tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post6211686294670440001..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: My latest multi-camera rantBy Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-66884712892337686602019-02-06T08:34:35.834-08:002019-02-06T08:34:35.834-08:00@Baby Boomer Betty Laugh Machine mixer, Carroll Pr...@Baby Boomer Betty Laugh Machine mixer, Carroll Pratt, said in an interview that "Uh-oh" lady got to be so recognizable that viewers actually began writing in begging for it to be stopped.<br /><br />And you're right, I know I've heard that "Uh-oh" at least once on both BEWITCHED and I DREAM OF JEANNIE. I think I even have an mp3 of it and used it at least once in my own original work as well.Joseph Scarbroughhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02572781083272335747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-686601336783516422019-02-05T18:40:56.952-08:002019-02-05T18:40:56.952-08:00@Mike Doran, I hear ya. Same gen here.
I think w...@Mike Doran, I hear ya. Same gen here. <br /><br />I think we all "got" canned laughter from "I Love Lucy" where we could hear the "Uh-oh" lady in about every episode. <br /><br />I just looked online for any info about the "Uh-oh" lady and some have her as Lucille Ball's mother, but others say no. According to Jess Oppenheimer's son, Lucy's mother wasn't located close enough in the audience to be picked up on the microphones.<br /><br />Nevertheless, the "Uh-oh" lady lives on - I've often heard her canned "surprise" on other sit-coms over the years.<br /><br />Baby Boomer Bettynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-89179248997039389152019-01-31T16:15:47.195-08:002019-01-31T16:15:47.195-08:00@Jen As someone who films in a single camera forma...@Jen As someone who films in a single camera format, my personal preference is for the more cinematic style: you see a wider variety of camera angles that you would otherwise never see on a multi-cam show due to half the studio being occupied by an audience - makes for more visually interesting screen work, IMHO. Plus, with camera angles allow you to see other parts of the sets, like fourth walls and such, you're more emersed in that show's universe and connected to its characters, because it feels a little more organic, as opposed multi-cam shows that, due to their setup and format, feel more like stage plays, which you know is make believe anyway.<br /><br />That's not to say I don't also enjoy multi-cam shows either. In fact, I actually prefer the multi-cam seasons of THE ODD COUPLE, as opposed to its single-cam first season: both Tony Randall and Jack Klugman's performances are leaps and bounds more lively, spontaneous, and charismatic, as opposed to their stiffer and more subdued performances in the first season (especially Tony Randall; Felix is almost an entirely different character).<br /><br />But, that's just my person preference, anyway. And, to clarify, I speak of older single-cam sitcoms, not the contemporary ones that are presented like mockumentaries - those take you out of the experience of being in that show's environment, and makes it incredibly difficult to invest in and connect to the characters. Check out my satirical case study sometime, if you'd like:<br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3tSFLtYoFY<br />Joseph Scarbroughhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02572781083272335747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-29240721124820059702019-01-31T09:17:50.296-08:002019-01-31T09:17:50.296-08:00Then you've got shows like SEINFELD, that took...Then you've got shows like SEINFELD, that took an interesting approach. As the show got bigger, and its budget and production values expanded in later seasons, they filmed more and more scenes without an audience present, such as out on the New York Street set, or in Jerry's hallway, or even brief little incidental scenes on a small limbo set (somebody's apartment door, or something like that). In cases like this, they usually did one of two things: either they would film the scene, screen it for the audience later, and record their reaction for the final cut; or the actors would re-enact the scene (sometimes showrunner Larry David would stand-in for a guest actor) in front of the audience during principal filming and record their reaction from that.Joseph Scarbroughhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02572781083272335747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-43246860814083222302019-01-31T08:19:30.573-08:002019-01-31T08:19:30.573-08:00Then why shoot single camera shows? They seem like...Then why shoot single camera shows? They seem like a hassle.Jen from Jerseynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-48668866710484099482019-01-31T06:26:35.304-08:002019-01-31T06:26:35.304-08:00In addition to Joseph's good comments, some ot...In addition to Joseph's good comments, some other reasons for three cameras are that you only have a few hours to get the sitcom episode in the can. With three cameras at different framings and different angles (and each angle being recorded simultaneously), the director and exec producers have choices to choose from in editing. <br /><br />One-camera means the camera would have to be moved to get each of the framings/angles that a three-camera would get all at once. This would take forever and wear out the audience. Time and money are saved. A major consideration.<br /><br />Most of the sitcoms I wrote for (three-camera) would tape the same episode twice the same day, with dinner in between. This gave the director and exec prods even more choices (some lines might have been done better in one taping than the other, for example). Often, our one-hour dinner break found us rewriting jokes that didn't work in the first taping.Gene Braunsteinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-12161206947595833632019-01-30T20:21:59.485-08:002019-01-30T20:21:59.485-08:00@MikeN Because single camera shows aren't form...@MikeN Because single camera shows aren't formatted to accommodate a studio audience. If you have a group shot, they film the same scene multiple times from different angles - usually starting with a group shot known as a "master," then each of the actors' individual close-ups, and depending on how the actors are staged in the scene, they may have to remove parts of the set and add other parts for the camera. In a case like this, not only is a studio audience impractical, they're not going to want to sit through all that technical stuff. This is why multi-cam shows are usually shot in front of a live audience, because they're generally performed like stage plays.Joseph Scarbroughhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02572781083272335747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-38773645779852071412019-01-30T17:30:36.343-08:002019-01-30T17:30:36.343-08:00I'm a Fifties Kid, born into TV, and (I'd ...I'm a Fifties Kid, born into TV, and (I'd say) about average intelligence.<br />"Canned laughter", as we all called it then, never bothered me one way or the other.<br />Any more than back projection, or miniatures, or stunt doubles who looked nothing like the stars they were subbing for, or any of the "lovely cheats" (Efrem Zimbalist's term) that TV showmakers used in the programs I grew up watching.<br />Even as a kid I knew full well that Ozzie and Harriet didn't have an audience in their house, any more than Sgt. Bilko had one in his barracks.<br />I loved how George Burns would kid the cheats while the stories were going on (remember his "magic TV" that let him interject himself into the action?).<br />I don't claim to be more "sophisticated" than any other watcher, yesterday or today; honestly, I thought <i>everybody got it</i>, just as I did - I and everybody else I knew, anyway.<br />It seems to me as I'm reading this that I find some people's outrage at the Lovely Cheats to be misplaced - hey, it's only TV, fer cry-eye.<br />Maybe that's it - I'm Just Gettin' <i>OLD</i>.<br />I think I'll lie down …Mike Doranhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14427528138598549103noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-87601634152495702222019-01-30T12:56:31.767-08:002019-01-30T12:56:31.767-08:00Why can't you have a single camera how with a ...Why can't you have a single camera how with a studio audience?MikeNnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-83210383309810826052019-01-30T11:13:54.324-08:002019-01-30T11:13:54.324-08:00I could not agree more.
I watched The Conners a c...I could not agree more.<br /><br />I watched The Conners a couple of times, figuring I would give it a try after its previous namesake was shown the door.<br /><br />I could not believe how uproariously the audience was allegedly laughing. There were lines I don't think were even intended to be funny that were getting this identical, huge laugh. <br /><br />It's unbearable to watch.david russellhttp://www.davidrussell.canoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-90614493578806131132019-01-30T06:56:52.426-08:002019-01-30T06:56:52.426-08:00Our living room TV is permanently tuned to Disney,...Our living room TV is permanently tuned to Disney, where almost all shows seem to have the audience laugh every 10 seconds. I was wondering if you or your daughter could describe how different it is to write for kids' shows and whether the composition of the audience influences the writing.Mark P.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-41187743856097147602019-01-30T06:35:09.024-08:002019-01-30T06:35:09.024-08:00So glad for this column, because this has been bot...So glad for this column, because this has been bothering me for a while now. And I'm especially glad someone mentioned 'Fam,' because that was the most blatant example I've ever seen, and was turned off immediately from the very first (unfunny) line. I have no issue with a chuckle on a throwaway line, but you'd think the audience was watching Sammy Davis Jr. kissing Archie Bunker. And much as I loved the original 'Roseanne,' 'The Connors' is another perpetrator of this. <br /><br />I know people disliked the canned laughter of the 60s and early 70s (those used on the first five seasons of M*A*S*H). But in their defense, they purposely sounded canned. So when they were added to a multicam with 'Dick Van Dyke,' there was a clear distinction. You never felt the producers were pulling something over on you. <br /><br /> Rob Greenberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08185763574150467803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-65917653559174047972019-01-29T22:07:22.321-08:002019-01-29T22:07:22.321-08:00Enjoy your column Ken. CHEERS and FRASIER are both...Enjoy your column Ken. CHEERS and FRASIER are both in that upper echelon of sitcom gems and still hold up. The laugh track thing IS annoying ESPECIALLY when it’s the only laughter earned (by lazy writing and directing)... Maybe the hour shows should be accompanied by a gasp-track. I think the networks have to work harder (thus the laugh track), to keep audiences engaged now that there is only 20 min of content and about 10 min of ads and promos. Imagine telling a story and being interrupted every 4 or 5 minutes? It jolts the senses, the way (commercial breaks) take viewers out of the shows they’re watching... One second your watching some people in a living room then snap, you’re watching a new Toyota drive onto a summit, or a gigantic cheeseburger... And thus, god created streaming.Danny Jacobsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05691524076598183100noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-4796055406486137822019-01-29T21:46:55.528-08:002019-01-29T21:46:55.528-08:00This is a timely post coming just after the Rent p...This is a timely post coming just after the Rent production on Fox. It sounded like nitrous oxide had leaked into the studio. The audience was so ecstatic at every little thing, you genuinely could not hear the performances at times. I have a feeling that at least some of the audience was paid (especially given that they wound up having to air the dress rehearsal).<br /><br />As far as those audiences that really do laugh their heads off, I wonder if that is a natural response to the build-up before seeing the show. When people wait for a long time for something with anticipation, it's been my observation that they tend to give it the benefit of the doubt because -- at least subliminally -- they don't want to feel like all that effort to see the show was wasted. (Remember how long it took Star Wars fans to finally acknowledge that the prequels sucked.) If you put a lot of effort and time into going to see The Big Bang Theory, you go into the show *wanting* it to be hilarious, so it's kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy. Or maybe audiences just think they are supposed to be laughing hard at every telegraphed punchline, like some concertgoers think they are supposed to sing along with every song.Andy Rosenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-41378110070442250022019-01-29T20:59:50.528-08:002019-01-29T20:59:50.528-08:00We just saw 5 minutes of an episode of Fam, before...We just saw 5 minutes of an episode of Fam, before tapping out and it was very close to the Monty Python bit, where Michael Palin turned the laugh machine on, then off. Barely a fade in/out. Just terrible. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16052986912066599837noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-62172657046245202162019-01-29T19:25:50.210-08:002019-01-29T19:25:50.210-08:00I'm curious about something that Ken may have ...I'm curious about something that Ken may have insight on. When I was in my twenties and hard up for cash I used to do extra/audience work. They would usually pay 50 bucks and buy lunch to sit and watch a sitcom taping. They expectation was that we would laugh uproariously. Obviously, the shows that needed to use the extra agency to fill their audiences weren't always the best quality shows (although some were. I saw Newsradio this way). Often, they would do multiple takes of the same joke and the agency made it clear we were expected to laugh just as much every time.<br /><br />I always wondered if the folks making the show could tell the difference. Pretty quickly I could tell that a lot of the folks laughing were being paid to be there and the laughs felt not genuine to me.Alhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02305616385992111197noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-5003514509016509102019-01-29T17:21:18.410-08:002019-01-29T17:21:18.410-08:00I stopped watching sitcoms about the time the laug...I stopped watching sitcoms about the time the laugh tracks were used even when someone just walked into a room and said "Hello". I have always found them distracting when overused, and they are always overused.Frederic Aldenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16092073035980930082noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-31876816332254957592019-01-29T16:41:01.408-08:002019-01-29T16:41:01.408-08:00Love the column, Ken, but wished you'd named n...Love the column, Ken, but wished you'd named names. GoodScouthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06373274236196252085noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-50402392171447727602019-01-29T15:49:05.645-08:002019-01-29T15:49:05.645-08:00FRIDAY QUESTION: What was one of the earliest loud...FRIDAY QUESTION: What was one of the earliest loud laughs from a studio audience from a Levine and Isaacs script?Brian Phillipshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06485075283223444305noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-83940238829962983732019-01-29T14:44:41.725-08:002019-01-29T14:44:41.725-08:00The past couple weekends I've been watching in...The past couple weekends I've been watching interviews on the Television Academy website. First the Charles brothers. Then David Lee (unfortunately, no Peter Casey). One of the lessons David Lee took away from Charles Brothers was that a script might be good, but it could still be better and never be satisfied with just good. And they would rewrite whole scenes, even entire drafts that were good. Also, to trust the material and be willing not to have two laughs a page to build up to a bigger laugh later and that developing the spine of the story was more important that the jokes, which could be added in later drafts.MikeKPa.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-45503986707976334272019-01-29T14:23:55.176-08:002019-01-29T14:23:55.176-08:00CBS has a new godawful sitcom called "Fam&quo...CBS has a new godawful sitcom called "Fam" that legit didn't have a single funny joke, yet the machine was on overdrive. It's one thing to not be funny, but it's downright insulting to try and convince me otherwise. KBnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-31206848045326191422019-01-29T13:41:27.715-08:002019-01-29T13:41:27.715-08:00Thank you for this! Been at plenty of tapings and ...Thank you for this! Been at plenty of tapings and witnessed this myself. Sometimes things are just funnier in the room and in the moment than those who may be watching later can actually believe. I'd love it if shows had to show what % of laughs were real and not pumped up. I feel like multicams get a bad name for this and the number of times things are pumped up are way less than most would believe. Important to note people who are in those audiences are usually big fans who waited hours to see it and will enjoy it way more than someone casually watching on the couch. Myleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07139984409445302062noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-82192085649347279032019-01-29T13:36:37.484-08:002019-01-29T13:36:37.484-08:00You can't get more successful than Big Bang. I...You can't get more successful than Big Bang. It worked better than anyone could've imagined. Hundreds of episodes, a successful spinoff, highest paid actors, and the ratings are still top notch after all these seasons. Tickets are sold-out within seconds for every taping. Myleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07139984409445302062noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-53889718657296931912019-01-29T12:23:38.120-08:002019-01-29T12:23:38.120-08:00Was The Middle multi camera? There was no laugh tr...Was The Middle multi camera? There was no laugh track but it’s one of the few shows that made me laugh out loud- husband too and he’s not a laugher.Jen from Jerseynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-49786274125168668352019-01-29T12:12:05.665-08:002019-01-29T12:12:05.665-08:00Check out late-night talk shows, if you want to he...Check out late-night talk shows, if you want to hear some dead audiences "sweetened" by laugh tracks. In fairness, even if the jokes are OK (as is frequently the case) the lack of audience response would really deflate the show far more than the lack of laughter would hurt a decent 1- or 3-camera show shot without an audience at all.Todd Everettnoreply@blogger.com