s was a major theme in both Happy Days and Laverne and Shirley. The term nostalgia describes a longing for the past often in idealized form

Sex and titillation became a theme in the late 1970s with the UK sitcom Man About the House and its US remake Three's Company. Man About the House was a British sitcom starring Richard O'Sullivan, Paula Wilcox and Sally Thomsett that was broadcast Three's Company is an American Sitcom that aired from 1977 to 1984 on ABC. Two soap opera parodies, Soap and Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, are also notable shows from this period which pushed the envelope of what was acceptable in television sitcoms. A soap opera is an ongoing episodic work of Fiction, usually broadcast on Television or Radio. Soap is an American Sitcom that originally ran on ABC from 1977 to 1981 Mary Hartman Mary Hartman (sometimes abbreviated as MH2) is a 1976 - 1977 syndicated Soap opera Parody

The 1980s saw the creation of a hybrid single camera half-hour drama / sitcom called a "dramedy". Comedy-drama, also called dramedy and dramatic-comedy, is a style of Television and movies in which there is an equal or nearly equal balance Examples include United States and The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd. United States was a short-lived half-hour comedy-drama or dramedy that NBC added to its Tuesday Primetime schedule in March 1980. The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd is an NBC / Lifetime Comedy-drama that aired from 1987 - 1991 These were largely unsuccessful, but hour-long comedy dramas would become popular in the 1990s. Also successful was the use of crude humor by shows like Married with Children.

Also in the 1980s, stand-up comic Bill Cosby starred in the tremendously successful sitcom The Cosby Show, which was the earliest of the current trend of successful sitcoms built around a stand-up comic's stage persona. William Henry Cosby Jr (born July 12 1937 is an American Comedian, Actor, Author, Television producer and Activist. The Cosby Show is an American television Situation comedy starring Bill Cosby, first airing on September 20, 1984 Comedienne Roseanne Barr continued the trend in the late 1980s with her eponymous sitcom, as did Garry Shandling (It's Garry Shandling's Show and Larry Sanders). Roseanne Cherrie Barr, aka Roseanne Barr, aka Roseanne Arnold, aka Roseanne Thomas, aka Roseanne (born November 3 1952 is an Emmy Roseanne is an American sitcom broadcast on ABC from 1988 to 1997 starring Stand-up comedian Roseanne Garry Shandling (born November 29, 1949) is an American Comedian. It's Garry Shandling's Show was an American Television show broadcast on Showtime from 1986 to 1990 Larry Sanders (born in New York) is an Oxfordshire County Councillor He has lived in Oxford since 1969 More recently, Jerry Seinfeld (Seinfeld) and Ray Romano (Everybody Loves Raymond) have also made the transition from the brick wall to the small screen with self-starring sitcoms. Jerome Allen "Jerry" Seinfeld (born on April 29 1954 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American comedian actor and writer Seinfeld is an American Situation comedy, or sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5 1989 to May 14 1998 lasting nine seasons Raymond "Ray" Romano (born December 21 1957) is an American Actor, Writer and Stand-up comedian, best known Everybody Loves Raymond is an Emmy Award -winning American Television sitcom that originally ran on CBS from September 13

Seinfeld was an innovative show in that it typically had four plot lines going simultaneously, one for each of the show's principal characters. Seinfeld is an American Situation comedy, or sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5 1989 to May 14 1998 lasting nine seasons Another innovation was that the essential shallowness of the characters' self-absorbed concerns fulfilled the program's famous self-description that it was a "show about nothing. "

Larry Sanders was about a similarly shallow, self-absorbed character, in this case a late-night TV talk show host, and his travails while getting his show ready to broadcast each night. Larry Sanders (born in New York) is an Oxfordshire County Councillor He has lived in Oxford since 1969 The format thus harked directly back to one of the sitcom's founding dynasties, The Jack Benny Program, which was also about a narcissistic host trying to produce his weekly radio show on time. The Jack Benny Program, starring Jack Benny, was a radio-TV comedy series which ran for more than three decades and is generally regarded as a high-water mark in 20th-century Larry Sanders was filmed, except for those segments which portrayed the show-within-a-show actually on the air, which were on videotape and thus seemed to be live because of videotape's greater fidelity. Larry Sanders (born in New York) is an Oxfordshire County Councillor He has lived in Oxford since 1969 These segments recalled some decades-earlier Jack Benny plot segments in which the fictional show-within-a-show finally went "on the air" at the end of the week.

The early 1990s saw the rebirth of the animated sitcom, a trend which continues to this day. Most notable is The Simpsons, the longest-running sitcom in US history. Other successful sitcoms in this subgenre include South Park, Futurama, Family Guy, American Dad, Daria, and King of the Hill. South Park is an animated American television comedy series created and written by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for Comedy Central Futurama is an Emmy Award -winning animated American sitcom created by Matt Groening, and developed by Groening and Family Guy is an animated American television sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane that airs on Fox and regularly on other American Dad! is a satirical American animated series produced by Underdog Productions and Fuzzy Door Productions for 20th Century Daria is an American King of the Hill is an American animated series created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels for the Fox Broadcasting Company

This era also saw a significant return to film origination. The main reason for this was that it was seen as "Future-Proofing" productions against any new developments such as HDTV. High-definition television (HDTV is a Digital television Broadcasting system with higher resolution than traditional television systems (standard-definition Programs shot on standard definition videotape in general do not convert well to HDTV, while images on 35mm film can easily be re-scanned to any future format. Videotape is a means of recording images and sound onto Magnetic tape as opposed to movie film. As well as this, recent developments in film camera and post-processing technologies had eroded the advantages of using videotape.

In the mid-1990s several sitcoms have reintroduced the ongoing story line. Friends, the most popular U. Friends was an S. sitcom of the 1990s-2000s, had an overall story arc similar to that of soap operas, in the tradition of earlier sitcoms such as The Beverly Hillbillies and One Day At A Time. A story arc is an extended or continuing storyline in episodic storytelling media such as Television, Comic books Comic strips The Beverly Hillbillies is an American Television series about a Hillbilly family transplanted to Beverly Hills California after finding For the song of the same name see One Day at a Time (song One Day at a Time was a long-running American Situation Friends also used other soap opera elements, such as regularly employing the device of an end-of-season cliffhanger and gradually developing the relationships of the characters over the course of the series. Friends was an A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a Plot device in which a movie, Novel, or other work of fiction contains an abrupt ending often leaving Frasier, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Roseanne, Moesha, Boy Meets World, and Seinfeld are also noted for their long-term story arcs. Frasier is an American sitcom, a Spin-off of Cheers starring Kelsey Grammer as The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is an award winning American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from September 10 1990 to May 20 1996 Roseanne is an American sitcom broadcast on ABC from 1988 to 1997 starring Stand-up comedian Roseanne Moesha is an American Situation comedy produced for the UPN network from January 23, 1996 to May 14, 2001 Boy Meets World was an American Television sitcom that chronicles the events and everyday life lessons of Cory Matthews, who grows up from a Seinfeld is an American Situation comedy, or sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5 1989 to May 14 1998 lasting nine seasons

The early 2000s saw a rebirth of the single camera shooting style for half-hour sitcoms, with shows such as Malcolm in the Middle, The Office, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Arrested Development, and Scrubs. The single-camera setup (aka single-camera mode of production is a method of shooting films and television programs Malcolm in the Middle was a seven-time Emmy Award -winning one-time Grammy -winning He had run off and married a good-natured Canadian woman This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the Curb Your Enthusiasm is an American Sitcom starring Seinfeld writer co-creator and executive producer Larry David as himself and Scrubs is an Emmy and Peabody Award -winning American Comedy-drama that premiered on October 2 2001 on NBC. Unlike earlier single camera shows, these sitcoms do not use laugh tracks. The British sitcom Green Wing, often featured scenes that were shot using a single steadycam, and which were later sped up or slowed down for comic effect. Green Wing is an award-winning British television Comedy set in the fictional East Hampton Hospital Trust. A steadicam is a stabilizing mount for a Motion-picture camera, which mechanically isolates the operator's movement from the camera allowing a very smooth shot even when

Curb Your Enthusiasm brought one of Seinfeld's key off-air creators and writers, Larry David, back to television as the star and writer of his own series. Curb Your Enthusiasm is an American Sitcom starring Seinfeld writer co-creator and executive producer Larry David as himself and Seinfeld is an American Situation comedy, or sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5 1989 to May 14 1998 lasting nine seasons In this show, he plays himself, a self-absorbed, narcissistic (this character type seems to be an eternal sitcom staple) comedian making his way arrogantly through life. The trivial shallowness of the events and situations which so obsess Larry, and cause him to habitually lie and repeatedly disgrace himself in front of his family, friends and business associates, provides a thematic comedic link with Seinfeld. Seinfeld is an American Situation comedy, or sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5 1989 to May 14 1998 lasting nine seasons

Specific countries of origin

Most North American sitcoms are generally half-hour programs in which the story is written to run a total of 22 minutes in length, leaving 8 minutes for commercials.

Sitcoms made outside the US may run somewhat longer or shorter than 22 minutes. US commercial broadcasters have traditionally been very reluctant to run shows that run too short or too long. Thus very few UK or British Commonwealth sitcoms being run on US commercial television.

US sitcoms (like other American television series) typically have long season runs of 20 or more episodes due to the way they are produced. Canadian sitcoms typically only have season runs of 14 on average.

American sitcoms are often written by large teams of US resident script writers during round-table sessions, but some US sitcoms often do have episodes written by a guest writer. Most British sitcoms are written by one or two people, with four writers sometimes being the norm for some series in the recent past. These divergent writing styles result in vastly different kinds of sitcoms being written.

Australia

Australia has not had a significant number of long running sitcoms. Most successful sitcoms on Australian TV are American or to a lesser extent, British. Many of the shows described under the U. S. and British sections of this article are or have been extremely popular in Australia. British sitcoms, many from the BBC, are a staple on the government broadcaster Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and traditionally many have also been shown by the Seven Network. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly abbreviated to the 'ABC' is Australia's national public broadcaster. The Seven Network is an Australian television network, owned by the Seven Media Group. American sitcoms dominate the comedy line-up of the three commercial networks.

While there has been a significant number of Australian sitcoms throughout the history of Australian television, they have most commonly run for just a single season - usually 13 half-hour episodes. Many successful Australian sitcoms have been somewhat similar in style to UK comedies, and several closely followed the premise of earlier UK programs.

An early successful situation comedy was My Name's McGooley, What's Yours? (1967) about a working-class Sydney family. My Name's McGooley What's Yours? was a popular Australian Situation comedy series produced by ATN7 from 1966 to 1968. Other popular sitcoms of this general period included The Group, and Our Man in Canberra. The Group was a popular Australian Situation comedy series produced by Cash Harmon Television for ATN7 in 1971.

In the first half of the 1970s it was the popular soap operas Number 96 and The Box that provided the main forum for Australian-grown sitcom style comedy. Number 96 was a revolutionary Australian Soap opera set in a Sydney apartment block The Box was an Australian Soap opera than ran on Network Ten from 1974 until 1977. These shows combined melodrama and sex with large amounts of comedy. In 1976 the Australian Broadcasting Corporation produced a sex-comedy television sitcom Alvin Purple, based on the hit feature film of the same name. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly abbreviated to the 'ABC' is Australia's national public broadcaster. Alvin Purple was an Australian Television Situation comedy series made by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 1976 Like the films that preceded it, the series of Alvin Purple featured Graeme Blundell in the title role. Graeme Blundell (born 8 July 1945 is an Australian Actor, director, producer, Writer and Biographer.

By the late 1970s Australian versions of popular UK comedies were produced using key personnel from the original series working in Australia. These productions retained the title and key cast members of the original programs and operated within the same story world of the original even down to explaining how the characters came to leave their original UK locale and be temporarily resident of Australia. These comedies, Are You Being Served, Doctor in the House (as Doctor Down Under) and Father, Dear Father (as 'Father, Dear Father in Australia), transplanted key original cast members to Australia to situations markedly similar to those of the original series. The Australian version of British sitcom Are You Being Served? was produced by Network Ten in 1980 - 1981. Doctor in the House is a British television comedy series based on a set of books and a movie of the same name by Richard Gordon about the misadventures Father Dear Father was a British Television Sitcom produced by Thames Television for ITV During this same general period, one of the UK producers of these shows also launched The Tea Ladies in Australia. The Tea Ladies was an Australian Situation comedy series produced for Network Ten in 1978 Also during the late 1970s Crawford Productions, best known for their successful police drama series, also created situation comedy series. Crawford Productions is an Australian Television production company founded by Hector Crawford, and now owned by the WIN Corporation. These include The Bluestone Boys (1976) on Network Ten, and Bobby Dazzler (1977) on the Seven Network. Network Ten, or Channel Ten, is one of Australia 's three major commercial television networks. Bobby Dazzler was a Australian television Sitcom produced by Crawford Productions starring singer John Farnham as the title character

The late-1970s sketch comedy series The Naked Vicar Show spawned successful a sitcom spin off, Kingswood Country, in 1980. The Naked Vicar Show was a satirical Australian radio and later television series Kingswood Country was an Australian Sitcom that screened from 1980 to 1984 on the Seven Network. This series was immensely popular, running four years. Its situation was somewhat similar to the British comedy Till Death Us Do Part and its American cousin All in the Family. Till Death Us Do Part is a British sitcom that aired on BBC1 from 1965 to 1975 All in the Family is an American Situation comedy that was originally broadcast on the CBS television network from January 12 1971 to April

In the early 1980s there were few Australian sitcoms, with soap operas being the more common genre produced in Australia. During this period however the Australian Broadcasting Corporation produced Mother and Son, which emerged as an enduring audience favourite. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly abbreviated to the 'ABC' is Australia's national public broadcaster. Mother and Son was an Australian Television Sitcom produced by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation from 1984 until 1994 In the late 1980s and early 1990s several new Australian sitcoms achieved significant success including Frontline, Hey Dad...!, Acropolis Now, All Together Now which all had relatively long runs. Frontline is an Australian Comedy television series which satirised Australian television current affairs programmes and reporting Hey Dad! is an Australian Sitcom produced by Gary Reilly Productions, originally airing from 1987 to 1994 on the Seven Network. For the Lynne Truss radio series see Acropolis Now (radio. Acropolis Now was an Australian Sitcom All Together Now was an Australian sitcom that was broadcast on Nine Network between 1991 and 1993 The Adventures of Lano and Woodley ran for two seasons, in 1997 and 1999, on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The Adventures of Lano and Woodley was an Australian comedy Television show starring the comedic duo of Lano and Woodley ( Colin Lane Other programs such as Hampton Court and My Two Wives were only moderate successes, lasting just one season. Hampton Court was an Australian Situation comedy series produced by Gary Reilly Productions in 1991. My Two Wives was an Australian Situation comedy series produced by Gary Reilly Productions in 1992. This period also saw many short-lived failures such as Late for School and Bingles.

In 2002 the successful sitcom Kath and Kim began its hit run. Kath & Kim is a Logie Award -winning character-driven Australian Television Comedy series created by Jane Turner and

Canada

See also: Canadian humour

Canadian sitcoms have generally fared poorly with both critics and audiences. Canadian humour is an integral part of the Canadian Identity. One notorious example is The Trouble with Tracy, regarded by many Canadians as one of the worst TV shows ever made. The Trouble with Tracy was a Canadian Television series produced by CTV for the 1970&ndash1971 television season with intended distribution Other Canadian sitcoms have included Snow Job, Check it Out!, Mosquito Lake and Not My Department all of which were mocked as being particularly unfunny. Mosquito Lake was a shortlived Canadian television Sitcom, which aired on CBC Television in 1989 Not My Department was a Canadian television Sitcom, which aired on CBC Television in 1987. There have rarely been more than one or two Canadian sitcoms airing at any given time, although this has changed in recent years with the growth of original programming on cable television.

Critically acclaimed shows include: Trailer Park Boys, Twitch City, Corner Gas, Odd Job Jack. Trailer Park Boys is a popular Canadian Mockumentary Television series focusing on the misadventures of a group of Trailer park Twitch City is a Canadian Sitcom produced by CBC Television. The series aired as two short runs in 1998 and 2000 Corner Gas is a Canadian Television sitcom created by Brent Butt and airing on CTV and in the United States on WGN Odd Job Jack is a Canadian animated Comedy television show featuring Don McKellar, about one man's misadventures in temporary

Quebec

In the francophone province of Quebec, several Quebec-made sitcoms are airing since a long time and appreciated by Québécois. The adjective francophone (alternately Francophone) means French -speaking typically as primary language whether referring to individuals groups or places Quebec (kwɨˈbɛk A Québécois or Quebecois (pronounced) or in the feminine Québécoise (pronounced) (plural Québécoises) is a native or resident of the One example: Histoires de filles airing on TVA. TVA is a Canadian French language privately owned Television network. One of the best sitcom to be made in Quebec history was Moi et l'autre (from 1966 to 1971) with Dominique Michel and Denise Filiatrault. Dominique Michel (born September 24, 1932 in Sorel-Tracy, Quebec as Aimée Sylvestre) is a Quebec comedian actress singer Denise Filiatrault, OC, OQ (born May 16, 1931, Montreal) is a Canadian actress and director

In Quebec sitcoms, the language used is always Quebec French, naturally. Quebec French ( le français québécois, le français du Québec) or less often Québécois French, is the predominant varieties

New Zealand

New Zealand began producing television programs later than many other developed countries. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island Due to New Zealand's small population, the two main New Zealand networks will rarely fund more than one or two sitcoms each year. This low output means there is less chance of a successful sitcom being produced to offset the failures.

Early sitcoms included Joe & Koro and Buck House. Later there was The Billy T James Show subsequently rerun in early 2004 as part of the first year's offering on Maori Television. Billy T James, MBE (1948&ndash1991 born William James Taitoko, was by general consensus the greatest entertainer New Zealand ever produced Māori Television is a New Zealand TV station broadcasting programmes that make a significant contribution to the revitalisation of Te reo and The team of David McPhail and Jon Gadsby produced and/or starred in quite a number of sitcoms such as Letter to Blanchy with help from writer A K Grant. David Alexander McPhail ONZM QSM (born 11 April 1945) is a New Zealand comedic actor and writer Jon Gadsby QSO (born 1 November 1953) is a New Zealand television comedian and writer most well known for his role in the comedy series

The most popular and successful New Zealand produced sitcom to date has been Roger Hall's Gliding On, based on his hit stage play Glide Time. This article is about the playwright For the American spy see Roger Wolcott Hall. This article is about the playwright For the American spy see Roger Wolcott Hall. Another Hall play, Conjugal Rites was also made into a sitcom but by Granada in Britain.

In 1994, Melody Rules was produced and screened. Critically and commercially unsuccessful, it has become part of the lexicon within the television industry to describe an unsuccessful sitcom, for example, that show will be the next "Melody Rules". Another sitcom to have its roots in a stage play was Serial Killers (2003), about the scriptwriters of a medical soap opera. A soap opera is an ongoing episodic work of Fiction, usually broadcast on Television or Radio.

Many British and American sitcoms are and have been popular in New Zealand, including many of those aforementioned in this article.

United Kingdom

Main article: British sitcom

The United Kingdom has produced a wealth of sitcoms, many of which have been exported to other nations or adapted for other countries. A British sitcom is a Situation comedy (sitcom produced in the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The British sitcom tends to rely less on quick-fire jokes and quirky characters, and focuses more on plots, the analysis of the British individual, and exaggerated caricatures of everyday stereotypes. A caricature is either a Portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness or in literature a description A stereotype (from Greek: stereo + týpos = "solid impression" is a generalized perception of first impressions behaviors presumed by a group There is also a tendency towards black humor. A frequent theme in British sitcoms is that of people trapped in an unpleasant situation or, more often, in a dysfunctional relationship.

Many British sitcoms are re-made for American audiences. For example, Till Death Us Do Part became All in the Family; Man About the House became Three's Company; and, the immensely popular Steptoe and Son became Sanford and Son. Till Death Us Do Part is a British sitcom that aired on BBC1 from 1965 to 1975 All in the Family is an American Situation comedy that was originally broadcast on the CBS television network from January 12 1971 to April Man About the House was a British sitcom starring Richard O'Sullivan, Paula Wilcox and Sally Thomsett that was broadcast Three's Company is an American Sitcom that aired from 1977 to 1984 on ABC. Steptoe and Son is a British sitcom written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson about two rag and bone men living in Oil Drum Lane a fictional street Sanford and Son is an American Sitcom that premiered on the NBC Television network on January 14 1972, and was broadcast for The Office was also remade for an American audience using the same title. This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the Political sitcom The Thick of It is currently going an American adaption, also under the same name. The Thick of It is a British comedy Television series which satirises the inner workings of modern British government. The Thick of It was a pilot for a American television Comedy in the running for the 2007 - 2008 season on ABC. However, most British sitcoms usually fare better in their original forms. Re-makes of Red Dwarf, Men Behaving Badly, Coupling, and One Foot in the Grave (Cosby) fell victim to adaptations that largely removed the essence of the comedy and did not stand the test of time. According to the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram, a red dwarf star is a small and relatively cool Star, of the Main sequence, either late K Men Behaving Badly is a British comedy --created and written by Simon Nye--that follows the lives of beer-guzzling flatmates Gary Strang and Tony Smart Coupling is a British television Sitcom written by Steven Moffat that aired on BBC2 from May 2000 to June 2004 One Foot in the Grave was a BBC television Situation comedy series written by David Renwick. Cosby is an Emmy - and PCA -winning Situation comedy Television series broadcast on CBS from September 16,

Possibly the best example of this was Fawlty Towers, in which there were three attempts to Americanize the show. Fawlty Towers is a British sitcom made by the BBC and first broadcast on BBC2 in 1975 The first attempt was a proposed series titled Chateau Snavely in 1978 but a pilot was never produced. The second attempt at Americanising Fawlty Towers was Amanda's, where the character of Basil became a woman played by Beatrice Arthur. This eliminated the roles of the hen-pecked lead and the dragon-like wife. Amanda's was picked up by ABC in 1983 but never attracted an audience and was cancelled soon after. The American Broadcasting Company ( ABC) is an American Television network. The final attempt to remake Fawlty Towers was Payne, in which John Larroquette played the title role. John Bernard Larroquette (born November 25, 1947) is an American film and television Actor. It was seen on CBS in 1999, but like Amanda's it was soon dropped by the network. CBS Broadcasting Inc ( CBS) is an American radio and Television network.

The UK is home to the world's longest running sitcom, Last of the Summer Wine. Last of the Summer Wine is a British sitcom written by Roy Clarke that is broadcast on BBC One. The show's pilot was broadcast in early 1973 with the first series starting that autumn. The series continues to this day with the show's 29th series, coming soon in 2008.

United States

Mary Kay and Johnny was followed by The Goldbergs which first aired on January 17, 1949. Mary Kay and Johnny was the first Situation comedy broadcast on network Television in the United States, was the first television The Goldbergs was a comedy-drama broadcast from 1929 to 1946 on American Radio and later seen as a television Situation comedy (1949-56 Events 38 BC - Octavian marries Livia Drusilla. 1287 - King Alfonso III of Aragon invades Minorca Year 1949 ( MCMXLIX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Probably the most well-known and successful early television sitcom was I Love Lucy starring the real-life couple of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, which was groundbreaking for many reasons including the shooting of episodes on film thereby inventing reruns. I Love Lucy is an American Situation comedy, starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance and William Frawley Lucille Ball (August 6 1911 – April 26 1989 was an American comedienne, film television stage and radio Actress, model, film Desi Arnaz (born Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III) ( March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986) was a Cuban American A rerun or repeat is a re-airing of an episode of a Radio or Television broadcast. The Simpsons is another very successful sitcom, which has become the longest running such program in the United States (it was first broadcast in 1989 and episodes are still in production as of 2008). The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The show is unusual in that it is animated. The bouncing ball animation (below consists of these 6 frames This and Family Guy are examples of successful evolutions in the Sitcom genre. Family Guy is an animated American television sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane that airs on Fox and regularly on other The longest running live-action sitcom in America was The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, which ran from 1952 to 1966 on ABC. The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet was a long-running American Television series, airing on ABC from October 3, Other very successful sitcoms to air on United States major networks include All in the Family, The Cosby Show, Married... with Children, Home Improvement, Boy Meets World, Friends, Seinfeld, Full House, Everybody Loves Raymond, The King of Queens, Roseanne, Happy Days, Cheers, Frasier, Scrubs,The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, The Donna Reed Show, and M*A*S*H. All in the Family is an American Situation comedy that was originally broadcast on the CBS television network from January 12 1971 to April The Cosby Show is an American television Situation comedy starring Bill Cosby, first airing on September 20, 1984 Home Improvement is a American television Sitcom starring actor/comedian Tim Allen, which aired 1991 to 1999 Boy Meets World was an American Television sitcom that chronicles the events and everyday life lessons of Cory Matthews, who grows up from a Friends was an Seinfeld is an American Situation comedy, or sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5 1989 to May 14 1998 lasting nine seasons Full House is an American Television sitcom that originally ran from September 22 1987 to May 23 1995 on ABC. Everybody Loves Raymond is an Emmy Award -winning American Television sitcom that originally ran on CBS from September 13 The King of Queens is an Emmy -nominated American Sitcom that ran for nine seasons from 1998 to 2007 Roseanne is an American sitcom broadcast on ABC from 1988 to 1997 starring Stand-up comedian Roseanne Happy Days is an American Television sitcom that originally aired from 1974 to 1984 on ABC. Cheers is an American Situation comedy television series that ran eleven seasons from 1982 to 1993 Frasier is an American sitcom, a Spin-off of Cheers starring Kelsey Grammer as Scrubs is an Emmy and Peabody Award -winning American Comedy-drama that premiered on October 2 2001 on NBC. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is an award winning American television sitcom that originally aired on NBC from September 10 1990 to May 20 1996 The Donna Reed Show is an American sitcom which aired on ABC from 1958 to 1966. M*A*S*H was a Medical drama / Black comedy produced by 20th Television Fox for CBS.

The Ultimate Sitcom poll

British television station Channel 4 held a poll in the United Kingdom to decide which is the best sitcom of all time entitled The Ultimate Sitcom on 2 January 2006. Channel 4 is a public-service Television and Radio broadcaster in the United Kingdom centred around a television channel of the same name which began The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Events 366 - The Alamanni cross the frozen Rhine River in large numbers invading the Roman Empire. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ^[1] Although several public polls have been held, this poll was voted for people in the industry, such as actors, writers, directors and producers, and included sitcoms from both the UK and the US. The top twenty sitcoms according to the poll were:^[2]

1. Frasier (US 1993-2004)
2. Fawlty Towers (UK 1975&1979)
3. Seinfeld (US 1989-1998)
4. Porridge (UK 1974-1977)
5. The Larry Sanders Show (US 1992-1998)
6. The Phil Silvers Show (US 1955-1959)
7. Dad's Army (UK 1968-1977)
8. Blackadder (UK 1983-1989)
9. Spaced (UK 1999-2001)
10. The Office (UK 2001-2003)
11. Father Ted (Ireland / UK 1995-1998)
12. Cheers (US 1982-1993)
13. I'm Alan Partridge (UK 1997-2002)
14. Yes Minister/Yes, Prime Minister (UK 1980-1988)
15. Curb Your Enthusiasm (US 2000-Present)
16. The Good Life (UK 1975-1978)
17. The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin (UK 1976-1979)
18. Hancock's Half Hour (UK 1954-1959 on radio, 1956-1961 on television)
19. Rising Damp (UK 1974-1978)
20. The Young Ones (UK 1982-1984)

Recently, the BBC also created a poll of the Top 10 British Sitcoms:

1. Only Fools and Horses
2. Blackadder
3. Vicar of Dibley
4. Dad's Army
5. Fawlty Towers
6. Yes Minister
7. Porridge
8. Open All Hours
9. The Good Life
10. One Foot in the Grave

Modern sitcoms

As with previous generations, there are many changes that are being made to the style and content of the modern sitcom, these are a few examples. Frasier is an American sitcom, a Spin-off of Cheers starring Kelsey Grammer as Fawlty Towers is a British sitcom made by the BBC and first broadcast on BBC2 in 1975 Seinfeld is an American Situation comedy, or sitcom that originally aired on NBC from July 5 1989 to May 14 1998 lasting nine seasons Porridge was a British situation comedy that was broadcast on BBC1 from 1973 to 1977 running for three series two Christmas specials as well as The Larry Sanders Show is a satirical television Sitcom that originally aired from August 1992 to May 1998 on the HBO Cable television network The Phil Silvers Show (originally titled You'll Never Get Rich) was a comedy Television series which ran on CBS from 1955 to 1959 Dad’s Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard in the Second World War. Blackadder is the generic name that encompasses four series of an acclaimed BBC One historical sitcom, along with several one-off instalments Spaced is a British Television Situation comedy written by and starring Simon Pegg and Jessica Stevenson, and This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the Father Ted was a popular 1990s Television Situation comedy set around the lives of three Irish Catholic priests on the remote (and Cheers is an American Situation comedy television series that ran eleven seasons from 1982 to 1993 I'm Alan Partridge is a BBC Situation comedy. Two series of six episodes were produced the first in 1997 and the second in 2002 Yes Minister is a multi-award winning satirical British sitcom written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn that was first transmitted Yes Minister is a multi-award winning satirical British sitcom written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn that was first transmitted Curb Your Enthusiasm is an American Sitcom starring Seinfeld writer co-creator and executive producer Larry David as himself and The Good Life is a British sitcom that aired on BBC1 from 1975 to 1978 The Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin is a novel and a British Sitcom starring Leonard Rossiter in the title role Hancock's Half Hour was a ground-breaking and influential BBC Radio comedy series of the 1950s starring Tony Hancock, with Sid James Rising Damp was a UK television sitcom produced by Yorkshire Television for ITV, first broadcast from 1974 to 1978 The Young Ones was a popular British sitcom, first seen in 1982, on BBC2. Only Fools and Horses is a British Television sitcom, created and written by John Sullivan, and made and broadcast by the BBC Blackadder is the generic name that encompasses four series of an acclaimed BBC One historical sitcom, along with several one-off instalments The Vicar of Dibley is a British sitcom created by Richard Curtis and written for its lead actress Dawn French, by Curtis and Paul Dad’s Army is a British sitcom about the Home Guard in the Second World War. Fawlty Towers is a British sitcom made by the BBC and first broadcast on BBC2 in 1975 Yes Minister is a multi-award winning satirical British sitcom written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn that was first transmitted Porridge was a British situation comedy that was broadcast on BBC1 from 1973 to 1977 running for three series two Christmas specials as well as Open All Hours was a BBC Sitcom written by Roy Clarke which ran for four series (26 episodes in all between 1976 and 1985 with a pilot The good life is an ambiguous term for the life that one would like to live One Foot in the Grave was a BBC television Situation comedy series written by David Renwick.

The "Friends clone"

Following the success of Friends, many situation comedies have started using a similar formula: a group of young urbanites and their relationships with each other, almost always with a continuing story arc usually involving on and off again romances between the lead characters. Friends was an A story arc is an extended or continuing storyline in episodic storytelling media such as Television, Comic books Comic strips Within the plot, there would always be constant humor usually within dialogue. This includes Coupling, How I met your mother, and The class. This article describes a mechanical connection between two things How I Met Your Mother is an American Situation comedy that premiered on CBS Broadcasting on September 19 2005

The single camera, no laugh track style

Another popular modern style of sitcom is filmed without a live studio audience or laugh track, using multiple locations and a single camera setup. The single-camera setup (aka single-camera mode of production is a method of shooting films and television programs This avoids the limitations that a stage and the tight shooting schedule of a standard sitcom provide and to make a more theatrical or realistic style. In addition, producers and writers of such shows believe that eliminating the laugh track allows more time for dialogue (and subsequently, jokes) and more movements for the characters instead of standing or sitting, while simultaneously refusing to "dumb down" the audience by cuing them on when to laugh. Early examples of this are Larry David's Curb Your Enthusiasm and Ricky Gervais's and Stephen Merchant's The Office. Lawrence Eugene "Larry" David (born July 2 1947 is an American Emmy -winning Actor, Writer, Comedian, producer Curb Your Enthusiasm is an American Sitcom starring Seinfeld writer co-creator and executive producer Larry David as himself and Ricky Dene Gervais (dʒɜːˈveɪz born 25 June 1961 is an English Actor, Comedian, Writer, director, Producer and former Stephen James Merchant (born 24 November 1974 is a British Comedy Award - BAFTA - Emmy - and Golden Globe -award winning British writer This article is about the original version of The Office For the US version see The Office (US TV series, and for a comparison of the various versions from around the

The children's sitcom

There have been a significant number of situation comedies in recent years geared toward children normally ages 12-16. These shows evolved from early shows on Nickelodeon, and highly successful series on Disney Channel have been seen as a reflection of the modern buying power of this group. Nickelodeon (commonly referred to as Nick) is an American Cable television network owned by Viacom International, founded in 1977 as Pinwheel For the Disney Channel in other countries see Disney Channel around the world. The style of these shows usually has a lower budget than network series and the plot usually involves teen issues such as "sibling rivalry", school, and dating. Sibling Rivalry is the twelfth studio album by American rock band The Doobie Brothers, released in 2000 In Disney Channel sitcoms, issues are rarely discussed and focuses on one-liners and physical comedy than most of the plot. Also, the characters have more movement than staying still to show their body language. Body language is a term for Communication using Body movements or Gestures instead of or in addition to sounds verbal language or other communication In some cases, like Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide, a children's sitcom will combine realistic issues with surreal humour in one show. Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide, sometimes shortened to Ned's Declassified or Ned's, was an educational American Surreal humour is a form of humour, laughingly in a style related to the artistic ambitions of the surrealists, based on bizarre Juxtapositions absurd situations

Children's sitcoms are similar to the traditional "family sitcom", but the lead is always a child who is usually strong and independent, or a group of children. The most common type of characters in order would be lucky, helpful and dim-witted.

Like most children's sitcoms, the main characters would always live in a highly exaggerated life. These settings are equivalent to earlier mainstream sitcoms.

See also

• Game show
• Reality show
• List of sitcoms
• List of comedies

Further reading

• Lewisohn, Mark (2003) Radio Times' Guide to TV Comedy. Reality television is a genre of Television programming which presents purportedly unscripted dramatic or humorous situations documents actual events and usually features ordinary This is a list of television and radio sitcoms ( Situation comedies) in alphabetical order A list of comedies by medium and country of origin Television comedies Australia All Aussie Adventures 2nd Ed. Revised - BBC Consumer Publishing. ISBN 0-563-48755-0, Provides details of every comedy show ever seen on British television, including imports.

References

External links

• Classic British Sitcoms Forum
• IMDB Comedy
• Situation Comedy Bibliography (via UC Berkeley) — mostly USA programs.
• Sitcoms Online
• British Sitcom Guide
• Russian Sitcom Guide