What was the first sitcom without a laugh track or live studio audience?

Submitted by Pink_Pens t3_yczwoi in television

I’ve looked into this and can’t find a definitive answer. Just speculation. A lot of people say Malcolm in the Middle, but that came out in the year 2000, and considering how long sitcoms had been around before then, I find it hard to believe it took that long for a laugh-free sitcom to come out. There’s also Dinosaurs in 1991, which originally featured a laugh track only for it to get canned in later episodes. Some people wouldn’t count The Simpsons (personally I would count it) because it’s animated, but that’s from 1989. I still believe there was probably one before then, though. I can’t imagine why there wouldn’t have been.

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AfraidOfTheInternet t1_itp9p6y wrote

Maybe Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman?

It was a parody of daytime soap operas similar to its contemporary Soap but weirder and more satirical with dryer humor

Here's a clip

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talldeadguy t1_itp9p9h wrote

"MAS*H" Did at least one show without, but the norm was to have a laugh track.

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ChaseTheMagicBantha t1_itp9t3m wrote

the first i can see was the bill cosby show, a shortlived sitcom on NBC before the cosby show. it debuted in 1969

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bearclaw40 t1_itpad76 wrote

At first I wouldn't have counted the Simpsons, but Wikipedia reminded me cartoons had laugh tracks too. They have a pretty decent article on the history of laugh tracks. It mentions Dream On and The Larry Sanders Show as starting the trend of no laugh track.

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NotoriousREV t1_itpddk0 wrote

Replying to talldeadguy (#215,836)

When I first watched MASH in the UK it was shown on BBC2 in the 80s and all episodes had no laugh track. Then in the 90s it got shown again in Sky One with the laugh track and, frankly, it ruined it. I found it unwatchable.

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Latter_Feeling2656 t1_itphoes wrote

The Adam West Batman (1966-68) was nominated for Emmys in the comedy categories.

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Maninhartsford t1_itpi38e wrote

Replying to NotoriousREV (#216,112)

The producers agree with you, and fought for the laugh track free version, which is now a viewing option on all the dvds. The network insisted on including a track, cause networks, but compromised by never having it in the operating room.

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Idk_Very_Much t1_itpj3a5 wrote

Adam West’s Batman was a stealth sitcom

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Latter_Feeling2656 t1_itptsge wrote

Replying to talldeadguy (#215,836)

The Odd Couple (Randall/Klugman version) began as a single camera show with a laugh track. They aired an episode without the laugh track, and Randall/Klugman came on at the end and asked the audience to mail in their opinions. That mail ran against the laugh track. They decided to make a change, but as Mary Tyler Moore and All in the Family were proving very popular with live audiences, The Odd Couple went that way instead of single camera/no laughs. This was being worked out in 1971, and MASH debuted in the fall of 1972.

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youarockandnothing t1_itqhbig wrote

Not super old but I think Parker Lewis Can't Lose also didn't have a laugh track right?

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CableCoShow t1_itqws1e wrote

Julia (1968), starring Diahann Carroll, wasn't the first, but another from that 60s era.

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DeeBased t1_itr5tli wrote

Replying to bearclaw40 (#215,877)

Both of those were great shows! I encourage anyone and everyone to find episodes of "Dream On." It felt like they were finally making TV for my generation, not for my grandparents.

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ColaTheory t1_ittfa39 wrote

Weren't the early (mostly lost) comedies before Lucy laugh track free?

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