Pop Culture for Fun

Sitcoms have been around for ages.I doubt there’s anyone with a TV that hasn’t been a fan of one or another.In a way, sitcoms have been the backbone of television ever since they made the jump from radio to that little black box we call TV.

With its root firmly placed in plays of Aristophanes, Plautus, Shakespeare, Moliere or shows from post-Rennaissance Europe, such as Punch and Judy, sitcoms have borrowed a lot from their earlier cousins, comedies, and started their own genre of amusement.

With the TV not yet in the making, sitcoms were born in the 1920′s and 1930′s with such shows as Amos ‘n’ Andy (with it’s predecessor Sam ‘n’ Henry being the first of it’s kind), The Jack Benny Program(featuring the lovely Mel Blanc) and Fiber McGee and Molly. Some of these moved to television once the popular invention became a household item, and, for a while the TV shows were still a vehicle for radio shows or stars.

And with the creation of new sitcoms (one of which, I Love Lucy, was the first one to use multiple cameras), two of the most used subjects in the world of sitcoms became genres:the workplace comedy(with shows such as Our Mr. Brooks and Mr. Peepers) and the domestic comedy(The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet and The Honeymooners).

Soon to follow were animated sitcoms, creating some of the most popular cartoon characters ever(The Flintstones and The Jetsons).Around this time, it became clear that the writers started using catchphrases as trademarks(“Yabba-Dabba-Doo!”, “Bang, zoom, straight to the moon!”, “Oh, my God! They killed Kenny”, “D’oh”), a trend that would continue through to the ’70s and ’80s.

As we reached the ’70s sitcoms creators began using gimmicks, such as genies, witches (I Dream of Jeannie and Bewitched), monsters and ghouls (The Munsters and The Addams Family).These were still the domestic comedy we had already seen, yet with a twist.On the same note, yet expanding to new territory, such as widowers and blended families were shows such as The Andy Griffith Show, The Partridge Family or The Brady Bunch.

Yet, at the same time, groundbreaking sitcoms were in the making.All in the Family addressed social issues, The Mary Tyler Moore Show addressed women’s liberation themes, and sex and innuendo was the topic in such shows as Man About the House and its U.S. remake Three’s Company.At the same, one of the most popular and critically acclaimed shows of all time, M*A*S*H, dealt with war.

The 1980′s saw the creation of sitcoms centered around a stand-up comic’s personna with The Cosby Show.This would later lead to such shows as Roseanne Barr, and Everybody Loves Raymond.Later, the trend spread to non stand-up comics, though proving less successful(like “The Gena Davis Show”).

One such show, spawned by stand-up comic Jerry Seinfeld, became the benchmark of modern sitcoms.Following multiple plot lines, the show addressed topics ranging from politics and sex to non-fat dairy, yet in such a superficial way as to fulfill the program’s description as “show about nothing”.

The ’90s also saw the rebirth of animated sitcoms with shows such as The Simpsons, Futurama, Daria, Family Guy, American Dad or King of the Hill.

Also, one of the most popular sitcoms of all time, Friends, was born.Sporting a soap-like arc story and featuring easy to like characters, the show was an instant hit, catapulting the stars to a new level of paychecks.

Today’s sitcom, though it may seem like a new breed, be it boasting social satire(The Office), the all singing, all dancing(Scrubs), the self-conscious(30 Rock),or the inexplicably raunchy(Two and a Half men), owes a lot to the early sitcom, and it has yet to break out of guidelines set nearly a century ago.

What is certain is that sitcom, as a genre, will continue to challenge new territories, using humour as a tool of entertainment.

Posted on June 10th, 2008 by MrWiseguy
Filed under: TV