Comedy Series Losing Viewers: A Sad Reality - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Zoneboy · 11-26-2008, 04:39 AM

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So what are you laughing at? Well, according to the ratings supplied each week by Nielsen Media Research, you're not finding much of anything that tickles the old funny bone.

The 2008-09 season is about 2 months old, and only one comedy, "Desperate Housewives," is in the top 10. Although filmed on the same Universal Studios back-lot street that was home to "Leave It to Beaver" and "The Munsters," ABC's soapy and satirical series is far removed from the classic half-hour sitcom form that prospered in the prime-time neighborhood for so many years.

So what is America watching? That's easy. Three genres rule the ratings roost: procedural crime dramas (led by No. 1 in total viewers "C.S.I." and accounting for 10 of the top 25), reality shows (led by No. 2 "Dancing With the Stars" and accounting for six of the top 25) and medical dramas (with both "Grey's Anatomy" and "House" making the top 15).

Do the math. Take away these three genres, and 18 of America's 25 top-rated shows disappear. Where does that leave the sitcom?

There's just one half-hour comedy in the top 25, Charlie Sheen's "Two and a Half Men." It's the only ratings bright spot for a form that, up to six years ago, was a constant and substantial part of the nation's television diet.

Compare the current state of comedy to the 1988-89 season, when eight of the top 10 shows were half-hour comedies. Comedy was king, all right, placing a staggering 16 shows among the top 25 that season.

Twenty seasons later, comedy hasn't merely abdicated its prime-time crown. It has gone into exile.

You can't even make the excuse that the 1988-89 season was some kind of comedic aberration in the history of television. Seven of the top 10 shows for the 1962-63 season were sitcoms; nine of the top 10 for the 1978-79 season; and eight of the top 10 for the 1991-92 season.

The country's love affair with the sitcom blossomed during the 1952-53 season, when "I Love Lucy" claimed viewers' hearts and the No. 1 spot. It was the first sitcom -- filmed on a soundstage using three cameras and a live audience -- to accomplish this. "Friends," No. 1 for the 2001-02 season, was the last.

Those two victories span 50 television seasons, and a sitcom was the No. 1 show for 24 of them. But there's nothing funny about the numbers being posted by half-hour comedies during the last few seasons.

Is the sitcom dead? Or is it just comatose, waiting to snap back to consciousness and vitality?

A genre that needs a shaking up?

"It's a tough form," said writer-comedian Larry Wilmore, an Emmy winner and a regular on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show." "I think a lot of it could be generational. Some people, with the three-camera sitcom, it's just not their visual language or whatever, and you've just got to keep shaking it up."

There are plenty of writers and producers, like Wilmore, shaking up the TV notion of comedy. You can find comedy all over the television landscape. You can't find sitcoms.

Even NBC's acclaimed half-hour Thursday comedies, "30 Rock" and "The Office," don't qualify as traditional sitcoms (not using the three-camera, live audience method).

But TV historian Earle Marsh, co-author of "The Complete Guide to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows," believes the sitcom is only one hit show away from a lightning comeback.

"Nothing in television is ever dead," said Marsh, a Cleveland Heights native. "It's a cyclical business. Remember, in 1984 the prime-time soap was king, and everybody was saying the sitcom was dead. Along came 'The Cosby Show,' and the sitcom was king again."

True, but the season before "Cosby" premiered, there still were seven sitcoms in the top 25. The reports of the sitcom's death were greatly exaggerated in 1984. There also hadn't been a disruption in a mentoring system that had been working since the radio comedies of the 1930s. Young comedy writers learned their craft from veteran producers. Carl Reiner ("The Dick Van Dyke Show") helped to guide Garry Marshall, who went on to produce "The Odd Couple," "Happy Days" and "Laverne & Shirley."

"It's harder for writers to get established and sell scripts," Marsh said. "And this has been a long drought, but you'll see a breakthrough sitcom, and then everyone will copy it."

A lack of creative confidence

Wilmore agrees that the sitcom will come back, but America and the networks might first need to become disenchanted with the supercheap reality shows.

"Both Jimmy Burrows, the pre-eminent director of sitcoms, and Garry Marshall pointed to reality shows and said, 'For some reason, people would rather laugh at their neighbor in a crazy situation than at a fictional character like a Jackie Gleason-type,' " said Michael Kantor, the writer, producer and director of "Make 'Em Laugh: The Funny Business of America," a documentary PBS will premiere in January.

"I think a lot of confidence has left the creative space," said Kevin Reilly, president of Fox's entertainment division. "I see really talented people coming in very skittish, not knowing what to pitch, what to sell. I see executives trying to figure out where is that nerve to hit. I'll tell you one thing we're doing, which just sounds silly, but we've agreed we're not going to take comedy pitches in our office. We're going out to meet the writers on their turf. . . .We've got to do anything to mix it up."

It makes good business sense, too. While reality shows post big one-time ratings, they don't offer back-end profits through repeats, merchandising, syndication, foreign sales, cable runs, foreign distribution and DVD sales.

"Look at 'Seinfeld,' " Marsh said. "Nothing has longer legs than a sitcom, because you can watch the same episode over and over. A hit sitcom is the gift that keeps giving."

Chocolate Moose · 11-26-2008, 11:10 AM

that's to bad. I really only watch comedy.

TJL · 11-26-2008, 08:31 PM

Great article.
The sitcom is not dead. It's dormant for now.

The author nailed it right on the head. Reality shows are super cheap to produce, that has always been a big reason why they became a network staple. And while American idol and dancing With The Stars are still ratings juggernauts, there have been more duds than hits lately in that genre.

All you need is one breakout new sitcom, and the networks will be back trying to copy each others sitcoms.

But I hope this happens soon. Sitcom writers are becoming an endangered species in the TV biz. I hope there are some good writers around when sitcoms are back in style.

gidgetgrape · 11-26-2008, 11:10 PM

Great article! Thanks for posting it.

I hate that reality tv has gotten so trashy. I think it appeals to that "I wanna be a star" trait that a lot of people have.

According to Gary David Goldberg's book, Sit Ubu Sit, The Cosby Show was passed over by all the networks before Brandon Tartikoff took a chance on it. Goldberg also said that Family Ties was a hard sell because people thought that families were over in the 80s.

It's really sad that veteran writers get passed over too. I read an article awhile back that stated that a lot of the sitcom writers from the 70s and 80s were still interested in writing pilots, etc., but the networks prefer younger, less experienced writers.

Zebra 3 · 11-27-2008, 02:07 AM

The only TV show mentioned in the article I watched regularly was Happy Days.

yankeesrj12 · 11-28-2008, 12:24 AM

I think CBS is producing some good comedies and they are probably very close to the top 25 (How I Met Your Mother and The Big Bang Theory) I think if Gary Unmarried was after Two and a Half Men, it would also be in the top 25. Basically, without CBS the comedy would be dead.

JulieSomoski · 11-28-2008, 05:44 PM

The sitcom genre is by no means dead. In fact, it seems to be coming to life more than ever this season, thanks to CBS. They currently have 7 sitcoms in production, the most of any network. They have 2 nights dedicated to comedy now. Their Monday night sitcoms are getting higher ratings than ever, thanks in part to the strong increases in both Big Bang Theory and How I met Your Mother this season.

It's really the other 3 networks to blame. ABC this fall has just 1 half-hour comedy on the schedule, Samantha Who. NBC has fallen to nothing but single camera sitcoms with small audiences. And FOX currently has no sitcoms on their schedule, thanks to the premature cancelling of Back to You last season, which in part gave no support to Til Death this season.

JT · 11-28-2008, 07:16 PM

Welcome to the world of soap opera fans, where everyday, you have to read articles about the impending apocalypse of your favorite genre.

catlover79 · 11-28-2008, 11:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JT

Welcome to the world of soap opera fans, where everyday, you have to read articles about the impending apocalypse of your favorite genre.

That's right. Plus, look at FOX, who never gave Back to You a fair shake. The strike ruined the momentum it had, and FOX never gave it a chance to bounce back.

Rosslover · 12-03-2008, 10:45 PM

I bellieve that the sitcom is not dead either, just dormant. As a an aspiring actress who was raised on the greats and hope to someday take her place among Lucille Ball and MTM, I am completely appalled by the mentality of the American viewing public and what they choose to view as entertainment. All of the networks had their reigns as Americas funniest network. ABC saw the mid 70s with Happy Days, Laverne and Shirley TAXI with Tuesday night as their big night. From the premiere of COSBY to Cheers, Family Ties, Seinfeld, Mad About You, FRIENDS, and ending with the demise of Will and Grace NBC invented the phrase Must See TV. When I saw My Name is Earl and The Office promoted as Must See TV , I wanted to throw up.

Reality TV originated on MTV with people watching the Real World. Then SURVIVIOR brought it to the masses. And I can proudly point out that only one other show stood against the mighty show and that was the NBC hit FRIENDS. My other gripe about reality shows is that people study and learn their craft for years and struggle doing no pay student films and crappy extra roles and then some idiot comes along and stands in a line and they become America's darling. Tell me people if you were a starving actor, would you think that was fair?

11-26-2008, 04:39 AM	#1
Zoneboy RIP, I'LL NEVER FORGET YOU :( Moderator Forum Superstar Join Date: Jul 13, 2003 Location: AT HOME WISHING ALL THIS WAS JUST A DREAM AND THAT I'LL WAKE UP FROM THIS NIGHTMARE. Posts: 34,437	Comedy Series Losing Viewers: A Sad Reality Link So what are you laughing at? Well, according to the ratings supplied each week by Nielsen Media Research, you're not finding much of anything that tickles the old funny bone. The 2008-09 season is about 2 months old, and only one comedy, "Desperate Housewives," is in the top 10. Although filmed on the same Universal Studios back-lot street that was home to "Leave It to Beaver" and "The Munsters," ABC's soapy and satirical series is far removed from the classic half-hour sitcom form that prospered in the prime-time neighborhood for so many years. So what is America watching? That's easy. Three genres rule the ratings roost: procedural crime dramas (led by No. 1 in total viewers "C.S.I." and accounting for 10 of the top 25), reality shows (led by No. 2 "Dancing With the Stars" and accounting for six of the top 25) and medical dramas (with both "Grey's Anatomy" and "House" making the top 15). Do the math. Take away these three genres, and 18 of America's 25 top-rated shows disappear. Where does that leave the sitcom? There's just one half-hour comedy in the top 25, Charlie Sheen's "Two and a Half Men." It's the only ratings bright spot for a form that, up to six years ago, was a constant and substantial part of the nation's television diet. Compare the current state of comedy to the 1988-89 season, when eight of the top 10 shows were half-hour comedies. Comedy was king, all right, placing a staggering 16 shows among the top 25 that season. Twenty seasons later, comedy hasn't merely abdicated its prime-time crown. It has gone into exile. You can't even make the excuse that the 1988-89 season was some kind of comedic aberration in the history of television. Seven of the top 10 shows for the 1962-63 season were sitcoms; nine of the top 10 for the 1978-79 season; and eight of the top 10 for the 1991-92 season. The country's love affair with the sitcom blossomed during the 1952-53 season, when "I Love Lucy" claimed viewers' hearts and the No. 1 spot. It was the first sitcom -- filmed on a soundstage using three cameras and a live audience -- to accomplish this. "Friends," No. 1 for the 2001-02 season, was the last. Those two victories span 50 television seasons, and a sitcom was the No. 1 show for 24 of them. But there's nothing funny about the numbers being posted by half-hour comedies during the last few seasons. Is the sitcom dead? Or is it just comatose, waiting to snap back to consciousness and vitality? A genre that needs a shaking up? "It's a tough form," said writer-comedian Larry Wilmore, an Emmy winner and a regular on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show." "I think a lot of it could be generational. Some people, with the three-camera sitcom, it's just not their visual language or whatever, and you've just got to keep shaking it up." There are plenty of writers and producers, like Wilmore, shaking up the TV notion of comedy. You can find comedy all over the television landscape. You can't find sitcoms. Even NBC's acclaimed half-hour Thursday comedies, "30 Rock" and "The Office," don't qualify as traditional sitcoms (not using the three-camera, live audience method). But TV historian Earle Marsh, co-author of "The Complete Guide to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows," believes the sitcom is only one hit show away from a lightning comeback. "Nothing in television is ever dead," said Marsh, a Cleveland Heights native. "It's a cyclical business. Remember, in 1984 the prime-time soap was king, and everybody was saying the sitcom was dead. Along came 'The Cosby Show,' and the sitcom was king again." True, but the season before "Cosby" premiered, there still were seven sitcoms in the top 25. The reports of the sitcom's death were greatly exaggerated in 1984. There also hadn't been a disruption in a mentoring system that had been working since the radio comedies of the 1930s. Young comedy writers learned their craft from veteran producers. Carl Reiner ("The Dick Van Dyke Show") helped to guide Garry Marshall, who went on to produce "The Odd Couple," "Happy Days" and "Laverne & Shirley." "It's harder for writers to get established and sell scripts," Marsh said. "And this has been a long drought, but you'll see a breakthrough sitcom, and then everyone will copy it." A lack of creative confidence Wilmore agrees that the sitcom will come back, but America and the networks might first need to become disenchanted with the supercheap reality shows. "Both Jimmy Burrows, the pre-eminent director of sitcoms, and Garry Marshall pointed to reality shows and said, 'For some reason, people would rather laugh at their neighbor in a crazy situation than at a fictional character like a Jackie Gleason-type,' " said Michael Kantor, the writer, producer and director of "Make 'Em Laugh: The Funny Business of America," a documentary PBS will premiere in January. "I think a lot of confidence has left the creative space," said Kevin Reilly, president of Fox's entertainment division. "I see really talented people coming in very skittish, not knowing what to pitch, what to sell. I see executives trying to figure out where is that nerve to hit. I'll tell you one thing we're doing, which just sounds silly, but we've agreed we're not going to take comedy pitches in our office. We're going out to meet the writers on their turf. . . .We've got to do anything to mix it up." It makes good business sense, too. While reality shows post big one-time ratings, they don't offer back-end profits through repeats, merchandising, syndication, foreign sales, cable runs, foreign distribution and DVD sales. "Look at 'Seinfeld,' " Marsh said. "Nothing has longer legs than a sitcom, because you can watch the same episode over and over. A hit sitcom is the gift that keeps giving."
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11-26-2008, 11:10 AM	#2
Chocolate Moose Member Forum 4000 Club Member Join Date: Jan 21, 2007 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 4,902	that's to bad. I really only watch comedy.
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11-26-2008, 08:31 PM	#3
TJL Suburbanite Extrordinaire Forum Star Join Date: Dec 29, 2001 Location: New Jersey - the cradle of civilization Posts: 16,588	Great article. The sitcom is not dead. It's dormant for now. The author nailed it right on the head. Reality shows are super cheap to produce, that has always been a big reason why they became a network staple. And while American idol and dancing With The Stars are still ratings juggernauts, there have been more duds than hits lately in that genre. All you need is one breakout new sitcom, and the networks will be back trying to copy each others sitcoms. But I hope this happens soon. Sitcom writers are becoming an endangered species in the TV biz. I hope there are some good writers around when sitcoms are back in style.
	__________________ "I think I'll stroll up to the front to see how the shooting's going..." - Capt. Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pierce Read my blogs! http://centralparkamisguide.com/ http://dvdcriticscorner.com Visit me on Facebook!http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=641138880 Hey, I do the tweet thing too! http://twitter.com/TomLevier My shop of handmade items! http://www.etsy.com/shop/ColdGarageCreations

11-27-2008, 02:07 AM	#5
Zebra 3 Striped Tomato Forum Veteran Join Date: Jun 26, 2002 Location: Bay City Posts: 5,812	The only TV show mentioned in the article I watched regularly was Happy Days.
	__________________ Sitcoms Online STARSKY & HUTCH Message Board

11-28-2008, 07:16 PM	#8
JT Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Apr 29, 2001 Location: USA Posts: 7,223	Welcome to the world of soap opera fans, where everyday, you have to read articles about the impending apocalypse of your favorite genre.
	__________________ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrEbJBFWIPk

11-26-2008, 11:10 PM	#4
gidgetgrape Forever Gidget Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Sep 20, 2003 Location: Texas Posts: 3,505	Great article! Thanks for posting it. I hate that reality tv has gotten so trashy. I think it appeals to that "I wanna be a star" trait that a lot of people have. According to Gary David Goldberg's book, Sit Ubu Sit, The Cosby Show was passed over by all the networks before Brandon Tartikoff took a chance on it. Goldberg also said that Family Ties was a hard sell because people thought that families were over in the 80s. It's really sad that veteran writers get passed over too. I read an article awhile back that stated that a lot of the sitcom writers from the 70s and 80s were still interested in writing pilots, etc., but the networks prefer younger, less experienced writers.

11-28-2008, 12:24 AM	#6
yankeesrj12 Member Forum 4000 Club Member Join Date: Oct 09, 2008 Posts: 4,335	I think CBS is producing some good comedies and they are probably very close to the top 25 (How I Met Your Mother and The Big Bang Theory) I think if Gary Unmarried was after Two and a Half Men, it would also be in the top 25. Basically, without CBS the comedy would be dead.

11-28-2008, 05:44 PM	#7
JulieSomoski Roseanne Reboot - March 27! Forum Veteran Join Date: Nov 06, 2004 Location: Michigan Posts: 7,558	The sitcom genre is by no means dead. In fact, it seems to be coming to life more than ever this season, thanks to CBS. They currently have 7 sitcoms in production, the most of any network. They have 2 nights dedicated to comedy now. Their Monday night sitcoms are getting higher ratings than ever, thanks in part to the strong increases in both Big Bang Theory and How I met Your Mother this season. It's really the other 3 networks to blame. ABC this fall has just 1 half-hour comedy on the schedule, Samantha Who. NBC has fallen to nothing but single camera sitcoms with small audiences. And FOX currently has no sitcoms on their schedule, thanks to the premature cancelling of Back to You last season, which in part gave no support to Til Death this season.

12-03-2008, 10:45 PM	#10
Rosslover Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Jun 21, 2005 Posts: 431	I bellieve that the sitcom is not dead either, just dormant. As a an aspiring actress who was raised on the greats and hope to someday take her place among Lucille Ball and MTM, I am completely appalled by the mentality of the American viewing public and what they choose to view as entertainment. All of the networks had their reigns as Americas funniest network. ABC saw the mid 70s with Happy Days, Laverne and Shirley TAXI with Tuesday night as their big night. From the premiere of COSBY to Cheers, Family Ties, Seinfeld, Mad About You, FRIENDS, and ending with the demise of Will and Grace NBC invented the phrase Must See TV. When I saw My Name is Earl and The Office promoted as Must See TV , I wanted to throw up. Reality TV originated on MTV with people watching the Real World. Then SURVIVIOR brought it to the masses. And I can proudly point out that only one other show stood against the mighty show and that was the NBC hit FRIENDS. My other gripe about reality shows is that people study and learn their craft for years and struggle doing no pay student films and crappy extra roles and then some idiot comes along and stands in a line and they become America's darling. Tell me people if you were a starving actor, would you think that was fair?